“Oh, that’s Michael Rispoli!”is most likely what you’re exclaiming to yourself right now, after you watch the Mr. Man clip of the actor in a pretty silk robe and underwear that gives our imagination a run for its money. He’s chatting with Matt Damn in the movie Rounders (1998), where he played Grama, and besides looking good in undies and a kimono, he can also pull off a hat pretty well, too. The hunk of man is pure New Yorker, and Mr. Man means that with nothing but peace and love. The Tappan, New York-raised actor is a second generation Italian who trains in Tae Kwon Do and makes wine when he isn’t in front of the cameras. The dark-haired dish has likely appeared in a bunch of projects you’ve seen, but sometimes he just blends so well with his characters, you don’t realize it’s actually Michael behind the drama. Where exactly have you seen him? Mr. Man is glad you asked, and would love to tell you. He’s actually been in over 50 films, but a few highlights include playing Joe Jr. in While You Were Sleeping (1995) (the guy who loves ladies’ shoes who hits on Sandra Bullock), Ben DeLucas in Gus Van Sant’s To Die For (1995) with Nicole Kidman, Joey T in Spike Lee’s Summer of Sam (1999) with Adrien Brody, Spinner Dunn in Danny DeVito’s Death to Smoochy (2002) with Robin Williams, John Johnson in The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009) with Denzel Washington, Big Joe in Kick-Ass(2010) with Nicolas Cage, Sala in The Rum Diary (2011) with Johnny Depp, Frank Griga in Michael Bay’s Pain & Gain (2013) with Mark Wahlberg, and Tommy in the Russo brothers’ Cherry (2021) with Tom Holland. TV? Yes, that, too. But you’ll have to Google him to see those credits. Mr. Man is going to re-watch Rounders.
