Vincent "Vinny" Guadagnino, one of the stars of MTV

MTV

MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

's hit show Jersey Shore

Jersey Shore (TV series)

Jersey Shore is an American reality television series that premiered on MTV on December 3, 2009 in the United States. The series follows the lives of eight housemates spending their summer at the Jersey Shore in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Season 2 followed the cast escaping the cold northeast...

, was born and raised in Staten Island, New York and comes from a traditional Italian-American family. His mother was born on Sicily, which led to a storyline in Jersey Shore's fourth season where the housemates visit Guadagnino's family farm.

Early Life

Guadagnino graduated from CUNY College of Staten Island with a 3.9 GPA and was a political aide for a New York State Assemblyman. He had planned to attend law school, but since the show took off, Guadagnino’s professional interests have shifted from the law to entertainment and acting.

Acting

After the success of Jersey Shore, Guadagnino has dedicated his extra time to taking acting classes and honing his craft. A self-described natural entertainer, Guadagnino’s interest in acting is focused on comedy. He recently guest-starred on MTV’s scripted comedy series The Hard Times of RJ Berger

The Hard Times of RJ Berger

The Hard Times of RJ Berger is a United States television comedy series created by David Katzenberg and Seth Grahame-Smith for MTV. The show's central character is RJ Berger an unpopular sophomore at the fictional Pinkerton High School in Ohio who has an exceptionally large penis...

playing the role of RJ’s cousin, and was also featured in an episode of 90210

90210 (TV series)

90210 is an American teen drama television series developed by Rob Thomas, Jeff Judah and Gabe Sachs, and the fourth series in the Beverly Hills, 90210 franchise created by Darren Star. 90210 is the first series produced by CBS Productions under the company's re-launch, but is now produced by CBS...

which aired November 8, 2011. Guadagnino has expressed interest in continuing to appear on 90210 in a recurring role.

Philanthropy

Guadagnino launched a line of t-shirts for the charity “I Have A Vision,” with proceeds donated to anti-bullying. In collaboration with the charity organization, “Do Something,” the shirts read “F*** Bullies” as its anti-bullying message. He also supports the animal rescue organization Much Love, for whom he recently participated in a charity auction. Guadagnino has been a presenter at the GLAAD awards.