Tom Pedi Explained

Thomas Joseph Pedi^[1] (September 14, 1913 – December 29, 1996) was an American actor whose work included roles on stage, television and film in a career spanning 50 years.^[2] He was particularly well-known for his portrayal of Rocky, the night barman, in The Iceman Cometh, a part which he originated and played on stage, film and television.^{[3] [4]} Pedi was the cousin of voice actress Christine Pedi.^[5]

Early life and career

A Brooklyn native,^[3] Pedi was the son of Angelo Pedi and Carmen Raimondo.^[6] He attended New Utrecht High School, graduating in 1933.^[7] Four years later, Pedi made his professional debut as Benito Mussolini in the Harold Rome revue, Pins and Needles.^{[3] [8]}

Personal life and death

On August 7, 1953, Pedi married Philadelphia-born showgirl Stacey Hunter in London, while in the midst of an extended engagement with the touring company of Guys and Dolls.^{[9] [10]} By the time the couple returned to the U.S. the following October, they had a young son, Alexander, in tow.^[11]

On December 29, 1996, at age 83, Pedi died of a heart attack in Burbank, California. His cremated remains are interred at Loma Vista Memorial Park in Fullerton, California.^{[12] [13]}

Performances

Theater

Except where indicated, listings come from the Internet Broadway Database.^[14]

Start	End	Title	Role
September 28, 1937[15]		Pins and Needles	Benito Mussolini
December 21, 1941	February 7, 1942	Brooklyn USA	The Dasher
October 27, 1945	November 17, 1945	Beggars Are Coming to Town	Heinz
October 9, 1946	March 15, 1947	The Iceman Cometh	Rocky Pioggi
February 10, 1949	November 18, 1950	Death of a Salesman	Stanley
September 29, 1955	February 4, 1956	A View from the Bridge / A Memory of Two Mondays	Mike / Mechanic
February 28, 1957	July 13, 1957	A Hole in the Head	Lenny
March 23, 1963	April 6, 1963	My Mother, My Father and Me	Tonio Crazzo
November 11, 1963	November 16, 1963	The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui	Bodyguard
April 28, 1965 April 20, 1955 November 24, 1950	May 9, 1965 May 31, 1955 November 28, 1953	Guys and Dolls	Harry the Horse
October 4, 1966	December 31, 1966	The Investigation	The Accused
April 18, 1968	April 20, 1968	Mike Downstairs	Paul

Pedi also performed in the premiere of the stage version of State Fair at The Muny in St. Louis in 1969. The show had a two week run.

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1942	Native Land	Union member intently watching game of checkers	[16] [17]
1948	The Naked City	Detective Perelli	[18]
1948	State of the Union	Barber
1948	Up in Central Park	O'Toole	[19]
1949	Criss Cross	Vincent	[20]
1949	Sorrowful Jones	Once Over Sam	[21]
1950	Cry Murder	Santorre	[22]
1973	The Iceman Cometh	Rocky Pioggi	[23]
1974	The Taking of Pelham One Two Three	Caz Dolowicz
1976		Moving Man	Uncredited
1976	St. Ives	Fat Angie Polaterra	[24]
1978	The Cat from Outer Space	Honest Harry	[25]
1978	The One Man Jury	Angie
1979	The North Avenue Irregulars	Bartender	[26]
1980	Little Miss Marker	Vittorio	[27]

Television

Except where indicated, listings come from the Internet Movie Database.

Year	Series	Role	Notes
1949	Repertory Theatre		Episode: "The Five Lives of Richard Gordon"
1949	The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre		Episode: "The Door"
1950	The Stage Door	Rocco
1952	Repertory Theatre	Joe	Episode: "Rich Boy"
1956	Stanley	Mr. Ferris	Episode: "Opera Tickets"
1958	Decoy	Maxie Pardo	Episode: "Odds Against the Jockey"
1958	Omnibus	Bolo	Episode: "The So-Called Human Race"[28]
1958	Adventures of the Sea Hawk	Le Gross	Episode #1.23
1960	Play of the Week	Rocky	Episode: The Iceman Cometh Parts: 1 & 2
1967	The Edge of Night	Hector	Episode #1.3048
1970	That Girl	Tony	Episode: "The Night They Raided Daddy's"
1971	Night Gallery	Mr. Boucher	Episode: "A Fear of Spiders"
1970–1971	Arnie	Julius	15 episodes
1972	The Family Rico	Angelo	TV movie
1973	The New Treasure Hunt	Various	Uncredited
1973	Maude	Mr. Bungay	Episode: "Maude Takes a Job"
1973	Lotsa Luck	First Moving Man	Episode: "The Family Plot"Arnie"
1974	McMillan & Wife	News Vendor	Episode: "Cross & Double Cross"
1974	Dominic's Dream	Uncle Willie	TV movie
1974	Kojak	Filacchione	Episode: "You Can't Tell a Hurt Man How to Holler"
1975	The Mary Tyler Moore Show	Al	Episode: "The System"
1975	The Odd Couple	Louie Menninni	Episode: "Old Flames Never Die"
1975	Lucas Tanner	Policeman	Episode: "The Noise of a Quiet Weekend"
1976	McCloud	Santa Claus	Episode: "'Twas the Fight Before Christmas..."
1977	Serpico	Nick	Episode: "The Party of Your Choice"
1977	Black Market Baby	Uncle Sanchi	TV movie
1978	CHiPs	Bruno	Episode: "Vintage '54"
1978	Human Feelings	Frank	TV movie
1979	The Ropers	Moving Man	Episode: "Friends and Neighbors"
1979	Stone	Aaron Abromowitz	TV movie
1987	Laguna Heat	Jimmy Hylkama	TV movie, (final film role)

Notes and References

1. "United States, Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT), 1936-2007", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6K9W-W9CH : 10 February 2023), Thomas Joseph Pedi, .
2. Web site: Tom Pedi . Rotten Tomatoes . February 11, 2019.
3. https://www.newspapers.com/image/52883282/?clipping_id=150023321 "Tom Pedi, Brooklynite, Makes Hit With O'Neil and Public"
4. https://books.google.com/books?id=iU0EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA110&dq=%22characters+in+the+play%22+%22barkeep+is+played+by+tom+pedi%22 "HIGHBROW BROADWAY (continued): THE ICEMAN COMETH; O'Neill's play is too long, too wordy, but deeply absorbing"
5. News: Christine Pedi Keeps Making an Impression With Her Parodies of Broadway's Divas. Pogrebin, Robin. March 20, 2001. The New York Times. E1. She said she was also influenced by her cousin, Tom Pedi, a character actor who was in the original productions of 'Guys and Dolls,' 'Death of a Salesman' and 'A View from the Bridge.' 'Tom did it for the love of theater,' she said. 'He didn't care about the approval of anyone else. He did it because he loved to be onstage.'. .
6. "United States, Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT), 1936-2007", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6K9W-W9CH : 10 February 2023), Thomas Joseph Pedi, .
7. https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-brooklyn-daily-eagle/150024923/ "648 Graduated at New Utrecht; Dr. Fritz A. H. Luchs, Herman Barshay Address Class"
8. https://archive.org/details/guys-and-dolls-playbill-1953/page/24/mode/2up?q=%22Pedi+comes%22+%22Pedi+partook%22 "Guys and Dolls: Who's Who in the Cast (continued)"
9. https://www.newspapers.com/image/789904800/?clipping_id=150027036 "Guy With Doll"
10. "New York, New York Passenger and Crew Lists, 1909, 1925-1957",, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2H41-2WR : Sun Mar 10 01:57:17 UTC 2024), Entry for Stacey Pedi, 1954.
11. News: Tom Pedi Returning to U. S.; Miriam Burton Wins Grant. October 9, 1954. New York Herald Tribune. 9. Tom Pedi, who created the role of Harry the Horse in 'Guys and Dolls,' is to return Saturday from London, after a record of 1,500 performances in the part at the Coliseum Theater. He married while in London and will be accompanied by his wife, Mrs. Stacy [sic] Hunter Pedi and their son, Alexander.. .
12. Book: Resting Places – The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d Ed.. McFarland. August 19, 2016. 581. 978-1-4766-2599-7.
13. "New York, New York Passenger and Crew Lists, 1909, 1925-1957",, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2H41-2WR : Sun Mar 10 01:57:17 UTC 2024), Entry for Stacey Pedi, 1954.
14. Web site: Tom Pedi – Broadway Cast & Staff . . . February 11, 2019.
15. C., G. M. (August 11, 1937). "Stage News: The First Big Week". p. 12. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
16. Campbell, Russ (1982). Cinema Strikes Back : Radical Filmmaking in the United States, 1930-1942. Ann Arbor, Mich. : UMI Research Press. p. 364. .
17. 21 Momen (June 25, 2024). Native Land: 40-second union hall scene with Tom Pedi watching checkers. Youtube.
18. Michael, Paul (1980). The Great American Movie Book. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. pp. 192, 269. .
19. Fitzgerald, Michael G. (1977). Universal Pictures : APanoramic History in Words, Pictures, and Filmographies. New Rochelle, NY: Arlington House. p. 532. .
20. Keaney, Michael F. (2003). Film Noir Guide: 745 Films of the Classic Era, 1940-1959. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 102. .
21. Carmody, Jay (July 8, 1949). "Hope Gets Cheerful Change in Fare in Warner Film". Evening Star. p. 14. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
22. Masters, Dorothy (March 1, 1950). "The Durango Kid Tops New Bill at New York". New York Daily News. p. 77. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
23. Sigoloff, Marc (2000). The Films of the Seventies : A Filmography of American, British and Canadian Films 1970-1979. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. pp. 146, 290. .
24. Vermilye, Jerry (1980). The Films of Charles Bronson. Secaucus, NJ: The Citadel Press. p. 228. .
25. Willis, John (1979). John Willis's Screen World 1979; Vol. 30. New York : Crown Publishers. p. 136. .
26. https://catalog.afi.com/Person/147836-Tom-Pedi Tom Pedi Filmography
27. Parish, James Robert (1987). The great gangster pictures II. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press. p. 242. .
28. News: What's On? Menasha Skulnik Stars in Heavy-Handed Spoof. Gross, Ben. November 24, 1948. New York Daily News. 57. Kay Medford and Arny Freeman as the problem boy's parents, Michael Pollard, as the lad himself, Tom Pedi as Bolo, and Margo Bennett as the latter's sweetheart gave good accounts of themselves. So did Jerome Cowan as the judge, Walter Abel as Dr. Montefusco and others of the cast.. .