Antonio Sabàto Jr. (born February 29, 1972) is an American model and actor. Born in Italy, he rose to fame in the 1990s as an underwear model for

Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer. In 1968, he launched the company that later became Calvin Klein. In addition to clothing, he has also given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and jewellery. ...

and playing

Jagger Cates ''General Hospital'' is the longest-running American television serial drama, airing on ABC. Created by Frank and Doris Hursley, it originally was set it in a general hospital (hence the title), in an unnamed fictional city. In the 1970s, the ...

on the soap opera ''

General Hospital ''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera created by Frank and Doris Hursley which has been broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC since April 1, 1963. Originally a half-hour seria ...

'' from 1992 to 1995. By the early 2000s, most of his acting credits were guest appearances, reality television, and budget films. Sabàto ran unsuccessfully as the Republican candidate for

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a bicameral legislature, including a lower body, the U.S. House of Representatives, and an upper body, the U.S. Senate. They both ...

against incumbent Democratic Congresswoman

Julia Brownley Julia Andrews Brownley (born August 28, 1952) is an American businesswoman and politician who has been the United States representative for California's 26th congressional district since 2013. A Democrat, she served in the California State Ass ...

for California's 26th district in the 2018 elections.

Early life

Sabàto was born in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, Italy on February 29, 1972, a Leap Day. His father was

Antonio Sabàto Sr. Antonio Sabàto Sr. (2 April 1943 – 10 January 2021) was an Italian actor, best known for his starring roles in Spaghetti Western and ''poliziotteschi'' films. He was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actor for ...

, an Italian-born film star. His mother, Yvonne, was born in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

(then part of Czechoslovakia), and of Jewish ancestry; her own mother was a Jewish

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

survivor. He has one sibling, a sister named Simonne. Sabàto and his family moved to the United States from Italy in 1985 and he became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1996. He received his high school diploma from

Palisades Charter High School Palisades Charter High School (usually colloquially known as Pali or Pali High and abbreviated as PCHS) is an independent charter secondary school in Los Angeles, United States. The high school serves the neighborhoods of Pacific Palisades, ...

in Los Angeles. His parents divorced, and his mother remarried, to California-based businessman George F. Kabouchy, in 1997.

Career

Modeling

Sabàto was featured on the cover of erotic magazine ''

Playgirl ''Playgirl'' is an American magazine that has historically featured pictorials of nude and semi-nude men alongside general interest, lifestyle, celebrity journalism, and original fiction. For most of its history, the magazine printed monthly a ...

'' in April 1993. Represented in Los Angeles by fashion agent Omar Albertto, Sabàto first gained attention as a

underwear model in 1996. In 1990, he appeared in

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...

's " Love Will Never Do (Without You)" music video along with actor

Djimon Hounsou Djimon Gaston Hounsou ( ; ; born April 24, 1964) is a Beninese-American actor. He began his career appearing in music videos and made his film debut in '' Without You I'm Nothing'' (1990). He then earned widespread recognition for his role as C ...

, who is also a former CK underwear model represented by Albertto. In 2013, Sabàto was named the international celebrity spokesperson for AnastasiaDate, an online mail-order bride website which connects wealthy American older men with Eastern European women.

Acting

Moving into acting, from 1992 to 1995 he appeared on the

soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...

'', the

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

series '' Earth 2'', and the

prime time Prime time, or peak time, is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for television shows. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...

soap opera ''

Melrose Place ''Melrose Place'' is an American prime-time television soap opera that aired on Fox from July 8, 1992, to May 24, 1999, for seven seasons. The show follows the lives of a group of young adults living in an apartment complex in West Hollywood, ...

''. Throughout the late 1990s, he starred in various TV movies and

direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, television series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strat ...

films, as well as a supporting role in the 1998 feature film ''

The Big Hit ''The Big Hit'' is a 1998 American action comedy film directed by Hong Kong filmmaker Che-Kirk Wong, and stars Mark Wahlberg, Lou Diamond Phillips, Christina Applegate, Bokeem Woodbine, Antonio Sabàto Jr., China Chow, Avery Brooks, Lainie ...

''. In 2003, he played the protagonist's lover Pablo in the movie ''

Testosterone Testosterone is the primary male sex hormone and androgen in Male, males. In humans, testosterone plays a key role in the development of Male reproductive system, male reproductive tissues such as testicles and prostate, as well as promoting se ...

'', filmed in Argentina with Sonia Braga,

David Sutcliffe David Sutcliffe (born June 8, 1969) is a Canadian former actor. He is known for playing Christopher Hayden on the television series ''Gilmore Girls'' and Detective Aidan Black on the television series ''Cracked''. Early life Sutcliffe was born ...

, Jennifer Coolidge, Celina Font and Leonardo Brezicki. From 2005 to 2006, Sabàto played Dante Damiano on the daytime soap opera ''The Bold and the Beautiful'', and in 2008, Sabàto reprised his role as

on the second season of '' General Hospital: Night Shift''. Sabàto made an appearance on ''

Bones A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, an ...

'' as a bouncer from a Jersey Shore club in season 6, episode 3, "The Maggots in the Meathead" in 2010. In 2013, he played Father Zaragosa in the television series ''

The League ''The League'' is an American television sitcom that aired on FX and later FXX from October 29, 2009, to December 9, 2015, for a total of seven seasons. The series, set in Chicago, is a semi-improvised comedy show about a fantasy football l ...

''. Sabàto is set to direct, produce, and star in an upcoming project called ''Trail Blazers'', which reportedly is the first in the line of other films he hopes to produce for his upcoming film studio called Trail Blazers Pictures. The film costars

Kristy Swanson Kristy Swanson (born December 19, 1969) is an American actress. She is best recognized for having played Buffy Summers in the 1992 film ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' and appeared in the 1996 film ''The Phantom''. Her first starring role was in ...

Kevin Sorbo Kevin David Sorbo (born September 24, 1958) is an American actor. He has had starring roles in two television series: as Hercules in '' Hercules: The Legendary Journeys'' (1995–1999) and as Captain Dylan Hunt in '' Andromeda'' (2000–2005). ...

Dean Cain Dean George Cain ( né Tanaka; born July 31, 1966) is an American actor. From 1993 to 1997, he played Clark Kent / Superman in the TV series '' Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman''. Cain was the host of '' Ripley's Believe It or Not! ...

, and

Scott Baio Scott Vincent Baio (; born September 22, 1960) is an American actor. He is known for playing Chachi Arcola on the sitcom ''Happy Days'' (1977–1984) and its spin-off '' Joanie Loves Chachi'' (1982–1983), the title character on the s ...

Other work

In 2005, Sabàto appeared on ''

But Can They Sing? ''But Can They Sing?'' is an American reality television series that premiered on October 30, 2005 on VH1 as part of its celebreality programming. Hosted by Ahmet Zappa, the series was partially based on NBC's announced but abandoned project ''I' ...

'', a celebrity reality singing competition on

VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...

, coming in 5th place. He competed in the 2008

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

competition '' Celebrity Circus'', which he won. He stated on the show that both his mother and her father were circus performers. In August 2009, Sabàto starred in '' My Antonio'', a reality show on VH1 in which female contestants competed to win his heart. The show notably featured Sabàto's ex-wife, Tully Jensen, as one of the contestants (she came in 3rd place), and his mother also appeared on the show, providing advice. The show's winner was Brooke Barlow. Sabàto and his family appeared on ABC's ''

Celebrity Wife Swap ''Wife Swap'' is an American reality television series based on the British series of the same name that premiered on September 26, 2004. In the program, two families, usually from different social classes and lifestyles, swap wives/mothers – ...

'' on January 31, 2012. His then-fiancé Cheryl Moana Marie Nunes traded places on the show with

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...

wrestler

Mick Foley Michael Francis Foley (born June 7, 1965) is an American retired professional wrestler and author. He is signed to WWE, under a Legends contract while also serving as an ambassador. Foley worked for many wrestling promotions, including the W ...

's wife Colette Foley. Sabàto competed on

season 19 A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and polar ...

of ''

Dancing with the Stars ''Strictly Come Dancing (widely known as Dancing with the Stars)'' is an international television franchise based on the format of the British TV series '' Strictly Come Dancing,'' itself a successor to the show ''Come Dancing'' (1950–1998) ...

'' in 2014. He was paired with professional dancer

Cheryl Burke Cheryl Burke (born May 3, 1984) is an American dancer, model, and television host. She is best known for being a professional dancer on ABC's ''Dancing with the Stars''. She was the first female professional to win the show and the first prof ...

, and they finished in 8th place. Since 2014, Sabàto has served as the host of a 30-minute long syndicated

home remodeling The concept of home improvement, home renovation or remodeling is the process of renovating, making improvements or making additions to one's home. Home improvement can consist of projects that upgrade an existing home interior (such as electr ...

show ''Fix It & Finish It''. In 2016, Sabàto was contracted to be a

Chippendales Chippendales is a touring dance troupe best known for its male striptease performances and for its dancers' distinctive upper body costume of a bow tie, collar, and shirt cuffs worn on an otherwise bare torso with jeans and undergarment. Est ...

dancer for a special engagement in June at the

Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino The Rio is a hotel and casino near the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States. It is owned and operated by Dreamscape Companies LLC. It includes a casino and 2,520 suites. It features a Brazilian theme based on Rio Carnival. The Ri ...

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

. Sabàto announced that he wants to start a

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

movie studio geared toward conservative content. The new company is called and the studio's first upcoming film, ''Trail Blazers'', is in the works for a release in 2022. On April 25, 2024, while in Australia Sabato filmed the Music Video for Australian Singer Songwriter Kristin Venae's Single 'Still Here'. The Music video was released on Valentines day 2025.

Politics

Sabàto ran for the 26th district Congressional seat in California as a Republican against incumbent Democrat

. He came in second place in the

jungle primary A nonpartisan primary, top-two primary, or jungle primary is a primary election in which all candidates for the same elected office run against each other at once, regardless of political party. This distinguishes them from partisan primaries, w ...

with 22.4% of the vote, advancing to face Brownley in the general election. He lost the election on November 6, 2018, by 24%. Regarding

illegal immigration Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of that country's immigration laws, or the continuous residence in a country without the legal right to do so. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upward, wi ...

, Sabàto said, "There should be no shortcuts for those who don't want to pay or wait". He supported Trump's wall on the southern border, saying, "We need a wall." Sabàto has made many controversial statements regarding former U.S. President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

, including saying he has "no guts," accusing him of destroying the U.S. economy, and asserting that Obama should be arrested and sent to the

Guantanamo Bay detention camp The Guantanamo Bay detention camp, also known as GTMO ( ), GITMO ( ), or simply Guantanamo Bay, is a United States military prison within Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NSGB), on the coast of Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. It was established in 2002 by p ...

. The former Democrat has also implied that Obama is the reason he left the Democratic Party. For several years, Sabàto has maintained that, in his opinion, Obama is not a Christian but a

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

. The first instance of such a claim came in 2016, when Sabàto, after making a speech at the

Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the Republican Party in the United States. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal o ...

, told

ABC News ABC News most commonly refers to: * ABC News (Australia), a national news service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation * ABC News (United States), a news-gathering and broadcasting division of the American Broadcasting Company ABC News may a ...

"I don't believe he follows the God that I love and the Jesus that I love," and "If you follow his story, if you read his book, if you understand about Obama, I mean, that's not a Christian name, is it?" When pressed for evidence to back up his claims, Sabàto answered that it's "in his heart." Two years later, in 2018, he reaffirmed his belief that Obama is a Muslim when appearing on ''

The View ''The View'' is an American talk show created by broadcast journalist Barbara Walters. , in its 28th season, the show has aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC as part of the network's ABC Daytime, daytime programming block since August ...

'', saying "If he's bama'snot a Muslim, we should call him President Barry," and claimed that "What I was saying was, he changed his name to Obama because he followed the

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

religion when he was growing up so, I felt that once you're in that religion, you stay for the rest of your life." Sabàto endorsed

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

for president in 2016. He spoke at the

2016 Republican National Convention The 2016 Republican National Convention, in which delegates of the United States Republican Party (United States), Republican Party chose the party's nominees for President of the United States, president and Vice President of the United Sta ...

in support of the party's presumptive nominee. Sabàto claimed that after he expressed his support for Trump, he was

blacklisted Blacklisting is the action of a group or authority compiling a blacklist of people, countries or other entities to be avoided or distrusted as being deemed unacceptable to those making the list; if people are on a blacklist, then they are considere ...

from

. He later compared his struggle to find work in

show business Show business, sometimes shortened to show biz or showbiz (since 1945), is a vernacular term for all aspects of the entertainment industry.''Oxford English Dictionary'' 2nd Ed. (1989) From the business side (including managers, agents, produce ...

with that of being Jewish during

the Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

and said celebrities mocked him on the social media website

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

Personal life

Sabàto was married to Tully Jensen from 1992 until 1993. He married Cheryl Moana Marie Nunes in 2012. The two separated in December 2016 and their divorce was finalized in June 2018. After Sabàto filed for divorce, Nunes alleged that Sabàto was abusing prescription drugs and had failed to complete even one month of a three-month-long drug rehabilitation program. Sabàto said that he was addicted to prescription sleep aids, not

benzodiazepine Benzodiazepines (BZD, BDZ, BZs), colloquially known as "benzos", are a class of central nervous system (CNS) depressant, depressant drugs whose core chemical structure is the fusion of a benzene ring and a diazepine ring. They are prescribed t ...

s as Nunes claimed, but admitted that he had a problem with

substance abuse Substance misuse, also known as drug misuse or, in older vernacular, substance abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods that are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder, differing definition ...

in the past, specifically

crystal meth Methamphetamine (contracted from ) is a potent central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is mainly used as a recreational or performance-enhancing drug and less commonly as a second-line treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity d ...

. Sabàto has three children: a son with

Virginia Madsen Virginia Madsen (born September 11, 1961) is an American actress. She is the recipient of two Critics' Choice Awards, an Independent Spirit Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award and a Golden Gl ...

, a daughter with Kristin Rossetti Biasi, and a son with Nunes. Sabàto is a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

but has, on several occasions, said that he also identifies as being

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

. Sabàto had testosterone pellets injected into his buttocks as a treatment for low levels of testosterone. Sabàto has several tattoos, including the

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

logo on his lower back and the yin yang symbol surrounded by Chinese characters on his arm. In a December 2018 tweet, Sabàto stated that he and his family were in the process of moving out of

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

to an undisclosed state, citing his frustration with the state's progressive policies as the primary reason. In March 2020, Sabàto moved to

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, and now works for a construction company.

Filmography

Film

Television

Music videos

References

External links

* *
SoapCentral.com: Sabato profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sabato, Antonio Jr. 1972 births Living people 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American male actors 20th-century Italian Jews 20th-century Italian male actors 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American male actors 21st-century Italian Jews 21st-century Italian male actors 21st-century Italian politicians American actor-politicians American Christians American male judoka American male models American male soap opera actors American male television actors American people of Czech descent American people of Czech-Jewish descent American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu California Republicans Candidates in the 2018 United States House of Representatives elections Florida Republicans Italian Christians Italian emigrants to the United States Italian expatriate male actors in the United States Italian male judoka Italian male models Italian male soap opera actors Italian male television actors Italian people of Czech descent Italian people of Jewish descent Italian practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Male actors from California Male actors from Rome Male models from California Models from Rome Naturalized citizens of the United States Participants in American reality television series Madsen family