Lawrence John Romano, of Mount Vernon, has the style of Robert DeNiro, the training of Al Pacino and the ambition of Sylvester Stallone.
His looks - the dark hair, eyes, and mysterious persona - are early DeNiro. His training - weekly acting classes in Manhattan - is with Charlie Laughton, Pacino’s personal acting coach. His ambition - to star in a play or movie he has written - mirrors Stallone’s success with Rocky.
Not surprisingly, Romano’s favorite actors are DeNiro and Pacino, and Rocky is among his favorite films.
“Sylvester Stallone is someone I look up to, in the way he wrote the first Rocky,” Romano, 23, says. “He was struggling. I’m in the same position he was 10 years ago. I’ve seen that film 100 times.” Romano’s interest turned to writing and drama about two years ago. His first work is to be produced in late May at the Lee Strasberg Theatrical Institute in Manhattan.
His knowledge about acting and writing comes from his heart, his gut and the streets of the Bronx. “There weren’t a lot of scripts coming from a guy like me, a New York street kid. So I decided to write about things that are close to me.” he says.

The one-act play and his three film scripts, all unproduced, are set in the Bronx and Manhattan and have a common theme - friendship. The statement he makes in all three is that, even in a setting where human life has little value, the chemistry between two old friends can be priceless.
Romano works as a telephone salesman for a copy machine company in New York City. Before that, he drove cab and was a bicycle messenger. Those jobs provided the material for his stores. Now he’s learning the formulas.
On Tuesdays, he studies acting with Laughton at the Lee Strasberg Theatrical Institute. On Thursday nights, he attends a writer’s workshop there, where plays are read and critiqued by an instructor.
During a recent session, Romano’s one-act play received excellent reviews from other budding playwrights and the instructor, Scott Frank. The story deals with two childhood friends from the Bronx who spend a night together, a final chance to share old times and beer before one heads to Los Angeles in search of fame.
The audience told Romano that he had an ear for dialogue and a strong ability to capture life and human emotions. Romano says he has received similar comments about one of his film scripts from an agency that reviews potential new works.
But as far as the play goes, Frank adds: “You have a problem in that your words sound so good.” He recommended that Romano add more drama before the play goes to production.
Romano did some rewriting, and pushed for the May production date.
“My ambition is out of this world - planet Pluto,” he says, smiling.
He then lights a cigarette.
“I like doing this. It expresses my feelings. Hopefully, I’ll connect.” he says, tugging on several gold chains around his neck. “I wear gold because it’s the color of success. I’m not looking for fame and fortune. Success to me is having the freedom to do what I want. And I want to act and write.”

by Ray Weiss