Trivia

His father was an army general under a Cuban dictatorship. In 1933 the dictatorship was overthrown and his father arrested. He committed suicide in 1945 in his home, with Tomas as an eyewitness.

He decided to become a movie actor after seeing James Dean in East of Eden (1955).

In the 1970s he specialized in playing lone-wolf anti-heroes in giallos and crime features. He started an extremely successful series of tough, violent films as the small-time crook Er. Monnezza (three times) and police detective Nico Giraldi (12 times).

In most of the crime films and comedies he made during the 1970s, his voice was dubbed by Ferruccio Amendola, who provided a strong Roman accent. However, Milian had an extensive knowledge of Roman slang and generally wrote his own lines. Although Milian had previously looped himself for the English versions of most of his earlier Westerns, for these roles he was usually dubbed by Frank von Kuegelgen, who gave Milian a Brooklynese accent. Von Kuegelgen would also usually direct the dubs of these films.

Studied method acting under Lee Strasberg.

Discovered by director Mauro Bolognini after appearing on stage in Italy. He began in Italian features playing sensitive, spoiled bourgeoisie.

Returned to the US in the late '80s and played ethnic bad guys for the most part.

After the tremendous success of Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars (1964) starring Clint Eastwood, Milian grubbed up his own image and propelled himself to stardom in like fashion in such classic "spaghetti westerns" as The Ugly Ones (1966), The Big Gundown (1967) with Lee Van Cleef, Face to Face (1967), Django Kill... If You Live, Shoot! (1967) and Run, Man, Run (1968).

Father of Tomaso Milian Jr..