Tall and solidly built, this Italian-American professional wrestler turned actor was born Lenny Passaforo in Brooklyn, New York, and is best remembered for his first on-screen role as the not too bright but ever loyal bodyguard Luca Brasi in The Godfather (1972). Montana didn't get a lot of screen time before being eliminated by the henchmen of opposing gangster Al Lettieri with a garrote and a knife; however, he caught the eye of casting agents and over the next ten years racked up roles in 16 movies. Usually cast as "muscle for hire", he was equally good at playing the intimidating thug or a buffoonish hoodlum, such as in Battle Creek Brawl (1980) and The Jerk (1979). His last film appearance was in the B-thriller Blood Song (1982), which he also co-wrote. He died in May 1992 of a heart attack while in Italy.
Tall and solidly built, this Italian-American professional wrestler turned actor was born Lenny Passaforo in Brooklyn, New York, and is best remembered for his first on-screen role as the not too bright but ever loyal bodyguard Luca Brasi in The Godfather (1972). Montana didn't get a lot of screen time before being eliminated by the henchmen of opposing gangster Al Lettieri with a garrote and a knife; however, he caught the eye of casting agents and over the next ten years racked up roles in 16 movies. Usually cast as "muscle for hire", he was equally good at playing the intimidating thug or a buffoonish hoodlum, such as in Battle Creek Brawl (1980) and The Jerk (1979). His last film appearance was in the B-thriller Blood Song (1982), which he also co-wrote. He died in May 1992 of a heart attack while in Italy.
External links
IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/nm0598926
Wikipedia: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1352034
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Filmography (Movies)
Blood Song
Character:Skipper
Release Date:01/10/1982
Pandemonium
Character:Coach
Release Date:01/04/1982
Evilspeak
Character:Jake
Release Date:22/08/1981
The Godfather: The Complete Epic 1901–1959
Character:Luca Brasi (uncredited)
Release Date:24/03/1981
...All the Marbles
Character:Jerome
Release Date:01/03/1981
Below the Belt
Character:The Geek
Release Date:01/12/1980
The Big Brawl
Character:John
Release Date:18/08/1980
Defiance
Character:Whacko
Release Date:14/03/1980
The Jerk
Character:Con Man
Release Date:14/12/1979
Seven
Character:The Kahuna
Release Date:07/09/1979
They Went That-A-Way & That-A-Way
Character:Brick
Release Date:01/12/1978
Matilda
Character:Hood #1
Release Date:22/06/1978
Fingers
Character:Luchino
Release Date:02/03/1978
Contract on Cherry Street
Character:Phil Lombardi
Release Date:19/11/1977
Patty
Character:The Racketeer
Release Date:11/02/1976
Strike Force
Character:Italian Dockworker
Release Date:12/04/1975
The Funny Face of the Godfather
Character:Saro
Release Date:03/05/1973
The Godfather
Character:Luca Brasi
Release Date:14/03/1972
Change of Habit
Character:Grocer (uncredited)
Release Date:10/11/1969
Television Appearances
Images
