- Born
- Birth nameRalph George Macchio
- Height5′ 8¾″ (1.75 m)
- Ralph George Macchio was born on November 4, 1961 in Huntington, Long Island, New York. He started out in various TV commercials in the late 1970s before appearing in the puerile comedy movie Up the Academy (1980), then a regular role in 1980 on the television series Eight Is Enough (1977) followed by a decent performance as teenager Johhny Cade in the The Outsiders (1983) based on the popular S.E. Hinton novel about troubled youth.
In 1984, Macchio scored the lead role in The Karate Kid (1984) directed by Rocky (1976) director John G. Avildsen. The film was a phenomenal success, being highly popular with adults and children alike. The movie spawned two equally popular sequels The Karate Kid Part II (1986) and The Karate Kid Part III (1989), both again starring Macchio and Pat Morita, and both directed by Avildsen.
Macchio also starred in the blues road movie Crossroads (1986), featured alongside Joe Pesci in My Cousin Vinny (1992) and, looking to toughen up his image, Macchio played a hit man in A Good Night to Die (2003). Arguably, movie audiences still identify Macchio very strongly with his Karate Kid role, but as his features have gained a more weathered, adult edge, he has found opportunities and positive reviews from appearances in stage productions showcasing his acting talent. It would be great to see this versatile actor score some broader and more challenging film roles.- IMDb Mini Biography By: firehouse44@hotmail.com
- SpousePhyllis Macchio(April 5, 1987 - present) (2 children)
- ChildrenJulia MacchioDaniel Macchio
- ParentsRalph Macchio Sr.
- RelativesSteven Macchio(Sibling)
- Daniel LaRusso in the Karate Kid films
- During Pat Morita's (his former The Karate Kid (1984) co-star) funeral procession, Macchio gave a brief eulogy and ended it as quoted, "Forever, my Sensei" to the mourners.
- Once saved a baby porpoise that was beached on the shores of Malibu, CA. When reporters tried to cover the story, he asked to remain anonymous.
- His father has half-Greek and half-Italian ancestry. His mother has Italian ancestry.
- Acting protégé of Pat Morita.
- Wife Phyllis Fierro is a nurse practitioner.
- There's an audience out there for all these different types of things. Whether it's comedy, motion-picture drama, family movie or a cool, cutting-edge indie, it's nice to know that I can span all those different genres.
- I've come up in the scripted world, and I have wished there were more time slots for us to tell compelling scripted stories and not fill the airwaves with a lot of fluff and tabloid entertainment.
- I remember making the all-star team in Little League when I was around 11 years old. I was not a great athlete, but I loved it, so making starting second base in the all-star was great for me. I think someone must have been sick and they slotted me in.
- Guys like [Steven Spielberg] and [Robert Zemeckis] and really anybody who is a storyteller-filmmaker today has studied [Alfred Hitchcock] and the way he visually tells a story. He was the master of suspense, certainly, but visually you would get a lot of information from what he would do with the camera and what he would allow you to see as the story was unfolding.
- The truth is, you have a much richer life if you somehow lead one that you can hold together.
- Cobra Kai (2018) - $100,000 episode for seasons 1&2
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