Today's tribute subject was born Giacomo Tomaso Tedesco on November 10th, 1950 in Brooklyn, New York. He believed his life would involve a career in professional baseball like his father, but fate sent him careening in a new direction, first as a model, then an actor. You may know him better as Jack Scalia...
Born to an Italian father and a mother of Irish descent, his parents divorced while he was still young. Upon his mother's remarriage, his last name was changed to Scalia to match hers and the nickname “Jack” was a sort of outgrowth from “Giac,” thus Jack Scalia came to pass. Young Scalia had been restless and rather wayward, in school, always with energy to burn, until an interest in sports turned his life around. He excelled in basketball and baseball, an All-American in both sports, which led him through high school, college and to the Major League Baseball draft of 1971. His father was former Brooklyn Dodger Rocky Tedesco. He was the third overall pick and the first draft choice for the Montreal Expos (now the Washington Nationals), selected as a pitcher for his eye-popping fastball. However, a pesky back injury led to issues with his throwing arm and, ultimately, a career-crushing injury that caused his premature retirement from the game. His dreams of glory on the baseball diamond now crushed, he floundered for a time.
Now residing in Sacramento, California and sustaining himself with factory work and manual labor, he found out that models could earn $30/hour (an amazing sum in the early-1970s) and on a whim he took some photos of himself to an agency to see what they'd say. Though he'd already been turned down once before as being too heavy for a male model, this time a series of connections (and the shearing of his then-shoulder-length hair) led to his first gig. He posed to great effect in the JC Penney catalog, wearing cotton briefs and a t-shirt. He continued to seek work, first in California, then in New York City, even though his looks were extremely atypical of the slim, blond, chiseled type of model which was then prevalent. On the advice of a Ford Agency representative, he went to Italy to try his luck and expand his horizons. He turned expectations on their ears by representing an entirely different sort of male modeling look, the end result being a highly visible campaign for Sabra liqueur, an Israeli product that put him in high demand. Scalia also became the, er, face of a brand of French underwear called Eminence, which was making inroads to an American market. However, the ad campaign that really put him over the top was the one for Jordache jeans. His butt-hugging photos for the brand, coming at a time when “designer jeans” were becoming all the rage, sent his modeling persona soaring. The brand embraced the 1970s sexual revolution with provocative states of undress, gender combinations and body positioning.
A Bruce Weber-photographed poster became a huge-selling beefcake item, showcasing his lean, sexy physique and beautifully proportioned face.
Things were not at all content for this top male model, however. Having earlier subverted personal insecurity into excellence in sports, only to see that come to an inglorious end, he found that the same demons reared their heads as he conquered the world of print advertising. He was more an object than a person and had begun to rely on alcohol and cocaine to mask his pain.
An engagement to fellow model Joan Rankin was temporarily broken and his work was adversely affected as he spiraled into personal despair. Eventually, he became suicidal, threatening to jump from a high ledge if he didn't receive some sort of help. A steadying agent and friend of his assisted his admittance to a rehab facility. The result was that he gave up ads for alcohol and underwear, rebuilt his relationship with Joan (they married) and proceeded through the rest of his life with a different outlook and sense of direction. He also recommitted to his previously lapsed Catholic faith (though many folks had thought his Jewish after that Sabra liqueur ad!)
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