Lelia Goldoni (born Lelia Vita Rizzuto; October 1, 1936) is an American actress who appeared in a number of motion pictures and television shows starting in the late 1940s, including uncredited cameo roles in Joseph L. Mankiewicz's '' House of Strangers'' (1949),

John Huston John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter, actor and visual artist. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered ...

's '' We Were Strangers'' (1949) and ''

The Italian Job ''The Italian Job'' is a 1969 British comedy caper film, written by Troy Kennedy Martin, produced by Michael Deeley, directed by Peter Collinson, and starring Michael Caine. The film's plot centres around Cockney criminal Charlie Croker, r ...

'' (1969). She appeared as Denise James in the 1965 horror film ''

Hysteria Hysteria is a term used colloquially to mean ungovernable emotional excess and can refer to a temporary state of mind or emotion. In the nineteenth century, hysteria was considered a diagnosable physical illness in women. It is assumed that ...

''. She costarred on the episode "Fair Exchange" and "Two Birds with One Bullet" of the British television series ''

Danger Man ''Danger Man'' (retitled ''Secret Agent'' in the United States for the revived series, and ''Destination Danger'' and ''John Drake'' in other overseas markets) is a British television series that was broadcast between 1960 and 1962, and again b ...

'' (1964) with Patrick MacGoohan. She is best known for co-starring in

John Cassavetes John Nicholas Cassavetes ( ; December 9, 1929 – February 3, 1989) was an American actor, film director, and screenwriter. First known as a television and film actor, Cassavetes also helped pioneer American independent cinema, writing and direc ...

's groundbreaking film ''

Shadows A shadow is a dark area where light from a light source is blocked by an opaque object. It occupies all of the three-dimensional volume behind an object with light in front of it. The cross section of a shadow is a two-dimensional silhouette, ...

'' (1959), which launched her acting career, and for playing the best friend of

Ellen Burstyn Ellen Burstyn (born Edna Rae Gillooly; December 7, 1932) is an American actress. Known for her portrayals of complicated women in dramas, she is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and two Primetime Em ...

's character in

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of many major accolades, incl ...

's ''

Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore ''Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore'' is a 1974 American comedy drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Robert Getchell. It stars Ellen Burstyn as a widow who travels with her preteen son across the Southwestern United States i ...

'' (1974). In 2010, she appeared in the miniseries '' The Pacific'' as Dora Basilone.

Biography

Goldoni was born Lelia Vita Rizzuto in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Her father was an Italian actor and she was a second cousin to baseball player Phil Rizzuto. She attended

Los Angeles City College Los Angeles City College (LACC) is a public community college in East Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. A part of the Los Angeles Community College District, it is located on Vermont Avenue south of Santa Monica Boulevard on the former campu ...

and was part of the

Lester Horton Lester Iradell Horton (23 January 1906 – 2 November 1953) was an American dancer, choreographer, and teacher. Early years and education Lester Iradell Horton was born in Indianapolis, Indiana on 23 January 1906. His parents were Iradell and Poll ...

Dancers in the 1950s.

Partial filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Goldoni, Lelia 1936 births Living people Actresses from New York City American film actresses American television actresses American people of Italian descent Los Angeles City College alumni 21st-century American women