Danny DeVito Biography
Daniel Michael DeVito Jr. (born November 17, 1944) is an actor, comedian, and filmmaker from the United States. He rose to notoriety as the taxi dispatcher Louie De Palma in the television series Taxi (1978-1983), for which he received a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award. On the FX and FXX sitcom It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (2006-present), he plays Frank Reynolds.
He is known for his film roles in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975), Terms of Endearment (1983), Romancing the Stone (1984), Throw Momma from the Train (1987), Twins (1988), The War of the Roses (1989), Batman Returns (1992), Jack the Bear (1993), Junior (1994), Get Shorty (1995), Matilda (1996), L.A. Confidential (1997), The Big Kahuna (1999), Big Fish (2003), Deck the Halls (2006), When in Rome (2010), Wiener-Dog (2016) and Jumanji: The Next Level (2019). He is also well-known for his parts in films such as Hercules (1997), The Lorax (2012), and Smallfoot (2018).
Jersey Films was formed by DeVito and Michael Shamberg. Stacey Sher was soon made an equal partner. Pulp Fiction, Garden State, and Freedom Writers are among the films produced by the business. Jersey Television, which created the Comedy Central series Reno 911!, was also owned by DeVito. DeVito and his wife Rhea Perlman co-starred in his 1996 picture Matilda, which was based on Roald Dahl’s children’s story. DeVito was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture for her work on Erin Brockovich (2000).
He was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play in 2017 for his portrayal in the Broadway revival of Arthur Miller’s The Price.
Early life
DeVito was born at Raleigh Fitkin-Paul Morgan Memorial Hospital in Neptune Township, New Jersey, to small business owner Daniel DeVito Sr. and Julia DeVito (née Moccello). He was raised in a family of five, including his parents and two elder sisters. He is of Italo-Albanian descent, with ancestors from San Fele, Basilicata, as well as the Arbresh Albanian community in Calabria. He grew up in Asbury Park, New Jersey. He lived a few miles away from the original Jersey Mike’s site and frequented it, which inspired him to become the sub shop’s first celebrity spokesman in a series of advertisements that began airing in September 2022.
DeVito was raised in a Catholic household. When he was 14, he persuaded his father to send him to boarding school to “keep him out of trouble”, and he graduated from Oratory Preparatory School in Summit, New Jersey, in 1962. His hunt for a professional makeup instructor led him to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, where he graduated in 1966 while working as a beautician at his sister’s salon. He began his career as a member of the Colonnades Theater Lab at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center in Waterford, Connecticut. He appeared in plays presented by the Westbeth Playwrights Feminist Collective, alongside his future wife Rhea Perlman.
Career
Film work
DeVito reprised his role as Martini in the 1975 film One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, which was based on the 1971 off-Broadway play of the same name.
Following his departure from the Taxi series, DeVito concentrated his efforts on a burgeoning film career, appearing as Vernon Dalhart in the 1983 hit Terms of Endearment, as the comic rogue Ralph in the romantic adventure Romancing the Stone (1984), starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner, and its sequel, The Jewel of the Nile (1985). DeVito made his feature-directing debut in 1987 with the dark comedy Throw Momma from the Train, which he co-starred in with Billy Crystal and Anne Ramsey. He reconnected with Douglas and Turner in The War of the Roses (1989), which he directed and co-starred in.
Other work included Other People’s Money with Gregory Peck; director Barry Levinson’s Tin Men, as a rival salesman to Richard Dreyfuss’ character; the comedies Junior (1994) and Twins (1988) with Arnold Schwarzenegger; playing the villain The Penguin in director Tim Burton’s Batman Returns (1992); and the film adaptation Matilda (1996), which he directed and co-produced, along with playing the role of Matilda’s father, the villainous car dealer Harry Wormwood.
Although primarily a comic actor, DeVito expanded into dramatic roles with The Rainmaker (1997), Hoffa (1992), which he directed and co-starred in with Jack Nicholson, Jack the Bear (1993), neo-noir film L.A. Confidential (1997), The Big Kahuna (1999), and Heist (2001), as Joe Moore’s (Gene Hackman) gangster nemesis.
DeVito enjoys watching documentaries. He began collaborating with Morgan Freeman’s company ClickStar in 2006, for whom he runs the documentary channel Jersey Docs. In addition, he was interviewed for the documentary Revenge of the Electric Car, where he discussed his interest in and ownership of electric automobiles.
Theatre
In April 2012, DeVito made his West End debut as Willie Clark in a production of Neil Simon’s play The Sunshine Boys, alongside Richard Griffiths. It premiered on April 27, 2012, at the Savoy Theatre in London, and ran for a restricted 12-week run through July 28, 2012.
DeVito made his Broadway debut as Gregory Solomon in a Roundabout Theatre Company revival of Arthur Miller’s play The Price, for which he received a Tony Award nomination. The show began preview performances on February 16, 2017, at the American Airlines Theatre, and debuted on March 16 for a limited run-through on May 7.
Producing
DeVito has established himself as a significant film and television producer. DeVito formed Jersey Films in 1991, producing films such as Pulp Fiction, Get Shorty, Erin Brockovich (for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture), Gattaca, and Garden State. He produced and co-starred in Man on the Moon in 1999, a film about his old Taxi co-star Andy Kaufman, played in the film by Jim Carrey. DeVito also created the Comedy Central series Reno 911!, the film spin-off Reno 911!: Miami, and the Quibi revival.
Directing
DeVito made his directing debut with The Ratings Game in 1984. Throw Momma from the Train (1987), The War of the Roses (1989), Hoffa (1992), Matilda (1996), Death to Smoochy (2002), and Duplex (2003) followed. The cinematic adaptation of Roald Dahl’s Matilda was a commercial and critical success, as was The War of the Roses; Death to Smoochy and Duplex received mixed reviews. In 2005, he also directed the television film Queen B.
Between 1973 and 2016, DeVito made eight short films, five of which were released in 2010 and 2011. The Sound Sleeper (1973), Minestrone (1975), Oh Those Lips (2010), Evil Eye (2010), Poison Tongue (2011), Skin Deep (2011), Nest of Vipers (2011), and Curmudgeons (2016) are a few examples.
Television and voice-over work
DeVito played John “John John the Apple” DeAppoliso in the Starsky & Hutch episode “The Collector” in 1977. On the hit TV show Taxi in 1978, DeVito starred as Louie De Palma, the short but domineering dispatcher for the fictional Sunshine Cab Company.
In 1986, he directed and appeared in “The Wedding Ring,” a season 2 episode of Steven Spielberg’s anthology series Amazing Stories, in which his character purchases an engagement ring for his wife (played by DeVito’s real-life wife, actress Rhea Perlman). When he slips the ring on his wife’s finger, the ring’s prior owner, a violent black widow, takes possession of her. DeVito also voiced the Grundle King in My Little Pony: The Movie that year.
In The Earth Day Special in 1990, he and Rhea Perlman played the pair Vic & Paula, remarking on the plight of the environment. DeVito played Herb Powell in The Simpsons episodes “Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes?” and “Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?” in 1991 and 1992, respectively. He would reprise his role as Herb in the episode “The Changing of the Guardian” in 2013.
He gave the voice of Mr. Swackhammer in Space Jam in 1996. In 1997, he played Philoctetes in the Disney picture Hercules.
DeVito hosted the final Saturday Night Live program before the year 2000 in 1999. Following four Emmy nominations (including a 1981 win) for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy for Taxi, he received a 2004 Emmy nod for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for an episode of Friends. on 2006, he was cast as Frank Reynolds on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
DeVito was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2011 for his contributions to television. In 2012, he voiced the title character in Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax animated film. In September 2015, he was featured in the Angry Birds Friends “Champions for Earth” tournament campaign. Following the Japanese release of the Nintendo 3DS game Detective Pikachu, devoted Pokémon fans signed a 40,000-signature petition requesting that DeVito play the main character in English. He declined to audition for the part, citing his lack of familiarity with the franchise.
Appearances in other media
DeVito is 4 feet and 10 inches (1.47 meters) tall. His small stature is caused by multiple epiphyseal dysplasia (Fairbank’s disease), a rare genetic illness that interferes with bone formation.
Rhea Perlman met DeVito on January 17, 1971, when she went to watch a friend in the sole performance of the play The Shrinking Bride, which starred DeVito. Two weeks later, they moved in together and married on January 28, 1982. Lucy Chet DeVito (born March 11, 1983), Grace Fan DeVito (born March 1985), and Jacob Daniel DeVito (born October 1987) are their three children.
Perlman and DeVito have appeared in various films and television shows together, including Taxi and Matilda (in which they played Matilda’s parents). After 30 years of marriage and almost 40 years together, they divorced in October 2012, then reconciled in March 2013. They divorced for the second time in March 2017, but they remained amicable, and Perlman indicated that they had no intention of filing for divorce. Perlman told Andy Cohen in 2019 that she and DeVito had been closer friends since their divorce than they were during their final years as a married.
DeVito and Perlman lived in a 14,579-square-foot (1,354 m2) Beverly Hills, California, property they bought in 1994 and sold for US$24 million in April 2015. They also own a Beverly Hills bungalow near Rodeo Drive and a Malibu multi-residence estate on Broad Beach. They also spent time away from Los Angeles at their house in Interlaken, New Jersey.
DeVito is a Democrat and a strong admirer of Bernie Sanders.
Awards and nominations
DeVito has a diverse body of work as a theater, television, and film actor, producer, and director. He has received nominations for Academy, Creative Arts Emmy, Golden Globe, Primetime Emmy, Producers Guild, Screen Actors Guild, and Tony awards. For his services to television, he was recognized with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2011, located at 6909 Hollywood Blvd.
How many houses and cars does Danny DeVito have?
He currently owns many properties and several cars.
How much does Danny DeVito make per year?
Danny earns $400,000 per year.
What investments does Danny DeVito have?
As of now, little is known about the investments he has made.
How many Endorsement deals does Danny DeVito have?
He just secured an endorsement agreement with Jersey Mike’s Subs for their new national advertising campaign named.
How many Philanthropy works has Danny DeVito supported?
He has currently funded 9 philanthropic works.
How many businesses does Danny DeVito have?
He is a well-known film and television producer.
What made Danny DeVito so famous?
Mr. Devito rose to prominence in 1978 as a character on the television show Taxi. He went on to appear in a number of films and television shows when his career took off.
Who is Danny DeVito’s wife?
Jersey Television, which created the Comedy Central series Reno 911!, was also owned by DeVito. DeVito and his wife Rhea Perlman co-starred in his 1996 picture Matilda, which was based on Roald Dahl’s children’s story. DeVito was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture for her work on Erin Brockovich (2000).
