Abe Vigoda of 'Godfather' fame, dies at 94

Abe Vigoda, who played the Mafia lieutenant Sal Tessio in the original "Godfather" movie, died Tuesday, according to his manager, Sid Craig. He was 94.

Vigoda passed away at the New Jersey home of his daughter, Carol.

Though Vigoda achieved a good bit of fame from his 1970s "Godfather" role, his years on "Barney Miller" and the short-lived spinoff "Fish," he arguably became best known for being alive despite reports of his premature demise.

"I hope he knew about our tribute, and I hope he was amused by it. Our intent was always to bring a smile by pointing to his longevity, which was an inspiration," said Sun Sentinel reporter Rafael Olmeda, who ran Vigoda-themed social media pages.

A noted New York stage actor by the time Francis Ford Coppola came calling about "The Godfather," Vigoda had not read the book and wasn't thinking about mobster roles; he was Jewish, not Italian.

But Coppola liked him as a mobster, and he won the role of Tessio in the 1972 original and returned for the 1974 sequel.

"The Godfather" was his first really big job, and he remembered a car being sent for him every day of shooting and sitting near Marlon Brando during makeup.

"I found him to be a quiet man. He kept mostly to himself," Vigoda told CNN in 2008. "He was a great star. This was my first big thing: I felt lucky and grateful I was with these people."

Notable to him was the presence of actual New York mob family members on the set. "They kept looking at me, as if to say, 'What family is he from?' " Vigoda said. "It was fascinating."

Robert Duvall, a "Godfather" co-star, remembered Vigoda in a statement.

"We had some great memories together and he will really be missed," Duvall said.

The "Godfather" movies led to his successful run on "Barney Miller," which ran from 1974-82 and starred Hal Linden as the title character. Vigoda was on the show until 1977.