Danny Pintauro - People Weekly 6/26/2000

Dan Pintauro

JONATHAN BOWER After eight years of what he calls "a ton of fun" as Judith Light's son on "Who's the Boss?" 16-year-oid Danny Pintauro took on the role of a typical sophomore at Montclair Prep in Los Angeles. "I was really focused on finishing school and getting into a good college," says Pintauro, now 24. "I was in the honors program. a smarty pants." And the apple of his TV family's eye. "I was very proud of him," says Tony Danza. Katherine Helmond brags about how "Danny was tops in Boy Scouts -- he made Eagle Scout!" Pintauro, who now goes by Dan, went to Stanford Universityand in 1998 earned a degree in drama. His performance last year in a one-man Off-Broadway show about a naive street hustler called The Velocity of Gary (Not His Real Name)." was well-received. This year, Pintauro got some backstage experience as an assistant stage manager at Manhattan's City Center Theater. "I've been an actor since I was 2, but I had to prove myself all over again," says Piniauro, who aspires to direct but plans to reprise Gary this fall in San Francisco. He has also proved that honesty is the best policy in handling rumors about his sexuality. In 1997, Pintauro spoke publicly about being gay after a tabloid threatened to out him. "It turned into a positive thing," he says. "I had nothing to hide. I was not at all secretive about it. There was nobody in my own life who didn't know." But Pintauro does have one secret, which he'll share: "Who's the Boss? is on every day now, and I have to admit that I do watch it. For me, it's like looking through an old yearbook."