Shoo-Bop-Shoo-Bop
2005-12-11 18:58:36 UTC
"A Bronx Tale" was a movie with a nice 50's and 60's soundtrack,
A shocking story in today's New York Daily News:
Lillo Brancato looked destined for great things.
Picked off a crowded Jones Beach by talent scouts who spotted the
15-year-old's natural tough-gangster looks, the Yonkers schoolboy was
suddenly acting alongside his idol Robert De Niro.
But Steven Armento, his alleged partner in yesterday's break-in and the man
who cops say fired the shot that killed Officer Daniel Enchautegui, was
simply a career criminal.
Brancato's teenage role in "A Bronx Tale" launched a series of tough-guy
performances for the actor.
But it seems his on-screen persona leached into his real life. Yesterday's
burglary gone wrong was the latest, and most serious, encounter with the law
for Brancato, now 29. He was arrested twice in Yonkers, including once in
June, when he was allegedly found with four glassine bags of heroin.
While rubbing shoulders with actor gangsters in HBO's "The Sopranos" and
CBS' "Falcone," it seems Brancato was also forming close associations with
real-life criminals.
Neighbors say Brancato met Armento while dating his daughter Stefanie, 20.
Armento, 48, of Yonkers, a father of twin daughters, has a criminal record
spanning nearly 30 years, including four prison stints. His convictions
include crimes involving firearms, drugs and burglary.
Armento's ex-wife, Donna Nelson, said she divorced him 19 years ago because
of his problems with drugs and drink - though she stayed in contact for the
sake of their daughters.
"He's always been on the wrong side of the tracks," she told the Daily News
yesterday. "As far as I know, he has never killed anybody, but I was not at
all surprised to hear this."
She said Brancato and her daughter met two years ago at a Yonkers gym where
Stefanie worked. Stefanie tried to break off the relationship after six
months because of his drug problems, but would date him sporadically, her
mother said.
Three months ago, they split again. Nelson said Brancato started harassing
her daughter after the breakup. She said police were called after Brancato
broke into the home Stefanie shares with her dad on Wednesday. Several
neighbors reported that cops visited both the Brancato and Armento homes
Thursday night.
Born in Bogota, Colombia, Brancato was adopted by Italian-American parents
in Yonkers when he was 4 months old. He still lives with them.
"I consider myself Italian," he once said. "I was raised to eat pasta."
As a teenager, he landed the part of a kid torn between two role models in
"A Bronx Tale" - his hardworking, honest father and a local gang boss and
his glamorous life. Casting director Ellen Chenoweth said at the time that
Brancatolooked like De Niro. "\[And\] he did these uncanny, entire scenes
from 'GoodFellas' and 'Raging Bull,' " she said.
Since then, his screen portfolio has been packed with portrayals of
criminals. He played Mafia wanna-be Matt Bevilacqua in "The Sopranos," a
character whose run on the show was ended by Tony Soprano in a rain of
bullets fired in retaliation for an attempted hit.
After that, Brancato took a part as the mobster Lucky, a cold-blooded killer
in CBS' series "Falcone" in 2000. Brancato said of that character, "He'll
kill you in a second, not for too much of a reason, and he won't think about
it twice." In "R Xmas," a 2002 flick from edgy director Abel Ferrara,
Brancato co-starred as a heroin dealer who is kidnapped by a corrupt cop.
A shocking story in today's New York Daily News:
Lillo Brancato looked destined for great things.
Picked off a crowded Jones Beach by talent scouts who spotted the
15-year-old's natural tough-gangster looks, the Yonkers schoolboy was
suddenly acting alongside his idol Robert De Niro.
But Steven Armento, his alleged partner in yesterday's break-in and the man
who cops say fired the shot that killed Officer Daniel Enchautegui, was
simply a career criminal.
Brancato's teenage role in "A Bronx Tale" launched a series of tough-guy
performances for the actor.
But it seems his on-screen persona leached into his real life. Yesterday's
burglary gone wrong was the latest, and most serious, encounter with the law
for Brancato, now 29. He was arrested twice in Yonkers, including once in
June, when he was allegedly found with four glassine bags of heroin.
While rubbing shoulders with actor gangsters in HBO's "The Sopranos" and
CBS' "Falcone," it seems Brancato was also forming close associations with
real-life criminals.
Neighbors say Brancato met Armento while dating his daughter Stefanie, 20.
Armento, 48, of Yonkers, a father of twin daughters, has a criminal record
spanning nearly 30 years, including four prison stints. His convictions
include crimes involving firearms, drugs and burglary.
Armento's ex-wife, Donna Nelson, said she divorced him 19 years ago because
of his problems with drugs and drink - though she stayed in contact for the
sake of their daughters.
"He's always been on the wrong side of the tracks," she told the Daily News
yesterday. "As far as I know, he has never killed anybody, but I was not at
all surprised to hear this."
She said Brancato and her daughter met two years ago at a Yonkers gym where
Stefanie worked. Stefanie tried to break off the relationship after six
months because of his drug problems, but would date him sporadically, her
mother said.
Three months ago, they split again. Nelson said Brancato started harassing
her daughter after the breakup. She said police were called after Brancato
broke into the home Stefanie shares with her dad on Wednesday. Several
neighbors reported that cops visited both the Brancato and Armento homes
Thursday night.
Born in Bogota, Colombia, Brancato was adopted by Italian-American parents
in Yonkers when he was 4 months old. He still lives with them.
"I consider myself Italian," he once said. "I was raised to eat pasta."
As a teenager, he landed the part of a kid torn between two role models in
"A Bronx Tale" - his hardworking, honest father and a local gang boss and
his glamorous life. Casting director Ellen Chenoweth said at the time that
Brancatolooked like De Niro. "\[And\] he did these uncanny, entire scenes
from 'GoodFellas' and 'Raging Bull,' " she said.
Since then, his screen portfolio has been packed with portrayals of
criminals. He played Mafia wanna-be Matt Bevilacqua in "The Sopranos," a
character whose run on the show was ended by Tony Soprano in a rain of
bullets fired in retaliation for an attempted hit.
After that, Brancato took a part as the mobster Lucky, a cold-blooded killer
in CBS' series "Falcone" in 2000. Brancato said of that character, "He'll
kill you in a second, not for too much of a reason, and he won't think about
it twice." In "R Xmas," a 2002 flick from edgy director Abel Ferrara,
Brancato co-starred as a heroin dealer who is kidnapped by a corrupt cop.
--
Bill
"Are the stars out tonight?
I don't know if it's cloudy or bright."
Bill
"Are the stars out tonight?
I don't know if it's cloudy or bright."