Dennis Farina facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Dennis Farina
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Farina in 2001
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| Born |
Donaldo Gugliermo Farina
February 29, 1944 |
| Died | July 22, 2013 (aged 69) Scottsdale, Arizona, U.S.
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| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1981–2013 |
| Spouse(s) |
Patricia Farina
(m. 1970; div. 1980) |
| Partner(s) | Marianne Cahill |
| Children | 3 |
Donaldo Gugliermo "Dennis" Farina (born February 29, 1944 – died July 22, 2013) was an American actor. He was often seen playing characters like a police officer or a mobster. Some of his most famous roles include FBI Agent Jack Crawford in Manhunter, the funny mobster Jimmy Serrano in Midnight Run, Ray "Bones" Barboni in Get Shorty, and Cousin Avi in Snatch. On TV, he starred as Lieutenant Mike Torello in Crime Story and as Detective Joe Fontana in Law & Order. From 2008 to 2010, he also hosted the show Unsolved Mysteries. His last big TV role was in the HBO series Luck in 2012.
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Early Life and Career
Dennis Farina was born on a special day, February 29, 1944, in Chicago, Illinois. He was the youngest of seven children. His father was a doctor, and his mother was a homemaker. They raised their family in a diverse neighborhood called Old Town.
Before he became an actor, Farina served three years in the United States Army. After that, he worked for 18 years as a police officer in the Chicago Police Department, from 1967 to 1985. He started as a patrolman and later became a detective.
Acting Career Highlights
Farina started his acting journey by helping director Michael Mann as a police expert. This led to Mann giving him a small part in the 1981 movie Thief. He worked with Mann again in the TV show Miami Vice, playing a mobster.
He also acted in other films made in Chicago, like Code of Silence (1985), before Michael Mann chose him for the main role in the TV series Crime Story, which was on NBC from 1986 to 1988. Later, he played the main character in Buddy Faro, a detective series on CBS in 1998.
Farina played many memorable characters in movies. He was the mob boss Jimmy Serrano in the comedy-crime film Midnight Run. He also played Ray "Bones" Barboni in Get Shorty, a rival criminal. He was an FBI agent in Manhunter, which was the first movie to feature the character Hannibal Lecter. Some of his other well-known films include Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan, Snatch, and Out of Sight. He even played a baseball manager in Little Big League and a basketball coach in Eddie.
In a different kind of role, he starred with Bette Midler in the romantic comedy That Old Feeling (1997). He also won an award for his role in Get Shorty. From 2002 to 2003, he was in the TV comedy In-Laws.
In 2004, Dennis Farina joined the popular TV series Law & Order as Detective Joe Fontana. He stayed on the show for two seasons. His character, Detective Fontana, was similar to Farina himself, as they both came from the same Chicago neighborhood and had similar interests.
He also used his voice for animated characters. In 2005, he was the voice of the superhero Wildcat in Justice League Unlimited. In 2013, he voiced Daffy Duck's girlfriend's father in The Looney Tunes Show. He even played himself in an episode of Family Guy in 2014, which aired after he passed away.
In 2008, he became the new host of Unsolved Mysteries when it returned to television on Spike TV. He took over from the previous host, Robert Stack. His last major TV role was in the HBO series Luck in 2012, where he co-starred with Dustin Hoffman. He also had a guest role in the comedy series New Girl in 2013.
His very last film role was in a movie called Lucky Stiff, which was released in 2014 after his death and was dedicated to his memory.
Personal Life
Dennis Farina was married to Patricia Farina from 1970 to 1980. They had three sons: Dennis Jr., Michael, and Joseph. Joseph also became an actor. Farina had two granddaughters and four grandsons. He lived with his longtime girlfriend, Marianne Cahill, in Chicago and Scottsdale, Arizona.
He was a big fan of the Chicago Cubs baseball team his whole life. He even played a Cubs fan in a play called Bleacher Bums.
Death
Dennis Farina passed away on July 22, 2013, in a hospital in Scottsdale, Arizona. He died from a pulmonary embolism, which is a serious blood clot in the lungs. He was buried at Mount Carmel Cemetery in Hillside, Illinois.
Images for kids
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Farina at Tribeca Film Festival in 2007
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Farina's grave marker
See also
In Spanish: Dennis Farina para niños
