Danny Aiello
Danny Aiello
Daniel Louis "Danny" Aiello, Jr. is an American actor who has appeared in numerous motion pictures, including The Godfather: Part II, The Front, Once Upon a Time in America, The Purple Rose of Cairo, Moonstruck, Hudson Hawk, Ruby, Léon: The Professional, 2 Days in the Valley, Dinner Rushand Lucky Number Slevin. He had a pivotal role in the Spike Lee film Do the Right Thingas Salvatore "Sal" Frangione, earning a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Aiello...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionMovie Actor
Date of Birth20 June 1933
CityNew York City, NY
CountryUnited States of America
There was certainly less profanity in the Godfather than in the Sopranos. There was a kind of respect. It's not that I totally agreed with it, but it was a great piece of art.
My father was a good man, but he was a con man. He was a wanderer, nomadic.
Look, people have an image of Italians. When I go somewhere in the world, I don't care where it is, when they look at me it's not about my intelligence. It's who can I beat up.
I need distractions. Good distractions, not bad ones. A good distraction for me is a great play.
I fell in love with the most beautiful girl in the Bronx.
My mother was like the pope. Any talent that I have that's good comes straight from her. She was loving to all people. Not only me.
When I saw the script, ... I called them that night. I liked it that much. I love this character, I think he's loaded with love. This is a blustering kind of guy who wears his heart on his sleeve. He tells the truth and that's why I love him.
(for which he won numerous critics' prizes and was nominated for an Oscar and Golden Globe.
I'm an actor and that's what I do for a living, but I just wanted them to know where I came from and hopefully remember what I've started to do.
I know it's silly to say it, but I love 29th Street and I love Jack Ruby. Moonstruck I liked, but my character was troublesome to me.
I try to be a good parent. I've probably repressed my kids more than I should have, protecting them overly. I never hit them. I yelled a lot.
Like most people, I would sing in the privacy of my home. I'd also sing for my daughters or at a guest at somebody's function. I loved doing it.
For me it's a European-type movie, ... It's a small story about family and it's these kinds of characters that I most like to portray and I'm not always given the opportunity to do that.
If I didn't start singing in the cabarets and on my albums, I could have never even tried something like 'Capone.'