Spike Lee is mourning the death of his Do The Right Thing co-star and friend, Danny Aiello. The 86-year-old actor passed away at a New Jersey hospital on Thursday (Dec. 12) following a brief illness.
“I am heartbroken,” Lee captioned a snapshot with Aiello taken from Do The Right Thing. “Just found out my brother Danny Aiello made his transition last night. Danny, we made cinema history together with Do the Right Thing. May you rest in paradise.”
Lee followed up the touching post with multiple photos of Aiello over the years. Aiello portrayed, Sal, a Brooklyn pizza shop owner and boss of Lee’s character, Mookie. Lee wrote, directed, starred in and produced Do the Right Thing, which earned Aiello an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting actor and a nod for Best Screenplay.
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I’m 💜 Broken. Just Found Out My Brother DANNY AIELLO Made His Transition Last Night. Danny,We Made Cinema History Together With DO THE RIGHT THING. May You Rest In PARADISE.🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿
A post shared by Spike Lee (@officialspikelee) on Dec 13, 2019 at 7:02am PST
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SAL and MOOKIE.
A post shared by Spike Lee (@officialspikelee) on Dec 13, 2019 at 7:22am PST
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This Was The Last Time Danny AIELLO And I We’re Together. Danny Blessed Us With His Presence At The 30th Anniversary DO THE RIGHT THING Block Party -June 30th,20019.
A post shared by Spike Lee (@officialspikelee) on Dec 13, 2019 at 7:55am PST
Aiello, a native New Yorker, broke into the film world in the 1970s. His acting credits include, The Godfather Part II, Harlem Nights, Once Upon a Time in America, Moostruck.
“It is with profound sorrow to report that Danny Aiello, beloved husband, father, grandfather, actor and musician passed away last night after a brief illness. The family asks for privacy at this time read a statement on Aiello's Facebook page. A public memorial service for Aiello will be held next Thursday (Dec. 19) afternoon at The Riverside Memorial Chapel in New York City.
In honor of Aiello’s character, Sal’s Pizzeria in Brooklyn will give out 300 slices of pizza to customers on Friday, so long as they follow a few steps.
Read all the details in Lee’s Instagram post below.
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In Honor Of Our Late Brother DANNY AIELLO,Sal’s Pizzeria Is Giving Out 300 Hot And Tasty Slices. You Must Say You Read It On Spike’s Instagram.One 🍕Per Customer. Sal’s Pizzeria Is Open To 11pm Tonight. The Address 305 Court Street At The Corner Of Court And Degraw In Carrol Gardens,In Da People’s Republic Of Brooklyn. ABSOLUTELY NO EXTRA CHEESE.🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪🤪🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🍕🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹I🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹
A post shared by Spike Lee (@officialspikelee) on Dec 13, 2019 at 12:35pm PST