Val Bisoglio

This husky, instantly identifiable American character actor was born Italo Valentino Bisoglio on May 7, 1926, in New York City. His parents were emigrants who hailed from an area near Casale Monferrato, a region noted for its viticulture, in Piedmont, Italy. Val studied acting under the renowned drama coach Jeff Corey. He made his first entry onto the New York stage in 1964 and debuted on Broadway two years later as Sergeant Carlino in Frederick Knott's thriller Wait until Dark, opposite Lee Remick and Robert Duvall (his role was played by Jack Weston in the 1967 film version). By the late '60s, Val had become an established actor on TV, often cast as tough, Bronx-accented cops or minor gangland figures. He is perhaps best remembered as the sympathetic restaurateur Danny Tovo, close friend and sometime confidante of Jack Klugman's Quincy M.E. (1976), and as the blissfully insouciant cook Sgt. Sal Pernelli on M*A*S*H (1972). Among infrequent movie appearances were an iconic turn as John