This Hollywood veteran was rejected at home and on screen. Despite these obstacles, he has grown and shared what “saved” his life.
His parents emotionally neglected this celebrity in a cold environment. He persevered and became one of the entertainment industry’s most accomplished and recognized individuals.
This actor’s family was complicated by several marriages and blended relationships. Jackie and Frank Sr. divorced in 1957 and had him and Frank Jr. His mother remarried and had Toni Ann in 1964 after the divorce.
The celebrity’s father remarried multiple times, adding Bryan, Carla, and 1997-born Dante. Bryan and Carla prefer privacy.
The actor struggled with more than just his brothers in his fractured household. He said, “I grew up in a really bad household, it was tough. Everyone felt dissatisfied with their identity. Mom and dad weren’t parents.”
Parents dropped him off at a Jackson Heights boarding house for four and a half to five years. He called it “transient.” The older woman-run residence separated him.
New York native remembers sitting at a table with people who didn’t speak to him at four years old, having no one to relate to during that vital time.
These early traumas made the actor a recluse and affected his relationships. His mother’s statements showed the neglect’s extent.
The actor recalls her saying, “‘The only reason you’re here is because the hanger didn’t work,’” or “‘bouncing down those steps didn’t cause you to get lost.’”
The actor said these heartbreaking comments revealed his mother’s problematic past, which prevented her from showing affection. He said she was “tied to the bed,” “whipped” and “terribly molested” in a “very cruel orphanage.”
This tragedy “short-circuited” her ability to show affection, he believed. He shared her aversion to physical contact, affecting his relationships.
This lack of love and stability at home affected his schoolwork. After being informed he didn’t fit in, the actor was expelled from 13 schools as a child.
He attended military schools, including disturbed adolescent facilities, due to his unorthodox behavior. His youth was “adventurous.”