Angelo Rossitto
Date of birth: 1908-02-18
Place of birth: Omaha, Nebraska, USA
Known for: Acting
Also known as: Angelo Salvatore Rossitto, Little Angie, Moe
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.
Movie Credits
Pufnstuf
1970-05-13
Jimmy (Jack Wild) ventures to Living Island with his magical, talking flute, Freddy. Once there, he
The Stone Killer
1973-08-08
A Los Angeles detective is sent to New York where he must solve a case involving an old Sicilian Maf
Mesa of Lost Women
1953-06-17
A mad scientist, Dr. Aranya (Jackie Coogan), has created giant spiders in his Mexican lab in Zarpa M
Scared to Death
1947-02-01
A woman is married to the son of a doctor, the proprietor of a private sanatorium, where she is unde
The Corpse Vanishes
1942-05-08
A scientist keeps his wife young by killing, stealing the bodies of, and taking the gland fluid from
Seven Footprints to Satan
1929-01-27
Before a planned African expedition, a man's fiancée worries her father's guest plans to steal one o
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
1985-06-29
Mad Max becomes a pawn in a decadent oasis of a technological society, and when exiled, becomes the
Fairy Tales
1978-08-01
On his twenty-first birthday, the Prince goes on a quest that takes him across the land searching fo
Brain of Blood
1971-08-01
Amir, the benevolent ruler of Kalid, is dying, but there is hope. Freshly deceased, he is flown to t
Spooks Run Wild
1941-10-24
A group of delinquents on their way to summer camp get stuck in a haunted house.
Smokey Bites the Dust
1981-10-01
Follows the rivalry between a small-town Southern sheriff and a small-town delinquent who steals car
Confessions of an Opium Eater
1962-06-20
Vincent Price stars in this early '60s adaptation of Thomas De Quincey's thriller about an opium add
Child Bride
1938-03-02
Jennie is a twelve-year-old girl living with her parents in extremely rural mountain country. Her sc
The Wild and the Innocent
1959-05-27
In Wyoming, mountain trapper Yancey goes to the nearest town to trade his pelts but gets into troubl
Dracula: A Cinematic Scrapbook
1991-01-01
A history of the famous vampire of books and movies, using film clips, previews and other methods.
Mongo's Back in Town
1971-12-10
Professional killer is hired by his brother, a gang boss, to wipe out a rival gangster.
Carnival Lady
1933-11-11
When his bank fails, a young man loses not only all his money but his fiancée, deserts him, too. Dep
The Bandit Queen
1950-12-22
Zara Montalve, half Spanish and half America, returns to her native California in time to see her pa
The Beloved Rogue
1927-03-12
François Villon, in his lifetime the most renowned poet in France, is also a prankster, an occasiona
The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm
1962-08-07
The Grimm brothers Wilhelm and Jacob, known for their literary works in the nineteenth century, have
Old San Francisco
1927-09-04
In San Francisco, a villainous landowner with underworld connections seeks to steal the property of
Requiem for a Heavyweight
1962-10-16
After suffering a brutal defeat and being told he can no longer fight, 37-year-old, scar-ridden priz
The Other
1972-05-24
A series of gruesome accidents plague a small American farming community in the summer of 1935, enci
While the City Sleeps
1928-02-15
A tough New York cop is determined to bring down a crook who has always managed to provide an alibi
Dracula vs. Frankenstein
1971-09-20
Dracula conspires with a mad doctor to resurrect the Frankenstein Monster.
Invasion of the Saucer-Men
1957-06-01
Aliens equipped with venomous claws invade a small town, but the town's teenage population is mobili
The Big House
1930-06-14
Convicted of manslaughter for a drunken driving accident, Kent Marlowe is sent to prison, where he m
The Wizard of Oz
1939-08-15
Young Dorothy finds herself in a magical world where she makes friends with a lion, a scarecrow and
Mr. Wong in Chinatown
1939-08-01
A pretty Chinese woman, seeking help from San Francisco detective James Lee Wong, is killed by a poi
I Wonder Who's Killing Her Now?
1975-12-01
Oliver is in trouble. He's been caught embezzling money from his father's company, and unless he can
The Making of 'Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome'
1985-06-25
Follows the cast and crew of Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome filming in the heat and dust of central Aust
Doomed to Die
1940-08-12
Shipping magnate Cyrus Wentworth, downcast over a disaster to his ocean liner 'Wentworth Castle' (ca
Galaxina
1980-06-06
Galaxina is a lifelike, voluptuous android who is assigned to oversee the operations of an intergala
Little Cigars
1973-06-22
A gangster's former mistress hooks up with a troupe of circus midgets who, as a sideline, rob banks
Something Wicked This Way Comes
1983-04-29
In a small American town, a diabolical circus arrives, granting wishes for the townsfolk, but twiste
The Magic Sword
1962-04-01
The son of a sorceress, armed with weapons, armour and six magically summoned knights, goes on a que
The Clones
1973-08-01
A scientist discovers a plot to clone other scientists so the government can control the weather.
One Stolen Night
1929-03-15
When his ne'er-do-well brother embezzles the commissary funds of their cavalry unit stationed in the
The Master Gunfighter
1975-10-03
Don Santiago (Richard Angarola) is a vicious man who helps provoke an Indian massacre that will allo
From a Whisper to a Scream
1987-09-25
The uncle of an executed murderess relates four stories of his hometown, Oldfield, to a reporter. In
Dementia
1955-12-22
In a shadowy world stitched from nightmares, a young woman's harrowing journey in a seedy hotel unve
The Dark
1979-04-27
At night the Mangler stalks the streets of Los Angeles, killing and mutilating random victims. On th
The Spider Woman
1943-12-24
Sherlock Holmes investigates a series of so-called "pajama suicides". He knows the female villain be
The Other Side of the Wind
2018-11-02
Surrounded by fans and sceptics, grizzled director J.J. "Jake" Hannaford returns from years abroad i
The Greatest Show on Earth
1952-02-16
To ensure a full profitable season, circus manager Brad Braden engages The Great Sebastian, though t
Hellzapoppin'
1941-12-25
Olsen and Johnson, a pair of stage comedians, try to turn their play into a movie and bring together
Freaks
1932-01-01
A circus' beautiful trapeze artist agrees to marry the leader of side-show performers, but his defor
Doctor Dolittle
1967-12-05
A veterinarian who can communicate with animals travels abroad to search for a giant sea snail.
Alex in Wonderland
1970-12-22
Bohemian Alex Morrison has just finished directing his first feature length movie. In its previews,
Reunion in France
1942-12-25
French woman Michele de la Becque, an opponent of the Nazis in German-occupied Paris, hides a downed
The Baron of Arizona
1950-03-04
The U.S. government recognizes land grants made when the West was under Spanish rule. This inspires
The Story of Mankind
1957-11-08
The devil and the spirit of mankind argue as to whether or not humanity is ultimately good or evil.
Pocketful of Miracles
1961-12-18
A New York gangster and his girlfriend attempt to turn street beggar Apple Annie into a society lady
Help Woodsy Spread the Word
1977-01-01
Babes in Toyland
1934-12-14
Ollie Dee and Stannie Dum try to borrow money from their employer, the toymaker, to pay off the mort
The Trip
1967-08-23
After his wife leaves him, a disillusioned director dives into the drug scene, trying anything his f
The Perils of Pauline
1967-08-02
Pauline becomes involved in a series of adventures around the world and is aided by her ever present
The Mysterious Island
1929-10-05
On a volcanic island near the Kingdom of Hetvia rules Count Dakkar, a benevolent leader and scientis
I Believed in You
1934-04-09
An aspiring writer and her boyfriend, a professional agitator head off to the Big Apple in search of
The Viking
1928-11-02
In this historical adventure based on traditional legend concerning Leif Ericsson and the first Viki
Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves
1944-01-14
Orphaned as a young child and adopted by a band of notorious thieves, now-grown Ali Baba sets out to