'Scarface' actor Geno Silva and drummer Alex Van Halen were often mistaken for each other in their early days

Geno Silva, the actor who portrayed the Skull in 1983’s crime drama ‘Scarface’ passed away on May 9, 2020 at his home in Los Angeles. 

According to Hollywood Reporter, Silva succumbed to complications from frontotemporal degeneration, a form of dementia at the age of 72. The actor whose career spanned over four decades appeared in several notable films including ‘1941’, ‘Tequila Sunrise’, ‘A Man Apart’ and ‘The Lost World: Jurassic Park’. Although he would be well-remembered for his portrayal of the silent assassin who killed Al Pacino’s character Tony Montana in ‘Scarface’, the probability of him being confused with the drummer and co-founder hard rock band Van Halen, Alex Van Halen is high, owing to their resemblance which is truly uncanny. 

 Silva’s appearance in recent times could be well-distinguished from Halen’s, but the duo looked extremely similar to each other when they were much younger. Their long nose and a similar hairdo that they often sported back in the day only made it harder to tell them apart. Perhaps, it was only Silva’s notable salt and pepper look from the past few years that helped one not confuse him with Halen. 

Silva and Halen rose to stardom around the same time in their respective career. While the former made his debut in films with the role of Taffy in 1974’s ‘Thomasine & Bushrod’, Halen formed his band in the same year with his younger brother Eddie, David Lee Roth, and Michale Anthony. 

However, they were never spotted together or collaborated for any of their projects. Apart from movies, Silva was also a regular on television shows such as ‘On the Rocks’, ‘The Quest’, ‘Bret Maverick’ and ‘Fantasy Island’. He also featured in a couple of episodes of ‘How the West Was Won’, ‘The Chisholms’, ‘Day of Our Lives’, and ‘Key West’. 

The ‘Scarface’ actor is survived by his wife Pamela, daughter Lucia, sister Elizabeth, and grandchildren Eva and Levon. Following his demise, Silva’s family has asked fans and friends to make donations in his memory to The Association for Frontotemporal Dementia. 

Meanwhile, Halen was a part of several other bands including Broken Combs, The Space Brothers, The Trojan Rubber Company, and Mammoth, before he formed Van Halen. He’s currently married to Stine Schyberg since 2000 and the couple share a son called Malcolm Van Halen.