Tony Mordente Dies: ‘7th Heaven’ Director-Producer, Prolific Choreographer And ‘West Side Story’ Actor Was 88
deadline.comTony Mordente, who made his mark on Broadway as a dancer and choreographer, played the hot-headed Jet named Action in the 1961 film West Side Story and later segued into a long and busy career as a director of such TV series as Family Ties, Walker Texas Ranger and 7th Heaven, died June 12 in Henderson, Nevada, following a brief illness.
He was 88. His death was announced by his family, including daughter Lisa, whom he shared with his first wife, the late Chita Rivera.
Born December 3, 1935, in Brooklyn, New York, Mordente began dancing at the age of 13, and trained at New York City’s High School of Performing Arts and American Ballet Theater School, which led to the launch of his Broadway career as Lonesome Polecat in 1956’s Lil’ Abner.
His next stage casting would make a major impact on his career and his personal life: Playing (and dancing) the role of A-Rab in the original 1957 Broadway and 1958 West End productions of West Side Story.
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