Biography

In 2005 he was charged with criminally harassing his wife. He spent two years in jail awaiting trial before he was diagnosed with Capgras syndrome, a condition that made him believe his wife and daughter had been replaced by impostors. He was committed to a mental institution.

Worked at The Toronto Star with George Hollo. Tony would do various accents while taking calls, much to the chagrin of his supervisors.

Was one of only three comedian/writers to appear as regulars on both Saturday Night Live (1975) and SCTV (1976) (the other two being Robin Duke and Martin Short).

Raised in Toronto, Canada

He once owned a pet monkey named "Mauldin"

Marcello was a synthesis of every Italian idiom that I could nurture out of my heart and soul. I began to realize that all great comedic actors from Curly Howard on had one character, which was the epitome of who they were. And so on that basis, Marcello got me on SCTV, and on "Saturday Night Live". You need one character that you can really put all your chops into and jazz with and jam with.

[on his childhood]: Yeah, I was mischievous. I hung out with a group of brats. We were always into trouble, doing pranks around the school.

In my second year of university ... I came down to see a Second City show. I was invited by a friend; I had never heard of Second City. And I saw my high school buddy up on stage, Peter Aykroyd, Dan Aykroyd's younger brother. I realized that they were the Aykroyds that I grew up with in Ottawa, and my next door neighbors .... I had so much fun watching the show that I thought, Wow, I'd really like to do that.

[Explaining why he returned to Second City and enrolled in Level A improv classes after his release from hospital]: Well, because I hadn't done improv in a long time. And it's a skill, as you know. You have to stay fresh with it otherwise you start losing that sense of gravity that any good improviser has, that sense of courage, and strength. I hadn't been well in the past few years, and I was trying to get back on my feet, trying to get strong again.

I started going to movies when I was around eight. I used to sneak into the theaters in Ottawa. I saw a few Italian films that I really liked, Fellini movies, with Marcello Mastroianni. He was a role model. I liked all the Warner Brothers cartoons, with Mel Blanc doing the voices, like Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck. I watched The Three Stooges, and The Honeymooners with Jackie Gleason. Burt Lancaster was one of my favorite actors .... I liked Charlie Chaplin a great deal.