Six Degrees of Mickey Rourke: A Doorman Case Study

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[Doormen Maurizio Ferrigno, Armin Amiri, and Wass Stevens all star in The Wrestler]

We can’t help but find Mickey Rourke lovable.* Maybe its because he was such a misfit in the past, or because he still loves to rip it up on the town at 1 Oak and Cipriani Sundays, or perhaps it’s that he has risen from the ashes like a Phoenix.* Or maybe it’s because he hooked up his nightlife friends (and NYC resident doormen) with parts in The Wrestler.* This isn’t to say these guys wouldn’t have made it on their talent, but it sure doesn’t hurt to get a good referral from Mickey (and he has certainly logged in his time with these guys over the years!)

A quick recap on the doormen, the clubs they work at, and the parts they played:

Wass Stevens

Club:

Marquee

Part:

“Nick Volpe”

-

Wass Stevens

is the manager who gives instructions to the wrestlers/does the cattle call in the first match we see in the movie. [

IMDB

]

Background:

Definitely the highest profile actor of the bunch, Wass recently was the main character in the national

Sprint/Nextel commercials

where he calls out “Callahan?” multiple times (hard to miss this one).* He also plays Nicholas Cage’s brother in

Twin Towers

, and is no stranger to fight managers, being an amateur boxer in his former life.

Maurizio Ferrigno

Club:

Upstairs @ Cipriani Downtown

Part:

“Spotter” -* Spots Mickey in the weight room [

IMDB

]

Background:

Maurizio is no doubt the biggest physical specimen of the group.* Hailing from Italy, he plays the henchman role quite well, recently being featured as part of a lineup in the

Law & Order commercials

this past fall of 2008.* And he is of course no stranger to “spotting” being quite the bodybuilder.

Armin Amiri

Club:

Former doorman at

Bungalow 8

and now-defunct

Socialista

Part:

“Dr. Moayedizadeh” - Armin is the Dr. who brings Mickey the bad news that his heart can’t handle the wrestling anymore.* We don’t think that Armin has much of a medical or academic background, so this probably speaks volumes about his acting abilities.* Speaking of bad news, his father apparently was

arrested and held in Iran

for a short while because of suspicion of helping Armin flee the country 20 years ago… [

IMDB

]

Background:

Armin use to be

Amy Sacco’s party

whip at Bungalow 8, who along with Disco made sure that the “no camera” policy was enforced and that a bevy of celebs and the “right” clientele filled the uber-chic boîte.* He left Bungalow in 2007 to* push his

neo-socialism

agenda and start his very own place, the late Socialista.* Alas, socialism proved (once again) to be unsustainable; we will be on the look out for his next “aha!” moment.

[Mickey Rourke with Sofia Vassalo post Oscar weekend]