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Joe Grifasi
Joseph G. Grifasi (born June 14, 1944) is an American character actor of film, stage and television. Grifasi was born in Buffalo, New York, the son of Patricia (née Gaglione) and Joseph J. Grifasi, a skilled laborer. Grifasi graduated from Bishop Fallon High School, a now-defunct Roman Catholic high school in Buffalo, when he made the decision that he wanted to be, not just any old actor, but a character actor. Grifasi has played two New York Yankees elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame: Phil Rizzuto in '' 61*'', set in 1961; and Yogi Berra in '' The Bronx Is Burning'', set in 1977. Grifasi has played defense attorney, later Superior Court Judge, Hashi Horowitz on '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'' between 2005 and 2018. Filmography * ''On the Yard'' (1978) - Morris * ''The Deer Hunter'' (1978) - Bandleader * ''Something Short of Paradise'' (1979) - Barney Collins * ''Hide in Plain Sight'' (1980) - Matty Stanek * ''Honky Tonk Freeway'' (1981) - Osvaldo * '' Still of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Southern Ontario. With a population of 278,349 according to the 2020 census, Buffalo is the 78th-largest city in the United States. The city and nearby Niagara Falls together make up the two-county Buffalo–Niagara Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which had an estimated population of 1.1 million in 2020, making it the 49th largest MSA in the United States. Buffalo is in Western New York, which is the largest population and economic center between Boston and Cleveland. Before the 17th century, the region was inhabited by nomadic Paleo-Indians who were succeeded by the Neutral, Erie, and Iroquois nations. In the early 17th century, the French began to explore the region. In the 18th century, Iroquois land surrounding Buffalo C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hide In Plain Sight
''Hide in Plain Sight'' is a 1980 American drama film directed by and starring James Caan with the storyline based on an actual case from the files of New York attorney Salvatore R. Martoche who represented Tom Leonard, a real-life Buffalo, New York, victim who had sued to recover contact with his children estranged by the culpability of the new husband and government, soon realizing his own past is coming back to get him. Plot Divorced father Thomas Hacklin discovers, on visiting his children, that his ex-wife's residence has been abandoned; he is unable to locate or contact them. He is mystified after approaching the authorities, who refuse to assist, but speculates when he becomes aware that her new husband is in the United States Federal Witness Protection Program. As he makes inroads into finding their location, the police and authorities make it more difficult for him to make contact. He becomes determined upon discovering the government advised the low-tier mobster new hu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
From The Files Of Police Squad!
''The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!'' (also known as simply ''The Naked Gun'') is a 1988 American crime comedy film directed by David Zucker and released by Paramount Pictures. The film stars Leslie Nielsen as the bumbling police lieutenant Frank Drebin. Priscilla Presley, Ricardo Montalbán, George Kennedy, and O. J. Simpson also star in supporting roles. The film features fast-paced slapstick comedy, including many visual and verbal puns and gags. The film is based on the character portrayed by Nielsen in the television series ''Police Squad!'', and is also a continuation of the latter. The core creative team behind ''Police Squad!'' and the film series includes the team of David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker as well as Pat Proft in varying combinations. Released on December 2, 1988, ''The Naked Gun'' was a critical and commercial success, which led to two sequels: '' The Naked Gun : The Smell of Fear'' (1991) and '' Naked Gun : The Final Insult'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Appointments Of Dennis Jennings
''The Appointments of Dennis Jennings'' is a 1988 American short comedy film, starring, co-written and co-produced by Steven Wright, which won the Oscar for Best Live Action Short Film at the 61st Academy Awards in 1988. Plot Dennis Jennings (Steven Wright) is an introvert, showing symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, paranoia, and a troubled youth. He works as a waiter and has an indifferent girlfriend, Emma, who only seems to patronize him. The "appointments" are with his psychiatrist (Rowan Atkinson), who is annoyed with him and uninterested in what he has to say. After finding his doctor sharing his (Dennis's) intimate secrets with a group of fellow psychiatrists at a bar, and then finding that his girlfriend is cheating on him with the doctor, Dennis decides he has had enough. He hunts the doctor, shoots him, and goes to jail afterwards. Cast References External links Homepage* * The Appointments of Dennis Jennings' on YouTube YouTube is a globa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Big Business (1988 Film)
''Big Business'' is a 1988 American comedy film starring Bette Midler and Lily Tomlin, each playing two roles, as sets of identical twins mismatched at birth. The nature versus nurture farce adapts ''The Comedy of Errors'', but with female siblings in contemporary society: one of each twin being reared in a wealthy urban setting, while the others grew up in a poor rural environment. Produced by Touchstone Pictures, the film co-stars Fred Ward, Edward Herrmann, Joe Grifasi, and Seth Green, as well as siblings Michael Gross and Mary Gross. Directed by Jim Abrahams, critical reaction to the film as a whole was generally lukewarm. Both Midler and Tomlin were nominated for the American Comedy Award for Funniest Actress in a Motion Picture for their performances with Midler winning. Plot In 1948, wealthy businessman Hunt Shelton and his pregnant wife are lost in rural West Virginia when Mrs. Shelton goes into labor near the town of Jupiter Hollow. At the local hospital, they are tu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ironweed (film)
''Ironweed'' is a 1987 American drama film directed by Héctor Babenco. It is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name by William Kennedy, who also wrote the screenplay. It stars Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep, with Carroll Baker, Michael O'Keefe, Diane Venora, Fred Gwynne, Nathan Lane and Tom Waits in supporting roles. The story concerns the relationship of a homeless couple: Francis, an alcoholic, and Helen, a terminally ill woman during the years following the Great Depression. Major portions of the film were shot on location in Albany, New York, including Jay Street at Lark Street, Albany Rural Cemetery, and the Miss Albany Diner on North Broadway. Despite mixed reviews and being a box-office bomb, ''Ironweed'' received two nominations at the 60th Academy Awards, Best Actor (for Nicholson), and Best Actress (for Streep). Synopsis During the 1930s depression, Francis Phelan (Nicholson) wanders the city. Francis is a washed-up and retired baseball playe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Moonstruck
''Moonstruck'' is a 1987 American romantic comedy-drama film directed and co-produced by Norman Jewison, written by John Patrick Shanley, and starring Cher, Nicolas Cage, Danny Aiello, Olympia Dukakis, and Vincent Gardenia. The film follows Loretta Castorini, a widowed Italian-American woman who falls in love with her fiancé's hot-tempered, estranged younger brother. ''Moonstruck'' had a limited theatrical release on December 18, 1987, and was released nationally on January 15, 1988 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The film earned critical and commercial success. It received six nominations at the 60th Academy Awards, winning three for Best Actress (Cher), Best Supporting Actress (Dukakis), and Best Original Screenplay (Shanley). Plot Thirty-seven year old Loretta Castorini, an Italian-American widow, works as a bookkeeper and lives in Brooklyn Heights with her family: father Cosmo; mother Rose; and paternal grandfather. Her boyfriend, Johnny Cammareri, proposes to her before ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Matewan
''Matewan'' () is a 1987 American drama film written and directed by John Sayles, and starring Chris Cooper (in his film debut), James Earl Jones, Mary McDonnell and Will Oldham, with David Strathairn, Kevin Tighe and Gordon Clapp in supporting roles. The film dramatizes the events of the Battle of Matewan, a coal miners' strike in 1920 in Matewan, a small town in the hills of West Virginia. ''Matewan'' was a critical success but a box office flop, grossing under $2 million on an estimated $4 million budget. The film received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Cinematography, and received a Criterion Collection re-release in 2019. Plot Joe Kenehan is an organizer for the United Mine Workers. He arrives in Matewan, West Virginia in 1920 to organize miners against the Stone Mountain Coal Company. His introduction to the town is his witnessing of a mob of miners angry at wage cuts beating up black miners who intended to cross the picket line. He takes up residence ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bad Medicine (film)
''Bad Medicine'' is a 1985 American comedy film starring Steve Guttenberg, Alan Arkin and Julie Hagerty. The film was written and directed by Harvey Miller, and was based on the novel ''Calling Dr. Horowitz'', by Steven Horowitz, MD and Neil Offen. The film was criticized for its negative ethnic stereotypes. Although the film is set "Somewhere in Central America," it was filmed entirely in Spain. It was released by 20th Century Fox, and was one of three 1985 films to feature Hagerty in a starring role, the others being ''Lost in America'' and ''Goodbye, New York''. Plot Below-average pre-medical student Jeffrey Marx (Guttenberg), after being rejected by prestigious medical schools, is sent by his father (Bill Macy) to a seemingly sub-standard medical school in Central America. He and his fellow American students struggle with exams, the effects of pep pills, and the language barrier. Jeffrey eventually discovers the plight of local villagers in need of medical assistance. With ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brewster's Millions (1985 Film)
''Brewster's Millions'' is a 1985 American comedy film directed by Walter Hill. The film stars Richard Pryor and John Candy. The screenplay by Herschel Weingrod and Timothy Harris was based on the 1902 novel of the same name by George Barr McCutcheon. It is the seventh film based on the story. Plot Monty Brewster is a Minor League Baseball pitcher with the Hackensack Bulls. He and his best friend, Spike Nolan, the Bulls' catcher, are arrested after a post-game bar fight. A man offers to post their bail if they will come to New York City with him. At the Manhattan law office of Granville & Baxter, Brewster is told that his recently deceased great-uncle Rupert Horn, whom he has never met, has left him his entire $300 million fortune but only if he can complete a challenge with several conditions. Brewster can choose to receive $1 million upfront or attempt to inherit the whole estate by spending $30 million in 30 days. In the former case, the law firm becomes the executor of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Flamingo Kid
''The Flamingo Kid'' is a 1984 American romantic comedy film directed by Garry Marshall and produced by Michael Phillips. It stars Matt Dillon, Richard Crenna, Héctor Elizondo and Jessica Walter. The film tells the story of a working class boy who takes a summer job at a beach resort and learns valuable life lessons. It was the first film to receive a PG-13 rating, although it was the fifth to be released with that rating (after ''Red Dawn'', '' The Woman in Red'', '' Dreamscape'' and ''Dune''). Crenna received a Golden Globe Award nomination for his supporting role and Marisa Tomei made her big screen debut with a minor role in the film. Plot In the summer of 1963, Jeffrey Willis joins some friends for a day of gin rummy at ''El Flamingo Club'', a private beach resort. There, he meets the girl of his dreams Carla Sampson. After the gin game and being told of the club's strict policy regarding guests, Jeffrey is upset, but not for long, since he immediately lands a job as a car ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Pope Of Greenwich Village
''The Pope of Greenwich Village'' is a 1984 American crime black comedy film directed by Stuart Rosenberg and starring Mickey Rourke, Eric Roberts, Daryl Hannah, Geraldine Page, Kenneth McMillan and Burt Young. Page was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her two-scene role. The film was adapted by screenwriter Vincent Patrick from his novel of the same name. Plot In an Italian neighborhood of Greenwich Village, cousins Charlie, a maître d'hôtel with aspirations of someday owning his own restaurant, and Paulie, a schemer who works as a waiter, have expensive tastes but not much money. Paulie gets caught skimming checks, and he and Charlie are both fired. Now out of work and in debt, Charlie must find another way to pay his alimony, support his pregnant girlfriend Diane, and try to buy a restaurant. Paulie comes to Charlie with a seemingly foolproof robbery idea involving a large amount of cash in the safe of a local business. Charlie reluctantly agr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
