Peter Onorati

Peter Onorati worked with Martin Scorsese and appeared on many popular TV shows in the 1990s and early 21st century. Born on May 13, 1954 in Boonton, NJ, Onorati was a popular student athlete, playing as an NCAA all-conference wide receiver during his time at Lycoming College, where he received a B.A. in business administration. After a stint in the World Football League ended, Onorati enrolled at Fairleigh Dickinson University, receiving his masters. For years he worked for Ford Motor Company and McCall's Magazines, while doing standup comedy in his spare time. Through the world of standup, Onorati developed an interest in acting, and decided to pursue it full time.

He landed his first onscreen performance in the forgotten comedy "Wanted: The Perfect Guy" (1986), while also making appearances in films such as "Scrooged" (1988) and "Mortal Sins" (1989) plus TV shows like "Kate & Allie" (CBS, 1984-89) and "Quantum Leap" (NBC, 1989-1993). Onorati got a big break in 1990, when he worked with Martin Scorsese playing a bookie who nearly gets fed to a lion in the gangster classic "GoodFellas" (1990).

Onorati continued to work regularly throughout the 1990s, often playing tough guys and working class heroes in films like "Camp Nowhere" (1994), "RocketMan" (1997), and "Fallen Arches" (1998), as well as TV shows such as "Tales From the Crypt" (HBO, 1989-1996), "The Outer Limits" (Showtime/SyFy, 1995-2002), "Nash Bridges" (CBS, 1996-2001), and not one but two Steven Bochco series, "NYPD Blue" (ABC, 1993-2005), and "Cop Rock" (ABC, 1990). Throughout the new millennium, Onorati was a highly prolific TV actor, appearing on a wide array of highly successful shows, including "ER" (NBC, 1994-2009), "Sex and the City" (HBO, 1998-2004), "Monk" (USA Network, 2002-09), "JAG" (CBS, 1997-2005), "Desperate Housewives" (ABC, 2004-2012), and "24" (FOX, 2001-10). Onorati next co-starred as Stanley Pearson on the popular dramedy "This Is Us" (NBC, 2016-).