Eli Wallach, dead at 98

Eli Wallach, "The Ugly," dead at 98

I wrote about him not long ago. He was the actor originally cast to play Sinatra's role in From Here to Eternity. In the fictional version presented in "The Godfather," the director was persuaded to change his mind by waking up next to a horse's head. The truth was significantly more mundane. Wikipedia explains it as follows:

In 1953, Wallach, along with Frank Sinatra and Harvey Lembeck tried out for the role of Maggio in the film From Here to Eternity. Sinatra biographer Kitty Kelly notes that while Sinatra's test was good, it had none of the "consummate acting ability" of Wallach. Producer Harry Cohn and director Fred Zinnemann were "dazzled" by Wallach's screen test and wanted him to play the part. However, Wallach had previously been offered an important role in another Tennessee Williams play, ''Camino Real, to be directed by Elia Kazan, and turned down the movie role. Wallach said that when he learned that the play had finally received financing, he "grabbed" the opportunity: "It was a remarkable piece of writing by the leading playwright in American and it was going to be directed by the country's best. There really wasn't much of a choice for me."[15] The film won eight Academy Awards, including one for Sinatra, which revived his career. Wallach recalled afterwards, "Whenever Sinatra saw me, he’d say, 'Hello, you crazy actor!'"[3]"