Antonio Sabàto Jr.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Antonio Sabàto
Antonio Sabàto Jr. at the 2018 National Christmas Tree Lighting (31162479757) (cropped).jpg
Sabàto in 2018
Born (1972-02-29) February 29, 1972 (age 49)
Rome, Italy
OccupationActor, model
Years active1990–present
Height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
Partner(s)
Children3
Parent(s)Antonio Sabàto Sr.
Yvonne Kabouchy

Antonio Sabàto Jr. (born February 29, 1972) is an Italian-born American former model and actor. Sabàto first found fame in the 1990s as an underwear model for Calvin Klein and playing Jagger Cates on the soap opera General Hospital from 1992 to 1995. By the early 2000s, most of his acting credits were guest appearances, reality television, and budget films. Sabàto ran unsuccessfully as the Republican candidate for U.S. Congress against incumbent Democratic Congresswoman Julia Brownley for California's 26th district in the 2018 elections.[1][2]

Youth[]

Sabàto was born in Rome on February 29, 1972, a Leap Day. His father was Antonio Sabàto Sr., a film star of Italian heritage born in Sicily. His mother, Yvonne Kabouchy, is a realtor from Prague and is of Czech and Ashkenazi Jewish heritage; her own mother was a Holocaust survivor.[3][4][5][6][7] He has one sibling, a sister named Simonne. Sabàto and his family moved to the United States from Italy in 1985 and he became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1996.[5] He received his high school diploma from Palisades Charter High School in Los Angeles, California.[8] His parents are divorced, and his mother married California-based businessman George F. Kabouchy in 1997.[9][10]

Career[]

Modeling[]

Sabàto was featured on the cover of erotic magazine Playgirl in April 1993.[11] Represented in Los Angeles by fashion agent Omar Albertto,[12] Sabàto first gained attention as a Calvin Klein underwear model in 1996. In 1990, he appeared in Janet Jackson's "Love Will Never Do (Without You)" music video along with actor Djimon Hounsou, who is also a former CK underwear model represented by Albertto. In 2013, Sabàto was named the international celebrity spokesperson for AnastasiaDate, an online mail-order bride website which connects wealthy American older men with Eastern European women.[13][14]

Acting[]

Moving into acting, from 1992 through 1995 he appeared on the soap opera General Hospital, the science fiction series Earth 2 and the prime time soap opera Melrose Place. Throughout the late 1990s, he starred in various TV movies and direct-to-video films, as well as a supporting role in the 1998 feature film The Big Hit. In 2003, he played the protagonist's lover Pablo in the movie Testosterone, filmed in Argentina with Sonia Braga, David Sutcliffe, Jennifer Coolidge, Celina Font and Leonardo Brezicki. From 2005 to 2006, Sabàto played Dante Damiano on the daytime soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful, and in 2008, Sabàto reprised his role as Jagger Cates on the second season of General Hospital: Night Shift.[15] Sabàto made an appearance on Bones as a bouncer from a Jersey Shore club in season 6, episode 3, "The Maggots in the Meathead" in 2010.[16] In 2013, he played Father Zaragosa in the television series The League.[citation needed] Sabàto is set to direct, produce and star in an upcoming project called Trail Blazers, which reportedly is the first in the line of other films he hopes to produce for his upcoming film studio called Trail Blazers Pictures. The film costars fellow Donald Trump supporters Kristy Swanson, Kevin Sorbo, Dean Cain, and Scott Baio.[17]

Dancing[]

In 2016, Sabàto was contracted to be a Chippendales dancer for a special engagement in June at the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.[18]

Reality television[]

In 2005, Sabàto appeared on But Can They Sing?, a celebrity reality singing competition on VH1, coming in 5th place. He competed in the 2008 NBC competition Celebrity Circus, which he won. He stated on the show that both his mother and her father were circus performers.[19]

In August 2009, Sabàto starred in My Antonio, a reality show on VH1 in which female contestants competed to win his heart. The show notably featured Sabàto's ex-wife, Tully Jensen, as one of the contestants (she came in 3rd place), and his mother also appeared on the show, providing advice. The show's winner was Brooke Barlow.[20]

Sabàto and his family appeared on ABC's Celebrity Wife Swap on January 31, 2012. His then-fiancé Cheryl Moana Marie Nunes traded places on the show with WWE wrestler Mick Foley's wife Colette Foley. Sabàto competed on season 19 of Dancing with the Stars in 2014. He was paired with professional dancer Cheryl Burke,[21] and they finished in 8th place.[22]

Hosting[]

Since 2014, Sabàto has served as the host of a 30-minute long syndicated home remodeling show Fix It & Finish It.[23][24]

Producing[]

Sabàto announced that he wants to start a Hollywood movie studio geared toward conservative content. The new company is called Trail Blazers Pictures and the studio's first upcoming film, Trail Blazers, is in the works for a release in 2022.[25]

Politics[]

Main article: United States House of Representatives elections in California, 2018 § District 26

Sabàto ran for the 26th district Congressional seat in California as a Republican against incumbent Democrat Julia Brownley. He came in second place in the jungle primary with 22.4% of the vote, advancing to face Brownley in the general election.[26] He lost the election on November 6, 2018, by 24%.[2]

Regarding illegal immigration, Sabàto said, "There should be no shortcuts for those who don't want to pay or wait".[27] He supported Trump's wall on the southern border, saying, "We need a wall."[28]

Sabàto has made many controversial statements regarding former U.S. President Barack Obama, including saying he has "no guts," accusing him of destroying the U.S. economy, and asserting that Obama should be arrested and sent to the Guantanamo Bay detention camp.[29] The former Democrat has also implied that Obama is the reason he left the Democratic Party.[29]

For several years, Sabàto has maintained that, in his opinion, Obama is not a Christian but a Muslim.[30] The first instance of such a claim came in 2016, when Sabàto, after making a speech at the Republican National Convention, told ABC News "I don't believe he follows the God that I love and the Jesus that I love," and "If you follow his story, if you read his book, if you understand about Obama, I mean, that's not a Christian name, is it?"[31] When pressed for evidence to back up his claims, Sabàto answered that it's "in his heart."[32]

Two years later, in 2018, he reaffirmed his belief that Obama is a Muslim when appearing on The View, saying "If he's [Obama's] not a Muslim, we should call him President Barry," and claimed that "What I was saying was, he changed his name to Obama because he followed the Islam religion when he was growing up so, I felt that once you're in that religion, you stay for the rest of your life."[33][34][35]

Sabàto endorsed Donald Trump for president in 2016.[36] He spoke at the 2016 Republican National Convention in support of the party's presumptive nominee.[37] Sabàto claimed that after he expressed his support for Trump, he was blacklisted from Hollywood.[38] He later compared his struggle to find work in show business with that of being Jewish during the Holocaust and said celebrities mocked him on the social media website Twitter.[39][40]

Personal life[]

Sabàto was married to Tully Jensen from 1992 until 1993.[41] He married Cheryl Moana Marie Nunes in 2012.[42] The two separated in December 2016[43] and their divorce was finalized in June 2018.[44] After Sabàto filed for divorce, Nunes alleged that Sabàto was abusing prescription drugs and had failed to complete even one month of a three-month-long drug rehabilitation program. Sabàto said that he was addicted to prescription sleep aids, not benzodiazepines as Nunes claimed, but admitted that he had a problem with substance abuse in the past, specifically crystal meth.[43][45] Sabàto has three children: a son with Virginia Madsen,[46] a daughter with Kristin Rossetti Biasi,[46] and a son with Nunes.[44]

Sabàto is a Christian but has, on several occasions, said that he also identifies as being Jewish.[47][48][49][50][6] Sabàto had hormone surgery as a treatment for low levels of testosterone.[51] Sabàto has several tattoos, including the Batman logo on his lower back and the yin yang symbol surrounded by Chinese characters on his arm.[52]

In a December 2018 tweet, Sabàto stated that he and his family were in the process of moving out of California to an undisclosed state, citing his frustration with the state's progressive policies as the primary reason.[53] In March 2020, Sabàto moved to Florida, and now works for a construction company.[54]

In early 2020, Antonio announced the formation of a new studio with two possible locations, Arizona and South Carolina, for films of those being "blacklisted" due to politics and faith standings by Hollywood moguls and "elites." In 2021, he formed with two partners Trail Blazers Pictures, formerly Conflix Studios, and have made their headquarters in Tampa, Florida. The first film, Trail Blazers, is cast, funded and ready for production in Autumn 2021 with a release date set for 2022.

Filmography[]

Title Role Year(s) Notes
"Love Will Never Do (Without You)" Model 1990 Music video for Janet Jackson
Il ragazzo delle mani d'acciaio Kevin Foster 1990 Italian film
Fuga da Kayenta Emiliano 1991 Italian film
...Se non avessi l'amore Pier Giorgio Frassati 1991 TV film
General Hospital Jagger Cates 1992-1995 TV show
Moment of Truth: Why My Daughter? A.J. Treece 1993 TV film
Jailbreakers Tony 1994 TV film
Earth 2 Alonzo Solace 1994-1995 TV show
Melrose Place Jack Perezi 1995 7 episodes
Her Hidden Truth Detective Matt Samoni 1995 TV film
If Looks Could Kill John Hawkins 1996 TV film
Padre papà Don Giuseppe 1996 TV film
Thrill Jack Colson 1996 TV film
Code Name: Wolverine Harry Gordini / Wolverine 1996 TV film
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Bob Stanford/Deathstroke 1996 TV show
Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child Mario 1997 Episode: Thumbelina
Circles Jeremy Bonner 1997
The Perfect Getaway Randy Savino 1998 TV film
The Big Hit Vince 1998
High Voltage Johnny Clay 1998
Tribe Jack Osborne 1999 4 episodes
Fatal Error Dr. Nick Baldwin 1999 TV film
Ally McBeal Kevin Wyatt 1999 Episode: The Green Monster
Goosed Dr. Steven Stevenson 1999
Wasteland Jack 1999 Episode: Double Date
The Outer Limits Chad Warner / Sid Camden 2000 Episode: Skin Deep
The Chaos Factor Jack Poynt 2000
Charmed Bane Jessup 2000 2 episodes
Vola Sciusciù Tony 2000 TV film
Guilty as Charged Sergeant Hawks 2000 TV film
Final Ascent David 2000 TV film
Mindstorm Dan Oliver 2001
Shark Hunter Spencer Northcut 2001
Longshot Tommy Sutton 2001
Hyper Sonic Grant Irvine 2002
Seconds to Spare Paul Blake 2002 TV film
Dead Above Ground Sergeant Dan DeSousa 2002
See Jane Date Timothy Rommelly 2003 TV film
Wasabi Tuna Fredrico 2003
Bugs Matt Pollack 2003 TV film
Testosterone Pablo Alesandro 2003
Half & Half Carlo 2004 Episode: The Big Double Date with My Mate Episode
Becker Linda's boyfriend 2004 Episode: DNR
The Help Dwayne 2004 7 episodes
Joey Kyle 2005 Episode: Joey and the Tonight Show
Jane Doe: Til Death Do Us Part Joey Angelini 2005 TV film
Crash Landing Major John Masters 2005
The Bold and the Beautiful Dante Damiano 2005-2006
But Can They Sing? Himself 2005 Reality TV show
Deadly Skies Richard Donovan 2006 TV film
Reckless Behavior: Caught on Tape Greg Vlasi 2007 TV film
Destination: Infestation Ethan Hart 2007 TV film
Bad Girl Island Michael Pace 2007 TV film
Ghost Voyage Michael 2008 TV film
General Hospital: Night Shift Jagger Cates 2008 14 episodes
NCIS Dale Kapp 2008 Episode: Road Kill
Drifter: Henry Lee Lucas Henry Lee Lucas 2009
Ugly Betty Himself 2009 Episode: The Fall Issue
Scrubs Himself 2009 Episode: Our Drunk Friend
Princess of Mars John Carter 2009
My Antonio Himself 2009 Reality TV show
Celebrity Circus Himself / Contestant 2009 Reality TV show
CSI: NY Davi Santos 2010 Episode: The Formula
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno Ross Matthews 2010 Episode: #18.89
Rizzoli & Isles Jorge 2010 Episode: I Kissed A Girl
Bones Terror 2010 Episode: The Maggots in the Meathead
Balls to the Wall Sven 2011
God Reschedules Rapture 2011 Short film
Hot in Cleveland Leandro 2011 Episode: Dancing Queens
Secrets from Her Past Dr. Shawn Tessle 2011 TV film
Celebrity Wife Swap Himself 2012
The Three Stooges Handsome Guy #1 2012
Little Women, Big Cars A.J. 2012
Little Women, Big Cars 2 A.J. 2012
Femme Fatales Bart 2012 Episode: Gun Twisted
Baby Daddy Gerard 2013 Episode: All's Flair in Love and War
Castle Ramon Russo 2013 Episode: Need to Know
The League Father Zaragosa 2013 2 episodes
Hell's Kitchen Himself 2013 Chef's table guest diner; Episode: "5 Chefs Compete Part 3"
All I Want for Christmas Mike Patterson 2014 TV film
Fix It and Finish It Himself / Host 2014
Intikam Varol 2015
Hometown Hero Jason 2016 TV film
Dance Night Obsession Miguel 2016
Dark Paradise Dario 2016 TV film
The Encounter Dr. Max Huber 2016 Episode: Just Believe
Inspired to Kill Paul 2017 TV film
Malibu Dan the Family Man Frane Calloway 2017 Episode: Filthy Poor
Hilton Head Island Jude Trisk 2017 Episode: Genesis
Antonio: Down Under Antonio 2017 TV mini-series
One Nation Under God Senator Viera 2020
Trail Blazers John 2021 Also director, writer, and producer; pre-production.
God's Not Dead: We the People[55] Mike McKinnon 2021 Post-production

See also[]

References[]

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  2. ^ Jump up to: a b Wilson, Kathleen (November 7, 2018). "Election results 2018: Julia Brownley coasts to fourth term as Democrats take over House". Ventura County Star. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
  3. ^ Carter, Alan (April 23, 1993). "Raising TV's Pulse Rate". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 13, 2009.
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  5. ^ Jump up to: a b Elkin, Michael (April 18, 2013). "The Mysteries of a Mystery Woman". The Jewish Exponent. Retrieved August 13, 2009.
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  37. ^ "Tim Tebow: Speaking slot at Trump convention 'a rumor'". The Seattle Times. Associated Press. July 14, 2016.
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  45. ^ Bell, Gabriel (May 15, 2017). "Congressional hopeful Antonio Sabato Jr. accused of drug abuse by wife". Salon. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
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  49. ^ Hallowell, Billy (November 12, 2012). "Actor Antonio Sabato Jr. Tells TheBlaze Why He's 'A True Believer in Jesus' (Plus: His Take on Christianity in Hollywood)". TheBlaze. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  50. ^ Bloom, Nate (September 19, 2014). "Jews in the News : Ben Feldman, Taylor Mays and Marc Trestman". Tampa Jewish Federation. Retrieved March 6, 2018.
  51. ^ Hein, Alexandria (May 10, 2018). "Antonio Sabato Jr. says testosterone pellets improve sex life, reduce stress". Fox News. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
  52. ^ "Antonio Sabato Jr". TV Guide. Retrieved March 6, 2018.
  53. ^ @AntonioSabatoJr (December 12, 2018). "Relocating out of state will be coming back to California at times, but the future will not be in Cali not under the Liberal Policies & Crazies" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  54. ^ Setoodeh, Ramin (March 3, 2020). "Antonio Sabato Jr. on How Supporting Donald Trump Ended His Acting Career". Variety. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
  55. ^ Bond, Paul (July 14, 2021). "New "God's Not Dead" movie to star "blacklisted" Antonio Sabato Jr". Newsweek. Retrieved August 23, 2021.

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