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Joseph Peter Spano (born July 7, 1946) is an American actor known best for his roles as Lt. Henry Goldblume on ''
Hill Street Blues ''Hill Street Blues'' is an American serial police procedural television series that aired on NBC in prime-time from January 15, 1981, to May 12, 1987, for 146 episodes. The show chronicles the lives of the Metropolitan Police Department staff ...
'' and
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
Special Agent In the United States, a special agent is an official title used to refer to certain investigators or detectives of federal, military, tribal, or state agencies who primarily serve in criminal investigatory positions. Additionally, some special ...
Tobias C. Fornell on '' NCIS''. He also voiced the Chuck E. Cheese (at the time Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre) character, Pasqually the Chef, from 1977 to 1983.


Career

Spano was a member of the San Francisco improvisation group The Wing, and in college debuted as Paris in a production of ''
Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...
'' in 1967. In 1968, he helped found the
Berkeley Repertory Theatre Berkeley Repertory Theatre is a Regional theater in the United States, regional theater company located in Berkeley, California. It runs seven productions each season from its two stages in Downtown Berkeley, California, Downtown Berkeley. Histor ...
, acting in its first production, and stayed with the company for ten years. He relocated to
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...
during the late 1970s, obtaining guest roles for television and minor roles in ''
American Graffiti ''American Graffiti'' is a 1973 American coming-of-age comedy-drama film directed by George Lucas, produced by Francis Ford Coppola, written by Willard Huyck, Gloria Katz and Lucas, and starring Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Paul Le Mat ...
'' (1973) and '' The Enforcer'' (1976). In ''Hill Street Blues'' he played Henry Goldblume during the entire seven-year run of the series, first as a detective sergeant, later as a lieutenant. Goldblume was one of Hill Street precinct captain Frank Furillo's trusted junior officers, serving at times as a hostage negotiator and gangs relations officer. The character was sympathetic to crime victims, sometimes conflicting with his duties as a police officer. Spano was one of many actors appearing throughout each episode, which typically had several story lines intermingled. After ''Hill Street Blues'' ended, Spano won recurring roles in television police shows '' Murder One'' (1995) and ''
NYPD Blue ''NYPD Blue'' is an American police procedural television series set in New York City, exploring the struggles of the fictional 15th Precinct detective squad in Manhattan. Each episode typically intertwines several plots involving an ensemble ca ...
'' (1993), again as a detective, and has appeared regularly in television movies and television shows like ''
The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The original series aired from September 10, 1993, to Ma ...
'' (episodes " Tempus Fugit" and "
Max Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (American dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (British dog), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of the OBE) * Max (gorilla) ...
"), ''
Mercy Point ''Mercy Point'' is an American Science fiction on television, science fiction medical drama, created by Trey Callaway, David Simkins, and Milo Frank, which originally aired for one season on United Paramount Network (UPN) from October ...
'' and ''
Amazing Grace "Amazing Grace" is a Christian hymn written in 1772 and published in 1779 by English Anglican clergyman and poet John Newton (1725–1807). It is possibly the most sung and most recorded hymn in the world, and especially popular in the Unit ...
''. Spano won an
Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award catego ...
award in 1988 for Best Guest Actor in a Drama Series for a role he played in an episode of '' Midnight Caller''. He has appeared in several feature movies, including ''
Apollo 13 Apollo 13 (April 1117, 1970) was the seventh crewed mission in the Apollo program, Apollo space program and would have been the third Moon landing. The craft was launched from Kennedy Space Center on April 11, 1970, but the landing was abort ...
'' and '' Primal Fear''. His credits are often confused with Australian actor Joseph Spano. They are not related.Joe Spano (I) – Biography
/ref> He is a veteran stage actor on the east and west coasts. Spano made his Broadway debut in 1992 in the Roundabout Theater revival of
Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are '' All My Sons'' (1947), '' Death of a Salesman'' (1 ...
's '' The Price'', with
Eli Wallach Eli Herschel Wallach ( ; December 7, 1915 – June 24, 2014) was an American film, television, and stage actor from New York City. Known for his character actor roles, his entertainment career spanned over six decades. He received a British Aca ...
, which was nominated for a Tony for Best Revival. West coast stage credits include Eduardo Pavlovsky's ''Potestad'', and
David Mamet David Alan Mamet (; born November 30, 1947) is an American playwright, author, and filmmaker. He won a Pulitzer Prize and received Tony Award, Tony nominations for his plays ''Glengarry Glen Ross'' (1984) and ''Speed-the-Plow'' (1988). He first ...
's ''
Speed-the-Plow ''Speed-the-Plow'' is a 1988 play by David Mamet that is a satirical dissection of the American movie business. As stated in ''The Producer's Perspective'', "this is a theme Mamet would revisit in his later films ''Wag the Dog'' (1997) and ''St ...
'' and '' American Buffalo'', for which he was awarded an LA Drama Critics Circle Award. At the Rubicon Theater in Ventura he has played General Burgoyne in
George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from the 188 ...
's '' The Devil's Disciple'', Greg in A. R. Gurney's '' Sylvia'' and Vladimir in ''
Waiting for Godot ''Waiting for Godot'' ( or ) is a 1953 play by Irish writer and playwright Samuel Beckett, in which the two main characters, Vladimir (Waiting for Godot), Vladimir (Didi) and Estragon (Gogo), engage in a variety of discussions and encounters w ...
''. He is a member of the Antaeus Theater Company and a founding member of three other theater companies. He played a seductive vampire in the cult musical ''Dracula: A Musical Nightmare'' in a small Los Angeles theatre.Joe Spano (I) - Biography
/ref> He also appeared in the TV movie '' Brotherhood of Justice'' with
Keanu Reeves Keanu Charles Reeves ( ; born September 2, 1964) is a Canadian actor and musician. The recipient of numerous accolades in a career on screen spanning four decades, he is known for his leading roles in action films, his amiable public imag ...
and
Kiefer Sutherland Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland (born 21 December 1966) is a Canadian actor. He is best known for his starring role as Jack Bauer in the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox drama series ''24 (TV series), 24'' (2001–2010, 20 ...
. He is the voice of the Wild Flower Hotline for the Theodore Payne Foundation, which can be reached by telephoning (818) 768-1802.


''NCIS''

Spano has been a recurring character of '' NCIS'' since its premiere episode, " Yankee White", playing FBI Special Agent Tobias Fornell, the FBI counterpart to NCIS Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs, portrayed by
Mark Harmon Thomas Mark Harmon (born September 2, 1951) is an American actor, writer, producer, television director and former American football, football player. He is best known for playing the lead role of Leroy Jethro Gibbs on ''NCIS (TV series), NCIS'' ...
. In Season 15, Fornell is no longer with the FBI, but is a private investigator. Two episodes have used Fornell's personal life as the basis of an ''NCIS'' episode: one where Fornell's daughter is imperiled and another where Fornell's career is imperiled. In each episode, it is the friendship between Gibbs and Fornell which is invoked in order to involve NCIS in the resolution.


Personal life

His parents were Vincent Dante Spano, a physician, and the former Virginia Jean Carpenter. He graduated from Archbishop Riordan High School in 1963, and he is an honorary member of the House of Russi. Spano and his wife Joan Zerrien, a therapist, were married in 1980, and have two adopted daughters.


Filmography


Film


Television


Awards and nominations

Ovation Awards The Ovation Awards were a Southern California award for excellence in theatre, established in 1989. They were given out by the non-profit arts service organization LA Stage Alliance and are the only peer-judged theatre awards in Los Angeles. Win ...
*
2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...
: Nominated for Lead Actor in a Play for the role of George in the Rubicon Theatre Company production of ''
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? ''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' is a play by Edward Albee first staged in October 1962. It examines the complexities of the marriage of middle-aged couple Martha and George. Late one evening, after a university faculty party, they rece ...
''


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Spano, Joe 1946 births Living people Male actors from San Francisco American male film actors American male television actors 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American male stage actors American people of Italian descent Archbishop Riordan High School alumni