George Gallo

GEORGE GALLO

Birth Name: George H. Gallo Jr.

Date of Birth: 1956

Growing up in New York, writer, director and producer George Gallo had originally intended to take on a career in graphic arts. A student of a Roumanian artist, Gallo developed his art to painting landscapes in the style of the Pennsylvania Impressionists. He has even had three one-man exhibitions in New York City and won the coveted Arts for the Parks Award in 1990 for his landscape painting of the Delaware River.

While watching Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets, Gallo developed a new fascination for the moving picture. "It knocked me out," he says. "Then I took a film appreciation course at college and really got hooked." Informed by the school that he would have to do his first year of studies over if he switched to a film major, Gallo dropped out instead and wrote his first screenplay.

With no experience in writing screenplays, he submitted the script Wise Guys to the only producer based in New York, and was quickly paid $27,000 for a rewrite. Although he thought he had it made, for the next five years he found no work.

He took odd jobs to make ends meet, and continued to write screenplays until his first script was sold. Wise Guys was finally made in 1986 and starred Danny DeVito and Joe Piscopo.

His next filmed script was the hit film Midnight Run which starred Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin. The film was so popular that three television series were made based on the film, all of which he executive produced.

Gallo made his directorial debut on 29th Street for which he also wrote the screenplay. He went on to write and direct films like Trapped in Paradise (1994) starring Nicolas Cage, Jon Lovitz and Dana Carvey. This film also featured his father in a role.

Starting off the new millennium, Gallo continues to write and direct for films like Double Take (2001) and Uncoupled (2001).

Filmography (director):

Uncoupled (2001)
Double Take (2001)
Trapped in Paradise (1994)
29th Street (1991)

Filmography (writer):

Uncoupled (2001)
See Spot Run (2001)
Double Take (2001)
Bad Boys (1995) (story)
Trapped in Paradise (1994)
29th Street (1991)
Midnight Run (1988)
Wise Guys (1986)