Denys Gallery: Danny DeVito

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Danny DeVito

Daniel Michael "Danny" DeVito, Jr. (born November 17, 1944) is an American actor, comedian, director, and producer. He first gained prominence for his portrayal of Louie De Palma on the ABC and NBC TV series Taxi (1978–1983), for which he won a Golden Globe and an Emmy.

DeVito and his wife, Rhea Perlman, founded Jersey Films, a production company known for films such as Pulp Fiction, Garden State, and Freedom Writers. DeVito also owns Jersey Television, which produced the Comedy Central series Reno 911!. DeVito and Perlman also starred together in his 1996 film Matilda, based on Roald Dahl's children's novel. He currently stars as Frank Reynolds on the FX sitcom It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

DeVito was born in Neptune, New Jersey, the son of Julia, a homemaker, and Daniel Michael DeVito, Sr., who owned several small businesses, including a dry cleaning store, a dairy outlet, a luncheonette, and a pool hall.DeVito is of Italian descent and was raised a Roman Catholic,growing up in Asbury Park. He boarded at Oratory Preparatory School, in Summit, New Jersey, graduating in 1962, and subsequently trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, from which he graduated in 1966.

DeVito has become a major film and television producer. Through Jersey Films, he has produced many films, including Pulp Fiction, Get Shorty, Erin Brockovich (for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture), Gattaca, and Garden State.

In 1999, DeVito produced and co-starred in Man on the Moon, a movie about the unusual life of his former Taxi co-star, Andy Kaufman, who was played in the film by Jim Carrey. DeVito also produced the Comedy Central series Reno 911!, as well as the movie spin off Reno 911!: Miami.

DeVito married actress Rhea Perlman on January 28, 1982.hey have three children: Lucy Chet DeVito (born March 1983), Grace Fan DeVito (born March 1985) and Jacob Daniel DeVito (born October 1987). The family lives in Beverly Hills, California, and has a vacation home in Interlaken, New Jersey.

His daughter Lucy starred as Anne Frank in a production of Anne Frank at the INTIMAN Theatre in Seattle, Washington, in 2008.

DeVito is an outspoken Democrat, and a supporter of the OneVoice Movement, a non-profit organization that strives to help moderate Israelis and Palestinians to take a more assertive role in resolving their conflict. He is also a member of the steering committee of the Friends of the Apollo, along with his wife, and filmmaker Jonathan Demme. DeVito co-owns a restaurant called DeVito South Beach in Miami Beach, Florida.