John Cazale

Remembering the life of John Cazale for his Birthday! He was born in Revere, Massachusetts, to an Irish American mother, Cecilia Holland (1898–1997), and an Italian American father, John Cazale (1897–1957). He had an older sister, Catherine (May 28, 1931 – February 2, 2000), and a younger brother, Stephen. He grew up in Winchester and attended high school at the Buxton School in Williamstown where he joined the drama club. He studied drama at Oberlin College in Ohio, transferring to Boston University, where he studied under Peter Kass.

Upon graduation, Cazale worked as a cab driver, as he started his theatrical career at the Charles Playhouse, appearing in Hotel Paradiso and Our Town in 1959. Reviewing his performance as George Gibbs in Our Town, critic Jean Pierre Frankenhuis said "[Cazale's] portrayal is absolutely stupendous, hilarious, touching, thrilling. We found ourselves wishing that there were more scenes with him, such is the enjoyable performance he gives: a comedian of the first order!" Cazale moved to New York City and supported himself as a photographer while looking for acting work. He made one of his first appearances there in the Equity Library's production of Sidney Howard's Paths of Glory. in 1976 Cazale starred at the Delacorte Theatre in Central Park with Sam Waterston in Shakespeare's Measure for Measure. His leading lady was the recent Yale School of Drama graduate Meryl Streep. Mel Gussow of The New York Times wrote: "Mr. Cazale, often cast as a quirky, weak outsider, as in The Godfather, here demonstrates sterner mettle as a quietly imperious Angelo who sweeps down, vulturelike, to deposit virtue." During the run of the play, Cazale and Streep began a romance and moved in together. Streep humorously praised her co-star's abilities by saying, "The jerk made everything mean something." Then she added, "Such good judgment, such uncluttered thought!"

He appeared in five films over seven years, all of which were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture: The Godfather (1972), The Conversation (1974), The Godfather Part II (1974), Dog Day Afternoon (1975), and The Deer Hunter (1978), with the two Godfather films and The Deer Hunter winning. Cazale soon became one of Hollywood's premier character actors, starting with his role as the doomed, weak-minded Fredo Corleone opposite longtime friend Al Pacino in Francis Ford Coppola's film The Godfather and its 1974 sequel, as well as Sidney Lumet's Dog Day Afternoon. For his role as Sal, he was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor. His only film acting nomination. Sidney Lumet declared "One of the things that I love about the casting of John Cazale was that he had a tremendous sadness about him. I don't know where it came from; I don't believe in invading the privacy of the actors that I work with or getting into their heads. But, my God—it's there—every shot of him. And not just in this movie, but in Godfather II also" He Ad-libbed his famous "Wyoming?" line in the film. Lumet laughed so hard that he feared he had ruined the take. It wasn't ruined, however, and was used in the final cut.

Cazale was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1977 which was likely related to his history of chain smoking. Despite the terminal diagnosis, Cazale continued work with his romantic partner, Meryl Streep, along with Robert DeNiro, Christopher Walken, and John Savage in The Deer Hunter. According to author Andy Dougan, director Michael Cimino "rearranged the shooting schedule with Cazale and Streep's consent, so that he could film all his scenes first." He completed his scenes, but died before the film was released. Cazale was considered all but uninsurable due to his illness, jeopardizing his participation in the film, but according to Streep the costs were paid by DeNiro, who wanted Cazale to be in it. Despite trying a number of treatments and protocols, he rapidly declined as the cancer metastasized to his bones. On March 13, 1978, Cazale died at the age of 42. Meryl Streep was at his side, as the actress had been throughout his illness. Close friend and Godfather co-star Al Pacino said "I've hardly ever seen a person [Streep] so devoted to someone who is falling away like John was. To see her in that act of love for this man was overwhelming." Of Cazale, Pacino would later lament that he was not better recognized for his skill, saying that Cazale "was one of the great actors of our time—that time, any time."

His close friend and frequent collaborator, Israel Horovitz, wrote a eulogy, published in The Village Voice on March 27, 1978. In it, he said "John Cazale happens once in a lifetime. He was an invention, a small perfection. It is no wonder his friends feel such anger upon waking from their sleep to discover that Cazale sleeps on with kings and counselors, with Booth and Kean, with Jimmy Dean, with Bernhardt, Guitry, and Duse, with Stanislavsky, with Groucho, Benny, and Allen. He will make fast friends in his new place. He is easy to love". A documentary tribute to Cazale, I Knew It Was You, was screened at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival featuring interviews with Al Pacino, Steve Buscemi, Meryl Streep, Robert De Niro, Gene Hackman, Richard Dreyfuss, Francis Ford Coppola, and Sidney Lumet. Many actors such as Philip Seymour Hoffman, Steve Buscemi, Sam Rockwell, and Michael Fassbender have all named Cazale as a major influence.