carmine caridi (january 23, 1934 – may 28, 2019) was an american actor. he appeared in movies and on television. he is best known for his roles in "the gambler" (1974), "the godfather part ii" (1974), "prince of the city", "summer rental" (1985), "the godfather part iii" (1990), "bugsy" (1991) and "top dog" (1995). he also played detective vince gotelli in "nypd blue" during the 1990s. in 2004, he became the first person to be removed from the academy of motion picture arts and sciences.