Ray Romano

Raymond Albert Romano<ref name=QueensChronicle>Template:Cite news</ref> (born December 21, 1957)<ref name=TVG>Template:Cite magazine</ref> is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He is best known for his role as Raymond "Ray" Barone on the CBS sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond (1996–2005), for which he won three Primetime Emmy Awards (one as an actor and two as producer). He is also known for being the voice of Manny in the Ice Age franchise. He has received several other awards including nominations for two Grammy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards.

He created and starred in the TNT comedy drama Men of a Certain Age (2009–2011). From 2012 to 2015 Romano had a recurring role as Hank Rizzoli, a love interest of Sarah Braverman in the NBC series Parenthood. More recently he co-starred in the romantic comedy The Big Sick (2017) and portrayed mob lawyer Bill Bufalino in Martin Scorsese's epic crime film The Irishman (2019). From 2017 to 2019 Romano portrayed Rick Moreweather in the Epix comedy-drama series Get Shorty.

Early life and education

Romano was born in Queens, New York City,<ref name=TVG /> the second son of Luciana "Lucie" (née Fortini) (d. 2021),<ref name=QueensChronicle /> a piano teacher, and Albert Romano (1925–2010), a real estate agent and engineer.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Albert Romano Obituary">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He is of Italian descent.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He grew up in the Forest Hills neighborhood of Queens.<ref>Strickland, Carol. "Can Sitcom Make It With L.I. Setting?", The New York Times, December 1, 1996. Retrieved November 12, 2007. "For Everybody Loves Raymond, the route to Hollywood Hills began in Forest Hills, where Ray Romano, standup comedian and the star of the show, grew up."</ref> He has an older brother, Richard (born 1956), an NYPD sergeant,<ref name=QueensChronicle /> and a younger brother, Robert (born c. 1966), a second grade teacher in New York City.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Romano attended elementary and middle school at Our Lady Queen of Martyrs in Forest Hills. After transferring from Archbishop Molloy High School, Romano graduated from Hillcrest High School in 1975.<ref name=QueensChronicle /><ref name="Yahoo Movies - Ray Romano">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He was in the same high school class as Fran Drescher.<ref name=TVG /> Before getting into show business, Romano briefly attended Queens College, in Flushing, New York, where he studied accounting.<ref name=people/>

Career

His early comedy career started when he competed in the Johnnie Walker Comedy Search in 1989, directed by Saturday Night Live short film producer Neal Marshad and appeared on The Comedy Channel. His career included many outlets, such as Comedy Central, where he had been a recurring guest voice on the show Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist. He also was a contestant on Star Search in the stand-up comedy category. He was cast to play Joe (originally named Rick) on the American television sitcom NewsRadio, but was fired and replaced with Greg Lee in the pilot and then Joe Rogan for the rest of the show. He then appeared on Late Show with David Letterman doing his stand up routine which formed his ties with CBS. Shortly thereafter, he became the star of his own show, Everybody Loves Raymond on CBS, that featured a cast and format more suitable to Romano's brand of humor. His work on the series earned him six Primetime Emmy Award nominations as Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, a category he won in 2002. He also shared two Emmy Awards as an executive producer when his show won as Outstanding Comedy Series in 2003 and 2005.<ref name=Emmys>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Romano performed the opening monologue at the 1998 White House Correspondents' Association dinner.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Romano and his comedian friend Kevin James starred in the salesman comedy Grilled as two average Joes of the same profession who are both desperate to land a big sale.

Romano was featured on a 2000 episode of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, on which he won $125,000 for the NYPD's D.A.R.E. unit.Template:Citation needed The following year, he and one of his brothers appeared on a New York Police Department recruiting poster.Template:Citation needed

In 2004, Romano became the highest-paid television actor in history for his role of Raymond on CBS's Everybody Loves Raymond.Template:Citation needed The show broke another record by having the highest revenue, at $3.9 billion.Template:Citation needed

On December 13, 2003, Romano was a guest star, sending a birthday card to Bob Barker for Barker's 80th birthday on the 27th "Million Dollar Spectacular" special of the CBS game show The Price Is Right.Template:Citation needed

Romano was the subject of the documentary film 95 Miles to Go. The film documents Romano's road trip for a series of rides across the south of the United States. The film was released in theaters on April 7, 2010, by ThinkFilm.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In August 2006 Romano was interviewed in front of a live audience at UCLA by fellow stand-up veteran David Steinberg, for an episode of Sit Down Comedy with David Steinberg. The program first aired on the TV Land network in March 2007.

Romano returned to television with a new dramedy for TNT in 2008, Men of a Certain Age, which he co-created with former Everybody Loves Raymond writer Mike Royce. It co-starred Scott Bakula and Andre Braugher.

Romano made an appearance in the seventh season of NBC series The Office as Merv Bronte, a nervous job applicant interviewing for the job left vacant by Michael Scott.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Romano made an appearance in the third-season premiere of the ABC sitcom The Middle as Nicky, a friend of Mike, who ruined his and Frankie's honeymoon. Romano was the second actor from Everybody Loves Raymond to be reunited with Patricia Heaton on The Middle; Doris Roberts guest starred in three episodes.

He joined the cast of Parenthood beginning with its fourth season premiere.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He became a semi regular, playing photographer Hank Rizzoli, who hired and later had a romantic relationship with Sarah Braverman and developed a friendship with her nephew who has Asperger syndrome. The role was specifically created for him after he expressed his love for the series and met with creator Jason Katims on the set of Friday Night Lights.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In 2002, Romano voiced the woolly mammoth Manny in the animated Blue Sky Studios film Ice Age. He has since reprised the role in four sequels: Ice Age: The Meltdown (2006), Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (2009), Ice Age: Continental Drift (2012), and Ice Age: Collision Course (2016), along with two TV specials, and is set to return for sixth film in 2026.<ref name="IceAge6"/>

From 2017 to 2019, Romano played a leading role in three seasons of the MGM+ television show Get Shorty, created by Davey Holmes and co-starring Chris O'Dowd.<ref>Get Shorty</ref>

In 2019, Romano starred in the Netflix comedy film Paddleton and portrayed mob lawyer Bill Bufalino in Martin Scorsese's The Irishman.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Romano is set to play Jim Valvano in an upcoming film about him.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Competitions

File:Ray Romano at the 2010 WSOP.jpg

Romano at the 2010 World Series of Poker main event

Romano competed in the World Series of Poker in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2023.

In early 2010, Romano starred in the second season of The Golf Channel's original series The Haney Project in which Tiger Woods' former coach Hank Haney attempts to improve the golf games of different celebrities and athletes. Romano's goal was to finish the show being able to break 80.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Romano took time off from the show to be with his father, Albert Romano, who died in March 2010. Romano is also a regular competitor in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, where he finished fifth in 2012 with his partner, Australian professional Steven Bowditch. It was the first time Romano had qualified for the final round after failing to do so on 11 successive occasions. He also competes annually in the American Century Championship, a celebrity golf tournament owned by NBC and held at Lake Tahoe<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> each July.

Personal life

Romano married his wife, Anna Scarpulla, in 1987.<ref name=people/> They met while working at the same bank.<ref name=people>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> They have four children.<ref name=people/><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Romano's character's daughter on Everybody Loves Raymond was named after his real life daughter, Alexandra "Ally" Romano. Also, in the series pilot, Ray and Debra's twin boys were named Gregory and Matthew, after Romano's real life twin sons, but Romano felt it was inconvenient to have all his television children have the same names as his real children and changed the twins' names to Geoffrey and Michael onscreen. He also said his brother was not pleased with Ray Barone's television brother.<ref name=Heldenfels>Template:Cite news</ref>

Romano's family has made various appearances in the show. Romano's daughter made several appearances on Everybody Loves Raymond as Molly, the best friend of his on screen daughter, Ally, and the daughter of Ray Barone's nemesis, Peggy the Cookie Lady. Romano's father, Albert Romano, has made various appearances as Albert, one of Frank Barone's lodge buddies in various episodes, such as "Debra at the Lodge", and "Boys' Therapy". Romano's brother, Richard Romano, appeared in the episodes "Golf For It", "Just a Formality", and "The Toaster". Romano's wife, Anna, appeared as one of the moms in the background at Geoffrey and Michael's school in season 6's episode titled "The Angry Family".Template:Citation needed

In February 2012, Romano revealed that his wife, Anna, had successfully battled stage one breast cancer in 2010. Romano told People magazine that "the reason we're going public is to share our experience, yeah, but to have an effect. Our goal is to help people."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Romano was close friends with Doris Roberts, who played Marie Barone, Ray Barone's mother, on Everybody Loves Raymond. At the time of her death, Romano said he was inspired by her desire to continue learning throughout her life. She also served as a mentor, helping him to feel more comfortable on set.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1990	Caesar's Salad	Policeman	Short film
2002	Ice Age	Manny	citation	CitationClass=web }} A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.</ref>
2004	Welcome to Mooseport	Handy Harrison
	Eulogy	Skip Collins
	95 Miles to Go	Himself
2006	Ice Age: The Meltdown	Manny	Voice role<ref name="btva" />
	Grilled	Maurice
2008	Template:Sortname	Abel
	Template:Sortname	Fred Marsh
2009	Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs	Manny	Voice role
	Funny People	Himself	Cameo
2010	Exporting Raymond
2012	Ice Age: Continental Drift	Manny	Voice role<ref name="btva" />
2014	Rob the Mob	Jerry Cardozo
2016	Ice Age: Collision Course	Manny	Voice role<ref name="btva" />
2017	The Big Sick	Terry Gardner	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2019	Paddleton	Andy Freeman	Also executive producer
	Bad Education	Big Bob Spicer	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	The Irishman	Bill Bufalino
2022	Somewhere in Queens	Leo Russo	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2024	Fly Me to the Moon	Henry Smalls	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2026	Template:Pending film	Manny	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1995–1997	Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist	Ray	Voice role; 7 episodes<ref name="btva" />
1995–2015	Late Show with David Letterman	Himself	31 episodes
1996–2005	Everybody Loves Raymond	Raymond Barone	Main role; also writer and executive producer
1997	Cosby		Episode: "Lucas Raymondicus"
1998–2005	The King of Queens		4 episodes
1998	The Nanny		Episode: "The Reunion Show"
1999	Becker		Episode: "Drive, They Said"
1999–2003	Saturday Night Live	Himself (host)	2 episodes
2002	All That	Himself	Episode 709
	Sesame Street		Episode 3,983
2005	The Simpsons	Ray Magini	Voice role; episode: "Don't Fear the Roofer"
2007	'Til Death	Guest at Italian Restaurant	Episode: "The Italian Affair"
	The Knights of Prosperity	Himself	Episode: "Operation: Oswald Montecristo"
2008	Hannah Montana		Episode: "We're All on This Date Together"
2009–2011	Men of a Certain Age	Joe Tranelli	Main role; also writer, creator, and executive producer
2011	The Office	Merv Bronte	Episode: "Search Committee"
	The Middle	Nicky Kohlbrenner	Episode: "Forced Family Fun" (parts 1 & 2)
	Ice Age: A Mammoth Christmas	Manny	Voice role; TV special<ref name="btva" />
2014	Maron	Himself	Episode: "Marc's New Friend"
2012–2015	Parenthood	Hank Rizzoli	Recurring role; 44 episodes
2015	David Letterman: A Life on Television	Himself (host)	TV special<ref name="btva" />
2016	Ice Age: The Great Egg-Scapade	Manny	Voice role; TV special<ref name="btva" />
	Vinyl	Zak Yankovich	Main role
	Kevin Can Wait	Vic	Episode: "Beat the Parents"
2017–2019	Get Shorty	Rick Moreweather	Main role
2019	Crashing	Himself	Episode: "The Secret"
2020	One Day at a Time	Brian	Episode: "Checking Boxes"
2021	Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?	Himself	2 episodes
2021–2022	Made for Love	Herbert Green	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2023	Bupkis	Himself	3 episodes
	Bookie	Artie	Episode: "Always Smell the Money" (uncredited)
2024	Celebrity IOU	Himself	Episode: "Everyone Loves a Ray Romano Renovation"
	No Good Deed	Paul Morgan	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Video games

Year	Title	Role
2006	Ice Age 2: The Meltdown	Manny<ref name="btva" />
2009	Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
2013	Ice Age Village

Writing credits

Everybody Loves Raymond

In addition to his roles as star and producer of Everybody Loves Raymond, Romano also co-wrote the following episodes:

Season one

• "Why Are We Here?" (with Tom Paris)

Season two

• "Golf" (with Tom Caltabiano and Kevin James)
• "The Wedding" (with Philip Rosenthal)

Season three

• "Ray Home Alone" (with Tucker Cawley)
• "How They Met" (with Philip Rosenthal)

Season four

• "Debra's Workout" (with Tom Caltabiano and Mike Royce)
• "Bad Moon Rising" (with Philip Rosenthal)

Season five

• "Super Bowl" (with Mike Royce)

Season six

• "Jealous Robert" (with Tom Caltabiano)
• "Talk to Your Daughter" (with Tucker Cawley)
• "The First Time" (with Tom Caltabiano and Mike Royce)

Season seven

• "She's the One" (with Philip Rosenthal)
• "The Bachelor Party" (with Mike Royce and Tom Caltabiano)

Season nine

• "Angry Sex" (with Lew Schneider and Mike Scully)

Men of a Certain Age

Season one

• "Pilot" (with Mike Royce)
• "Let It Go" (with Mike Royce)
• "Back in the Shit" (teleplay) with Mike Royce

Season two

• "If I Could, I Surely Would" (with Mike Royce)

Discography

• Live at Carnegie Hall (2001, Columbia) - CD

Bibliography

• Everything and a Kite (non-fiction) (1999)
• Raymie, Dickie and the Bean (children's) (2005)
• Everybody Loves Raymond: Our Family Album (2004)

Awards and nominations

Association	Year	Category	Nominated Work	Results	Ref
America Film Institute Awards	2002	Actor of the Year - Male - TV Series	Everybody Loves Raymond	rowspan=2 Template:Nom
American Comedy Awards	1999	Funniest Male Performer in a TV Series (Leading Role) Network, Cable or Syndication
	2000			Template:Won
	2001			rowspan=3 Template:Nom
The BAM Awards	2017	Best Cast	The Big Sick
Behind the Voice Actors Awards	2013	Best Vocal Ensemble in a Feature Film	Ice Age: Continental Drift
CableACE Awards	1995	Animated Programming Special or Series (as Producer)	Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist	Template:Won
Denver Film Critics Society	2018	Best Supporting Actor	The Big Sick	rowspan=18 Template:Nom
Golden Globes	2000	Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Comedy or Musical	Everybody Loves Raymond	<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	2001
Grammy Awards	2002	Best Spoken Comedy Album	Live At Carnegie Hall	<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	2006	Best Spoken Word Album for Children	Raymie, Dickie, and the Bean: Why I Love and Hate My Brothers
IGN Summer Movie Awards	2009	Favorite Cameo	Funny People
Indiana Film Journalists Association	2019	Best Actor	Paddleton
Kid's Choice Awards	2003	Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie	Ice Age
	2010		Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
North Texas Film Critics Association	2017	Best Supporting Actor	The Big Sick
Online Film & Television Association	2000	Best Actor in a Comedy Series	Everybody Loves Raymond	<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
		Best Ensemble in a Comedy Series
	2001	Best Actor in a Comedy Series		<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
		Best Ensemble in a Comedy Series
	2002			citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	2003			citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	2014	Best Guest Actor in a Drama Series	Parenthood	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	2020	Best Ensemble	The Irishman	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
People's Choice Awards	2002	Favorite Male Television Performer (tied with Kelsey Grammer)	Everybody Loves Raymond	rowspan=4 Template:Won
	2003	Favorite Male Television Performer
	2004
	2006
Primetime Emmy Awards	1999	Outstanding Comedy Series (as Producer)		rowspan=7 Template:Nom	<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
		Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
	2000	Outstanding Comedy Series (as Producer)
		Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
	2001	Outstanding Comedy Series (as Producer)
		Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
	2002	Outstanding Comedy Series (as Producer)
		Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series		rowspan=2 Template:Won
	2003	Outstanding Comedy Series (as Producer)
		Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series		rowspan=2 Template:Nom
	2004	Outstanding Comedy Series (as Producer)
	2005			Template:Won
		Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series (as Writer)		rowspan=13 Template:Nom
		Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
		Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special (as Producer)	Everybody Loves Raymond: The Last Laugh
Producers Guild Awards	2003	Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Comedy	Everybody Loves Raymond
	2004
San Diego Film Critics Society Awards	2017	Best Comedic Performance	The Big Sick
Satellite Awards	2002	Best Actor in a Series, Comedy or Musical	Everybody Loves Raymond
Screen Actors Guild Awards	1999	Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series		<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	2000	Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
		Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
	2002	Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
		Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
	2003	Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
		Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series			Template:Won
	2004	Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series			rowspan=13 Template:Nom
		Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
	2005	Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
		Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
	2006
	2018	Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture	The Big Sick
	2020		The Irishman
TCA Awards	1999	Individual Achievement in Comedy	Everybody Loves Raymond
	2000
	2001
	2002
	2005
TV Guide Awards	2000	Favorite Actor in a Comedy
	2001	Actor of the Year in a Comedy Series		Template:Won
Viewers for Quality Television Awards	1997	Best Actor in a Quality Comedy Series		rowspan=2 Template:Nom
	1998
	1999			rowspan=2 Template:Won
	2000
Writers Guild Awards	2011	New Series (for Writing)	Men of a Certain Age	Template:Nom

External links

• Template:Official website
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