crimestory

If I remember right, Denis Farina actually was a cop before he became an actor. I think he was one of those guys that was hired as a technical adviser for cop shows and such, and they decided that he could do the job better than whoever he was advising, and the rest was history. Actually, I think that's how R. Lee Ermey got his start, too.

Edit: Personally, I think my favorite Denis Farina role was in Get Shorty.