Jack Scalia (born November 10, 1950) is an American actor. He has had many roles in television series (both as a regular and as a guest-star), television movies, and feature films. He is best known for his role as Chris Stamp on All My Children from 2001 to 2003. Scalia is also known as the founder of the Operation American Spirit charity. The organization was shut down by California authorities in 2011 due to a failure to pay requisite taxes and fees.
Scalia was born Giacomo Tomaso Tedesco in Brooklyn, New York, of Italian and Irish descent. His parents divorced and when his mother remarried, his name was changed to Scalia. He was drafted third by the Montreal Expos in 1971 as a pitcher. He was injured and never played in the Major Leagues.
He began his career as a clothes model, most notably in a series of ads for Eminence briefs and Jordache jeans, both of which capitalized on his "beefcake" appeal. In 1982, to promote his TV series, The Devlin Connection, Scalia took off his shirt and posed, cigarette in hand, for a pin-up wall poster.
Scalia was a regular cast member during the final season of Remington Steele in 1987, after which he joined the cast of Dallas in the role of Nicholas Pearce, love interest to Sue Ellen Ewing (Linda Gray). Scalia's character was killed off at the end of the 1987-88 season as he was sent falling to his death after being pushed from a balcony in a fight with J. R. Ewing (Larry Hagman). He returned to the series finale in a dream sequence in which he was married to Sue Ellen.
In 1992, Scalia was cast as Detective Nico "Nick" Bonetti in the short-lived television series Tequila and Bonetti. Scalia replaced another actor in the role during production of the show's first episode. Eight years later, in 2000, Scalia reprised the role of Bonetti in a revival of the series, which was filmed and aired in Italy.
From 1994 to 1995, he starred in Pointman, a television series on the Prime Time Entertainment Network. Under the premise of an investment banker framed and convicted of fraud, when eventually cleared, Constantine "Connie" Harper, the main character, sets up shop as the owner of a Florida Coast beach resort, Spanish Pete's while aiding people in need with the use of "the list" and former jail mates.
Scalia is also known for his role as Chris Stamp on All My Children from 2001 to 2003. He was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for "Outstanding Lead Actor" for his AMC role in 2002. In 2006, Scalia starred as President Halstrom in The Genius Club for writer/director Tim Chey. The film is about seven geniuses who must try to solve the world's problems in one night.
He has been married and divorced twice. His first wife was former model Joan Rankin. His second wife was 1982 Miss Universe Karen Baldwin, with whom he has two daughters, Olivia (b. 1987) and Jacqueline (b. 1990).
On October 25, 2012, Scalia was arrested for trying to board a plane with an unloaded gun.
In 2007, Scalia founded Operation American Spirit with Edra Blixseth. The charity was founded to raise awareness and funding for severely injured troops and their families. In a press conference, Scalia stated he started the charity in hopes of raising one hundred million dollars for wounded veterans.
The group organized two 1,500-mile bike rides which took place in 2007 and 2008. The rides took place along the West Coast and were intended to raise both awareness and charitable funds for wounded veterans. The tours made stops to interact with veterans at VA hospitals. The group claimed to have raised $88,937 in 2007 and $14,490 in 2008 according to tax filings, though no charitable recipients were ever revealed
According to a July 3, 2011 report by the New York Post the IRS revoked the tax-exempt status from Scalia's "9-11-01 Lest We Forget" charitable group for failing to file a tax return in its decade of existence. That same year, Scalia's Operation American Spirit charity was suspended by California authorities because of lapses in paying taxes and fees.
On July 17, 2011 the New York Post published another report on additional discrepancies regarding Scalia's fundraising efforts, including accusations that intended benefactors from the Operation American Spirit 2007 fund-raising bicycle ride never received any compensation. In the report, a veteran of the Iraq War accused Scalia of utilizing his charities to "to build his career back up."
Scalia told the Post he "couldn't remember who received the money collected" by the fundraising effort. His lawyer, Dennis Holahan, mentioned two charities which received small amounts. As of 2012, no legal recourse has been taken against Scalia, who has maintained his innocence.
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