SAL MINEO BIOGRAPHY & FILMOGRAPHY:
 
Sal Mineo was born on January 10th, 1939 in The Bronx, New York with the birth name Salvatore Mineo Jr. to parents Joesphine and Sal Sr.  He had three siblings and his family had emigrated to the United States from Sicily.  As a young boy he became involved with the wrong crowd and by the age of ten he had already been arrested for Robbery.  He was therefore given a choice from his mother, either be placed in a juvenile  consignment situation or go and learn acting and dancing to develop a trade.
 
Mineo began with working as a stage actor appearing in such productions as, "The Rose Tattoo" and "The King and I".  As a teenager he appeared on ABC's musical quiz program, "Jukebox Jury" (1953-1954) and soon followed with being cast in films such as, "Six Bridges to Cross" (1955), "Rebel Without a Cause" (1955), "Giant" (1958) both starring his friend James Dean and "Exodus" (1960) starring Paul Newman with being nominated for Best Supporting Actor for both, "Rebel Without a Cause" and "Exodus".  He also worked on the film, "Escape from Zahrain" (1962) and was actually burned in an accident on the set.
 
He also tried to use his musical talents in 1957 to record two singles, "Start Movin" and "Lasting Love" both which made the charts, but he decided even though successful as a musician he wanted to continue to pursue acting.
 
As his career progressed he continued to work as a stage actor but also appeared on the big screen and on a number of television series and movies such as, "The Longest Day" (1962) starring Richard Burton, John Wayne, Red Buttons, Sean Connery, Mel Ferrer, Henry Fonda, Jeffrey Hunter, Peter Lawford, Roddy McDowall, Robert Mitchum, Robert Ryan, George Segal, Rod Steiger and Robert Wagner, "The Greatest Story Ever Told" (1965) starring Max von Sydow, Dorothy McGuire, Michael Anderson Jr., Carroll Baker, Ina Balin, Pat Boone, Victor Buono, Richard Conte, Jose Ferrer, Van Heflin, Charlton Heston, Martin Landau, Angela Lansbury, David McCallum, Roddy McDowall, Claude Rains, Telly Savalas, Joseph Schildkraut and Ed Wynn, "Cheyenne Autumn" (1964) starring alongside Richard Widmark, Carroll Baker, James Stewart, Edward G. Robinson, Dolores del Rio, Karl Malden, Ricardo Montalban, Gilbert Roland, Arthur Kennedy, Patrick Wayne, George O'Brien, Judson Pratt, John Carradine, Elizabeth Allen, Victor Jory, Mike Mazurki, "Escape from the Planet of the Apes" (1971) and "Harry O" (1973).
 
He also always had an interest in directing and in 1971 he had the opportunity to direct, "Fortune and Men's Eyes" (1971) which was a Los Angeles Production that dealt with homosexuality.  He had been one of the first major Hollywood actors to publicly acknowledge his homosexuality in the late 1960's so directing this film felt natural to him.  Mineo also directed a stage production of, "The Medium" (1972) and played himself, the mute Toby in the production.    
 
In 1976 he had returned back to stage acting and was preparing for a performance in San Francisco.  He was returning back to his home in Los Angeles after a rehearsal and sadly was stabbed to death by a complete stranger on February 12th, 1976 in West Hollywood, California.  The man who committed the crime, Lionel Ray Williams was arrested and sentenced to life in prison. 
 
Even though his life was cut way too short, his memory still lives on in his film and television work that holds his memory.  Sal Mineo's remains were interred in the Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Hawthorne, New York.

 
Filmography

1976 Joe Forrester
1976 Ellery Queen
1974-1975 Police Story
1975 Columbo
1975 S.W.A.T.
1973-1975 Harry O 
1968-1975 Hawaii Five-O
1974 Tenafly 
1973 Griff
1972 The Family Rico 
1971 How to Steal an Airplane
1971 Escape from the Planet of the Apes 
1971 In Search of America 
1971 Dan August 
1971 The Immortal 
1971 My Three Sons 
1970 Mission: Impossible 
1969-1970 The Name of the Game
1970 The Challengers 
1969 80 Steps to Jonah 
1969 Krakatoa: East of Java 
1967 Stranger on the Run 
1967 Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre 
1966 The Dangerous Days of Kiowa Jones
1964-1966 Combat!
1966 Court Martial 
1966 Run for Your Life
1966 Mona McCluskey
1965 Who Killed Teddy Bear
1965 Burke's Law
1965 The Greatest Story Ever Told 
1965 The Patty Duke Show
1964 Cheyenne Autumn
1964 Kraft Suspense Theatre 
1964 Dr. Kildare 
1963 The Greatest Show on Earth 
1962 The Longest Day
1962 Escape from Zahrain
1962 The DuPont Show of the Week
1961 Cry Vengeance! 
1960 Exodus 
1960 Insight or Insanity? 
1959 The Gene Krupa Story
1959 The Ann Sothern Show 
1959 A Private's Affair 
1958 Tonka
1958 Pursuit
1958 The DuPont Show of the Month
1957 Kraft Theatre
1957 The Young Don't Cry 
1957 Dino 
1956 Rock, Pretty Baby 
1956 Giant 
1956 Climax!
1956 Somebody Up There Likes Me 
1956 Crime in the Streets 
1956 The Alcoa Hour
1956 Screen Directors Playhouse 
1956 Look Up and Live
1956 Studio One in Hollywood 
1955 Frontiers of Faith
1955 The Philco-Goodyear Television Playhouse
1955 Big Town
1955 Rebel Without a Cause 
1953-1955 Omnibus 
1955 The Private War of Major Benson 
1955 Six Bridges to Cross 
1954 Janet Dean, Registered Nurse
1952 Hallmark Hall of Fame