Ronald Paolillo has been doing amazing things his whole life. Born in
Cheshire, Connecticut, by the age of fourteen, Ron had already started his own
theatre company. He graduated from the University of Connecticut with a degree
in dramatic arts and is probably best known for his role in the 1970s television
show Welcome Back, Kotter, in which he played Arnold Horshack. Since
then, he has appeared on a number of television shows, including the soap opera One
Life to Live, Ellen, and Celebrity Boxing, in which he took on Dustin
Diamond from Saved by the Bell. He has also been a guest on many
talkshows, such as The Rosie O'Donnell Show, The Daily Show, The
RuPaul Show, and VH1's Where Are They Now? Kid Stars.
Paolillo has traveled nationwide to perform in theatre productions, from
classical drama to contemporary comedy. He has played Nathan Detroit in Guys
and Dolls and Mozart in Amadeus, for which he won the Clevie award.
He has also taught acting at the University of Connecticut, where The Nafe E.
Katter-Ron Paolillo Scholarship in Acting is awarded to graduates or
undergraduates on the basis of demonstrated talent, contributions to
departmental productions, and professional promise.
Paolillo has starred in a number of plays that he directed himself. He has
directed and starred in A Chorus Line, The Fourposter, and in the
stage production of Phantom of the Opera. He also directed Three Guys
Naked from the Waist Down, which was performed at the Tamirand Theatre in
Hollywood, California.
Along with his comedic and thespian careers, Ron Paolillo is known for his
skilled color and black-and-white pen-and-ink works, which have been shown and
sold in New York, Hawaii, and California. He has concentrated this ability in
his illustrations for children's literature. "Bright bold illustrations
reminding one of a bouquet" is how Top of Texas Reviews describes
Paolillo's work in A Gift for the Contessa. Paolillo also illustrated The Red Wings of Christmas.
Both books are available from Pelican.
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