‘Porky’s Star Tony Ganios, Who Played Anthony “Meat” Tuperello, Dies At 64

It has been reported that Tony Ganios, one of the stars of the comedy sex franchise Porky’s, has died at the age of 64. Ganios is known for portraying Anthony “Meat” Tuperello in the ’80s comedy. Amanda Serrano-Ganios, Ganios’ fiancée, shared the news of his passing on X, previously known as Twitter. His death occurred on a Sunday morning following an extensive operation to treat a spinal infection.

Serrano-Ganios expressed her final exchange with him: “The last words we said to each other were ‘I love you,'” she penned. “To say I love you is not enough. You embody my entire being. My heart, my soul, and my most cherished companion. #I love you #tonyganios.”

Remembering Tony Ganios

Serrano-Ganios expressed her disbelief on X Tuesday, stating, “It’s just unreal to me right now. It happened so quickly,” she recounted. “He was feeling unwell and kept it a secret from me for several days. By the time he revealed it to me and was admitted to the hospital, his spinal cord had already suffered severe infection. After undergoing surgery, by the next morning, his heart had ceased to beat. I’m devastated.”

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She shared with PEOPLE, “I feel utterly hollow inside now. He was not just my best friend but also my soul mate. My love for him is boundless.” Ganios initially appeared on the big screen in Philip Kaufman’s 1979 film about youth, The Wanderers, portraying the formidable Perry LaGuardia. The film featured Ken Wahl, who later joined forces with Ganios in the 1991 film The Taking of Beverly Hills and the crime series Wiseguy, which aired from 1987 to 1990. Ken Wahl paid tribute by posting on X Monday, “Rest In Peace, Buddy ….. I love you.”

In 1981, Ganios took on roles in three movies, with Porky’s standing out as the most notable. He emerged as a key figure in the adolescent comedy series, reprising his role as Anthony “Meat” Tuperello in the 1983 follow-up Porky’s II: The Next Day and again in Porky’s Revenge in 1985.

Ganios shared the screen with John Belushi in the 1981 comedy Continental Divide, and his last film in Hollywood was Rising Sun in 1993, under the direction of Kaufman. In the 1990 action film Die Hard 2, he portrayed a villain who meets his end when Bruce Willis’ character, John McClane, stabs him in the eye with an icicle. His work on television spanned appearances in five episodes of Wiseguy, a single episode of Scarecrow and Mrs. King in 1987, and an appearance on The Equalizer in 1988.

Gianos was set to join his Porky’s co-stars Roger Wilson, Dan Monahan, Cyril O’Reilly, and Mark Herrier at the Cult Classics Convention in Bastrop, Texas, in March.

During a 2015 conversation with Cult Faction, Gianos likened the ensemble to a “big, dysfunctional family” that has navigated through various significant life events together. “We’re like a big, dysfunctional family that for over thirty years has seen each other through marriages, childbirth, divorces, lawsuits, and the tragic loss of one of our own,” he shared. “Sometimes we feel like strangling one another, but when the chips are down we have always rallied for our mutual aid and defense,” said the actor hailing from Brooklyn.

Rest in peace.