I will tell one Yaphet Kotto story today, though it really belongs to Tom Fontana, the mastermind of "Homicide: Life on The Street." Anyway, the character of Al Giardello was based on Gary D'Addario, the real-life Italian-American shift commander in my source book for the drama..
...But when Yaphet signed on to take the role, there was a natural inclination to change the character to reflect ethnicity. But Tom and Barry Levinson, in a decision as inexplicable as it was brilliant, said fuck it, he's Al Giardello and whether he's the child of a...
...mixed marriage or an adopted kid or whatever, he identifies as Sicilian. We're going to go with it. And Yaphet just went with it, relishing the occasional Italian phrase and talking with his hands at points. The only complication as far as Tom was concerned...
...was Yaphet's choice to at points deliver some of his lines in a Brando-like mumble worthy of Don Corleone. At some moment on set, Tom took Yaphet aside and said he needed to enunciate more, especially on lines involving exposition...
"Tom," Yaphet explained, "I'm playing the Sicilian."
"Yaphet, can you understand me right now?" Tom countered.
Yaphet allowed that he could.
"Yaphet, I am Sicilian."
Which left everyone including Yaphet laughing.
"Yaphet, can you understand me right now?" Tom countered.
Yaphet allowed that he could.
"Yaphet, I am Sicilian."
Which left everyone including Yaphet laughing.
• • •
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