Daniel J. Travanti
| Daniel J. Travanti | |
|---|---|
| Born | Danielo Giovanni Travanti 7 March 1940 Kenosha, Wisconsin, U.S. |
Danielo Giovanni "Daniel J." Travanti (born March 7, 1940) is an American actor best known for his starring role as Captain Frank Furillo in the 1980s television drama Hill Street Blues.
[edit] Biography
Travanti, one of five children, was born in Kenosha, Wisconsin, to Italian immigrant parents. His father was a factory worker. During his teen years, Travanti was an athlete and good student, earning scholarships to Harvard University, Princeton University, and Dartmouth College, though he eventually attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison.[1] In 1957, before his senior year, he attended the youth government and leadership program called Badger Boys State as a representative chosen from his high school.
In 1964, Travanti guest-starred with Paul Richards and Roy Thinnes in the episode "Murder by Scandal" of CBS's drama about newspapers, The Reporter, with Harry Guardino in the title role of journalist Danny Taylor. He also appeared, (credited as Dan Travanty) in a Season 6 episode of Mission: Impossible called "Image".
Years later, Travanti earned five nominations and two Emmy Awards for his portrayal of Hill Street Station Captain Frank Furillo. In 1983, Travanti starred in the TV movie Adam with Jo Beth Williams for which he received another Emmy nomination. Since then, Travanti has appeared in a number of TV movies and has made appearances in television programs such as Poltergeist: The Legacy (1997) and Prison Break (2005). In 1986, HBO broadcast the made-for-cable biographical film Murrow with Robert Vaughn, with Travanti portraying Edward R. Murrow receiving a Cable Ace nomination. He co-starred in the film Millennium (1989) and as Lt. Ray McAuliffe in the television series Missing Persons (1993).
Although the organization maintains a policy of anonymity among its members, Travanti publicly acknowledged his past as a chronic alcoholic[2] who found sobriety through Alcoholics Anonymous, calling the affliction a "disease of loneliness and secrecy." In 1981, he made such a confession to Rona Barrett in an interview on NBC and even recited, from memory, all of the organization's "Twelve Steps" on camera.[3] Capt. Furillo, his best-known character, was also a recovering alcoholic.
In January–March 2007, Travanti appeared off-Broadway in Oren Safdie's The Last Word... at the Theater at St. Clements in New York City, and in November–December 2008, Travanti played the "Con Melody" in an off-off Broadway production of Eugene O'Neill's A Touch of the Poet for Friendly Fire Theater in New York. In 2010, he appeared in an episode of Criminal Minds as a 75-year-old serial killer suffering from Alzheimer's.
[edit] References
- ^ Horwitz, Simi (2007-02-20). "Having 'The Last Word...'". Backstage.com. http://www.backstage.com/bso/news_reviews/features/feature_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003547750. Retrieved 2007-02-21.[dead link]
- ^ http://members.wizzards.net/~mlworden/choices/sparkle.htm
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YJ3p0lg1JA
[edit] External links
- Daniel J. Travanti at the Internet Movie Database
- Daniel J. Travanti at AllRovi
- The Last Word...
- WOR radio interview
- Daniel J. Travanti interview at Archive of American Television - October 13, 2004
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