Child Roles Open Hollywood Doors for 27-Year-Old

On May 2, the night Mario Bosco’s episode of “NYPD Blue” aired, 40 friends and family members gathered in his cramped Brooklyn apartment and broke out three bottles of champagne. It was a real party: one of their own guest-starring on a major show and Bosco hoping it might lead to another acting gig.

The next morning at 8, the phone rang. It was MSNBC. Then “Inside Edition” at 8:30. And “20/20” by 9. Two days later, People magazine called. Then a producer from 20th Century Fox. Could Bosco audition for a movie called “Dude, Where’s My Car?” By then, he was back on the “NYPD Blue” set in L.A., being trailed by the “20/20” crew for a segment to air this Thursday.

“Years back, I used to ask, ‘Why did God make me like this? Why me?’ ” says Bosco, sounding a lot like an “NYPD Blue” character. “But I always felt there was something I needed in life to give me purpose, which is my career. And my situation of who I am has given me a hook.”

Bosco is 4 feet, 10 inches tall and weighs 85 pounds. And he’s 27 years old. He has no facial hair, and his voice is still high. He seems like a 12-year-old boy--until he opens his mouth. Then he sounds like one of the cast of “The Sopranos.”

Ever since he can remember, he’s wanted to be an actor. But aside from “The Wizard of Oz” and “Austin Powers” sequels, Hollywood doesn’t have much use for little people.

Thing is, Bosco never got that memo. And what he’s managed to pull off in the last month should inspire anyone who’s ever thought about chasing a dream amid insurmountable odds.

Last summer in New York, Bosco was working at the “NYPD Blue” location as a stand-in for Austin Majors, the 4-year-old actor who plays Andy Sipowicz’s son, Theo. Until that point, he’d landed occasional lines in films like “54,” “The Hard Way,” “Bullet” and the unreleased “Heartbreak Hospital.” But his trademark moxie caught the attention of executive producer Bill Clark, who invited him to the set in Los Angeles in April.

Elements of Actor’s Life Woven Into Show’s Plots

Executive producer David Milch was so taken with Bosco’s persona that he immediately wove elements of his real-life story into the plot line shooting that week, under the guise of Tony, the wisecracking neighbor of a crime scene. Milch played up Bosco’s incongruous personality and appearance in the episode, in which most of the detectives took turns guessing his age, and the game continued after the final credits had scrolled.

“Hey, are you really 27?” asked a fan who passed him in Columbus Circle the day after the show aired. Back home in Bensonhurst, some buddies hung a big sign on the side of a building that read, “ARE YOU 27?” Then came the press frenzy and hint of a fledgling cult following.

“Bring back Tony the Midget,” was one viewer’s not-so-delicate comment on an “NYPD Blue” Web site. “I see him as a semi-regular.”

“He gave us exactly what we needed,” says Clark. “He’s a unique character, and this show revisits characters many times. We’d consider having him back.”

For Bosco, it was not only a dream come true, but it also restored his faith in Hollywood. “Show business is full of bull---- artists,” he says. “People are always making promises that they don’t keep. And these guys did. I’d come back at a snap, crackle and pop and all that comes with that.”

Bosco was born with a rare disorder called pan-hypopituitarism, meaning that his malfunctioning pituitary gland cannot produce the hormones necessary for growth and such male characteristics as a deep voice.

Growing up, Bosco needed frequent injections of those hormones, a painful process that runs $30,000 a year for teenagers and $8,000 a year for adults. Bosco’s family was poor and did not have medical insurance. And today, he makes ends meet through odd jobs and selling chocolate.

But instead of retreating inward or acting out negatively, Bosco turned his disability to advantage.

“The kids were really mean to him in school,” says his doctor, Signe Larson, a pediatric endocrinologist at Mount Sinai Hospital. “Most people don’t push themselves to fulfill their dreams, and he looks different than most people. But he had aspirations to be an actor and decided that the best shot he had would be to play child roles.”

Hence his other reason to abandon hormone therapy. “They wanted me to take testosterone,” says Bosco, “but then I wouldn’t have been able to play 12-year-old roles.”

Meanwhile, Bosco is back in New York, with meetings scheduled this week with the William Morris Agency and Abrams Artists. He’ll also be working this summer on an independent film, “Cugini,” starring comedian Pat Cooper.

“He’s a resourceful and resilient spirit,” says “NYPD Blue’s” Milch. “He’s brave and a deep believer in the possibilities of things. Who wouldn’t want to write for him?”

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Mario Bosco will be featured on “20/20 Downtown” Thursday at 10 p.m. on ABC.