Facts About Peter Boyle

I loved him as Frank Barone.

Creative Commons: Pop Goes the Culture TV

One of my favorite TV shows in the last 35 years was Everybody Loves Raymond. I was a little late getting there, but when I found the show, I thought it was great. There are a number of reasons the show was successful. First, and most importantly, there was Ray Romano. But the cast was great. And one of those cast members was Peter Boyle.

I also thought Peter was great in a couple of comedic films. One was Young Frankenstein. He and Gene Wilder’s rendition of Putting on the Ritz is one of my favorite movie musical numbers of all time.

Also, his work in The Dream Team was great, and probably somewhat overlooked. So, beyond that, here are some things you didn’t know about Peter Boyle.

1: Peter gained notice for his starring role in the movie, “Joe.” The film was noted for its bad language and violence.

Sounds like a really, really rough version of Frank Barone. Peter was actually appalled by the positive reaction to the violence of the movie.

2: Peter actually turned down the starring role in “The French Connection” and other movies that glorified violence.