# Chazz Palminteri

Calogero Lorenzo "Chazz" Palminteri (born May 15, 1952) is an American actor. He is best known for his film roles in A Bronx Tale (1993), based on his play of the same name, Bullets Over Broadway (1994) for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, and The Usual Suspects (1995), as well as his recurring role as Shorty in Modern Family (2010–2019).
His other films include Mulholland Falls (1996), A Night at the Roxbury (1998), Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure (2001), Little Man (2006), Once Upon a Time in Queens (2013), and Legend (2015). He is also known for his recurring roles in Wiseguy (1989), Kojak (2005), Rizzoli & Isles (2010–2014) and Godfather of Harlem (2019–2021).

## Early life

Calogero Lorenzo Palminteri was born on May 15, 1952, in The Bronx, New York. He is the son of Rose (née Anello) (1921–2016), a homemaker and Lorenzo Palminteri (1919–2008), a bus driver. He was raised in the Belmont neighborhood of the Bronx. Palminteri is of Sicilian descent. All four of his grandparents were born in Sicily and emigrated to the United States. Both of his parents were born in New York, NY. His paternal grandparents, Calogero Palminteri and Rosa Bonfante, married in 1908 and emigrated in 1910 from Menfi in the province of Agrigento, Sicily. At the age of nine, Palminteri allegedly witnessed the murder of a mobster in front of his apartment building; the police questioned him, but he maintained that he did not see the incident.
He struggled to become an actor, splitting his time between acting in off-Broadway plays and moonlighting as a bouncer, alongside Dolph Lundgren. In 1988, Palminteri was working at a New York nightclub where a party was being thrown for Hollywood talent agent and dealmaker Irving Paul "Swifty" Lazar. When Lazar tried to enter, Palminteri stopped him as he did not know who he was. Lazar got him fired which led to the broke (and unemployed) Palminteri writing A Bronx Tale for himself to star in since he was not being offered any work.

## Career
### Theater

Palminteri starred on Broadway in A Bronx Tale, the autobiographical one-man show based on his childhood that he first performed at Theatre West in Los Angeles in 1989. Palminteri states that he began writing the play after being fired for refusing entry to super agent Swifty. The Broadway production, directed by Jerry Zaks and with music by John Gromada, began previews October 4, 1988, 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.
Palminteri starred opposite Kenny D'Aquila in D'Aquila's play, Unorganized Crime. Palminteri always appreciated the shot that Robert De Niro gave him, so he in turn agreed to star in D'Aquila's mafia-themed drama.
Palminteri performed in the Broadway musical version of A Bronx Tale in 2018.

### Film career

Robert De Niro saw Palminteri's Broadway show of A Bronx Tale in 1990, and the two partnered together to adapt the play into a film. Palminteri created the screenplay and starred as Sonny, the gangster Calogero meets, while De Niro directed the film, making his directorial debut, and co-starring as Lorenzo, Calogero's father. The film was a commercial and critical success. In 1994, Palminteri played mob henchman Cheech in the black comedy film Bullets Over Broadway, for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
Palminteri also had performances in films such as The Usual Suspects, 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 appeared in 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 Smokey in Stuart Little and Woolworth in Hoodwinked.
He made his directorial debut with an episode of Oz, then the television film Women vs. Men and the 2004 feature film 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.

### Television

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. He guest starred twice on the CBS drama Blue Bloods as Angelo Gallo, a mob lawyer and childhood friend of main character Frank Reagan.
Palminteri portrayed deceased mobster Paul Castellano in the 2001 TV film Boss of Bosses.

### 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. However, the restaurant closed in 2015. Palminteri opened an Italian restaurant, Chazz Palminteri Ristorante Italiano, in New York City on Second Avenue. Also, Palminteri did the voice acting for the Call of Duty: Black Ops II character Sal De Luca in the zombies map Mob of the Dead, and his likeness was used for the character as well.
On February 15, 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Palminteri launched The Chazz Palminteri Show podcast on YouTube. Palmintieri's guests on the podcast have included William Baldwin, Kathrine Narducci, Fat Joe, Mario Cantone, and Shaquille O'Neal.

## Personal life

Palminteri lives in Westchester County, New York, in the town of Bedford. He describes himself as a "very spiritual", devout Roman Catholic. He married Gianna Ranaudo in 1992, and together they have two children. He is a self-avowed New York Yankees fan.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1983 | Home Free All | Truck Hijacker | |
| 1985 | The Last Dragon | Hood No. 2 | |
| 1991 | Oscar | Connie | |
| 1992 | Innocent Blood | Tony Silva | |
| 1992 | There Goes the Neighborhood | Lyle Corrente | |
| 1993 | A Bronx Tale | "Sonny" LoSpecchio | Also writer |
| 1994 | Bullets Over Broadway | "Cheech" | |
| 1995 | The Usual Suspects | US Customs Agent Dave Kujan | |
| 1995 | The Perez Family | Lieutenant John Pirelli | |
| 1995 | The Last Word | Ricky | |
| 1995 | Jade | Matt Gavin | |
| 1996 | Diabolique | Guy Baran | |
| 1996 | Faithful | Tony | |
| 1996 | Mulholland Falls | Detective Elleroy Coolidge | |
| 1998 | Scar City | Lieutenant Laine Devon | |
| 1998 | Hurlyburly | Phil | |
| 1998 | A Night at the Roxbury | Benny Zadir | |
| 1999 | Analyze This | Primo Sidone | |
| 1999 | The Book That Wrote Itself | Mr. Palminteri | |
| 1999 | Stuart Little | Smokey | Voice |
| 2001 | Down to Earth | King | |
| 2001 | Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure | Buster | Voice; direct-to-video |
| 2001 | One Eyed King | Detective Eddie Dugan | |
| 2002 | Poolhall Junkies | Joe | |
| 2004 | One Last Ride | Tweat | |
| 2004 | Noel | Arizona | Also director |
| 2005 | Animal | Kassada | Direct-to-video |
| 2005 | In the Mix | Frank Pacelli | |
| 2005 | Hoodwinked! | Woolworth | Voice |
| 2006 | Running Scared | Detective Rydell | |
| 2006 | A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints | Monty Montiel | |
| 2006 | Push | Vince | |
| 2006 | Little Man | Mr. Walken | |
| 2006 | Arthur and the Minimoys | Travel Agent | Voice |
| 2007 | The Bodyguard | Lee Maxwell | |
| 2007 | The Dukes | George | |
| 2008 | Yonkers Joe | Joe "Yonkers Joe" | |
| 2008 | Jolene | Sal Fontaine | |
| 2009 | Once More with Feeling | Frank Gregorio | Direct-to-video |
| 2010 | Hollywood & Wine | Geno Scarpaci | Direct-to-video |
| 2012 | Mighty Fine | Joe Fine | |
| 2012 | The Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure | Milky Marvin The Milkshake | |
| 2013 | Once Upon a Time in Queens | Ben Rose | |
| 2013 | Metegol | Ermitaño / Stinky | Voice; American dub |
| 2013 | Final Recourse | Dr. Tomman | |
| 2014 | Henry & Me | Babe Ruth | Voice |
| 2015 | Legend | Angelo Bruno | |
| 2019 | Vault | Raymond L. S. Patriarca | |
| 2020 | Clover | Tony | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1986 | Hill Street Blues | "Sonny" Cappelito | Episode: "Bald Ambition" |
| 1987 | Matlock | MP Sergeant Marcy | Episode: "The Court-Martial: Part 2" |
| 1987 | Glory Years | Drummond | TV movie |
| 1989 | Peter Gunn | Soldier | TV movie |
| 1989 | Dallas | Frank | Episode: "He-e-ere's Papa!" |
| 1989 | Valerie | Leslie | Episode: "Viva Las Vegas" |
| 1989 | 1st & Ten: The Championship | Al | Episode: "Duty Call" |
| 1989 | Wiseguy | Peter Alatorre / Sal Rosselli | Recurring cast: Season 3 |
| 1990 | Sydney | Tony | Episode: "Love Ya, Babe" |
| 1997 | The Directors | Himself | Episode: "The Films of William Friedkin" |
| 1999 | Dilbert | Leonardo da Vinci | Voice; episode: "Art" |
| 1999 | Excellent Cadavers | Giovanni Falcone | TV movie |
| 2001 | An All-Star Tribute to Brian Wilson | Himself | Main host |
| 2001 | Bravo Profiles | Himself | Episode: "Rod Steiger" |
| 2001 | Boss of Bosses | Paul Castellano | TV movie |
| 2003 | AFI Life Achievement Award | Himself | Episode: "A Tribute to Robert De Niro" |
| 2003 | Biography | Himself | Episode: "Humphrey Bogart" |
| 2004 | Dr. Vegas | Duke Walcott | Episode: "Lust for Life" |
| 2005 | Kojak | Captain Frank McNeil | Recurring cast |
| 2010 | Celebrity Ghost Stories | Himself | Episode: "Episode #2.4" |
| 2010–2014 | Rizzoli & Isles | Frank Rizzoli Sr. | Recurring cast: Season 1, Guest: Season 3-4 |
| 2010–2019 | Modern Family | "Shorty" | Guest Cast: Season 1, 3-5 & 9-10 |
| 2011 | Rocco's Dinner Party | Himself | Episode: "Ultimate Summer Party" |
| 2012 | The Haunting of... | Himself | Episode: "Chazz Palminteri" |
| 2012–2013 | Blue Bloods | Angelo Gallo | Guest Cast: Season 3-4 |
| 2014 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Perry Cannavaro | Episode: "Jersey Breakdown" |
| 2017 | Kevin Can Wait | Vincent | Episode: "Plus One Is the Loneliest Number" |
| 2017–2018 | Voltron: Legendary Defender | Burr | Voice; guest cast: Season 4 & 8 |
| 2019–2021 | Godfather of Harlem | Joseph Bonanno | Recurring cast: Season 1-2 |
| 2021 | Law & Order: Organized Crime | Manfredi Sinatra | Episode: "What Happens in Puglia" |
| 2021–2023 | Gravesend | Cesar Tremaldo | Recurring cast: Season 2 |
| 2023 | Bubble Guppies | Tiny The Slug | Voice; episode: "A Slow Day in Zippy City!" |

### Video games

| Year | Game | Role | Notes |
| 2012 | Call of Duty: Black Ops II | Salvatore "Sal" DeLuca | Featured on 2013's "Uprising" downloadable content. |

### Documentary

| Year | Title |
| 1996 | Little Italy |
| 1997 | Off the Menu: The Last Days of Chasen's |
| 1998 | Italians in America |
| 2005 | Bullets Over Hollywood |
| 2008 | Beyond Wiseguys: Italian Americans & the Movies |
| 2014 | Journey to Sundance |
| 2016 | Davi's Way |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Results |
| 1994 | Academy Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Bullets Over Broadway | Nominated |
| 1994 | American Comedy Awards | Funniest Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture | Bullets Over Broadway | Nominated |
| 1994 | Chicago Film Critics Association Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Bullets Over Broadway | Nominated |
| 1994 | Independent Spirit Awards | Best Supporting Male | Bullets Over Broadway | Won |
| 1994 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role | Bullets Over Broadway | Nominated |
| 1995 | National Board of Review Awards | Best Acting by an Ensemble | The Usual Suspects | Won |
| 1996 | Sant Jordi Awards | Best Foreign Actor | A Bronx Tale, Bullets Over Broadway, and The Usual Suspects | Won |
| 2006 | Sundance Film Festival | Best Ensemble Performance | A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints | Won |

## Theatre work
### Broadway

* 2007 – A Bronx Tale: The Musical – performer
* 2013 – Human – performer and writer
* 2014 – Unorganized Crime – Sal Sicuso
* 2016 – A Bronx Tale: The Musical – writer and performer

### Off-Broadway

* 1989 – A Bronx Tale – writer and performer
* 2002 – The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui – Ernesto Roma