Chuck Zito
Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox person Charles Alfred Zito Jr. (born March 1, 1953) is an American actor, stuntman, celebrity bodyguard and former outlaw biker who was president of the New York chapter of the Hells Angels.<ref name="Friend of the Game">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Zito was a member of the Hells Angels for 25 years and served as vice president of the New York City charter and president of the New York Nomads chapter. After entering Hollywood as a celebrity bodyguard, Zito was a film stuntman before finding a breakout acting role as mobster Chucky "The Enforcer" Pancamo on the HBO television series Oz (1997–2003), which he played for six seasons. He followed this up with numerous other "tough guy" roles, such as in Sons of Anarchy (2012). Zito has also been a ringside boxing reporter, professional wrestling manager, and radio personality.
Early lifeEdit
Zito was born in the Bronx, New York City, the second of three children of Charles Zito Sr. and Gloria Frangione.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> His grandparents were Italian immigrants to the United States.<ref name="New York tough guy">Chuck Zito: Inside the life of a New York tough guy We the Italians (May 6, 2015) Template:Webarchive</ref> Zito was raised in the Bronx and New Rochelle.<ref name="Happy Birthday">Happy Birthday To New Rochelle's Chuck Zito Carol Reif, The Daily Voice (March 1, 2016) Template:Webarchive</ref> The son of a professional welterweight boxer, Zito was taught at an early age how to fight and defend himself.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> His father boxed under the ring name Al LaBarba and fought in 228 professional matches.<ref name="Muscling into the action">Muscling into the action: Hells Angel, ex-boxer Chuck Zito hopes to be an ex-bodyguard sometime soon Denis Hamill, New York Daily News (December 14, 1997) Template:Webarchive</ref> At the age of seventeen, Zito dropped out of New Rochelle High School and married his high school sweetheart, Kathy. He later received his high school equivalency diploma while imprisoned at the Federal Correctional Institution, Petersburg.Template:Sfn His involvement with the Hells Angels motorcycle club eventually led to their divorce.<ref name="Street Justice">Template:Cite book</ref> Zito became a refrigerator mechanic.<ref name="Who is Zito?">Who the heck is... Chuck Zito? New York Daily News (December 5, 2004) Template:Webarchive</ref> He also worked as a bouncer at Café Central on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.<ref name="Muscling into the action"/><ref name="Who is Zito?"/>
Boxing and martial artsEdit
Zito was an amateur boxer for several years.<ref name="Stuntman Is Ready For Stardom">A Stuntman Is Ready For a Leap to Stardom The New York Times (August 23, 1998) Template:Webarchive</ref> He trained out of the Southside Boys Club in New Rochelle and Cage Recreation in White Plains, and held an amateur boxing record of 36–5.<ref name="Opening Bell">Opening GG Bell Tonight Jack Smith, New York Daily News (January 30, 1973) Template:Webarchive</ref><ref name="Gatti, Angels, OZ">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Zito had his first boxing match aged 12.<ref name="Who is Zito?"/> At 17, he fought his first of four career Golden Gloves bouts when he knocked out Joe Pratt at 1:50 of round two of a preliminary bout in the Template:Convert sub-novice division of the 47th annual New York Golden Gloves, held at the Felt Forum on January 30, 1973.<ref name="Who is Zito?"/><ref>A Refrigeration Expert, of Course New York Daily News (January 31, 1973)</ref> Zito then defeated Michael Nesbitt in the tournament's third round at the Audubon Ballroom on February 19, 1973, before losing to Orlando Nieves in the fourth round of the competition at the Felt Forum on February 23, 1973.<ref>Vasquez Outlasts White In 118 Open Jack Smith, New York Daily News (February 20, 1973)</ref><ref>Taglianetti, Miller Win GG Bouts New York Daily News (February 23, 1973)</ref> He returned to the Golden Gloves on February 2, 1978, losing to Gaylord Bryant at the Felt Forum in the Template:Convert open division.<ref>Glovers Hit Canarsie Monday Night Jack Smith, New York Daily News (February 4, 1978)</ref> Zito was later the boxing coach of Mickey Rourke.<ref name="Smashed">“Smashed”: Boxing Changed Mickey Rourke's Face Forever Anna Fletcher, eightieskids.com (April 4, 2022) Template:Webarchive</ref>
He developed friendships with Arturo Gatti, Vinny Pazienza and Mike Tyson.<ref name="Friend of the Game" /> Zito was seen with Cuba Gooding Jr. and Dwayne Johnson at the Lennox Lewis vs. Mike Tyson pre-fight party on June 8, 2002, at the Memphis Pyramid.<ref name="Friend of the Game" /> He first met Gatti in 1996 and accompanied the boxer to the ring for several high-profile fights.<ref name="Gatti wife">Gatti wife says 'I'm innocent' of boxing champ's murder NJ.com (July 16, 2009) Template:Webarchive</ref>
In 2003, Zito began his career as a broadcaster with a role as a ringside reporter on Monday Night Fights broadcasts on HBO.<ref name="Friend of the Game"/> He was also a correspondent at the Affliction: Day of Reckoning mixed martial arts event on January 24, 2009.<ref name="Affliction Review">Affliction: Day of Reckoning Review John Shubert, Bleacher Report (January 25, 2009) Template:Webarchive</ref><ref name="Hits and Misses">Affliction's Hits and Misses Loretta Hunt, Sherdog (January 26, 2009) Template:Webarchive</ref>
Zito owns a dojo, Chuck Zito's Street Survival School, in Pelham, New York.<ref name="Sheen's warlock">Charlie Sheen's warlock week: Street-fight sparring with Chuck Zito, plans for top-secret tattoo Nancy Dillon, New York Daily News (April 12, 2011) Template:Webarchive</ref><ref name="A Snake">A Snake, A Warlock and a Goddess: Charlie Sheen Wins in Westchester Dina Sciortino, Patch Media (April 12, 2011) Template:Webarchive</ref>
Hells AngelsEdit
A motorcycle enthusiast, Zito established the New Rochelle Motorcycle Club in 1974, which later merged with the Bronx-based Ching-a-Ling Nomads.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> As vice president of the Ching-a-Ling Nomads, Zito was arrested on June 14, 1975, along with club president Pedro Lamboy, on charges of harassment and possession of dangerous weapons relating to the alleged harassment of James Hunter, a tenant of a storefront near the Ching-a-Ling Nomads' clubhouse.<ref name="Tension">Tension surrounds motorcycle club downtown The Standard-Star (June 20, 1975)</ref><ref name="Bikers in court">Bikers in court plead not guilty The Standard-Star (June 26, 1975)</ref> On October 7, 1976, an apartment in New Rochelle which had been rented to Zito by landlord Arthur Jacobs was targeted in an arson attack two days after the lease was broken due to a dispute between Jacobs and Zito caused by Zito's membership in the Ching-a-Ling Nomads.<ref name="Main Street Fire">Main Street Fire Doused The Standard-Star (October 8, 1976)</ref> Zito was also charged with assault after allegedly attacking a police officer with a bar stool during a bar brawl on June 12, 1977.<ref name="Bar fight injures 4">Bar fight injures 4, 3 booked on assault The Standard-Star (June 13, 1977)</ref>
Zito met Sandy Alexander, a professional boxer who was the president of the New York City chapter of the Hells Angels, while they both trained at the Gramercy Gym on East 14th Street in Manhattan.<ref name="Stuntman Is Ready For Stardom"/> Zito convinced the membership of the Ching-a-Ling Nomads to become prospective members of the Hells Angels but only he and one other Ching-a-Ling biker joined the Angels.Template:Sfn Explaining what inspired him to join the club, Zito said: "I used to watch their movies like Hells Angels on Wheels and Hell's Angels '69 as a kid. They were the elite of the elite, the No. 1".<ref name="Stuntman Is Ready For Stardom"/> His nickname in the Hells Angels was "Charming Chuck".<ref name="Hell's Angels motorcycle gang expands territory in Illinois">Hell's Angels motorcycle gang expands territory in Illinois Mark Kiesling, The Times of Northwest Indiana (December 13, 1994) Template:Webarchive</ref>
According to prosecutors, one membership requirement of the Hells Angels' New York City chapter was that prospective members must kill or attempt to kill a target selected by the club as part of an initiation process. Zito allegedly earned his membership in the club by attempting to murder Robert Giangarra, a Queens pizzeria owner and low-level mobster who had previously shot and injured Hells Angels biker Cortland "Chip" Candow in a Manhattan bar.<ref name="Angels & enemies">Angels & enemies The Standard-Star (August 23, 1987)</ref> According to testimony from John Joseph "Pirate" Miller, a Hells Angels member who turned government witness, Zito and another Hells Angel, Philip "Lightfoot" Kramer, used a remote-controlled device from a model airplane to detonate C-4 explosives attached to a vehicle belonging to Giangarra.<ref name="The Baddest Dude On The Tube">The Baddest Dude On The Tube The Smoking Gun (November 24, 2000) Template:Webarchive</ref> On May 9, 1979, Giangarra survived without serious injury when a bomb attached to the undercarriage of a Cadillac Eldorado he was driving exploded in the driveway of his home in Elmhurst, Queens.Template:Sfn<ref name="Walks away from bomb blast">Walks away from bomb blast that shatters car New York Daily News (May 10, 1979)</ref> The police were unable to locate Giangarra afterwards,<ref name="Angels & enemies"/> and Zito was never charged with the bombing.<ref name="The Baddest Dude On The Tube"/> After serving as a club "prospect", he was voted in as a member of the New York City Hells Angels along with Kramer on May 10, 1979.<ref name="The Baddest Dude On The Tube"/>Template:Sfn
On August 2, 1979, police discovered a stolen pistol, ammunition and brass knuckles in a borrowed car being driven by Zito after he was stopped for speeding in Harrison, New York.<ref name="The Baddest Dude On The Tube"/><ref name="Not guilty plea">Not guilty plea The Daily Item (November 14, 1979)</ref> He pleaded guilty to third-degree criminal possession of a weapon and was sentenced in White Plains County Court on April 23, 1980, to five years on probation.<ref name="5 years' probation">5 years' probation The Daily Item (April 25, 1980)</ref> Zito's other convictions included criminal possession of a controlled substance (Quaaludes), and disorderly conduct.<ref name="The Baddest Dude On The Tube"/> The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) began monitoring Zito's "meteoric rise" in the Hells Angels and labelled him "a rising star in a dangerous and well-established criminal organization".<ref name="The Baddest Dude On The Tube"/> After attaining the rank of vice president in the New York City charter, Zito assisted in the formation of the Hells Angels New York Nomads chapter in November 1984 and became the Nomads' founding president.<ref name="Street Justice by Chuck Zito with Joe Layden">Street Justice by Chuck Zito with Joe Layden Kirkus Reviews (August 1, 2002). Template:Webarchive</ref> The Nomads chapter, which is based in the Hudson Valley,<ref name="Stuntman Is Ready For Stardom"/> was allegedly formed after some members became frustrated with restrictions on narcotics distribution imposed by senior members of the New York City charter.<ref>United States of America v. 77 East 3rd Street, New York, New York Google Scholar (September 14, 1994) Template:Webarchive</ref> Zito served as president of the Nomads chapter for ten years.<ref name="Who is Zito?"/>
According to government informants, Zito and another Hells Angels member, Herbert Reynolds "One-Eyed Bert" Kittel, committed an arson on a building in Mount Vernon, New York, where Zito and Kittel each maintained apartments, on February 6, 1985. The blaze was extinguished by the fire department, and authorities found bottles, jars and cans of kerosene in the apartments. On February 12, 1985, a second fire completely destroyed the building. An insurance investigation determined that the second fire was also the result of arson and no insurance policies were paid out.<ref name="The Baddest Dude On The Tube"/>
Zito was part of a contingent of 21 American and British Hells Angels who traveled to Japan on April 23, 1985 to assess the suitability of biker club in Tokyo for potential membership in the organization.<ref name="Foreign News">Foreign News Briefs United Press International (July 16, 1985) Template:Webarchive</ref>Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The Hells Angels ultimately decided against granting a charter to the Japanese bikers.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn On May 2, 1985, 133 Hells Angels members and associates were arrested on racketeering and drug trafficking charges after a series of law enforcement raids in fourteen cities across the United States. The indictments were the culmination of Operation Roughrider, a three-year FBI investigation into the club.<ref>133 Hells Angels seized in 14 cities Chicago Tribune (May 3, 1985) Template:Webarchive</ref> Fifteen of the arrests took place in the New York metropolitan area, where the New York City chapter headquarters on Manhattan's Lower East Side was raided, and at least one Uzi submachine gun and an undetermined quantity of drugs were seized.<ref>100 Hells Angel members are arrested in drug sweep Leslie Maitland Werner, The New York Times (May 3, 1985) Template:Webarchive</ref><ref>FBI “Full Steam” On Hells Angels Crackdown Scott Williams, Associated Press (May 3, 1985) Template:Webarchive</ref> Zito's home in New Rochelle was also searched by agents of the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and local police.Template:Sfn
A warrant was issued for Zito's arrest on charges of selling Template:Convert of methamphetamine in New York state in November 1984.<ref>Japan to Extradite Two Hells Angels in Narcotics Case Los Angeles Times (October 14, 1985) Template:Webarchive</ref> He and fellow Hells Angel Herbert Kittel surrendered to the United States Embassy in Tokyo on July 22, 1985, after they were the subject of a nationwide dragnet by Japanese police at the request of the FBI. On October 14, 1985, the Tokyo High Court approved an extradition request by U.S. authorities.<ref name="Japan"/> After detaining the pair in the Tokyo Detention House for four months, the Japanese Ministry of Justice released Zito and Kittel into the custody of U.S. Justice Department officials in Tokyo on October 26, 1985.<ref>Americans Wanted in New York Extradited to U.S. Associated Press (October 26, 1985) Template:Webarchive</ref> The pair were then extradited on separate commercial flights to New York by U.S. Marshals Service personnel.<ref name="Director's Report">The Director's Report: A Review of the United States Marshals Service in FY 1985 p. 18 United States Department of Justice (1986) Template:Webarchive</ref>Template:Sfn
After being held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center (MCC) in Manhattan for fourteen months, Zito accepted a plea deal from federal prosecutors, pleading guilty to one felony count of drug conspiracy in late 1986, for which he was sentenced to ten years' imprisonment.Template:Sfn His sentence was reduced to seven years' upon appeal in 1988,<ref name="The Baddest Dude On The Tube"/> and he ultimately served six years at nineteen different federal prisons located in New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Louisiana, Alabama, Oklahoma and Missouri.<ref name="Street Justice by Chuck Zito with Joe Layden"/>Template:Sfn He was released from prison in 1991.<ref name="Stuntman Is Ready For Stardom"/> Zito has asserted that he was convicted solely on the FBI's claims of possessing a tape of a recorded telephone conversation between him and Kittel discussing a drug deal. He denies that such a conversation ever took place and maintains that he was bodyguarding actor Mickey Rourke on the set of Year of the Dragon in Vancouver at the time of the alleged phone call.Template:Sfn On the stigma of being a Hells Angel, Zito has said: "I never did a drug in my life. It's ridiculous to judge a group on the actions of a few".<ref name="Who is Zito?"/>
Zito was questioned by police in Rockford, Illinois, in June 1994, over the shooting of a motorist who cut into a Hells Angels motorcycle procession the day before the funeral of Lamont "Monte" Mathias, the president of the Hell's Henchmen Motorcycle Club who was killed during a biker war with the Outlaws Motorcycle Club.<ref name="Hell's Angels motorcycle gang expands territory in Illinois"/> The motorist, who was shot in the leg, refused to press charges.<ref name="Hell's Angels rev (Continued)">Hell's Angels rev their way to Chicago (Continued from Page A1) Mark Kiesling, The Times of Northwest Indiana (July 24, 1994) Template:Webarchive</ref> On December 11, 1994, Zito was among a group of twenty Hells Angels arrested at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago by a task force composed of agents from the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Illinois State Police, and the Chicago Police Department Intelligence Unit after an alleged high-speed car chase along the Northwest Tollway. The contingent, which included senior Hells Angels members from across the country, had been attending a meeting in Rockford to formally mark the club's merger of the Hell's Henchmen.<ref name="Cops Arrest Hell's Angels">Cops Arrest Hell's Angels After Chase Ray Quintanilla, Chicago Tribune (December 12, 1994) Template:Webarchive</ref> The bikers were under surveillance by the task force as they traveled to O'Hare airport in three rented passenger vans at the conclusion of the trip, when the agents lost sight of one of the vans, resulting in what the task force alleged to be a chase.Template:Sfn Zito and the two other drivers of the vans which were carrying the bikers were charged with speeding, while the passengers were charged with disorderly conduct.<ref name="Cops Arrest Hell's Angels"/> Police found "an undetermined amount of a white powderly substance" but no weapons upon searching the vehicles.<ref name="Hell's Angels are arrested">Hell's Angels are arrested at O'Hare The Times of Northwest Indiana (December 12, 1994) Template:Webarchive</ref> The case was dismissed by a judge, and the Hells Angels sued the Chicago police after hiring prominent defense attorney Ron Kuby. The Hells Angels reached a $250,000 out-of-court settlement with the police, of which Zito received a share of $9,000.Template:Sfn
On December 15, 2001, Zito was arrested by the Connecticut State Police and charged with first-degree criminal trespass after refusing to remove his Hells Angels "colors" at the request of security staff while attending the John Ruiz vs. Evander Holyfield III boxing match at the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut. Zito stated his intention to sue the casino for discrimination, and said: "If a guy walks in here with a Yankees jacket, are you going to make him take it off? This is America, this isn't Russia".<ref name="TV tough guy">TV tough guy Zito arrested in casino flap The Journal News (December 17, 2001)</ref>
On February 23, 2002, Zito was present at the Hellraiser Ball, a tattoo and motorcycle trade exposition in Plainview, New York, sponsored by the Long Island chapter of the Hells Angels, which was ambushed by dozens of members of the rival Pagan's Motorcycle Club, resulting in one biker being killed and at least ten injured.<ref>Biker killed in gang fight at Hellraiser Ball Rupert Cornwell, The Independent (February 25, 2002) Template:Webarchive</ref> A Hells Angel was charged with second-degree murder and 73 Pagan members were indicted on federal racketeering charges in the aftermath of the incident.<ref>Pagan Bikers Indicted in Brawl Frank Eltman, Associated Press (March 13, 2002) Template:Webarchive</ref>
Zito was a regular patron of the Scores strip club in Manhattan while the club was controlled by the Gambino crime family.<ref name="Actor out of jail">Actor out of jail The Journal News (March 7, 2000)</ref> According to the Justice Department, the Hells Angels in New York have associated in criminality with the Gambino family.<ref name="Motorcycle Gangs Overview">Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs USA Overview p. 13 United States Department of Justice (May 1991) Template:Webarchive</ref> Zito attended the funeral of Gambino boss John Gotti in Queens on June 14, 2002. He declined to comment when he was approached by reporters after the wake.<ref name="Curious and Police Abound at Wake">The Curious and the Police Abound at a Wake for Gotti Alan Feuer, The New York Times (June 14, 2002) Template:Webarchive</ref> Zito had first met Gotti while they were incarcerated together at MCC in 1986.Template:Sfn
In 2004, Zito left the Hells Angels, after 25 years of membership in the club, to focus on his acting career.<ref>Chuck Zito: Inside the life of a New York tough guy Grinberg News (January 26, 2018) Template:Webarchive</ref> He resigned from the club "in good standing", an option reportedly extended only to the Hells Angels' most respected members.<ref name="Who is Zito?"/>
HollywoodEdit
Following in his father's footsteps, Zito became an amateur boxer and fought in New York Golden Gloves while working manual labor. In 1979, after assisting the bodyguards of actor Robert Conrad at a motorcycle convention at the New York Coliseum, Zito began his own bodyguard agency, Charlie's Angels Bodyguard Service.<ref name="Muscling into the action"/> Zito initially provided protection for actress Lorna Luft and later was hired by her half-sister Liza Minnelli.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The actress recommended Zito's service to her plethora of celebrity acquaintances, allowing Zito to quickly develop contacts throughout Hollywood. His other clients included Muhammad Ali,<ref name="Friend of the Game"/> Charles Bronson,<ref name="Muscling into the action"/> Michael Jackson,<ref name="Muscling into the action"/> Sean Penn,<ref name="Stuntman Is Ready For Stardom"/> Chita Rivera,<ref name="Muscling into the action"/> Eric Roberts,<ref name="Muscling into the action"/> Mickey Rourke,<ref name="Muscling into the action"/> Charlie Sheen,<ref name="Who is Zito?"/> and Sylvester Stallone.<ref name="Muscling into the action"/> Zito's brother-in-law was a policeman, which allowed him to hire moonlighting police officers to bodyguard celebrities at public events which required additional manpower, such as award shows.<ref name="Muscling into the action"/>
In 1979, Zito and 18 other members of the New York City Hells Angels chapter were hired to appear in the film Dead Ringer, starring Meat Loaf and Cher. The film was never released due to litigation.<ref name="Muscling into the action"/> Parlaying his connection with Mickey Rourke, Zito began a career as a stuntman in 1983 when he acted as Rourke's stunt double in the film Year of the Dragon.<ref name="Muscling into the action"/> He later worked on over 50 films such as Nowhere to Run, The Specialist, True Lies, Die Hard with a Vengeance, Heat, Eraser, The Juror and The Rock.<ref name="Muscling into the action"/><ref name="Stuntman Is Ready For Stardom"/> Zito acted as stunt coordinator for the first time on Santa with Muscles.<ref name="Muscling into the action"/> He then also began landing small acting roles in films, including Heaven's Prisoners, No Code of Conduct and Gia.<ref name="Muscling into the action"/> In 1996, after a meeting with producer Tom Fontana, Zito joined the HBO prison drama Oz as mobster Chucky Pancamo.<ref name="Who is Zito?"/><ref name="Stuntman Is Ready For Stardom"/> He was a cast member until the show ended in 2003, after six seasons.<ref name="Who is Zito?"/><ref name="Forever flexing">Forever flexing his rep: Chuck Zito of HBO's 'Oz,' a former prison inmate, is one tough actor Denis Hamill, New York Daily News (January 5, 2003) Template:Webarchive</ref>
In 1997, Zito allegedly knocked gossip columnist A. J. Benza unconscious at the Scores strip club in New York after Benza attributed a false rumor to him in his column in the Daily News.<ref name="Muscling into the action"/> Zito is then purported to have punched Jean-Claude Van Damme, who had previously been a bodyguarding client of his, in another incident at Scores on February 5, 1998.<ref>Did a Sons of Anarchy Star Beat up Jean-Claude Van Damme in Yonkers? Tom Schreck, Westchester Magazine (March 23, 2017). Template:Webarchive.</ref> Recounting the incident in his autobiography, Zito claims that he suffered a broken hand as a result of striking Van Damme numerous times after Van Damme had told a bouncer at the club that Zito had "no heart" and the bouncer relayed Van Damme's comments to Zito.Template:Sfn He reportedly stood over a prone Van Damme shouting: "This ain't the movies! This is the street, and I own the street!".<ref name="Forever flexing"/> He later added: "If I knew it would have gotten me so much positive publicity, I would have knocked him out 10 years earlier."<ref name="Forever flexing"/> Zito is also reputed to have delivered two open-handed slaps to the face of actor Gary Busey in a similar incident.<ref name="Who is Zito?"/>
Owing to his "tough guy" image, Zito had a short role as a professional wrestling manager in World Championship Wrestling (WCW).Template:Sfn He appeared on the January 11, 1999 edition of WCW Monday Nitro in Knoxville, Tennessee accompanying Hollywood Hulk Hogan and the New World Order (nWo) to the ring alongside 17 other members of the Hells Angels from New York, Kentucky, Illinois and North Carolina.<ref name="Hulk Hogan's Cars">A Look At Hulk Hogan's Cars Throughout The Years hotcars.com (March 4, 2020) Template:Webarchive</ref><ref name="Nitro">Monday Nitro – January 11, 1999: The First Of His Kind Thomas Hall, KBWrestlingReviews.com (June 4, 2014) Template:Webarchive</ref> In 2002, Zito released his autobiography, Street Justice, co-authored with Joe Layden.<ref name="Who is Zito?"/> He released a self-defense and dieting video, Chuck Zito's Street Survival System, in 2005.<ref name="Who is Zito?"/> Zito appeared in Carlito's Way: Rise to Power the same year.<ref name="Who is Zito?"/> In 2006, he expanded into radio with the show Chuck Zito's View on Howard Stern's Sirius Satellite Radio station.<ref name="Happy Birthday"/> He also hosted Chuck Zito's Italian Bad Boy Hour on WVOX.<ref name="Palm Does Talking">His Palm Does the Talking HowardStern.com (October 7, 2005) Template:Webarchive</ref>
In 2010, Zito filed a $5 million lawsuit against the cable network FX, alleging that he had a development meeting with them in 2006, in which he pitched the idea of an outlaw motorcycle group. He alleges that FX blew him off and then stole his idea, which became the FX show Sons of Anarchy.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> On December 11, 2011, a court judgment was ruled against Zito. Zito appeared in Sons of Anarchy season 5, as Frankie Diamonds. He also appeared in SOA creator Kurt Sutter's Discovery Channel documentary series, Outlaw Empires.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Personal lifeEdit
Zito has a daughter, Lisa, (who is an entertainment lawyer for Condé Nast in Manhattan)<ref name="Stuntman Is Ready For Stardom"/><ref name="Forever flexing"/> with his ex-wife Kathy.<ref name="Street Justice"/> He is a supporter of Donald Trump.<ref name="Threat">Chuck Zito Issues Not-So-Subtle Threat to President Trump Hater TMZ (January 5, 2018) Template:Webarchive</ref><ref name="Ex-Hells Angels Leader">Ex-Hells Angels Leader Chuck Zito And Alan Dershowitz At Trump Trial Today—Here Are The GOP Allies Who Have Attended Alison Durkee, Forbes (May 20, 2024) Template:Webarchive</ref>
FilmographyEdit
FilmEdit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Dead Ringer | Biker | |
| 1990: The Bronx Warriors | Outlaw Biker | Uncredited | |
| 1984 | Streets of Fire | Bombers Gang Member | Uncredited |
| 1985 | Year of the Dragon | Cab Driver/Cop | Uncredited |
| 1991 | Neon City | Bus Attacker | |
| 1993 | Nowhere to Run | Prisoner | |
| New York Cop | Mafia Leader | ||
| Carlito's Way | Club Bouncer | ||
| Love, Cheat & Steal | Jake | ||
| 1994 | Jimmy Hollywood | Gangster | |
| Bad Blood | "Toots" | ||
| Sensation | The Bartender | ||
| Love is a Gun | Cop | ||
| 1995 | Red Line | Dick | |
| 1996 | The Juror | Frankie | |
| Heaven's Prisoners | Tony | ||
| The Funeral | Zito | ||
| Squanderers | Jerry | ||
| 1998 | Gia | Biker | |
| Scar City | Guard | ||
| No Code of Conduct | Guard | ||
| 1999 | Black & White | Chuck | |
| Me and Will | Biker | ||
| Man on the Moon | Tony Clifton / Biker | ||
| 2000 | Table One | The Chef | |
| 2001 | Street Justice | The Host | |
| 2003 | This Thing of Ours | DeGrazio Soldier | |
| 2004 | Brooklyn Bound | Anthony | |
| Coalition | Vinnie | ||
| 2005 | Remedy | Captain Sallie | |
| Searching for Bobby D | Freddy "Knuckles" | ||
| The Signs of the Cross | Tony Esposito | ||
| Carlito's Way: Rise to Power | "Buck" | ||
| Tinsel Town | Rubenstein | ||
| 2009 | Under New Management | Don DeRossi | |
| 2010 | 13 | Ted | |
| 2011 | The Grasslands | Matty | |
| 2013 | Homefront | Danny "Danny T" Turrie | |
| 2014 | Collection | Joe | |
| 2015 | The Martial Arts Kid | Frank | |
| Street Level | Carmine | ||
| 2016 | Saturday in the Park | Danny "Danny V" | |
| Female Fight Club | Zeke | ||
| 2017 | Cops and Robbers | Randy | |
| Blood Circus | Dominick | ||
| 2018 | Fury of the Fist and the Golden Fleece | FDA Special Agent | |
| Black Wake | Sheriff Williams | ||
| King of Newark 2 | Big Al | ||
| Treasure Hunter: Legend of the White Witch | Jorge | ||
| Honor Amongst Men | Frank LaCarver | ||
| Father and Father | Udo | Short film | |
| 2019 | Vault | Joey Bruno | |
| 2020 | Mott Haven | Ray Pizzalongo | |
| 2022 | Demon Pit | Biker | |
| 2023 | The Weapon | Lemmy | |
| Phoenix | Bullet |
TelevisionEdit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | New York Undercover | Unknown | Episode: "Hubris" |
| 1998–2003 | Oz | Chucky "The Enforcer" Pancamo | 45 episodes |
| 2000 | V.I.P. | Mikey | 2 episodes |
| 2006 | The Young and the Restless | Rudy | 2 episodes |
| Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Major Case Squad Detective | Episode: "Tru Love" | |
| 2007 | Entourage | Himself | Episode: "Malibooty" |
| Days of Our Lives | Harry Jenks | 1 episode | |
| 2010 | How to Make It in America | Deli Man | Episode: "Crisp" |
| 2012 | Sons of Anarchy | Frankie "Diamonds" | 8 episodes |
| 2018 | Paper Empire | "Big D" Espozito | |
| Jersey: The Series | "Big Al" | ||
| 2021 | Gravesend | Carmine | Episode: "Miami Nights" |
See alsoEdit
ReferencesEdit
Books citedEdit
External linksEdit
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Template:Hells Angels Motorcycle Club Template:OutlawMotorcycleGroups Template:Biker culture Template:Authority control