{{short description|American dramatist}}

{{Infobox person | name = Ralph Peduto | image = | caption = | birth_name = | birth_date = {{birth date|1942|3|9|mf=yes}} | birth_place = [[Jersey City, New Jersey]], US | death_date = {{Death date and age|2014|5|12|1942|3|9|mf=yes}} | death_place = [[Santa Cruz, California]], US | occupation = {{csv|Actor|Playwright}} | years_active = 1984&ndash;2012 | spouse = Laura Peduto }} '''Ralph Peduto''' (March 9, 1942 – May 12, 2014) was an American actor, [[playwright]], writer and director. Peduto's film roles included ''[[Mrs. Doubtfire]]'' in 1993, ''[[The Rock (film)|The Rock]]'' in 1996, and ''[[Patch Adams (film)|Patch Adams]]'' in 1998, while his television credits included guest spots in ''[[Cheers]]'' and ''[[Hill Street Blues]]''.<ref name=scsentinel>{{cite news|first=Kara |last=Guzman |title=Ralph Peduto, Santa Cruz actor, dies from leukemia |url=http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/santacruz/ci_25756019/ralph-peduto-santa-cruz-actor-dies-from-leukemia |work=[[Santa Cruz Sentinel]] |date=2014-05-13 |access-date=2014-06-12}}</ref> He ultimately appeared in more than 100 film and television roles, as forty television commercials.<ref name=scsentinel2/> An acting teacher as well as an actor, Peduto founded Acting On Camera, an [[acting school]] in [[Santa Cruz, California]].<ref name=scsentinel/>

==Life and career== Peduto was born on March 9, 1942, in [[Jersey City, New Jersey]], to a working-class [[Italian American]] family.<ref name=scsentinel/><ref name=scsentinel2>{{cite news|title=Ralph Peduto obituary |url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/santacruzsentinel/obituary.aspx?page=lifestory&pid=171155469 |work=[[Legacy.com]] |publisher=[[Santa Cruz Sentinel]] |date=2014-05-31 |access-date=2014-06-12}}</ref> He was the eldest of three children of James and Helen Peduto.<ref name=scsentinel2/> He attended [[James J. Ferris High School]] and graduated from [[William L. Dickinson High School]] in Jersey City (He was later inducted into Dickinson's Hall of Fame in 2000).<ref name=scsentinel2/> Peduto enlisted in the U.S. Army and was stationed in [[South Korea]] during the [[Vietnam War]] era.<ref name=scsentinel2/> He then attended [[Rutgers University]] after returning to the United States.<ref name=scsentinel2/>

In 1973, Peduto moved from [[New Jersey]] to the [[Monterey Bay Area]] to accept a broadcasting position at [[KRML]], an AM [[radio station]] in [[Carmel, California]].<ref name=scsentinel/> He first began acting at [[Cabrillo College]].<ref name=scsentinel/> He soon wrote and produced theater plays at Cabrillo, including "Root Rock," his [[autobiographical]] musical which debuted in 1979.<ref name=scsentinel/>

Peduto transitioned to roles in Hollywood films, television shows and commercials during the 1980s.<ref name=scsentinel/> He appeared in television and films from the 1980s to the 2000s. Peduto also had an extensive career in television commercials. His best known commercial work was as the "Midas Man", a character and spokesman for the [[Midas (automotive service)|Midas]] automotive centers, in which he urged consumers to depend on Midas.<ref name=scsentinel/>

Peduto was a longtime resident of [[Capitola, California]].<ref name=scsentinel/><ref name=scsentinel2/>

Ralph Peduto died on May 12, 2014, just twelve days after being diagnosed with leukemia, at the age of 72.<ref name=scsentinel/><ref name=scsentinel2/> He was survived by his wife of 45 years, Laura Peduto, and their two children, Maro Peduto and Oceanna Ceja.<ref name=scsentinel2/>

==Filmography== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Year ! Title ! Role ! Notes |- |1989|| ''[[True Believer (1989 film)|True Believer]]'' || Court Officer || |- |1993|| ''[[Mrs. Doubtfire]]'' || Cop || |- |1994|| ''[[Getting Even with Dad]]'' || Chapman || |- |1996|| ''[[The Rock (film)|The Rock]]'' || F.B.I. Agent Hunt || |- |1997|| ''[[Metro (1997 film)|Metro]]'' || Bail Bondsman Hawkins || |- |1997|| ''[[Lego Island]]'' || Papa Brickolini || Video game, voice role<ref name="BTVA">{{cite web|url=https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/video-games/Lego-Island/|title=Lego Island (1997 Video Game)|website=Behind The Voice Actors|type= 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> |- |1998|| ''[[Patch Adams (film)|Patch Adams]]'' || Organizer || |- |1999|| ''Paradise Cove'' || Banner || |- |2000|| ''[[Just One Night (film)|Just One Night]]'' || Driver 1 || |- |2003|| ''[[Kung Phooey]]'' || Ralph || |- |2006|| ''[[Valley of the Heart's Delight (film)|Valley of the Heart's Delight]]'' || Vegetable Man || |- |2006|| ''[[Car Babes]]'' || Uncle Steve || |- |2011|| ''Blur'' || Halleck || |- |2012|| ''[[The Forger (2012 film)|The Forger]]'' || Churchgoer || (final film role) |}

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== *{{IMDb name|id=0670186|name=Ralph Peduto}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Peduto, Ralph}} [[Category:1942 births]] [[Category:2014 deaths]] [[Category:American male film actors]] [[Category:American male television actors]] [[Category:American male stage actors]] [[Category:James J. Ferris High School alumni]] [[Category:American writers of Italian descent]] [[Category:Male actors from Santa Cruz, California]] [[Category:Male actors from Jersey City, New Jersey]] [[Category:Rutgers University alumni]] [[Category:Cabrillo College alumni]] [[Category:20th-century American male actors]] [[Category:21st-century American male actors]] [[Category:Deaths from leukemia in California]] [[Category:20th-century American dramatists and playwrights]] [[Category:William L. Dickinson High School alumni]] [[Category:Writers from Jersey City, New Jersey]] [[Category:People from Capitola, California]]