Actors - Richard Bright

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	Actors - Richard Bright

Richard Bright (June 28, 1937 – February 18, 2006) was an American actor best known for his part as "Al Neri" in the The Godfather
films.

Biography

Early years

Bright was born in Brooklyn, New York to shipwright Ernest Bright and wife Matilda. He began his career doing live television in Manhattan, at the age of 18, and worked on several movies early in his career with his friend, Sam Peckinpah.

In 1965, Bright starred in poet Michael McClure's two-person show, The Beard, performing in London, New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, where, upon closing every night, he and his female co-star were arrested for uttering obscenities and simulating sexual acts. The ACLU represented Bright, citing First Amendment rights to freedom of speech. In the end, the charges against Bright were dismissed.

He had small parts in The Getaway (1972) (as a con man who tries to ply his trade on Ali MacGraw), and Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid
(1973) (as Holly, one of Billy's more colorful henchmen).

The Godfather films

In 1972, he appeared in Francis Ford Coppola's adaptation of The Godfather as Al Neri, one of Michael Corleone (Al Pacino)'s caporegimes. At the end of the first film, his character, dressed as a police officer, murdered rival mob boss Barzini and his henchmen during the film's famous baptism scene. Bright also turned up as Neri in both of that film's two sequels in which he murdered both John Cazale's Fredo Corleone at the end of the Godfather II, and also the Vatican banker, Archbishop Gilday, at the Vatican at the end of Godfather III. ("Neri, take a train to Rome. Light a candle for the archbishop," the newly minted Don Vincent Corleone instructs the veteran henchman.) Bright's association with the Godfather films caused him to be frequently typecast as criminals and gangsters throughout his lengthy career.

Subsequent work

Bright played another hired killer, Chicken Joe, in Sergio Leone's gangster epic Once Upon A Time In America (1984). Other roles include Rancho Deluxe (1975), Marathon Man
(1976), Looking For Mister Goodbar (1977), the film adaptation of Hair
(1979), and Beautiful Girls
(1995).

Later on he ceased being active in films, and was erroneously reported by the Video Hound Movie Guide as having died in 1998. He continued working on stage and in television, appearing on such shows as Law and Order, Oz, Third Watch, and The Sopranos
. Bright was fond of Shakespeare, and was noted for his representation of King Richard III.

Death

Bright was struck and killed by a tour bus in Manhattan on February 18, 2006. He was hit by the rear wheel of the bus and killed instantly, according to detectives and witnesses. The driver was unaware of the accident until he reached the Port Authority, and no charges were filed.

Bright is survived by his wife Rutanya Alda, son Jeremy Bright, daughter Dianne, and brother Charles.

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