Joe Pesci Wonderful" (1982), "Easy Money" (1983) and "Eureka" (1983). In 1984, he was cast in "Once Upon a Time in America", again appearing alongside De Niro. The following year he starred as private detective Rocky Nelson in the short-lived television comedy series "Half Nelson". In 1988, Pesci appeared in the Michael Jackson musical anthology film "Moonwalker", in the film's sixth and longest segment, "Smooth Criminal." He played the antagonist, crime boss Frankie "Mr. Big" LiDeo (an anagram for one of the film's producers and longtime Jackson manager Frank DiLeo, with whom Pesci later acted in "Goodfellas"). He appeared as Leo Getz,
Robert De Niro Festival in 1997, he was awarded an Honorable Prize for contribution to cinema. De Niro would reference "In the Line of Fire", along with "Dirty Harry" (1971) and "Magnum Force" (1973), two more of Eastwood's films, in "Righteous Kill" (2008). He also appeared in the crime drama "Cop Land" (1997). He starred in the police action-thriller "Heat" (1995), along with fellow actor and long-time friend, Al Pacino. The duo drew much attention from fans, as both have generally been compared throughout their careers. Though Pacino and De Niro both starred in "The Godfather Part II" (1974), they shared no screen