Charlie Picerni
Charlie Picerni was born in Corona Queens, New York. The fourth of five children to Italian parents. After high school, he worked different jobs, one being construction work on high-rise buildings in Manhattan. He married, at a young age, his childhood girlfriend, Marie. He had a son after one year of marriage and decided he didn't want to work in construction, anymore. So, he headed west to try his luck in the movie business!
His brother, Paul Picerni, was an actor on a hit TV show at that time called "The Untouchables (1959)". Charlie worked as a stand-in, an extra and started doing stunt double work. Charlie immediately fell in love with this work and moved his family to California. Charlie excelled as a stuntman and then moved up to stunt-coordinating TV shows. He got his big break on "Starsky and Hutch (1975)", he was the stunt coordinator and Paul Michael Glaser's stunt double. Aaron Spelling and Duke Vincent saw what direction Charlie was heading in - Directing"!
He started second unit-directing "Starsky and Hutch (1975)" and then moved up to directing episodes of "Starsky". He continued stunt-coordinating and second unit-directing such shows as "Kojak (1973)" and "Magnum, P.I. (1980)". He then started directing television for producers Aaron Spelling, Leonard Goldberg and Stephen J. Cannell, for such shows as "T.J. Hooker (1982)", "Matt Houston (1982)", "Vega$ (1978)", "Hardcastle and McCormick (1983)", "Hunter (1984)", "Stingray (1985)", "Finder of Lost Loves (1984)", "The A-Team (1983)", "J.J. Starbuck (1987)", "Spenser: For Hire (1985)", "Blue Thunder (1984)", "Gavilan (1982)" and HBO's "Tales from the Crypt (1989)".
At that time, Charlie caught Warner Brothers producer Joel Silver's eye. Joel hired Charlie to stunt-coordinate "Die Hard (1988)". This led to second unit-directing and stunt-coordinating on the films, "Die Hard 2 (1990)", "Road House (1989)", "Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)" & "Lethal Weapon 3 (1992)", "Hudson Hawk (1991)", "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)", "The Last Boy Scout (1991)", "Demolition Man (1993)", "Ghost (1990)", "Ricochet (1991)", "Basic Instinct (1992)", "A Low Down Dirty Shame (1994)", "True Romance (1993)", "2 Days in the Valley (1996)", "15 Minutes (2001)" and many more. Charlie also, during this time, directed multiple episodes on a TV series, called "Seven Days (1998)", for Paramount studios.
Charlie also worked as an actor in many TV and film projects throughout his career. Realizing he wanted to further his career as a director, he studied at the "Beverly Hills Playhouse" in the Master class for two years. In 2007, he directed, produced and co-wrote a feature film entitled "Three Days to Vegas (2007)", starring Peter Falk, Rip Torn and George Segal. In 2010, Charlie directed Ayn Rand's play, "Night of January 16th", at the Odyssey Theatre to rave reviews! While continuing to work in all avenues of the motion picture business, he is developing and writing his own project called "Spaghetti Park", which he will produce and direct.
Charlie is a proud member of "The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences".
Known For | Crew |
---|---|
Most Rating | 3.278 |
Birthday | 1935-12-19 |
Place of Birth | Queens, New York, USA |
Also Known As | Charlie Piccerni , Charles Picerni Sr. , Charlie Picerni Sr. , Chuck Picerni Sr. , Charles Picerni , Charley Picerni , Chuck Picerni, |
1981
Margin for Murder
5.5/2
Mickey Spillane's hard-hitting '50s private eye, Mike Hammer, returns to television in the guise of Kevin Dobson to track down the killer of his best...
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Margin for Murder
1981
Sizzle
0/0
A sultry nightclub singer, a small-town girl in the big city, sets out to avenge her boyfriend's murder after he is killed while running illegal booze...
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Sizzle
1972
Hot Summer Week
2/1
Two girls pick up a crazed hitchhiker who may or may not be the serial killer murdering hippies in the area.
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Hot Summer Week
1983
Two of a Kind
6/128
God has had just about enough of the human's attitude so he will destroy the planet very soon. It is up to a struggling inventor and a bank teller, bo...
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Two of a Kind
1973
Shamus
6.4/22
New York private eye Shamus McCoy likes girls, drink and gambling, but by the look of his flat business can't be too hot. So an offer of $10,000 to fi...
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Shamus
1971
Star Spangled Girl
5.2/4
A pair of 60's hippies fall in love with the girl next door, who is exactly the kind of square that they are fighting against.
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Star Spangled Girl
1970
Tora! Tora! Tora!
7.156/529
In the summer of 1941, the United States and Japan seem on the brink of war after constant embargos and failed diplomacy come to no end. "Tora! Tora!...
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Tora! Tora! Tora!
1975
Matt Helm
0/0
In this pilot film for the later series, a former secret agent, now a private investigator, is hired to protect a beautiful film star and gets involve...
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Matt Helm
1973
The Don Is Dead
5.9/25
After his mistress is murdered, a Mafia leader goes after the killer with a bloody vengeance. Soon after the hunt begins, a gang war ensues.
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The Don Is Dead
1971
Cannon
3.5/2
In this pilot film to the TV series, Cannon investigates the murder of a war buddy to clear the man's wife of suspicion in his death.
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Cannon
1981
Rivkin: Bounty Hunter
0/0
A New York-based bounty hunter who makes a living chasing and capturing bail jumpers matches wits with a heavily-armed drug dealer in this pilot to a...
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Rivkin: Bounty Hunter
1994
True Lies
7.076/4071
A fearless, globe-trotting, terrorist-battling secret agent has his life turned upside down when he discovers his wife might be having an affair with...
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True Lies
1974
Earthquake
6.1/319
Various interconnected people struggle to survive when an earthquake of unimaginable magnitude hits Los Angeles, California.
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Earthquake
1988
Die Hard
7.793/11076
NYPD cop John McClane's plan to reconcile with his estranged wife is thrown for a serious loop when, minutes after he arrives at her office, the entir...
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Die Hard
1973
Westworld
6.776/1279
Delos is a futuristic amusement park that features themed worlds—ancient Rome, Medieval times and the Old West—populated by human-like androids. After...
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Westworld
1972
Evil Roy Slade
6.2/15
Orphaned and left in the desert as an infant, Evil Roy Slade (John Astin) grew up alone—save for his teddy bear—and mean. As an adult, he is notorious...
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Evil Roy Slade
1983
Murder Me, Murder You
6.6/4
Private eye Mike Hammer probes his long-lost love's death while seeking their daughter.
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Murder Me, Murder You
1992
Rapid Fire
6.4/233
College student Jake Lo is pursued by smugglers, mobsters and crooked federal agents after he witnesses a murder by a Mafia kingpin.
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Rapid Fire
1966
Batman
6.413/948
The Dynamic Duo faces four super-villains who plan to hold the world for ransom with the help of a secret invention that instantly dehydrates people.
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Batman
1973
The Letters
6.7/3
Story of people whose lives were changed because of a year-long delay in the delivery of some letters.
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The Letters
1973
The Mad Bomber
5.1/18
Los Angeles detectives Minelli and Blake must track down a serial rapist who may know the identity of a mentally disturbed bomber.
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The Mad Bomber
1980
The Baltimore Bullet
5.9/11
A tale of two hustlers trying to set up a big game.
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The Baltimore Bullet
1980
Stunts Unlimited
0/0
A group of Hollywood stunt performers are recruited by former U.S. Intelligence agent Dirk Macauley to retrieve a stolen laser gun from a notorious ar...
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Stunts Unlimited
1972
Fuzz
5.4/38
Police in Boston search for a mad bomber trying to extort money from the city.
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Fuzz
2015
Demonic
5.3/482
A police officer and a psychologist investigate the deaths of five people who were killed while trying to summon ghosts.
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Demonic
1988
The World's Greatest Stunts: A Tribute to Hollywood Stuntmen
0/0
A follow-up special to ABC's 1987 "The Ultimate Stuntman: A Tribute to Dar Robinson." The program includes clips of great stunts, interviews with cele...
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