Posted on 02/19/2006 12:15:41 AM PST by lunarbicep
A debonair 68-year-old actor — whose half-century career included a memorable role in all three "Godfather" movies — was last night dragged to his death in a horrific tour-bus accident on the Upper West Side, police sources said.
Richard Bright, whose piercing blue eyes and dark hair saw him often cast as a cop or criminal, crumpled to the ground as he was hit by the rear wheel of an Academy bus at about 6:30 p.m. as it turned left on Columbus Avenue at 86th Street, according to witnesses.
The driver was unaware of the accident until he reached the Port Authority terminal and was questioned by police. There was no indication of a crime and no charges were filed, police sources said.
Bright, whose winter coat and dentures were left behind on the street, was pronounced dead at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital.
"His face was beat up. His leg was mangled," said Teri Robinson, 47, who saw the accident from the back of a taxi. "It was very startling."
Movie fans would best know Bright from his performance as Al Neri, the bodyguard to Al Pacino's Michael Corleone character in "The Godfather" trilogy.
He played a key part in one of the most haunting scenes in "The Godfather II," when he shot Corleone's older brother Fredo (John Cazale) during a fishing trip.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
What an awful death.
*ping*
Dreadful accident. I enjoyed his work. May he rest in peace.
Wow! That's just awful!
http://imdb.com/name/nm0109175/
Richard Bright's filmography at IMDB
How awful!
Prayers for him and also for the poor bus driver :-(
Biography for
Richard Bright
Mini biography
Fair complexioned, cold eyed actor Richard Bright has notched up an impressive array of character performances of often shifty, or deadly characters on the wrong side of the law. First came to attention as a burglar in the engrossing _Panic in Needle Park(1971)_ , and then followed it the following year playing a slick con artist hustling naive Ali MacGraw for the bank robbery loot in The Getaway (1972), before Steve McQueen pummels Bright to get the money back. Additionally, in 1972 he made his first appearance as bodyguard / enforcer "Al Neri" protecting Al Pacino in The Godfather (1972), and returned in the same role in The Godfather: Part II (1974), and 16 years later he was back once again still protecting mob boss Al Pacino in The Godfather: Part III (1990). Bright's look's have endeared him to casting agents looking for criminals & cops, as he has also appeared in Sergio Leone's, Once Upon a Time in America (1984), Sam Raimi's crazy _Crimewave (1985)_ , the union tale, _Teamster Boss: The Jackie Presser Story (1992)_ and _Witness to the Mob (1998)_ . In addition, he has appeared regularly on TV in police/drama shows such as "Hill Street Blues", "Houston Knights", "Third Watch" & "The Sopranos".
Gee! Bad way to go. Rest in peace.
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RIP Mr. Richard Bright .... "you did good"
While Michael Corleoni's nephew is being baptized.
RIP. The "Godfather" has become a real part of our culture, a book like "Gone with the Wind" was to an earlier generation, and a film like "Casablanca" that everyone has seen and remembers.
The "Godfather" series is not a part of American culture. Maybe the east coast where for some reason the mob is revered but the rest of the U.S.
I have only seen the first one. After that the rest could only be as boring as the first so I never watched.
Gee, I guess you represent the West, the MidWest, and the South, so if you say The Godfather isn't part of American culture, we have to take your word for it.
Right. Sure. OK. No problem there.
I'm sure more poeple in this country can tell you who Don Corleone is than can tell you who Dick Cheney is - and that's AFTER the shooting!
There seemed to be a pattern to his type cast!
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