Robert Pastorelli
Encyclopedia
Robert Joseph Pastorelli (June 21, 1954 – March 8, 2004) was an American actor. He had many roles on TV, in movies
, and on the stage, including the seven years he played the portly painter Eldin Bernecky on the television series Murphy Brown
. His last role was as an oddball hit man in Be Cool
, reuniting him with Michael
star John Travolta
. Pastorelli died of a heroin overdose in 2004.
, New Jersey
, the son of Dotty, an artist, and Ledo Pastorelli, an insurance salesman. Pastorelli was of Italian
descent. His sister, Gwen Pastorelli, is an opera
singer and a real estate agent. He was a 1972 graduate of Edison High School in Edison, New Jersey
. A near-fatal car crash on his 19th birthday cost him his dream of boxing professionally.
in 2004; a syringe, a spoon and a plastic bag with white powder were discovered near his body. The Coroner's Office later reported that Pastorelli died of "acute cocaine
-morphine
(heroin) toxicity".
Pastorelli was interred at Saint Catherine's Cemetery in Sea Girt, New Jersey
.
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, and on the stage, including the seven years he played the portly painter Eldin Bernecky on the television series Murphy Brown
Murphy Brown
Murphy Brown is an American situation comedy which aired on CBS from November 14, 1988, to May 18, 1998, for a total of 247 episodes. The program starred Candice Bergen as the eponymous Murphy Brown, a famous investigative journalist and news anchor for FYI, a fictional CBS television...
. His last role was as an oddball hit man in Be Cool
Be Cool
Be Cool is a 2005 crime-comedy film adapted from Elmore Leonard's 1999 novel of the same name and the sequel to Leonard's 1990 novel Get Shorty about mobster Chili Palmer's entrance into the film industry.The film adaptation of Be Cool began production in 2003. It was directed by F...
, reuniting him with Michael
Michael (1996 film)
Michael is a 1996 American fantasy film directed by Nora Ephron and released in 1996. The film stars John Travolta as the Archangel Michael, who is sent to Earth to do various tasks, including mending some wounded hearts...
star John Travolta
John Travolta
John Joseph Travolta is an American actor, dancer and singer. Travolta first became known in the 1970s, after appearing on the television series Welcome Back, Kotter and starring in the box office successes Saturday Night Fever and Grease...
. Pastorelli died of a heroin overdose in 2004.
Early life
Pastorelli was born in New BrunswickNew Brunswick, New Jersey
New Brunswick is a city in Middlesex County, New Jersey, USA. It is the county seat and the home of Rutgers University. The city is located on the Northeast Corridor rail line, southwest of Manhattan, on the southern bank of the Raritan River. At the 2010 United States Census, the population of...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, the son of Dotty, an artist, and Ledo Pastorelli, an insurance salesman. Pastorelli was of Italian
Italian American
An Italian American , is an American of Italian ancestry. The designation may also refer to someone possessing Italian and American dual citizenship...
descent. His sister, Gwen Pastorelli, is an opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
singer and a real estate agent. He was a 1972 graduate of Edison High School in Edison, New Jersey
Edison, New Jersey
Edison Township is a township in Middlesex County, New Jersey. What is now Edison Township was originally incorporated as Raritan Township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1870, from portions of both Piscataway Township and Woodbridge Township...
. A near-fatal car crash on his 19th birthday cost him his dream of boxing professionally.
Death
Pastorelli was found dead in his home at Hollywood HillsHollywood Hills
The Hollywood Hills is an affluent and exclusive neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, in the southeastern Santa Monica Mountains. It is bound by Laurel Canyon Boulevard to the west, Vermont Avenue to the east, Mulholland Drive to the north, and Sunset Boulevard to the south.-Hollywood Hills...
in 2004; a syringe, a spoon and a plastic bag with white powder were discovered near his body. The Coroner's Office later reported that Pastorelli died of "acute cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
-morphine
Morphine
Morphine is a potent opiate analgesic medication and is considered to be the prototypical opioid. It was first isolated in 1804 by Friedrich Sertürner, first distributed by same in 1817, and first commercially sold by Merck in 1827, which at the time was a single small chemists' shop. It was more...
(heroin) toxicity".
Pastorelli was interred at Saint Catherine's Cemetery in Sea Girt, New Jersey
Sea Girt, New Jersey
Sea Girt is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 1,828.Sea Girt was formed as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 29, 1917, from portions of Wall Township, based on the results of a referendum...
.
Personal life
Pastorelli had two daughters. One is Gianna Li Pastorelli (born February 6, 1998), with Charemon Jonovich. His second daughter is Giannina Marie Pastorelli (born March 6, 2000) with long-time girlfriend Jalee Carder, a former fashion designer and co-owner of Stone Marten.Filmography
- Be CoolBe CoolBe Cool is a 2005 crime-comedy film adapted from Elmore Leonard's 1999 novel of the same name and the sequel to Leonard's 1990 novel Get Shorty about mobster Chili Palmer's entrance into the film industry.The film adaptation of Be Cool began production in 2003. It was directed by F...
(2005) - Joe Loop - South PacificSouth Pacific (2001 film)Rodgers & Hammerstein's South Pacific is a made-for-television movie, directed by Richard Pearce in 2001. This ABC production starred Glenn Close, Harry Connick, Jr. and Rade Šerbedžija...
(2001) - Luther Billis - The Ballad of Lucy Whipple (2001) - Clyde Claymore
- Bait (2000) - Jaster
- Modern VampiresModern VampiresModern Vampires is a 1998 black horror/comedy film that was released Oct 19, 1999 straight to video, written by Matthew Bright and directed by Richard Elfman....
(1998) - The Count - Heist (1998) - T-Bone
- Scotch and Milk (1998) - The Skipper
- CrackerCracker (US TV series)Cracker is an American crime drama series produced by Granada Entertainment for ABC and based upon the British television crime drama of the same name created by Jimmy McGovern....
(1997) - Gerry Fitzgerald - A Simple WishA Simple WishA Simple Wish is a 1997 fantasy-comedy film directed by Michael Ritchie, and starring Martin Short, Mara Wilson, and Kathleen Turner. The film about a bumbling male fairy godmother named Murray , who tries to help eight-year-old Annabel fulfill her wish that her father, a carriage driver, wins the...
(1997) - Oliver Greening - MichaelMichael (1996 film)Michael is a 1996 American fantasy film directed by Nora Ephron and released in 1996. The film stars John Travolta as the Archangel Michael, who is sent to Earth to do various tasks, including mending some wounded hearts...
(1996) - Huey Driscoll - EraserEraser (film)Eraser is a 1996 American action film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, James Caan and Vanessa L. Williams. It was directed by Chuck Russell. The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Sound Effects Editing in 1996.-Plot:...
(1996) - John "Johnny C" Casteleone - Double RushDouble RushDouble Rush is a CBS television comedy that lasted only one season in 1995. Robert Pastorelli played Johnny Verona, manager of a bicycle delivery service in New York City...
(1995) - Johnny Verona (1995) - The West Side WaltzThe West Side WaltzThe West Side Waltz is a play by Ernest Thompson.The play focuses on Margaret Mary Elderdice, an aging, widowed pianist living in a dreary Upper West Side apartment, and her relationships with a prim, virginal violinist neighbor and the young companion who moves in for an extended stay.Thompson was...
(1995) - Sookie Cerullo - The Yarn Princess (1994) - Jake Thomas
- Harmful Intent (1993) - Devlin O'Shea
- Sister Act 2: Back in the HabitSister Act 2: Back in the HabitSister Act 2: Back In The Habit is a 1993 comedy film starring Whoopi Goldberg. Directed by Bill Duke, and released by Touchstone Pictures, it is the sequel to the successful 1992 film Sister Act...
(1993) - Joey Bustamante - Striking DistanceStriking DistanceStriking Distance is a 1993 thriller starring Bruce Willis, Sarah Jessica Parker, Dennis Farina, and Tom Sizemore as Pittsburgh Police officers pursuing a serial killer. It was directed by Rowdy Herrington and written by Herrington and Marty Kaplan...
(1993) - Det. Jimmy Detillo - Folks!Folks! (film)Folks! is a 1992 dark comedy film, directed by Ted Kotcheff. The movie starred Tom Selleck. The movie's tagline is: "Jon Aldrich is about to come face to face with the most terrifying force known to man.....
(1992) - Fred - The Paint Job (1992) - Willie
- Dances with WolvesDances with WolvesDances with Wolves is a 1990 epic western film directed by and starring Kevin Costner. It is a film adaptation of the 1988 book of the same name by Michael Blake and tells the story of a Union Army Lieutenant who travels to the American frontier to find a military post, and his dealings with a...
(1990) - Timmons - Murphy BrownMurphy BrownMurphy Brown is an American situation comedy which aired on CBS from November 14, 1988, to May 18, 1998, for a total of 247 episodes. The program starred Candice Bergen as the eponymous Murphy Brown, a famous investigative journalist and news anchor for FYI, a fictional CBS television...
(1988–1994) - Eldin Bernecky - Lady Mobster (1988) - Matteo Villani
- Memories of MeMemories of MeMemories of Me is a 1988 film by director Henry Winkler, starring Billy Crystal, Alan King, and JoBeth Williams.- Plot :After a heart attack, Abbie Polin , a New York doctor, goes to Los Angeles to see his father, Abe , who works in Hollywood as the "king of the extras." Their relationship has been...
(1988) - Al - Beverly Hills Cop IIBeverly Hills Cop IIBeverly Hills Cop II is a 1987 action-comedy film starring Eddie Murphy and directed by Tony Scott. It is the first sequel in the Beverly Hills Cop series. Murphy returns as Detroit police detective Axel Foley, who returns to Beverly Hills, California to track down a joint robbery/gun-running ring...
(1987) - Vinnie - Hands of a StrangerHands of a Stranger- Plot summary :When a pianist's hands are destroyed he receives a double transplant from a murder victim. Much to the bewilderment of the pianist, these new hands decide to take control and gain vengeance for their past owner's death.- Cast :...
(1987) (TV) - Handyman - Outrageous Fortune (1987) - Dealer #2
- California Girls (1985) - Mechanic
- I Married a Centerfold (1984) - Guard