Coxswain Nicholas Thomas Colasanto , A Sailor's Story
Coxswain Nicholas Thomas Colasanto, A Sailor's Story
Nicholas Colasanto was born on January 19, 1924, in Providence, Rhode Island, into a close-knit Italian American family during a period marked by economic uncertainty and global upheaval. He attended Central High School but left before graduating, choosing instead to enlist in the United States Navy on January 22, 1943, shortly after America entered World War II.
Assigned the rank of coxswain, Colasanto served aboard the USS Syncline, an oiler tasked with one of the most critical and least glamorous jobs of naval warfare: fuel supply. Operating in the Mediterranean Theater, the Syncline supported Allied operations across Corsica, Sardinia, Algeria, Italy, and France. These missions placed the ship in constant danger from enemy submarines and aircraft, underscoring the reality that logistics were as vital to victory as front-line combat.
Colasanto returned to Rhode Island in 1945 and, like many veterans, turned toward education and stability in the postwar years. He enrolled at Bryant College, working construction jobs to pay his tuition. He graduated in 1949 and began a career as an accountant, practical, steady work that reflected responsibility rather than ambition.
At age twenty-eight, however, Colasanto experienced an unexpected turning point. After seeing a performance by Peter Fonda on Broadway, he felt drawn to acting, a path that seemed improbable so late by conventional standards. Nevertheless, he committed fully, moving to New York City and building a career through Off-Broadway productions and commercial work. In 1965, he relocated to Los Angeles, where persistence and reliability, traits forged during his naval service, sustained him through years of guest appearances on television series such as Bonanza, Columbo, S.W.A.T., and Starsky & Hutch.
Colasanto’s defining role came in 1982, when he was cast as Ernie “Coach” Pantusso on the television sitcom Cheers. His portrayal of the gentle, absent-minded former baseball coach became one of the show’s emotional anchors, earning widespread affection for its warmth, sincerity, and quiet humor. Though his time on the series was cut short, his character left an enduring impression.
Nicholas Colasanto died of a heart attack on February 12, 1985. In tribute, his portrait of Geronimo, a personal fixture in his dressing room, was placed behind the bar on the Cheers set for the remainder of the show’s run, a silent acknowledgment of his presence and legacy. He is buried at St. Ann Cemetery in Cranston, Rhode Island.
Coxswain Nicholas Colasanto’s life tells a uniquely American story: a sailor who helped fuel victory abroad, built a stable life at home, and then, against expectations, found his calling later in life—bringing laughter, kindness, and humanity to millions.
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About the Author
a.d. elliott is a wanderer, photographer, and storyteller traveling through life
She shares her journeys at Take the Back Roads, explores new reads at Rite of Fancy, and highlights U.S. military biographies at Everyday Patriot.
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