Biography
Antonio Pietro Russo, known professionally as Tony Russel (or Tony Russell), was one of several attractive American actors who moved to Europe in the early 1960s when their U.S. careers were stalling. Born on November 23, 1925, in Wisconsin to Italian immigrant parents, he was raised with strong religious values and developed an early passion for acting. After an honorable discharge from the Air Force, he studied languages, speech, and drama at the University of Michigan.
Following training at the Pasadena Playhouse, Tony secured uncredited ethnic roles in 1950s films such as Hiawatha (1952), The Silver Chalice (1954), Jump Into Hell (1955), Anything Goes (1956), King Creole (1958), Don't Give Up the Ship (1959), and Last Train from Gun Hill (1959). He also appeared in popular TV shows including The Lone Wolf, Highway Patrol, Broken Arrow, Peter Gunn, and Zorro. His first leading film role was in the low-budget Korean War movie War Is Hell (1961), directed, produced, and written by Burt Topper.
Russel's major breakthrough was starring as the infamous bandit Fra Diavolo in the Italian action-adventure The Last Charge (1962), alongside Israeli actress Haya Harareet. Capitalizing on his appeal as a charismatic hero in Italy, he relocated to Europe in September 1961 with his wife, actress Jodean Lawrence, and their young son.
Settling in Rome, Tony worked consistently for several years in adventure, swashbuckling, spy, and sci-fi films. His credits included Knights of Terror (1963), The Secret Seven (1963), Sword of Damascus (1964), L'ultima carica (1964), The Spartan Gladiators (1964), Secret of the Sphinx (1964), Behind the Mask of Zorro (1964) in the title role, The Wild, Wild Planet (1966) and its sequel The War of the Planets (1966), Target Goldseven (1966), and Honeymoons Will Kill You (1966). Notably, he declined a role in the spaghetti western A Fistful of Dollars (1964), which launched Clint Eastwood to international stardom. He also auditioned for Disney's TV Zorro but lost the part to Guy Williams. Fluent in Italian since high school, Tony worked as a voice dubber and founded the English Language Dubbers Association (ELDA) in Italy.
Returning to Hollywood in 1967, Tony found limited film and TV opportunities, often turning to dinner theater. He appeared on TV shows such as Death Valley Days, The High Chaparral, Night Gallery, Hec Ramsey, Lou Grant, CHiPS, and Vega$. Burt Topper cast him in third billing roles in the biker drama The Hard Ride (1971) with Robert Fuller and as an evangelist preacher in the drama Soul Hustler (1973).
After roles in the TV movies The Mystic Warrior (1984) and The Vegas Strip War (1984), and a 1992 guest appearance on Hearts Afire, Tony’s acting career concluded. He passed away on March 18, 2017, in Las Vegas, Nevada, at age 91 and was buried in Boulder City. His longtime second wife, Renee Iris Russo (1942–2019), died more than two years later.
