BRONX, NY – On a daily basis the N.Y. Yankees usually draw 40,000 fans each game. Up in the YES suite, there is a hidden human gem that is a rare find in this Evil Empire. The gem of a guy is Mr. Charles Santoro. Charlie has been with the YES Network for over 20 years. He grew up rooting for both the Yankees and the Mets, which was a great way to avoid getting beat up back in the days.
Charlie’s allegiance today is with the Pinstripe Pride and the Brooklyn Nets. When you meet Charlie, it’s like you’ve known him forever. His cheery and vibrant mode was felt by actors Danny Aiello, Chazz Palminteri and William DeMeo, who all met him while attending Yankee games. That led to Charlie being placed in front of a camera to display his acting chops. The word is getting around the industry that Sir Charles is a natural. He is becoming a director’s dream by nailing his scenes with one or two takes.
He’s currently shooting scenes in the upcoming movie titled, That’s Amore! The flick has plenty of star power with a cast of John Travolta, Katherine Heigl, D.B. Sweeney, Christopher Walken, Dan Akroyd and Palminteri. Charlie holds his own against these veterans and they truly have accepted him as one of their own.
For Charlie, it’s all a humbling experience but his loyalty remains with his day job, where he is a sports entertainment executive. I once watched the Brooklyn-born, former owner of pizzerias work the phone to get ad after ad to be aired between innings on the YES Network. His delivery was as smooth as Tony Manero chowing down two slices at the same time.
The generous Santoro has contributed to many charitable causes and if you’re lucky enough to meet Charlie, humble him even more by asking him to sign the sweet spot of a baseball. The odds are much greater for that to happen than getting Aaron Judge’s signature.
