L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2016 www.italoamericano.org 8 " M y I t a l i a n o r i g i n s h a v e n e v e r b e e n a s o u r c e o f p a r t i c u l a r d i s c o m f o r t , except for the time when, as a child, my father asked me to buy T h e P r o g r e s s o t h e I t a l i a n newspaper of the time. It was raining hard and I slipped into a h o l e c l u t c h i n g o n t o t h e newspaper. It must have seemed like a challenge or some sort of threat, because some boys who were passing by, began to beat me soundly". This is how John Aprea - the young Tessio of The Godfather II - amusingly talks about his childhood. My parents - he remembers - a r e f r o m t h e r e g i o n o f Campagna; my father was born in Sorrento and my mother in Castellammare di Stabia. I grew up with aunts and uncles who lived in Brooklyn and in New J e r s e y . I s t i l l r e m e m b e r t h e endless Sunday dinners of five o r s i x c o u r s e s . A t t h a t t i m e "Napolitàn" was spoken and still today I feel that I never totally lost the dialectical inflection. On t h e s e t o f G o d f a t h e r I I , everyone said that I recited in S i c i l i a n w i t h a N e a p o l i t a n accent. When did you decide you wanted to become an actor? I always wanted to act, even if I am believed to be a very shy person. At 23 years old I made my first audition after having read an ad in a local newspaper. I was met by a strange guy, with a mustache and an ostentatious German accent. He told me that with a couple thousand dollars I c o u l d h a v e h a d a p a r t i n a m o v i e . S o o n a f t e r w a r d s , however, I realized that things were not that simple. With my sisters advice, I went to a teacher from the Actor Studios: I, who was an avid and clumsy soccer player, would become an actor after three years of intensive s t u d i e s . A f t e r a t h e a t r i c a l performances, I was asked to play the role of Tessio in The Godfather II and since then I've had many more engagements. What are the difficulties y o u h a v e e n c o u n t e r e d t h r o u g h o u t y o u r a r t i s t i c career? T h a t ' s i n t e r e s t i n g , b u t I remember that when I started to act, the roles of the main actors were all held by blonde, blue- e y e d m e n - R o b e r t R e d f o r d , Ryan O' Neil. It was difficult to force myself at first, but with the a d v e n t o f D e N i r o a n d A l P a c i n o , t h i n g s f o r t u n a t e l y changed dramatically! Mike and Tessio, mobsters i n t w o d i f f e r e n t f i l m productions. How would you define their characters? In the first edition of The Godfather, the role of Tessio p l a y e d b y A b e V i g o d a , w a s much more complex. Together w i t h C a s t e l l a n o ( P e t e Clemenza) and Marlon Brando (Don Vito Corleone), they were t h e h e a r t o f t h e I t a l i a n - American underworld of the ' 4 0 s . I n t h e s e c o n d s h o o t , however, the characters were shown at a young age, and I (Tessio), accompanied Don Vito (Robert de Niro). The role of M i k e - t h e p r o t a g o n i s t o f Sharkskin, coming soon on all digital platforms - is instead, completely different. He is an honest worker who gets mixed up in a small group of local gangsters with the sole purpose of supporting his family. I really l o v e d t h i s c h a r a c t e r , t o b e honest, it is the most fun role I've ever played. On the set, it was a very relaxed environment, t h a n k s t o t h e s u p p o r t o f t h e director, Dan Perri, and to the Italian lasagna of his 90 year old mother - the entire cast got to enjoy them! S h a r k s k i n , l i k e t h e Sopranos, exalts the topic of t h e f a m i l y u n i t e d w i t h violence as social redemption. What do you think? In daily life, many people are enslaved by injustices and abuse of all kinds. In the film, the mobster group takes care of e v e r y o n e , o f t e n s o l v i n g unorthodox issues of honor and respect. They are not victims, unfortunately they use violence, and in spite of this, they manage t o h a v e e v e r y t h i n g u n d e r control. The TV success of The Sopranos is a demonstration of what still today continues to attract more viewers: the chance to break free from a state of injustice taking advantage of the p r o t e c t i o n o f t h e s t r o n g e r individuals. Have you recently seen an Italian movie? I r e a l l y e n j o y e d C l a u d i o Caligari's Non essere cattivo - even if it was a bit slow, in my o p i n i o n - a n d t h e n P a o l o Sorrentino's Youth. A look at the past and the present. I am happy with all of the choices that I have made over the course of my career and I feel lucky to have been able to work with such great artists. T h e f u t u r e a t 7 5 y e a r s o l d ? What a question! Get another job! Life and career of John Aprea, "napoletano d'America" Italian American actor John Aprea. Photo courtesy of imdb.com LOS ANGELES ITALIAN COMMUNITY ELISABETTA RUSSO Translation by Angela Di Nardo

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