DELUISE, Dom(inick) 1933-

PERSONAL: Born August 1, 1933, in Brooklyn, NY; son of John (a civil servant) and Vicenza (DeStefano) DeLuise; married Carol Arata (an actress; professional name, Carol Arthur), November 23, 1965; children: Peter John, Michael Robert, David Dominick. Education: Attended Tufts College. Hobbies and other interests: Furniture refinishing, herb gardening.

ADDRESSES: Agent—Artists Group, 10100 Santa Monica Blvd., Suite 2490, Los Angeles, CA 90067.

CAREER: Actor, director, and writer. Has appeared in numerous films, including Fail Safe, Columbia, 1964; Diary of a Bachelor, American International, 1964; The Glass Bottom Boat, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), 1966; The Busybody, Paramount, 1967;What's So Bad about Feeling Good?, Universal, 1968; The Twelve Chairs, UMC, 1969; Norwood, Paramount, 1970; Who Is Harry Kellerman and Why Is He Saying Those Terrible Things about Me?, National General, 1971; Every Little Crook and Nanny, MGM, 1972; Blazing Saddles, Warner Bros., 1974; The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes's Smarter Brother, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1975; Silent Movie, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1976; The World's Greatest Lover, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1977; Diary of a Young Comic, 1977; The Cheap Detective, Columbia, 1978; Sextette, Crown International, 1978; The End, United Artists, 1978; Hot Stuff, Columbia, 1979; The Muppet Movie, Associated Film Distribution, 1979; Fatso, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1980; The Last Married Couple in America, Universal, 1980; Smokey and the Bandit II, Columbia, 1980; Wholly Moses, Columbia, 1980; The Cannonball Run, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1981; History of the World, Part One, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1981; The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Universal, 1982; The Secret of NIMH (animated), MGM/United Artists (UA), 1982; Cannonball Run II, Warner Bros., 1984; Johnny Dangerously, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1984; An American Tale (animated), Universal, 1986; Haunted Honeymoon, Orion, 1986; Space Balls, MGM/UA, 1987; Un tassinaro, a New York (also known as A Taxi Driver in New York), Italian International, 1987; Going Bananas, Cannon, 1987; Oliver and Company (animated), Buena Vista, 1988; Loose Cannons, TriStar, 1989; All Dogs Go to Heaven (animated), UA, 1989; Driving Me Crazy, 1991; An American Tail: Fievel Goes West (animated), 1991; Munchie, Concorde, 1992; Almost Pregnant, Columbia TriStar Home Video, 1992; The Magic Voyage, 1992; The Skateboard Kid, Concorde/New Horizons, 1993; Robin Hood: Men in Tights, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1993; Happily Ever After (animated), First National, 1993; A Troll in Central Park (animated), Warner Bros., 1994; Munchie Strikes Back, 1994; Silence of the Hams (also known as Il silenzio dei prosciutti), 1994; All Dogs Go to Heaven 2 (animated), MGM/UA, 1996; Toonstruck, 1996; Red Line, Mondofin/Triboro, 1996; The Good Bad Guy (also known as Killer per caso), Medusa (Italy), 1997; Baby Geniuses, TriStar, 1999; and Benito. Has appeared on television shows and series, including The Entertainers, Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS), 1964-65; The Dean Martin Show, National Broadcasting Company (NBC), 1966; The Dom DeLuise Show, CBS, 1968, syndicated, 1987; The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour, CBS, 1971-72; The Dean Martin Show (also known as The Dean Martin Comedy Hour), NBC, 1972-73; The Roman Holidays (animated), NBC, 1972-73; Lotsa Luck!, NBC, 1973-74; Candid Camera, syndicated, 1991; Fievel's American Tails (documentary), CBS, 1992; Burke's Law, CBS, 1994-95; and The Garry Moore Show, CBS; also made episodic appearances on programs such as The Munsters, Please Don't Eat the Daisies, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, Medical Center, The Muppet Show, Amazing Stories, Win, Lose, or Draw, 21 Jump Street, B. L. Stryker, Diagnosis Murder, Married . . . with Children, SeaQuest DSV, The Magic School Bus, Murphy Brown, Beverly Hills 90210, and Duckman, as well as on numerous television specials. Credits for television movies include Don't Drink the Water, ABC, 1994, and The Tin Soldier, Showtime, 1995. Has made stage appearances in theater productions of The Jackass, Barbizon-Plaza Theatre, New York, NY, 1960; Little Mary Sunshine, Orpheum Theatre and Players Theatre, both New York, 1961; Another Evening with Harry Stoones (revue), Gramercy Arts Theatre, New York, 1961; All in Love, Martinique Theatre, New York, 1961; Half-Past Wednesday, Orpheum Theatre, 1962; The Student Gypsy; or, The Prince of Liederkrantz, 54th Street Theatre, New York, 1963; Too Much Johnson, Phoenix Theatre, New York, 1964; Here's Love, Shubert Theatre, New York, 1964; and Last of the Red Hot Lovers, Eugene O'Neill Theatre, New York, 1971. Actor in operas, including Orpheus in the Underworld, Los Angeles Opera Company, Los Angeles, CA, 1989, and Die Fledermaus, Metropolitan Opera, New York, 1990-91. Director of plays, including Same Time Next Year, Burt Reynolds Theatre, Jupiter, FL, 1980; Butterflies Are Free, Burt Reynolds Theatre, 1980; and Brighton Beach Memoirs, Burt Reynolds Theatre, 1986. Executive producer of television movies, including Happy, CBS, 1983.

WRITINGS:

COOK BOOKS

Eat This—It'll Make You Feel Better!: Mamma's Italian Home Cooking and Other Favorites of Family and Friends, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 1988.

Cooking with Dom DeLuise (CD-ROM), Allegro New Media (Fairfield, NJ), 1995.

Eat This Too!: It'll Also Make You Feel Better, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1997.

FOR CHILDREN

Charlie the Caterpillar, illustrated by Christopher Santoro, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 1990.

Goldilocks, illustrated by Christopher Santoro, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 1992.

King Bob's New Clothes, illustrated by Christopher Santoro, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 1996.

Dom DeLuise's Hansel and Gretel, illustrated by Christopher Santoro, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 1997.

Dom DeLuise's the Nightingale, illustrated by Christopher Santoro, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 1998.

Also author of The Pouch Potato, illustrated by Derek Carter.

OTHER

Coauthor of the film Benito; author of the television scripts Dom DeLuise and Friends, Part III, ABC, 1985, and Dom DeLuise and Friends, Part IV, ABC, 1986; contributor to sound recordings Kismet, Sony Broadway, 1991, and Peter and the Wolf, Amerco, 1991.

ADAPTATIONS: DeLuise's cookbooks have been adapted for video.

SIDELIGHTS: Dom DeLuise once considered a career as a science teacher, but his gift for comedy led him in other directions, and he has appeared instead in dozens of films and on television since the early 1960s. Born to immigrant parents who settled in Brooklyn, New York, he attended the High School of Performing Arts and then Tufts College. His first stage performance was in The Jackass in 1960, and his first television appearance was on The Gary Moore Show. The popular comic was paired with others, including Dan Rowan and Dick Martin, for their variety show, Laugh In, and he also starred in his own television series.

DeLuise is well known for his appearances in a number of Mel Brooks films, including Blazing Saddles, Silent Movie, History of the World: Part I, and Robin Hood: Men in Tights. When Tony Bray, who interviewed DeLuise for TVNow Online, asked him about working with Brooks, DeLuise said, "There were five writers on Blazing Saddles, but Mel is nuts. He just puts on a suit and a tie and acts like a normal person so people think he's okay. He's definitely out in left field and his mind—you know, he's crazy. . . . He looks like he's a grownup, but he's just like a crazy kid in a suit, and he just gets away with it." Actor and director Gene Wilder also used DeLuise to good advantage in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes's Smarter Brother and The World's Greatest Lover. Among DeLuise's many film roles, critics have found his portrayal of Burt Reynolds's manic sidekick in The End and the Cannonball Run films especially memorable. DeLuise told Bray that making The End with Reynolds "was a great deal of fun. Burt and I are still friends. He's like a brother to me. He really is amazing." DeLuise said that his other favorite film is The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, which starred Dolly Parton. "I love being around that woman," he said.

In addition to acting in films and appearing on television, DeLuise has directed plays and lent his voice talents to several animated features, including An American Tale, All Dogs Go to Heaven, A Troll in Central Park, The Secret of NIMH, and Baby Geniuses. A big fan of opera, he has occasionally performed with opera companies. His portrayal of Frosh the Jailer in the New York Metropolitan Opera Company's 1995 production of Die Fledermaus brought down the house.

DeLuise has written a number of picture books for children, in addition to his bestselling cookbooks. Talking to Bray about his cookbooks, DeLuise recalled that when he was fourteen he decided he could cook. "My mother was at the store, and I was home alone. I took two eggs, two pieces of mortadela (which is Italian ham), two pieces of mozzarella and cooked it in a pan. I had two pieces of toast and said 'Holy Moly! This is it! Stand back!' I didn't know you could make it for yourself. But I was fourteen. I remember very clearly. It was either that or puberty." His cookbooks contain recipes from friends and family spiced with comic anecdotes.

DeLuise and his wife have three sons, all of whom are in show business, either acting, writing, or directing. His Web site features his books, films, children's books, and special items like gourmet cakes, his spaghetti bibs, a bag designed to keep Italian bread fresh for days, and monthly recipes.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

ONLINE

Dom DeLuise Home Page,http://www.domdeluise.com (August 15, 2004).

TVNow Online,http://www.tv-now.com/ (August 15, 2004), Tony Bray, interview with DeLuise.*