- Born
- Died
- Nicknames
- Joe Guy
- The Last Centurion
- Height1.93 m
- Brooklyn born Tony Ganios was literally forced into the film business at the tender age of 18 when his even larger and more powerful uncle Pete made him cut short a powerlifting workout at the Sheridan Square Gym in Manhattan to audition for director Philip Kaufman. As a result, Tony made his film debut as the teen paladin "Perry" in Kaufman's cult classic Les seigneurs (1979). His initial performance was well liked by audiences and soon he was dancing with Sally Field in Un duo d'enfer! (1981) in a role he landed by hurling the film's script into the chest of its director. Next, he played a former NFL defensive end turned mountain man in the Lawrence Kasdan scripted John Belushi romantic comedy Deux drôles d'oiseaux (1981) before being cast by writer/director Bob Clark as the well hung high school senior "Meat" in the raunchy, but highly successful comedy Porky's (1981). One of Tony's most unforgettable roles was as that ill-fated member of the terrorist team in the hit action film 58 Minutes pour vivre (1990) who was fatally dispatched by Bruce Willis with an eye bound icicle. Some of his other film and television credits include La prise de Beverly Hills (1991), Les nouveaux mousquetaires (1992), and Soleil levant (1993), where he revisited his matchstick chewing Wanderers hero as an adversary for Sean Connery. He is also known for his recurring comedic role as a muscular mob lawyer on the Emmy Award winning series Un flic dans la mafia (1987).
An ancient military history and period weapons expert, Ganios is one of Brazilian jiu jitsu pioneer and UFC founder Rorion Gracie's original students. Although retired from acting since 1993, in 2000 Tony and Police Academy veteran Leslie Easterbrook supplied voices for the low budget YouTube animated series "Bad Vlad" under the pseudonyms Nick Fury and Honour Lawrence in what he described as one of the most purely fun performances of his career. The 2014 feature film Daddies' Girls will not only mark Tony Ganios' return to the big screen, but his debut as a producer and screenwriter as well.- IMDb mini biography by: paddyofurniture383
- SpouseShirley(? - February 18, 2024) (his death)
- His matchstick, which he has chewed continually on and off the screen since his early teens.
- Towering height.
- Gentle Giants
- Has expert knowledge of period weapons and armor, and ancient and medieval military history, particularly the battles of classical Greece and Rome, the Byzantine Empire, Dark Age western Europe, and the Crusades.
- Works as an insurance agent in New York City. Semi-retired from acting after Die Hard 2.
- Was able to bench press double body weight (drug free) by the time he was age 21.
- Is of Greek and Italian descent.
- He lives in Los Angeles and is still acting, writing and producing for future films.
- Senseless cause? Count me in!
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