You may not recognize the name as he had small roles in most of the films he did. Some of the films are notable classics. Click the link to see his picture. He was one of my favorites and he will be missed. Thanks for the memories, Vincent. Rest in peace. Surf --------------------------------------------------------------------------- http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/Movies/12/26/obit.schiavelli.ap/index.html Character actor Vincent Schiavelli dead 'Ghost,' 'Cuckoo's Nest' actor claimed by lung cancer Monday, December 26, 2005; Posted: 12:21 p.m. EST (17:21 GMT) Vincent Schiavelli appeared in more than 150 movies and TV shows, including "Ghost." FILMOGRAPHY Vincent Schiavelli's roles included: - Frederickson in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (1975) - Mr. Vargas in "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" (1982) - Salieri's valet in "Amadeus" (1984) - Mr. Kerber in "Better Off Dead" (1985) - Subway Ghost in "Ghost" (1990) - Mr. Barrow in "A Little Princess" (1995) - Chester in "The People vs. Larry Flynt" (1996) - Buggy Ding Dong in "Death to Smoochy" (2002) - appearances in the TV shows "Taxi," "Night Court," "MacGyver," "Miami Vice" and "Star Trek: The Next Generation," among many others YOUR E-MAIL ALERTS ROME, Italy (AP) -- Character actor Vincent Schiavelli, who appeared in scores of movies, including "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" and "Ghost," died Monday at his home in Sicily. He was 57. He died of lung cancer, said Salvatore Glorioso, mayor of Polizzi Generosa, the Sicilian village where Schiavelli resided. Schiavelli, whose gloomy, droopy-eyed look made him perfect to play creepy or eccentric characters, made appearances in some 150 film and television productions, according to the Internet Movie Database. Among the movies: "Fast Times at Ridgemont High," "Amadeus," "Batman Returns," and "The People vs. Larry Flint." He was selected in 1997 by Vanity Fair as one of America's best character actors. Schiavelli, who was born and raised in New York, studied acting at New York University's School of the Arts. He also wrote three cookbooks and many food articles for magazines and newspapers, possibly inheriting his love for cooking from his grandfather, who had been a cook for an Italian baron before moving to the United States, according to IMDb. "He was a great friend, a great chef and a great talker," Glorioso, who has known Schiavelli for almost four years, said in a telephone interview. "With a smooth, witty conversation, he would make everything look more colorful. I've lost a brother," he said. Schiavelli also had worked in Italy, including in 2001 when he directed a theater piece in Sicily based on nine fables. A funeral service will be held Tuesday in Polizzi Generosa, Glorioso said.
RIP, Mr. Vargas. I'll always remember him as the guy that pulled the heart out of the cadaver in Fast Times at Ridgemont High.
I'll remember him as the weird teacher that asked Lane Myer if it was OK to ask out his ex girlfriend in Better Off Dead.
I remember him in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. I don't even think it was a speaking role. He was one of the cops that chased the spaceships at the beginning.
I loved "Fast Times", and one of my favorite lines: Mr. Vargas: Are you in my class? Spicoli: I am today!
Better Off Dead was a great movie... the first movie I saw him in as a kid, I hate seeing these often great overlooked character actors pass on.
Didn't recognize the name, but as soon as I saw the picture I thought of him in the opening scene of Amadeus.
