In Season 4 of All in the Family, viewers were introduced to new neighbors Frank and Irene Lorenzo, played by character actors Vincent Gardenia and Betty Garrett. Gardenia portrayed the good-humored Italian husband who always had something cooking in the kitchen for his feisty Irish-American wife Irene.

The two were guaranteed to irritate Archie Bunker with their frequent displays of affection, liberalism, or Catholicism. By the end of the fourth season, Gardenia had disappeared as quickly as he had appeared. Here’s what happened to the actor and why his departure was never explained.