Body found dumped in the Bronx identified as ‘Green Book’ actor Frank Vallelonga Jr.
Actor Frank Vallelonga Jr., who was known for his role in the Oscar-winning film “Green Book,” was found dead earlier this week on a Bronx sidewalk, the New York Police Department has confirmed to The Times. Vallelonga was 60.
Police responded to a 911 call of an unconscious man in front of a sheet metal factory in an industrial part of the Bronx on Monday at 3:50 a.m., the NYPD said in a statement. Police officers found the man unresponsive and did not see any obvious signs of trauma.
Paramedics pronounced the man dead at the scene, police said. They identified the man as Vallelonga.
Nick Vallelonga: “Green Book” is based on a true story that happened to my father, Frank ‘Tony Lip’ Vallelonga in the early 1960s.
Police arrested Steven Smith, 35, of the Bronx on suspicion of concealing a human corpse, the NYPD said.
While the coroner’s office is investigating the cause of death, Smith told police that Vallelonga had overdosed on drugs, according to a New York Daily News report, which cited a criminal complaint.
“That dude was dead already,” Smith, who was Vallelonga’s driver, told police, according to the report said. “He overdosed. I didn’t have anything to do with that.”
‘Green Book’ actor Frank Vallelonga Jr. died of an accidental overdose of fentanyl and cocaine, officials said. He was found dead at 60 in November.
In “Green Book,” Vallelonga Jr. played the part of Rudy Vallelonga, a relative to bouncer Tony Lip, played by Viggo Mortensen.
The 2018 film, was written by Vallelonga Jr.’s brother, Nick Vallelonga. The movie is based on the story of their father, Frank “Tony Lip” Vallelonga, a white Italian American bouncer who was hired to protect Black pianist Don Shirley as he toured the Jim Crow South in 1962.
“Green Book” is the worst best picture Oscar winner since “Crash,” and I don’t make the comparison lightly.
Nick Vallelonga also nabbed another Oscar for original screenplay while Mahershala Ali won supporting actor for his portrayal of Shirley. Vallelonga Jr. had played minor roles in Nick Vallelonga’s other films in the 1990s, as well as a supporting role in the 2021 crime thriller “The Birthday Cake.”
Police said surveillance video captured the moments when Vallelonga Jr.’s body was dumped on Monday, the Daily News report said. A car spotted at the scene with a New Jersey license plate belonged to Nick Vallelonga, the report said.
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