Armand Assante

Armand Anthony Assante Jr. (/ɑːˈsɑːnti/; born October 4, 1949) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as mobster John Gotti in the 1996 HBO television film Gotti and for portraying Nietzsche in When Nietzsche Wept. His performance in Gotti earned him a Primetime Emmy Award and nominations for the Golden Globe Award and the Screen Actors Guild Award.
== Early life ==
Assante was born in New York City and raised in Cornwall, New York, the son of Armand Anthony Assante (1922–2017),[1] a painter and artist, and Katharine (nee Healy), a music teacher and poet.[2][3][4] He is of Italian and Irish descent.[5]
== Career ==
During the 1970s, Assante was a regular on two NBC soap operas, How to Survive a Marriage as Johnny McGee and The Doctors as Dr. Mike Powers. His first film was The Lords of Flatbush (1974), although his work did not appear in the final cut of the film and the end credits misspelled his last name as Assanti. His first on-screen role was playing Sylvester Stallone's brother in Paradise Alleyand a role that brought him greater attention came in 1980's Private Benjamin as a handsome Frenchman who becomes the love interest of a U.S. soldier played by Goldie Hawn.
Assante's somewhat sinister look has made him a popular choice for tough-guy heroes, as in his starring role as private eye Mike Hammer in the film I, the Jury(1982) or as Mafia gangsters such as Michael Moretti in Sidney Sheldon's Rage of Angels. In 1990 his role as Roberto Texador in Sidney Lumet's film Q&Agarnered him a Golden Globe nomination, and the following year he portrayed the notorious Bugsy Siegel in Neil Simon's The Marrying Man (1991). The following year he was seen as mafia boss Carol D'Allesandro in Hoffa (1992) starring Jack Nicholson, and crime kingpin John Gotti in the 1996 made-for-television biopic Gotti, for which he won his Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie.
In addition to mafia and "tough-guy" roles, Assante has distinguished himself in historic dramas, such as Napoleon Bonaparte in 1987's Napoleon and Josephine: A Love Story opposite Jacqueline Bisset, the heroic Odysseus in The Odyssey, Friedrich Nietzsche in the film adaptation of Irving Yalom's novel When Nietzsche Wept, and as Sanchez, Queen Isabella's Minister of State, in 1492: Conquest of Paradise.
Other notable film appearances include one as a Cuban bandleader in The Mambo Kings opposite Antonio Banderas and in the adaptation of the science-fiction story Judge Dredd with Sylvester Stallone, his co-star in Paradise Alley. In 2007 he appeared in American Gangster (2007) with Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. He had a recurring guest star role in several episodes of NCIS, playing the international arms dealer René Benoit. He has also appeared in the 2009 horror film Smile as the mysterious Tollinger. Outside of the U.S., he has participated in several film projects and humanitarian endeavors in Romania, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan.
== Other work ==
In 2013, Assante became a partner in his own premium cigar brand known as Ora Vivo Cigars.[6]
== Filmography ==
=== Film ===
Year	Title 	Role 	Notes
1974	The Lords of Flatbush 	Wedding guest 	
1978	Paradise Alley 	Lenny Carboni 	
1979	Prophecy 	John Hawks 	
1980	Little Darlings 	Gary Callahan 	
1980	Private Benjamin 	Henri Alan Tremont 	
1980	Sophia Loren: Her Own Story 	Riccardo Scicolone 	
1982	Love and Money 	Lorenzo Prado 	
1982	I, the Jury 	Mike Hammer 	
1984	Unfaithfully Yours 	Maximillian Stein 	
1986	Belizaire the Cajun 	Belizaire Breaux 	
1988	The Penitent 	Juan Mateo 	
1989	Eternity 	Romi 	
1989	Animal Behavior 	Mark Mathias 	
1990	Q&A 	Roberto Texador 	Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture
1991	The Marrying Man 	Bugsy Siegel 	
1992	The Mambo Kings 	Caesar Castillo 	
1992	1492: Conquest of Paradise 	Sanchez 	
1992	Hoffa 	Carol "Dally" D'Allesandro	
1993	Fatal Instinct 	Ned Ravine 	
1994	Trial by Jury 	Rusty Pirone 	
1995	Judge Dredd 	Rico 	
1996	Striptease 	Lt. Al Garcia 	
1997	The Odyssey 	Odysseus 	Miniseries directed by Andrey Konchalovsky
1998	Looking for an Echo 	Vince "Vinnie" Pirelli 	
2000	The Road to El Dorado 	Tzekel-Kan 	Nominated—Annie Award Outstanding Individual Achievement for Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production
2001	Last Run 	Frank Banner 	
2001	One Eyed King 	Holly 	
2002	Partners in Action 	Jack Cunningham 	
2003	Citizen Verdict 	Sam Patterson 	
2003	Consequence 	Sam Tyler 	
2005	Casanova's Last Stand 	Sebastian Marr 	
2005	Children of Wax 	Kemal 	
2005	Dot.Kill 	Charlie Daines 	
2005	The Third Wish 	Benefactor 	
2005	Mirror Wars 	York 	
2005	Two for the Money 	C.M. Novian 	
2005	Confessions of a Pit Fighter 	Argento 	
2006	Funny Money 	Genero 	
2006	Dead Lenny 	Tony Thick 	
2006	Soul's Midnight 	Simon 	
2006	Surveillance 	Harley 	
2007	Mexican Sunrise 	Salvidar 	
2007	California Dreamin' 	Cpt. Doug Jones 	
2007	When Nietzsche Wept 	Nietzsche 	
2007	American Gangster 	Dominic Cottano 	Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
2008	La Linea 	Padre Antonio 	
2008	The Man Who Came Back 	Amos 	
2009	Smile 	Tollinger 	
2009	The Steam Experiment 	Detective Mancini 	
2009	Chicago Overcoat 	Stefano D'Agnostino 	
2009	Breaking Point 	Marty Berlin 	
2009	Magic Man 	Taper 	
2009	The Bleeding 	Jake Plummer 	
2010	Shadows in Paradise 	Cpt. John 'Ghost' Santo 	
2010	Killer by Nature 	Eugene Branch 	
2011	The Return of Joe Rich 	Uncle Dom 	
2013	Dead Man Down 	Lon Gordon 	
2013	Assumed Killer 	Aaron Banfield 	
2013	Once Upon a Time in Brooklyn 	Joseph Baldano Sr. 	
2014	Montevideo, vidimo se! 	Hotchkins 	
2015	Kids vs Monsters 	Damian 	
2015	Sicilian Vampire 	Vince 	
2016	Darc 	Lafique 	
2016	The Red Maple Leaf 	Joseph Cortez 	
2016	Stressed to Kill 	Paul Jordan 	
2017	The Neighborhood 	Tucci 	
2017	Diamond Cartel 	Mussa 	
2017	First Law 	Don Nowet 	
2017	You Can't Have It 	The Man 	
2017	Joe's War 	Doctor Galante 	
2017	The Wanderers: The Quest of The Demon Hunter	Louis 	
2017	Power of Silence 	Narrator 	
2018	Con Man 	Jack Saxon 	
2018	Lazarat 	Pedulla 	
2018	Darc 	Lafique 	
=== Television films ===
Year	Title 	Role 	Notes
1975	First Ladies Diaries	Robards 	
1978	Human Feelings 	Johnny Turner 	
1978	Lady of the House 	Ernest 	
1978	The Pirate 	Ahmed 	
1983	Rage of Angels 	Michael Moretti 	
1984	Why Me? 	Dr. James Stalling 	
1986	A Deadly Business 	Charles Macaluso 	
1987	Stranger in My Bed 	Hal Slater 	
1987	Hands of a Stranger 	Joe Hearn 	
1989	Passion and Paradise	Alfred de Marigny 	
1991	Fever 	Ray 	
1994	Blind Justice 	Canaan 	
1995	Kidnapped 	Alan Breck Stewart 	
1996	Gotti 	John Gotti 	Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film
Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie
1999	The Hunley 	Lt. George E. Dixon	
2000	On the Beach 	Cmdr. Dwight Towers	
2001	After the Storm 	Jean-Pierre 	
2002	Federal Protection 	Frank Carbone 	
2008	Shark Swarm 	Hamilton Lux 	
2009	The Lost 	Kevin 	
=== Television series ===
Year 	Title 	Role 	Notes
1974–1975	How to Survive a Marriage 	Johnny McGee 	N/A
1975–1977	The Doctors 	Dr. Mike Powers #6 	102 episodes
1977 	Kojak 	Tom Ryan 	Episode: "Caper on a Quiet Street"
1979 	Mrs. Columbo 	Freddie Faust 	Episode: "A Chilling Surprise"
1985 	Evergreen 	Joseph Friedman 	3 episodes
1987 	Napoleon and Josephine: A Love Story	Napoleon Bonaparte 	3 episodes - ABC-TV miniseries
1988 	Jack the Ripper 	Richard Mansfield 	2 episodes
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film
Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
1997 	The Odyssey 	Odysseus 	2 episodes
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film
Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film
2002 	Push, Nevada 	N/A 	Episode: "The Amount"
2006 	ER 	Richard Elliot 	4 episodes
2007 	NCIS 	La Grenouille 	5 episodes
2008 	October Road 	Gabriel Diaz 	2 episodes
2010 	Chuck 	Premier Alejandro Goya	2 episodes
2010 	Human Target 	Joubert 	Episode: "Christopher Chance"
2015 	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit 	Nicolas Amaro 	Episode: "Padre Sandunguero"
2018 	The Deuce 	Mr. Martino 	Episode 8: "Nobody Has to Get Hurt"
== Awards and nominations ==
=== Emmy Awards ===
* 1989: Nominated Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor - Miniseries or a Movie for his portrayal of Richard Mansfield in Jack the Ripper
* 1996: Won Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor - Miniseries or a Movie for his portrayal of Mafia Don John Gotti
=== Golden Globe Awards ===
* 1989: Nominated Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for Jack the Ripper
* 1991: Nominated Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture for Q&A
* 1997: Nominated Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for Gotti
* 1998: Nominated Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for The Odyssey
=== Screen Actors Guild Awards ===
* 1997: Nominated Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie for Gotti
In 2010, Assante received a star on the Italian Walk of Fame in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.[7]
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