Tony Sperandeo is an Italian

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 actor of cinema and television. Sperandeo is notable for frequently playing the roles of characters from his native region, Sicily

Sicily

Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...

. As of 2011, he was working on La Nuova Squadra, a police drama televised by Rai Tre

Rai Tre

Rai 3 is part of RAI, the Italian government broadcasting agency, which owns other channels, such as Rai 1 and Rai 2 . Rai 3 first started transmissions on December 15, 1979. In the eighties it was under the predominant political influence of the Italian Communist Party...

, as the Superintendent Salvatore Sciacca.

Career

He was born Gaetano Sperandeo in Palermo

Palermo

Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...

.

In 1983, his acting career began with a small part in the film Kaos, directed by the Taviani brothers. In 1985, he landed a role in a cinematographic film Pizza Connection, by Damiano Damiani. He also acted in four of the sequels of the popular television drama, "La Piovra

La Piovra

La Piovra is an acclaimed Italian Television drama miniseries about the Mafia.The story was by Sandro Petraglia. The production was designed by Luigi Perelli...

", which is about the Mafia

Mafia

The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...

. He has appeared in many other Italian films, the most notable being La scorta by Ricky Tognazzi

Ricky Tognazzi

Riccardo Tognazzi is an Italian actor and film director. He has appeared in 50 films and television shows since 1963. His film The Escort was entered into the 1993 Cannes Film Festival...

, as well as "Ragazzi fuori

Ragazzi fuori

Ragazzi fuori is an Italian language dramatic film directed by Marco Risi in the neo-neorealistic style and written by Aurelio Grimaldi. Released in 1990, it is the sequel to the 1989 film Mery per sempre...

" and "Mery per sempre

Mery per sempre

Mery per sempre , is an Italian language dramatic film directed by Marco Risi and released in 1989. It stars Michele Placido, Claudio Amendola, Alessandro Di Sanzo, Francesco Benigno, Salvatore Termini and Tony Sperandeo.- Synopsis :...

", the latter two set in his home town of Palermo. They are both directed by Marco Risi.

Since 2004, he has appeared regularly on television in the role of Superintendent Salvatore Sciacca, first in the police drama La Squadra (2004–2007), and its sequel, La Nuova Squadra (2008–2009, 2011).

In 2001, Sperandeo won the David di Donatello

David di Donatello

David di Donatello, named after Donatello's David, is a movie award assigned each year for cinematic performances and production by Ente David di Donatello, part of Accademia del Cinema Italiano. It is the Italian equivalent to the Academy Award. There are 24 categories as of 2006.- History :The...

 award for Best Supporting Actor in "I cento passi" ("One Hundred Steps

One Hundred Steps

I Cento Passi is an Italian film released in 2000, directed by Marco Tullio Giordana about the life of Giuseppe “Peppino” Impastato, a political activist who opposed the Mafia in Sicily. The story takes place in the small town of Cinisi in the province of Palermo, the home town of the Impastato...

"), directed by Marco Tullio Giordana, in which he played the role of Mafia boss Tano Badalamenti

Gaetano Badalamenti

Gaetano Badalamenti was a powerful member of the Sicilian Mafia. Don Tano Badalamenti was the capofamiglia of his hometown Cinisi, Sicily, and headed the Sicilian Mafia Commission in the 1970s...

.

Personal life

He was married to actress Rita Barbanera (1968–2001), by whom he has two children, Tony and Priscilla. Sperandeo met her on the set of Mery per sempre, the film in which he was working at the time. They performed together in one film, La discesa di Aclà a Floristella in 1992. Rita was primarily a stage actress.

In 2001, Rita Barbanera committed suicide by jumping off the balcony at their home in Palermo. She was thirty-two years old.

Filmography

• Kaos (1984)
• Pizza Connection (1985)
• Il pentito (1985)
• Il siciliano (1987)
• Mery per sempre
  Mery per sempre
  Mery per sempre , is an Italian language dramatic film directed by Marco Risi and released in 1989. It stars Michele Placido, Claudio Amendola, Alessandro Di Sanzo, Francesco Benigno, Salvatore Termini and Tony Sperandeo.- Synopsis :...
  
  (1989)
• Tre colonne in cronaca (1990)
• Briganti (1991)
• Il sole anche di notte
  The Sun Also Shines at Night
  The Sun Also Shines at Night is an Italian film directed by Paolo and Vittorio Taviani in 1990. It was screened out of competition at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* Julian Sands - Sergio Giuramondo* Charlotte Gainsbourg - Matilda...
  
  (1990)
• Ragazzi fuori
  Ragazzi fuori
  Ragazzi fuori is an Italian language dramatic film directed by Marco Risi in the neo-neorealistic style and written by Aurelio Grimaldi. Released in 1990, it is the sequel to the 1989 film Mery per sempre...
  
   (1990)
• Caldo soffocante (1991)
• Il muro di gomma (1991)
• Una storia semplice (1991)
• Piedipatti (1991)
• Johnny Stecchino (1991)
• Uomo di rispetto (1992)
• La discesa di Aclà a Floristella (1992)
• Nel continente nero (1993)
• La scorta
  The Escort
  The Escort is a 1993 Italian crime film directed by Ricky Tognazzi. It was an entry at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival.-Plot:The film shows the difficulties of an honest, imperiled judge and his bodyguard of four men, trying to clean up a Sicilian town...
  
  (1993)
• Quattro bravi ragazzi (1993)
• I Mitici - Colpo gobbo a Milano (1994)
• Miracolo ttaliano (1994)
• Segreto di stato (1995)
• Palermo-Milano solo andata (1995)
• L'uomo delle stelle (1995)
• Vesna va veloce (1996)
• Altri uomini (1997)
• Volare! (1997)
• Una sola debole voce (1998)
• La Stanza dello scirocco (1998)
• I Giudici - Vittime eccellenti (1999)
• Un giudice di rispetto (2000)
• Arresti domiciliari (2000)
• L'uomo della fortuna (2000)
• One Hundred Steps
  One Hundred Steps
  I Cento Passi is an Italian film released in 2000, directed by Marco Tullio Giordana about the life of Giuseppe “Peppino” Impastato, a political activist who opposed the Mafia in Sicily. The story takes place in the small town of Cinisi in the province of Palermo, the home town of the Impastato...
  
  (2000)
• Il testimone (2001)
• E adesso sesso (2001)
• Tra due mondi (2001)
• Il latitante (2003)
• Miracolo a Palermo! (2003)
• Eccezziunale... Veramente - Capitolo secondo... me (2006)
• Il 7 e l'8 (2006)
• Una moglie bellissima (2007)
• L'uomo di vetro (2007)
• Prigionero di un segreto (2008)

Television

• La Piovra 2 (1985, mini-series)
• Felipe ha gli occhi azzurri (1991)
• La Piovra 6- L'ultimo segreto (1992, mini-series)
• A che punto è la notte (1995)
• Non parla più (1995)
• La Piovra 8 - Lo scandalo (1997, mini-series)
• Mia Padre e Innocente (1997)
• La Piovra 9 - Il patto (1998, mini-series)
• Cronaca di un ricatto (1999)
• Don Matteo (first series, episode "Stato di Ebbrezza", 1999)
• Fine secolo (1999)
• L'attentatuni (2001)
• Distretto di Polizia
  Distretto di Polizia
  Distretto di Polizia is an Italian television series....
  
  (2001, series)
• Il sequestro Soffrantini (2002)
• Soldati di pace (2003)
• Blindati (2003)
• Ultimo - L'infiltrato (2003)
• La Squadra (2004–2007, series)
• La nuova Squadra (2008–2009, 2011 series)
• Il sangue dei vinti (2009, mini-series)