Don Calfa, a prolific character actor who appeared in “Weekend at Bernie’s,” died Thursday, December 1, 2016, of natural causes in Palm Springs, California, according to The Associated Press. He was 76.
Calfa appeared in dozens of films and TV shows over the course of his more than 40-year career. One of the most successful was the 1989 comedy “Weekend at Bernie’s,” in which he played Paulie the hitman.
Perhaps his most beloved role was as mortician Ernie Kaltenbrunner in the 1985 cult film “The Return of the Living Dead.” The horror-comedy helped to popularize the idea of zombies feeding on brains. Of all the roles he played, that one seemed to resonate the most with audiences and he made appearances at fan conventions for many years.
Born in Brooklyn, New York on December 3, 1939, Calfa dropped out of high school to join a theater workshop and pursue his love of acting. He got his first professional work on the New York stage, eventually appearing on Broadway in “Mating Dance” in 1965.
He made his screen debut for underground director Robert Downey, Sr. in “No More Excuses” (1968). He played small roles in the films of several notable directors, including Martin Scorsese’s “New York, New York” (1977), Blake Edwards’ “10” (1979), and Seven Spielberg’s “1941” (1979).
On television he appeared as a number of different characters over the run of “Barney Miller,” and had short recurring roles on “Doogie Howser, M.D.” and “Beverly Hills, 90210.”