Dom DeLuise | |
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![]() DeLuise in 1975
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Born |
Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
August 1, 1933
Died | May 4, 2009 Santa Monica, California, U.S. |
(aged 75)
Occupation | Actor, voice actor, comedian, author |
Years active | 1964–2009 |
Spouse(s) | Carol Arthur (m. 1965) |
Children |
Peter DeLuise Michael DeLuise David DeLuise |
Dominick DeLuise (August 1, 1933 – May 4, 2009) was an American actor, voice actor, comedian, chef and author. He was the husband of actress Carol Arthur and the father of actor, director, pianist, and writer Peter DeLuise, and actors David DeLuise and Michael DeLuise. He starred in a number of movies directed by Mel Brooks, in a series of films with career-long best friend Burt Reynolds, and as a voice actor in various animated films by Don Bluth.
DeLuise was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Italian American parents Vincenza "Jennie" (née DeStefano), a homemaker, and John DeLuise, a public employee (garbage collector). He was the youngest of three children, having an older brother, Nicholas "Nick" DeLuise, and an older sister, Antoinette DeLuise-Daurio. DeLuise graduated from Manhattan's High School of Performing Arts and later attended Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts. DeLuise was Roman Catholic and had a particular devotion to the Virgin Mary.
In 1961 DeLuise played in the Off-Broadway musical revue "Another Evening with Harry Stoons" that lasted nine previews and one performance. Another member of the cast was 19-year-old Barbra Streisand. He was also in the Off-Broadway play "all in Love" which opened on November 10, 1961, at the Martinique Theatre and ran for 141 performances. Other New York theater performances include, "Half-Past Wednesday" [Off-Broadway] (1962), "Around the World in 80 Days" [Off-Broadway] (1963), "The Student Gypsy" [Broadway] (1963), "Here's Love" [Broadway] (1963), and "Last of the Red Hot Lovers" [Broadway] (1969).
DeLuise generally appeared in comedic parts, although an early appearance in the movie Fail-Safe as a nervous USAF technical sergeant showed a broader range. His first acting credit was as a regular performer in the television show The Entertainers in 1964. He gained early notice for his supporting turn in the Doris Day film The Glass Bottom Boat (1966). In his New York Times review, Vincent Canby panned the film but singled out the actor, stating, "[T]he best of the lot, however, is a newcomer, Dom DeLuise, as a portly, bird-brained spy."