Actor John Aprea, known for ‘The Godfather Part II’ and ‘Full House’, has died at the age of 83

John Aprea, a Hollywood character actor known for his roles in The Godfather Part II And Full room, has died. He was 83.

Aprea’s manager Will Levine confirmed to PEOPLE on Sunday, August 18, that the actor died of natural causes on August 5 at his Los Angeles home, surrounded by family.

Originally from Englewood, NJ, Aprea was the son of Italian immigrants and first began his acting career in New York City in the 1960s, before moving to Los Angeles to appear in films including Steve McQueen’s 1967 film Bullitt70’s The grasshopper and 1975 The Stepford Wivesaccording to his IMDB.

He appeared in many more well-known and well-received films and TV series over the years, including director Jonathan Demme’s 1974 film Caged heat, 2004’s The Manchurian Candidate and the long-running soap opera Landing buttons.

Aprea played dozens of gangster characters during his career, including in the 1991 film Mario Van Peebles New Jack City, as well as TV shows such as the 1981 NBC miniseries The Gangster Chronicles.

According to THR-, Aprea met Francis Ford Coppola while working as a bartender in Los Angeles and was given the opportunity to audition for the role of Michael Corleone in the original Godfather film. Although the role eventually went to Al Pacino, Aprea was called back for the sequel, where he took on the role of mob boss Salvatore Tessio, played by Abe Vigoda in the original.

In an earlier interview, Aprea said that working with Coppola, Pacino and Robert De Niro on the film was “the highlight” of his acting career.

“I was surrounded by the best in The godfather,” he told the Shreveport Diaryaccording to Deadline.

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From 1988 to 1991 Aprea was seen in Full hall as Nick Katsopolis, an exterminator and father of Jesse Katsopolis, played by John Stamos. He also reprised the role for the 2017 Netflix reboot of the show, Fuller House.

On Saturday, August 18, Buttons countries Actor Paul Carafotes paid tribute to his late co-star, writing in an Instagram post, “Just found out my old buddy, friend, actor, father, husband, brother has passed away,” before sharing memories of Aprea.

“We had a lot of laughs. We met on the set of the CBS television show Buttons countries1987. More than 40 years ago,” Carafotes continued. “Many will miss this man! Rest old friend. I’ll see you on the other side.”

Aprea is survived by his wife of 25 years Betsy Graci, his daughter Nicole (from a previous marriage to actress Ninon Aprea), and his stepchildren Marika Parker and Valentino Graci. He was preceded in death by his sister Rosanna Sole.