Actor Vincent Gardenia Dies Of Heart Attack

PHILADELPHIA - Vincent Gardenia, the award-winning actor who strived for variety during his 65 years in stage, television and film, died Wednesday of a heart attack at age 71.

Mr. Gardenia earned Oscar nominations for roles as a baseball manager in "Bang the Drum Slowly" in 1973 and as the patriarch of a quirky Brooklyn family in the 1987 film "Moonstruck."

He won a Tony for his performance in "The Prisoner of Second Avenue" in 1972 and an Emmy in HBO's "Age Old Friends" in 1990.

Mr. Gardenia once estimated he played 500 parts in a career that began when he was 5.

Mr. Gardenia appeared in 10 episodes of the TV series "All In The Family" as Archie Bunker's neighbor. Other roles included "Ballroom" on Broadway; Neil Simon's "God's Favorite" and "California Suite"; and the movies "The Hustler," "The Front Page," "Heaven Can Wait" and "Little Shop of Horrors."

He had kicked off the Philadelphia run of "Breaking Legs" Tuesday night.