Every film actor John Cazale appeared in was nominated for Best Picture.

There are impressive filmographies, and then there’s John Cazale's. The actor only appeared in five films during his lifetime, all of which were nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards: The Godfather (1972), The Conversation (1974), The Godfather Part II (1974), Dog Day Afternoon (1975), and The Deer Hunter (1978). Even more remarkably, three of them — both Godfathers and The Deer Hunter — won the top prize. The last of these was released after Cazale’s untimely death from bone cancer in March 1978, at which time the 42-year-old thespian was the romantic partner of fellow great Meryl Streep. (He was also in 1990's The Godfather Part III via archival footage, which didn’t break his streak — that sequel was also up for Best Picture.)

John Cazale was nominated for an Oscar himself.

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Despite receiving widespread praise for his performances, Cazale was never nominated for an Academy Award himself. He fared better during his stage career, winning an Obie for his performance in 1968’s “The Indian Wants the Bronx” — as did Pacino, with whom he shared the stage.

Described by no less an authority than his Godfather co-star Al Pacino as “one of the great actors of our time — that time, any time,” Cazale remains best known for playing the tragic Fredo Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola’s mafioso saga. Revered by everyone from contemporaries Gene Hackman and Robert De Niro to more recent admirers such as Michael Fassbender and Steve Buscemi, he was the subject of the 2009 documentary I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale. The film was well received upon its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, and further cemented Cazale’s status as one of the most respected performers of his generation.

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