Francesco Pultro

American actor Francesco Pultro, was born in Philadelphia, PA, to Joe & Pudgie. He first appeared on stage when he was 7 years old in his younger sisters' dance recital. They needed boys! He was drawn to the stage by the passion of his high school musical & theater director. His newly acquired love for the stage, plus his passion for dance led to a successful 15 year career as a dancer.

After dancing in the movie, Grease (John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John), he & his wife, Mary, chose to leave "the business" in order to raise their family. Francesco became an accomplished martial artist, winning 4 national titles in kata, & placing 13th in the 1997 USKA World Championships. In the interim, Francesco received a calling to be a pastor & pediatric hospital chaplain. He has been an effective grief counselor for families who have lost children & has been a police chaplain for more than 2 decades. Francesco was also deployed as a crisis chaplain at several disaster sites including the WTC following 9/11, New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina & the Amtrak #110 train derailment.

He continued to dabble in the arts during his off years (lead in The Second Coming, 1986), as well as writing & directing intermittently. As his children grew & moved out he took steps to reignite his acting career with roles in Rocky Balboa (2006), Attendance (2007), Hart's Ridge (2008), Survivor's Stories: el Guettar (2013), The North Star (2016) & 'Pope: the Most Powerful Man in History' (CNN, 2018). He is now back as Stephen A. Douglas, in CNN's 'Lincoln: Divided We Stand' & religious tech advisor for 'Mare of Easttown' starring Kate Winslett.