Raymond Allen Liotta (December 18, 1954 – May 26, 2022; Italian: [liotta]) was an American actor and producer. He was most recognized for his roles as Shoeless Joe Jackson in Field of Dreams (1989), Henry Hill in Goodfellas (1990), and Tommy Vercetti in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (video game) (2002).
He also starred in Unlawful Entry (1992), Cop Land (1997), Hannibal (2001), Blow (2001), John Q (2002), Identity (2003), Observe and Report (2009), Killing Them Softly (2012), The Place Beyond the Pines (2012), Marriage Story (2019), and The Many Saints of Newark (2021), as well as the drama series Shades of Blue (2016–2018).
Early Years of Ray Liotta
Raymond Allen Liotta was born in Newark, New Jersey on December 18, 1954. As a child, Liotta and his sister were adopted by American Italian parents. He eventually tracked down his biological mother and discovered that he is primarily of Scottish descent. Liotta and his sister were raised in a Catholic family, though they rarely went to church.
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Liotta attended the University of Miami after graduating from Union High School in 1973. He studied acting and participated in the college’s musical performances while receiving a bachelor’s degree in fine arts.
The Career of Ray Liotta
Ray Liotta traveled to New York City after graduating from college to seek a career in acting. He started establishing connections and booked an agent while working as a bartender for a New York theatre. From 1978 through 1981, Liotta was a regular in the soap opera Another World, where he played Joey Perrini.
When Ray Liotta decided to come to Los Angeles and focus more on film roles, he made a significant decision. In films like The Lonely Lady and Something Wild, he made some of his first appearances. He was nominated for a Golden Globe for the latter role. In 1989, Liotta played the ghost of Shoeless Joe Jackson in Field of Dreams, which was a huge role for him.
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The most pivotal moment in Liotta’s career occurred in 1990 when director Martin Scorcese placed him in the iconic mafia film Goodfellas. In the United States alone, the picture grossed nearly million.
It is widely regarded as the best picture of the year and one of the greatest gangster films of all time by many critics. Ray Liotta went on to star in a number of notable films in the 1990s, including Unlawful Entry, No Escape, Unforgettable, Cop Land, and Phoenix. Liotta was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for his portrayal of Frank Sinatra in Rat Pack near the end of the decade.
Ray Liotta supplied the voice for the protagonist and player character in the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City in 2002. With 17.5 million copies sold, the game was a critical and commercial success. It is still regarded as one of the best video games ever created. Despite his success, Liotta later complained that he was underpaid for the job and that he was difficult to deal with, according to the director.
Liotta earned an Emmy for his guest appearance on ER in 2004. Liotta is well-known for her roles in crime films such as Blow and Narc. Inside The Mafia, a Discovery Channel documentary was also narrated by him. Liotta appeared in films such as Identity, Smokin’ Aces, Hero Wanted, Crossing Over, and Observe and Report throughout the rest of the 2000s. In 2011, Liotta played alongside Al Pacino in the film The Son of No One. Ray Liotta went on to star in films like Date Night, Killing Them Softly, and The Iceman throughout the rest of the decade. In 2015, he also starred in the History Channel miniseries, Texas Rising. Ray Liotta has also appeared on stage, most notably in the 2004 Broadway show Match.
Ray Liotta’s Net Worth and Salary Were Unknown
| NET WORTH: | $14 MILLION |
|---|---|
| Profession: | Professional Actor |
| Date of Birth: | December 18, 1954 |
| Country: | United States of America |
| Height: | 1.83 m |
At the time of his death, Ray Liotta was an American actor, producer, and director with a net worth of $14 million. After starring as the lead in Martin Scorsese’s classic mafia film GoodFellas, Liotta became a household name.
Aside from this once-in-a-lifetime performance, Ray Liotta has had a lot of success in film and television. Ray Liotta passed away on May 26, 2022, at the age of 67. He died peacefully in his sleep in the Dominican Republic, where he was filming a movie.
Personal Life of Ray Liotta
After meeting at a baseball game where her ex-husband Mark Grace was playing for the Chicago Cubs, Liotta married actress and producer Michelle Grace in February 1997. Before divorcing in 2004, the couple had a daughter named Karsen.
Liotta revealed on an episode of Jay Leno’s Garage that Nancy and Tina Sinatra, Frank Sinatra’s daughters, once sent her a horse’s head in the mail. The joke was in response to Liotta declining to play their late father in a miniseries they were developing, only to see him in the 1998 HBO television drama The Rat Pack.
After slamming his Cadillac Escalade into two parked cars in Pacific Palisades in February 2007, he was charged with driving under the influence. He refused to enter a plea. Liotta resumed horseback riding after his experience shooting Western Texas Rising, saying in September 2014: “[On the show], I was enamored with horseback riding.] It now appeals to me. I’ve never had a recreational activity. It may be my new pastime.”
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In 2018, Liotta informed a reporter for Long Island Weekly about his role as a crooked detective hunted by the FBI in the NBC crime drama Shades of Blue, in which he co-starred with Jennifer Lopez. {{blockquote| You should try as many various genres as possible, which is exactly what I’ve been doing.
I’ve worked on Muppet movies. I tried my hand at Sinatra. I played both nice and bad guys. I made a film with an elephant in it.
I made the decision that I was come to check out different aspects and activities. That is what it all boils down to. That is what a professional should be.
Death
Liotta died in his sleep on May 26, 2022, in the Dominican Republic, at the age of 67, while filming the new picture Dangerous Waters. He was engaged to Jacy Nittolo at the time of his death.