Nicholas Colasanto
Nicholas Colasanto | |
---|---|
![]() Colasanto on the set of Cheers | |
Born | Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. | January 19, 1924
Died | February 12, 1985 Los Angeles, California, U.S. | (aged 61)
Resting place | Saint Ann Cemetery, Cranston, Rhode Island |
Alma mater | Bryant University American Academy of Dramatic Arts |
Occupations |
|
Years active | 1959–1985 |
Military career | |
Allegiance | United States |
Service/ | United States Navy |
Rank | Coxswain |
Battles/wars | World War II |
Nicholas Colasanto (January 19, 1924 – February 12, 1985) was an American actor and television director who is best known for his role as "Coach" Ernie Pantusso in the American television sitcom Cheers. He served in the United States Navy during World War II.
Early life
Born January 19, 1924, in Providence, Rhode Island,[1] Colasanto attended Bryant University (now located in Smithfield, Rhode Island[2]) and was a decorated veteran of World War II, during which he served as a coxswain in the United States Navy.[3] He was of Italian descent.[4]
Early career
By 1951, he was a
Acting and directing career
Colasanto is best known for his role as Coach Ernie Pantusso, a character in the television sitcom Cheers. His early acting career included a theatrical play
Colasanto was in demand as an actor and director, but in the mid-1970s he was diagnosed with
Colasanto was preparing to retire when the role of
When Colasanto was released from the hospital in the week of January 28 – February 3, 1985, after a two-week stay,[17] his doctor recommended he should not return to work.[18] Although he appeared in the cold opening of the third-season finale episode "Rescue Me" (1985),[18] Colasanto's last full episode was "Cheerio Cheers" (1985), which was filmed in late November 1984.[19]
Death
Colasanto died of a
On April 19, 1985, Colasanto was posthumously awarded the Best Supporting Actor by Viewers for Quality Television, a non-profit organization that determined what was considered high-quality on television.[25]
Colasanto's character was written out of the show as also having died. The fourth-season premiere episode, "Birth, Death, Love and Rice" (1985), deals with Coach's death and introduces Colasanto's successor Woody Harrelson, who played Woody Boyd.[26] Colasanto had hung a picture of Geronimo in his dressing room; after his death it was placed on the wall in the bar of the Cheers production set in his memory. Near the end of the final episode of Cheers in 1993, eight years after Colasanto's death, bar owner Sam Malone (Ted Danson) walks over to the picture and straightens it.[27]
Selected filmography
Film
- The Counterfeit Killer (1968)[12] – Plainclothesman
- Fat City (1972)[10] – Ruben
- The Manchu Eagle Murder Caper Mystery (1975)[28] – Bert
- Family Plot (1976)[10] – Constantine
- Raging Bull (1980) – Tommy Como, mob boss
Television
Actor
- Cheers (1982–1985) – Coach Ernie Pantusso, co-bartender (final appearance)
- The Streets of San Francisco[5] – "Deathwatch" (1973)
Director
- Run for Your Life (1965–1968)[6]
- Ironside – "The Challenge" (1968)[29]
- Hawaii Five-O – "A Thousand Pardons, You're Dead" (1969),[30] "To Hell with Babe Ruth" (1969),[31] "Just Lucky, I Guess" (1969),[32] and "Most Likely to Murder" (1970)[33]
- Bonanza – "Ambush at Rio Lobo" (1972)[9]
- Hec Ramsey[34] – "The Detroit Connection" (1973)
- Columbo – "Étude in Black" (1972)[10] and "Swan Song" (1974)[10]
- Nakia (1974) – "No Place to Hide"[35] and "A Matter of Choice"[35]
- Logan's Run – "Man Out of Time" (1977)[36]
- The Name of the Game[17]
- Starsky & Hutch[8]
- The Streets of San Francisco[11]
- CHiPs[11]
References
- ISBN 9780823089338.
- ^ Snauffer 2008, p. 51.
- ISBN 978-0-8230-8933-8.
- ^ Snauffer 2008, p. 56: " 'He was very Italian, and family meant a lot to him,' [...] says old friend Dean Hargrove."
- ^ a b c d Keets, Heather (February 11, 1994). "Remembering Nicholas Colasanto as Coach on Cheers". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 20, 2023.
- ^ a b c "Colasanto Strayed from Directing to Take Role as Cheers Bartender". Schenectady Gazette. Schenectady, New York. August 4, 1984. p. 25, TV Plus section. Retrieved May 20, 2023.
- ^ Rhodes 1997, pp. 55–56, 58, 70.
- ^ a b "Nicholas Colasanto, Cheers Bartender". Sun Sentinel. United Press International. February 13, 1985. Archived from the original on November 3, 2015. Retrieved October 9, 2015.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4766-0075-8. Retrieved October 9, 2015 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Jones, Jack (February 13, 1985). "N. Colasanto; Played Coach Role in Cheers". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 1, 2012. Retrieved December 27, 2011.
- ^ Toledo Blade. March 2, 2002. Archivedfrom the original on May 27, 2016. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ ISBN 0-8196-0310-4.
- ^ a b Snauffer 2008, p. 52.
- ^ Holsopple, Barbara (February 14, 1985). "Cheers pays tribute to 'Coach'". The Pittsburgh Press. Retrieved January 27, 2012.
- ^ "Nick Colasanto Dead at 61; Played Bartender in 'Cheers'". The New York Times. February 14, 1985. Archived from the original on May 16, 2013. Retrieved December 27, 2011.
- ^ a b c Snauffer 2008, p. 55.
- ^ The Montreal Gazette. Associated Press. February 13, 1985. p. D-8. Archivedfrom the original on January 28, 2016. Retrieved October 10, 2015 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ a b Snauffer 2008, p. 56.
- ^ Gendel, Morgan (April 6, 1985). "Loss of key cast members a fact of TV life". The Montreal Gazette. Archived from the original on January 28, 2016. Retrieved October 8, 2015 – via Google News Archive. Morgan Gendel worked for Los Angeles Times at the time of publication.
- ^ Keets, Heather (February 11, 1994). "Coach's Last Call". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on January 6, 2010. Retrieved December 27, 2011.
- ^ Levine, Ken (August 26, 2016). "By Ken Levine: Friday Questions". By Ken Levine. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
- The Associated Press. February 17, 1985. page 4, section B (Local), Obituary column.
- ^ "Services planned for 'Cheers' bartender". UPI. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
- ^ Snauffer 2008, p. 57.
- The Associated Press. p. E9 – via NewsBank. Record no: 0290180135.
- ^ "Birth, Death, Love, and Rice." 1985. Cheers: Season 4: The Complete Fourth Season. Paramount, 2009. DVD.
- ^ Liner, Elaine (May 21–22, 1993). "TV's favorite bar turns off the tap". Corpus Christi Caller-Times. Texas. p. A1. Record no at NewsBank: 113001A60C3FB35B (registration required).
- ISBN 9780810863781. Archivedfrom the original on April 30, 2016. Retrieved September 18, 2015 – via Google Books.
- ASIN B000MGBSQM.
- ^ Rhodes 1997, p. 55.
- ^ Rhodes 1997, p. 56.
- ^ Rhodes 1997, p. 58.
- ^ Rhodes 1997, p. 70.
- LCCN 84-061786.
- ^ a b Bjorklund, p. 39.
- ^ "Man Out of Time". Logan's Run. Season 1. Episode 5. Archived from the original on January 5, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
Sources
- Bjorklund, Dennis A. Cheers TV Show: A Comprehensive Reference. Praetorian Publishing. pp. 35–39.
- Rhodes, Karen (1997). Booking Hawaii Five-O: An Episode Guide and Critical History of the 1968–1980 Television Detective Series. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 978-0-7864-3108-3.
- Snauffer, Douglas (2008). The Show Must Go On: How the Deaths of Lead Actors Have Affected Television Series. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 978-0-7864-3295-0.
Further reading
- Evory, Ann. Contemporary Newsmakers: 1985 Cumulation. Detroit: ISBN 978-0-8103-2201-1.
External links
- Nicholas Colasanto at IMDb
- Nicholas Colasanto at Find a Grave
- Nicholas Colasanto at the University of Wisconsin's Actors Studio audio collection