Ray Sharkey

Raymond Sharkey Jr. (November 14, 1952 – June 11, 1993) was an American stage, film and television actor. His most notable film role was that of Vincent Vacarri in the 1980 film The Idolmaker for which he won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. He is also known for his role as Sonny Steelgrave in the television series Wiseguy.

Ray Sharkey
Born	Raymond Sharkey Jr. (1952-11-14)November 14, 1952 Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Died	June 11, 1993(1993-06-11) (aged 40) Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Cause of death	Complications from AIDS
Resting place	Saint Charles Cemetery
Nationality	American
Alma mater	New York City Community College HB Studio
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1974–1992
Spouse(s)	Rebecca Wood ​ ( m. 1981; div. 1986) Carole Graham ​ ( m. 1988; div. 1992)
Children	1

Early life

Sharkey was born in Brooklyn to Cecelia and Ray Sharkey, Sr. He was of Irish and Italian descent. Sharkey's father was a professional drummer who abandoned the family when Sharkey was five years old.[1] He was raised by his mother, Cecelia in Brooklyn's Red Hook neighborhood.[1][2] Sharkey became interested in acting after seeing Jack Lemmon in the 1962 film Days of Wine and Roses. After attending New York City Community College for one year, he enrolled at the HB Studio to study acting. While attending the HB Studio, Sharkey performed in various Off-Broadway stage productions. In 1973, he and his friend boxer/actor Chu Chu Malave moved to Los Angeles to pursue acting careers.[3][4]

Career

In 1974, he made his film debut in The Lords of Flatbush. Sharkey went on to appear in more than forty motion pictures and dozens of guest appearances on various television series.

In 1980, Sharkey portrayed rock promoter "Vincent "Vinnie" Vacarri" in The Idolmaker. The role boosted Sharkey's career and earned him a Golden Globe Award for his performance in the film.[3] The following year, he was nominated for another Golden Globe for his role in The Ordeal of Bill Carney, in which he played the title role. Shortly after appearing in The Idolmaker, Sharkey developed a $400 a day heroin habit. As a result of his drug use, his career declined and he was relegated to mainly supporting roles. He overdosed several times and was involved in four drug-related car accidents, two of which required him to undergo microsurgery on his eyes. He tried undergoing rehab treatment several times but would ultimately relapse a few months later. In 1987, Sharkey spent two months in an Orange County rehab center in an effort to kick his drug and alcohol addiction for good.[1][4]

Four days after leaving rehab, he won the role of Sonny Steelgrave in the series Wiseguy. The character proved to be popular with audiences and boosted Sharkey's career. The character was written out of the series in 1989. Sharkey then co-starred in the biographical film Wired. Based on the life of John Belushi, Sharkey portrayed a Puerto Rican angel who meets Belushi after his death in the morgue and "show[s] him the error of his ways." Sharkey's next role was in the 1989 black comedy film Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills.[5]

In 1991, he starred in the ABC sitcom The Man in the Family. While Sharkey received good reviews for his performance, the show was panned by critics and canceled after one season. The following year, he appeared in a guest spot on Jake and the Fatman, and starred in the television movie In the Line of Duty: Street War. On July 30, 1992, while filming a guest spot on the television series, The Hat Squad, in Vancouver, he was arrested for drug possession. Canadian customs officials, making a routine inspection of incoming cargo at the airport, discovered small amounts of cocaine and heroin in a black envelope being sent from Los Angeles to Sharkey in Vancouver. Police searched his hotel room and found an additional supply of drugs. He was jailed and later released on bail. Sharkey was later fired from The Hat Squad.[6] Sharkey's final role was in the 1993 comedy film Cop and a Half.

Personal life

In May 1981, Sharkey married model Rebecca Wood.[7] The marriage ended in 1986 due to Sharkey's drug abuse.[4] In 1988, he married actress Carole Graham. That marriage produced one daughter, Cecelia, in 1989.[1] In November 1992, Graham divorced Sharkey also citing his drug abuse as the reason for the divorce.[8]

On September 22, 2015, Sharkey's daughter, Cecelia Bonnie Sharkey, was charged with capital murder for the death of her boyfriend's mother, Patricia Metropoulous (Hickerson) [9].[10] In November 2017 she pleaded no contest, was declared insane at the time of the crime and was committed to Patton State Hospital.[11]

Illness and death

Sharkey was diagnosed as HIV positive in the late 1980s. He reportedly contracted the virus through intravenous drug use. After his death, Sharkey's manager Herb Nanas admitted that they both decided to keep his diagnosis a secret fearing it would hurt his career. Despite his diagnosis, Sharkey remained in denial about his HIV positive status and, according to his manager, had sex with an estimated 100 women after he was diagnosed.[12][13]

In April 1991, Sharkey began a relationship with model/actress Elena Monica, daughter of comedian Corbett Monica. In July 1991, she became ill and was hospitalized with aseptic meningitis. During a routine check, she tested positive for HIV. Monica believed she contracted the virus from Sharkey who continued to deny that he had infected her. Monica ended the relationship in October 1991 due to her suspicions. In July 1992, she learned that another woman also suspected that Sharkey had infected her with HIV as well. Later that same year, Monica filed a $52 million lawsuit against the actor for knowingly infecting her with HIV.[13]

In an interview with Details magazine conducted in March 1993, three months before his death, Sharkey told the reporter that he was in fact HIV-positive by saying that he "harbored a strain of HIV" that he believed would never develop into AIDS. At the time of the interview, Sharkey weighed 80 pounds (36 kg), had a hacking cough and was suffering from a brain lesion.[14] When asked about his ex-girlfriend Elena Monica who accused him of infecting her with HIV, Sharkey said, "This disease is funny. One day you're negative and the next day you're positive. And people suffer. I don't think she suffered from me."[12] Monica won her lawsuit against Sharkey by default judgment after his death (Sharkey declined to challenge her suit when it was originally filed), but she received no compensation from his estate because the actor had very little money.[15]

On June 11, 1993, Sharkey died of complications from AIDS at Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York, at age 40.[16] He is interred in Saint Charles Cemetery in Farmingdale, Long Island, New York.

In June 1993, shortly after Sharkey's death, a Beverly Hills graphic designer, who said she had an on-and-off relationship with Sharkey from 1985 to 1991, announced that she was suing Sharkey's estate. The woman, who was only identified as "Joyce", cared for Sharkey in his final months and said that she believed that she also had contracted HIV from Sharkey after she was diagnosed with the virus in April 1992.[17]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1974	The Lords of Flatbush	Student
1976	Trackdown	Flash
1977	Hot Tomorrows	Louis
1977	Stunts	Paul Salerno
1978	Who'll Stop the Rain	Smitty	Alternative title: Dog Soldiers
1978	Paradise Alley	Legs
1980	Heart Beat	Ira
1980	Willie & Phil	Phil D'Amico
1980	The Idolmaker	Vincent "Vinnie" Vacarri
1982	Love and Money	Byron Levin
1982	Some Kind of Hero	Sgt. Vinnie DiAngelo
1983	Regina Roma	Carry	Alternative title: Regina
1984	Body Rock	Terrence Mitchell
1984	Du-beat-e-o	Du-beat-e-o	Alternative title: We're All Crazy Now
1985	Hellhole	Silk
1986	Wise Guys	Marco
1986	No Mercy	Angles Ryan
1987	P.I. Private Investigations	Ryan	Alternative title: Private Investigations
1988	Act of Piracy	Jack Wilcox
1989	Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills	Frank
1989	Wired	Angel Velasquez
1990	27 Wagons Full of Cotton	Silva	Direct-to-video release
1990	The Rain Killer	Capra
1992	Caged Fear	Warden Hayes	Alternative title: Jail Force
1992	Zebrahead	Richard	Alternative title: The Colour of Love
1992	Dead On: Relentless II	Kyle Valsone	Direct-to-video release
1992	Round Trip to Heaven	Stoneface
1993	Cop and a Half	Vinnie Fountain	(final film role)

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1974	Kojak	Det. Gallagher	4 episodes
1975	On the Rocks	Opie	Episode: "Champion"
1975	All in the Family	Man At Clinic	Episode: "Chain Letter"
1975	Barney Miller	Various roles	2 episodes
1975	The Jeffersons	Robert Phelps	Episode: "Tennis Anyone?"
1976	Police Story	Pete Samper	Episode: "Payment Deferred"
1977	The Streets of San Francisco	Benny Lester	Episode: "Time Out"
1977	Best Friends	Lionel "Big O" Lapidus	Television movie
1981	The Ordeal of Bill Carney	Bill Carney	Television movie
1985	Miami Vice	Bobby Profile	Episode: "Tale of the Goat"
1985	The Equalizer	Geoffery Dryden	Episode: "Desperately"
1986	Faerie Tale Theatre	Grand Vizier	Episode: "Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp"
1986	Crime Story	U.S. Atty. Harry Breitel	Television movie
1986-1987	Crime Story	U.S. Atty. Harry Breitel	5 episodes
1987–1989	Wiseguy	Sonny Steelgrave	10 episodes
1989	The Neon Empire	Junior Molov	Television movie
1989	The Revenge of Al Capone	Scarface	Television movie
1989	The Hitchhiker	Eric Coleman	Episode: "In Living Color"
1990	American Playwrights Theater: The One-Acts	Silva Vaccaro	Episode: "27 Wagons Full of Cotton"
1990	The Take	Dennis	Television movie
1990	Good Cops, Bad Cops	Capt. Gerry Clemente	Television movie
1991	The Man in the Family	Sal Bavasso	7 episodes
1991	Riders in the Sky	Spongehead	Episode: "Saddle Pals"
1992	Jake and the Fatman	Michael "Mickey" Daytona Da Silva	Episode: "Beautiful Dreamer"
1992	Chrome Soldiers	Gabe Ricci	Television movie
1992	In the Line of Duty: Street War	Det. Victor Tomasino	Television movie
1992	The Ray Bradbury Theater	The Father	Episode: "By the Numbers"

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Title of work	Result
1981	Golden Globe Award	Best Motion Picture Actor - Musical/Comedy	The Idolmaker	Won
1982	Golden Globe Award	Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV	The Ordeal of Bill Carney	Nominated
1988	Viewers for Quality Television Awards	Founder's Award	Wiseguy	Won

References

1. Gliatto, Tom (August 24, 1992). "Drugs, Sex and Turmoil". people.com. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
2. Kleiner, Dick (July 3, 1982). "Sharkey Left Troubled Brooklyn Behind to Make It In The Movies". Daily Times. p. 14. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
3. "New found fame hard on actor's nerves". The Phoenix. August 25, 1980. p. A9. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
4. Schindehette, Susan; Alexander, Michael (February 27, 1989). "Healthy, Wealthy and a Wiseguy No Longer, Rehabbed Ray Sharkey Is Looking at a Bright Future". people.com. Archived from the original on September 29, 2015. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
5. "TV reruns allow return of bad guy on 'Wiseguy'". The Telegraph. June 20, 1988. p. 32. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
6. Arrest Costs Ray Sharkey Role in Series latimes.com. Braxton, Greg. 1991-08-01
7. "Parton is nobody's fool". Star-News. May 22, 1981. p. 2C. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
8. Hicks, Katherine (November 17, 1992). "Drugs, not AIDS, led to divorce". The Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 1C. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
9. submitted by the victim's Brother, Rick
10. "Actor's Daughter Charged With Beating Boyfriend's Mother to Death with Bat | Patch". Retrieved 2015-10-03.
11. "Actor's Daughter Pleads No Contest to Murder, Found Insane at Time of Crime". The San Fernando Valley Sun. 29 November 2017. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
12. Gerhart, Ann (July 7, 1993). "Tattle". philly.com. p. 2. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
13. Gliatto, Tom (June 28, 1993). "Fatal Deceit". People. 39 (25). ISSN 0093-7673.
14. Gerhart, Ann (July 7, 1993). "Tattle". philly.com. p. 1. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
15. "A Spirited Fight Against HIV Model/Actress Infected With HIV Pushes AIDS Research Organization Into Spotlight". Miami Herald. November 27, 1995. p. 1C.
16. Lueck, Thomas J. (1993-06-12). "Ray Sharkey, 40; Actor Often Played Role of Tough Guy". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-11-10.
17. "Hollywood and AIDS". philly.com. June 22, 1993. Retrieved January 30, 2013.

External links

• Ray Sharkey on IMDb
• Ray Sharkey at Find a Grave