The documentary A Good Job features interviews with current and former firefighters, and includes

Steve Buscemi is an award-winning actor with dozens of film and TV credits to his name - but few people know that before embarking on a successful career in Hollywood he was one of New York’s bravest.

As a young man in the early 1980s, Buscemi worked as an FDNY firefighter with Engine 55 in Little Italy. After spending four years putting out blazes, Buschemi switched gears and turned to acting.

But when the terrorist attacks of September 11 happened, killing closes to 3,000 people - among them 343 firefighters - Buscemi spontaneously rejoined his old fire company as they went to work cleaning up Ground Zero.

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First job: At age 18 in 1980, Steve Buscemi (pictured on the engine truck far left), joined Engine 55 in Little Italy, where he served for four years

Behind the camera: Actor-producer Steve Buscemi, left, and FDNY Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro pose at the New York Premiere of the New HBO documentary A Good Job: Stories of the FDNY

Now, the 56-year-old star of HBO's Boardwalk Empire has produced a new documentary titled A Good Job: Stories of the FDNY, which premiers on the premium cable network Monday.

The documentary features interviews with current and former firefighters, and covers major - and often tragic - milestones in the history of the department, including 9/11 and Hurricane Sandy in 2012, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Buscemi and director Liz Garbus at times struggled coaxing tales of real-life heroism out of New York’s bravest, who are usually not ones to brag.

The Buscemi's brief stint as a firefighter, and his familiarly with the people serving on the force, went a long way helping them open up about their experiences.

‘He was able to tell our story from our perspective, so there's like a trust—that trust you get in the firehouse kitchen,’ retired FDNY Lt John Nolan told the paper.

Steve Buscemi grew up on Long Island, the son of a sanitation worker and Korean War veteran who believed wholeheartedly in the importance of civil service, and who wanted his son to follow in his footsteps.

Buscemi's film features interviews with current and former firefighters, and commentary about major events in the FDNY's history, including 9/11, which took the lives of 343 members of the department

New York's bravest: (L to R) Joe Downey, Steve Buscemi, Chuck Downey and Robert Brown pose for photographers during the A Good Job: Stories of The FDNY' New York premiere at Sunshine Landmark on September 4

Never forget: Buscemi (C) greets firefighters after a memorial service at Old St. Pat's Church to mark the tenth anniversary of the September 11 terror attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2011

Enduring passion: Buscemi served on the force only four years, but his love for the FDNY never faded

So when Steve turned 18 in 1980, he took a civil service test and before long became the newest member of Engine 55 in the heart of Little Italy.

Buscemi recalled that on calls, his job was to control the hose. At first, he was seized by fear, but eventually he adapted to being in harm's way and ‘learned how to breathe.'

But even as he fought fires in Manhattan, Buscemi harbored a not-so-secret secret passion for acting and went to auditions in his off-time.

His screen debut came in 1985 in the film The Way It Is, but it was not until a year later that he really caught the acting bug after starring in Parting Glances.

‘I just thought, “This is my moment. If I don't take this, I don't know when it will come back,”’ he recalled.

Around that time, he decided to focus on his acting career and parted ways with Engine 55.

Boys in blue: Buscemi said his job on the crew was to control the hose, and that he was the quietest guy in the firehouse

When 9/11 happened, Buscemi (center) briefly rejoined his old engine company, helping them in the cleanup

Just like old times: The famed actor is seen here sharing a meal at his old firehouse with his pals

Buscemi went on to star in such iconic films as Fargo, Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, The Big Lebowski and Con Air.

More than 15 years, as the Twin Towers lay in ruins in the harrowing days after 9/11, Mr Buscemi was wandering amid heaps of smoking debris when he ran into members of the fire company where he once served.

He picked up where he left up, suiting up in his old fire-resistant gear to land a hand with the grim task at hand: removing buckets of debris and human remains in body bags.

Buscemi said he made the documentary A Good Job with the goal of inspiring other young people to join the FDNY and raise awareness among current and past members of the department not to be afraid to seek help for whatever trauma they may have suffered.

In his review of A Good Job,Variety TV critic Brian Lowery praised the makers of the documentary for their ability to weave anecdotes from the everyday lives of firefighters with tales of bravery, sprinkled with Buscemi’s personal recollections.

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'By that measure,' he writes,' A Good Job is , indeed, a job well done.'