Mendicino's face is better known to TV viewers than his name. Gerry has appeared as a Mafia figure in the U.S. TV miniseries THE LAST DON, the HBO film GOTTI, Showtime's VENDETTA and the film parody THE DOGFATHER where he plays Don Tazio who fancies himself as the most famous godfather of them all, Vito Corleone.("Whenever there's a Mafia movie done in Toronto I'm in it," he jokes).

Other character roles include feature films THE BIG HIT, DIRTY WORK, and BETWEEN STRANGERS with Sophia Loren. He was also tortured in SAW 6 and danced with John Travolta in HAIRSPRAY.

Mendicino enjoys being stopped on the street by viewers of READY OR NOT who grew up with him, too. They watched him when they were children on TVOntario's POLKA DOT DOOR.

A graduate of the School of Dramatic Art in Windsor, Ontario, he lucked into the READY OR NOT role as the stern Italy-born father of three sons and Busy's spunky, rebellious character.

"I related to that guy a lot," he says. "I understood that family circle. Initially on the show, he was too old-fashioned, still with old-world values, born in Italy, having come to Canada as a child, I saw his style in some of the people I knew when I was growing up."

Mendicino's parents emigrated from Italy and he was born in North Bay.

Like the children on READY OR NOT, Mendicino's character changed over the years - the father, Mendicino says ,"finally realizes that he can't control everything." It's just TV, but it's like real life.

MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING produced by Tom Hanks has become the highest grossing independant movie ever made. Mendicino plays Uncle Taki, husband to Aunt Voula, played by Andrea Martin. "Andrea sure gives you a lot to work with and react from". The highlight of the shoot for Mendicino was a dinner the cast had with Tom Hanks, "I behaved like a fan and was the only one there with a camera".