''Blood Ties,'' also known as ''Il cugino americano,'' which translates from the Italian as ''The American Cousin'', is a 1986 Italian-American television film directed by

Giacomo Battiato Giacomo Battiato is an Italian film director and writer. One guide to Italian cinema says he:''The History of the Italian Cinema'' (Princeton University Press, 2009), p. ?? Born in Verona and married to Anna Zaneva since 1999, he began his car ...

. It was shown at the 43rd Venice International Film Festival, where it was awarded as best television production. The film is produced by

RAI RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana (; commercially styled as Rai since 2000; known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane) is the national public broadcasting company of Italy, owned by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. RAI operates many ter ...

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

and

Viacom International Paramount Global Distribution Group or Paramount Global Content Distribution is the international television distribution arm of American media conglomerate, Paramount Global, originally established in 1962 as the international distribution divis ...

. It was shot in

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...

and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

with a budget of about US$5 million. The film was broadcast by

on December 14, 1986.

Cast

* Brad Davis as Julian Salina *

Tony Lo Bianco Anthony LoBianco (born October 19, 1936) is an Italian-American film, stage, and television actor. Born to first-generation Italian American parents in New York City, Lo Bianco began his career in theater, and appeared in several Broadway prod ...

as Judge Guiliano Salina *

Vincent Spano Vincent M. Spano Jr. (born October 18, 1962) is an American film, stage and television actor; he is also a film director and producer. Early life Spano was born in Brooklyn, New York to Italian-American parents Vincent Sr. and Theresa. Career ...

as Mark Ciuni *

Barbara De Rossi Barbara De Rossi (born 9 August 1960) is an Italian actress who has combined a career in international cinema with longstanding popularity in Italian television. Biography Barbara De Rossi was born in 1960 in Rome to an Italian wine importer and ...

as Louisa Masseria *

Arnoldo Foà Arnoldo Foà (24 January 1916 – 11 January 2014) was an Italian actor, voice actor, theatre director, singer and writer. He appeared in more than 130 films between 1938 and 2014. Biography Foà was born in Ferrara, Italy, to a Jewish fa ...

as Vincenzo Ammirati *

Angelo Infanti Angelo Infanti (; 16 February 1939 – 12 October 2010) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in more than 90 films between 1961 and 2010. He was born on 16 February 1939 in Zagarolo, Italy. He died on 12 October 2010 in Tivoli, Italy due t ...

as Romano *

Delia Boccardo Delia Boccardo (born 29 January 1948) is an Italian film, television and stage actress. Life and career Born in Genoa, Boccardo spent her childhood and adolescence in Nervi, then studied at a Swiss college, at the Poggio Imperiale girls' scho ...

as Sara Salina *

Ricky Tognazzi Ricky Tognazzi (born Riccardo Tognazzi; ; 1 May 1955) is an Italian actor and film director. He has appeared in 50 films and television shows since 1963. His film '' The Escort'' was entered into the 1993 Cannes Film Festival. In 1991, he won t ...

as Riccardo * Michael V. Gazzo as Joseph Salina *

María Conchita Alonso María Concepción Alonso Bustillo (born June 29, 1957), better known as María Conchita Alonso, is a singer, actress and former beauty queen. She has participated in film and television productions, and was nominated for the Independent Spirit ...

as Caterina Ammirati *

Joe Spinell Joe Spinell (born Joseph Spagnuolo; October 28, 1936 – January 13, 1989) was an American character actor who appeared in films in the 1970s and 1980s, as well as various stage productions on and off Broadway. He played supporting roles in ''The ...

as Joey, New York Goon *

Elio Zamuto Elio Zamuto (born 1 May 1941 in Syracuse) is an Italian actor and voice actor. Life and career Born in Syracuse as Elio Mazzamuto, Zamuto started his career in the mid-1960s, and had a prolific career between television and cinema, especially ...

References

External links

* 1986 television films 1986 films American crime drama films Films about the Sicilian Mafia Films set in Sicily 1986 crime drama films Films directed by Giacomo Battiato American drama television films 1980s English-language films 1980s American films {{1980s-crime-drama-film-stub