Chuck Zito may look intimidating by his stature, but this former celebrity bodyguard turned TV actor is just about as pleasant as can be.

Chuck joined us in studio this morning to talk about appearing in the new season of the hit FX show, Sons Of Anarchy. He makes his SOA debut this season playing a biker from New York City named “Frankie Diamonds.”

From his time to protecting the stars to becoming a star, Chuck has endless stories from working with the who’s who of Hollywood. We got to learn quite a bit about his background and were blown away by some of the stories he told; here are just a few facts we learned about him today.

Five facts we learned about Chuck Zito:

1. Chuck was once the President of the New York City chapter of the infamous biker club Hell’s Angels.
2. He was a bodyguard to the stars, first hired out to protect Liza Minnelli, then word of mouth spread and he worked with stars like Sean Penn, Sylvester Stalone, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Cher and Charlie Sheen.
3. Chuck sued FX when the network used his idea for a motorcycle series without permission. After the suit was settled, he was invited to become part of the show. “If you can’t beat ‘em join ‘em, so I joined ‘em,” he said.
4. Liza Minnelli invited him to her 12th floor penthouse party with all star guests including Lucille Ball, James Mason, Diana Ross, Al Pacino and even Liberace, who he compared his rings with.
5. Every Tuesday, Chuck goes to the Rainbow Room on Sunset to watch SOA on the big screens with fans. So if you want to meet Chuck in person, head to the Rainbow Room tonight to watch the new episode at 10 PM.

Bonus fact: He wears all his own wardrobe on SOA, including his boots, jewelry, clothing and this sweet jacket:

Chuck Zito’s jacket

In other words, “Frankie Diamonds is Chuck Zito”

Listen to our two-part interview with Chuck Zito to learn more about the Sons Of Anarchy premiere, his time as a celebrity bodyguard and more!

Part one: Chuck talks about the SOA lawsuit and we hear a snippet from one of his new episodes on the show.

Part two: Chuck tells stories from his bodyguard days, including being invited to Liza Minnelli’s penthouse.