Angelo Rossitto
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- February 18, 1908
- Died
- September 21, 1991 (aged 83)
- Birthplace
- Omaha, Nebraska, USA
Biography
Angelo Salvatore Rossitto (February 18, 1908 – September 21, 1991) was an American actor and voice artist. He had dwarfism and was 2'11" (89 cm) tall, and was often billed as Little Angie or Moe. Angelo first appeared in silent films opposite Lon Chaney and John Barrymore. On-screen, he portrayed everything from dwarfs, midgets, gnomes, and pygmies as well as monsters, villains, and aliens, with appearances in more than 70 films. Rossitto was born in Omaha, Nebraska to Salvatore Rossitto and Carmela Caniglia, both born in Carlentini, Province of Siracusa, Sicily, Italy, and had a sister, Josephine Rossitto. He was discovered by John Barrymore and made his screen debut opposite Barrymore in The Beloved Rogue (1927). That same year he appeared in Warner Brother's Old San Francisco. He appeared in the controversial 1932 film Freaks directed by Tod Browning, and another controversial film, 1938's Child Bride. During the 1940s, he appeared in several poverty row movies starring Bela Lugosi. He appeared frequently in television series and mini-series, particularly best known for the police drama Baretta, and his later film roles included appearances in Alex in Wonderland (1970), Brain of Blood (1971), Dracula vs. Frankenstein (1971), Little Cigars (1973), and Fairy Tales (1978). His last major role was as "Master" opposite Mel Gibson in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985). Rossitto appears alongside singer/songwriter Tom Waits and Lee Kolima on the cover art of Waits' 1983 album Swordfishtrombones, which pays homage to his performance in Freaks. He also appears on the cover of Bob Dylan's album The Basement Tapes.
Known For
Filmography
The Other Side of the Wind
Movie · as Angelo
Producing Schlock: The Career of Al Adamson
Movie · as Grazbo (archive footage)
Dracula: A Cinematic Scrapbook
Movie · as Luigi / Indigo (archive footage)
Halloween Monster Bash
Movie · as Toby (archive footage)
From a Whisper to a Scream
Movie · as Tinker
Star Trek: The Next Generation
TV · as Spectator (uncredited) · 1 ep
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
Movie · as Master
The Making of 'Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome'
Movie · as Self
Amazing Stories
TV · as Vaudevillian · 1 ep
Something Wicked This Way Comes
Movie · as Little Person #1
Smokey Bites the Dust
Movie · as Desk Clerk
Galaxina
Movie · as Monster from Egg
The Dark
Movie · as Angie (uncredited)
Fairy Tales
Movie · as Otto
Jason of Star Command
TV · as Bork · 2 eps
Help Woodsy Spread the Word
Movie · as Woodsy Owl
The Incredible Hulk
TV · as Tom Thumb (uncredited) · 1 ep
The Hardy Boys / Nancy Drew Mysteries
TV · 2 eps
I Wonder Who's Killing Her Now?
Movie · as Little Pianist
The Master Gunfighter
Movie · as Side show midget
Baretta
TV · as Little Moe (uncredited) · 3 eps
Starsky & Hutch
TV · as Big Ben · 1 ep
The Rockford Files
TV · as Dwarf Patient (uncredited) · 1 ep
The Stone Killer
Movie · as Little Man in Hotel Lobby (uncredited)
Little Cigars
Movie · as Angelo
The Clones
Movie · as Man at Phone Booth
The Snoop Sisters
TV · as Little Igor · 1 ep
The Other
Movie · as Sideshow Performer (uncredited)
Kung Fu
TV · as Angelo (uncredited) · 1 ep
Brain of Blood
Movie · as Dorro
Mongo's Back in Town
Movie · as Trembles
Dracula vs. Frankenstein
Movie · as Grazbo the Evil Dwarf
Lidsville
TV · as Mr. Big · 17 eps
Pufnstuf
Movie · as Seymore Spider / Clang
Alex in Wonderland
Movie · as Fellini #1
H.R. Pufnstuf
TV · as Seymore Spider · 17 eps
Doctor Dolittle
Movie · as Dwarf (uncredited)
The Trip
Movie · as Dwarf in Forest Fantasy (uncredited)
The Perils of Pauline
Movie · as Pygmy Leader's Assistant
T.H.E. Cat
TV · as Circus Dwarf (uncredited) · 1 ep
Branded
TV · as Shooting Gallery Man (uncredited) · 1 ep
The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
TV · as Blind Pencil Seller · 1 ep
Confessions of an Opium Eater
Movie · as Newspaper Boy
The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm
Movie · as Dwarf
Requiem for a Heavyweight
Movie · as Midget Wrestler Outside Wrestling Ring (uncredited)
The Magic Sword
Movie · as 2nd Dwarf
Pocketful of Miracles
Movie · as Angie (uncredited)
The Wild and the Innocent
Movie · as Midget (uncredited)
The Rebel
TV · as Godfrey · 1 ep
Shirley Temple's Storybook
TV · as Mouse, Dwarf · 1 ep
Invasion of the Saucer Men
Movie · as Saucer Man
The Story of Mankind
Movie · as Dwarf in Nero's Court
Dementia
Movie · as Newsboy (uncredited)
Jungle Moon Men
Movie · as Smallest Moon-Man
Gunsmoke
TV · as Billy (uncredited) · 1 ep
Mesa of Lost Women
Movie · as Dwarf Lab Assistant
The Greatest Show on Earth
Movie · as Dwarf (uncredited)
The Bandit Queen
Movie · as Nino
The Baron of Arizona
Movie · as Angie -- Gypsy
Pygmy Island
Movie · as Pygmy in Cave
Scared to Death
Movie · as Indigo
Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves
Movie · as Arab Dwarf (uncredited)
The Spider Woman
Movie · as Obongo - Pygmy (uncredited)
The Corpse Vanishes
Movie · as Toby
Reunion in France
Movie · as Citizen in Bomb Shelter (uncredited)
Spooks Run Wild
Movie · as Luigi
Hellzapoppin'
Movie · as Dwarf Devil (uncredited)
Doomed to Die
Movie · as Newsboy #3 in Montage
The Wizard of Oz
Movie · as Munchkin Villager (uncredited)
Mr. Wong in Chinatown
Movie · as Mute Dwarf
Child Bride
Movie · as Angelo
Babes in Toyland
Movie · as Elmer - Second Little Pig / 1st Sandman in Cave (uncredited)
I Believed in You
Movie · as Greenwich Village Waiter
Carnival Lady
Movie · as Dwarf
Freaks
Movie · as Angeleno
The Big House
Movie · as Inmate (uncredited)
Seven Footprints to Satan
Movie · as The Dwarf
One Stolen Night
Movie · as The Dwarf
The Mysterious Island
Movie · as Underwater Creature
While the City Sleeps
Movie · as Member of Skeeter's Gang
The Viking
Movie · as Viking Little Person (uncredited)
The Beloved Rogue
Movie · as Beppo - the Dwarf
Old San Francisco
Movie · as Chang Loo - the Dwarf