Since his initiation into the world of film at the age of 14 when AntonioÕs exceptional interpretative skills led to a role in Shirley ClarkÕs Coal World, he has been noted for the unforgettable characters he creates. Whether perfecting outrageously comedic characters in such films as Robert DowneyÕs Putney Swope and Keenan Ivory WayanÕs IÕm Gonna Git You Sucka, or ÒchillingÓ the audience through a convincing rendition of a 90-year old witch doctor in the Broadway play, The Great White Hope, AntonioÕs performances have generated a near-endless array of enthusiastic acclaim from some of the industryÕs most respected critics of film, television and stage. Antonio achieved a worldwide audience through his role on ÒStarsky and HutchÓ as the incorrigible and lovable ÒHuggy Bear".
His film credits include: Shaft, Pretty Baby, Next Stop, Le Belle Anglaise, Full Force Revenge, Whore, Car Wash, Greenwich Village, Conrock, The Howling VII, and The Borrower to name a few.
AntonioÕs television credits include starring, recurring, and guest starring roles on such shows ÒAll My Children,Ó as the character Les Baxter, ÒFresh Prince of Bel Air,Ó ÒMartin,î ÒLiving Single,Ó ÒMiami Vice,Ó ÒDamon,Ó along with Movies-of-the-Week including: ABCÍs ÒHuggy Bear and The Turkey,Ó PBSÍs ÒDenmark Veresy,Ó ABCÍs ÒHuckleberry Finn,Ó CBSÍs ÒAmbush MurderÓ and many others.
His theatre credits are extensive from Broadway to performing with the New York Shakespeare Festival. Some of the plays include: Melvin Von PeeplesÕ AinÕt Supposed to Die a Natural Death, the Broadway production of The Great White Hope, North Carolina Repertory Stage WestÕs (in Springfield, MA) The Rainmaker, along with The Emperor Jones, The Mark Taper ForumÕs Dream on Monkey Mountain, and numerous others.
Antonio is also a partner in his own production company, Grand Entertainment. The company specialises in the writing and production of new film and television products and currently has a television series in development for British television. Antonio is currently partnering with a number of other artists in a tribute to urban art forms; the focus of his tribute is a twelve-city tour of Calling All Saints, a gospel musical stage play about the threats of marriage and family.
His commitment to theatre is further exemplified by his position on the boards of Rhode IslandÕs Langton Hughes Center for the Arts and The Martin Luther King Center of Newport. He is Chairman of the Board of the Mount Vernon Open Cast Theatre and Honorary Board Chair of the Progressive Symphony's Academy of Arts, an organisation founded by Maestra Yvette Devereaux.
Antonio was recently united after 20 years with ÒStarsky and HutchÓ co-star David Soul in London in the production of the black comedy The Dead Monkey. Following appearing in the Blues Brothers UK Tour 2000, Antonio is expected to return as guest star for the 2001 tour, from January.