Daniel James Cortese (born September 14, 1967) is an American actor.
He played Perry Rollins on Veronica's Closet and Vic Meladeo on What I
Like About You.Of Italian (Calabrese) descent, Cortese was born on
September 14, 1967, in Sewickley, Pennsylvania, and graduated from
Quaker Valley High School in Leetsdale, where he played football and
basketball. Prior to becoming an actor, Cortese played college
football at the University of North Carolina as a backup quarterback.
In his freshman year in 1986, the Tar Heels went to the Aloha Bowl in
Hawaii. Cortese graduated from the University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill with a Bachelor of Arts degree in broadcasting in
1990.Cortese first came to prominence as the host of the Emmy
Award-winning show MTV Sports from 1992 to 1997. Cortese also was the
player/coach of The Bricklayers and The Homeboys for the MTV Rock N'
Jock games. During Burger King's "Your Way, Right Away" advertising
campaign in the 1990s, Cortese was hired as the company's official
spokesperson. He appeared in over 90 national and regional commercials
for the fast food giant.In 1993, per producer Joel Silver, Cortese
made two separate cameos (Taco Bell Lounge singer and a Cryo Prison
guard) in the hit Sylvester Stallone film Demolition Man. Also, in
1993, Cortese landed the lead role in NBC's remake of "Route 66". In
1994, he co-starred in the CBS police drama Traps with Academy Award
winner George C. Scott. He gained further recognition in 1995 as Jess
Hanson in Melrose Place. He played Jake Hanson's half brother for 8
episodes in the third season but he was killed off in that season's
cliffhanger finale. In 1996 Cortese played the lead role of Jason in
the TV movie The Lottery for NBC. The film turned out to be the
highest rated of the year for the network. Also in 1996, he starred in
the feature film "Weekend In The Country" opposite Jack Lemmon, as
well as the HBO film "Public Enemies".
He played Perry Rollins on Veronica's Closet and Vic Meladeo on What I
Like About You.Of Italian (Calabrese) descent, Cortese was born on
September 14, 1967, in Sewickley, Pennsylvania, and graduated from
Quaker Valley High School in Leetsdale, where he played football and
basketball. Prior to becoming an actor, Cortese played college
football at the University of North Carolina as a backup quarterback.
In his freshman year in 1986, the Tar Heels went to the Aloha Bowl in
Hawaii. Cortese graduated from the University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill with a Bachelor of Arts degree in broadcasting in
1990.Cortese first came to prominence as the host of the Emmy
Award-winning show MTV Sports from 1992 to 1997. Cortese also was the
player/coach of The Bricklayers and The Homeboys for the MTV Rock N'
Jock games. During Burger King's "Your Way, Right Away" advertising
campaign in the 1990s, Cortese was hired as the company's official
spokesperson. He appeared in over 90 national and regional commercials
for the fast food giant.In 1993, per producer Joel Silver, Cortese
made two separate cameos (Taco Bell Lounge singer and a Cryo Prison
guard) in the hit Sylvester Stallone film Demolition Man. Also, in
1993, Cortese landed the lead role in NBC's remake of "Route 66". In
1994, he co-starred in the CBS police drama Traps with Academy Award
winner George C. Scott. He gained further recognition in 1995 as Jess
Hanson in Melrose Place. He played Jake Hanson's half brother for 8
episodes in the third season but he was killed off in that season's
cliffhanger finale. In 1996 Cortese played the lead role of Jason in
the TV movie The Lottery for NBC. The film turned out to be the
highest rated of the year for the network. Also in 1996, he starred in
the feature film "Weekend In The Country" opposite Jack Lemmon, as
well as the HBO film "Public Enemies".
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