---
name: "Nicholas Colasanto"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/nicholas-colasanto"
fi1m_id: "nicholas-colasanto"
imdb_id: "nm0170225"
tmdb_id: 17651
wikidata_id: "Q959202"
roles: ["Actor","Director"]
born: "19 January 1924"
died: "12 February 1985"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 5
average_fi1m_score: 84
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 4
updated: "2026-09-26T17:30:35.221194+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Nicholas Colasanto

## Identity

Nicholas Colasanto

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/nicholas-colasanto
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** nicholas-colasanto
- **IMDb ID:** nm0170225
- **TMDB ID:** 17651
- **Wikidata ID:** Q959202
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_Colasanto, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q959202, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0170225/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/17651

Actor and director. Born 19 January 1924 in Providence, Rhode Island, USA. Died 12 February 1985.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor, Director
- **Born:** 19 January 1924, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
- **Died:** 12 February 1985
- **Active:** 1959–1982
- **Also known as:** Nick Colasanto
- **Titles on Fi1m:** 5: 4 acting, 1 directing
- **Frequently works with:** [Alf Kjellin](https://film.one/person/alf-kjellin.md)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 84, as actor, over 4 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1960s 82 (1), 1970s 80 (2), 1980s 90 (2)
- **Score spread:** 3 at 80+, 1 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Lead roles:** 0 of 3 acting credits billed first or second
- **Genres:** Drama 3, Sport 2, Action & Adventure 1, Comedy 1, Crime 1, History 1
- **Screen time:** 4 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $23m across 1 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_Colasanto, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q959202, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0170225/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/17651

## Streaming the US now

- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*Raging Bull*](https://film.one/film/raging-bull.md) (91)
- **Apple TV:** [*Cheers*](https://film.one/tv/cheers.md) (88)
- **Peacock:** [*Columbo*](https://film.one/tv/columbo.md) (86)
- **The Roku Channel:** [*Fat City*](https://film.one/film/fat-city.md) (73)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Nicholas Colasanto

> Nicholas Colasanto makes working men and underworld figures credible without making them grand. We value him most in *Cheers*, where Coach’s forgetfulness and loyalty give the comedy someone worth caring about between the arguments.

In *Cheers* (1982), a forgetful former baseball coach works behind a bar full of bruised egos. Nicholas Colasanto’s Ernie ‘Coach’ Pantusso is loyal rather than worldly wise, which gives him a different place in the comedy from the people busy defending their dignity. We were touched by Coach because his absent-mindedness never cancels the sense that he cares about those around him. The arguments are funny, but he gives us another reason to stay.

Before Coach, there were working men and underworld figures, with television directing running alongside the acting through the 1960s and 1970s. *Columbo* (1971) was among his directing credits, but the film roles make the change to *Cheers* clearest. In John Huston’s *Fat City* (1972), he plays Ruben, a small-time boxing manager and trainer. His weary, practical presence belongs among its struggling fighters and handlers. Huston sometimes lets patience become drift, but Colasanto suits a film that refuses to pretend suffering is useful.

Martin Scorsese’s *Raging Bull* (1980) gives him a more imposing sort of authority as Tommy Como, a local mob boss. Colasanto makes that standing convincing without needing to compete with Robert De Niro’s frightening Jake LaMotta for our attention. The repeated confrontations outside the ring can weary us, but the film never makes its violence an easy pleasure. It is the stronger of the two boxing films, though neither asks Colasanto to carry it.

The turn to *Cheers* matters because Coach cannot depend on that sort of standing: he is a bartender whose forgetfulness is part of the joke. Colasanto makes him worth caring about without turning him into a source of unlikely wisdom. We prefer this warmth to the authority of the film parts, even if the programme’s repeated quarrels sometimes give the writing too little to do. Start with Coach, then try *Fat City* for the less comforting company.

## Biography

Nicholas Colasanto (1924–1985) was an American actor and television director. He trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and began his career in theatre before moving into film and television in the 1960s.

He appeared in supporting roles in films including *Fat City* (1972) as Ruben, *Family Plot* (1976) as Victor Constantine, and *Raging Bull* (1980) as Tommy Como. Colasanto also directed episodes of series such as *Bonanza*, *Columbo*, *Starsky & Hutch* and *Hawaii Five-O*.

He is best known for playing Ernie 'Coach' Pantusso in the sitcom *Cheers* (1982–1985). He received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations for the role.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (5)

### Performed in (4) — the average rests on these

- *Cheers* (1982), Fi1m 88, as Ernie 'Coach' Pantusso — [page](https://film.one/tv/cheers.md)
- *Raging Bull* (1980), Fi1m 91, as Tommy Como — [page](https://film.one/film/raging-bull.md)
- *Fat City* (1972), Fi1m 73, as Ruben — [page](https://film.one/film/fat-city.md)
- *Mission: Impossible* (1966), Fi1m 82, as Jimmy Bibo — [page](https://film.one/tv/mission-impossible-1966.md)

### Directed (1)

- *Columbo* (1971), Fi1m 86, Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/columbo.md)

## Complete filmography (54)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Cheers* (1982), series, as Ernie 'Coach' Pantusso — Fi1m 88, [page](https://film.one/tv/cheers.md)
- *The Haircut* (1982), as Bobby Russo (Barber)
- *Fitz and Bones* (1981), series, Director
- *Raging Bull* (1980), as Tommy Como — Fi1m 91, [page](https://film.one/film/raging-bull.md)
- *The Contender* (1980), series, Director
- *The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo* (1979), series, Director
- *Mad Bull* (1977), as Duke Sallow
- *Lou Grant* (1977), series, as Patsy Reese
- *CHiPs* (1977), series, Director
- *The Return of the World's Greatest Detective* (1976), as Lieutenant Nick Tinker
- *Family Plot* (1976), as Victor Constantine
- *Starsky & Hutch* (1975), series, Director
- *The Manchu Eagle Murder Caper Mystery* (1975), as Bert
- *S.W.A.T.* (1975), series, Director
- *Baretta* (1975), series, Actor
- *Kojak* (1973), series, as Victor Marchette — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/tv/kojak.md)
- *Shaft* (1973), series, Director
- *Toma* (1973), series, Director
- *Toma* (1973), as Prolaci
- *The Streets of San Francisco* (1972), series, as Joe Patruro · Director
- *Search* (1972), series, Director
- *Hec Ramsey* (1972), series, Director
- *Fat City* (1972), as Ruben — Fi1m 73, [page](https://film.one/film/fat-city.md)
- *Monty Nash* (1971), series, Director
- *Columbo* (1971), series, Director — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/tv/columbo.md)
- *Alias Smith and Jones* (1971), series, Director
- *McCloud* (1970), series, Director
- *Marcus Welby, M.D.* (1969), series, Director
- *Hawaii Five-O* (1969), series, Director
- *Mission: Impossible vs. the Mob* (1969), as Jimmy Bibo
- *The Name of the Game* (1968), series, Director
- *The Counterfeit Killer* (1968), as Plainclothesman
- *Mannix* (1967), series, as Mac Wagner
- *Garrison's Gorillas* (1967), series, Director
- *Deadlock* (1967), as Charlie Atkins
- *Ironside* (1967), series, as Mike Sellino · Director
- *Ironside* (1967), as Mr. Matling (uncredited)
- *Fame Is the Name of the Game* (1966), as Detective
- *Mission: Impossible* (1966), series, as Jimmy Bibo — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/tv/mission-impossible-1966.md)
- *Felony Squad* (1966), series, Director
- *The F.B.I.* (1965), series, as Billy Milton, Jumisino
- *Run for Your Life* (1965), series, as Benno Capalupo, George Karpantos, Jake Wexler, Maxie, The Bartender · Director
- *The Man from U.N.C.L.E.* (1964), series, as Ralph
- *Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea* (1964), series, as Reporter (uncredited)
- *Kraft Suspense Theatre* (1963), series, as 1st Military Policeman
- *My Favorite Martian* (1963), series, as Orville
- *The Fugitive* (1963), series, as Matt — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-fugitive-1963.md)
- *Arrest and Trial* (1963), series, as Armando Martinez
- *The Alfred Hitchcock Hour* (1962), series, as Work Partner
- *Ben Casey* (1961), series, Actor
- *Car 54, Where Are You?* (1961), series, as Marty (uncredited)
- *Bonanza* (1959), series, Director
- *For Whom the Bell Tolls* (1959), as Eladio
- *Playhouse 90* (1956), series, as Eladio

## Gallery

- ![Nicholas Colasanto](https://film.one/media/person/59588/gallery-80b1b32aaae5.jpg) Nicholas Colasanto — NBC Television, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c5/Nicholas_Colasanto_%281982_NBC_publicity_photo%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Nicholas Colasanto](https://film.one/media/person/59588/gallery-c5bbe062eb98.jpg) Nicholas Colasanto — Image via TMDB

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/nicholas-colasanto