Ron Carey (actor)

Ronald Joseph Cicenia (December 11, 1935 – January 16, 2007), known as Ron Carey, was an American film and television actor. The 5-foot-4-inch (1.63 m) actor was best known for playing ambitious NYPD Police Officer Carl Levitt on TV's Barney Miller, in which he was almost always surrounded by male actors (and sometimes female guest stars) who stood at least 8 inches (20 cm) taller. The series' stars (Hal Linden, Max Gail, Abe Vigoda, Ron Glass, Steve Landesberg) all stood 6 feet (1.83 m) or more. Carey appeared in the recurring role for the last six of the eight seasons of Barney Miller's run. He first appeared on the show as a criminal, Angelo Molinari (aka The Mole), in Season 2, Episode 22.

Ron Carey
Ron Carey in The Montefuscos (1975)
Born
Ronald Joseph Cicenia

(1935-12-11)December 11, 1935
Newark, New Jersey
DiedJanuary 16, 2007(2007-01-16) (aged 71)
Los Angeles, California
OccupationActor
Spouse(s)
Sharon Boyeronus
​
(m. 1968)​

Carey was among the slate of actors who were members of Mel Brooks unofficial repertory company, appearing in several of the director's films; Carey was featured in Silent Movie, High Anxiety, and History of the World: Part I. He also appeared in Fatso, directed by Brooks' wife Anne Bancroft and featuring several Brooks regulars.

Life and career

Carey was born in Newark, New Jersey, the son of Fanny and John Cicenia, and was raised in an Italian American Catholic family. Carey did stand-up comedy in the 1960s, after earning a bachelor's degree in communications from Seton Hall University in 1956. His comedy centered mostly on Catholicism and his childhood of being the undersized but quick-witted kid on the block. His break came in 1966 when he appeared on The Merv Griffin Show and in 1967 he released a comedy album entitled The Slightly Irreverent Comedy of Ron Carey.[1]

From the mid-1970s on, Carey was a member of Mel Brooks' comedy troupe, appearing in featured roles in films such as High Anxiety, Silent Movie, and History of the World, Part I. He also appeared in supporting roles in other films and on television, and was seen in scores of commercials, including some T-shirt ads for Hanes, an ad for Nabisco's snack cracker Better Cheddars, where he sang, and a Post Honeycomb ad, in which he played a character named Mr. Big who came to the Honeycomb Hideout looking for a cereal with "a big, big bite."[2] He is most remembered for his role as the diligent but somewhat obsequious and passive-aggressive Officer Carl Levitt, which he played from 1976 to 1982 on the TV series Barney Miller.

Carey died of a stroke at a Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California, in January 2007. He is survived by his wife of 38 years, Sharon, and his brother, James Cicenia.

Filmography
Year Title Role Notes
1970The Out-of-TownersCab Driver - Boston
1971Who Killed Mary What's 'Er Name?Larry the Bartender
1971Made for Each OtherGroup Member #1
1971Dynamite ChickenHimself
1971 NBC Children’s Theater episode: “Super Plastic Elastic Goggles"
1975The MontefuscosFrank MontefuscoTV Series, 9 episodes
1976Silent MovieDevour
1976-1982Barney MillerOfficer Carl Levitt / Angelo Molinari aka The MoleTV Series, 121 episodes
1977High AnxietyBrophy
1980FatsoFrankie
1981History of the World: Part ISwiftus
1984Johnny DangerouslyPat
1989Have FaithFather Vincent PagliaTV Series, 7 episodes
1991Lucky LukeJoe Dalton
1994TroublemakersSheriff Fox
1997The Good Bad GuyRobert Lambert
1999Food for ThoughtBusiness ManShort, (final film role)

References
  1. Hevesi, Dennis (January 19, 2007). "Ron Carey, Comic Actor, Dies at 71". The New York Times. Retrieved January 23, 2018.
  2. Vintage Old 1970's Post Honeycomb Cereal Commercial, YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QP2iT0ub8lc
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