| Paolo Kessisoglu | |
| Birth Date: | 25 July 1969 |
| Birth Place: | Genoa, Italy |
| Nationality: | Italian |
| Known For: | the comedic duo Luca e Paolo with Luca Bizzarri |
| Spouse: | Sabrina Donadel |
| Children: | Lunitta (b. 2003) |
Paolo Kessisoglu (pronounced as /it/; born 25 July 1969) is an Italian actor, comedian and television presenter. He is best known for the duo Luca e Paolo, formed with his friend, . Kessisoglu was also a member of the comedic group Italian: Cavalli Marci|i=no ("Rotten Horses").
Kessisoglu was born in Genoa to an Armenian family.[1] His paternal grandfather moved as a child with his family from Smyrna (today İzmir, Turkey) to Greece and later to Italy to escape from the Armenian genocide.[2] The family settled in Trieste for several years before finally moving to Genoa. The original surname, Armenian: Keshishian (Armenian: Քեշիշյան), was Turkized during the escape in Turkish: Keşişoğlu (with the Armenian Armenian: -ian ending replaced by the Turkish patronymic ending Turkish: -oğlu) to arouse less attention, and then Hellenized to Greek, Modern (1453-);: Kesísoglou (Greek, Modern (1453-);: Κεσίσογλου).[2]
In June 2003, Kessisoglu married TV anchor and journalist Sabrina Donadel with whom he has a daughter, Lunitta (b. 2003).[3] [4]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | E allora mambo! | Mauro Paternò | ||
| 2000 | The Emperor's New Groove | Kronk (voice) | Italian dub | |
| Tandem | Pietro Borsello | |||
| 2001 | The Living Forest | Ho-Ho (voice) | Italian dub | |
| 2003 | Oggi è una bella giornata | Paolo | Short film | |
| 2005 | …e se domani | Matteo Cellario | ||
| 2008 | Asterix at the Olympic Games | Omega | ||
| Tinker Bell | Clank (voice) | Italian dub | ||
| 2009 | Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure | Italian dub | ||
| 2010 | Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue | Italian dub | ||
| 2011 | The Immature | Virgilio Montesi | ||
| 2012 | ||||
| 2013 | Colpi di fortuna | Piero | Segment: "Primo episodio" | |
| 2014 | Un fidanzato per mia moglie | Pietro | ||
| 2020 | Un figlio di nome Erasmus | Jacopo | ||
| Per tutta la vita | Mark | Post-production |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997–1998 | Ciro, il figlio di Target | Himself/Various | Sketch comedy show (seasons 1–2) | |
| 1999 | Ciro | Himself/Various | Sketch comedy show | |
| 2000–2002 | MTV Trip | Himself/co-host | Reality show | |
| 2001 | Mai dire Gol | Himself/Guest | Sports program (season 11) | |
| 2001–2003 | Sitting Ducks | Aldo (voice) | Main role; 52 episodes | |
| 2001–2011 | Le Iene | Himself/co-host | Variety/reality show (seasons 5–11, 13–15) | |
| 2003–2017 | Camera Café | Paolo Bitta | Co-lead role; 1756 episodes | |
| 2004 | Superciro | Himself/Various | Sketch comedy show | |
| 2007 | La strana coppia | Felice "Felix" De Santis | Co-lead role; 30 episodes | |
| 2011 | Sanremo Music Festival 2011 | Himself/co-host | Annual music festival | |
| Così fan tutte | Paolo Bitta | Episode: "Episodio 1" | ||
| 2012 | Scherzi a parte | Himself/co-host | Prank show (season 12) | |
| 2014 | Giass | Himself/co-host | Game show | |
| 2015–2016 | Colorado | Himself/co-host | Variety show (seasons 17–18) | |
| 2017–present | Quelli che... il Calcio | Himself/co-host | Sports program (seasons 24–present) | |
| 2018 | Immaturi - La serie | Virgilio Montesi | Main role; 8 episodes |