Editing Don Novello

{{short description|American comedian and actor (born 1943)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2013}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Don Novello
| image              = Don_Novello_2000.jpg
| caption            = Don Novello performing as [[Father Guido Sarducci]] in 2000
| birth_name         = 
| birth_date         = {{Birth date and age|1943|1|1}} 
| birth_place        = [[Ashtabula, Ohio]], U.S.
| death_date         =
| death_place        =
| occupation         = {{hlist|Comedian|actor|singer|writer|film director|producer}}
| years_active       = 1963–present
}}

'''Don Novello''' (born January 1, 1943) is an American comedian, actor, writer, singer, [[film director]] and producer.

He appeared on [[NBC]]'s ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' as the character [[Father Guido Sarducci]] from 1978 to 1980 and 1985 to 1986. He appeared as Sarducci in television shows ''[[Married... with Children]]'', ''[[Blossom (American TV series)|Blossom]]'', ''[[It's Garry Shandling's Show]]'', ''[[Unhappily Ever After]]'', ''[[Square Pegs]]'', ''[[The Colbert Report]]'' and most recently on ''[[The Late Show with Stephen Colbert|The Late Show]]'' in 2025, as well as in the 1980 film ''[[Gilda Live]]'' and the 1995 film ''[[Casper (film)|Casper]]''. He is the voice of Vincenzo "Vinny" Santorini in the franchise of ''[[Atlantis: The Lost Empire]]''.

==Early life==
Novello was born on January 1, 1943,<ref>{{cite web |title=It was a happy new year for... |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1993/01/01/it-was-a-happy-new-year-for/ |website=[[Chicago Tribune]] |date=January 1993 |access-date=March 19, 2024}}</ref> in [[Ashtabula, Ohio|Ashtabula]], Ohio, the son of Eleanor Eileen Novello (née Finnerty), a nurse,<ref name= gluvna>{{cite web| url=http://www.gluvna.net/Gobitdetail.asp?letter=N&RecNo=1359| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220628085959/http://www.gluvna.net/Gobitdetail.asp?letter=N&RecNo=1359| archive-date=June 28, 2022| title=Obituaries: Eleanor E. Novello| website=Gluvna-Shimo-Hromada Funeral Chapel| date=April 2008| access-date=May 9, 2018| url-status=dead}}</ref> and Augustine Joseph Novello, a physician.<ref>{{cite news |first=Robert |last=Lebzelter |title=What You Need to Know about Your Home State |url=http://starbeacon.com/local/x343667259/What-you-need-to-know-about-your-home-state |newspaper=[[Star Beacon]] |location=Ashtabula, Ohio |date=September 15, 2007 |access-date=April 9, 2013 }}</ref> He is of Italian and Irish descent.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Y-YPAAAAIBAJ&sjid=e48DAAAAIBAJ&pg=2530,7942818&dq=the-cast-includes-actor-don-novello&hl=en |title=TV priest joins movie Mafia |newspaper=[[Daily Record (Washington)|Ellensburg Daily Record]] |agency=[[United Press International]] |page=18 |access-date=February 24, 2022}}</ref>

Novello's family moved to [[Lorain, Ohio]], when he was a child.<ref name= gluvna /> In 1961, he graduated from [[Lorain High School]].<ref name="lorain-alumni2018">{{cite web|title=Distinguished Alumni 2018|website=[[Lorain City Schools]]|url=https://www.lorainschools.org/alumni2018|access-date=June 10, 2023}}</ref> He subsequently enrolled into the [[University of Dayton]] and graduated from it in 1964.<ref name= "UDayton">{{cite web| url=https://udayton.edu/blogs/libraries/2015-02-17-snl.php| title=Saturday Night Live!| website=[[University of Dayton]]| date=February 17, 2015| first=Scott| last=West| access-date=May 9, 2018}}</ref> In 1965, he graduated with a Bachelor of Foreign Trade degree from the American Graduate School of International Management (today the [[Thunderbird School of Global Management]] of [[Arizona State University]]).<ref>{{cite journal| url=http://azmemory.azlibrary.gov/digital/collection/tgmama/id/18/| journal=The Thunderbird| publisher=American Graduate School of International Management| date= Winter 1981| title=Confessions of a T-Bird| first1=Tim| last1=Parish| first2=Dan| last2=Wolf| via=Arizona Memory Project}}</ref>

==Career==
In the late 1960s, Novello worked as an advertising copywriter for [[Leo Burnett]] in [[Chicago]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3Qx0AwAAQBAJ&q=novello |title=The Complete, Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live as told by Its Stars, Writers and Guests |first1=Tom |last1=Shales |first2=James Andrew |last2=Miller |publisher=Little, Brown |date=September 9, 2014 |access-date=February 24, 2022 |isbn=978-0-3162-9507-9}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/1997/09/02/DD67491.DTL&hw=comedian&sn=095&sc=330 |title=Don Novello Tries To Save His Sheep / One-shot musical detailed in TV special |newspaper=[[San Francisco Chronicle]] |date=September 2, 1997 |access-date=November 3, 2010 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>

Novello created the Father Guido Sarducci character in 1973 after finding a [[monsignor]]'s outfit for $7.50 at a St. Vincent de Paul thrift shop. Adding sunglasses, a broom mustache, cigarette and a thick Italian accent, Sarducci became popular in a San Francisco nightclub. Sarducci appeared on San Francisco [[KOFY-TV|Channel 20]]'s ''Chicken Little Comedy Show'', and comic [[David Steinberg]] was watching. Steinberg hired Novello as a writer for a TV show that never aired, but he also introduced Novello to [[Smothers Brothers|Tommy and Dick Smothers]], and they hired Novello, too. Novello performed on the ''[[Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour|Smothers Brothers Show]]'' in 1975, appearing as Sarducci. He also was with [[Pat Paulsen]] during Paulsen's "Presidential Campaign Tour" in the mid-70s as his "Campaign Manager."{{Citation needed |date=March 2024}}

{{anchor <!-- This anchor is linked from the Hatnote of the Dab page [[Tóth]] -->|Lazlo}}In the 1970s, Novello started to write letters to famous people under the pen name of '''Lazlo Toth''' (after [[Laszlo Toth]], a deranged man who vandalized [[Michelangelo]]'s [[Pietà (Michelangelo)|Pietà]] in Rome). The letters, written to suggest a serious but misinformed and obtuse correspondent, were designed to [[satire|tweak the noses]] of politicians and corporations. Many of them received serious responses; Novello sometimes continued the charade correspondence at length, with humorous results. The letters and responses were published in the books ''The Lazlo Letters'',<ref>{{cite book| isbn=978-1-5630-5285-9| title=The Lazlo Letters| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eeTofa1jasQC&q=novello+the+lazlo+letters| last1=Novello| first1=Don| publisher=Workman Publishing| date=January 1, 1992}}</ref> ''Citizen Lazlo!'',<ref>{{cite book| isbn=978-1-5630-5182-1| title=Citizen Lazlo!: The Lazlo Letters, Volume 2| url=https://archive.org/details/citizenlazlocont00nove| last1=Novello| first1=Don| date=January 7, 1992| publisher=Workman Publishing| url-access=registration}}</ref> and ''From Bush to Bush: The Lazlo Toth Letters''.<ref>{{cite book| title=From Bush to Bush: The Lazlo Toth Letters| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gCKJRuF4GDgC&q=from+bush+to+bush+the+lazlo+toth+letters| last1=Novello| first1=Don| date=June 15, 2010| publisher=Simon & Schuster| isbn=978-1-4516-0393-4}}</ref>

''The Lazlo Letters'', Novello's first book of stilted letters to celebrities, caught the attention of Lorne Michaels, producer of ''Saturday Night Live''. Novello was hired as a writer for the show's [[Saturday Night Live (season 3)|third season]] in 1977–1978 where he remained through the [[Saturday Night Live (season 5)|fifth season]], and returned as a writer in the [[Saturday Night Live (season 11)|eleventh season]]. He also appeared numerous times on the show in the Father Guido Sarducci character.

In 1980, under the name of Father Guido Sarducci, he sang lead vocals on the Warner Bros. Records release "I Won't Be Twisting This Christmas"/"Parco MacArthur" (WBS49627). Novello co-wrote the first tune with M. Davich, and the second tune is an Italian language cover of "[[MacArthur Park (song)|MacArthur Park]]", the [[Jimmy Webb]] song, in an arrangement similar to that recorded by [[Richard Harris]].

Novello made newspapers around the world when he visited the [[Vatican City|Vatican]] in 1981 wearing the Father Guido Sarducci costume and, while taking photographs for a magazine article in an area where photography was prohibited, was arrested by the [[Swiss Guard]]s along with his photographer (Paul Solomon), and eventually charged with "impersonating a priest". The charges were later dropped, and Solomon managed to protect the film from confiscation.

In his stage show in Las Vegas and Reno with the Smothers Brothers, Sarducci rolled a wheelchair with a dummy in the robes of a cardinal. In the act, Sarducci explained he was the assistant of 108-year-old "Cardinal Dario Fungi."

For a brief period in 1982, Novello was a producer on ''[[Second City Television|SCTV]]'', a Toronto-based comedy show starring [[Martin Short]], [[Joe Flaherty]], [[John Candy]], [[Eugene Levy]], [[Dave Thomas (actor)|Dave Thomas]], [[Rick Moranis]], [[Andrea Martin]] and [[Catherine O'Hara]]. He was installed by NBC as one of a series of producers for the show's fourth season, and produced a total of nine episodes.

In 1983, Novello had a cameo as Father Sarducci in the video for [[Rodney Dangerfield]]'s [[comedy hip hop|comedy rap]] song "[[Rappin' Rodney (album)|Rappin' Rodney]]" which was heavily played on MTV.

In 1984 Novello wrote ''The Blade'', a high school yearbook parody in which the students are represented by sheep. Novello co-wrote the unfilmed script for ''Noble Rot'' with [[John Belushi]]. He also narrated ''[[Faerie Tale Theatre]]'''s third-season episode ''Pinocchio'' with [[Paul Reubens]] as the titular puppet. Also in 1984, Novello appeared in the music video for the [[Jefferson Starship]] song "No Way Out".

In 1989, Novello co-starred in the anthology film ''[[New York Stories]]'' in the [[Francis Ford Coppola]]-directed segment, ''Life Without Zoe''. In his 2 1/2 star review of the film, [[Roger Ebert]] cited Novello for giving "the most engaging performance in the movie."

In 1990, Novello portrayed "Dominic Abbandando" in the film ''[[The Godfather Part III]]''. Abbandando appears with speaking lines in the first scene as public relations and media coordinator for Don [[Michael Corleone]]. Most notable is when he slaps down a news reporter with the challenge: "You think you know better than the Pope?" Novello appears in many other scenes as well, shadowing George Hamilton, and in the climactic scene on the steps of the Palermo opera house, Teatro Massimo.

In the early 2000s, Novello voiced Vinny Santorini in the [[Disney]] film ''[[Atlantis: The Lost Empire]]'' and its direct-to-video sequel, ''[[Atlantis: Milo's Return]]''. In 2003, he filed papers to enter the [[2003 California gubernatorial recall election]], but did not collect enough valid signatures to qualify for the ballot.

In 2005, after the death of [[Pope John Paul II]], Novello, as Father Guido Sarducci, reprised his former ''SNL'' role as "Special Vatican Reporter" for [[Air America Radio]] host (and fellow ''Saturday Night Live'' alumnus) [[Al Franken]]. He continued this role until the election of [[Pope Benedict XVI]]. In 2006, he portrayed the role of [[Galileo]] on the podcast "[[The Radio Adventures of Dr. Floyd]]".

He portrayed [[Pope Pius XII]] in the 2009 short film ''[[All in the Bunker]]''.

On June 23, 2010, he appeared on ''[[The Colbert Report]]'' as Father Guido Sarducci. On May 6, 2025, he reprised his appearance in an interview with Stephen Colbert regarding the upcoming papal conclave.

On October 30, 2010, he gave the [[benediction]] at the [[Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear]] hosted by [[Jon Stewart]] and [[Stephen Colbert]].<ref>{{YouTube|IGCP5CqHwxk|Colbert's entrance and Father Guido Sarducci }}</ref>

American recording artist [[Guthrie Thomas]] credited Don Novello as "the best performer in the room" when he appeared as Father Guido Sarducci on one of Thomas' albums in a recording studio full of famous performers.{{when|date=August 2023}}{{citation needed|date=August 2023}}

==Personal life==
Novello resides in [[San Anselmo, California]].<ref>{{cite news| first=Paul| last=Liberatore| url=https://www.marinij.com/2006/11/30/paul-liberatore-holiday-songs-bah-humbug/| title=Paul Liberatore: Holiday songs? Bah humbug!| newspaper=[[Marin Independent Journal]]| date=November 30, 2006| access-date=February 24, 2022}}</ref> He had one brother, Joseph "Joe" Novello, and one sister, Eileen. His former sister-in-law, [[Antonia Novello]], was [[Surgeon General of the United States]] from 1990 to 1993.  His niece is film producer Holly Wiersma (''[[Wonderland (2003 film)|Wonderland]]'', ''[[Billionaire Boys Club (2018 film)|Billionaire Boys Club]]'').{{Citation needed |date=March 2024}}

== Selected filmography ==

=== Film ===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Year
!Title
!Role
!Notes
|-
|1979
|''[[Mr. Mike's Mondo Video]]''
|Man in Film Room
|Uncredited
|-
|1980
|''[[Gilda Live]]''
|[[Father Guido Sarducci]]
|Also writer
|-
|1985
|''[[Head Office]]''
|Sal
|
|-
|1985
|''Father Guido Sarducci Goes to College''
|Guido Sarducci
|Direct-to-video; also writer
|-
|1988
|''[[Tucker: The Man and His Dream]]''
|Stan
|
|-
|1989
|''[[New York Stories]]''
|Hector
|Segment: "Life Without Zoe"
|-
|1990
|''[[The Spirit of '76 (1990 film)|The Spirit of '76]]''
|Translator
|
|-
|1990
|''[[The Godfather Part III]]''
|Dominic Abbandando
|
|-
|1993
|''[[Teenage Bonnie and Klepto Clyde]]''
|Sanchez
|
|-
|1995
|''One Night Stand''
|Warren Miller
|
|-
|1995
|''[[Casper (film)|Casper]]''
|Guido Sarducci
|
|-
|1996
|''[[Jack (1996 film)|Jack]]''
|Bartender
|
|-
|1997
|''[[Touch (1997 film)|Touch]]''
|Father Navaroli
|
|-
|1998
|''[[Just the Ticket]]''
|Tony
|
|-
|2000
|''[[The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (film)|The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle]]''
|Fruit Vendor
|
|-
|2000
|''[[Just One Night (film)|Just One Night]]''
|Italian Drifter
|
|-
|2000
|''Nothing Sacred''
|Caterer
|
|-
|2001
|''[[Atlantis: The Lost Empire]]''
| rowspan="2" |Vinny Santorini (voice)<ref name="btva">{{cite web |title=Don Novello (visual voices guide) |url=http://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Don-Novello/ |access-date=January 1, 2025 |publisher=Behind The Voice Actors}} A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.</ref>
|
|-
|2003
|''[[Atlantis: Milo's Return]]''
|Direct-to-video
|-
|2006
|''[[Factory Girl (2006 film)|Factory Girl]]''
|Mort Silvers
|
|-
|2011
|''[[Twixt (film)|Twixt]]''
|Melvin
|
|-
|2013
|''[[Palo Alto (2013 film)|Palo Alto]]''
|Mr. Wilson
|
|}

=== Television ===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Year
!Title
!Role
!Notes
|-
|1978–1980, 1985–1986
|''[[Saturday Night Live]]''
| rowspan="6" |Father Guido Sarducci
|Recurring role; also writer
|-
|1982
|''[[Square Pegs]]''
|Episode: "Pac-Man Fever"
|-
|1986, 1989
|''[[It's Garry Shandling's Show]]''
|2 episodes
|-
|1991
|''[[Great Performances]]''
|Episode: "La Pastorela: The Shepherd's Tale"
|-
|1993
|''[[Blossom (American TV series)|Blossom]]''
|Episode: "Kiss and Tell"
|-
|1995
|''[[Married... with Children]]''
|Episode: "Requiem for a Dead Briard"
|-
|1998–2000
|''[[Histeria!]]''
|[[Leonardo da Vinci]] (voice)
|4 episodes<ref name="btva" />
|-
|2005
|''[[Rent Control (2005 film)|Rent Control]]''
|Rico
|Television film
|-
|2010
|''[[The Colbert Report]]''
|Guido Sarducci
|Episode: "[[Tim Westergren]]"
|-
|2025
|''[[The Late Show With Stephen Colbert]]''
|Father Guido Sarducci
|May 6, 2025 episode 
|}

==Writing credits==
*''[[The Smothers Brothers Show]]'' (1975) (TV)
*''Van Dyke and Company'' (1976) (TV)
*''Things We Did Last Summer'' (1978) (TV)
*''[[Second City Television|SCTV]]'' (1982) (TV)
*''Noble Rot'' (with [[John Belushi]]) (1982) (unproduced)
*''A Man Called Sporacaione'' (1982) (unproduced)
*''[[Blondes vs. Brunettes]]'' (with Lisa Medway) (1984)  (TV)
*''Our Planet Tonight'' (1987) (TV)

==Bibliography==
*''The Lazlo Letters'' (1977) 
*''The Blade: Shellville High School Yearbook'' (1984)
*''Citizen Lazlo!: The Lazlo Letters Vol. 2'' (1992) 
*''From Bush to Bush: The Lazlo Toth Letters'' (2003)

==Albums==
*''Father Guido Sarducci Live at St. Douglas Convent'' (1980)
*''[[Breakfast in Heaven]]'' (1986) as Father Guido Sarducci
*''Everybody's Free to Wear Camouflage'' (2000) (CD Single) written by Cat McLean, Don Novello and Narada Michael Walden, which was a top 20 hit in the UK. Performed as Father Guido Sarducci
*''One Hundred Bulbs on the Christmas Tree Party'' (2006) as Father Guido Sarducci

Appeared on the compilations ''Holidays in Dementia'' (1995) and ''A Classic Rock Christmas'' (2002).
He made guest appearances on the [[Handsome Boy Modeling School]] albums ''[[So... How's Your Girl?]]'' (1999) and ''[[White People (album)|White People]]'' (2004).

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{IMDb name|637038|Don Novello}}
*{{Discogs artist|Don Novello}}
*{{Discogs artist|Father Guido Sarducci|Father Guido Sarducci}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Novello, Don}}
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:1943 births]]
[[Category:American male comedians]]
[[Category:American male film actors]]
[[Category:American male television actors]]
[[Category:American male voice actors]]
[[Category:American male television writers]]
[[Category:American people of Irish descent]]
[[Category:American people of Italian descent]]
[[Category:American sketch comedians]]
[[Category:Television writers from California]]
[[Category:American writers of Italian descent]]
[[Category:Comedians from California]]
[[Category:Comedians from Ohio]]
[[Category:People from Ashtabula, Ohio]]
[[Category:People from Lorain, Ohio]]
[[Category:People from San Anselmo, California]]
[[Category:Screenwriters from Arizona]]
[[Category:Screenwriters from Ohio]]
[[Category:Thunderbird School of Global Management alumni]]