Ray Liotta

Born: 18th December 1955
Where: Newark, USA

Liotta's breakthrough big screen role came playing a violent ex-convict in Jonathan Demme's Something Wild.

Since then he seems to have specialised in playing policeman, particularly corrupt ones in movies such as Unlawful Entry and Narc.

His career began (sort of) when he worked as bartender for the Shubert Organization theatres in New York.

His professional acting debut came as one of a couple strolling through a park in a love songs compilation TV advert.

Following TV work and Something Wild, his first lead role came in 1988's Dominick and Eugene.

Next came the gangster movie Goodfellas and he received critical acclaim for his performance as cops - in Unlawful Entry and Cop Land.

In 2001 Liotta memorably had the top of his head removed by Hannibal Lecter in Hannibal and starred as a mechanic duped by a mother-daughter team of con artists in Heartbreakers.

In Narc, he bulked up to play a corrupt police officer (again) and then portrayed a trigger-happy cop alongside Oscar winner Denzel Washington in John Q.

Recently he was cast in the thriller Identity, reuniting him with Cop Land director James Mangold.

Upcoming projects include the comedy drama Happy Endings with Lisa Kudrow and Jennifer Garner.