STEVEN V. BUSCEMI, INDEPENDENCE & COMMITMENT

Today, The Grandma has been reading about Steve Buscemi, the American actor and filmmaker, who was born on a day like today in 1957.

Steven Vincent Buscemi (December 13, 1957) is an American actor and filmmaker.

He is known for his roles in Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs (1992), Robert Rodriguez's Desperado (1995), Simon West's Con Air (1997), Michael Bay's Armageddon (1998), the dark comedy Ghost World (2001), Tim Burton's drama Big Fish (2003), and Armando Iannucci's political satire The Death of Stalin (2017).

Buscemi is also known for his many collaborations with the Coen brothers, having appeared in six of their films: Miller's Crossing (1990), Barton Fink (1991), The Hudsucker Proxy (1994), Fargo (1996), The Big Lebowski (1998), and Paris, je t'aime (2006).

Buscemi has also had a prolific career in television. From 2010 to 2014, Buscemi starred in the lead role as Enoch "Nucky" Thompson in the critically acclaimed HBO television series Boardwalk Empire created by Terence Winter. His performance earned him two Screen Actors Guild Awards, a Golden Globe and two nominations for an Emmy Award. His other television roles include The Sopranos (2004, 2006), 30 Rock (2007–2013), Portlandia (2014–2017) and Miracle Workers (2019-present).

Buscemi starred in a leading role in comedian Louis C.K.'s tragicomedy web series Horace and Pete (2016). He made his directorial film debut with Trees Lounge (1996), which he also wrote and starred in. Following this, he directed Animal Factory (2000), Lonesome Jim (2004), and Interview (2007).

Buscemi has worked prominently in animation, including voice-work for Randall Boggs in the Monsters, Inc. film franchise (2001–2013), Wesley in Home on the Range (2004), Horace Nebbercracker in Monster House (2006), Templeton the Rat in Charlotte's Web (2006), Scamper in Igor (2008), Bucky the Hamster in G-Force (2009), Wayne the Werewolf in the Hotel Transylvania film franchise (2012–2022) and Francis E. Francis in The Boss Baby (2017).

Multiple film critics and media outlets have cited Buscemi as one of the best actors never to have received an Academy Award nomination.

More information: The Guardian

Steven Vincent Buscemi was born on December 13, 1957, in the borough of Brooklyn in New York City, to Dorothy (Wilson) and John Buscemi. His father was a sanitation worker and served in the Korean War, and his mother was a hostess at Howard Johnson's. Buscemi's paternal ancestors were from the town of Menfi in Sicily, and his mother is of Irish, English, and Dutch ancestry. He has three brothers: Jon, Ken and Michael. Michael is also an actor. Buscemi was raised Catholic.

When Buscemi was 10 years old, the family moved from East New York to Valley Stream in Nassau County.

Buscemi graduated in 1975 from Valley Stream Central High School along with future writer Edward J. Renehan, Jr. and future actress Patricia Charbonneau. In high school, Buscemi wrestled for the varsity squad and participated in the drama troupe.

Buscemi briefly attended Nassau Community College before moving to Manhattan to enroll in the Lee Strasberg Institute.

Buscemi made his acting debut in the 1985 film The Way It Is, directed by Eric Mitchell, which was part of the no wave cinema movement. Other early performances include Parting Glances (1986) as well as an appearance in an episode of the television series Miami Vice in 1986.

In addition to feature films, he directed episodes of the television shows Love, Homicide: Life on the Street, The Sopranos, Oz, 30 Rock, Portlandia, and 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.

More information: GQ

To me, it doesn't really matter how big the part is
as long as the part is important to the story.

Steve Buscemi