Anthony "Fat Tony" D'Amico is the name of two recurring characters in the animated sitcom
Johnny Tightlips, and he answers to Don Vittorio DiMaggio. Upon the death of the original Fat Tony in the episode "Donnie Fatso" of the twenty-second season, the character's near-identical cousin of the same name is introduced. The characters somewhat resemble real-life mobster Anthony "Fat Tony" Salerno
.
Profile
First Fat Tony
The original Fat Tony, full name Marion Anthony D'Amico, was the chief racketeer behind several of
fake IDs. In "The Twisted World of Marge Simpson", Homer contracts with the mafia to drive out Marge's rival snack food distributors. Fat Tony took out a hit on Mayor Quimby in "Mayored to the Mob" in retaliation for a raid on their rat milk facility, which Quimby opposed, as they had promised him "dog or higher". Fat Tony puts out a contract on Homer after his private security business interferes with the mob's interests in "Poppa's Got a Brand New Badge". Homer would have been executed gangland-style if not for Maggie coming to the rescue with her rifle. Fat Tony's son Michael is first mentioned by Fat Tony as he is talking to Marge in "The Seven-Beer Snitch", saying she drove him home from school sometimes. He is then properly introduced in the episode "The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and Her Homer". The episode also reveals that Fat Tony's wife "was whacked by 'natural causes'." Fat Tony and his associates meet in what is known as the "Legitimate Businessman's Social Club". Fat Tony played the violin in "Insane Clown Poppy
".
Second Fat Tony
The original Fat Tony dies in the twenty-second season episode "
stress eating
as a way of dealing with the numerous attempts on his life, and the resulting weight gain causes a change of nickname to "Fit-Fat Tony" and eventually "Fat Tony", essentially restoring the status quo from before the first Fat Tony died. This iteration of Fat Tony, although similar in character to the original, does have notable differences in his appearance such as lighter skin, darker hair, and wearing a red polo shirt instead of a teal one.
In "
Selma Bouvier, but the relationship falls apart when Selma discovers Tony only held a ceremony to make her his goomar
as he is already married to another woman.
Name
The original Fat Tony's actual name is the source of some dispute, as several different real names have been revealed over the course of the series. In the third-season episode "
Drederick Tatum refers to Fat Tony as Anthony D'Amico (incidentally the name of one of the three Re-Recording Mixers in the end credits), which he is called later as well, for example, by the FBI. In the twelfth-season episode "Insane Clown Poppy", Frankie the Squealer claims that Fat Tony's first name is Marion, a reference to actor John Wayne's real name, Marion Robert Morrison.[2]
Character
Development
Fat Tony first appeared in the
Louie, one of Tony's henchmen, was based on another Goodfellas actor, Frank Sivero.[3]
The end of the episode portrays a TV movie about the events depicted in the episode, in which Joe Mantegna will play Fat Tony (this was before it was decided that Fat Tony would be a recurring character). In the episode "Donnie Fatso", Fat Tony dies of a heart attack; his cousin Fit Tony takes his place as head of the syndicate, but soon becomes known as Fat Tony due to stress-induced overeating.
Voice
The writers originally wanted
Sex, Pies, and Idiot Scrapes, where the script required only grunting. Despite this, Phil Hartman voiced the character in the season 7 episode "A Fish Called Selma".[1][9] Mantegna voiced Fat Tony in a scene in The Simpsons Movie that almost got cut.[10] Of the Fat Tony episodes, Mantegna favors "Bart the Murderer" and "The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and Her Homer", because they are the character's first appearance and a season premiere.[11]
Reception
TV Squad called Mantegna one of the five best The Simpsons guest stars[14] and Vanity Fair called "Bart the Murderer" the eighth best episode of the show, saying, "This episode makes the cut because of the inspired Mafia satire".[15]Playmates Toys made Fat Tony into an action figure as part of the World of Springfield toy line.[16]
Notes
^The second Fat Tony's full name was revealed in the episode "Whistler's Father."
References
^ abcdefJean, Al (2003). Commentary for "Bart the Murderer", in The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
^(2009). Commentary for "Insane Clown Poppy", in The Simpsons: The Complete Twelfth Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
^Moore, Rich (2003). Commentary for "Bart the Murderer", in The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
^Goldblum, Jeff; Oakley, Bill; Silverman, David; Weinstein, Josh (2005). Commentary for "A Fish Called Selma", in The Simpsons: The Complete Seventh Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
^Anderson, Mike B.; Moore, Rich; Moore, Steven Dean; Silverman, David (2007). Director's commentary, The Simpsons Movie [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.