Danny Nucci

Born in Klagenfurt, Austria, to a French-Morrocan mother from Casablanca and a clothes manufacturer father from Northern Italy, Danny Nucci spent his early years near Venice, Italy, then moved on to Athens, Greece, at the age of 7 and to New York City by the age of 12. At 14, his family had relocated to Los Angeles.

A couple of months later, he volunteered to answer phones for a Variety Club charity telethon at a local studio - because he "wanted to be on TV." Sometime during the broadcast, a stranger approached, gave Nucci his business card and said, "Hey, kid, you`ve got a good look. Have your parents call me." His parents phoned the legit Bob Villard, who still is his manager 18 years later.

Nucci`s acting experience consisted of participation in a handful of school plays, but Villard still managed to get him an agent in a matter of days. Forty auditions later, he booked his first job as a day player on the daytime soap opera "General Hospital." Fortunately, he was smart enough to take private acting classes while earning his diploma at Ulysses S. Grant High School in Van Nuys, just minutes from a half-dozen major studios in the San Fernando Valley.

After several series guest shots - including "Growing Pains," "Tour Of Duty" and "Quantum Leap" - he nailed own a lucrative one-year (1988-89) gig as Gabriel Ortega on the prime-time soap "Falcon Crest." At 20, he knew it was time to take two years off to study his craft more seriously.

"Moved out and on my own at 17, I have always made my living as an actor," says Nucci. "It doesn`t mean I always made a good living. For years, I lived in scary, bad neighborhoods paying $156 per month rent and eating canned chili. I stayed alive on next-to-nothing, so I wouldn`t have to take a regular job waiting tables, bar-tending, etc."

The dark, muscular Nucci made the most of his expensive thespian training in such feature films as "Alive!" (1993) and "Blind Justice" (1994), but didn`t get the attention of his peers and producers until his co-starring role as Petty Officer Rivetti in "Crimson Tide" (1995) with Gene Hackman and Denzel Washington.

"Rivetti was a great part that allowed me to work with Hackman and Washington - a wonderful experience for any actor just coming into his own," says Nucci, 32. "Suddenly, fellow actors would come up and pat me on the back. People actually knew who I was when I walked in for an audition."

"Crimson Tide" producer Jerry Bruckheimer immediately cast him as Lt. Sheppard, the Navy SEAL guarding Sean Connery, in "The Rock" (1996). He almost made waves as Fabrizio, Leonardo DiCaprio`s good buddy in the all-time mega-grossing film "Titanic," but most of his work in the "fantastic role" wound up on the cutting-room floor.

"There are great performances from lots of people cut out of this movie, but (James) Cameron obviously made the right decisions, because it didn`t hurt the movie at all."

Though somewhat disappointed at the outcome, Nucci made the best of his six-month "Titanic" shoot near Rosarito Beach, Mexico.

"There was a golf course between the set and our hotel that we all took advantage of," recalls the recreational saxophone player. "The daily routine included great video games, and several actors, including myself, bringing their musical instruments for jam sessions - a lot of the guys from the "Titanic" band. It was fun, but ultimately six months is too long a time on one set ... "

With the birth four years ago of his daughter, Savannah, Nucci started looking for work closer to home (literally in Hollywood) and got back into the weekly series grind as the wisecracking private eye, Manny Lott, on "Snoops" - which got its nose bloodied after 13 episodes. And now he is the star of "Some Of My Best Friends" (which was to premiere Feb. 28, CBS),a gay-straight relationship sitcom based on the 1997 feature film "Kiss Me, Guido," featuring a cast of largely unknowns.

As Frankie Zito, Nucci plays a macho, Neanderthal would-be actor finally leaving his parents` nest and pizza parlor in the Bronx at the age of 24 to stand on his own rubbery legs, rather than lean on his domineering mother. Jason Bateman portrays Warren Fairbanks, an openly gay and perpetually broke Greenwich Village free-lance writer, badly in need of a roommate to help pay the rent in an apartment building managed by his gorgeous, female hormone-infused sister, Meryl (Jessica Lundy).

"I laughed for the half-hour it took to read the pilot script and `Some Of My Best Friends` has turned into one the few jobs I`ve had in 18 years where everybody seems to be on the same level - from cast and crew to executive producer and production assistant," says Nucci, "and I can be home every night to watch my daughter grow up."

Unfortunately, his marriage to artist Terre Nucci ended a couple of years ago and their "divorce is final as soon as the ink dries." Which does not change his parental responsibilities one iota.

"Fatherhood turned my life and lifestyle upside-down, but I wouldn`t have it any other way," laughs Nucci. "Your life is suddenly very different, but your heart is opened up so much from having this little person you love. Some days, I`m really grateful that they`re cute, otherwise you`d want to kill `em. God knew what He was doing, believe me. On the other hand, it`s the greatest thing that ever happened to me."

A perfect day with Savannah includes hanging around while she plays with her friends, followed by her valiant attempts to play the piano at home. That she also happens to know the words to just about every Beatles song is frosting on the cake, according Nucci.

"On my own, I prefer periods of solitude. You`ll laugh, but my idea of a wonderful time is sitting in my jacuzzi, smoking a cigar and playing John Madden 2001 on Playstation 2."

If lonely, he can always call on his two sisters, usually close at hand.

"We`re very close. My older sister, Natalie Nucci, is constantly doing musical theater, including a recent L.A. production on `On The Town.` My younger sister, Elle Nucci, became a professional boxer a couple of months ago; I don`t know why, but God bless her."

(c) Copley News Service

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Author: Eirik Knutzen