'As far back as I can remember I always wanted to be a gangster,' Remembering the late great Ray Liotta...

On Thursday May 26, 2022, Hollywood was left stunned by the news that Ray Liotta had died at the age of 67 while filming the movie ‘Dangerous Waters’ in the Dominican Republic. Liotta cemented his status as one of the finest actors of his generation with acclaimed performances in movies such as ‘Goodfellas’, 'Hannibal', 'The Place Beyond the Pines' and 'The Many Saints of Newark'. This is the life and career of Ray Liotta, RIP...

Ray Liotta was born on December 15, 1954, in New Jersey, United States. At just six months old he was adopted by Mary and Alfred Liotta, who used to work as a secretary and as an auto-parts shop owner, respectively. Ray had a sister named Linda, also adopted. In an interview with Esquire he discussed his feelings about being adopted, saying: “I'm adopted so I don't really know what I am. Who I consider my mother and father are Italian and Scottish. I did find my birth mother and she said she was a mix of something, and when I asked about what my dad was she wouldn't even talk about it. It was like it never even happened.”

Liotta graduated from the University of Miami, completing acting studies. However, before landing his first ever on-screen role, he used to work as a bartender in New York City. He then he got to star in the series ‘Another World’, where he played Joey from 1978 to 1981. The rest is history. This project was followed by many others, both on the big and small screens, including the series ‘St. Elsewhere’, ‘Frasier’ and ‘ER’, as well as the movies ‘Goodfellas’, ‘Hannibal’ and ‘Wanderlust’, just to mention a few.

Liotta is not only known for his remarkable on-screen skills, but also for often playing intense, psychopath and sometimes aggressive characters. Apart from that, the film actor had millions of followers thanks to his unique deep blue eyes, as well as his out-of-the-ordinary laugh, not to mention his charismatic personality, especially towards the public.

Besides his passion for acting, the actor was very fond of sports, specifically soccer. His favorite team was Tottenham Hotspur who play in the English Premier League. When visiting to the UK he would often take in a game and was often spotted in the crowd by fans.

Despite cementing his status as a Hollywood icon with his filmography, Ray Liotta is known for turning down a number of famous roles. He was offered the part of Bruce Wayne and his superhero alter ego in Tim Burton’s ‘Batman’, but turned it down to film ‘Goodfellas’ instead with Martin Scorsese. He was also offered the role of Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) in ‘The Sopranos’ and was a candidate for playing The Master (Eric Roberts) in the ‘Doctor Who’ movie.

Throughout his career, the actor starred in three movies that got an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture - 1989’s ‘Field of Dreams’ alongside Kevin Costner and Amy Madigan, 1990’s ‘Goodfellas’ with Robert de Niro and Joe Pesci, and 2020’s ‘Marriage Story’, sharing credits with Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson. However, despite being part of Oscar recognised movies Ray never won personally won an Academy Award himself.

Thanks to one of his roles, Liotta got very interested in riding horses. For ‘Texas Rising’, he had to understand everything equestrian, something that filled his heart with joy. He once told Esquire: “I'm pretty much obsessed with that. Every chance I had, I was doing something. I had ridden before, but just very basic trail riding and with horses that weren't as spunky as the ones we had.”

The actor also faced some legal problems. Back in 2017 Liotta was charged for driving his vehicle under the influence. He crashed his Cadillac Escalade into two parked vehicles in Pacific Palisades. He pleaded no contest, meaning he accepted conviction, but did not admit guilt.

Ray Liotta was married to actress-and- producer Michelle Grace from 1997 to 2004, with whom he welcomed daughter Karsen. Later on, the film star embarked on a new relationship with Jacy Nittolo, announcing their engagement in December 2020. In an adorable Instagram post he wrote: "Christmas wishes do come true. I asked the love of my life to marry me, and thank God she said yes!!!"

In recent years, Liotta appeared in movies such as ‘No Sudden Move’ and ‘The Many Saints of Newark, and the TV shows ‘Hanna’ and ‘Great News’. Ray will live on after his death in a number of projects that will be released posthumously. He appears in movies ‘Cocaine Bear’, ‘The Substance’, ‘Dangerous Waters’ and ‘Clash’, as well as an untitled Charlie Day film and the series ‘Black Bird’.