It's been quite the journey for Louis Mustillo, who grew up in South Buffalo on Edgewood Avenue, moved to New York City, and after many years became an established Hollywood actor.
“I owe this neighborhood a lot," said Mustillo, who returned to South Buffalo in March to serve as an honoree and chairman of the Buffalo Irish Civic Luncheon.
The South Buffalo native is best known for playing Vince Moranto on the sitcom Mike & Molly. He played the gardener Sal Vitro on The Sopranos, worked with Steven Spielberg and has guest-starred on a handful of popular shows like CSI, Law & Order and My Name Is Earl. Mustillo credits his upbringing in South Buffalo as one of the key factors to his success.
“The loyalty and humility and hard work ethic of this neighborhood has helped me out a lot, also, too, the comical end of it," he said. "I grew up with a lot of very funny characters that have helped me in my career — in terms of things I can take and use and some of the roles that I've played.”
When Mustillo was starting to venture into acting, he was encouraged by his neighborhood family and friends.
"When I was able to finally verbalize 'This is what I wanted to do,' I really thought I was going to get 'What?' Instead, I got complete support, which says a lot about this neighborhood."
“When I was able to finally verbalize 'This is what I wanted to do,' I really thought I was going to get 'What?' Instead, I got complete support, which says a lot about this neighborhood," he said. "Everybody was like, 'Go, man, if that's what you want to do, go, go, do it.'”
It took a lot of rejection and several years to find an agent — 10 years to be exact — but the desire to make it work kept him going.
"It's like going halfway over a bridge and turning back," Mustillo said. "I'm just gonna keep going."
Bartending in New York eventually led to finding an agent, which eventually led to writing and starring in the off-Broadway play Circumstances.
Then came television opportunities, starting with a CBS pilot.
"It took a long time, but it finally happened, and that was the pinnacle, and I never had to do another job besides [acting]," he said. "After that pilot, it didn't get picked up, but it was a great opportunity for me."
During his career, Mustillo said hard work and awareness at each acting job served as an opportunity for growth.
“I always would stand and observe people, other people that I admired working," he said. "I never ran back to my dressing room. I always stayed and observed, so that, along with the fact that you never stop learning, you never stop evolving. And that's how I always looked at my career, each job is a new learning experience.”
