Michael Tucci (born April 15, 1946) is an American actor and retired high school teacher. He played Pete Schumaker in ''

It's Garry Shandling's Show ''It's Garry Shandling's Show'' is an American sitcom that was initially broadcast on Showtime from September 10, 1986 to May 25, 1990. It was created by Garry Shandling and Alan Zweibel. The series is notable for breaking the fourth wall. ...

'' (1986-1990), and Sonny LaTierri in the 1978 film '' Grease''.

Personal life

Tucci was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

, New York, the son of Minerva D. (née LaRosa) and Nicholas Tucci, a business executive. He graduated from

H. Frank Carey Junior-Senior High School H. Frank Carey High School is a public high school located in Franklin Square, New York serving students in the seventh through twelfth grades from the towns of Franklin Square, Garden City South, Garden City, West Hempstead, and Elmont. As ...

in Franklin Square, New York and C.W. Post College of

Long Island University Long Island University (LIU) is a private university with two main campuses, LIU Post and LIU Brooklyn, in the U.S. state of New York. It offers more than 500 academic programs at its main campuses, online, and at multiple non-residential. LI ...

, where he was President of local Sigma Beta Epsilon fraternity that had

Marjorie Merriweather Post Marjorie Merriweather Post (March 15, 1887 – September 12, 1973) was an American businesswoman, socialite, and philanthropist. She was also the owner of General Foods Corporation. Post used much of her fortune to collect art, particularly I ...

as its honorary house mother and later became a chapter of

Sigma Alpha Epsilon Sigma Alpha Epsilon (), commonly known as SAE, is a North American Greek-letter social college Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity. It was founded at the University of Alabama on March 9, 1856. Of all existing national socia ...

national fraternity. Tucci also served as a dormitory Residence Manager. He also earned a J.D. degree from

St. John's Law School St. John's University School of Law is a Roman Catholic law school in Jamaica, Queens, New York, United States, affiliated with St. John's University. The School of Law was founded in 1925, and confers Juris Doctor degrees and degrees for Mas ...

br>
He is married to a former television network executive, Kathleen, with whom he has two daughters, Kate (b. 1989) and Kelly (b. 1994).

Career

Tucci is best known for playing the T-Birds member Sonny LaTierri in the 1978 film version of the musical '' Grease''. He portrayed law student Gerald Golden in the TV series '' The Paper Chase (TV series), The Paper Chase'' from 1983 to 1986. He then played best friend Pete Schumaker on ''

'' (1986–1990). He also spent more than three years touring with companies of the musical ''

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

,'' performing as Amos, Roxy Hart's husband. He also performed as the Green Apple in the play "Destination" by Uta Hagen. He was also in numerous productions on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

. On television, he also played Mark Sloan's friend and hospital administrator Norman Briggs for the first four seasons of '' Diagnosis: Murder''. He played the father of

Melissa McCarthy Melissa Ann McCarthy (born August 26, 1970) is an American actress, comedian, producer, writer, and fashion designer. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including two Primetime Emmy Awards, and nominations for two Academy Awards and tw ...

's character in '' The Heat'' (2013). Tucci was also a teacher and theatre coach at St. Francis High School in

La Cañada Flintridge, California La Cañada Flintridge, commonly known as "La Cañada" (Spanish for "The Canyon"), is a city in the foothills of the Verdugo Mountains in Los Angeles County, California. Located in the Crescenta Valley, in the western edge of Southern Californ ...

. In 2014 he directed the school's rendition of ''We're the Millers'' starring American Croatian comedians George Dulcich and Stanko Zovak.

Filmography

Television credits

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tucci, Michael 1946 births American male film actors American male television actors Living people Male actors from New York City American people of Italian descent People from Franklin Square, New York 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors