Joseph Bologna

Joseph Bologna grew up in Brooklyn. He excelled academically, eventually going to Brown University to study art history. Completing his degree, he uncovered through a student group that he had a flair for acting. However, the Marine Corps were in his immediate future, so he pushed any creative endeavors to the side. After the Marines, Bologna worked in Manhattan at ad agencies creating TV commercials. In his early 30s, he met aspiring actress/comedienne Renee Taylor at a comedy club. Quickly falling in love, the pair married in 1965 and collaborated on a stage play called "Lovers and Other Strangers." The play was eventually turned into an acclaimed feature film, "Lovers and Other Strangers" (1970), that netted Bologna and Taylor an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. Bologna teamed with his wife for another screenplay that led to "Made for Each Other" (1971), but this time the pair also starred in it. He appeared alongside Peter O'Toole in the beloved comedy "My Favorite Year" (1982) and worked with Michael Caine in the romantic comedy "Blame It on Rio" (1984). Bologna worked regularly in TV and film throughout the rest of his career, playing Adam Sandler's father in "Big Daddy" (1999), and even dabbling in voice work, including the short "Ice Age: The Meltdown" (2006). He continued to collaborate on writing and acting work with his wife throughout his career, extending as late as a 2001 theatrical show "If You Ever Leave Me...I'm Going With You!" His last acting appearance was in his son Gabriel Bologna's comedy "Tango Shalom" (2012), which he also helped write. Bologna passed away at the age of 82 from complications of pancreatic cancer in August 2017.