LOS ANGELES — Hollywood actor Charley Scalies, who is known for two of the most
celebrated series, ‘The Wire’ and ‘The Sopranos’, has passed away after a
battle with Alzheimer’s.
He was 84, and died on May 1. His death was confirmed via
an online obituary, reports ‘Variety’.
“(He was) best known first and foremost as a husband,
father, grandfather, uncle, and friend”, the obituary read. “Professionally,
Charley Scalies was an American actor and former business executive whose life
reflected a rich blend of professional achievement, creative passion, and a
true joy for life. His favorite audience was always seated around the dinner
table”.
As per ‘Variety’, Scalies starred in Season 2 of ‘The
Wire’. He appeared in all 12 episodes as Horseface, an imprisoned Baltimore
longshoreman and member of IBS Local 1514 with an emphatic allegiance to his
criminal boss, Frank Sobotka.
In ‘The Sopranos’, Scalies appeared in the Season 5
episode ‘The Test Dream’ as Tony’s high school football instructor, Coach
Molinaro.
His character manifests in Tony’s dream, screaming at him
for throwing away his life to become a criminal. Scalies’ other television
credits include ‘Homicide: Life on the Street’, ‘Law & Order’, ‘Law
& Order: SVU’ and ‘Cold Case’. On the film side, he appeared in ‘12
Monkeys’, ‘Liberty Heights’, ‘Jersey Girl’ and ‘Two Bits’.
Scalies also starred in a number of stage productions
with the St. Francis Players in Springfield, Pa., including ‘Guys and Dolls’,
‘Chicago’ and ‘The Wizard of Oz’. He is survived by his wife and “the true love
and joy of his life”, Angeline M. Scalies, and his five children: Charles
Scalies III, Angeline Kogut, Anthony Scalies, Christa Ann Scalise and Anne
Marie Scalies.