# Tom Cavalcante

Antônio José Rodrigues Cavalcante (born March 8, 1962) is a Brazilian actor and comedian, who is known professionally as Tom Cavalcante.

## Early life

Cavalcante was born in Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil on March 8, 1962, as Antônio José Rodrigues Cavalcante.

## Career

Cavalcante began his career in 1976, performing in bars in his home state of Ceará doing humor skits and impressions of various artists. In 1982, Tom went to Rio de Janeiro and asked for a job on television, but he was turned down. In 1984, he tried to participate in the SBT Show de Calouros talent show, but he was not selected by the production to perform on stage. In the same year, he got a job as a radio broadcaster at Rádio Verdes Mares, where he presented the comedy show Ligação Direta for five years. During the 1986 elections, he worked by opening political rallies with comic skits. In 1987, he presented the television newsprogrm VM Notícias, on the Rede Globo-affiliate TV Verdes Mares. In 1989, he met Chico Anysio, who invited him to return to Rio de Janeiro to participate in the Chico Anysio Show. With the program's end, he began to participate in another of Chico's shows: Escolinha do Professor Raimundo, where he played the drunkard João Canabrava, a character created by himself. In 1996, Daniel Filho invited him to participate in Sai de Baixo, playing the doorman Ribamar. From 1999 to 2001, he worked in Globo's comedy shows Zorra Total and Megatom.
Unsatisfied with his treatment by Globo, Cavalcante resigned from the station and signed with TV Record, where he presented his own program, Show do Tom, from 2004 to 2011. In 2013, Cavalcante and his family moved to the United States, where he worked on the short film Pizza Me, Mafia, directed by Gui Pereira. Cavalcante returned to Brazil in 2014, and made an appearance on Globo's Domingão do Faustão, eleven years after being banned by the station.
Since 2016, Cavalcante presented at Globosat's cable channel Multishow in the shows #PartiuShopping and Multi Tom, where he performed as several characters, among them Tomsonaro (an impression of president Jair Bolsonaro). He presented and hosted the show Todos os Toms in September 2019 at the Riomar Theater. and starred in the 2017 comedy film Os Parças.

## Filmography
### Films

| Year | Title | Role | Note(s) | Type |
| 1995 | TV Colosso Especial | - | - | TV movie |
| 1995 | Xuxa Especial: Deu a Louca na Fantasia | Príncipe | - | Full-length film |
| 2003 | Xuxa in Abracadabra | Narrator | - | Full-length film |
| 2005 | Xuxinha and Guto Against the Space Monsters | Douglas Wonder | Voice role | Full-length film |
| 2013 | Pizza Me Mafia | Joe Calzone / Tom Calzone / Mama Calzone | Nominated for and won an award | Short movie |
| 2017 | Os Parças | Toinho | - | Full-length film |
| 2019 | Sai de Baixo: O Filme | Ribamar / Jaula | - | Full-length film |
| 2019 | Os Parças 2 | Toinho | Pre-production | Full-length film |

### TV series

| Year | Title | Role | Note(s) |
| 1987 | A Praça é Nossa | João Canabrava | - |
| 1990 | Escolinha do Professor Raimundo | João Canabrava | - |
| 1991 | Estados Anysios de Chico City | - | - |
| 1996 | Sai de Baixo | Ribamar | - |
| 1999 | Zorra Total | Pitbicha / Ribamar / João Canabrava | - |
| 2000 | Megatom | - | - |
| 2004 | Show do Tom | - | - |
| 2007 | Tela Class | - | - |
| 2007 | Louca Família | Tóla | - |
| 2014 | Trair e Coçar é Só Começar | Primo | - |
| 2015 | #PartiuShopping | Gildo | - |
| 2015 | Tomara que Caia | João Canabrava / Ribamar | - |
| 2016 | Casa dos Políticos | Pedro Miau | Mini-series |
| 2016 | Multi Tom | - | - |
| 2018 | Tá no Ar: A TV na TV | João Canabrava | - |
| 2018 | Dra. Darci | Dra. Darci | - |
| 2021 | LOL: Se Rir, Já Era | Presenter |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | For | Result |
| 1992 | Troféu Imprensa | Best Newcomer | Escolinha do Professor Raimundo | Nominated |
| 1992 | Troféu Imprensa | Best Male Comedian | Escolinha do Professor Raimundo | Won (tied with Luiz Fernando Guimarães |
| 1993 | Troféu Imprensa | Best Male Comedian | Escolinha do Professor Raimundo | Won |
| 2004 | Extra Television Awards | Best Comedian | Show do Tom |
| 2006 | Prêmio Qualidade | Best Actor in a Comedy | Show do Tom |
| 2007 | Prêmio Qualidade | Best Actor in a Comedy | Show do Tom | |
| 2008 | Prêmio Qualidade | Best Actor in a Comedy | Show do Tom |
| 2009 | Prêmio Contigo | Best Actor in a Comedy | Show do Tom | Won |
| 2010 | Prêmio Qualidade | Best Actor in a Comedy | Show do Tom | Nominated |
| 2014 | Brazil Cinefest | Best Short Movie | Pizza Me Mafia | Nominated |
| 2015 | Oregon International Film Awards | Best Short Movie | Pizza Me Mafia | Won |