Death is an inevitable concept that accompanies the emotion of grief. It is hard when a legendary actor with a massive fan following passes away. It seems surreal as we as an audience are so used to seeing them perform their roles and characters on screen that It feels different to see them replaced by a new face. One such exceptional actor “Ray Liotta” has sadly passed away at 67. He was best known for the show GoodFellas where he played the character of Henry Hill.
According to sources in The Hollywood Reporter, the actor passed away on Wednesday or early Thursday in his sleep. He was in The Dominican Republic, where he resided to shoot for the film Dangerous Waters. In addition, when he passed away, his fiancee, Jacy Nittolo, was with him in the hotel room. The actor had just begun his work on this project a week ago.
Liotta has recently appeared in Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story (2019), Steven Soderbergh’s No Sudden Move (2021), and Alan Taylor’s The Many Saints of Newark (2021) and, as members of the Moltisanti family in The Sopranos prequel followed by a role as a villain in the third season of the Amazon series “Hanna.”
EARLY LIFE
“Ray Liotta” originally named “Raymond Allen Liotta” was born in Newark on December, 18th 1954. Just when he was six months old he was then adopted by Mary and Alfred Liotta, an auto part retailer from an orphanage.
He studied acting at the University of Miami, graduating in 1978, and then worked as a bartender on Broadway before landing the character of a good guy Joey Perrini on Another World.
THE ACTOR AND HIS REMARKABLE WORK
The actor had a series of hit films in his kitty and a very successful career as an actor. He featured in many films, including, Jonathan Demme’s “Something Wild” (1986), where he played the role of Ray Sinclair, the violent ex-convict husband of Melanie Griffith’s character, followed by disgraced Chicago White Sox baseball player, The Shoeless Joe Jackson in Kevin Costner’s Field of Dreams (1989); and the corrupt officer Matt Wozniak on the NBC cop drama Shades of Blue, alongside Jennifer Lopez.
His co-star Jennifer Lopez once described the actor as a tough guy who was all mushy on the inside. Besides mainstream movies, crime-themed movies were his forte.
He was an ideal choice to narrate Inside the Mafia for the National Geographic Channel in 2005. His character was fantastic in Unlawful Entry (1992), followed by Cop Land (1997), and Narc (2002).
In addition to all these great movies, he also starred alongside Taron Egerton in the recent TV series called “Black Bird.” He also had some unreleased movies on his lists like Cocaine Bear, The Substance, April 29, 1992, and an unannounced Charlie Day project.
AWARDS
The actor won an Emmy award in 2005 for his role as an alcoholic ex-con who appears as a County General on the NBC show ER. An episode was filmed in real-time on this and afterward, spoofing this performance in Jerry Seinfeld’s Bee Movie (2007).
The actor is succeeded by his fiancee, daughter Karsen and his sister Linda. We are going to miss seeing him on the screen. The actor has left behind a legacy that seems irreplaceable for many years. He is truly one of the finest actors Hollywood has ever produced in the history of cinema. A man with fine talent and craft who made a successful career through his characters.
Source: hollywoodreporter.com
