Vincent Riotta is an English-born stage and film actor of Italian descent. He studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He went on to perform in various stage plays, such as Shakespeare's Romeo, which was held at the Young Vic, Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire, held at the Leicester Haymarket. Also, the twin roles of The Corsican Brothers at the Abbey in Dublin, and the lead role of Fridays at Seven at the Court Theatre in West Hollywood.
His more notable television appearances include UK soap Coronation Street, JAG for NBC, Monk for USA Network, and Alias for ABC.
Riotta's film credits include the independent mafia film Al Capone, for which he won the Best Actor award at the 1995 Barcelona Film Festival for his portrayal of the title character. In 2002, he played the lead role of Rico Morales in the drama Bella Bettien. He also holds many cameo appearances to his name in such high-profile films as Captain Corelli's Mandolin, starring Nicolas Cage and Penelope Cruz. However, universally he is probably best recognized as one of the lead male roles in the 2003 romantic-comedy Under The Tuscan Sun, starring Diane Lane and fellow Italian actor Raoul Bova. In the film, he plays Frances Mayes' (Diane Lane) first love interest upon arriving in Italy; a kind, well-reserved and married real estate agent in whom she receives emotional support throughout the film. To the contrary, on the commentary of Under the Tuscan Sun, director Audrey Wells states that his character's persona was merely something he invented, as in reality he is boyishly energetic.
Harold Pinter, CH, CBE (10 October 1930 – 24 December 2008) was a Nobel Prize-winning English playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. One of the most influential modern British dramatists, his writing career spanned more than 50 years. His best-known plays include The Birthday Party (1957), The Homecoming (1964), and Betrayal (1978), each of which he adapted to film. His screenplay adaptations of others' works include The Servant (1963), The Go-Between (1970), The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981), The Trial (1993), and Sleuth (2007). He also directed or acted in radio, stage, television, and film productions of his own and others' works.
Pinter was born and raised in Hackney, east London, and educated at Hackney Downs School. He was a sprinter and a keen cricket player, acting in school plays and writing poetry. He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art but did not complete the course. He was fined for refusing National Service as a conscientious objector. Subsequently, he continued training at the Central School of Speech and Drama and worked in repertory theatre in Ireland and England. In 1956 he married actress Vivien Merchant and had a son, Daniel born in 1958. He left Merchant in 1975 and married author Antonia Fraser in 1980.