Beverly kid's acting career still hot

Born in Evanston, Sunjata, 38, was adopted by his parents Catherine Salemi and William Condon at the age of 2 months, and after moving around the country, the family settled in Beverly in the parish of St. Barnabas Roman Catholic Church, where Sunjata attended elementary school starting in second grade.

Sunjata was born of Irish- German and African-American descent, so his parents decided to give him an African middle name to strengthen his ties to his heritage. He uses his middle name, Sunjata, as his stage name. His family still lives in Beverly, and his extended family resides in Aurora, Oswego and Round Grove.

Now living in New York, Sunjata’s career has moved quickly. He completed filming of seven seasons of “Rescue Me” for the FX Network. The sixth season ended Aug. 31, and the last season is expected to have its finale around the 10th anniversary of 9/11.

His film and stage credits are growing. Sunjata is currently in Pittsburgh shooting “One for the Money,” co-starring Katherine Heigl, Debbie Reynolds and John Leguizamo.

Earlier this year, he was on the Lifetime Network alongside Andie MacDowell in “At Risk” and “The Front,” both movies adapted from the novels of best-selling crime writer Patricia Cornwell.

In 2006, Sunjata portrayed a fashion designer in “The Devil Wears Prada.” He also co-starred in the Woody Allen film, “Melinda and Melinda” and was cast in the romantic comedy “Ghosts of Girlfriends Past,” alongside Jennifer Garner and Matthew McConaughey. Additional film credits include “Bad Company,” “Noel,” “Brother to Brother,” in which he portrayed writer Langston Hughes, and the ESPN series, “The Bronx is Burning,” in which he played Reggie Jackson.

After studying his way through St. Barnabas and playing center for the 1989 Mt. Carmel state championship football team, Sunjata started acting when he attended Florida A&M. A business major, he joined a theater group there during his sophomore year, and his interest was piqued. He continued to pursue acting in graduate school at New York University, where he earned a master’s degree in fine arts.

A few years later, he burst onto Broadway. Although he said he has a long way to go to feel “established” in a “turbulent and unpredictable business,” Sunjata said he caught his big break in 2003 when he was nominated for a Tony Award for his role as Darren Lemming in “Take Me Out,” the Richard Greenberg play that centered on a baseball player coming out about his sexuality. Being cast in “Sex and the City” also didn’t hurt, Sunjata said.

On top of the Tony nomination, People magazine listed Sunjata as one of “The 50 Most Beautiful People” in 2003.

But for about another year, and years of re-runs to come, Sunjata will be known to many as Franco Rivera, a fast-talking Puerto Rican firefighter with a penchant for the ladies. He is often at the center of many of the plot lines of “Rescue Me,” an intense drama at times and a laugh-out-loud comedy at others.

The show focuses on Engine 62, a New York City firehouse where the personal and emotional battles of its firefighters in a post-9/11 world are explored, especially those of Tommy Gavin, played by Denis Leary. Gavin is a veteran firefighter whose life is unraveling, but it’s the characters like Franco who surround Gavin in the firehouse who fans have responded to because of their humility.

With Sunjata’s growing popularity, The Beverly Review asked the actor what he’s been up to.

BR: What are your fondest memories of growing up in Beverly and what are some of those memories that may impact you today when you get up on stage or the cameras roll?

DSC: I have many fond memories of Beverly. The first thing that comes to mind is how beautiful the houses and areas within Beverly are. Also there was a sense of community in Beverly that was palpable, especially amongst the St. Barnabas community. [Going to] 10 o’clock mass on Sundays, football games, bake sales in the school gym, our special Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve, I have very warm memories of growing up in Beverly. I know that these memories and experiences have influenced and shaped me as a person and as an actor in various ways, but I can’t say specifically how. I just know that present realities are the sum of past choices and experiences and that Beverly and its spirited community fed me greatly during a very formative period of my youth. For that, I am grateful.

BR: Tell us a little about your education and how those experiences shaped you, and when the acting bug took over?

DSC: From an educational standpoint, my time at St. Barnabas was beneficial, but challenging. I wasn’t as book smart as many of my peers and needed lots of help from my dad to get my math assignments done on time, but I did love reading. The book fairs we would have at school were always so much fun for me. I just couldn’t get enough “Encyclopedia Brown”! I also deeply cherish my high school and college memories, but this conversation is about Beverly. Although I didn’t start studying my craft until college, my creative imagination was initially set ablaze, around the age of 8, by George Lucas’ original “Star Wars” trilogy, by J.R.R. Tolkien and by C.S. Lewis. In hindsight, that was when the creative seed was planted. As an only child until the age of 10, I spent many an afternoon battling Darth Vader in our backyard with my tree branch light saber.

BR: How did getting cast for Franco Rivera come about? Did you know what you were getting into when you auditioned for “Rescue Me”? How do you feel about the series coming to an end, and what is it like working with Denis Leary?

DSC: “Rescue Me” came about through the normal audition process. We had no idea it would be on for seven seasons at the time. Season six is airing now. Season seven will air after that, and then the show will be over. We have already shot everything that has yet to air. To see something go that has been so good to you is bittersweet. I’m grateful for the time spent, but I’m also looking forward to the future. Working with Denis was great. In fact, I have love for our entire cast, and I miss them already.

BR: You grew up in a neighborhood known for its large population of firefighters, police and other city workers. Did living in that culture have any influence on your understanding of the role? Is this a way to pay homage to those firefighters? Has your attitude toward firefighters changed?

DSC: Growing up in a place where police officers and firefighters abound definitely lent me an empathic connection to the role of Franco. Being on “Rescue Me” has definitely been an act of homage to the brave souls who do the difficult job of saving lives, often at great cost to themselves. Now I see them as heroes because (not in spite of) their humanity.

BR: Much has been made about both your and Franco’s 9/11 theories. Do you still espouse those views?

DSC: Much indeed has been made of my views on 9/11 itself, and these views even made it into the show. A common misconception, however, is that these views are “mine,” per se. This is not so. My views are the result of a sober re-examination of the events of that terrible day as well as the explanations given by the government for how it happened. In the final analysis, I simply could not ignore the broad-shouldered research, strident dissent and informed criticism from so many highly credentialed skeptics across such a broad spectrum of relevant expertise. The fact that mainstream media and our so-called “free” press has had nothing but condescension and dismissal to offer in response only intensifies my own doubts as to the veracity of the official theory of conspiracy. I think it is easy to forget and, therefore, bears repeating that without the “new Pearl Harbor” of 9/11 there would be no wars based upon lies in either Afghanistan or Iraq, there would be no Patriot Act, there would be no torture memos, there would be no warrantless wire-tapping, there would be no $500-million permanent military bases in the Middle East, and there would have been no “no-bid” contracts doled out to corporations incestuously linked to an administration that lied us into co-signing the murderous doctrine of preemption in the first place. The fact that 60 percent of the 9/11 Commission members have for various reasons defected from endorsing their own findings, the fact that peer reviewed scientific study reveals the presence of high-tech explosive residues found in Ground Zero dust samples, and the fact that Building 7 fell symmetrically into its own footprint at freefall speed and through the path of greatest resistance without having been hit by a plane … these facts and others should give us pause and cause us to ask questions. America was founded on dissent. If we can’t ask questions and engage in thoughtful criticism of our so called leaders, then what democratic republic have we to speak of?

BR: Tell us about your upcoming projects and what you are most excited about in the future. What you are most proud of so far?

DSC: I’m excited about the prospect of continuing to work in the theater and expanding my film resume. However, even if my acting career were to plateau or regress, I am grateful for having been blessed with opportunities that I realize are hard to come by for so many of my fellow actors.

BR: You have played roles ranging from Reggie Jackson to Langston Hughes and, of course, Franco Rivera. Who has been your favorite character to play, and what makes a great character?

DSC: For me, the things that make a great character are emotional texture and complexity, within the context of a compelling script that effectively illuminates some aspect of the human condition. These qualities combine to provide what I (and most actors who take their craft seriously) consider to be a golden opportunity. In my own modest career thus far, the character of Darren Lemming in “Take Me Out” has been the best example of that.

BR: Are you at a point in your career where you can pick your projects? If so, what are you looking for and do you have any career goals?

DSC: Unfortunately I have not yet reached a point in my journey where I can necessarily pick and choose which roles I am offered to play, but I hope to one day get to that point. When all is said and done, if I am blessed to have had a career that combined artistic integrity, social consciousness and commercial viability, I will consider my efforts in acting to have been a success. My acting role models are many and varied, but Harry Belafonte and Marlon Brando are men who embodied in various ways many of the qualities that I aspire towards in my own work.