Paul Sorvino Of "Goodfellas" & "Law & Order" Fame Has Died At 83

The Brooklyn native’s publicist confirmed his passing on Monday morning. RIP.

The unfortunate death of 83-year-old Paul Sorvino was announced earlier today (July 25). As CTV News reports, the actor’s publicist, Roger Neal, confirmed the news, also noting at the time that the star died due to natural causes this morning.

“Our hearts are broken, there will never be another Paul Sorvino,” his wife, Dee Dee Sorvino said in a statement. “He was the love of my life, and one of the greatest performers to ever grace the screen and stage.”

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Paul Sorvino in 2010 — Jason Kempin/Getty Images

Paul had a career in the entertainment industry that spanned over five decades, becoming a mainstay in both television and film.

Some of his most famous roles include Paulie Cicero in Goodfellas and NYPD sergeant Phil Cerretta on Law & Order, though he also played an Italian American communist in Warren Beaty’s Reds, a mob boss by the name of Eddie Valentine in The Rocketeer, and the role of Henry Kissinger in Oliver Stone’s Nixon.

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While he often played tough guys on-screen, during his leisure time, Sorvino enjoyed poetry, painting, and opera.

The late star was born in Brooklyn, New York to a piano instructor mother and a foreman father back in 1939. From a young age he was musically inclined, and eventually went on to attend the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York where he found a love for theatre.

In 1964 Sorvino made his Broadway debut in Bajour and just six years later he would make his film debut in Carl Reiner’s Where’s Poppa?

Other career highlights include working with Scarface star Al Pacino in The Panic in Needle Park as well as with James Caan in The Gambler. He even got to use his dance training opposite professional ballerina Anne Ditchburn when he took on a romantic leading role in the Rocky follow-up, Slow Dancing in the Big City.

Paul Sorvino leaves behind three children from his first marriage – Mira, Amanda, and Michael. RIP.

[Via]