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| Dennis Farina |
By Niccolò Graffio
I’ve written a number of articles for this blog over the several years I’ve contributed to it. Most of them I’ve found enjoyable to write. Some I must confess were not so enjoyable due to my disdain of the subject matter (think: Carlo “Lucky” Luciano).
It is never enjoyable to write an obituary, especially when it’s for someone I really liked. Sadly, I must announce the death of actor Dennis Farina who passed away earlier this morning at the age of 69.
According to news reports, Mr. Farina’s parents were Sicilian immigrants. His father Joseph, whom Dennis once described as “the most honest person I have ever met” was a doctor. His mother Iolanda was a homemaker. Dennis was born on February 29, 1944 in Chicago, Illinois. He was one of four boys and three girls.
Prior to becoming an actor he had worked as a cop for 18 years (1967-85) in the Chicago Police Department’s Burglary Division. This street experience later served him well when he decided to pursue a career as an actor. He got his first taste of show biz working as a police consultant for director Michael Mann, who would later cast him in a small role in the 1981 neo-noir movie Thief starring James Caan and Tuesday Weld. Mann was apparently impressed enough with his performance he later cast him as the gangster Albert Lombard in the series Miami Vice (1984-89).
I must confess to a certain dislike of many actors/actresses of Southern-Italian extraction due to their willingness, almost eagerness, in playing roles that denigrate our people. While it is true Mr. Farina played such roles in his career, unlike other actors such as Al Pacino and the late James Gandolfini (who was half-Southern Italian) they did not define or overshadow his career. He was truly a multi-faceted actor!
To me his best role was as American jewel dealer (and jewel thief) Abraham “Cousin Avi” Denovitz in the 2000 cult comedy-crime film Snatch starring himself, Benicio del Toro, Brad Pitt and Jason Statham.
His two best known movie roles were as gangsters. The first was mob boss Jimmy Serrano in the 1988 action-comedy Midnight Run. The other was as Ray “Bones” Barboni in the 1995 comedy-crime movie Get Shorty. It should be remembered, though, his two best television roles were as redoubtable Italian-American cops! The first was as Detective Lt. Mike Torello in Crime Story (1986-87). Though the series only ran two seasons it left an impact. Time magazine named it one of the best TV series of the decade. Though the series ran with the usual stock characters of Southern-Italian gangsters it was notable in that “the boss of bosses” in it was Jewish!
His next memorable TV role was as Det. Joe Fontana on the popular, long-running series Law & Order. Farina had been tapped to replace actor Jerry Orbach and his character Lennie Briscoe, who was forced to leave the show due to terminal prostate cancer. Viewers, however, perhaps still smarting over the loss of beloved actor Jerry Orbach, were less than receptive to Farina (“Never try to fill a great man’s shoes!”). Thus, after only two seasons it was announced Farina was leaving the show “to pursue other projects.”
Dennis Farina went on to host the TV series Unsolved Mysteries (previously hosted by the late Robert Stack). In addition, he appeared as Greek gangster Gus Demitriou in the short-lived 2012 HBO series Luck.
He was married from 1970 until his divorce in 1980. He is survived by three sons (Dennis Jr., Michael and Joseph) plus two granddaughters and four grandsons.
His career could be considered “checkered” in that he helped perpetuate negative stereotypes about our people in two memorable movie roles. However, to his credit, he also played positive roles in two critically acclaimed TV series. His extensive filmography playing a wide variety of colorful characters, have earned him a place in the history books. R.I.P. Mr. Farina, you will be missed.
