Photo credit: Creative Commons
Joey “Pants” Pantoliano sky-rocked to fame as Ralph Cifaretto in The Sopranos. On the outside, he was on top of the world. On the inside, the story was quite different. In light of the untimely death of Robin Williams we decided to share Hollywoood on the Potomac’s interview with Joey (see below).
“On October 9, 2007, Pantoliano announced on the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) blog that he has been suffering from clinical depression for the last decade, although he was only formally diagnosed recently. He claims that his recent film Canvas was what helped him come to terms with his depression. Rather than hide his struggle from the public, he has chosen to speak out about it to remove some of the stigmas that are commonly associated with mental illness. He founded a non-profit organization No Kidding, Me Too! to unite members of the entertainment industry in educating the public about mental illness. The title comes from the response he’s heard all too often after divulging how mental illness affected him and his family. He’s also shot a documentary called No Kidding, Me Too!.” Wikipedia
Over the years through our affiliation with The Creative Coalition and NIAF (National Italian American Foundation), Hollywood on the Potomac has sat down with Joey on numerous occasions where the conversation inevitably turned to depression, a disease he wants everyone to understand with the hope that help is on the way.
“We’re happy to report that Joey “Pants” Pantoliano is in a happy place. In town for the National Italian American Foundation’s Annual Gala, he reports that his depression, or mental illness as he prefers to call it, is under control. Last year he produced a documentary “No Kidding, Me Too” on the disease. “This year,” he said, “has been a great year. My wife and I are welcoming in a new grandson, first time. My daughter Melody and her husband are living with us in Connecticut, so life is good. I’m acting and producing a new play called ‘Living Hell’ and sold a book to the Weinsteins.” Yup, life is good.” Excerpt from a Hollywood on the Potomac Q and A in 2010 published in Washington Life.
Below is the interview we did with Joey for NBC Niteside at Cafe Milano : “We are using our celebrity to let you know that it is okay to talk about the disease.”
