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Michael DeLano, the actor known for his work on TV shows like Rhoda and films such as Ocean’s Eleven, died Oct. 20 in Las Vegas. He was 84.
His family announced the news in a death notice, and his wife of 28 years, Jean Delano, told The Hollywood Reporter that the cause was a heart attack.
Born in New York City in 1940, DeLano began his showbiz career in 1960, when he signed with Swan Records under the name Key Larson and recorded songs like “A Web of Lies” and “A Little Lovin’ Goes a Long, Long Way.”
DeLano started acting in the early 1970s, appearing in single episodes of shows like Adam-12, Banyon, and Barnaby Jones. His earliest film projects were 1971’s Catlow, which starred Yul Brynner and Leonard Nimoy, and 1972’s The New Centurions, which featured George C. Scott and Stacy Keach.
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DeLano portrayed firefighter Sonny Caputo on all 13 episodes of ABC’s Firehouse in 1974, and guested on shows like Kojack, The Rockford Files, and Starsky and Hutch in the mid-’70s. His best-known TV credit was Rhoda, on which he portrayed Johnny Venture, a lounge singer who appeared in 11 episodes of the CBS series to romance Valerie Harper’s titular protagonist. He also appeared in five episodes of NBC’s sci-fi drama Supertrain in 1979.
The actor spent most of the late ’70s and early ’80s performing in single episodes of massive TV shows, including Charlie’s Angels, The Jeffersons, Wonder Woman, and Magnum, P.I. He appeared on three eps of The A-Team and played a motorcycle cop in the 1980 comedy classic 9 to 5. DeLano also appeared in 1985’s Commando, portraying Forrestal, a former ally of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s John Matrix.
DeLano’s ’90s run featured more film projects, including comedies like Another Stakeout and Father Hood (starring Patrick Swayze), as well as a number of action movies like Zero Tolerance, Lion Strike, Fists of Iron, and Private Wars.
The actor’s best-known role in the 21st century came with Steven Soderbergh’s starry 2001 remake of Ocean’s Eleven, in which DeLano played a Las Vegas casino manager working for Terry Benedict (Andy GarcÃa). He reprised the role in the 2004 sequel, Ocean’s Twelve.
In the 2000s, DeLano also appeared in two episodes of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, as well as Wong Kar-wai’s sole English-language film, 2007’s My Blueberry Nights. His final screen credit came in two 2012 episodes of Royal Pains, in which he played a casino host.
In addition to his wife, DeLano is survived by daughter Bree, grandsons Michael and Lincoln, and granddaughter Jaxon.
