Abe Vigoda

Biography

Abe Vigoda was an American actor born in Brooklyn, New York, to Russian Jewish immigrant parents. He began his acting career at 17 with small theater shows and later studied on the G.I. Bill before serving in World War II. Vigoda gained fame for his roles in The Godfather (1972) as Salvatore Tessio and Barney Miller (1974-1977) as Sgt. Phil Fish, earning popularity that led to a short-lived spin-off series, Fish.