Tony Danza
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Tony Danza (born Antonio Salvatore Iadanza in Brooklyn, New York, on April 21, 1951) is an American actor and former boxer.
Career
Danza lived with his Sicilian-American family in Brooklyn until they moved to Malverne, NY, when he was a teenager and graduated from Malverne High School. He attended the University of Dubuque in Dubuque, Iowa on a wrestling scholarship (he majored in History). He married his college sweetheart in 1970 and the couple had a son, Marc Anthony Iadanza (born 1971), together. Danza and his first wife divorced a few years after Marc's birth, and Danza married Tracey Robinson in the late 1980s. He has 2 daughters (Katie and Emily) from his marriage to Tracey. In 2005, his son Marc had a son, Nicholas Iadanza.
From 1976-1979, Danza was a professional boxer who posted a 9-3 record with all wins coming by knockout. He quit fighting when he landed a role on the TV sitcom Taxi.
Danza is probably best-known for his appearances in the TV sitcoms Taxi (1978-1983) and Who's the Boss? (1984-1992).
Danza also starred in the short-lived sitcoms Hudson Street (1995) and The Tony Danza Show (1997, not to be confused with his talk show). He had a role on the TV drama Family Law from 2000 until 2002.
He was nominated for an Emmy Award for a guest-starring 1998 role in the TV series The Practice. His movie debut was in the comedy The Hollywood Knights (1980), which was followed by Going Ape! (1981). He received critical acclaim for his performance in the 1999 Broadway revival of the Eugene O'Neill play The Iceman Cometh.
Danza hosted his own TV talk show, The Tony Danza Show, a nationally syndicated program produced each weekday morning in his hometown of New York (where it aired live). On May 9, 2005, during a go-kart race with NASCAR star Rusty Wallace, who was a guest on the show, Danza's kart flipped after Wallace accidentally bumped him. Neither he nor Wallace was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident. Danza returned to go-kart racing on October 20, 2005, to challenge Indy Car driver Danica Patrick, but he was defeated. His daytime talk show ceased taping in May 2006, with the last live episode airing May 26, 2006.
A Roman Catholic and parishoner at St. Monica Catholic Church in Santa Monica[1], Danza is also an Ordained Minister with the Universal Life Church. He performed a marriage on his talk show.
Filmography
- The Hollywood Knights (1980) ... Duke
- Going Ape! (1981) ... Foster
- Cannonball Run II (1984) ... Terry
- Mr. Thompson and his Bananas (1988) ... Geraldo Thompson
- She's Out of Control (1989) ... Doug Simpson
- I'm From Hollywood (1992) ... Cameo
- Angels in the Outfield (1994) (Disney) ... Mel Clark
- Illtown (1996) ... D'Avalon
- Dear God (1996) ... Himself
- Glam (1997) ... Sid
- The Girl Gets Moe (1997) (on video) ... Moe
- A Brooklyn State of Mind (1997) ... Louie Crisci
- Meet Wally Sparks (1997) ... New York Cab Driver
- Crash (2005) ... Fred
TV appearances
- Taxi (1978) (series) ... Tony Banta
- Murder Can Hurt You (1980) ... Pony Lambretta
- Single Bars, Single Women (1984) ... Dennis
- Who's the Boss? (1984) (series) ... Tony Micelli
- Doing Life (1986) ... Jerry Rosenberg
- Freedom Fighter (1988) ... Vic Ross
- The Whereabouts of Jenny (1991) ... Rowdy Patron
- Baby Talk (1991) (series) (voice) ... Baby Mickey Campbell
- Dead and Alive: The Race for Gus Farace (1991) ... Constible Farace
- The Mighty Jungle (1994) (series) (voice) ... Vinnie, the Alligator
- Deadly Whispers (1995) ... Tom Acton
- Hudson Street (1995) (series) ... Tony Canetti
- Sinatra: 80 Years My Way (1995) ... Cameo
- Freakazoid! (1996) ... Cameo Reference
- Bob Hope: Laughing with the Presidents (1996) ... Co-host
- North Shore Fish (1996) ... Sal
- 12 Angry Men (1997) ... Juror #7
- The Tony Danza Show (1997) (series) ... Tony DiMeo
- The Garbage Picking Field Goal Kicking Philadelphia Phenomenon (1998) ... Barney Gorman
- Noah (1998) ... Norman Waters
- The Practice (1999)
- Family Law (2000) ... Joe Celano
- Family Guy (2001) ... Cameo
- The Tony Danza Show (2004 – 2006) (talk show) ... Host
- All My Children (2005) (guest) ... Hotel Manager
Trivia
He was mentioned as one who "cuts in line" in System of a down's song "Old school Hollywood"
There is a hardcore band that goes by the name The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza.
He is referenced in the song title "Hold Me Closer, Tony Danza" by "Killwhitneydead"
He has attended University of Tennessee Volunteers home football games since the mid-1980's and has been spotted tailgating with friends on multiple occasions.