Chazz Palminteri is an American Italian actor and writer, best known for his performances
in The Usual Suspects, A Bronx Tale, and his Academy Award nominated role for Best Supporting
Actor in Bullets over Broadway.
Early life Chazz Palminteri's surname is of Sicilian
origin and his family is originally from Menfi in the province of Agrigento.
His grandparents, Calogero Palminteri and Rosa Bonfante, married in 1908 and moved from
Menfi to the United States in 1910.
Chazz Palminteri was born in the Bronx on May 15, 1952, the son of Rose, a homemaker,
and Lorenzo Palminteri, a bus driver.
He struggled to become a star, splitting his time between acting in off-Broadway plays
and moonlighting as a bouncer, alongside Dolph Lundgren.
His big break did not come until 1988 with the premiere of his autobiographical one-man
show, A Bronx Tale, which he wrote after being fired from a club for refusing entry to super
agent Swifty Lazar; Robert De Niro later developed and directed a film version.
Palminteri confirms he witnessed a murder first-hand as a child, as depicted in the
play and film.
Career Film career
Palminteri has had acclaimed dramatic performances in films such as The Perez Family, Jade and
Diabolique, as well as comedic roles in films such as Oscar, Analyze This and Down to Earth.
During its run, he did many advertisements for Vanilla Coke, in which he portrayed a
mob boss who would threaten celebrities if they did not praise the taste of the product
in question, and then let them walk away with the Vanilla Coke to "reward their curiosity",
touching on its slogan at the time.
Palminteri has voiced characters in various animated films, the most notable being 2006's
Hoodwinked.
He made his directorial debut with Women vs. Men.
He has also directed Noel.
Palminteri's recent acting efforts include A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints, Running
Scared and Arthur and the Minimoys.
In 2004, he received the "Indie Hero Award" from the Method Fest Independent Film Festival
for his artistic achievements in film.
Palminteri starred on Broadway in A Bronx Tale the semi-autobiographical one-man show
he first performed off-Broadway in 1989.
The production, directed by Jerry Zaks and with music by John Gromada, began previews
October 4, 2008 at the Walter Kerr Theatre and opened on October 25, running for 18 weeks.
Palminteri plays 18 roles in A Bronx Tale, which depicts a rough childhood on the streets
of the Bronx.
The play ran for two months at Playhouse 91 in 1989.
Robert De Niro saw this show there and made his directorial debut with the big-screen
version, co-starring with Palminteri.
On January 20, 2010, Palminteri guested on Modern Family and played the same character
on the November 2, 2011, episode.
Palminteri has reprised the role twice more in season 5.
In June 2010, Palminteri began guest-starring on the TNT crime drama Rizzoli & Isles as
Frank Rizzoli, Sr. Palminteri will portray deceased mobster Paul
Castellano in the upcoming John Gotti biopic Gotti: In the Shadow of My Father.
Other Work In 2011, Palminteri opened a restaurant, "Chazz:
A Bronx Original", in Baltimore's Little Italy neighborhood, their main foods are coal fired
pizza and Italian food.
Personal life Palminteri lives in Bedford, New York.
He describes himself as a "very spiritual," devout Roman Catholic.
He is married to actress Gianna Ranaudo, a.k.a.
Gianna Rains.
Together they have two children: Dante Lorenzo and Gabriella Rose.
He is a self-avowed New York Yankees fan, and is often heard as caller "Chazz from Bedford"
on WFAN-AM, a sports radio station.
Chazz has been known to have frequent disagreements about the Yankees with WFAN host Mike Francesa.
Filmography Film
Television Video games
Theatre Work Broadway
2007 – A Bronx Tale – Performer 2013 – Human – Performer & Writer
Off-broadway 1989 – A Bronx Tale – Writer & Performer
2002 – The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui – Ernesto Roma
References
External links Chazz Palminteri | The Official Website
A Bronx Tale on Broadway | The Official Website AskChazz.com
Chazz Palminteri at the Internet Movie Database