Talk:Telly Savalas/Archive 1

Purple Heart
Well now, this I don't understand. Does no one else see the contradiction here? Telly was honourably discharched with a Purple Heart. The Purple Heart is only given to those who are wounded or dead, or going to die from being wounded. He didn't. So why did he get the purple heart? Marlowe[[user Talk:Destinova|²]] 04:36, Jun 19, 2004 (UTC)

From the wiki purple heart site: The Purple Heart differs from all other decorations in that an individual is not "recommended" for the decoration; rather he or she is entitled upon being killed or wounded in a manner meeting the specific criteria of AR 600-8-22:

In any action against an enemy of the United States; In any action with an opposing armed force of a foreign country in which the Armed Forces of the United States are or have been engaged; While serving with friendly foreign forces engaged in an armed conflict against an opposing armed force in which the United States is not a belligerent party; As a result of an act of any such enemy of opposing armed forces; As the result of an act of any hostile foreign force;

So he could have been wounded without being mortally wounded and received a purple heart. seema

Kelly's Heroes
Did he really play a villain in that film? Jackliddle 17:55, 2 Jun 2005 (UTC)


 * No, he did not. Savalas played Sgt. Kelly's (Clint Eastwood's) squad leader, Staff Sergeant "Big Joe", an amiable but very tough GOOD GUY.  "Big Joe" is the voice of reason and wisdom in the film, and simply wasn't sold on the mission at first due to a number of risk factors.  His concerns, by the way, are shown to be justified at key moments in the ensuing mission, which reinforce his doubts for a while.  Eventually, he sees that their mission to get the German gold might actually work, and therefore seems to have justified their risks and losses.  At worst, Savalas's character is a friendly antagonist throughout most of the movie, but not in ANY sense is he a villain.  He is genuinely looking out for the welfare of his men, and is a vocal critic of his own Army's treatment of his squad.  He is one of the funniest characters in the movie, reminiscent of a real platoon sergeant to those of us who served in the U.S. Army; articulate, tough, reliable, and a smart squad leader...even a bit of a smartalek.  Overall, Savalas partners with Kelly (Clint Eastwood) on the level of basic equals, but is more skeptical and brash with Donald Sutherland's character and especially Don Rickle's character---Savalas and Rickles exchange insults more than once, but by the end, when their mission is a success, their insults are spoken through the smile of friendship.  Savalas is a good guy in Kelly's Heroes, hands down.  Mluklu7 (talk) 03:15, 18 June 2019 (UTC)

Dr. Evil?
Is it me, or is this guy's look the basis for Dr. Evil in the Austin Powers Series of movies? -- Malo 15:37, 21 October 2005 (UTC)

Almost but not quite. Telly played Blofeld the bond villain and it's Blofeld that was the basis for Dr.Evil.

Purple heart
Apparently, like another actor David Niven, Savalas believed it was inappropriate for a celebrity to "cash in" on wartime service: he remained forever close-mouthed about his war record. He was missing the tip of one index finger. One can gain some clues to his psychology here: during his working career before acting, he was a lifeguard. One day on his watch, a man drowned and apparently Savalas felt guilty about it the remainder of his life.


 * I was always wondering what happend to his left index finger. I took a closer look and can say, that there misses nothing. The left index finger is sort of mutilated. From birth or the car crash? Does somebody knows it for sure? --89.244.110.233 (talk) 15:46, 9 September 2008 (UTC)

Date of birth
Date of birth should be 1924 like written on his tumbstone at Find-A-Grave. Lincher 22:03, 15 March 2006 (UTC)

Did you look at the tombstone? It says 1922!

Is the social security death index the best source for a person's birthday and death day? Most sites have January 21/1922 (or 1924) to January 22/1994 as Telly's life span. But, social security death index (SSDI) apparently has January 22/1922 to January 22/1994. I'd personally go with the SSDI. Hotwine8 02:16, 8 September 2006 (UTC)

Birthyear
Telly has 1922 as his birthyear on his death certificate at findadeath.com. His grave also says 1922. On Wikipedia and IMDB.com, the birthyear is 1924. Which one is correct? And can a legal document contain false information?

>And can a legal document contain false information? Ask Ken Lay.

IMDB now shows 1922 as his year of birth. The website www.tellysavalas.com lists it as 1924. This site is run by the company that looks after his estate. Unless someone has a definitive answer to this, I would go with the year of birth on his tombstone, as surely his relatives would have ensured it had the correct year on it. Ozzieboy (talk) 02:20, 6 February 2008 (UTC)


 * The year Savalas himself gave on his signed application for a Social Security number is 1922, not 1924. From the Social Security Death Index:


 * Name: Telly A. Savalas
 * SSN: 065-16-0946
 * ZIP code of last residence: 90025 (Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California)
 * Born: 22 January 1922
 * Died: 22 January 1994
 * State (Year) SSN issued: New York (1936-1950)


 * Further to this, if you go to this page or this page on the estate company's website, they list his year or birth as 1922. And yet on some of their pages they show 1924!
 * Seeing as they can't even get maintain some consistency with his year of birth on the one website, I am even more convinced that 1922 is the correct year. Hopefully people will stop changing it back to 1924. Ozzieboy (talk) 08:58, 10 February 2008 (UTC)


 * What the heck is going on here?! Telly Savalas died one day after his birthday - regardless of whether it was his 70th or 72nd: Los Angeles Times and CBS News death announcement. Why does this article state that he died on his birthday? I am changing it to January 21 as it was reported and is on his tombstone, find-a-grave, etc. Maineartists (talk) 23:46, 24 November 2019 (UTC)
 * Sources (in addition to CBS / LA Times above) Find-a-Grave, Biography, IMDB, The Independent. Maineartists (talk) 13:03, 25 November 2019 (UTC)

Numerous Edits Required
This article is grammatically horrendous. If no one else edits it, I eventually will; I presently lack the time. Minor edits already accomplished, with at least a score still required.

Agreed, the wording in this is nasty, and there are a lot of typos and redundant bits. If you don't edit it soon, I'll give it a go.

This article is incorrect. It makes it sound like Savalas died a Roman Catholic but actually his funeral was in a Greek Orthodox church. See the website http://www.seeing-stars.com/Churches/SaintSophia.shtml 67.11.227.124 23:43, 16 December 2006 (UTC)

"He had his first job at age 10 as a newspaper boy, when he constructed a shoeshine stand made of crates." - why did he build a shoeshine stand made of crates if he was a newspaper boy?

Removed, SqueakBox 17:18, 22 May 2007 (UTC)


 * I have made a few edits to try and make the article read better, but it still needs a lot more. Ozzieboy (talk) 03:13, 6 February 2008 (UTC)


 * Done some more - hope it reads better now. Still more needed. Next on the list, I think "Character Actor" needs to be merged into "Early television and movie career".Ozzieboy (talk) 06:26, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

Spurious edit from "nephew"
Removed part of http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Telly_Savalas&diff=prev&oldid=314414407636

In 1990, the city of New York declared "The Marcus-Nelson Murders" as the official movie of New York City, and awarded Telly with the Key to the City.

No "official movie" and no "key to the city". patsw (talk) 00:14, 16 February 2008 (UTC).

Greek name
Telly Savalas is an American. What is the need of putting his name in its Greek equivalent? That's irrelevant information. 68Kustom (talk) 16:40, 23 August 2008 (UTC)
 * Yes, I know this answer is seven years late, but I tend to agree. Also, the lede describes him as "Greek-American"; true, but we shouldn't use ethnicity at this point without a good reason, which I don't think there is in this case. Jellyman (talk) 22:25, 28 July 2015 (UTC)

Image copyright problem with Image:Kojaktelly.jpg
The image Image:Kojaktelly.jpg is used in this article under a claim of fair use, but it does not have an adequate explanation for why it meets the requirements for such images when used here. In particular, for each page the image is used on, it must have an explanation linking to that page which explains why it needs to be used on that page. Please check


 * That there is a non-free use rationale on the image's description page for the use in this article.
 * That this article is linked to from the image description page.

This is an automated notice by FairuseBot. For assistance on the image use policy, see Media copyright questions. --04:36, 18 September 2008 (UTC)

To Palikari movie
Dear People at Wikipedia,

My name is Nikolaos Caravasos and I'm asking for your help.

Telly Savalas, Michael Constantine and others and Directed by Charles Rubin made the film To Palikari on location at my village Agii Anargiri, Greece, that's where I was born. The year was 1981 but I believe the film was released in 1983 and was shown on PBS channels. I was there when the movie was made and had good times with Telly, the crew, and son Nicholas who was about 8 years old.

I am trying to get a copy of that film so I can copy it in PAL since Greece uses that system as most of the European countries. Now that the village has progressed to the 21st century with electricity and TVs, it would be a great idea to present them with a copy for their library so they can see it. I would like to get a copy for myself since it has sentimental value.

Please help me locate a copy in either Beta, VHS, or DVD.

Anyhting you can do will be greatly appreciated,

Sincerely,

Nikolaos (Nick) Caravasos nikosc38@hotmail.com 610-544-9124 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.249.20.231 (talk) 15:37, 10 July 2009 (UTC)

Sheraton Hotel resident?
According to this interview, as of 1991 Savalas was a full-time resident of the Sheraton-Universal hotel and apparently had lived there for a number of years. Perhaps this should be noted (especially since it's indicated that he died there). 68.146.81.123 (talk) 21:11, 7 January 2010 (UTC)

The Border, not Border Cop
I'm watching this right now on "this" TV and in the opening titles it was THE BORDER, not Border Cop. It's also listed as The Border on the official Telly Savalas website. http://www.tellysavalas.com/about/film.html This article's name needs changed, and added to the disambiguation page for The Border. Bizzybody (talk) 08:42, 2 January 2011 (UTC)

The "Missing" Finger
Telly Savalas was not actually missing the end of his left index finger. It was deformed. I've been watching the episodes of Kojak on hulu and noticed that the finger is bent from the first knuckle. The end isn't missing, you can clearly see a fingernail. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.114.69.2 (talk) 23:58, 10 February 2011 (UTC)

Julie Savalas
There is no article about Julie Savalas, if you click on her name you are redirected to the article about Telly Savalas. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 88.72.172.122 (talk) 18:05, 31 May 2011 (UTC)

Music
Beside his movie career he also recorded a couple albums; maybe you should copy the infos from our German site ... JorgeTiger (talk) 01:00, 15 June 2011 (UTC)

Go
Savalas appeared in the movie Go but only in archived footage playing on the hotel television in Las Vegas. Could that be added to his filmography? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 192.193.216.220 (talk) 19:39, 27 October 2011 (UTC)

I wouldn't have thought so. Wikitoddia (talk) 04:28, 30 December 2011 (UTC)

Terrible article
This article really deserves less than a C- rating. It feels like a promotional page for Savalas on Wikipedia. I don't have the time to fix it right now but maybe at some point in the near future. Wikitoddia (talk) 04:27, 30 December 2011 (UTC)

Much of this article is fine, but the personals section has a majority uncredited with citations.Purplethree (talk) 17:42, 2 February 2019 (UTC)

Is it true that Savalas couldn't speak English until he entered high school?
This seems most unlikely, unless he went to a Greek speaking elementary school, and stayed at home the rest of the time. What's the source for this claim? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 58.111.138.117 (talk) 03:29, 29 May 2012 (UTC) os

This claim cannot be possible. He was born and grew up in Garden City NY. Surely he went to school K-8. He may not have spoken Englsh until he entered elementary school, but this was hardly uncommon among children of immigrant parents in the era before television. Unless there is a valid objection or verification from a reliable source, I will make a change. American In Brazil (talk) 01:15, 9 January 2014 (UTC)

Grade school
Grade school? WTH is that? I guess it's a USA term whose meaning is lost on the rest of us in the world?

So, does that mean that he went to another school which was Greek language only or both Greek and English? Chaosdruid (talk) 14:29, 19 February 2015 (UTC)

Name
The Greek wikipedia has his name as "Τέλι". — Preceding unsigned comment added by 199.19.253.71 (talk) 19:43, 21 April 2015 (UTC)

Broken sentence in the Titanic Controversy section
"When the wreck of the RMS Titanic was found by a joint French-American expedition led by Jean-Louis Michel of IFREMER and Robert Ballard of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution on 1985 led to an intense since its discovery and has been visited by numerous expeditions, including salvage operations which have controversially recovered thousands of items."

Something clearly went wrong with this sentence. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.65.108.225 (talk) 01:54, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

Removing stale banner from header
I'm removing the three year old (April 2012) refImprove template, which is inappropriate for this article.


 * However, if an article has sufficient inline citations, but the article lacks citations to cover specific information (such as no citation on a quotation) then use the inline citation template to indicate more precisely where additional citations are needed. Unlike Citation needed, Refimprove places a very conspicuous banner in the article.

I suggest we use inline (citation needed) tags, which are much more helpful to readers who maybe knowledgeable about the topic and fix the line-item rather than the entire article -- which currently has about 30 citations. Thank you 009o9 (talk) 16:14, 11 April 2016 (UTC)

telly had a bit part in john goldfarb, please come home ' mat mood '  saw him in movie

zorba aka john p.panagopoulos24.107.232.43 (talk) 12:18, 16 October 2016 (UTC)

Hero or Villain
Entry "Genghis Khan (1965) as Shan" appears under both categories ...

Titanic
There seems to be unnecessary weight and connection in the section "Titanic Controversy" in regards to inclusion for this subject and its article. First, Savalas merely hosted the live television event. His mannerisms ("seemed haggard, missed several cues, and at one point almost tripped over a chair") do not lend any connection with the alleged "controversy" for it to be a section in relation to the subject. Second, the only "reliable sources" are shortened foot notes; for which I cannot find the original references. The section on a whole is almost entirely not related to this subject; or attempts to link the subject to a "controversy" that has not been proven within the section, or should be covered in another article relating to the television program, its producers, or the RMS Titanic itself. Until more substantial and additional reliable sources can be found (which I have unsuccessfully attempted to find online) to back the claims of controversy linking Savalas with this particular expedition (not just the hosting of the live telecast); I am removing the section and integrating the necessary information within the article. "Controversy persisted after the broadcast when claims were made that the safe had been opened beforehand and that the show had effectively been a fraud." First, "Controversy persisted"? "Fraud"? this is a pretty strong statement to make with only a single footnote and no other sources to back it. Second, what does this have to do with Savalas? Thanks. Maineartists (talk) 18:21, 19 January 2018 (UTC)

Filmography Chaos
Could PLEASE someone sort this bullshit filmography out, were the SAME movies are listed unter "hero" as under villain" (which is a stupid kategorization in itself)? This is not a fimography (all its tv work is missing), this is a something. 95.90.115.121 (talk) 22:43, 25 October 2018 (UTC)

"Resonant" is not the same as "Deep"
Another editor, User:Maineartists, reverted my short edit calling Telly Savalas' voice "deep" as well as "resonant". The edit summary of the reversion says that Maineartists thinks that "resonant" means "deep". However, Merriam Webster defines "resonant" as:


 * 1 : continuing to sound : echoing
 * 2a : capable of inducing resonance
 * b : relating to or exhibiting resonance
 * 3a : intensified and enriched by or as if by resonance a resonant voice
 * b : marked by grandiloquence

No mention of pitch here! And, any opera-freak will tell you that a voice does not have to be deep in order to be resonant. For instance, listen to this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSzq4xbevKE

or this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbrfwOB1slo&t=108s

Are you going to tell me that these are not resonant voices? But they are not low voices.

What say you all, denizens of the Wikiverse? Should the article mention that Telly's voice was basso as well as resonant? How about adding "low" or "bass" to "resonant" instead of "deep"?

Best wishes, HandsomeMrToad (talk) 04:44, 8 April 2019 (UTC)


 * 1) You have opened 2 separate sections on this Talk Page. One entitled: "Deep and resonant" or just "resonant" voice? and (this one) "Resonant" is not the same as "Deep" - please clean-up.
 * 2) You have not gained consensus to include "bass" - a variant of deep. Since discussion has not yielded former compliance with your first objection, let alone the inclusions of the new term; gain consensus first, then include.
 * 3) A simple Google search of the word: "resonant" reveals to be classified as: "deep" https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=resonant
 * 4) Who is an opera-freak? Certainly not I. Second, Telly Savales never sang opera in his life; so to compare the resonant description to YouTube opera clips is confusing at best. It's also OR and based on personal opinion; a source to back the claim would be needed.
 * 5) Rather than create a heated display here, why not simply find a source to back up your inclusion for the term: "deep"? Doing so saves everyone time and effort and allows you non-confrontation with other editors. Plain and simple. Best, Maineartists (talk) 15:29, 8 April 2019 (UTC)


 * RE (1) Done.


 * RE (5) Also done.


 * Enjoy. HandsomeMrToad (talk) 21:32, 8 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Great. Sources are perfect. No one can deny. It might, however, be a case for: WP:OVERCITE. Best, Maineartists (talk) 01:43, 9 April 2019 (UTC)

Discography
Savalas's music career seems to be currently summarized in just one paragraph:
 * "As a singer, Savalas had some chart success. His spoken word version of Bread's "If" produced by Snuff Garrett reached #1 in both the UK and Ireland in March 1975, and his version of Don Williams's "Some Broken Hearts Never Mend" topped the charts in Switzerland in February 1981. He worked with composer and producer John Cacavas on many albums, including Telly (1974) and Who Loves Ya, Baby (1976).

But I see that discogs.com credits his with 6 albums, 3 compilation albums and 16 singles. So maybe a Discography section is warranted? Martinevans123 (talk) 17:15, 4 June 2019 (UTC)

Incomprehensible wording on Dukakis campaign, etc.
Like others on this Talk page, I would lend my assistance in cleaning up this entire article, because I am a fan of Telly Savalas. But I can only guess what "sentences" and paragraphs like the following even really mean, or how to clean them up:

"Get his Hellenic Times interview during the Dukakis campaign, when Savalas helped organize the Pan-Gregorians to help Dukakis as a Diner co-op. He said he majored in psychology and participated in a church play as a bald judge, from where Hollywood recruited him. He said State Dept, didn't mention VOA."

This is currently (17 June 2019) the last part of the top section of Savalas's "Early Life". Maybe I'm just dumb, but a number of things in these lines don't make any sense to me, unless I assume some typos. Anyway, I guess this is just an FYI or something. Ciao. Mluklu7 (talk) 02:50, 18 June 2019 (UTC)

Columbia University part is incoherent
The story that Mr. Savalas entered Columbia University College of General Studies before the war, and then came back, and was "too old", and so had to transfer to Columbia University College of General Studies, is incoherent. How can you be forced to "transfer" to the College where you had already started? Also, he wouldn't have been old enough to get into The College Of General Studies if we can trust the birth-year given. The most likely truth is that he enrolled in COLUMBIA COLLEGE of Columbia University, got drafted, came back, was too old having spent those years in the military to continue in COLUMBIA COLLEGE, and was forced at that time to transfer OUT of Columbia College of Columbia University, and into Columbia University College of General Studies. Columbia University has more than one College that grants Bachelor's Degrees. If you're under 21 you can't get into The College Of General Studies. If you're OVER 21 you can't get into Columbia College. I think Barnard College (of Columbia U) may not allow Freshmen over 21 too. The engineering College (which may have "Mines" in the name) may not have age-brackets. The extent to which Teacher's College is folded in with all of Columbia's other Colleges is unknown to me, as are their age-limits for undergrads.204.155.230.3 (talk) 02:32, 30 March 2020 (UTC)Christopher L. Simpson


 * Thanks for the information. This all sounds plausible, but WP requires reliable sources. Can you find a reliable source saying that he started at Columbia College? I have edited that section of the article to stick closer to the existing cited sources. --Macrakis (talk) 20:11, 12 April 2020 (UTC)

what war
what war was he drafted into — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2600:1700:FFD0:C3B0:483:19F4:7329:BF5F (talk) 23:28, 23 April 2020 (UTC)