Anthony Vallelonga may be a name you are not familiar with, but his nickname Tony Lip resonates across Hollywood massively. The Bronx-raised actor has an exceptional feat to his legacy in that he is the only actor to appear in The Godfather, Goodfellas, and The Sopranos, three of the most iconic depictions of the Mafia ever told on screen. Tony Lip passed away on January 4, 2013, at 82 years of age. However, his legacy lives on through his son, two-time Oscar winner Nick Vallelonga.
With Lip’s parts being rather small in the legendary Mafia movies The Godfather and Goodfellas, he never quite became known to wider audiences at that time. However, that all changed when he landed a bigger role in The Sopranos. Again, he wasn’t a leading actor, however, his name really ascended when his son Nick wrote the screenplay for Green Book, a movie based on his father’s early days. So, let’s break down why Tony Lip is way more iconic than you think.
The Early Days of Tony Lip
Tony Lip was born on July 30, 1930 in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, USA. However, he was raised in the Bronx, New York. His nickname came from the notion that he could convince people to do anything he wanted them to with his sharp chitchat. From an early age, he had a passion for performing and landed a job at the world-famous Copacabana Nightclub where he played host to some of the most famous personalities of the time, including Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett and Bobby Darin. Lip then took a swing at acting, starring in a brief background role in The Godfather and slightly larger role in Martin Scorsese‘s Goodfellas as Frankie The Wop. While his role was still short in nature, it comes at one of the movie’s most iconic scenes – a one-move tracking shot that sees Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) introduce the audience to all of the wise guys he associates with.
After Goodfellas, Lip went on to star in minor roles in films like Who’s the Man?, A Brilliant Disguise, and another iconic Mafia movie, Donnie Brasco, where he shared the screen with Al Pacino. Although he never became a leading man, Tony Lip starred in a total of four movies that were nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, with The Godfather taking home the gold in 1973. While these films didn’t make him a recognisable star, his chance was right around the corner.
Breaking Down Tony Lip’s Role in The Sopranos
After many years of background roles and smaller parts, Tony Lip got his chance to shine in The Sopranos, taking on the role of New York Mafia boss Carmine Lupertazzi Sr. Lip’s role was rather nuanced as he served as both friend and competition to Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), the head of New Jersey’s crime family. Lip starred in a total of 11 episodes between 2001 and 2007 and his character was pivotal to some of the show’s most explosive storylines. The Sopranos was stacked full of seasoned thespians and many theater-trained actors, yet the untrained Tony Lip held his own, captivating audiences with a subtle and understated performance despite his character being such a powerful and deadly man.
The Story Behind the Oscar-Winning Green Book
While The Sopranos was a much larger role for Tony Lip, in 2018, his name ascended posthumously thanks to the movie Green Book. Written by Lip’s son Nick, Green Book tells the real-life story of a road trip between Lip (played by Viggo Mortensen) and African-American musician Don Shirley (portrayed by Mahershala Ali). Before working as front of house at the Copacabana, Lip first worked as a bouncer. It was during this time that he was asked to drive Shirley on a trip around the deep South as he played piano from venue to venue.
The touching movie explores the blossoming relationship of the two men, who start out as a bickering duo who can’t agree on anything before becoming good friends. The movie presents Lip as a racist man who slowly sees the error of his ways. According to Lip’s son Nick, this is accurate, as Lip admitted to being racist in his early years due to growing up on the rough Italian-American streets of the Bronx. Green Book seemed set to fail at first, considering that the film was helmed by slapstick director Peter Farrelly, who was previously only known for raunchy comedies like Dumb and Dumber, Shallow Hal, and Me, Myself, & Irene. However, this heartfelt true story resonated with both audiences and critics alike, winning Best Picture at the Academy Awards, Best Writing for Nick Vallelonga, Peter Farrelly and writing partner Brian Hayes Currie, and Best Supporting Actor for Mahershala Ali. Furthermore, Viggo Mortensen was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his rendition as Lip, further igniting the legendary status of the man himself many years after his death.
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