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Paul Edward Valentine Giamatti (b. June 6, 1967) is an Academy Award-nominated American actor born in New Haven, Connecticut. Equally well known in dramatic roles, Giamatti has appeared in such notable films as Cinderella Man, Donnie Brasco, and Sideways as well as the genre features Lady in the Water, The Truman Show and Paycheck.
Giamatti is the youngest of three children born to Yale professor A. Bartlett Giamatti and former actress, Toni Smith. His older brother, Marcus Giamatti, is also an actor; his sister, Elena, is a jewelry designer. Giamatti attended Choate Rosemary Hall boarding school and later Yale University where he majored in English. He received his Masters degree in Fine Arts from Yale School of Drama.
He began his acting career on stage appearing in Broadway productions before moving on to television and film roles. After small roles in films such as Singles, Mighty Aphrodite, Sabrina, Donnie Brasco and Breathing Room he landed his breakthrough role as Kenny 'Pig Vomit' Rushton in the film adaptation of Howard Stern's Private Parts. His performance was praised by Stern and gave his career a push. He then performed supporting roles in My Best Friends Wedding, Deconstructing Harry, The Truman Show, Doctor Dolittle, Saving Private Ryan, Man on the Moon, and Big Momma's House. Giamatti's profile continued to grow. He appeared in duets with Gwyneth Paltrow and Maria Bello, the 2001 remake of the classic film Planet of the Apes and played the villainous Marty Wolf in the comedy Big Fat Liar with Franky Muniz.
In 2003, he starred in American Splendor based on comic by Harvey Pekar and Joyce Brabner. He followed up with Confidence alongside Edward Burns and Rachel Weisz, and Paycheck with Ben Affleck. 2004 brought Sideways which made Giamatti a household name and earned him and Oscar nomination. Following that success, he became recognized as a leading actor. He lent his voice to the film Robots, and appeared in the acclaimed Cinderella Man with Russell Crowe and Renée Zellweger. In 2006, Giamatti appeared in the genre films, The Illusionist, Lady in the Water, and voiced roles in The Ant Bully' and The Amazing Screw-On Head.
Upcoming roles include Shoot 'Em Up with Clive Owen and Monica Bellucci, a voice role as Dr. Satan in The Haunted World of El Superbeasto, The Nanny Diaries based on the popular novel, Fred Claus as Santa Claus, the miniseries John Adamas, Bubba Nosferatu and the Curse of the She-Vampires, The Last Station and Tender Interface.
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