Feb. 1 (UPI) -- Actor, restaurateur and cookbook author Frank Pellegrino has died in New York after a battle with lung cancer. He was 72.
Best known for his work on the classic HBO mob drama The Sopranos, he also played memorable roles in Goodfellas, Cop Land, Mickey Blue Eyes and Law & Order.
He co-owned the popular Italian restaurant Rao's in East Harlem, as well.
Pellegrino's close friend Bo Dietl told the New York Post Pellegrino died Tuesday at Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital surrounded by his loved ones.
"We lost a part of New York today when we lost Frankie. There's nobody like him; he's an icon," Dietl said. "Rao's may be over 100 years old, but the person who made Rao's what it is, was Frankie. It is a place that is so unique because of him and it's not going to be the same without him. He was big-hearted and generous and always took care of people. What a shining star and a big personality. I will miss singing along with him every Thursday night."
