Sylvester Stallone's Rocky co-star Burt Young passes away at 83

Burt Young who became a household name for his portrayal of Paulie in six of Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky franchise has passed away at the age of 83. He died in Los Angeles and the same was confirmed by his daughter Anne Morea Steingieser to the New York Times. Young was initially in the Marine Corps and also tried his hand at boxing before entering showbiz.

Burt Young played Rocky's close friend Paulie

He was strongly remembered as a character actor for playing a detective or a mob kingpin effectively. However, he gained prominence for his performance as Paulie who was Rocky Balboa’s close friend and brother-in-law in the franchise. The actor received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the Rocky franchise.

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Burt Young appeared in 160 films and TV shows

Not only this but Young was one of the only four actors along with Stallone, Tony Burton, and Stu Nahan who starred in all six of the movies from the Rocky franchise. Burt did not make an appearance in Creed since his character was shown to be dead. The actor also appeared in a whopping 160 films and TV shows. Some of those include Chinatown (1974), The Gambler (1974), The Killer Elite (1975), Convoy (1978), Uncle Joe Shannon (1978), Once Upon a Time in America (1984), The Pope of Greenwich Village (1984), A Summer to Remember (1985), Back to School (1986), Last Exit to Brooklyn (1990), Mickey Blue Eyes (1999), Transamerica (2005), Bottom of the 9th (2019) and Win Win (2011).

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Young furthermore made an appearance in the documentary, Stallone: Frank It Is. Burt has been part of some critically acclaimed TV shows like The Rockford Files, Baretta, Law & Order, Walker, Texas Ranger, All In The Family, M*A*S*H, Miami Vice, and Roomies. He also owned a restaurant in the Bronx, New York. He was married to Gloria DeLouise who died in 1974. He is survived by a daughter and a grandson.