Robert Davi

Biography for Robert Davi

From his portrayal of James Bond villain Franz Sanchez to FBI profiler Bailey Malone in "Profiler" (1996), Robert Davi is one of the film industry's most recognized tough guys, whether on the big screen or on television. His tough exterior masks a powerful inner sensitivity, which he calls upon for his most notorious roles. A stickler for research, Davi contacted Quantico and arranged to meet Bill Hagenmeyer, the real-life FBI profiler. Davi received critical acclaim within the industry for his provocative and smoldering portrayal of Bailey Malone. The show, currently in syndication, struck a chord with audiences, paving the way for such shows as "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" (2000), "Without a Trace" (2002), "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" (2001) and many others.

His work as a Palestinian terrorist Salim Ajami in an award-winning TV movie brought him critical acclaim and caught the eye of legendary James Bond producer Albert R. Broccoli, who cast Davi as Colombian drug lord and lead villain Franz Sanchez in the Bond film Licence to Kill (1989). Davi studied with the legendary Stella Adler, who became his mentor, and he was also a member of the Actors Studio, where he studied with Lee Strasberg. His big break came when he was cast opposite Frank Sinatra in the telefilm Contract on Cherry Street (1977) (TV), and he has gone on to work in projects with Marlon Brando, Roberto Benigni, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, Clint Eastwood, Benicio Del Toro, Danny Glover and Adam Sandler, to name a few.

Among his many notable film credits are Die Hard (1988), The Goonies (1985), Son of the Pink Panther (1993), Licence to Kill (1989), Raw Deal (1986) and Showgirls (1995). He has worked with such directors as Steven Spielberg, Richard Donner, Blake Edwards, John McTiernan and Paul Verhoeven, among others. He is equally adept at comedy, also, as is evident by his work in a Rodney Dangerfield romantic comedy, as a con artist (once again a very funny and believable character), and he can be seen in the Rob Schneider/Adam Sandler comedy The Hot Chick (2002). He recently produced and is starring in Hitters (2002), a film that takes a realistic look at the struggles that occur within a neighborhood mob crew.

Besides working and raising his five children, Davi stays busy volunteering his time in such charities such as The Dream Foundation, Exceptional Children's Foundation, Heart Of A Child Foundation, The National Italian-American Foundation, Unico, and he is the national spokesperson for I Save America.

Robert Davi was born on June 26, 1954 in Astoria Queens New York. Although little known in France, he worked with great actors like Marlon Brando, Bruce Willis (in Die Hard) but also Clint Easwood. We also find him in certain films by Steven Spielberg or Paul Verhoeven but especially in the role of the infamous Franz Sanchez in the James Bond entitled "Permit to kill", alongside Timothy Dalton.

But the role he made it known to as many people as possible is that of agent Baley Malone in the series "Profiler" (role he also held in the excellent series "Le Chameleon"). Video game enthusiasts, especially VO followers, have been able to recognize his voice in titles such as "GTA: Vice City", "Halo 2" and more recently in "Scarface: The World is Yours".

On the family side, Robert Davi lives with Christine Bolster with whom he had 4 children. He also had another child from a previous marriage.

Robert Davi is an American actor known for his roles in the to Kill license films, Les Goonies and Die Hard. He was born on June 26, 1953 in Astoria in New York State. Davi began his career in the 1980s and has played in many films and television series over the years. He is also a jazz singer and has released several albums. In addition to his acting career, Davi is also a defender of the second amendment of the United States, who guarantees citizens' right to own and carry weapons. He has been married to Suzanne Davi since 1984 and have two children.

Photos

Filmography

Trivia

• Originally trained as an opera-singer, until he damaged his voice. Sometime protégé of famous opera star Tito Gobbi.
• Only actor to star in both of MGM's biggest franchises - James Bond and Pink Panther.
• Attended Seton Hall High School, Patchogue, New York.
• Attended Hofstra University on a drama scholarship.
• Made his professional debut with Long Island's Lyric Opera Company.
• Met his wife-to-be Christine Bolster in 1989 when he invited friend Mickey Rourke over to his home for some karaoke fun. Rourke, who was dating the fashion model at the time, introduced her to Davi, and he vowed to Rourke that he would marry her one day. Bolster later received an invitation from Davi to join him on a pictorial spread he was doing for GQ Magazine. He proposed to her during the shoot and they married soon after.

Quotes

"We have to protect America. And I think that, thank God we have this administration and this president." - on George W. Bush and the war on terrorism

"I know a couple of my friends - quite a few - there is a conservative movement in Hollywood, and we kind of stay amongst ourselves".

"The war on terrorism is part of the war with Iraq."

Great storytellers in the past would go to an unknown land and return to tell the stories they've found. Those were also journeys into their inner psyches and that's still true today. An actor, a writer, does that as if saying, "Here's what I've discovered about myself and about the world I'm in. I would like to share this with you." It's an act of giving.

I can play the bad guy, the character with the edge, but I would like him to get the girl without having to put a gun to her head, you know? Look at the careers of Robert Mitchum, Humphrey Bogart and James Cagney: They started out playing the adversary, too. I feel an affinity towards them. Right now, you have a lot of leading boys, but no leading men in the old sense of the word. There's a need for that and I think I can bring that to the screen.

Family

• Spouse : Christine Bolster (19 August 1990 - present) 4 children, Jeri McBride (29 November 1980 - ?) (divorced) 1 child, Jan Borenstein (14 February 1971 - July 1982) (divorced)
• Children: Sean Christian Davi (b.1981), Ariana Marie Davi (b.April 3th 1990), Frances Davi (b.1992), Isabella Davi and Nicholas Edward Davi (twins, born on January 11th 2001).

Author of the card

• Creation date: 01/07/2003 by abdest