Who was Henry Silva? Tributes pour in as 'Ocean's 11' and 'The Manchurian Candidate' star dies aged 95

Henry Silva was well-known for his performances in popular movies like Ocean’s 11, The Manchurian Candidate, Johnny Coo, Sharky’s Machine, and Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai. He mostly played criminals or gangsters in his movies.

Henry's son, Scott Silva, revealed that at the time of his death, Henry was hospitalized at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills. He died of natural causes.

"Terrific in Johnny Cool": Twitter flooded with tributes for Henry Silva

Henry Silva was a famous name among the public for the numerous memorable performances that he delivered throughout his career. Twitter was flooded with tributes when people heard about his demise:

Henry Silva in the entertainment industry: Exploring his career trajectory

Born on September 23, 1926, Henry Silva left school at the age of 13 and began going to drama classes while working as a dishwasher and waiter at a Manhattan hotel. He then auditioned for the Actors Studio in 1955 and was accepted. He subsequently appeared in the film version of the play, A Hatful of Rain.

Henry gained recognition for his performances as the antagonist in films like The Tall T, The Bravados and The Law, and Jake Wade. He portrayed a forest-dwelling Venezuela native, Kua-Ko, in the 1959 adventure film, Green Mansions. He shot to fame with his performances in Ocean’s 11 (1960), The Manchurian Candidate and Sergeants 3 (1962).

Straying away from his usual villainous roles, Silva essayed a comic role as one of the stepbrothers in the 1960 semi-classical comedy film adaptation of Cinderella, titled Cinderfella. He then made appearances on TV shows like The Outer Limits, The Untouchables, Night Gallery, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Thriller, and more.

Silva's performance as Salvatore “Johnny Cool” Giordano in the 1963 gangster film Johnny Cool was praised by critics and audiences. Following this, in 1965, he received an offer from an Italian film producer, who said that he would star him as a hero. Silva started with the 1966 Spaghetti Western film, The Hills Run Red, and had appeared in 25 Italian movies by 1977.

He returned to the US in the mid-1970s, and featured alongside Frank Sinatra in Contract on Cherry Street. He became a familiar face in the film industry in the 80s and 90s and appeared in several successful films including Alligator, Escape from the Bronx, Cannonball Run II, Batman: The Animated Series, The New Batman Adventures and Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai.

Silva also contributed to a 2012 feature-length documentary, Eurocrime! The Italian Cop and Gangster Films that ruled the 70s, which was helmed by Mike Malloy.

Silva died nine days before his 96th birthday. He is survived by his sons Scott and Michael.

About the author

Anupal is a pop culture writer at Sportskeeda with a degree in Political Science. He developed a keen interest in the lives of celebrities, films, TV shows, and box office collections since an early age. After accumulating significant experience as a content writer across varied fields at companies such as The Indian Wire, DigiStatement, and QuirkyByte Media, he eventually settled on writing about his favorite genre - pop culture.

Anupal believes in conducting in-depth research while writing about any topic and relies on varied sources to ensure he produces holistic articles. He also often glances through content that was published in the 80s and 90s to gain a better understanding of the subject he is covering.

Anupal admires Robert Downey Jr., who played one of his favorite Marvel superheroes, Iron Man. He is inspired by the actor's resilience and the determination in overcoming past struggles to building a successful Hollywood career and admires the way he articulates his thoughts while speaking in interviews.

If Anupal could travel back in time, he would love to experience James Cameron's 2009 film 'Avatar' in a theatre full of fans. When he's not busy working, he binges on the latest OTT titles across languages.

Know More