Rockets Redglare
Rockets Redglare
Rockets Redglare (born Michael Morra; May 8, 1949 – May 28, 2001) was an American character actor and stand-up comedian. He appeared in over 30 films in the 1980s and 1990s, including a number of independent films and mainstream films, such as After Hours) (1985) and Desperately Seeking Susan (1985).
Death
After Redglare's death, obituary-writers tried to sum up Redglare's life and involvement in New York's creative scenes. The Chicago Reader called Redglare a "compulsive hustler who became obese once he decided to substitute beer for drugs," and acknowledges that "he was also a gifted raconteur", especially in informal, relaxed settings. Seattle newspaper The Stranger) wrote that Redglare became a New York City "alternative celebrity" in the city's East Village bars and clubs where he drank and told stories.
Early life
Redglare was born Michael Morra in New York City to a heroin-addicted 15-year-old mother named Agnes Tarulli Morra. While still in utero, he became addicted to heroin, so doctors added an opiate derivative into his baby formula so that he could withdraw from the drug. Morra's father and uncle were career criminals in the Italian-American underworld in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn.
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