‘The Godfather Part II’ Actor John Aprea Dies at 83

John Aprea, who played Vito Corleone’s right-hand man Salvatore Tessio in The Godfather Part IIdied at the age of 83.

The news was confirmed by the actor’s manager, Will Levine, who stated that the actor died of natural causes.

Aprea played the younger version of Tessio in Francis Ford Coppola’s acclaimed 1974 sequel to The godfathertaking over Abe Vigoda’s role in the original film.

Aprea’s Tessio befriends Robert De Niro’s Corleone as they begin their careers in the Manhattan Mafia underworld in the early 1940s. As Corleone rises to power, he recruits Tessio as his capo — a made man — and Tessio establishes his own regime in Brooklyn.

In preparation for the role, Aprea contacted Vigoda for advice, and was told, “I don’t know what I did. Just have a good time, kid.” These words became a guiding principle for the rest of Aprea’s career.

Jonathan Aprea was born on March 4, 1941, in Englewood, New Jersey, to an Italian immigrant family. He began an acting career in New York in the early 1960s, landing a debut role in the 1968 action film classic Bullittstarring Steve McQueen.

After a number of roles on television and in films, Coppola cast him in The Godfather Part IIwhich gave him his big breakthrough.

In the 1970s he had more notable film roles, including in The Stepford Wivesbut found his home on television in the 1980s, where he starred in series such as the crime drama Matt Houston and the sitcom Full hall.

He appeared frequently in major series, including The A-team, Saved by the Bell: The New Class, NYPD Blue And CSI: Crime Scene Investigationand appeared in the season finale of the first season of The Sopranos as a United States attorney general.

Aprea is survived by his wife Betsy Graci, his daughter Nicole and stepchildren Marika and Valentino.