Leo Grillo

Leo Grillo
Leo Grillo as he appeared in "Magic" (2009)
Born	Leo Francis Grillo, Jr. 1948 (age 68–69) Lawrence, Massachusetts, US
Occupation	Actor, producer, activist,
Years active	1972–present

Leo Francis Grillo, Jr. (born 1948) is an American film actor, producer and animal welfare activist. He is best known for founding Dedication and Everlasting Love to Animals Rescue (D.E.L.T.A. Rescue), an animal welfare organization based in Acton, California. The not-for-profit organization was incorporated in 1981. The refuge has grown to become the largest care-for-life animal sanctuary of its type in the world.

Grillo was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, to Carmela de Lucia and Leo Francis Grillo, Sr., both Italian-Americans. Grillo appeared in the 1972 television series Banacek. Grillo majored in theatre at Emerson College in Boston, MA.

In 1977, Grillo moved from Boston to Los Angeles, California, to pursue a film career. He appeared in the 1977 John Heard film Between the Lines. Grillo studied under the tutelage of Charles E. Conrad, an acting coach credited with launching the film careers of Dee Wallace and Diana Ross, both Academy Award nominees.

Grillo was the lead actor in Dierdre's Party, a feature film he produced in 1998. Grillo played lead actor, opposite Katherine Heigl, in the 2006 independent film Zyzzyx Road. In 2009, Grillo co-wrote, produced and starred in Magic, opposite Sammi Hanratty, Lori Heuring, Christopher Lloyd and Robert Davi, who directed the movie.