Gallo was born of
Japanese descent in the
Boyle Heights neighborhood of
Los Angeles and raised in a middle-class family in
Orange County. His father was interned at
Minidoka during World War II, and became a successful magazine publisher after the war. Despite being an intelligent student, Gallo had behavioral issues at school, and after his parents divorced, his stepfather had him sent to military school in
Carlsbad at the age of 13. Gallo was bullied by older students at the military school, and he later wrote that the experience taught him "to enjoy hurting people" and that "man should use any means at his disposal without hesitation to obtain dominance over everyone he meets". Gallo's father later had him removed from the military academy and enrolled him at
University High School in
Irvine. The actor
Will Ferrell was among Gallo's classmates at University High. Following the death of convicted
hitman Charles Harrelson, Gallo was interviewed and identified in the Sunday 2007 issue of
The Sunday Times as a "convicted Mafia associate" and friend of Harrelson. ==Film career==