Burt Young (born April 30, 1940) is the actor who plays Paulie Pennino, the friend and later brother-in-law of Rocky Balboa, and the older brother of Adrian Pennino-Balboa in the Rocky film series.
Personal life
Young was born Gerald Tommaso DeLouise in Queens, New York, the son of Josephine and Michael.[1] He was trained by Lee Strasberg at the Actor's Studio. Young is widowed and has one daughter, Anne Morea.
Acting career
Young made his name playing rough-edged working class Italian-American characters, the best-known example being his signature role as Sylvester Stallone's brother-in-law Paulie in Rocky (1976), for which he received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. He is one of three actors (the other two being Stallone and Tony Burton) who have appeared in every Rocky film (although, additionally Talia Shire appears in Rocky I-V, and makes a flashback appearance in Rocky Balboa).
Other interests
Young is also a talented visual artist, a painter whose art has been displayed in galleries throughout the world. He is also a published author whose works include two filmed screenplays and 400-page historically based novel called Endings.
He has also written two stage plays: SOS and A Letter to Alicia and the New York City Government From a Man With a Bullet in His Head.
References
- Burt Young's Official Website
- Burt Young at the Internet Movie Database