Peter Dante Explained

Peter Dante
Birth Name:Peter Francis Dante
Birth Date:December 16, 1968
Birth Place:West Hartford, Connecticut, U.S.
Occupation:Actor
Yearsactive:1994–present
Children:2
Spouse:Cynthia Pett-Dante

Peter Francis Dante (born December 16, 1968) is an American character actor, comedian and singer. He frequently appeared in films from Happy Madison Productions alongside Adam Sandler.

Career

Dante's roles are usually alongside Jonathan Loughran and/or Allen Covert. He played Peter in Little Nicky. In Grandma's Boy he played Dante. He played a lawyer named Tommy in Adam Sandler's movie Big Daddy. He played the quarterback Gee Grenouille in The Waterboy and Murph "Murphy" in Mr. Deeds. He played a security guard in 50 First Dates.

Dante was an actor and producer for the film Grandma's Boy. In the film, Dante played a zany drug dealer with a pet chimpanzee, lion and elephant. He played a firefighter in the film I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, and Danny Guiterrez in Strange Wilderness. He also played the role of Steve Spirou's son in Adam Sandler's 2012 film That's My Boy.

Dante also worked in Grown Ups 2 as Officer Peter Dante who was paired up with Shaquille O'Neal's character Officer Fluzoo.

Controversy

On November 19, 2013, after the release of Grown Ups 2, Dante got kicked out of a hotel, after saying the n-word to the staffer, who didn't recognize him as an actor. Due to the incident, he has not appeard any Happy Madison films, since then.[1] On September 20, 2020, Dante was arrested in Los Angeles on Wednesday at 9:40 A.M. with a felony charge after an altercation with his neighbor. He was booked in Los Angeles county jail and was released that night after posting a $50,000 bond. According to the reports, Dante was bothered by loud noises from construction work being done at a neighbor's residence and allegedly "threatened to kill" his neighbor and harm his wife and kids.[2]

Music

Dante is also a musician and singer/songwriter. He recorded with Adam Sandler and Buck Simmonds. He is a member of the music group Rad Omen along with Dirt Nasty, DJ Troublemaker, Steven Laing and Benji Madden. In 2011 he released his debut album Peace, Love and Freedom. He also appeared in a music video with Afroman in 2015. As of 2020, his most popular songs are "Dirty Road" and "My Purple Tree And Me" a collaboration with indie artist Shadoe.

Education

Dante spent a post-graduate year (1987-1988) at Fork Union Military Academy playing football and lacrosse.[3] He stated in an interview that "It was a good experience going down South".[4]

He is a graduate of Hofstra University, where he played lacrosse. He was an assistant coach for the lacrosse team at Loyola Marymount University for the 2011 season and has coached many club teams, including the Riptide lacrosse team, that made it to the state championships.[5]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
1998The Wedding SingerDavid's Friend
The WaterboyGee Grenouille
1999Masters of ConsequencePeter
Big DaddyTommy Grayton
2000Little NickyPeter
2002Mr. DeedsMurph
Eight Crazy NightsFoot Locker Guy (voice)
2003Himself
The Sanctuary
Stuck on YouOfficer J.J. Hill
200450 First DatesSecurity Guard
The Dana & Julia ShowPeteyTelevision film
2006Grandma's BoyDanteAlso associate producer
2007I Now Pronounce You Chuck & LarryTony Paroni
2008Strange WildernessDanny Gutierrez
200928 Drinks LaterShort film
2010Costa Rican SummerDinger
2011Just Go with ItPick-Up Guy #2
Dante
Jack and JillCarol's Boyfriend
2012That's My BoyDante Spirou
2013Grown Ups 2Officer Dante
2015Lord of the FreaksHimselfDocumentary
2017Green is the New GoldHimselfDocumentary
2021The Pizza JointBill

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1995–1996The Larry Sanders ShowSteve / Delivery Man3 episodes
Also producer; 14 episodes
1995The Jeff Foxworthy ShowHoward's Golf FriendEpisode: "A Non-Affair to Remember"
2007The King of QueensJustin RavoEpisode: "Mild Bunch"
2011Nick Swardson's Pretend TimeBlazeEpisode: "Legalize Meth"
2017Typical RickSlimEpisode: "Glock'n'Roll"
2019Sugar and ToysPeter from BakersfieldEpisode: "Burning Scouts"

Notes and References

  1. Web site: The Waterboy star, got kicked out of a Hotel, after saying the n-word. . 6 August 2024 .
  2. Web site: Adam Sandler collaborator Peter Dante looks unrecognizable following his arrest in Los Angeles . . 19 September 2021 .
  3. News: Fork Union Military on Twitter. Twitter. 2017-01-15.
  4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ynym11Ql1zw&t=5m20s Peter Dante BNM Interview
  5. http://mcla.us/teams/loyola_marymount/2011/roster.html Loyola Marymount University Lacrosse Lions 2011 Roster and Schedule