Tony Danza: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia
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| caption = Danza in 2003
| birth_name = Anthony Salvatore Iadanza
| birth_date = {{birth- date and age|April 21, 1951|04|21}}
| birth_place = [[BrooklynNew York City]], [[New York (state)|New York]], U.S.
| height = 5 ft 9 in<ref name="auto1">https://boxrec.com/en/proboxer/028927 {{Bare URL inline|date=August 2024}}</ref>
| alma_mater = [[University of Dubuque]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])
| occupation = Actor
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'''Tony Danza''' (born '''Anthony Salvatore Iadanza'''; April 21, 1951)<ref name=filmref /> is an American actor and retired [[professional boxer]].<ref name="auto1" /> He is known for co-starring in the television series ''[[Taxi (TV series)|Taxi]]'' (1978–1983) and ''[[Who's the Boss?]]'' (1984–1992), for which he was nominated for an [[Emmy Award]] and four [[Golden Globe Awards]]. In 1998, Danza won the [[People's Choice Award]] for Favorite Male Performer in a New Television Series for his work on the 1997 sitcom ''[[The Tony Danza Show (1997 TV series)|The Tony Danza Show]]'' (not to be confused with his 2004–2006 daytime variety talk show [[The Tony Danza Show (2004 talk show)|of the same name]]). He has also appeared in films such as ''[[The Hollywood Knights]]'' (1980), ''[[Going Ape!]]'' (1981), ''[[She's Out of Control]]'' (1989), ''[[Angels in the Outfield (1994 film)|Angels in the Outfield]]'' (1994), ''[[Crash (2004 film)|Crash]]'' (2004), and ''[[Don Jon]]'' (2013).
==Early life==
Danza was born on April 21, 1951, in [[Brooklyn, New York]],<ref name=filmref /> to parents Anna Mary (née Camisa; 1925–1993) and Matthew Anthony "Matty" Iadanza (1920–1983).<ref name=vart1>{{cite web|url=https://www.variety.com/article/VR108166?refCatId=25|title=Ann Iadanza|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=June 23, 1993 |access-date=May 26, 2012}}</ref><ref name=fdr1>Stated on ''[[Finding Your Roots]]'', February 8, 2022</ref> His mother was a bookkeeper and his father worked as a [[waste collector]] in Brooklyn.<ref name="filmref">{{cite web |url = http://www.filmreference.com/film/34/Tony-Danza.html |title= Tony Danza Biography (1951–) |publisher= FilmReference.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://articles.nydailynews.com/2008-06-13/entertainment/17900765_1_tony-danza-show-meatball-recipe-song-and-dance |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120707085648/http://articles.nydailynews.com/2008-06-13/entertainment/17900765_1_tony-danza-show-meatball-recipe-song-and-dance |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 7, 2012 |title=Tony Danza's the boss in the kitchen with new cookbook |last=Wharton |first=Rachel |date=June 13, 2008 |work=[[Daily News (New York)|Daily News]] |location=New York |access-date=May 26, 2012}}</ref> Danza's paternal grandparents were from [[Pietrelcina]], [[Benevento]], [[Campania]], [[Italy]], and his mother was an immigrant from the town of [[Campobello di Mazara]] in the [[Sicily|Sicilian]] [[province of Trapani]].<ref name=vart1/><ref name=fdr1/><ref>[http://www.walkoffame.com/tony-danza walkoffame.com]</ref> He has a younger brother, Matty Jr. (born 1954), a Los Angeles restaurant owner.<ref>[http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/participant.jsp?spid=44161&apid=0 Tony Danza's TCM bio]</ref> He lived in [[East New York, Brooklyn]]<ref name="Mozzarella">{{cite news |last1=Frishberg |first1=Hannah |title=Tony Danza Talks His New Play, Growing Up in Brooklyn, And Fresh Mozzarella |url=https://bklyner.com/tony-danza-talks-his-new-play-growing-up-in-brooklyn-and-fresh-mozzarella/ |access-date=February 20, 2019 |publisher=Bklynr |date=November 14, 2016}}</ref> until he was 14, and his family relocated to [[Malverne, New York]], on [[Long Island]]. Danza attended Malverne Senior High School, graduating in 1968. In the first episode of his show ''Teach: Tony Danza'', Danza describes himself as a "bad student" in high school. He earned a bachelor's degree in history in 1972 from the [[University of Dubuque]],<ref>[http://www.dbq.edu/news/news1.cfm?ID=89 University of Dubuque website]</ref> which he attended on a [[Collegiate wrestling|wrestling]] scholarship. In 1975, as a joke, Danza's friends entered him in the New York City Golden Gloves Tournament. After knocking out his first six opponents all in the first round, Danza was knocked out in the finals.<ref>[http://www.boxing-scoop.com/show_boxer.php?boxer_ID=12264 Tony Danza profile], boxing-scoop.com. Retrieved May 20, 2014.</ref>
During his first year of college, he had the [[Robert Crumb]] "[[Keep on Truckin' (comics)|Keep on Truckin']]" character tattooed on his upper right arm. In a 1985 interview in ''[[Us Weekly]]'' magazine, Danza remarked, "I was playing pool with a guy who had all these tattoos, and I wanted to be friends."<ref>"Danza, Father and (Finally) Grown-up" by Steve Pond. ''Us Weekly'', August 26, 1985</ref> Danza also sports a "Keep Punching" boxing gloves tattoo on his right shoulder as well as "Tracy", his (former) wife's name, on his chest.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tony Danza President Puncher |url=http://www.maxim.com/tv/guy-tv/70062/tony-danza-president-puncher.html |work=Maxim |access-date=June 17, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120614041647/http://www.maxim.com/tv/tony-danza-president-puncher |archive-date=June 14, 2012 }}</ref> In college, Danza met and married his first wife.
==Career==
===BoxerBoxing===
Danza was a [[professional [[Boxing|boxer]] with a record of 98 wins and 3 losses (98 knockouts, 76 in the first round),. withHe allcompeted butfrom one1976 ofuntil his fights ending1979 in athe [[knockoutmiddleweight]], including three technical knockoutsdivision.<ref>{{cite news|first=Dan|last=Rafael|title='The Contender' to feature two ex-title challengers; TV star Danza to host|date=October 1, 2008|url=httphttps://sportswww.espn.go.com/sports/boxing/news/story?id=3615214|work=ESPN|access-date=December 17, 2008}}</ref><ref name="auto1" />
===Acting and show business===
[[File:Tony_Danza_1995.jpg|upright|thumb|Danza in 1995]]
[[File:Tony danza 2012.jpg|upright|thumb|Danza in 2012]]
Shortly after his college graduation from the University of Dubuque, Danza was discovered by a producer at a boxing gymnasium in New York.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dailydanza.com/about/|title=Meet Tony|publisher=dailydanza.com}}</ref> He then earned a spot on the television show ''[[Taxi (TV series)|Taxi]]'' (1978-1983), playing a [[cab driver]] and part-time boxer Tony Banta, and later starred on ''[[Who's the Boss?]]'' (1984–1992), in which he portrayed Tony Micelli, a former baseball player, housekeeper, and single father. For his contribution to the television industry, in 1988, Danza was honored with a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] at 7000 [[Hollywood Boulevard]]. Danza also plays the role of Mel Clark, a baseball player, in ''[[Angels in the Outfield (1994 film)|Angels in the Outfield]]'' (1994).
Danza's movie debut was in the comedy ''[[The Hollywood Knights]]'' (1980), which was followed by ''[[Going Ape!]]'' (1981), ''[[Cannonball Run II]]'' (1984), and ''[[She's Out of Control]]'' (1989). Later films included the role of Mel Clark, a baseball player, in ''[[Angels in the Outfield (1994 film)|Angels in the Outfield]]'' (1994), Juror No. 7 in the TV-movie ''[[12 Angry Men (1997 film)|12 Angry Men]]'' (1997), and Fred in ''[[Crash (2004 film)|Crash]]'' (2004).
Danza also starred in the short-lived sitcoms ''[[Hudson Street (TV series)|Hudson Street]]'' (1995) and ''[[The Tony Danza Show (1997 TV series)|The Tony Danza Show]]'' (1997), not to be confused with his 2004–2006 talk show, ''[[The Tony Danza Show (2004 talk show)|The Tony Danza Show]]''. He had a role in the TV drama ''[[Family Law (American TV series)|Family Law]]'' from 2000 until 2002.
He was nominated for an [[Emmy Award]]<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.emmys.com/celebrities/tony-danza | title= Tony Danza: Awards and Nominations| website= Emmys.com| publisher= Academy of Television Arts & Sciences| access-date= February 6, 2017}}</ref> for a guest-starring 1998 role in the TV series ''[[The Practice]]''. His movie debut was in the comedy ''[[The Hollywood Knights]]'' (1980), which was followed by ''[[Going Ape!]]'' (1981). He received critical acclaim for his performance in the 1999 [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] revival of the [[Eugene O'Neill]] play ''[[The Iceman Cometh]]''. In 2002, Danza released his debut album ''The House I Live In'' as a 1950s-style [[crooner]].<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www0.epinions.com/review/musc_mu-463434/content_258810023556 | title= The House I Live in by Tony Danza| website= epinions.com|year= 2011| url-status= dead| archive-date= April 26, 2012| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120426174036/http://www.epinions.com/review/musc_mu-463434/content_258810023556| access-date= February 6, 2017}}</ref>
Danza hosted his own TV talk show, ''[[The Tony Danza Show (2004 talk show)|The Tony Danza Show]]'' (2004-2006), that was produced each weekday morning in his hometown of New York and was [[television syndication|syndicated]] across the US. On May 9, 2005, during a [[go-kart]] race with [[NASCAR]] star [[Rusty Wallace]], who was a guest on the show, Danza's kart flipped after Wallace accidentally bumped him.<ref>{{cite news|title=Wallace swaps go-cart paint with Danza|url=http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/7794363/|access-date=June 17, 2011|publisher=MSNBC|date=May 10, 2005|agency=Associated Press|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120112160434/http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/7794363/|archive-date=January 12, 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> Neither he nor Wallace was wearing a helmet at the time, and both were uninjured. Danza returned to go-kart racing on October 20, 2005, to challenge [[Indy Racing League|IndyCar]] driver [[Danica Patrick]], but his brakes malfunctioned and he skidded into a wall, unharmed. His daytime talk show ended in May 2006; the last live episode aired on May 26, 2006.{{Citation needed|date=October 2010}}
He starred on [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] as [[Max Bialystock]] in ''[[The Producers (musical)|The Producers]]'', from December 19, 2006, to March 11, 2007,<ref>{{cite news|last=Gans|first=Andrew|title=He's the Boss: Tony Danza Joins Broadway's Producers Dec. 19|url=http://www.playbill.com/news/article/104298-Hes-the-Boss-Tony-Danza-Joins-Broadways-Producers-Dec-19|access-date=June 17, 2011|newspaper=Playbill|date=December 19, 2006|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021204635/http://www.playbill.com/news/article/104298-Hes-the-Boss-Tony-Danza-Joins-Broadways-Producers-Dec-19|archive-date=October 21, 2012}}</ref> and reprised his role at the [[Paris Las Vegas]] from August 13, 2007,<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.playbill.com/news/article/108942.html| title= Tony Danza to 'Flaunt It' in Las Vegas Producers This Summer| url-status= dead| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081204133503/http://www.playbill.com/news/article/108942.html| archive-date= December 4, 2008| first= Kenneth| last= Jones| date= June 19, 2007 | access-date= February 6, 2017}}</ref> to February 9, 2008.<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.playbill.com/news/article/114948.html |title= Vegas Production of The Producers Ends Feb. 9| first= Kenneth| last= Jones| date= February 9, 2008 | url-status= dead| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080415030620/http://www.playbill.com/news/article/114948.html| archive-date= April 15, 2008 | access-date= February 6, 2017}}</ref>
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Danza hosted the 4th season of ''[[The Contender (TV series)|The Contender]]'' in 2008.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.realitytvworld.com/news/the-contender-reveals-fourth-season-cast-tony-danza-host-7804.php|title=Danza hosts ''The Contender''|first= John| last= Bracchitta|date=September 30, 2008|website= RealityTVWorld.com|access-date=October 24, 2010}}</ref>
A Broadway adaptation of the 1992 film ''[[Honeymoon in Vegas]]'' opened on a pre-Broadway run at New Jersey's Paper Mill Playhouse on September 26, 2013, co-starring Danza and Tony nominee [[Rob McClure]], with [[Gary Griffin (director)|Gary Griffin]] directing.<ref>{{cite web| url= http://broadwaytour.net/tony-danza-leads-honeymoon-in-vegas-in-pre-broadway-run-in-new-jersey|title=Tony Danza Leads ''Honeymoon in Vegas'' in Pre-Broadway Run in New Jersey|first= Diamond | last= Grant|date=September 26, 2013| website= BroadwayTour.net| access-date= September 28, 2010}}</ref> Danza was inducted into the [[Ride of Fame]] in December 2014, and the double-decker sightseeing bus commemorated his role in the Broadway musical.<ref>{{cite web | url= http://www.reellifewithjane.com/2014/12/tony-danza-dedicates-doubledecker-bus/ | title= Tony Danza Dedicates Doubledecker Bus in NYC| first= Melanie| last= Voltaw| website= ReelLifeWithJane.com| date= December 1, 2014| access-date= February 6, 2017}}</ref>
Danza portrayed Jon Martello Sr. in ''[[Don Jon]]'' (2013). He also starred as Tony Caruso Sr. in the 2018 Netflix series, ''[[The Good Cop (American TV series)|The Good Cop]]'' as "a disgraced, former NYPD officer who never followed the rules." It was cancelled after one season.<ref>[https://variety.com/2017/tv/news/tony-danza-netflix-series-the-good-cop-1202469779/ Otterson, Joe, "Tony Danza to Star in Netflix Series ‘The Good Cop’,"] ''Variety'', June 19, 2017</ref><ref>[https://www.avclub.com/article/tony-danza-play-bad-cop-netflixs-good-cop-257008 Zuckerman, Esther, "Tony Danza to play a bad cop in Netflix’s The Good Cop,"] A.V. Club, June 19, 2017</ref>
===Teaching===
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==Personal life==
Danza's first marriage was to Rhonda Yeoman. They wed in 1970 and divorced in 1974. They have two children, a boy and a girl. Their son Marc appeared with Danza on ''Taxi'' in two episodes as Brian Sims.<ref name="LATimes finally">{{cite news| url= https://articleswww.latimes.com/2013entertainment/la-xpm-2013-feb/-08/entertainment/-la-et-mg-tony-danza-divorce-final-20130208-story.html| title= Tony Danza's divorce finalized – finally!| date= February 8, 2013| first= Christie| last= D'Zurilla| website= Los Angeles Times| access-date= February 6, 2017}}</ref>
In 1986, Danza married Tracy Robinson. The couple separated in 2006 and filed for divorce on March 10, 2011; the divorce was finalized on February 6, 2013.<ref>{{cite web|title=Tony Danze Divorced: Officially The Boss ... of Himself |url= https://www.tmz.com/2013/02/07/tony-danza-divorced/| website= TMZ.com | date= February 7, 2013| access-date= February 6, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Tony Danza Files for Divorce After 24 Years of Marriage|url=https://www.tvguide.com/News/Tony-Danza-Divorce-1030559.aspx |work= TV Guide|access-date=June 17, 2011|date=March 10, 2011}}</ref> They have two daughters.<ref name="LATimes finally" />
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==Boxing record==
Source:<ref>{{boxrec|id=28927}}</ref>
{{Boxing record start}}
|- align=center
|1211 || {{yes2}}Win || 9–38–3 || align=left|{{sort|Heard|Johnny Heard}} || KO || 3 {{small|(8)}} || {{sort|3045|0:45}} || {{dts|1979|5|14}} || [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix]], Arizona, US ||
|- align=center
|11 || {{yes2}}Win || 8–3 || align=left|{{sort|Hord|Max Hord}} || KO || 1 {{small|(10)}} || {{sort|1000|}} || {{dts|1979|4|27}} || [[Madison Square Garden#The Theater at Madison Square Garden|Felt Forum]], New York City, New York City ||
|- align=center
|10 || {{yes2}}Win || 7–3 || align=left|{{sort|PerezHord|Max Billy PerezHord}} || KO || 1 {{small|(810)}} || {{sort|10441000|0:44}} || {{dts|19781979|54|2627}} || [[BrooklynMadison Square Garden#The Theater at Madison Square Garden|Felt Forum]], New York City, New York City ||
|- align=center
|9 || {{yes2}}Win || 6–3 || align=left|{{sort|RodriguezPerez|Tony RodriguezBilly Perez}} || KO || 1 {{small|(68)}} || {{sort|10001044|0:44}} || {{dts|1978|45|926}} || [[Brooklyn]], New York City ||
|- align=center
|8 || {{yes2}}Win || 5–3 || align=left|{{sort|Bryant|Ray Bryant}} || KO || 1 {{small|(8)}} || {{sort|1000|}} || {{dts|1977|12|21}} || Roll-a-Rama, Brooklyn, New York City ||
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|-
| ''[[Aftermath (2013 film)|Aftermath]]''
| King
|
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| 2022
| ''[[Darby and the Dead]]''
| Gary
|▼
|
|}
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| Episode: "Fighters"
|-
| 2022–present
| 2022
|''[[Power Book III: Raising Kanan]]''
| Stefano Marchetti
| Guest (season 2)<br />Recurring role (season 33–)
|-
|2023
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|Himself
|Episode: "The Real Deal"
|-
|2023
|Dick Van Dyke 98 Years of Magic
|Himself
▲|
|-
| 2023
|''[[Tacoma FD]]''
| Lawrence
| S4E11 'It's a Penisi-ful Life'
|}
==Books==
* {{Cite book|last= Danza |first= Tony and Marc |year=2008 | title=Don't Fill Up on the Antipasto: Tony Danza's Father-Son Cookbook |publisher = Scribner |isbn=978-1-41654-487-6}}
* {{Cite book|last= Danza |first= Tony |year=2012 | title=I'd Like to Apologize to Every Teacher I Ever Had: My Year as a Rookie Teacher at Northeast High |publisher = Crown Archetype |isbn=978-0-30788-786-3}}
==Awards and nominations==
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{{S-end}}
{{ESPYs}}
{{Authority control}}
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[[Category:American television talk show hosts]]
[[Category:Beauty pageant hosts]]
[[Category:Male actors from New York CityBrooklyn]]
[[Category:Malverne High School alumni]]
[[Category:Musicians from Brooklyn]]