Many people have wondered if the actors Burt Young and Dom DeLuise are related, since they share a similar appearance and a common Italian-American heritage. However, the truth is that they are not related by blood or marriage, but only by friendship and professional collaboration.
Who is Burt Young?
Burt Young is an American actor, author, and painter, who was born as Gerald Tommaso DeLouise on April 30, 1940, in Corona, Queens, New York. He is of Italian descent and was trained by Lee Strasberg at the Actors Studio. He served in the United States Marine Corps from 1957 to 1959, where he was a successful boxer.
Young is best known for his role as Paulie Pennino, the brother-in-law and best friend of Rocky Balboa, in the Rocky film series. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the first film in 1976. He appeared in all six Rocky films until 2006, but did not reprise his role in the 2015 spin-off Creed, as his character was said to have died in 2012.
Young has also played many other rough-edged working class Italian-American characters in films such as Chinatown (1974), The Gambler (1974), The Killer Elite (1975), Convoy (1978), Uncle Joe Shannon (1978), Once Upon a Time in America (1984), The Pope of Greenwich Village (1984), A Summer to Remember (1985), Back to School (1986), Last Exit to Brooklyn (1990), Mickey Blue Eyes (1999), Transamerica (2005), Win Win (2011), Bottom of the 9th (2019), Beckman (2020) and the documentary film Stallone: Frank, That Is (2021).
He has also appeared in many television shows, such as The Rockford Files, Baretta, Law & Order, Walker, Texas Ranger, All In The Family, M*A*S*H, Miami Vice, and The Sopranos.
Who is Dom DeLuise?
Dom DeLuise was an American actor, comedian, director, producer, chef, and author, who was born as Dominick DeLuise on August 1, 1933, in Brooklyn, New York. He was of Italian descent and was raised Roman Catholic. He graduated from Manhattan’s High School of Performing Arts and later attended Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts.
DeLuise was known primarily for his comedy roles and his frequent appearances on television variety shows in the 1970s. He was widely recognized for his performances in the films of Mel Brooks and Gene Wilder, such as The Twelve Chairs (1970), Blazing Saddles (1974), Silent Movie (1976), History of the World: Part I (1981), Spaceballs (1987), and Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993).
He also had a series of collaborations and a double act with his real-life friend Burt Reynolds. Together they appeared in films such as The Cannonball Run (1981) and Cannonball Run II (1984), Smokey and the Bandit II (1980), The End (1978), and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982).
Beginning in the 1980s, DeLuise expanded his popularity to younger audiences by voicing characters in several major animated productions, particularly those of Don Bluth. He voiced Tiger in An American Tail (1986) and its sequels, Fagin in Oliver & Company (1988), Itchy Itchiford in All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989) and its sequel, Jeremy in The Secret of NIMH (1982), Stanley in A Troll in Central Park (1994), and Christopher Columbus in The Magic Voyage (1992).
He also wrote several books on cooking and children’s stories. He died on May 4, 2009, at the age of 75 from complications of kidney failure and respiratory problems.
Are They Related?
According to Wikipedia, Burt Young and Dom DeLuise are not related by blood or marriage. They both have the surname DeLuise as their birth name, but they are not from the same family. They both changed their names when they entered show business.
However, they were good friends and frequent co-stars who shared a similar sense of humor and style. They often played characters who were friends or relatives on screen. According to YuChu, \”Burt’s best on-screen matchup was the late Dom DeLuise.\”
They also had mutual respect and admiration for each other. Burt Reynolds, who was also a close friend of both actors, paid tribute to DeLuise in the Los Angeles Times, saying: \”As you get older and start to lose people you love, you think about it more, and I was dreading this moment. Dom always made you feel better when he was around, and there will never be another like him.\”
Conclusion
Burt Young and Dom DeLuise are not related by blood or marriage, but only by friendship and professional collaboration. They both have the surname DeLuise as their birth name, but they are not from the same family. They both changed their names when they entered show business. They were good friends and frequent co-stars who shared a similar sense of humor and style. They often played characters who were friends or relatives on screen. They also had mutual respect and admiration for each other.
