Actor Steve Buscemi is the latest New Yorker to get a key to the city. Before turning to acting, the Brooklyn-born Buscemi was a New York City firefighter in the early 1980s. The “Boardwalk Empire” star was given the key to New York during Mayor Bill de Blasio’s press conference Tuesday.

“This is such an honor to be here with you today to receive this, to have friends and family here,” Buscemi said. “Before being an actor, I had one of the greatest jobs in New York City … at Engine 55 in Little Italy, and I’ll always be grateful to them for allowing me to work beside them in the aftermath of 9/11.”