Burt Young: Sylvester Stallone pays tribute to Rocky's Paulie star after he dies
19.10.2023 - 06:55
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Rocky star Burt Young has died aged 83. The Oscar-nominated actor played Paulie, the corner man and brother-in-law to Sylvester Stallone throughout the iconic film franchise.
Young died on October 8 in Los Angeles, his daughter Anne Morea Steingieser told the New York Times on Wednesday. No cause was given.
Following his death, Stallone wrote a heartfelt tribute on Instagram alongside a black and white image of both men on set of the film in 1976. In the caption, he penned, 'To my Dear Friend, BURT YOUNG, you were an incredible man's and artist, I and the World will miss you very much...RIP.'
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Young had roles in acclaimed films and television shows including Chinatown, Once Upon a Time in America and The Sopranos but was always best known for playing Paulie Pennino in six Rocky movies.
The short, paunchy, balding Young was the sort of actor who always seemed to play middle-aged no matter his age.
When Paulie first appears in 1976’s Rocky, he is an angry, foul-mouthed meat packer who is abusive to his sister Adrian (Talia Shire), with whom he shares a small apartment in Philadelphia.
He berates the shy, meek Adrian for refusing at first to go on a Thanksgiving-night date with his buddy and co-worker Rocky Balboa and destroys a turkey she has in the oven.
The film became a phenomenon, topping the box office for the year and making a star of lead actor and writer Stallone, who paid tribute to Young on Instagram on Wednesday night.
Along with a photo of the two of them on the set of the first film,