ray Liotta, who starred in "Goodfellas," "Field of Dreams," and other films and on TV, died in his sleep in the Dominican Republic on Wednesday night or early Thursday. He had died at the age of 67 years.
Jennifer Allen, his publicist, stated that he died in his hotel room while filming the film "Dangerous Waters." She stated that the reason for the incident was unknown.
When he secured an entirely different kind of part in the 1986 comedic crime novel "Something Wild," Mr. Liotta was best known for playing Joey Perrini on the soap opera "Another World," a figure he once described as "the nicest guy in the world." Melanie Griffith lobbied the film's director, Jonathan Demme, to cast him as her character's frightening husband, an ex-con, and he landed the part."Mr. Liotta, a rookie, practically walks away with his sections of the film," Vincent Canby wrote in his New York Times review, and he was instantly in demand for roles like this.Mr. Liotta told The Los Angeles Times in 1990, "I got offers for every insane guy around."But, as one publication put it, he refused to be labeled "Hollywood's resident sociopath." Following "Something Wild," he starred in "Dominick and Eugene" (1988), in which he played a man whose twin brother (Tom Hulce) is intellectually handicapped due to a childhood accident.
According to Janet Maslin of The New York Times, "the two major actors do a terrific job of bringing these characters to life." "In 'Something Wild,' Mr. Liotta transforms Gino into a touchingly loyal figure, a man prepared to give nearly anything for his brother's well-being."
The next year, he gained fame as Shoeless Joe Jackson, the ethereal figure who emerges on the ball field built by Kevin Costner's character in "Field of Dreams" and later pulls his friends along. In portraying Jackson, Mr. Liotta displayed a softer intensity than in "Something Wild.""Ray Liotta makes him ethereal and real at the same time," Caryn James said in her New York Times review of his performance, describing him as "a relic of a previous age much more than a ghost from the past."
Mr. Liotta said that he didn't get the premise of "Field of Dreams" at first, despite the fact that he played sports in high school.
"When I saw the script, I said to myself, 'Are you kidding me?' In 1990, he said to The Los Angeles Times, "A dead guy comes back to play baseball?"
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The gangster Henry Hill in Martin Scorsese's blockbuster 1990 film "Goodfellas" defined Mr. Liotta's career more than any other. Mr. Liotta said the picture, which was based on Mr. Hill's true story, tested him like no other job he had done before.
In 1990, he told The Associated Press that "in this picture, I had to exhibit jealousy, hatred, happiness, anger – everything was there." "As an actor, you want to take that risk." It had been a lot of fun.
"I went from the 1950s to the 1980s in 80 wardrobe changes." It was a mixed bag on an emotional level. I'm sweet on occasion. Then I'm out of my mind the next day because I'm high. At one area, we'd spend 20 years."
Acting alongside Robert De Niro and other Scorcese regulars, according to Mr. Liotta, was a challenge. But he held his own in the picture, which became a classic almost immediately.
In the San Francisco Chronicle, Mick LaSalle commented, "Ray Liotta, best known for his performance as Melanie Griffith's explosive husband in 'Something Wild,' adds an oddly suitable quality of innocence to Henry." "His performance is going to make him a great star," he added of Mr. Liotta.
On Thursday, Mr. De Niro was one of the many who paid tribute.
In a statement, he added, "I was deeply grieved to learn about Ray's death." "He died when he was far too young to leave us."
Following "Goodfellas," he appeared in a variety of films, including "Hannibal" (2001), "Narc" (2002), and "Killing Them Softly" (2012). Mr. Liotta was last seen in "The Many Saints of Newark," a precursor to "The Sopranos." He also had comedic roles in the "Muppets" movies and "Operation Dumbo Drop" (1995), but it was his passion that defined him.
Howard Deutch, who directed Ray in the 1992 comedy "Article 99," once stated, "Ray can be quite still, almost like a cat." "In his silence, he's quite powerful. He seems flammable to you."
Mr. Liotta was born in Newark on December 18, 1954, according to his imdb.com biography. Alfred and Mary Liotta, who had an auto parts business together, adopted him when he was six months old. In Union, New Jersey, he grew up.
Mr. Liotta frequently stated that he became an actor by chance. After an altercation with his basketball coach, his drama teacher inquired if he needed something to do, and he ended himself in a theatrical production of "Sunday in New York."
He majored in acting at the University of Miami and moved to New York after graduation, where he earned the role on "Another World" swiftly.
He noted in a 1994 interview, "I adored the soap." "I had the chance to make bad dialogue bearable." It was more difficult to perform than if I were playing Tennessee Williams."
Mr. Liotta was cast as Frank Sinatra in "The Rat Pack," an HBO film, in 1998. He hesitated to take up the task.
He told The Chicago Sun-Times, "At first, it was like, 'Do I look enough like Sinatra?'" "Finally, I had no choice but to reply, 'I'm from Jersey, I have blue eyes, I'm close enough.'"
His TV credits also include the 2015 miniseries "Texas Rising" and the three-season crime drama "Shades of Blue," which he co-starred in with Jennifer Lopez. For an appearance on "ER," he earned an Emmy Award in 2005 for outstanding guest performer in a drama.
Mr. Liotta didn't do much theater work, but he did play Frank Langella and Jane Adams in the Stephen Belber comedy "Match" on Broadway in 2004. However, the show was only on for a week.
Mr. Liotta, who lives in Los Angeles, is survived by his fiancée, Jacy Nittolo, and a daughter, Karsen Liotta, from his divorced marriage to actress Michelle Grace.
Mr. Liotta said he always attempted to avoid being typecast, even if he was most associated with roles of smoldering intensity.
In 2018, he told Long Island Weekly, "You want to do as many different genres as you can," which he did. "I've worked on Muppet movies before." Sinatra was one of the songs I performed. I portrayed both nice and terrible characters. I directed an elephant in a movie. I made the decision that I was coming to try out various aspects and activities.
"It all boils down to that." That's what a job should be like."
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