Joe Pesci Thomas DeSimone) in "Goodfellas"; he had been previously nominated for the same award for his role as Joey LaMotta in "Raging Bull". Also a comedian, Pesci has starred in a number of other high-profile films, including "Easy Money" (1983), "Once Upon a Time in America" (1984), "Moonwalker" (1988), "JFK" (1991), and "A Bronx Tale" (1993). He announced his retirement from acting in 1999, and since then he has appeared only occasionally in films, including a cameo appearance in the 2006 spy thriller "The Good Shepherd", directed by De Niro, and in the biographical crime film "The Irishman". He is also
Drena De Niro Batson of The Black Nexxus Acting Studio. With the turn of the millennium, De Niro set her sights on writing and directing her first film, "Girls and Dolls". This documentary examined a young stylist's obsession with her dolls, and won De Niro the Best Directorial Debut Award at the New York Independent Film/Video Festival in 2001. More recently De Niro's endeavors have led her back to Italy, where she worked on her latest film. Since 2006, she has been the spokesperson for the Kageno Orphan Sponsorship Program, which helps provide care for orphaned children in Kageno villages. De Niro currently