Interview: Chazz Palminteri

When Chazz Palminteri hits the stage to perform his one-man version of “A Bronx Tale,” he’ll be recreating the footage he shot for the recently released “A Bronx Tale -- One Man Show.” Financed by Palminteri, the movie, which was released by Tribeca Films, is streaming on Amazon and Apple+ and features the executive production talents of Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and John Kilick. Shot at Long Island’s Paramount Theater, this live performance stars and is directed and produced by the Oscar-nominated actor.

“I realized I’m getting older and I wanted to preserve [the show] for posterity,” Palminteri explained in a recent interview. “So many people in places like Europe, Australia and Canada wanted to see it. I paid for the movie myself and I didn’t shoot it like it was just a guy on-stage talking. I shot it with five cameras, like a movie. I think when people see it, they’re going to want to come see the show even more.”

The autobiographical “A Bronx Tale -- One Man Show” goes back to the Bronx native’s roots, growing up at a time of racial unrest, where the young Italian-American Calogero is caught between worshipping his hero, local mob boss Sonny, and Calogero’s bus-driving father Lorenzo. The show got its start in 1988 as a one-man show that found Palminteri playing all 18 parts. Eventually Hollywood came knocking, and like Sylvester Stallone before him, the show’s creator refused to sign off on his coming-of-age story unless he starred and wrote it. And then Robert De Niro entered the picture.

“The whole world was coming to see me because everybody wanted the script to make a movie -- every producer, writer, producer,” Palminteri recalled. “I’m telling you, it was nuts. I kept saying no to everybody. Offers went over $1 million, I kept saying no and I had $200 in the bank. Finally, one night I was coming off the stage and was told Bob De Niro was in the dressing room having just seen the show. I went in there and he said he wanted to direct it. He said I should play Sonny and write it because it’s my life. He said if I shook his hand, that would be the way it would be. I shook his hand and we made the movie.”

The movie “A Bronx Tale” was released in 1993 and became a critical and commercial success. It was also a springboard for Palminteri’s career. He’s been nominated for an Oscar (for his role in 1994’s “Bullets Over Broadway), racked up roles in a string of memorable films (“The Usual Suspects,” “Mulholland Drive,” “Analyze This”) and television shows (“Modern Family,” “Blue Bloods”). Currently, he has ongoing roles in “The Godfather of Harlem” and “Gravesend.” Along the way, Palminteri has made a cottage industry playing mob roles while still avoiding being stereotyped. When asked about why the gangster genre remains popular, he explains it’s all about people looking for heroes, no matter how flawed they might be.

“I always tell people that it took the place of the western,” Palminteri said. “I think that’s why people love it. Everybody always wants to be around the tough guy -- you can’t get hurt. Look, there is a lot of romance to it. Is it what you think it is? No, of course not. It’s a tough life. There was loyalty and honor and there’s not much of that anymore.”

In the meantime, “A Bronx Tale” has also helped Palminteri launch a cigar line, a wildly popular podcast (“The Chazz Palminteri Show”) and a pair of successful restaurants that predate the pandemic and are located in Manhattan’s Theater District and in White Plains, New York. “Life is good,” Palminteri said, and when asked about his show’s appeal, he’s quick to point out that it’s all about nuance.

“What’s great about “A Bronx Tale” is that it’s not about black and white -- it’s about grey,” Palminteri said. “The boy, Calogero, takes the best of Sonny and the best of his father and becomes a man. In “A Bronx Tale,” I didn’t know at the time that I was writing archetypes. The reason why it’s been around for 34 years and people see the one-man show over and over again, laugh and cry, is because they see themselves in it. There was a mentor I had. He wasn’t in the mob, but he was like Sonny. My father was just like your father -- he wanted to see the best for me. Everybody relates to it -- everybody.”