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Former professional hockey player Guido Tenesi, best known for starring in the 1977 sports comedy film Slap Shot, has died at the age of 71, according to his former team, the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League.
"We’re saddened to learn of the passing of Guido Tenesi, a member of our roster during the 1974 Calder Cup championship, and was known to many more for his role as Billy Charlebois in the classic hockey film 'Slapshot.' Our hearts are with his family, friends, and teammates," the Bears wrote on their X account Thursday (June 19).
Tenesi's cause of death wasn't publicly announced as of Friday (June 20) morning.
The defenseman was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the fifth-round of the 1973 NHL Draft and spent two seasons with the Bears, who served as the franchise's minor league affiliate at the time. Tenesi continued to play professional hockey for several clubs over the next seven seasons, landing his role in the Paul Newman comedy Slap Shot after winning the North American Hockey League championship with the Johnstown Jets during the 1974-75 season.
“I played on the same team as Ned Dowd, Dave Hanson, and the Carlsons. Ned would walk around with a tape recorder, and taking notes on everything that happened on one of our road trips,” Tenesi told the Utica Observer-Dispatch in 2016. ”If someone tripped on the ice, or if a player broke their stick and threw it over the glass, Ned recorded it.”