Antonio Sabato, Jr. was born in Rome, Italy on February 29, 1972. His family moved to the United
States when he was 12, and settled in Southern California. After joining the daytime drama "General Hospital" in the spring of 1992, he was nominated as Hottest Male and Outstanding Newcomer by Soap Opera Digest. Soon, he was highlighted on the cover of TV Guide and included in People Magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People" issue. Antonio left "General Hospital" at the height of his popularity and signed on to Steven Spielberg's prime-time drama "Earth 2". A terrible time slot and numerous preemptions and delays caused "Earth 2" to be canceled after a one year run, leaving its fiercely loyal [and still quite active] fan base frustrated with thoughts of what might have been.
Not wanting to jump into the commitment of another full-time series, Antonio joined the cast of "Melrose Place" for a six episode run as Amanda's [Heather Locklear] abusive ex-husband. He then appeared in a series of successful tele-films and made several special guest appearances on network TV series.
It was Antonio's performance in FOX TV's "If Looks Could Kill" that caught the attention of Calvin Klein. Antonio signed on as CK's underwear spokesmodel, resulting in the most successful campaign in the designer's history.
Antonio went back
to Daytime in June 2005, as "Dante Damiano" on "The Bold and the Beautiful".
He appeared on the show until November, 2006 and enjoyed
playing Dante.
"I can relate a lot to this character," says Antonio. "I bring a lot of personal stuff to Dante, and that's what I would do. I would take care of the child and be the best father I can be. I related that to the producers, to make sure they understood that I was coming from that place. Having two kids, I've been adding my own personal thing [to the story]."
Antonio was a contestant on NBC's "Celebrity Circus" in the summer of 2008. Throwing himself into the circus, he ended up winning the show.
In July of 2008, Antonio returned to his roots as "Jagger Cates" in SOAPNet's "General Hospital: Night Shift".
Antonio has also started his own production company, NAMTAB Productions. [Batman spelled backwards]. He hopes to produce high quality, cutting edge films and television series that will showcase his considerable talent.
Antonio tries not to let his good looks or public adulation obscure his work as an actor. "Being described as a 'heartthrob' really doesn't affect me. It's sometimes part of the job, but my main focus is to get the job done. I focus on doing a good job and let the rest stand for itself."
Antonio has a wide range of interests to keep him busy when he's not on the set. When he's not spending time with his son, Jack Antonio (born August 6, 1994), and daughter, Mina Bree (born August 29, 2002), he enjoys riding his Harley-Davidson motorcycle, deep-sea and shark fishing, scuba-diving, cooking, surfing, and is a big fan of Batman and amusement parks, especially roller coasters.
He is passionate about race car driving and has raced competitively for Porsche. He loves music and is fluent in Italian, Spanish, and English. In addition, he supports several AIDS- related charities. He lives in Los Angeles and became a United States citizen in November 1996.