Sonny Grosso

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Sonny Grosso is a movie and television producer and former New York City Police Department detective, noted for his role in the case immortalized in the book and movie versions of The French Connection.

Grosso and his partner Eddie Egan, and other NYPD detectives, broke up an organized crime ring in 1961 and seized 112 pounds of heroin, a record amount at the time. The investigation was the subject of a book by Robin Moore and an Academy Award-winning motion picture.

Egan and Grosso were technical advisors to the movie and played small roles. The movie was highly fictionalized, and a character based on Grosso was played by actor Roy Scheider. The character went by the nickname "Cloudy," which was Grosso's nickname as a detective.

Grosso subsequently became a movie and TV producer, involved in 36 productions. He also played small roles in a number of movies.