Tough guy actor Frankie Loyal discusses healing the pain between fathers and sons and much more.
Frankie Loyal, an actor and producer, spoke with GH’s Maurice Benard. On this week’s video podcast episode of State Of Mind, the actor and motorcycle enthusiast who plays Hank “Tranq” Loza on the Sons Of Anarchy spinoff Mayans M.C. spoke candidly about his complex relationship with his father and what it took to break the destructive cycle that tore them apart. Learn what he had to say and even more.
Maurice Benard & Frankie Loyal: Father And Sons
It was immediately apparent that the two men have a great deal in common when they sat down to start talking. Benard portrays gangster Sonny Corinthos on General Hospital, and Loyal is the Sergeant-in-Arms for the motorcycle gang on Mayans M.C. Both actors play compelling and occasionally unredeemable characters. Both had stern fathers as children and used acting to learn how to banish their demons. Each man grappled with the complex father-son bond. And regrettably, the loss of their father has caused anguish for both men.
Loyal explained the background of his contentious connection with his father. “My father worked for the Highway Patrol. CHP. One of the first Latino highway patrol officers was my father. His old-fashioned badge number was 6332, in actuality. It had four digits, after all. “He was an orphan,” he said as he continued to elaborate. Growing up, he had a lot of troubles. He resided in a foster home because he was an orphan. When he was 18 years old, he was flying all over the world because he was in the Air Force. He later became a CHP, which was difficult in those days. So in many ways, he started from scratch.
Loyal’s father imposed severe punishments for all transgressions, much like his father before him and his grandpa before that. “To consider that in this day and age is weird. Back then, if you disobeyed the rules, you received a reprimand or had to apologize to adults. My father was really stern.
The bulky actor was able to recall the preferred weapon with ease. The belt of the Highway Patrol. If anyone has information regarding the belts made of black leather, He took a moment to reflect on that. “I knew when the watch was removed. Then it reached the point where, in the movie Goodfellas, when the letters arrive and little Henry Hill has been in trouble at school and his father receives the belt, he says, “There are just some times when you simply need to take it,” I was just talking about that with someone a few of days ago. After a while, I kind of adopted that attitude.
Loyal didn’t start to see the consequences of his acts or where he still needed to mend until his father passed away from COVID a few years ago. “It is bizarre. Up until his dying a few years back, I was honestly unaware of how it had affected me. He described some of the injuries he sustained. “I have been sober for about 20 years, but I don’t believe I truly understood it until after he went away. That was intriguing when someone felt at ease enough to discuss it with me and I was open to hearing it.
He experienced the same intense feeling of recognition. They told me, “You have this fury inside of you that was so there, and it appears like after your dad deceased, you have experienced some type of peace. [Tears] And I say, “Because it hurt me. And I was unaware of it.
After dad passed away while we were filming, “I internalized it,” he said. He explained how the trauma affected his body. “I once believed I was alright after leaving the gym, but then my body started acting up. I wasn’t sure if I was experiencing a stroke or something incredibly strange. Although I don’t do anything to my body that might cause this kind of occurrence, I was running.
Loyal said, “I was admitted into Cedar’s [Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles]. “And they said, “We don’t know what is happening to your body. The vital signs are all over the place, and it appears to be in a state of shock or trauma. What’s happening to you? Neither of you smoke. You don’t consume alcohol. No, you don’t use drugs. What is happening here?
‘I don’t know,’ I said. At the gym, I was. Your father passed away about a month ago, right? Without without realizing it, I just started talking,” he recalled. Before the doctor commanded, “Stop, the sick actor hadn’t made the connection. Do you understand what you said? It hit me hard after he left the room. I just broke down in tears. I had carried this around my entire life. I was unaware of it. It was rather cumbersome. I experienced this phase of mourning.
Cycling Forward
There was so much more to this interview. The tattooed teddy bear of a guy will win your heart and inspire you at the same time. Frankie Loyal discussed his childhood and growing up in Central California before moving to San Francisco. Find out about how a chance encounter with actor Paul Sorvino inspired him and changed his life. Learn about his punk rock background and his rock star moment at Comic-Con.
The actor talked about the healing power of acting, his early role on Nash Bridges and brush with Don Johnson and Cheech Marin, and how a young autistic fan touched his life and changed his view of the world. Both actors talked about their Barney Miller/Max Gail connection and their love for the tough guy character of Baretta. Catch the whole conversation here.
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