Henry Silva, storied actor that rose to fame in the 1950’s and 1960’s, died on September 14th 2022 in Los Angeles. Silva was best known for his roles as an traitorous Korean interpreter in The Manchurian Candidate, slick as oil Johnny cool in Johnny Cool, and as a drug dealer in A Hatful of Rain “. He died on September 14th, in Los Angeles at age 95.
His death was confirmed by his son Scott Silva, but the cause of death was not revealed.
Silva’s career spanned fifty years, and had a total of 130 film credits under his belt. he was known for his icy stare and his rugged aura, giving off an air of classic macho toughness, and an eerie menace. He had first achieved fame in the 1967 play, the previously mentioned A Hatful of Rain where he played the drug dealer in the Broadway play “Mother” in one of the most Frank productions about drug addiction for the time. Silva was a man of principle, and always prided himself as someone who wouldn’t let his typecasting limit his range. In an interview with the Chicago tribune in 2000 Silva was quoted as saying;
“I see a lot of actors who play heavies, but they always play the same heavies,” He told The Chicago Tribune in 2000. “I have a seven-minute reel of clips from my movies, and none of the guys are the same. I don’t always go to the same place, because that would be boring.”
In Manchurian candidate, Silva played a communist spy, posing as a manservant for a Korean war veteran(Laurence Harvey) that betrays him to be brainwashed by the KGB, in a plot to overthrow the United States government. While it was a box office failure when it came out in 1957, the film is now considered a classic, with Silva’s performance being especially lauded. Film critic Peter Traves, upon the film’s 1988 re release Travers wrote in People magazine that Mr. Silva hits “a high in lowdown villainy that hasn’t been matched since.”
Silva is also known for being a member of the rat pack among the likes of Frank Sinatra, and Dean Martin, all of whom were in the original oceans 11 film from 1960. Sinatra being a close friend of his, Silva also appeared alongside Ol’ blue eyes in Sergeants 3 , and the previously mentioned Manchurian candidate.
Silva leaves behind a storied 50 year career, and his two sons Scott and Michael Silva.
Leave a Comment