Seth Wenig / AP
A police officer gets a closer look at a painting of Abe Vigoda during his funeral service in New York, Sunday, Jan. 31, 2016. 
Those who knew actor Abe Vigoda say he was as big a character in real life as make believe.
The actor who played Phil Fish on the 1970s TV series “Barney Miller” and Sal Tessio in the classic movie “The Godfather” was mourned at a funeral Sunday in New York.
Vigoda died Tuesday in his sleep at age 94 at his daughter’s New Jersey home.
His life ended decades after a false report announced his death, leading to a long-running joke over whether he was dead or alive.
His step into fame came when director Francis Ford Coppola plucked him from obscurity as a supporting actor in New York theater for a role in the 1972 Oscar-winning “The Godfather.”
Associated Press
