Tony Lo Bianco

Tony Lo Bianco
Lo Bianco in Police Story , 1975
Born	(1936-10-19) October 19, 1936 (age 84) Brooklyn, New York City, U.S.
Nationality	American
Years active	1951–2016
Spouse(s)	Dora Landey ​ ​ (m. 1964;div. 1999)​ Elizabeth Fitzpatrick ​ ​ (m. 2002;div. 2008)​ Alyse Muldoon ​ (m. 2015)​
Children	3
Website	http://www.tonylobianco.com/

Tony Lo Bianco (born Anthony LoBianco; October 19, 1936) is an Italian-American film, stage, and television actor, known for his portrayals of gruff law enforcement figures in crime films. His accolades include one Tony Award nomination, an Obie Award, and a Daytime Emmy Award.

Born to first-generation Italian American parents in New York City, Lo Bianco began his career in theater, and appeared in several Broadway productions throughout the 1960s. He transitioned to film in the 1970s, starring in the crime film The Honeymoon Killers (1970), William Friedkin's thriller The French Connection (1971), and the drama The Seven-Ups (1973). Lo Bianco won an Obie Award for his 1975 role in an Off-Broadway production of Yanks-3, Detroit-0, Top of the Seventh, and subsequently earned a Tony Award nomination for Best Actor for his role as Eddie in the 1983 Broadway revival of Arthur Miller's A View from the Bridge .

In addition to film and theater, Lo Bianco appeared as a guest-star on numerous television series throughout the 1970s and 1980s, including appearances on Police Story (1974–1976), Franco Zeffirelli's miniseries Jesus of Nazareth (1977), and Marco Polo (1982). In 1984, he appeared in a stage production of Hizzoner!, playing American politician Fiorello LaGuardia. The one-man play was subsequently staged on Broadway in 1989, and Lo Bianco has gone on to perform several other Off-Broadway iterations of it, including LaGuardia (2008) and The Little Flower (2012–2015).

Early life

Anthony LoBianco was born October 19, 1936 in Brooklyn, New York, the son of a housewife mother and a taxi driver father. ^{[1] [2]} Both of his parents were first-generation Italian Americans of Sicilian descent. ^[1] He attended the William E. Grady CTE High School, a vocational school in Brooklyn. ^[3] There, he had a teacher who encouraged him to try out for plays, which is when he began to develop an interest in acting. ^[3] After graduating high school, he attended the Dramatic Workshop, studying acting and theater production. ^[1]

Career

Lo Bianco was a Golden Gloves boxer and also founded the Triangle Theatre in 1963, serving as its artistic director for six years and collaborating with lighting designer Jules Fisher, playwright Jason Miller and actor Roy Scheider. ^[4] He performed as an understudy in a 1964 Broadway production of Incident at Vichy , and the following year had a supporting role in a Broadway production of Tartuffe . ^[5] From late 1965 through the spring of 1966, he starred on Broadway as Fray Marcos de Nizza in The Royal Hunt of the Sun . ^[5]

He made his film debut in The Sex Perils of Paulette (1965) before appearing as a murderer in the semi-biographical crime film The Honeymoon Killers (1970). ^[4] He subsequently appeared as Salvatore Boca in William Friedkin's critically acclaimed action film The French Connection (1971), ^[4] and later starred as a police officer investigating a series of murders in Larry Cohen's horror film God Told Me To (1976). From 1974–1976, Lo Bianco played a lead role in six episodes of Joseph Wambaugh's anthology television series Police Story in the mid-1970s, four times alongside Don Meredith.

In 1975, Lo Bianco won an Obie award for his off-Broadway performance as Duke Bronkowski in the baseball-themed play Yanks-3, Detroit-0, Top of the Seventh. ^{[4] [6]} In 1983, Lo Bianco was nominated for a Tony for his portrayal of Eddie Carbone in Arthur Miller's A View from the Bridge . ^[4] He also won the 1983 Outer Critics Circle Award for this performance. ^[4] In 1984, he had a supporting role in the action comedy City Heat , opposite Burt Reynolds and Clint Eastwood. ^[4]

Lo Bianco first portrayed the larger-than-life 1934–1945 mayor of New York City Fiorello H. La Guardia in the one-man show Hizzoner!, written in 1984 by Paul Shyre. Lo Bianco won a local Daytime Emmy Award for the WNET Public Television version of the play, which was filmed at the Empire State Institute for the Performing Arts in Albany. ^[7] The play was subsequently staged on Broadway in 1989, where it ran for 12 performances. ^{[5] [8]} Lo Bianco appeared in several independent films in the 1990s, and in 1995 appeared as Jimmy Jacobs in the HBO biographical film Tyson , followed by a minor role in Nixon , directed by Oliver Stone. ^[4]

Lo Bianco continued his work on the life of LaGuardia in a revised ^[8] revival of the play in 2008, titled LaGuardia. ^[9] His third incantation of the mayor's life that had a limited run off Broadway in October 2012, titled The Little Flower. ^[9] Lo Bianco has rewritten the play several times, which he purchased from Shyre's estate, and he views it as "a vehicle to express my concerns for the public and the political mess that we're in, which we continue to be in I think, and try to relate answers to failure." He performed it in Moscow shortly before the fall of the Soviet Union, and in 2015 was scheduled to perform it in Italy. ^[8] The show was staged at LaGuardia Community College in May 2015. ^[10]

A New York Times profile in 2015 reported that Lo Bianco was at work on a one-man show playing himself and a film script about his early life. ^[8]

Personal life

Lo Bianco, an Italian American, was the national spokesperson for the Order Sons of Italy in America. ^[11] His humanitarian efforts have earned multiple awards, including Man of the Year for Outstanding Contributions to the Italian-American Community from the Police Society of New Jersey; a Man of the Year Award from the State of New Jersey Senate; a Lifetime Entertainment Award from the Columbus Day Parade Committee; the 1997 Golden Lion Award; Humanitarian Award of the Boys' Town of Italy. ^[12]

In October 2014, he opposed the Metropolitan Opera's decision to stage the controversial play The Death of Klinghoffer , which he described as "outrageous" because it "tries to justify the killing of a helpless man in a wheelchair because he happens to be Jewish". ^[13]

Lo Bianco was married from 1964 until 1984 to Dora Landey. They had three daughters. He was married to Elizabeth Fitzpatrick from 2002 until 2008. He married his current wife, Alyse Best Muldoon, in June 2015.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
1965	The Sex Perils of Paulette	Allen
1970	The Honeymoon Killers	Ray Fernandez
1971	The French Connection	Sal Boca
1973	Mean Frank and Crazy Tony	Tony Breda
1973	Mr. Inside/Mr. Outside	Detective Rick Massi	Television film
1973	Serpico	Cop	Uncredited
1973	The Seven-Ups	Vito Lucia
1974	The Story of Jacob and Joseph	Joseph	Television film
1975	A Shadow in the Streets	Pete Mackey	Television film
1976	Goldenrod	Jesse Gifford
1976	God Told Me To	Peter J. Nicholas
1976	Merciless Man	The American
1978	The Last Tenant	Joey	Television film
1978	F.I.S.T	Anthony 'Babe' Milano
1978	Bloodbrothers	Tommy De Coco
1978	She'll Be Sweet	Magee	Television film
1979	Champions: A Love Story	Alan Denschroeder	Television film
1979	A Last Cry for Help	Dr. Ben Abbot	Television film
1979	Marciano	Rocky Marciano	Television film
1981	Pals	Frank Green	Short film
1981	Separate Ways	Ken Colby
1983	Another Woman's Child	Mike DeBray
1984	City Heat	Leon Coll
1984	Hizzoner!	Fiorello La Guardia	Television film
1984	Jessie	Lieutenant Alex Ascoli	Television film
1986	Blood Ties	Judge Guiliano Salina	Television film
1987	Police Story: The Freeway Killings	Detective DiAngelo	Television film
1988	Body of Evidence	Evan Campbell	Television film
1988	The Ann Jillian Story	Andy Murcia	Television film
1990	Perry Mason: The Case of the Poisoned Pen	Michael Garcia	Television film
1990	Death Has a Bad Reputation	Carlos	Television film
1991	City of Hope	Joe Rinaldi
1991	The 10 Million Dollar Getaway	Tony 'Ducks' Carallo	Television film
1991	The Good Policeman	Jerry Diangelis
1992	In the Shadow of a Killer	Frederick Berger	Television film
1992	Stormy Weathers	Lieutenant Frank Orozco	Television film
1992	Teamster Boss: The Jackie Presser Story	Allen Dorfman	Television film
1993	Boiling Point	Tony Dio
1994	La ragnatela del silenzio - A.I.D.S.	Professor Donati
1994	The Ascent	Aldo
1994	Power and Lovers	Warren
1995	Tyson	Jimmy Jacobs	Television film
1995	Nixon	Johnny Roselli
1996	The Juror	Louie Boffano
1996	Sworn to Justice	Briggs
1997	Cold Night Into Dawn	Supervisor Klyn
1997	Let Me Call You Sweetheart	Dr. Charles Smith	Television film
1997	Bella Mafia	Pietro Carolla	Television film
1998	Mafia!	Cesar Marzoni
1998	The Pawn	Lou
1999	Rocky Marciano	Frankie Carbo
2000	The Day the Ponies Come Back	Paul DeCruccio
2001	Friends and Family	Victor Patrizzi
2001	Down 'n Dirty	Detective Dan Ward
2002	Endangered Species	Captain Tanzini
2002	Lucky Day	Detective Marinello	Television film
2003	The Cruelest Day	Il Generale Loi	Italian: Ilaria Alpi - Il più crudele dei giorni
2005	The Engagement Ring	Nick Di Cenzo	Television film
2005	N.Y.-70	Congressman Fario Cardinale	Television film
2006	The Last Request	Monte
2009	Frame of Mind	Mouthman
2011	Kill the Irishman	Jack Licavoli
2013	Send No Flowers	Anthony Albano
2016	'79 Parts	Vincent
2016	Blondie	Johnny	Short film

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
1966	Get Smart	KAOS Agent	Episode: "The Smart Assassin"
1966	Blue Light	Carbonne	Episode: "Jet Trial"
1966	Hawk	Joey Fentanello	Episode: ""H" is a Dirty Letter"
1968	N.Y.P.D.	Muller / Joe Peconic	2 episodes
1968	Hidden Faces	Nick Capello Turner	Miniseries
1971	Great Performances	Frank	Episode: "A Memory of Two Mondays"
1972	Madigan	Joe Lakka	Episode: "The Manhattan Beat"
1974–1976	Police Story	D.J. Perkins / Sergeant Tony Calabrese	6 episodes
1975	The Streets of San Francisco	Al Wozynsky	Episode: "Solitaire"
1976	Origins of the Mafia	Nino Sciallacca	Episode: "Omertà"
1977	Jesus of Nazareth	Quintilius	Miniseries
1981	Today's FBI	Joey D'Amico	Episode: "The Bureau"
1982	Marco Polo	Brother Nicolas	Miniseries
1984	The Paper Chase	Professor Reese	Episode: "The Advocate"
1984	Jessie	Lieutenant Alex Ascoli	10 episodes
1985	Lady Blue	Sergeant 'Bing' Bingham	Episode: "Pilot"
1985	The Twilight Zone	Paul Marano	Episode: "If She Dies"
1987	Night Heat	Tony Rimbaud	Episode: "Flashback"
1988	CBS Summer Playhouse	Tom 'Coop' Cooper	Episode: "Off Duty"
1988	La romana	Astarita	Miniseries
1989	True Blue	'Doc'	Episode: "Pilot"
1990	ABC Afterschool Specials	Officer Abbott	Episode: "Over the Limit"
1990	CBS Schoolbreak Special	Coach Douglas	Episode: "Malcolm Takes the Shot"
1991	Palace Guard	Arturo Taft	8 episodes
1991–1994	Murder, She Wrote	Paul Avoncino / Phil Mannix	2 episodes
1992	Law & Order	Mark Menaker	Episode: "Cradle to Grave"
1994	The Maharaja's Daughter	Vito Capece	Miniseries
1995	Homicide: Life on the Street	Mitch Drummond	3 episodes
1997	F/X: The Series	Martin Thorne	Episode: "Reunion"
1997	Law & Order	Sal DiMarco	Episode: "Menace"
2001	Walker, Texas Ranger	Tony Ferrell	Episode: "Saturday Night"
2002	Law & Order	Detective Mike Foster	Episode: "True Crime"
2007	Law & Order: Criminal Intent	Joseph	Episode: "World's Fair"

Stage credits

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
1964–1965	Incident at Vichy	Prisoner	Understudy ANTA Washington Square Theatre	[5]
1965	Tartuffe	Sergeant	ANTA Washington Square Theatre
1965–1966	The Royal Hunt of the Sun	Fray Marcos de Nizza	ANTA Playhouse
1966	The Office	Gucci	10 previews; never officially opened
196	The Ninety Day Mistress	Rudy Avarian	Biltmore Theatre
1968	The Exercise	The Actor	John Golden Theatre
1968	The Goodbye People	Michael Silverman	Ethel Barrymore Theatre
1975	Yanks-3, Detroit-0, Top of the Seventh	Duke Bronkowski	The American Place Theatre Obie Award for Best Actor	[6]
1983	A View from the Bridge	Eddie	Ambassador Theatre Nominated – Tony Award for Best Actor [4]	[5]
1989	Hizzoner!	Fiorello LaGuardia	Longacre Theatre
2008	LaGuardia	Fiorello LaGuardia	DiCapo Opera Theater	[9]
2012	The Little Flower	Fiorello LaGuardia	DiCapo Opera Theater	[7]
2015				[8]

References

1. Panarello, Joseph F. (March 13, 2013). "BWW Interview: Tony Lo Bianco - Creating Magic with THE LITTLE FLOWER". BroadwayWorld . Archived from the original on February 12, 2019.
2. Search Results
3. Lo Bianco, Tony (September 12, 2011). "BuildingNY: Tony Lo Bianco, actor-writer-director" (Interview). Interviewed by Michael Stoler. CUNY-TV – via YouTube.
4. "Screen and Theatre Legend Tony LoBianco Inspires Confidence in Acting Students". New York Film Academy . Archived from the original on February 12, 2019.
5. "Tony Lo Bianco Credits". Internet Broadway Database. Archived from the original on February 12, 2019.
6. Hischak, Thomas H. (2001). American Theatre: A Chronicle of Comedy and Drama, 1969-2000. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 90. ISBN   978-0-195-35255-9.
7. Jones, Kenneth (October 15, 2015). "Tony Lo Bianco Is His Honor, Mayor LaGuardia, in The Little Flower in NYC". Playbill . Archived from the original on February 12, 2019.
8. Harney, John (May 5, 2015). "An Actor Takes His Portrayal of La Guardia Far Beyond Broadway". The New York Times . Archived from the original on February 12, 2019.
9. "Tony LoBianco in One-Man Show About LaGuardia". Cooley's Anemia Foundation. October 2, 2008. Archived from the original on February 12, 2019.
10. "Actor Tony Lo Bianco Plays "The Little Flower" At LaGuardia Community College". City University of New York . May 1, 2015. Archived from the original on February 12, 2019.
11. "Prisoners Among Us: Italian-American Identity & World War II". Archived from the original on June 30, 2012.
12. Program, White Barn Theatre production of THE CONFESSION OF MANY STRANGERS, 1997
13. Brown, Lauretta (29 October 2014). "Veteran Actor Tony Lo Bianco Condemns 'The Death of Klinghoffer'". CNS.com. Retrieved 6 May 2015.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tony Lo Bianco .

• Official website
• Tony Lo Bianco on IMDb
• Tony Lo Bianco at AllMovie