"In the 1961 film he played Action with actor Seth Rudetsky writing in Playbill: 'He wanted to play his original role in the movie and was very disappointed to be Action and I asked why they switched his role.
'He said he never asked because sometimes you ask and you don’t like the answer. Regardless, he wound up being very featured in the movie.'"
I guess that David Winters no longer seemed young enough to play Baby John so the role went to Eliot Feld. Winters then played A-Rab on camera and Mordente was moved over to Action. Not all that different than George Chakiris, fresh from playing Riff on stage in London, playing Bernardo on screen. Robbins found the right place for the dancers he needed. (Eddie Roll, who'd played Action on Broadway, was not in the film.)
Tony Mordente was always so charming and down-to-earth in interviews. It's hard to imagine anyone other than him as Action even after years of revivals and a remake. Condolences to Lisa and the rest of his family. May he Rest In Peace. |
