Ray Sharkey

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Ray Sharkey
Born	Raymond Sharkey, Jr. November 14, 1952(1952-11-14) Brooklyn, New York, United States
Died	June 11, 1993 (aged 40) Brooklyn, New York, United States
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1974-1993
Spouse(s)	Rebecca Wood (1981-1986) Carole Graham (1988-1992)

Raymond "Ray" Sharkey, Jr. (November 14, 1952 – June 11, 1993) was a Golden Globe-winning American actor best known for his role as Sonny Steelgrave in the television series, Wiseguy.

Early life and career

Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Sharkey's father, Ray Sr., a professional drummer, abandoned the family when Sharkey was just five years old. He was raised by his mother, Cecelia, with assistance from her parents in Brooklyn's rough Red Hook neighborhood. After seeing the Broadway production of Hair at 17, Sharkey decided to become an actor and started studying acting at the H.B. Studio in New York City. In 1974, he made his film debut in The Lords of Flatbush. Sharkey would go on to appear in more than forty motion pictures and dozens of guest appearances on various television series.

In 1981, he won a Golden Globe Award for his performance in The Idolmaker. The following year, he was nominated for another Golden Globe for his role in The Ordeal of Bill Carney. In 1987, Sharkey landed the role of Sonny Steelgrave in the series Wiseguy.

Personal life

In 1981, Sharkey had a brief relationship with Italian actress Ornella Muti while filming the 1982 drama, Love and Money. The same year, he married actress Rebecca Wood. The union would end in 1986, reportedly due to Sharkey's drug abuse. In 1988, he married actress Carole Graham. That marriage would produce one daughter, Cecelia Bonnie Sharkey, in 1989. Again, the union ended in divorce in 1992. In 1991, Sharkey began a seven month relationship with model and actress, Elena Monica.^[1]

Later years

Shakrey struggled with an addiction to cocaine and heroin throughout his career. He was involved in four drug-related car wrecks, two requiring microsurgery on his eyes. On July 30, 1992, while filming a guest spot on the tv series, The Hat Squad, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, he was arrested for drug possession. Canadian customs officials, making a routine inspection of incoming cargo at the airport, discovered small amounts of cocaine and heroin in a black envelope being sent from Los Angeles, California to Sharkey. Police searched his hotel room and found an additional supply of drugs. He was jailed and later released on bail. He was promptly fired from The Hat Squad and replaced by actor Kim Coates.

Sharkey reportedly contracted the AIDS virus through his indiscriminate drug use and was diagnosed as HIV positive in 1987. Despite his diagnosis, Ray remained in denial about his HIV positive status. Sharkey convinced himself he harbored a strain of HIV that would never endanger himself or anyone else. He told no one of his condition, and reportedly did not disclose the fact that he was HIV positive to women he was in intimate relationships with. ^[1]

Death

In 1992, former girlfriend, Elena Monica, sued Sharkey for $52,000,000 for knowingly infecting her with the AIDS virus. Sharkey, still denying he had the virus despite rapidly ailing health, declined to challenge the suit. By default judgment, Monica won the suit, but received no money from Sharkey's estate because the actor died virtually penniless.^[1]

In 1993, Sharkey died of AIDS at Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York. He was 40 years old. He is interred in Saint Charles Cemetery in Farmingdale, Long Island, New York.

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

• Ray Sharkey at the Internet Movie Database
• Ray Sharkey at TV.com
• Ray Sharkey at Find A Grave