Ralph Macchio

Ralph Macchio
Macchio at the Chiller Theatre Expo in New Jersey, October 2013
Born	Ralph George Macchio, Jr. November 4, 1961 Huntington, New York, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1980–present
Spouse(s)	Phyllis Fierro (m. 1987)
Children	2

Ralph George Macchio, Jr. (/ˈmɑːtʃi.oʊ/, Italian pronunciation: [ˈmakkjo]; born November 4, 1961) is an American actor, best known for his roles as Daniel LaRusso in the Karate Kid series, Eugene Martone in Crossroads, Bill Gambini in My Cousin Vinny, and Johnny Cade in The Outsiders. He is also known to American television audiences for his recurring role as Jeremy Andretti in the fifth season of the television comedy-drama Eight Is Enough. He also appeared on the television comedy Ugly Betty in the recurring role of Archie, a local Queens politician. He competed on the twelfth season of Dancing with the Stars. Ralph also appeared twice on the show Psych.

Early life

Macchio was born in Huntington, New York.^[1] He is the son of Rosalie (née DeSantis) and Ralph Macchio, Sr., who owned a ranch.^[2][3] His father is of half Greek^[4] and half Italian descent, and his mother is of Italian ancestry.^[5] In a 1980 screen test, Macchio stated his family is from Naples.^[6]

Career

Macchio first appeared on American television commercials for products such as Bubble Yum and Dr Pepper. His on-screen debut was in the 1980 film Up the Academy, and his first major role was playing Jeremy Andretti in the television series Eight Is Enough. In 1983, he appeared as Johnny Cade in The Outsiders alongside many young actors who had yet to become major stars, such as C. Thomas Howell, Tom Cruise, Emilio Estevez, Patrick Swayze, Rob Lowe, and Matt Dillon.

In 1984, Macchio became known internationally following the release of the first Karate Kid film. Playing high school senior Daniel LaRusso, Macchio was actually in his early twenties when the film was made. He continued this success with the film's sequels, The Karate Kid Part II and The Karate Kid, Part III. In the mid-1980s, Macchio's face began appearing on the covers of many teen "bubblegum" magazines such as Tiger Beat, 16, and Teen Beat.

Macchio appeared in the 1986 film Crossroads, portraying music student Eugene Martone. In 1992, he starred opposite Joe Pesci and Marisa Tomei in the hit comedy My Cousin Vinny, playing William Gambini, who was wrongly accused of murder while passing through a small Alabama town. It was the first significant adult role of his career.

In 1993, Macchio portrayed Chris, the sexually confused best friend of Eric Stoltz's character, in the indie film Naked in New York, along with such notable actors as Mary-Louise Parker, Jill Clayburgh, Kathleen Turner, and Tony Curtis.

In 1996, Macchio performed the lead role of J. Pierrepont Finch in the U.S. tour revival of the 1962 Tony Award winning musical How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, and received positive reviews. Referring to his performance as a chorister in a high school production of the same musical, Macchio said, "I was known as the 'Dancing Kid,' not that I was all that great. But I had been dancing since the age of three, taking lessons at the June Claire School of Dance in Babylon, Long Island."^[7][8]

Since the mid-1990s, Macchio's film appearances have been occasional cameo or supporting roles, notably and recently A Good Night to Die and Beer League. In 2005 Macchio played himself in the HBO series, Entourage.

On May 1, 2007, Macchio played himself in an episode of the Starz series, Head Case. In 2008, he appeared in a VitaminWater commercial that featured NASCAR driver Carl Edwards. Macchio was depicted as Edwards' "spiritual advisor" and dressed in his Karate Kid clothes. Since October 2008, he has appeared in several episodes of the ABC Network television series Ugly Betty as Archie Rodriguez, a local politician, with a semi-regular role as Hilda's love interest on the show.

As of November 2008, Macchio was ranked No. 80 among VH1's 100 Greatest Teen Stars.^[9]

Macchio in August 2013.

In June 2010, Macchio appeared in Funny or Die's online short, "Wax On, F*ck Off", in which his loved ones stage an intervention to turn the former child star from a well-adjusted family man into an addict besieged with tabloid scandal, all in order to help his career. During the video Macchio reacts to seeing a poster for the 2010 Karate Kid remake.^[10] A recurring joke in the sketch is that Macchio is confused for an adolescent. The short was lauded by TV Guide's Bruce Fretts, who referred to the video as "sidesplitting" and "comic gold".^[11]

On September 20, 2010, Macchio played the adult Carl Morelli in a staged reading of the Charles Messina play A Room of My Own presented by the Bleecker Street Theater Company.^[12]

In February 2011 it was announced he would compete on ABC's Dancing with the Stars. He was eliminated during the semi-finals, placing fourth in the overall competition.^[13]

Macchio appeared in Canadian band Danko Jones' music videos for "Had Enough" and "I Think Bad Thoughts", also featuring Elijah Wood and Jena Malone.^[14]

In April 2012, Macchio was cast in the film Hitchcock, based on the non-fiction book Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho, co-starring Anthony Hopkins, Helen Mirren, Jessica Biel and Toni Collette, and directed by Sacha Gervasi. Macchio portrays Psycho screenwriter Joseph Stefano.^[15]

In April 2013, Macchio appeared in the popular sitcom How I Met Your Mother in the episode entitled "The Bro-Mitzvah".

From February to March 2016, Macchio co-stars with Mario Cantone in the Off-Broadway production A Room of My Own,^[16] after having read the play in 2010^[12] and 2014.^[17]

Personal life

Ralph Macchio first met future wife Phyllis Fierro when his grandmother introduced them when he was 15.^[18] They married when he was 26 and have two children, Julia (born 1992) and Daniel (born 1996). Fierro is a former nurse practitioner.^[18][19][20]

In popular culture

DJ Q-Ball of the Bloodhound Gang released a song on his MySpace called "The Ralph Macchio Memoirs". Poetry slam artist Big Poppa E references Ralph Macchio in his performance poem The Wussy Boy Manifesto. Nerdcore artist MC Frontalot mentions him in his song, "Braggadocio".^[21] Macchio was featured in a brief cameo at the end of the No More Kings video for "Sweep the Leg".^[22]

Macchio's character in the Karate Kid film inspired the "Daniel" song by English singer Bat for Lashes;^[23] the front cover of the single shows Bat for Lashes with Daniel LaRusso's face painted on her back.^[24]

The song "Ralph Macchio" by Norwegian singer Annie is about her crush on Macchio in her youth^[25] over an 80s-themed pop track.

In the TV series How I Met Your Mother, Barney Stinson asserts that Macchio's character, Daniel LaRusso, in The Karate Kid isn't the real karate kid; instead, it's Johnny Lawrence, Daniel's nemesis in the film. In the 8th season episode The Bro Mitzvah, Ralph Macchio is invited to Barney's bachelor party, although Barney is disappointed in the surprise, expecting actor William Zabka, the "real Karate Kid". For the duration of the episode, the characters note the similarities between Barney and Macchio, by which Barney is disgusted. At the end of the night, the clown hired for the party's entertainment reveals himself to be William Zabka.^[26]

In the Parks and Recreation episode "The Master Plan", Andy Dwyer, unable to remember the proper name of Jean-Ralphio Saperstein, declares "That Ralph Macchio guy's a total douche" after Jean-Ralphio flirts with April Ludgate.^[27]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1980	Up the Academy	Chooch Bambalazi
1982	High Powder	Eddie	Television film
1982	Dangerous Company	Denny Brody	Television film
1983	Outsiders, TheThe Outsiders	Johnny Cade
1984	Karate Kid, TheThe Karate Kid	Daniel LaRusso
1984	Teachers	Eddie Pilikian
1984	Three Wishes of Billy Grier, TheThe Three Wishes of Billy Grier	Billy Grier	Television film
1986	Crossroads	Eugene Martone
1986	Karate Kid, Part II, TheThe Karate Kid, Part II	Daniel LaRusso
1988	Distant Thunder	Jack Lambert
1989	Karate Kid, Part III, TheThe Karate Kid, Part III	Daniel LaRusso
1990	Too Much Sun	Frank Jr.
1992	Last P.O.W.: The Bobby Garwood Story, TheThe Last P.O.W.: The Bobby Garwood Story	Robert Garwood	Television film
1992	My Cousin Vinny	Bill Gambini
1993	Naked in New York	Chris
1998	Dizzyland	N/A
1998	Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue, TheThe Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue	17-year-old Timmy Brisby	Voice; direct-to-video
2000	Office Party, TheThe Office Party	Sean	Short film
2000	Can't Be Heaven	Hubbie Darling
2001	Popcorn Shrimp	Cop #2	Short film
2003	Good Night to Die, AA Good Night to Die	Donnie
2006	Artie Lange's Beer League	Maz
2009	Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Undead	Bobby Bianchi
2012	Hitchcock	Joseph Stefano
2012	Holiday Spin	Ruben	Television film
2013	He's Way More Famous Than You	Himself
2014	Little Game, AA Little Game	Tom	Completed
TBA	Lost Cat Corona	Dominic	Filming

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1980–1981	Eight Is Enough	Jeremy Andretti	19 episodes
1982	CBS Afternoon Playhouse	Tony Barnett	Episode: "Journey to Survival"
1999	Outer Limits, TheThe Outer Limits	Dr. Neal Eberhardt	Episode: "The Other Side"
2000	Chicken Soup for the Soul	Max	Episode: "Letters to Suzie"
2000	Twice in a Lifetime	Officer Dan Payello/Phillip Barbosa	Episode: "My Blue Heaven"
2005	Entourage	Himself	Episode: "Aquamansion"
2007	Head Case	Himself	Episode: "Ralph Macchio and Liz Phair"
2008–2009	Ugly Betty	Archie Rodriguez	11 episodes
2010	Law & Order: Criminal Intent	Louis Marciano	Episode: "Inhumane Society"
2010	Psych	Nick Conforth	Episode: "We'd Like to Thank the Academy"
2011	Dancing with the Stars	Himself (contestant)	Placed in fourth
2012	Happily Divorced	Frankie	2 episodes
2013	Robot Chicken	Daniel LaRusso, Gibby, Janitor	Voice; episode: "Caffeine-Induced Aneurysm"
2013	How I Met Your Mother	Himself	Episode: "The Bro Mitzvah"
2014	Psych	Logan Phelps	Episode: "Remake A.K.A. Cloudy... With a Chance of Improvement"

Music videos

Year	Title	Artist	Role
2007	"Sweep the Leg"	No More Kings	Himself
2010	"Had Enough"	Danko Jones	Dr. Lee Dorian
2011	"I Think Bad Thoughts"	Danko Jones	Dr. Lee Dorian

References

1. "Ralph Macchio Biography". Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved 2008-09-21.
2. J3158-2009 – NY Senate Open Legislation – Congratulating Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Macchio upon the occasion of their 50th Anniversary .New York State Senate.
3. "Ralph Macchio Sr., father of the actor best known for his recurring role as Daniel LaRusso in three Karate Kid movies... Macchio operated a Western entertainment park – the Wild West Ranch and Western Town in Lake George, NY -until closing it this year after a land ownership". Nl.newsbank.com (October 5, 2007).
4. "American Gypsies: Q&A With Executive Producer Ralph Macchio". National Geographic Society. Archived from the original on October 3, 2013. Retrieved October 4, 2013. Actually, I have a little Greek in the bloodstream as well (my Dad is half Greek).
5. Q&A With Executive Producer Ralph Macchio. National Geographic Channel.
6. "Ralph Macchio and Phil Hartman screen test". Youtube. Retrieved October 10, 2014.
7. "How Ralph Macchio Succeeds". Playbill. April 24, 1996. Retrieved March 23, 2011.
8. Rousuck, J. Wynn (May 31, 1996). "A cheery revival for 'How to Succeed' Review: Grown-up Ralph Macchio charms as this updated '61 Pulitzer Prize musical opens a national tour here". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved March 23, 2011.
9. "100 Greatest Teen Stars #'s 80-61". vh1devas2000live.com. MTV Networks. Retrieved November 15, 2008.
10. "Wax On, F*ck Off with Ralph Macchio" Funny or Die; 2010
11. Fretts, Bruce. "Cheers & Jeers"; TV Guide; July 5, 2010; Page 92
12. Lenzi, Linda (September 21, 2010). "Photo Coverage: Cantone, Macchio et al. in A ROOM OF MY OWN". BroadwayWorld.com.
13. Chen, Joyce (May 18, 2011). "'Dancing with the Stars' semi-finals recap: Ralph Macchio, Karina Smirnoff knocked out of the running". Daily News (New York). Retrieved May 18, 2011.
14. "Ralph Macchio, Elijah Wood Think Bad Thoughts in Indie Music Clip". The Wrap. March 28, 2011. Retrieved March 28, 2011.
15. "Ralph Macchio Plays 'Psycho' Scribe Joe Stefano In 'Hitchcock'". Deadline.com. April 17, 2012. Retrieved April 19, 2012.
16. Piepenburg, Erik (February 12, 2016). "It’s O.K. With Ralph Macchio if You Call Him the Karate Kid". Theater. The New York Times. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
17. Gans, Andrew (March 7, 2014). "Ralph Macchio and Mario Cantone Will Take Part in Reading of New Comedy A Room of My Own". Playbill. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
18. "Ralph Macchio's 50th Birthday: From Karate Kid To Dancing Star". Huffington Post. January 4, 2012. slide 6. Retrieved March 29, 2015.
19. Jocelyn Valle (June 25, 2010). "Whatever happened to Ralph Macchio?". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved December 5, 2010.
20. Paul Chi. "The Karate Kid All Grown Up". People. Retrieved December 5, 2010.
21. Mc Frontalot – Braggadocio Lyrics. Lyricstime.com.
22. Campbell, Christopher (June 11, 2010). "William Zabka-Directed Music Video, 'Sweep the Leg, Johnny'". moviefone. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
23. "The Great Girl Grossout"". 89.3 The Current Presents (Minnesota Public Radio). January 31, 2010. Archived from the original on March 26, 2010. Retrieved October 24, 2015.
24. Natural wonder. Cbc.ca (May 11, 2009).
25. "Annie announces 'A&R' EP will be released in August". NME. July 2, 2013. Retrieved July 31, 2013.
26. Gonzalez, Sandra (April 29, 2013). "'How I Met Your Mother' recap: The Barney". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
27. Kandell, Steve (May 14, 2010). "Parks and Recreation Recap: Are We Having Fun Yet?". New York. Archived from the original on June 13, 2011. Retrieved October 27, 2015.

External links

• Ralph Macchio at the Internet Movie Database
• Ralph Macchio on Twitter