Steve Buscemi

Buscemi made his acting debut in the 1985 film The Way It Is, directed by Eric Mitchell and produced by No Wave Cinema. Other early performances include Parting Glances (1986) and Slaves of New York (1988), as well as an appearance in an episode of the television series Miami Vice in 1986.[7] Buscemi received a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male for his role in Mystery Train, released in 1989.[8] In 1990, he played Mink in the Coen Brothers' Millers Crossing. [9] This was the first of five of the Coen Brothers' films in which Buscemi performed. Also that year, he starred as Test Tube, a henchman of Laurence Fishburne's character Jimmy Jump in Abel Ferrara's crime film King of New York,[10] as well as Edward in the anthology film Tales from the Darkside: The Movie, the protagonist of the "Lot 249" segment of the film.[11]

Buscemi in 1996

In 1991, he played a bellboy, Chet, in the Coen Brothers film Barton Fink.[12] His first lead role was as Adolpho Rollo in Alexandre Rockwell's In the Soup (1992).[13] He gained wider attention for his supporting part as pseudonymous criminal Mr. Pink in Quentin Tarantino's film Reservoir Dogs (1992),[14] a role that Tarantino originally wrote for himself,[9] and one that earned Buscemi the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male in his second nomination.[15] Also in 1992, he had a guest role as Phil Hickle, Ellen's father and older Pete's guidance counselor, in The Adventures of Pete and Pete.[16] The following year, he starred as the eponymous character in the critically panned[17] horror comedy film Ed and His Dead Mother. He also appeared in a cameo appearance in Tarantino's next film, Pulp Fiction, where he portrays a waiter dressed as Buddy Holly who serves Mia Wallace and Vincent Vega.[18] In 1995, Buscemi guest-starred as suspected murderer Gordon Pratt in "End Game", an episode of the television series Homicide: Life on the Street. Buscemi was rumored to be considered for the role of The Scarecrow in Joel Schumacher's proposed fifth installment of the first Batman franchise, Batman Unchained, before Warner Bros. cancelled the project.[19]

Throughout the late-1990s, Buscemi appeared in several films by the Coen Brothers (Joel and Ethan)

The next year, Buscemi again collaborated with the Coen Brothers, starring as kidnapper Carl Showalter in Fargo.[20] Subsequently, he gained a reputation as character actor,[21] with supporting roles as Garland Greene in Con Air (1997), Rockhound in Armageddon (1998) and Donny in The Big Lebowski (1999).[22] Going into the 2000s, Buscemi continued to co-star in supporting roles. He played Seymour in Ghost World (2001) and Romero in Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams (2002), as well as its successor Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003). He also extensively performed voice-over work for animated films, playing Randall Boggs in Monsters, Inc. (2001), — a role he later reprised in its prequel Monsters University (2013) — Mr. Wesley in Home on the Range (2004), Nebbercracker in Monster House (2006) and Templeton the Rat in Charlotte's Web.[23][24][25]

Buscemi at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival

In 2004, Buscemi joined the cast of the television series The Sopranos as Tony Soprano's cousin and childhood friend, Tony Blundetto, a role that earned him an Emmy Award nomination.[26] Buscemi had previously contributed to the show as director of the third-season episode "Pine Barrens", which was one of the most critically acclaimed episodes of the series, and the fourth-season episode "Everybody Hurts".[27] He appeared in episode three of season 6 as a doorman in the afterlife, which is portrayed as a country club in Tony Soprano's dream. He also directed the episodes "In Camelot", the seventh episode of season 5, and "Mr. & Mrs. John Sacrimoni Request...", the fifth episode of season 6. As well, he appeared in the music video for Joe Strummer's cover version of Bob Marley's "Redemption Song".[28]

Buscemi starred in the HBO series Boardwalk Empire starting in 2010, as Enoch "Nucky" Thompson (based on Enoch L. Johnson), a corrupt Atlantic City politician who rules the town during the Prohibition era. He won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama for the role. In 2011 he hosted NBC's Saturday Night Live.[29][30]

He hosts, directs, and produces his own web series talk show, Park Bench, which debuted in May 2014.[31] In January 2016, Buscemi began co-starring alongside Louis C.K. in C.K.'s comedy-drama web series Horace and Pete.[32]

Buscemi has also worked as a director, making his directing debut in the 1990s. His directorial credits include:

• What Happened to Pete (1992) (short film)
• Trees Lounge (1996)
• Animal Factory (2000)
• Lonesome Jim (2005)
• Interview (2007)

In addition to feature films, he directed the television show Love (Netflix Web Series) and episodes of Homicide: Life on the Street; four episodes of The Sopranos, including one of the most critically acclaimed episodes: "Pine Barrens"; as well as two episodes of HBO's prison-drama series Oz, entitled "U.S. Male" and "Cuts Like a Knife". He has also directed two episodes of 30 Rock ("Retreat to Move Forward" and "Leap Day"), and six episodes of Showtime's Nurse Jackie. In the latter, his brother Michael played the character God in several episodes. While scouting a location for a film, Buscemi visited the Philadelphia Eastern State Penitentiary and found the building so interesting that he later provided the majority of the narration for the audio tour there.[33][34]

Buscemi and Lou Reed at a screening of the film Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers, 2006

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Buscemi was adamant about not altering his misaligned teeth, saying, "I've had dentists who have wanted to help me out, but I say, 'You know, I won't work again if you fix my teeth.'"[35][36] Buscemi is noted for wrinkles around his eyes, giving them an aged appearance. "Buscemi eyes" describes the result when his eyes are photo-edited onto others' faces. He has stated that although he did not find this amusing, his wife Jo Andres did.[37]

Buscemi guest-starred in season 6 episode 7 of 30 Rock as a private investigator. Playing against his image, during a flashback he appears to be disguised as a teenager as he says that he was "part of a special task force of very young-looking cops who infiltrated high schools".[38][39] His character's disguise became an internet meme.[40]