Sal Mineo
b. Salvatore Mineo, 10 January 1939, New York City, New York, USA. d. 12 February 1976. After a difficult childhood, Mineo studied dancing and made his Broadway debut in THE ROSE TATTOO. He followed this with an appearance in The King And Iin 1952. In the mid-50s he went to Hollywood and began making films, usually appearing as a troubled teenager. Among his best-known films were REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE (1955), for which he was unsuccessfully nominated for an Oscar as Best Supporting Actor, SOMEBODY UP THERE LIKES ME and GIANT(both 1956) and EXODUS (1960), another unsuccessful Oscar nomination. He also played the title role in THE GENE KRUPA STORY (1959). In the late '50s, Mineo made a number of records, including Love Affair, Start Moving (In My Direction), Lasting Love and You Shouldn't Do That. He continued making films during the '60s and also returned to stage work. He directed and starred in FORTUNE AND MEN'S EYES, a play which reflected Mineo's own homosexuality. He was returning home from the theatre when he was stabbed to death in a Hollywood street.