Craig Vincent

Craig Vincent was born and raised in upstate Endicott, New York. Probably best known for being the birth-place of I. B. M. and the Endicott-Johnson shoe factory as well as being home to such notable celebrities such as Rod Serling, Amy Sedaris and cartoonist Johnny Hart. Craig's mother Mary and father Earl, both loving and dedicated parents, strongly believed the American Dream could be realized through hard work and loyalty to the company they both loved working for which was I. B. M. Having worked there part time on summer break from high school, Craig learned rather quickly that corporate life was simply not for him. The stress of corporate demands which contributed to his father's untimely death at forty-three years, convinced Craig that a much more suitable and creative pursuit would be more appropriate and awaiting him somewhere else. After the trauma of losing their beloved father, both Craig and his sister, Sandra, were raised primarily by his loving mother and doting maternal grandparents - Mary and Joseph Salamida. Hard-working Italian immigrants who came to New York through Ellis Island from Bari and Alberobello, Italy to escape the Fascist Dictatorship of Benito Mussolini in the early 1900s. While on college spring break in Las Vegas, local casting director, Charlene Goldman, noticed Craig walking through the set of a movie she was casting at Caesars Palace and approached him with an offer of work as an extra. After two weeks of steady employment on the film and getting to observe actors such as Omar Sharif, Victoria Principal, Jose Ferrer and Hope Lange, Craig had found his calling and immediately became smitten with the idea of becoming an actor. He had quickly endeared himself to some of the supporting cast of the film, and they took him under their wing. One such actor, who would become a mentor and a friend was acclaimed method actor and Lee Strasberg Theatre Director, Joseph Bernard. Craig began studying with Bernard at his studio in Las Vegas a few months after the film had wrapped, when he decided to move out from New York and leave the confines of a possible fate of working at I. B. M. for the rest of his life.

Upon arriving in New York from Bari, Italy - Craig's grandparents soon became good friends with Josephine Vivona, who eventually married reputed Mob Boss Joseph Barbara. It was many years later when in1957, Joe Barbara hosted the infamous Mafia Summit meeting at his estate in Apalachin, New York. This was the single most crucial turning point in Mafia history because it exposed for the first time, the actual existence (and names) of the major crime figures that controlled La Cosa Nostra in the United States.

Was once managed by his dear friend Robert P. Marcucci who's life story was brought to the screen in 1980 (The Idolmaker) by director Taylor Hackford.

New York, N.Y.: Recovering from a bout with Hairy Cell Leukemia. [February 2013]

Living in Florida and recuperating from his ongoing battle with Leukemia. [August 2016]