Biography
Gazzo's "A Hatful of Rain," Ben Gazzara came a long way from his upbringing in Manhattan's Gashouse District during the Great Depression, becoming in the course of only a few years of his burgeoning career, the nation's preeminent Italian-American actor, 20 years ahead of Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. After making an indelible impression in Otto Preminger's "Anatomy of a Murder" (1959), he was resigned to the middling career of a jobbing actor …
Latest Tv Credits
1 - 4 of 4
Tales of Ordinary Madness
Saint Jack
My Dearest Son
Career Milestones
2011 | Acted in the foreign-produced films "RIstabbanna" (Italy) and "Chez Gino" (France) |
2008 | Co-starred with David Moscow and Talia Shire in the comedy "Looking for Palladin" |
2006 | Directed by Gérard Depardieu and acted with Rowlands in the "Quartier Latin" segment of the anthology film "Paris, je t'aime" |
2005 | Portrayed Italian priest turned Cardinal Secretary of State Agostino Casaroli in the CBS miniseries "Pope John Paul II"; Voight played the titular Pope |
2004 | Cast in Lars von Trier's experimental drama "Dogville" alongside Nicole Kidman and Lauren Bacall |
2003 | Toured the country with one-man show about Yogi Berra titled "Nobody Don't Like Yogi" |
2003 | Co-starred with Rowlands and Uma Thurman in Mira Nair directed "Hysterical Blindness" (HBO) |
2001 | Cast as Coach Halas in the ABC remake of "Brian's Song" |
1999 | Appeared in Spike Lee's crime drama "Summer of Sam" |
1998 | Played the father of Vincent Gallo's character in "Buffalo 66"; Gallo reportedly cast him based on his moving performance in the 1977 TV-movie "The Death of Richie" |
1998 | Acted the role of a disgruntled husband who decides to chuck 40 years of marriage in Todd Solondz's "Happiness" |
1998 | Played a famous artist squiring a much younger Korean girlfriend in Wonsuk Chin's "Too Tired to Die" |
1998 | Portrayed a pornographer in the Coen Brothers' cult film "The Big Lebowski" |
1997 | Landed featured role in David Mamet's "The Spanish Prisoner" |
1997 | Acted in straight-to-video release "Scene of the Crime" as police lieutenant Jack Lasky |
1995 | Played the Warden in Western prison drama "Convict Cowboy" (Showtime), starring Jon Voight |
1993 | Portrayed Mafia boss Joseph Bonanno in TV-movie "Love, Honor and Obey: The Last Mafia Marriage" (NBC), based on the book by Rosalie Bonanno |
1994 | Returned to the NY stage in "Chinese Coffee" |
1992 | Appeared in the short-lived Broadway play "Shimada" |
1990 | Feature directorial debut, "Beyond the Ocean"; also co-wrote screenplay |
1989 | Acted the part of the evil and eccentric town patriarch in "Road House" |
1987 | Played Captain Tom Wright in the NBC movie "Police Story: The Freeway Killings" |
1985 | Received an Emmy nomination as Rowlands' husband in the NBC TV-movie "An Early Frost" |
1981 | Acted in Italian movies ("Tales of Ordinary Madness," 1981; "The Girl from Trieste," 1982; "Uno Scandalo Perbene," 1984; "Il proessore, Il Camorrista," 1985) |
1981 | Reteamed with Hepburn in Bogdanovich's "They All Laughed"; film bombed at the box office |
1979 | Starred opposite Audrey Hepburn in the disappointing "Bloodline" |
1979 | Played title role of an American who operates a brothel in Singapore in Peter Bogdanovich's drama "Saint Jack" |
1977 | Portrayed the father of a drug-addicted teenager (Robby Benson) in NBC movie "The Death of Richie" |
1977 | Tried to get a psychologically fraught Gena Rowlands back on stage in Cassavetes' "Opening Night"; Falk also in cast; film received a limited release in Los Angeles |
1976 | Starred opposite Colleen Dewhurst in the Broadway revival of "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"; received Tony nomination |
1976 | Headed the Jewish agency trying to find sanctuary for the German Jews aboard the St. Louis in Stuart Rosenberg's "Voyage of the Damned"; Rosenberg previously directed episodes of "Run for Your Life" |
1976 | Reteamed with Cassavetes for "The Killing of a Chinese Bookie"; played a strip-club owner in debt to the mob |
1975 | Essayed the title role of "Capone," which featured Cassavetes as an actor |
1974 | Directed episodes of "Columbo" (NBC), starring Falk as the titular detective |
1974 | Received second Tony nomination for his work in "Hughie" and "Duet" |
1974 | Starred opposite Anthony Hopkins in the ABC miniseries "QB VII" (based on the Leon Uris novel) as a writer being sued for libel for what he wrote about a Polish doctor at Auschwitz |
1972 | Played crime syndicate chief Eddie Rico in CBS movie "The Family Rico," adapted from the novel The Brothers Rico by Georges Simenon |
1972 | TV-movie debut, "When Michael Calls" (ABC) |
1970 | First collaboration with Cassavetes as director, "Husbands"; co-starred with Peter Falk as unhappily married men out for a drunken night on the town |
1969 | Made cameo appearance with John Cassavetes as card players in "If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium" |
1965 | Starred as the terminally ill Paul Bryan and directed episodes of "Run for Your Life" (NBC); earned two Emmy nominations as Lead Actor in a Drama Series |
1964 | Portrayed Fred Grudge, the idealistic nephew of modern-day isolationist Daniel Grudge (Sterling Hayden) in the ABC special "Carol for Another Christmas," a contemporary version of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz |
1963 | Debut as TV series regular, "Arrest and Trial" (ABC) |
1959 | Gained wide acclaim for his role opposite Jimmy Stewart in Otto Preminger's "Anatomy of a Murder" |
1957 | First substantial film role, "The Strange One," an adaptation of "End as a Man" |
1955 | Film debut in bit role as a card player in "I'll Cry Tomorrow" |
1955 | Received a Tony nomination for his portrayal of Johnny Pope in "A Hatful of Rain" on Broadway |
1955 | Starred on Broadway in original production of Tennessee Williams' "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof"; played the alcoholic son Brick to Burl Ives's Big Daddy and Barbara Bel Geddes as Maggie |
1953 | Made Broadway debut with lead role as a psychopathic sadist in the play "End as a Man" |
1952 | Early TV appearances include episodes of "Danger" (CBS) and "Kraft Television Theatre" (NBC) |
1952 | First professional stage appearance in "Jezebel's Husband" at Pennsylvania's Pocono Playhouse |
2010 | Joined an all star cast including Mickey Rourke, Jason Statham, and Michael Shannon in drama thriller "13" |
Awards
2005 | San Sebastian International Film Festival for Donostia Award |
2003 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie in Hysterical Blindness |
1986 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor In a Miniseries or a Special in An Early Frost |
1968 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Continued Performance By an Actor In a in Run For Your Life |
1967 | Golden Globe Award for Actor in a Television Series in Run For Your Life |
1967 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Continued Performance By an Actor In a Leading in Run For Your Life |
1966 | Golden Globe Award for Actor in a Television Series in Run For Your Life |
1965 | Golden Globe Award for Actor in a Television Series in Run For Your Life |