John Michael Turturro is an American actor, writer and director known for his roles in the films
Do the Right ThingDo the Right Thing is a 1989 American dramedy produced, written, and directed by Spike Lee, who is also a featured actor in the film. Other members of the cast include Danny Aiello, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Richard Edson, Giancarlo Esposito, Bill Nunn, and John Turturro. It is also notably the...
(1989),
Miller's CrossingMiller's Crossing is a 1990 American gangster film by the Coen brothers and starring Gabriel Byrne, Albert Finney, Marcia Gay Harden, Jon Polito and John Turturro...
(1990),
Barton FinkBarton Fink is a 1991 American film, written, directed, and produced by the Coen brothers. Set in 1941, it stars John Turturro in the title role as a young New York City playwright who is hired to write scripts for a movie studio in Hollywood, and John Goodman as Charlie, the insurance salesman who...
(1991),
Quiz ShowQuiz Show is a 1994 American historical drama film produced and directed by Robert Redford. Adapted by Paul Attanasio from Richard Goodwin's memoir Remembering America, the film is based upon the Twenty One quiz show scandal of the 1950s...
(1994),
The Big LebowskiThe Big Lebowski is a 1998 comedy film written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Jeff Bridges stars as Jeff Lebowski, an unemployed Los Angeles slacker and avid bowler, who is referred to as "The Dude". After a case of mistaken identity, The Dude is introduced to a millionaire also named...
(1998),
O Brother, Where Art Thou?O Brother, Where Art Thou? is a 2000 comedy film directed by Joel and Ethan Coen and starring George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, John Goodman, Holly Hunter, and Charles Durning. Set in 1937 rural Mississippi during the Great Depression, the film's story is a modern satire loosely...
(2000) and the
Transformers film seriesTransformers is an American film franchise directed by Michael Bay, and based on the toys created by Hasbro and Takara Tomy. The first film, Transformers, was released in 2007, the second film, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, in 2009, and the third film, Transformers: Dark of the Moon in 2011...
. He has appeared in over sixty films, and has worked frequently with the
Coen brothersJoel David Coen and Ethan Jesse Coen known together professionally as the Coen brothers, are American filmmakers...
,
Adam SandlerAdam Richard Sandler is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, musician, and film producer.After becoming a Saturday Night Live cast member, Sandler went on to star in several Hollywood feature films that grossed over $100 million at the box office...
and
Spike LeeShelton Jackson "Spike" Lee is an American film director, producer, writer, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks, has produced over 35 films since 1983....
.
Early life
Turturro was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Katherine, an amateur
jazzJazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
singer who worked in a Navy yard during
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and Nicholas Turturro, a carpenter and construction worker who fought as a Navy sailor in
D-DayD-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
. Turturro's mother was Sicilian (from
AragonaAragona is a small commune in the province of Agrigento in the Italian island of Sicily. Aragona is known in the Sicilian language as Aragunaor Raona...
near Agrigento) and his father emigrated from
GiovinazzoGiovinazzo is a port city situated on the Adriatic coast in the region of Apulia, southern Italy. Giovinazzo lies 18 km WNW of the provincial capital of Bari, and is adjacent to the city ofMolfetta.-History:...
,
BariThe Province of Bari is a province in the Apulia region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Bari.It has an area of 5,138 km², and a total population of 1,594,109 . There are 48 comuni in the province, see Comuni of the Province of Bari...
,
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
at the age of six. Turturro was raised a Roman Catholic and moved to the
RosedaleRosedale is a suburban neighborhood in Queens. The neighborhood is on the Nassau County, New York - Queens border and is part of Queens Community Board 13.- History :...
section of Queens, New York with his family when he was six. He majored in drama at the
State University of New York at New PaltzThe State University of New York at New Paltz, known as SUNY New Paltz for short, is a public university in New Paltz, New York. It was founded in 1828 as the School for teaching of classics. In 1885, the New Paltz Normal and Training School was established as a school to prepare teachers for the...
, and completed his
MFAA Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
at the
Yale School of DramaThe Yale School of Drama is a graduate professional school of Yale University providing training in every discipline of the theatre: acting, design , directing, dramaturgy and dramatic criticism, playwriting, stage management, sound design, technical design and production, and theater...
. He first appeared on film working as an
extraA background actor or extra is a performer in a film, television show, stage, musical, opera or ballet production, who appears in a nonspeaking, nonsinging or nondancing capacity, usually in the background...
in
Martin ScorseseMartin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
's critically acclaimed
Raging Bull (1980).
Career
Turturro created the title role of
John Patrick ShanleyJohn Patrick Shanley is an American playwright, screenwriter, and director. He also contributed articles on the performing arts to The New York Times among other publications.-Life and career:...
's
Danny and the Deep Blue Sea at the Playwrights Conference at the
Eugene O'NeillEugene Gladstone O'Neill was an American playwright and Nobel laureate in Literature. His poetically titled plays were among the first to introduce into American drama techniques of realism earlier associated with Russian playwright Anton Chekhov, Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, and Swedish...
Theatre Center in 1983. He repeated it the following year
Off-BroadwayOff-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
and won an
Obie AwardThe Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given by The Village Voice newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City...
.
Spike LeeShelton Jackson "Spike" Lee is an American film director, producer, writer, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks, has produced over 35 films since 1983....
liked Turturro's performance in
Five Corners so much that he chose to cast him in
Do the Right ThingDo the Right Thing is a 1989 American dramedy produced, written, and directed by Spike Lee, who is also a featured actor in the film. Other members of the cast include Danny Aiello, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Richard Edson, Giancarlo Esposito, Bill Nunn, and John Turturro. It is also notably the...
. This movie was the first of a long-standing collaboration between the famous
directorA film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
and Turturro, which includes work together on a total of nine films--more than any other actor in the Lee oeuvre-- including
Mo' Better BluesMo' Better Blues is a 1990 drama film starring Denzel Washington, Wesley Snipes, and Spike Lee, who also directed. It follows a period in the life of a fictional jazz trumpeter Bleek Gilliam as a series of bad decisions result in his jeopardizing both his relationships and his playing career...
(1990),
Jungle FeverJungle Fever is a 1991 American drama film directed by Spike Lee, starring Wesley Snipes and Annabella Sciorra. It was Lee's fifth feature-length film. The film mainly explores interracial relationships...
(1991),
Clockers (1995),
Girl 6Girl 6 is a 1996 American film by director Spike Lee about a phone sex operator. Theresa Randle played the title character, and playwright Suzan-Lori Parks wrote the screenplay. The soundtrack is composed entirely of songs written by Prince. The film was screened in the Un Certain Regard section...
(1996),
He Got GameHe Got Game is a 1998 American sports-drama film written and directed by Spike Lee. It stars Denzel Washington as Jake Shuttlesworth, a prison inmate convicted for killing his wife...
(1998),
Summer of SamSummer of Sam is a 1999 crime-drama based around the Son of Sam serial murders. It was directed and produced by Spike Lee.-Plot:Summer of Sam is the story of a group of people in New York City in the summer of 1977, a time when the headlines were dominated by the Son of Sam serial killer...
(1999),
She Hate MeShe Hate Me is a 2004 independent comedy-drama film directed by Spike Lee and starring Anthony Mackie, Kerry Washington, Ellen Barkin, Monica Bellucci, Brian Dennehy, Woody Harrelson, Bai Ling and John Turturro....
(2004), and
Miracle at St. AnnaMiracle at St. Anna is a 2008 war film, directed by Spike Lee and written by James McBride, based on McBride's novel of the same name. The film was released on September 26, 2008, and is set during World War II, in fall of 1944 in Tuscany and in the winter of 1983 in New York City and Rome...
(2008).
A versatile actor comfortable with both comedy and drama, Turturro also had an extended collaboration with the
Coen BrothersJoel David Coen and Ethan Jesse Coen known together professionally as the Coen brothers, are American filmmakers...
, appearing in their films
Miller's CrossingMiller's Crossing is a 1990 American gangster film by the Coen brothers and starring Gabriel Byrne, Albert Finney, Marcia Gay Harden, Jon Polito and John Turturro...
(1990),
Barton FinkBarton Fink is a 1991 American film, written, directed, and produced by the Coen brothers. Set in 1941, it stars John Turturro in the title role as a young New York City playwright who is hired to write scripts for a movie studio in Hollywood, and John Goodman as Charlie, the insurance salesman who...
(1991),
The Big LebowskiThe Big Lebowski is a 1998 comedy film written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Jeff Bridges stars as Jeff Lebowski, an unemployed Los Angeles slacker and avid bowler, who is referred to as "The Dude". After a case of mistaken identity, The Dude is introduced to a millionaire also named...
(1998), and
O Brother, Where Art Thou?O Brother, Where Art Thou? is a 2000 comedy film directed by Joel and Ethan Coen and starring George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, John Goodman, Holly Hunter, and Charles Durning. Set in 1937 rural Mississippi during the Great Depression, the film's story is a modern satire loosely...
(2000). He has also appeared in several of
Adam SandlerAdam Richard Sandler is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, musician, and film producer.After becoming a Saturday Night Live cast member, Sandler went on to star in several Hollywood feature films that grossed over $100 million at the box office...
's movies, such as
Mr. DeedsMr. Deeds is a 2002 American comedy film, directed by Steven Brill and starring Adam Sandler and Winona Ryder. The movie, which is loosely a remake of the 1936 film Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, also stars Peter Gallagher, John Turturro, Allen Covert and Steve Buscemi...
(2002) and
You Don't Mess with the ZohanYou Don't Mess with the Zohan is a 2008 American comedy film directed by Dennis Dugan, written by Carlito Cabardo, and produced by and starring Adam Sandler. This is the fourth film which has starred Sandler and has been directed by Dugan...
(2008). He played a severely disturbed patient of
Jack NicholsonJohn Joseph "Jack" Nicholson is an American actor, film director, producer and writer. He is renowned for his often dark portrayals of neurotic characters. Nicholson has been nominated for an Academy Award twelve times, and has won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice: for One Flew Over the...
's in the comedy
Anger ManagementAnger Management is a 2003 slapstick comedy film starring Adam Sandler and Jack Nicholson, directed by Peter Segal and written by David S. Dorfman...
and played
Johnny DeppJohn Christopher "Johnny" Depp II is an American actor, producer and musician. He has won the Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actor. Depp rose to prominence on the 1980s television series 21 Jump Street, becoming a teen idol...
's antagonist in
Secret WindowSecret Window is a 2004 psychological horror film starring Johnny Depp and John Turturro. It was written and directed by David Koepp, based on the novella Secret Window, Secret Garden by Stephen King, featuring a musical score by Philip Glass and Geoff Zanelli. The story appeared in King's...
. Turturro hosted
Saturday Night Live in 1994, where he spoofed his recent film
Quiz Show, being told he was ineligible to host unless he answered questions in a booth and if he failed, the honor of hosting would go to
Joey ButtafuocoJoseph A. "Joey" Buttafuoco is an auto body shop owner from the USA, notable for his affair with Amy Fisher , who subsequently shot Joey's wife, Mary Jo Buttafuoco , in the face.-Incident:...
, who was actually backstage to witness Turturro's test.
He won an Emmy award for his portrayal of Adrian Monk's brother Ambrose Monk in the
USA NetworkUSA Network is an American cable television channel launched in 1971. Once a minor player in basic cable, the network has steadily gained popularity because of breakout hits like Monk, Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs, White Collar, Monday Night RAW, Suits, and reruns of the various...
series
MonkMonk is an American comedy-drama detective mystery television series created by Andy Breckman and starring Tony Shalhoub as the titular character, Adrian Monk. It originally ran from 2002 to 2009 and is primarily a mystery series, although it has dark and comic touches.The series debuted on July...
, and has reprised the role on numerous occasions. He has also been nominated and won many awards from film organizations such as
Screen Actors GuildThe Screen Actors Guild is an American labor union representing over 200,000 film and television principal performers and background performers worldwide...
,
Cannes Film FestivalThe Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
, Golden Globes and others.
Turturro produced and directed, as well as acted in, the film
IlluminataIlluminata is a 1998 romantic comedy film directed by John Turturro and written by Brandon Cole and John Turturro, based on Cole's play. The cinematographer was Harris Savides...
(1999), which also starred his wife Katherine Borowitz. He wrote and directed the film
Romance and Cigarettes (2005). In 2006 he appeared in
Robert De NiroRobert De Niro, Jr. is an American actor, director and producer. His first major film roles were in Bang the Drum Slowly and Mean Streets, both in 1973...
's
The Good ShepherdThe Good Shepherd is a 2006 spy film directed by Robert De Niro and starring Matt Damon and Angelina Jolie, with an extensive supporting cast. Although it is a fictional film loosely based on real events, it is advertised as telling the untold story of the birth of counter-intelligence in the...
, and as the Sector 7 agent Simmons in three films of the
Transformers live-action seriesTransformers is an American film franchise directed by Michael Bay, and based on the toys created by Hasbro and Takara Tomy. The first film, Transformers, was released in 2007, the second film, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, in 2009, and the third film, Transformers: Dark of the Moon in 2011...
. In 2010 he directed (and had cameo on-screen appearances in)
Passione, which chronicles the rich musical heritage of Naples, Italy.
As a stage director, his Broadway debut is set for October 2011 with "Relatively Speaking," in which he will guide an ensemble of veteran actors in a production of three comedic one-act plays, written by
Elaine MayElaine May is an American film director, screenwriter and actress. She achieved her greatest fame in the 1950s from her improvisational comedy routines in partnership with Mike Nichols...
,
Woody AllenWoody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
and Ethan Coen. The cast includes
Julie KavnerJulie Deborah Kavner is an American film and television actress, comedian and voice artist. Noted for her role as Marge Simpson on the animated television series The Simpsons, she also voices other characters for the show, including Jacqueline Bouvier, and Patty and Selma Bouvier.Born in Los...
,
Marlo ThomasMargaret Julia “Marlo” Thomas is an American actress, producer, and social activist known for her starring role on the TV series That Girl . She also serves as National Outreach Director for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital...
,
Mark Linn-BakerMark Linn-Baker is an American actor and director famous for his role as Larry Appleton on the television sitcom Perfect Strangers.-Early life and career:...
and
Steve GuttenbergSteven Robert "Steve" Guttenberg is an American actor and comedian. He became well known during the 1980s, after a series of starring roles in major Hollywood films, including Cocoon, Three Men and a Baby, Police Academy, and Short Circuit.-Early life:Guttenberg was born in Brooklyn, New York, the...
.
Personal life
Turturro's brother is actor
Nicholas TurturroNicholas Turturro, Jr. is an American film, television and prolific on-stage character actor, perhaps best known for his role as James Martinez, on NYPD Blue from 1993 to 2000.-Early life:...
. Actress
Aida TurturroAida Turturro is an American actress probably best known for playing Janice Soprano, sister of New Jersey mob boss Tony Soprano, on the HBO TV series The Sopranos .-Personal life:...
and artist Ralph Turturro are his cousins. He has two children, Amedeo (born 1990) and Diego (born 2000), with his wife, actress Katherine Borowitz.
Turturro participates as a member of the Jury for the NYICFF, a local New York City Film Festival dedicated to screening films for children between the ages of 3 and 18. He and his brother Nicholas are avid
New York YankeesThe New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
fans.
Filmography
Television
- Miami Vice
Miami Vice is an American television series produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series starred Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas as two Metro-Dade Police Department detectives working undercover in Miami. It ran for five seasons on NBC from 1984–1989...
, episode 1x16, 1985
- Monk
Monk is an American comedy-drama detective mystery television series created by Andy Breckman and starring Tony Shalhoub as the titular character, Adrian Monk. It originally ran from 2002 to 2009 and is primarily a mystery series, although it has dark and comic touches.The series debuted on July...
, as Ambrose Monk
- Mr. Monk and the Three Pies
Mr. Monk and the Three Pies is the eleventh episode of the second season of Monk, and is the 24th episode overall. The episode introduces Adrian Monk's brother, Ambrose. For his performance as Ambrose, John Turturro won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series. Tony Shalhoub...
(2004)
- Mr. Monk Goes Home Again (2005)
- Mr. Monk's 100th Case
"Mr. Monk's 100th Case" is the seventh episode of the seventh season of the USA Network TV series Monk, and, true to its name, it is the 100th episode overall...
(2008)
- The Bronx is Burning
The Bronx Is Burning is a television drama that debuted on ESPN on July 9, 2007, after the 2007 MLB Home Run Derby. It is an eight-episode mini-series adapted from Jonathan Mahler's best-selling book, Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bronx Is Burning...
, 2007, as Billy MartinAlfred Manuel "Billy" Martin, Jr. was an American Major League Baseball second baseman and manager. He is best known as the manager of the New York Yankees, a position he held five different times...
- Flight of the Conchords
Flight of the Conchords is an American television comedy series that debuted on HBO on June 17, 2007. The show follows the adventures of Flight of the Conchords, a two-man band from New Zealand, as its members seek fame and success in New York City. The show stars the real-life duo, Jemaine Clement...
, 2007, as himself
External links