Overview (3)

Mini Bio (1)

Trade Mark (1)

Often plays characters who have a French accent



Trivia (16)

Organized the 1975 International Wizard of Oz Club, Inc. Winkie Convention.



Studied drama at Yale University.



Graduated from South Pasadena High School in 1977, where he excelled in French, theater and choir.



He received a scholarship to Yale.



His hobby is Greek sculpture (460 BC-31 BC).



Became a member of the Harford, PA Masonic Lodge #445 in December, 2002.





He claimed on The Surreal Life (2003) that he grew up in a very dysfunctional family.



Appearing with Richard Dreyfuss and Eric Stoltz on Broadway in Arthur Penn's production of Larry Gelbart's play, "Sly Fox." [March 2004]

Currently the voice of Max, the refurbished bug, on the VW commercials. [May 2008]



Appearing in 'Stones in Their Pockets' on the London West End [December 2001]



Harford, PA [July 2012]



He is of Italian and Russian descent.



He graduated from Yale with full honors.



He was reluctant to take on the role of Balki from 'Perfect Strangers' because he knew that he was going to be cast because of Serge from 'Beverly Hills Cop'. However, when he went to Greece, he was inspired by the people's hospitality and agreed to play Balki.



While filming 'Perfect Strangers' he had a tendency to forget his lines.





Was briefly engaged to Marcy Walker in the mid-1980s.

Personal Quotes (5)



[2009, on making Courage Under Fire (1996)] That was a low point, because Denzel Washington was behind the incredibly cowardly bullshit of "This is my character, not me." He was really abusive to me and everybody on that movie, and his official explanation was that his character didn't like me, but it was a dreadful experience. I spent my salary on time with my shrink just for helping me get through it...Denzel Washington cured me forever of thinking that there is any amount of money or anything that could ever, ever make it okay to be abused. The script supervisor on that movie said it's like watching somebody kick a puppy. He was so vile. And after that, I just would never endure it again.



[2009, on True Romance (1993)] That was an exciting thing, because at that point in my life, no one had really ever heard me speak with my own voice. I remember the first couple of weeks, people would lean in and say, "Let's hear him talk!" Which was kind of a compliment, but weird. If it had been a hit, it would have been the exact opening chapter of the second act of my career. It was an interesting role, it was a good character role in a dramatic movie. So it was a hugely important thing. And it was a fun, very exciting thing.



[2009, on Beverly Hills Cop III (1994)] Beverly Hills Cop opened up a whole world. I got the television show and movies, and I would go sign autographs for one hour and get paid $25,000. I had bodyguards and police barricades, and I had that whole life from 1985 to about 1992, '93. Eddie was going through his period at the time of doing movies that were not hits, and he was very low-spirited, low-energy. I said to him, "All anyone ever wants to know when they meet me is what you're like." And he said, "I bet they don't ask that anymore." And then when we did a scene, we were shooting, and he was so low-energy that John Landis sent him upstairs and said, "Just rest, Eddie, and I'll do the scene with Bronson." So whenever you see my face in the movie, I'm not really talking to Eddie, I'm talking to John Landis. And I can understand it-he was just having a bad stretch. And that stretch lasted... When did Dr. Dolittle come out? I think his funk really did last until then. I don't know what started the funk, but it lasted a chunk of time, and that was in the belly of the funk, and he was just really sad and low-energy and I basically did the scene without him there.



[2009, on Beverly Hills Cop (1984)] I almost didn't do the movie, because my girlfriend and I had tickets to go to Florence, and they kept pushing the date back of when they were going to shoot it. Not having a crystal ball and not knowing what was going to happen with it, I said, "If you don't shoot it before next Wednesday, I'm not doing it. We've got tickets to Florence, and I'm not not going to Florence." I didn't have any money, I was nobody, and I was just kidding around and having fun, and it came out, and people were following me around and shrieking and taking pictures, acting like I was a big deal. I didn't have any concept of what the hell was going on. But basically, it was a couple of days, fooling around, having fun. I almost didn't do it.