Nicholas Cuccia (pronounced ''coo-cha''; January 10, 1912 – January 29, 1994), better known by his

stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...

Nick Cravat, was an American actor and stunt performer.

Early life

Nicholas Cuccia was born in Manhattan, New York City. His real surname was Italian and considered too hard to pronounce, so he took a stage name, Cravat, from a character in a play he had seen and liked.

Career

Cravat and

Burt Lancaster Burton Stephen Lancaster (November 2, 1913 – October 20, 1994) was an American actor. Initially known for playing tough characters with tender hearts, he went on to achieve success with more complex and challenging roles over a 45-year caree ...

met as youngsters at a summer camp in New York and became lifelong friends. They created an acrobatic act called Lang and Cravat in the early 1930s, and joined the Kay Brothers circus in

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. The pair worked at various circuses and in

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...

. In 1939, Lancaster suffered a hand injury that ended their act. They would later reunite. He co-starred with Lancaster in nine films, including '' The Flame and the Arrow'' (1950), '' The Crimson Pirate'' (1952), '' Run Silent, Run Deep'' (1958), ''

The Scalphunters ''The Scalphunters'' is a 1968 American Western film starring Burt Lancaster, Ossie Davis and Telly Savalas. The film was directed by Sydney Pollack, with the score written by Elmer Bernstein. Davis was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Su ...

'' (1968) and '' The Island of Dr. Moreau'' (1977). He played a mute character in several films such as ''The Flame and the Arrow'', ''The Crimson Pirate'', '' Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier'' (1955), and the TV series ''

The Count of Monte Cristo ''The Count of Monte Cristo'' () is an adventure novel by the French writer Alexandre Dumas. It was serialised from 1844 to 1846, and published in book form in 1846. It is one of his most popular works, along with ''The Three Musketeers'' (184 ...

'', mostly because his thick

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

accent would have been out of place. He also played the "

gremlin A gremlin is a mischievous fictional creature invented at the beginning of the 20th century to originally explain malfunctions in aircraft, and later in other machinery, processes, and their operators. Depictions of these creatures vary widely. ...

" on the wing of an airplane in the 1963 '' Twilight Zone'' episode " Nightmare at 20,000 Feet".

Personal life

Cravat's first wife was Mae Ruth Cuccia, also known as Arlene Cravat. He had two daughters from his second marriage, to Cecilia Brink: Marcelina "Marcy" Cravat-Overway and Christina "Tina" Cravat (a.k.a. Tina Cuccia). Marcy Cravat is an environmental documentary filmmaker. Her debut film, ''Angel Azul'', completed in 2014, won 12 awards. The film explores issues related to coral reefs through art activism. ''Dirt Rich'', her second film, explores solutions to reverse the effects of global warming by re-stabilizing safe atmospheric carbon levels by returning carbon to the soil.information available on website http://www.dirtrichthemovie.com/

Death

Cravat died of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

Woodland Hills, California Woodland Hills is a neighborhood bordering the Santa Monica Mountains in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California, United States. History The area was inhabited for around 8,000 years by Native Americans in the United States, ...

, on January 29, 1994, at the age of 82. He is interred at

North Hollywood North Hollywood is a neighborhood and district in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, California. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, El Portal Theater, several art galleries, and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Th ...

's Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery.

Filmography

*'' My Friend Irma'' (1949) – Mushie (uncredited) *'' The File on Thelma Jordon'' (1950) – Reporter (uncredited) *'' The Flame and the Arrow'' (1950) – Piccolo *'' Ten Tall Men'' (1951) – Disgruntled Riff (uncredited) *'' The Crimson Pirate'' (1952) – Ojo *'' The Veils of Bagdad'' (1953) – Ahmed *''

King Richard and the Crusaders ''King Richard and the Crusaders'' is a 1954 American historical drama based on Sir Walter Scott's '' The Talisman'' made by Warner Bros. The film stars Rex Harrison, Virginia Mayo, George Sanders and Laurence Harvey, with Robert Douglas, Mich ...

'' (1954) – Nectobanus *'' 3 Ring Circus'' (1954) – Timmy *'' Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier'' (1955) – Busted Luck *''

The Big Knife ''The Big Knife'' is a 1955 American melodrama film directed and produced by Robert Aldrich from a screenplay by James Poe based on the 1949 play by Clifford Odets. The film stars Jack Palance, Ida Lupino, Wendell Corey, Jean Hagen, Rod S ...

'' (1955) – Nick (uncredited) *'' The Story of Mankind'' (1957) – Devil's Apprentice *'' Run Silent, Run Deep'' (1958) – Russo *''

Cat Ballou ''Cat Ballou'' is a 1965 American western comedy film starring Jane Fonda and Lee Marvin, who won an Academy Award for his dual role. The story involves a woman who hires a notorious gunman to protect her father's ranch, and later to avenge his ...

'' (1965) – Minor Role (uncredited) *'' The Way West'' (1967) – Calvelli *''

'' (1968) – Yancy *''

Airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...

'' (1970) – Nick Valli – Passenger (uncredited) *'' Valdez Is Coming'' (1971) – Gang Member (uncredited) *'' Ulzana's Raid'' (1972) – Trooper *'' The Midnight Man'' (1974) – Gardener *'' The Island of Dr. Moreau'' (1977) – M'Ling (final film role) *

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cravat, Nick American male film actors American male television actors 1912 births 1994 deaths Deaths from lung cancer in California Burials at Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery 20th-century American male actors American stunt performers Federal Theatre Project people