James Ciccone

James Ciccone is an American character actor who has appeared in dozens of network television shows and a variety of popular films.[1] He appeared for 3 seasons as mob boss Carmine Patriccia in the HBO television drama The Deuce, created by David Simon and George Pelecanos.[2][3] He can also be seen playing the recurring role of Officer Lewis in the second season (2017) of NBC's Shades of Blue.[4][5] In 2017 Ciccone appeared in the racially charged bio-pic Crown Heights which premiered in competition at the Sundance Film Festival on January 23, 2017 and won the Audience Award for U.S. Dramatic Film.[6][7] In 2019, he appeared in The Kitchen, starring Melissa McCarthy and Tiffany Haddish, and the Academy Award nominated films, Joker, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Robert De Niro, and Martin Scorsese's The Irishman.[8] In 2020 he will appear in Worth starring Michael Keaton.[9][10]

James Ciccone
James Ciccone at the Friars Club, NYC November, 2015
Born	Park Slope, Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	2006–present
Children	1 daughter: Isabella Star Ciccone

Early life

Ciccone was born in Park Slope, Brooklyn as the tenth child to Anthony Ciccone and Theresa (Merrit) Ciccone; he is of Italian and Irish descent.[11] The family owned a local luncheonette until 1965 when Ciccone's father died.[11] After his father's death Ciccone's mother sold the luncheonette and moved the family to the Gravesend/Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn where she worked full-time as a waitress.[12][note 1] As a result, Ciccone was raised largely by his nine older siblings, two of which had artistic influence on him.[13][14] Early on in elementary school Ciccone participated in several school plays and by age 11 began playing trumpet in the music program at Public School 153, Brooklyn.[11] For the next five years he continued studying music with Academy Award-winning composer Elliot Goldenthal.[note 2] In 1977 Ciccone was accepted into the High School of Performing Arts on 46th Street, New York City. The school gained world recognition with the release of the 1980 multiple Academy Award-winning film FAME.[note 3] Ciccone studied music at Performing Arts while studying acting with Uta Hagen at HB Studio.[11][15][note 4] He later earned a bachelor's degree at Marist College, Poughkeepsie, NY and graduated magna cum laude.[16] In 2000 and 2003 respectively he earned master of divinity and doctor of ministry degrees[note 5] from New York Theological Seminary.[17] Ciccone taught briefly for St. John's University and in the graduate program at Metropolitan College of New York, before beginning a professional acting career.[note 6]

Acting career

In 2006, Ciccone became a member of the small Primary Talent community theatre group housed at the 200-seat Players Theatre in Manhattan.[18] During this time he appeared in several productions including the lead role in Paddy Chayefsky’s Marty.[18] Over the next few years he was cast in a variety of unknown low-budget independent films and several student films at NYU Tish before writing and appearing in his own three short films Nothing for Nothing, Plenty of It, and Neighborhood Nonsense,[19] the latter of which appeared in the 2010 New Filmmakers Film Festival[20] and was featured on Funny or Die.[21] While studying with renown acting coach Harold Guskin [11][22] he secured his television debut in an Under-five role as Price, a card-player in the final season of the 54 year running soap, As The World Turns.[23][24] The following year in 2011 Ciccone landed a multiple day guest star role in an episode of White Collar playing the referee in an underground after-hours boxing club.[25] In 2012 he appeared opposite Donnie Wahlberg and Jennifer Esposito in Blue Bloods[26] and landed a recurring role as Joe Masseria’s thug on HBO’s Boardwalk Empire.[27] In 2013 he worked opposite Jake McLaughlin[28] and Erik LaRay Harvey[29] in several scenes in an episode of NBC's Believe, directed by Academy Award-winning director Alfonso Cuaron.[30] Ciccone also appeared on network television opposite Debra Messing on The Mysteries of Laura[31] and made guest star appearances as Peter O'Neil on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.[32] In 2015 Ciccone was cast in the guest star role of Ronald (the masturbator on the train) in Master of None[33] where he worked opposite comedian Aziz Ansari (playing Dev) who employs a citizen’s arrest only to "weirdly kind of sympathize with [him]".[34] Other 2015 Netflix roles include Cabbie opposite Charlie Cox on Daredevil and Vito in Italian Pinata on Difficult People.[35] Also in 2016 Ciccone appeared in the guest star role of truck-rental mobster Frank Capello on Person of Interest.[36] In late 2016 Ciccone was cast as a guest star (Anthony) in the new CBS episodic Bull starring Michael Weatherly.[37] In the 2017 Sundance Film Festival Ciccone appeared in the World Premiere of the racially charged bio-pic Crown Heights, which took home the Festival Audience Award for the US Dramatic competition.[38] In 2017 Ciccone appeared in recurring roles on two major episodics: NBC's Shades of Blue,[4] starring Jennifer Lopez and Ray Liotta,[5] and HBO’s hit television drama The Deuce[2] starring James Franco and Maggie Gyllenhaal. In 2018, his character (mob boss "Carmine Patriccia") continues to appear in season 2 on The Deuce.[39] Also in 2018 Ciccone has made guest star appearances in Fox's primetime network hit, Gotham scene partnering with Robin Lord Taylor, NBC's Blacklist alongside James Spader, and a co-star appearance on ABC's Quantico where he is paired again with Jake McLaughlin.[40][41] He was also cast in Martin Scorsese's The Irishman. Currently in production, Ciccone will appear opposite Joe Pesci and Robert De Niro in the anticipated 2019 release.

Personal life

Ciccone has one child through a longterm relationship with Ana Belkis Munoz.[11] Their daughter, Isabella Star was born in 2013.[11]

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2020	Worth	James	Supporting
2019	Joker	Trumpets	Supporting, 2019 release
2019	The Irishman	Genovese Capo	Supporting, 2019 release
2019	The Kitchen	Joe Goon	Supporting, 2019 release
2018	FBI	William Dean	Guest star
2018	Manifest	James Carlucci	Guest star
2018	The Deuce	Carmine Patriccia	Recurring seasons 1, 2 & 3
2018	Blacklist	Gabinelli	Guest star
2018	Quantico	Dealer	Co-guest star
2017	Shades of Blue	Officer Lewis	Recurring
2017	Bull	Anthony	Guest star
2017	Gotham	Giovanni	Co-guest star
2017	Crown Heights	Desk Officer	Sundance Audience Award 2017
2016	Master of None	Ronald	Guest star
2016	Law & Order SVU	Peter O'Neil	Guest star
2016	Person of Interest	Frank Capello	Guest star
2016	Difficult People	Vito	Co-guest star
2015	Daredevil	Cabbie	Co-guest star
2015	Feast at the Beach	Jimmy	Short
2014	The Mysteries of Laura	Line Guy	Co-guest star
2013	Believe	Craps Dealer	Guest star
2012	Boardwalk Empire	Masseria Thug	Recurring
2012	Blue Bloods	Superintendent	Co-guest star
2011	White Collar	Referee	Guest star
2010	Roommate	Angelo	Supporting
2010	Lipstick Jungle	Bar Patron	Co-guest star
2010	As the World Turns	Price	Recurimg U5
2010	Lotto	Carmine	Supporting
2010	Neighborhood Nonsense	Little Al	Short
2009	Exit 0	Jack	Lead
2009	Plenty of It	Little Al	Short
2009	Rotten Luck	The Boss	Supporting
2008	Shine a Light	Detective Escort	Featured Opp Marty Scorsese
2008	Neighborhood Story	Al	Supporting lead
2008	Samson is the Future	Agent Doyle	Short
2007	Nothing for Nothing	Little Al	Short

Notes

1. As mentioned in the referenced Interview Value of a Tough Upbringing Ciccone was only two years old at the time of his father's death and had no recollection of him.
2. According to Ciccone’s biography he maintained a close relationship with Goldenthal during his formative years due to their families’ relationship (Goldenthal’s half-brother was married to Ciccone’s aunt; his mother’s sister).
3. The 46th Street location closed shortly thereafter (1984) and merged with the High School of Music & Art (MA), (formerly located in Harlem) to form the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts at a new location across from Lincoln Center.
4. The HB Studio (Herbert Berghof Studio) is a school offering professional training in the performing arts. Founded in 1945 by Herbert Berghof and located in Greenwich Village, New York City. its curriculum includes classes in a variety of areas, including acting, directing, playwrighting, screenwriting, musical theatre, movement and dance, puppetry, dialect study, and scene analysis. Select classes require an audition for admission. In 1948, Uta Hagen joined the Studio as Berghof's artistic partner, and the two wed ten years later. Her master classes led to the writing of her books Respect for Acting and A Challenge for the Actor.
5. Noted in the Doctor of Ministry 40th Anniversary publication Ciccone's DMin dissertation is a prison ministry demonstration project titled Release: An Approach to Freedom for the X-Offender, p30. Said dissertation is available in the New York Theological Seminary library 475 Riverside Drive, New York, NY.
6. The Metropolitan College of New York was formerly known as the Audrey Cohen College.

References

1. "Hollywood.com. What Are You Looking For: Full Cast & Credits". January 4, 2017. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
2. Deadline Hollywood. Margarita Levieva To Star In HBO Drama Pilot ‘The Deuce’; Two Others Cast.
3. TV Worth Watching.HBO’s ‘The Deuce’ Goes Down and Dirty into the 70s.
4. IBTimes.com Shades of Blue Season 2 Spoilers.
5. Listal.com. Cast and Credits Shades of Blue
6. Joe Utichi (January 28, 2017). "Crown Heights Nets Sundance U.S. Dramatic Audience Award". Deadline. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
7. Patrick Ryan (January 29, 2017). "Sundance Winners: 'Crown Heights reigns victorious'". USA Today. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
8. TalentRafters Magazine. From the Pulpit to Acting James Ciccone Lands Key Role, Nick Christophers. Oct 14, 2017.
9. "Michael Keaton Gets Into Character While Filming 'What Is Life Worth'". newsok.com. April 2, 2019. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
10. "Monday, April 1 Filming Locations for What Is Life?, FBI, SVU, & more!". onlocationvacations.com. April 1, 2019. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
11. "Biography". James Ciccone Website.
12. Seamens' Society for Children & Families. James Ciccone Shares the Value of his Tough Upbringing
13. "Value of a Tough Upbringing". Seamens’ Society Interview.
14. Daily News Archives. Portrait Of An Artist A Young Man Who Died Too Soon, Denis Hamill. Oct 11, 1995
15. Peter B. Flint (November 6, 1990). "Herbert Berghof, Actor, Director And Eminent Acting Teacher, 81". The New York Times. Retrieved 27 October 2014.
16. "Class of 1995". Marist College Classmates.
17. New York Theological Seminary. March 7, 2015. "Doctor of Ministry 40th Anniversary Gathering", P8.
18. "Primary Talent Group". Roster.
19. Casting Networks For Entertainment Professionals
20. "NewFilmmakers Announces Summer Fest 2010".
21. "Neighborhood Nonsense". Funny or Die. (directed by James Ciccone). June 14, 2009. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
22. The New Yorker. The Great Guskin. March 20, 1995 p44.
23. Deadline Hollywood. Daily Talk Show To Replace As The World Turns On CBS.
24. YoutubeAs the World Turns Full Episodes.
25. TV Maze. White Collar. Gloves Off, ep 4:9.
26. TV.com People. James Ciccone.
27. TV.com. Boardwalk Empire. A Man, A Plan, ep 3:10.
28. Getty Images. Jake McLaughlin and James Ciccone
29. Getty Images. Erik LaRay Harvey and James Ciccone
30. Deadline Hollywood. Hot TV Teaser: First 2 Minutes of NBC's Believe.
31. Hollywood.com. Mysteries of Laura: Full Cast and Credits, 2014
32. TV Maze.com. James Ciccone known for...
33. Listal. Cast and Credits of Master of None.
34. The New Yorker. Sickness and Health...Master of None.
35. Decider. Difficult People 203 Recap: Italian Piñata.
36. Spoiler TV. Person of Interest. Episode 508, Reassortment. Promotional Photos & Press Release Updated.
37. Bull, Stockholm Syndrome ep 1:12. Cast Credits and Photos.
38. Deadline Hollywood. ‘Crown Heights’ Nets Sundance U.S. Dramatic Audience.
39. NY Post. Maggie Gyllenhaal is Hooker Chic on Set of The Deuce,
40. Hibberd, James (May 10, 2017). "Gotham renewed for season 4". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 11, 2017.
41. Nemetz, Dave (July 28, 2017). "Gotham Season 4 Premiere Moved Up". TVLine. Retrieved July 28, 2017.

External links

• James Ciccone at the Internet Movie Database
• James Ciccone Website
• Serendipity Entertainment & Management