Jump to content

Denis Farina RIP


Eric Toline

Recommended Posts

Dennis Farina, a former police officer who became a star of "Law & Order," died today at the age of 69, his publicist told FOX411. 

Lori De Waal, his representative, says Farina died Monday morning in a Scottsdale, Ariz., hospital after suffering a blood clot in his lung. He was 69.

Born Feb. 29, 1944, in Chicago, he was a city police officer before turning to acting in his late 30s.

Farina appeared in films including "Get Shorty," ''Saving Private Ryan" and "Midnight Run."

Among his many TV portrayals was Det. Joe Fontana on "Law & Order." He starred in the 1980s cult favorite, "Crime Story" and most recently was in the HBO drama series "Luck."

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

  •  
Also on the Web

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is very sad news. Dennis was the real deal, and a great guy to work with. No bullshit, no attitude. He grew up just down the street from where I lived for awhile, and we always had a great time sharing stories of some of the crazy happenings that used to take place back in the day before it became gentrified.

 

We lost him way too soon.

 

--Scott

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, when I was working on Crime Story in post, we were told that Farina was a real gentleman. Michael Mann told me years later how he had "discovered" Farina when he hired him as a police consultant on Thief, and convinced him to start acting. I thought Farina was so natural and perfect, you'd never know he was a cop suddenly vaulted to a TV (and later film) star. Really fine actor, great voice.

 

The slow burn Farina used to do when he was the frustrated cop on Crime Story was the highlight of the show to me. Not a lot of people watched it, but it was a really terrific series.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...