Joe Pantoliano

One of today's best-known character actors, Joe Pantoliano boasts over 100 film, television, and stage credits. He is a dependable scene stealer with more than his share of memorable roles -- including killer pimp “Guido” in Risky Business, bumbling criminal “Francis Fratelli” in The Goonies, double-crossing bail bondsman “Eddie Moscone” in Midnight Run, cynical US Marshall “Cosmo Renfro” in The Fugitive, turncoat “Cypher” in The Matrix, and shady sidekick “Teddy” in Memento.

Most recently, Panotliano is the producer and star of Canvas, a feature film that portrays a family’s struggle with mental illness. He also serves as co-president of The Creative Coalition, a nonprofit, nonpartisan social and political advocacy organization of the entertainment industry.

In 2001, at the behest of producer David Chase, Pantoliano joined the cast of the landmark HBO series The Sopranos. While portraying psychopathic mobster “Ralphie Cifaretto” on the hit show, the actor published Who's Sorry Now: The True Story of a Stand-Up Guy, a bittersweet memoir about his New Jersey childhood and his mother’s mental illness that was a New York Times bestseller.

Panotliano made his major feature-film debut in The Idolmaker and also appeared in Running Scared, La Bamba, and Empire of the Sun.

Originally, he decided to pursue acting professionally after performing in a high school play. He then moved to Manhattan, where he began his career by landing the coveted role of stuttering “Billy Bibbit” in the touring production of One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest.