Armand Assante Bio

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Armand Anthony Assante, Jr. (born October 4, 1949) is an American actor.

Assante was born in New York City and raised in Cornwall, New York to Katherine, a music teacher and poet, and Armand Anthony Assante, Sr., a painter and artist. His father was Italian, and his mother was Irish, and was raised in a devoutly Roman Catholic family.

During the 1970s, Assante was a regular on two NBC soap operas, How to Survive a Marriage as Johnny McGee and The Doctors as Dr. Mike Powers. His first film was The Lords of Flatbush (1974). A role that brought him greater attention came in 1980's Private Benjamin as a handsome Frenchman who becomes the love interest of a U.S. soldier played by Goldie Hawn.

His somewhat sinister look has made him a popular choice for tough-guy heroes, as in his starring role as private eye Mike Hammer in the film I, the Jury (1982) or as Mafia gangsters like that of Michael Moretti in Sidney Sheldon's Rage of Angels. He portrayed the notorious Bugsy Siegel in a comedy, Neil Simon's The Marrying Man (1991), another mobster in Hoffa (1992) starring Jack Nicholson and crime kingpin John Gotti in the 1996 made-for-television biopic Gotti, for which he won his Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie.

Other notable film appearances include one as a Cuban bandleader in The Mambo Kings opposite Antonio Banderas and in the adaptation of the science-fiction story Judge Dredd with Sylvester Stallone, his co-star in two previous films. More recently he appeared in American Gangster (2007) with Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. He has had a recurring guest star role in several episodes of NCIS, playing the international arms dealer René Benoit. Outside of the U.S., he has participated in several film projects in Eastern European countries like Macedonia, Turkey, Serbia and Romania.

Assante was married to Karen McArn from 1982 to 1994. He lives in upstate New York and has two daughters, Anya and Alessandra.

Armand Assante: Awards and nominations

Armand Assante - Emmy Awards

• 1989 - Nominated Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor - Miniseries or a Movie for his portrayal of Richard Mansfield in Jack the Ripper
• 1996 - Won Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor - Miniseries or a Movie for his portrayel of Mafia Don John Gotti

Armand Assante - Golden Globe Awards

• 1989 - Nominated Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for Jack the Ripper
• 1991 - Nominated Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture for Q&A
• 1997 - Nominated Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for Gotti
• 1998 - Nominated Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for The Odyssey

Armand Assante - Screen Actors Guild Awards

• 1997 - Nominated - Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie for Gotti