By Ezequiel Abiu Lopez
SANTO DOMINGO – American actor Ray Liotta, 67, who starred in the 1990 blockbuster crime film “Goodfellas,” died in his sleep on Thursday in the Dominican Republic, the Dominican Republic General Directorate of Cinema confirmed to Reuters.
Liotta died in bed at a hotel where he was staying with his fiancée Jacy Nittolo while filming “Dangerous Waters,” said his publicist Jennifer Allen. He had a leading role in the film about a sailing holiday that goes awry when family secrets are revealed.
A cause of death was not specified, cinema officials said. According to media reports, an emergency service team had entered the hotel. His body was transferred to the forensic institute of Santo Domingo.
Liotta was born Dec. 18, 1954, in Newark, New Jersey. His many starring roles included playing mobster Henry Hill in “Goodfellas” and baseball player Shoeless Joe Jackson in “Field of Dreams.” He is also known for films including “The Many Saints of Newark” and “Something Wild.”
He leaves behind a daughter, Karsen Liotta, 23.
(Additional reporting by Barbara Goldberg in New York, Editing by Rosalba O’Brien)
