API
Buscemi at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival
Born | Steven Vincent Buscemi (1957-12-13) December 13, 1957 (age 55) Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Residence | Park Slope, Brooklyn
Nationality | American
Occupation | Actor, director, writer
Years active | 1985?present
Spouse(s) | Jo Andres (1987?present)
Children | Lucian

Steven Vincent "Steve" Buscemi (/b ʔ ʔ ʔ ʔ m i/ boo-SHEM-ee[1] born December 13, 1957) is an American actor, writer and film director. An associate member of the renowned experimental theater company The Wooster Group,[2] Buscemi has starred and supported in successful Hollywood and indie films including New York Stories, Mystery Train, Reservoir Dogs, Desperado, Con Air, Armageddon, The Grey Zone, Ghost World and Big Fish; and the HBO television series The Sopranos. He is also known for his appearances in many films by the Coen brothers: Miller's Crossing, Barton Fink, The Hudsucker Proxy, Fargo, The Big Lebowski and Paris, je t'aime.

Since 2010, he has starred in the critically acclaimed series Boardwalk Empire, which earned him two Screen Actors Guild Awards, a Golden Globe, and two nominations for an Emmy Award.

He made his directorial debut in 1996, with Trees Lounge, in which he also starred. Other works include Animal Factory (2000), Lonesome Jim (2005) and Interview (2007). He has also directed numerous episodes of television shows, including; Homicide: Life on the Street, The Sopranos, Oz, 30 Rock and Nurse Jackie.

## Early life[edit]

Buscemi was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Dorothy (n?e Wilson), who worked as a hostess at Howard Johnson's, and John Buscemi, a sanitation worker and Korean War veteran. Buscemi's father was of Italian descent; his ancestors were from the town of Menfi in Sicily. Buscemi's mother was of part Irish ancestry.[3][4][5] He has three brothers: Jon, Ken and Michael. Buscemi was raised Roman Catholic.[6]

He graduated in 1975 from Valley Stream Central High School in Valley Stream, New York, a school which he attended with actress Patricia Charbonneau. In high school, Buscemi wrestled for the varsity squad and participated in the drama troupe, at the time directed by Mr. Lynne C. Lappin. Buscemi's 1996 film Trees Lounge, in which he not only starred but served as screenwriter and director, is set in and was largely shot in his childhood village of Valley Stream.[7] He worked in Alexander's department store in Valley Stream as well.

Buscemi briefly attended Nassau Community College before moving to Manhattan to enroll in the Lee Strasberg Institute. In the early 1980s, Buscemi also worked as a firefighter for four years on FDNY Engine 55.[8] After 9/11, Buscemi returned to Engine 55 and worked alongside other firefighters to sift through the rubble from the World Trade Center.[9]

## Career[edit]

### Acting[edit]

His first role in a major motion picture was in the 1986 film Parting Glances, for which his performance in the role of Nick received praise. Other early films include Slaves of New York in 1988, and Tales from the Darkside, a 1990 film with three segments. Buscemi starred in the first segment, playing Bellingham, a college student who orders a mummy and unleashes it on fellow college students played by Christian Slater and Julianne Moore.

During 1990, Buscemi had a couple of additional crime roles. He played the henchman of Laurence Fishburne named Test Tube in Abel Ferrara?s King of New York. He also played Mink in the Coen Brothers' Millers Crossing. Although he had to audition twice for this role,[10] it marked the first of six of the Coen Brothers' films in which Buscemi appeared. Before his work with the Coen Brothers, he played a small but important role in Jim Jarmusch's independent anthology film Mystery Train, released in 1989, for which he received an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Supporting Male.[11]

In 1991, he played the bellboy, Chet, in the Coen Brothers film, Barton Fink. His first lead role was in 1992, where he played Adolpho Rollo in Alexandre Rockwell's In the Soup. Then he came to public attention for playing Mr. Pink in Quentin Tarantino?s 1992 film, Reservoir Dogs, a role that Tarantino wrote for himself.[10]

Steve Buscemi in 1996

Buscemi's other most notable character roles include Garland Greene in Con Air, Rockhound in Armageddon, Randall Boggs in Monsters, Inc., Donny in The Big Lebowski, Carl Showalter in Fargo, Norther Winslow in Big Fish and Seymour in Ghost World, for which he won several awards. Buscemi often plays characters that are neurotic and paranoid. He has appeared in a number of films by the Coen Brothers, in which his characters tend to die in grisly, prolonged or unexpected manners. He has frequently appeared in Adam Sandler films such as Airheads, Billy Madison, The Wedding Singer, Big Daddy, Mr. Deeds, I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, and Grown Ups. He also has worked with Tim Burton, Quentin Tarantino, producer Jerry Bruckheimer, Jim Jarmusch, Robert Rodriguez, and Michael Bay on various occasions. He has said of his work "I don?t think of myself as having a career. I think of having jobs. When I work, I want to have good jobs. I want to do interesting films. I also want to make a living. You don?t always work on the things that you can put your heart into, so it?s good to work on things that you can get into one hundred percent."[10]

In 2003, Buscemi made a brief celebrity guest appearance as himself on the long-running Fox animated television show The Simpsons in the episode "Brake My Wife, Please". Most recently, Buscemi provided the voice for Dwight, a bank robber whom Marge promises to visit in jail if he turns himself in to the authorities. This episode, entitled "I Don't Wanna Know Why the Caged Bird Sings", originally aired on October 14, 2007.

In 2004, Buscemi joined the cast of The Sopranos as Tony Soprano's cousin and childhood friend, Tony Blundetto, a role for which he was nominated an Emmy Award.[12] Buscemi had previously contributed to the show as director of the third season episode "Pine Barrens," which was one of the most critically acclaimed episodes of the series, and the fourth season episode "Everybody Hurts."[13] He appeared in the third episode of season 6, as a doorman in the afterlife, which is portrayed as a country club, in Tony Soprano's dream. He returned to direct the episodes "In Camelot", the seventh episode of season five, and "Mr. Mrs. John Sacrimoni Request...", the fifth episode of season 6.

In 1995, Buscemi played suspected cop-shooter Gordon Pratt in the episode "End Game" at the end of a three-episode arc of Homicide: Life on the Street. He also had a role as Phil Hickle, Ellen's father and older Pete's guidance counselor, in The Adventures of Pete and Pete, as well as guest-starring in Miami Vice in 1986. Buscemi was rumored to be considered for the role of The Scarecrow in Joel Schumacher's proposed fifth installment of the first Batman franchise, Batman Triumphant, before Warner Bros. cancelled the project.[14]

In 2004, Buscemi appeared in the music video for Joe Strummer's cover of the Bob Marley track "Redemption Song". The video is shot after Strummer's death, and Buscemi appears beside a graffiti portrait of Strummer.

In 2002, Steve contributed to Lou Reed's concept album The Raven with the song "Broadway Song", and poems "Old Poe" and "The Cask".

Buscemi currently stars in the HBO series Boardwalk Empire. He plays Enoch "Nucky" Thompson (based on Enoch L. Johnson), a corrupt Atlantic City politician who rules the town during the Prohibition era. Buscemi won a Golden Globe award for best lead actor in a drama series in 2011.

In 2011, he hosted Saturday Night Live on NBC.

### Directing[edit]

Buscemi has worked extensively as a writer and director since making his debut feature during the 1990s. His directorial credits include:

- What Happened to Pete (1992) (short film)
- Trees Lounge (1996)
- Animal Factory (2000)
- Lonesome Jim (2005)
- Interview (2007)

In addition to feature films, he directed episodes of the television shows Homicide: Life on the Street, four episodes of The Sopranos, as well as two episodes of HBO's prison-drama series Oz, entitled "U.S. Male" and "Cuts Like a Knife". He has also directed two episodes of 30 Rock ("Retreat to Move Forward" and "Leap Day") and six episodes of Showtime's Nurse Jackie. In the latter, his brother Michael played the character God in several episodes.

While scouting a location for a film, Buscemi visited the Philadelphia Eastern State Penitentiary. He found the building so interesting that he later provided the majority of the narration for the audio tour there.[citation needed]

## Personal life[edit]

Buscemi was a New York City fire fighter from 1980 to 1984, with Engine Company No. 55 in the Little Italy section of New York. He showed up at his old firehouse the day after the World Trade Center tragedy in New York to volunteer, working twelve-hour shifts for a week after the terrorist act, and digging through rubble with his old comrades looking for missing firefighters.[15] Buscemi was arrested, along with eleven others, on May 25, 2003 while protesting the closing of his former firehouse.[16]

Buscemi pronounces his name as "Bu-semmy", but the correct Sicilian pronunciation is "Bu-shemmy".[17] He once said about the pronunciation of his name: "I had to go to Sicily to find out I pronounce my name wrong."[18]

In April 2001, while shooting the film Domestic Disturbance in Wilmington, North Carolina, Buscemi was slashed and badly scarred on the face while at the Firebelly Lounge, intervening in a bar fight between his friends Vince Vaughn, screenwriter Scott Rosenberg and a local man, who allegedly instigated the brawl.[19][20]

Buscemi, in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, is adamant about not altering his famously misaligned teeth saying "I've had dentists who have wanted to help me out, but I say, 'You know, I won't work again if you fix my teeth."[21][22]

## Filmography[edit]

Year | Film | Role | Notes
--- | --- | --- | ---
1985 | Tommy's | Tommy |
1986 | Way It Is, The The Way It Is | Willy/Raphael |
1986 | Parting Glances | Nick |
1986 | Sleepwalk | Worker |
1987 | Kiss Daddy Goodnight | Johnny |
1987 | Heart | Nicky |
1987 | No Picnic | Dead Pimp |
1988 | Call Me | Switchblade |
1988 | Heart of Midnight | Eddy |
1988 | Arena Brains |  |
1989 | Slaves of New York | Wilfredo |
1989 | Mystery Train | Charlie the Barber | Nominated ? Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor
1989 | Lonesome Dove | Luke | Television
1989 | New York Stories | Gregory Stark |
1989 | Borders | Ted |
1989 | Bloodhounds of Broadway | Whining Willie |
1990 | Tales from the Darkside: The Movie | Bellingham | Segment: "Lot 249"
1990 | Force of Circumstance |  |
1990 | King of New York | Test Tube |
1990 | Miller's Crossing | Mink |
1991 | Life Is Nice | Convenience Store Clerk |
1991 | Zandalee | OPP Man |
1991 | Barton Fink | Chet |
1991 | Billy Bathgate | Irving |
1992 | In the Soup | Aldolpho Rollo |
1992 | Reservoir Dogs | Mr. Pink | Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor
1992 | CrissCross | Drug Dealer |
1993 | Twenty Bucks | Frank |
1993 | Rising Sun | Willy 'the Weasel' Wilhelm |
1993 | Adventures of Pete Pete, The The Adventures of Pete Pete | Phil Hickle | Television
1993 | Ed and His Dead Mother | Ed Chilton |
1993 | Claude | Danny | Alternate title: Trusting Beatrice; filmed in 1991
1993 | Tales from the Crypt | Ike | Television
1994 | Search for One-eye Jimmy, The The Search for One-eye Jimmy | Ed Hoyt |
1994 | Hudsucker Proxy, The The Hudsucker Proxy | Beatnik Barman at Ann's 440 |
1994 | Airheads | Rex |
1994 | Pulp Fiction | "Buddy Holly" waiter |
1994 | Last Outlaw, The The Last Outlaw | Former Confederate soldier and outlaw Philo | Television
1994 | Floundering | Ned |
1994 | Somebody to Love | Mickey |
1994 | Who Do I Gotta Kill? |  | Uncredited
1994 | Felidae | Archie | English dub
1995 | Billy Madison | Danny McGrath | Uncredited
1995 | Living in Oblivion | Nick Reve |
1995 | Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead | Mister Shhh |
1995 | Desperado | Buscemi |
1996 | Fargo | Carl Showalter | Nominated ? Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor ? Motion Picture ? Drama
1996 | Escape from L.A. | Map to the Stars Eddie |
1996 | Trees Lounge | Tommy | Also writer and director Nominated ? Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature (shared with Chris Hanley and Brad Wyman) Nominated ? Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay Nominated ? Chlotrudis Award for Best Director
1996 | Kansas City | Johnny Flynn |
1997 | Con Air | Garland 'The Marietta Mangler' Greene |
1997 | Real Blonde, The The Real Blonde | Nick Reve |
1998 | Big Lebowski, The The Big Lebowski | Theodore Donald 'Donny' Kerabatsos |
1998 | Divine Trash | Himself |
1998 | Impostors, The The Impostors | Happy Franks |
1998 | Wedding Singer, The The Wedding Singer | David 'Dave' Veltri | Uncredited
1998 | Armageddon | Rockhound |
1998 | Louis Frank | Drexel |
1999 | Big Daddy | Homeless Guy |
2000 | 28 Days | Cornell Shaw |
2000 | Animal Factory | A.R. Hosspack | Also director
2001 | Ghost World | Seymour | Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor Vancouver Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor Village Voice Film Poll ? Best Supporting Performance Nominated ? American Film Institute Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated ? Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor ? Motion Picture Nominated ? Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated ? Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor ? Motion Picture ? Musical or Comedy
2001 | Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within | Neil Fleming | Voice role
2001 | Grey Zone, The The Grey Zone | 'Hesch' Abramowics |
2001 | Double Whammy | Jerry Cubbins |
2001 | Domestic Disturbance | Ray Coleman |
2001 | Monsters, Inc. | Randall Boggs | Voice
2002 | Deadrockstar | Reverend Ely |
2002 | Love in the Time of Money | Martin Kunkle |
2002 | Mr. Deeds | Crazy Eyes |
2002 | 13 Moons | Bananas the Clown |
2002 | Laramie Project, The The Laramie Project | Doc O'Conner |
2002 | Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams | Romero |
2003 | Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over | Romero |
2003 | Coffee and Cigarettes | Waiter (Segment "Twins") |
2003 | Big Fish | Norther Winslow |
2004?06 | Sopranos, The The Sopranos | Tony Blundetto / Man | Television (16 episodes) Nominated ? Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series (2001) Nominated ? Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor ? Drama Series (2004)
2004 | Home on the Range | Wesley | Voice role
2005 | Lonesome Jim |  | Director
2005 | Island, The The Island | James McCord |
2006 | Art School Confidential | Broadway Bob D'Annunzio | Uncredited
2006 | Monster House | Nebbercracker | Voice film and motion capture
2006 | Charlotte's Web | Templeton the Rat | Voice role
2006 | Dust to Dust: The Health Effects of 9/11 | Narrator | Television
2007 | I Think I Love My Wife | George Sianidis |
2007 | Paris, je t'aime | The tourist (segment 'Tuileries') |
2007 | Interview | Pierre Peters | Also director
2007 | I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry | Clint Fitzer |
2007 | Simpsons, The The Simpsons | Dwight | Voice role Television (Episode: "I Don't Wanna Know Why the Caged Bird Sings")
2007 | Delirious | Les Galantine |
2007 | Romance Cigarettes | Angelo |
2007 | 30 Rock | Lenny Wosniak | Television (5 episodes) Nominated ? Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor ? Comedy Series (2008)
2008 | ER | Mr. Masterson | Television (1 Episode)
2008 | Igor | Scamper | Voice
2009 | Rage | Frank |
2009 | John Rabe | Dr. Robert Wilson | Nominated ? German Film Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role (2008)
2009 | G-Force | Bucky | Voice role
2009 | Messenger, The The Messenger | Dale Martin |
2009 | I Knew It Was You | Interviewed in documentary about John Cazale |
2009 | Handsome Harry | Thomas Kelley |
2010 | Saint John of Las Vegas | John Alighieri |
2010 | Youth in Revolt | George Twisp |
2010 | Grown Ups | Wiley |
2010 | Chosen One, The The Chosen One | Neal |
2010 | Pete Smalls Is Dead | Bernie Lake |
2010?present | Boardwalk Empire | Enoch "Nucky" Thompson | Television Golden Globe Award for Best Actor ? Television Series Drama (2011) Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series(2011?12) Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (2011?12) Nominated ? Golden Globe Award for Best Actor ? Television Series Drama (2012) Nominated ? Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series (2011?12)
2011 | Portlandia | Book Store Customer | Television
2011 | Saturday Night Live | Host |
2011 | Rampart | Bill Blago |
2012 | On the Road |  |
2012 | Hotel Transylvania | Wayne | Voice role
2013 | Monsters University | Randall Boggs[23] | Voice role, filming
2013 | Burt Wonderstone | Anton Lovecraft | Post-production
2013 | Grown Ups 2 | Wiley | Filming

## References[edit]

1. ^ http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2pelw_regis-kelly-steve-buscemi_blog
2. ^ "Steve Buscemi". charlierose.com. Retrieved April 21, 2011.
3. ^ "Film Society of Lincoln Center". Filmlinc.com. Retrieved November 20, 2009.
4. ^ "THE THIN MAN.". Accessmylibrary.com. November 14, 2005. Retrieved November 20, 2009. Text " The New Yorker (November 2005) " ignored (help)
5. ^ "steve buscemi profile". John Lahr. September 11, 2001. Retrieved November 20, 2009.
6. ^ Lahr, John (November 14, 2005). "THE THIN MAN". The New Yorker. Retrieved December 10, 2007.
7. ^ Delatiner, Barbara. "Cinema Arts Film Festival Stresses the Independents", The New York Times, June 1, 1997. Retrieved November 1, 2007.
8. ^ "Ground Zero: Engine 10 and Ladder 10". Bushmaster Firearms International. Archived from the original on September 8, 2003. Retrieved 2011-09-08.
9. ^ [1]
10. ^ a b c Tarantino, Quentin (1993). "Steve Buscemi by Quentin Tarantino". BOMB 42 (Winter). Retrieved September 20, 2011.
11. ^ http://www.spiritawards.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/SA_Nomswinners.pdf
12. ^ Steve Buscemi Emmy Nominated
13. ^ "Barbarians at the Shore". Vanity Fair.
14. ^ moviemansguide.com review of Batman Begins by Andy Hoglund
15. ^ Biography for API at the Internet Movie Database
16. ^ Bode, Nicole (May 26, 2003). "Arrested as demonstrations get heated". Daily News (New York).
17. ^ Kevin Cook (September 2011). "Playboy Interview: Steve Buscemi". Playboy: 41. "I say Bu-semmy. I don't mind Bu-shemmy, though. That's the correct Sicilian pronunciation, from the old country."
18. ^ [2]
19. ^ thesmokinggun.com mugshots and description
20. ^ indieking.com[dead link] has two news clippings on the incident.
21. ^ Lindsay Powers, Why Emmy Nominee Steve Buscemi Refuses to 'Fix' His Teeth, hollywoodreporter.com, August 14, 2011
22. ^ Arienne Thompson, Buscemi Refuses to Have His Teeth Fixed, usatoday.com, August 16, 2011
23. ^ Kit, Borys (March 29, 2011). "Disney Reveals Title for 'Monsters Inc.' Sequel". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 30, 2011.

## External links[edit]

| Wikimedia Commons has media related to API.

- API at the Internet Movie Database
- Steve Buscemi at Emmys.com

Awards for Steve Buscemi
Template:GoldenGlobeBestActorTVDrama 2010?2029
Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male
Morgan Freeman (1987) Lou Diamond Phillips (1988) Max Perlich (1989) Bruce Davison (1990) David Strathairn (1991) Steve Buscemi (1992) Christopher Lloyd (1993) Chazz Palminteri (1994) Benicio del Toro (1995) Benicio del Toro (1996) Jason Lee (1997) Bill Murray (1998) Steve Zahn (1999) Willem Dafoe (2000) Steve Buscemi (2001) Dennis Quaid (2002) Djimon Hounsou (2003) Thomas Haden Church (2004) Matt Dillon (2005) Alan Arkin (2006) Chiwetel Ejiofor (2007) James Franco (2008) Woody Harrelson (2009) John Hawkes (2010) Christopher Plummer (2011) Matthew McConaughey (2012)
Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male
Morgan Freeman (1987) Lou Diamond Phillips (1988) Max Perlich (1989) Bruce Davison (1990) David Strathairn (1991) Steve Buscemi (1992) Christopher Lloyd (1993) Chazz Palminteri (1994) Benicio del Toro (1995) Benicio del Toro (1996) Jason Lee (1997) Bill Murray (1998) Steve Zahn (1999) Willem Dafoe (2000) Steve Buscemi (2001) Dennis Quaid (2002) Djimon Hounsou (2003) Thomas Haden Church (2004) Matt Dillon (2005) Alan Arkin (2006) Chiwetel Ejiofor (2007) James Franco (2008) Woody Harrelson (2009) John Hawkes (2010) Christopher Plummer (2011) Matthew McConaughey (2012)
Template:ScreenActorsGuildAward MaleTVDrama 2010?2029 Template:ScreenActorsGuildAwards EnsembleTVDrama 2010?2019

Films directed by Steve Buscemi
Trees Lounge (1996) Animal Factory (2000) Lonesome Jim (2005) Interview (2007)

Authority control | VIAF: 85555650

Persondata
Name | Buscemi, Steve
Alternative names |
Short description | Actor
Date of birth | 1957-12-13
Place of birth | Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Date of death |
Place of death |