Biography
Joe Pesci, a master of supporting roles, gained widespread recognition through multiple partnerships with Martin Scorsese, beginning with his co-lead in the 1980 film Raging Bull and culminating in an Academy Award for his performance as Tommy DeVito in Goodfellas in 1990. Appearances in the Lethal Weapon series and the Home Alone franchise during the early 1990s further elevated his profile, enabling him to revive a musical path left idle since the late 1960s.
Pesci entered the world on February 9, 1943, in Newark, New Jersey, and launched his performing career as a child, securing radio work at age four. Broadway followed the next year, and by 1953 he had become a regular on the variety program Star Time Kids. Acting opportunities faded during his teenage period, so in the mid-1960s he pursued music under the name Joe Ritchie, issuing the LP Little Joe Sure Can Sing and later handling guitar duties for Joey Dee & the Starliters. He also teamed with Frank Vincent to create a vaudeville-inspired nightclub comedy routine.
Aside from the 1961 picture Hey, Let's Twist, Pesci stayed away from the screen until the obscure 1975 release The Death Collector. That project drew almost no notice, prompting him to abandon acting and return to New York to operate an Italian restaurant.
Although The Death Collector reached few audiences, Robert DeNiro counted himself among its viewers and, struck by Pesci’s work, brought the film to Scorsese’s attention, securing Pesci the part in Raging Bull. The performance earned Pesci an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor and established him as one of the most active character actors, with steady roles in projects that included the 1983 Rodney Dangerfield comedy Easy Money and the 1984 Sergio Leone epic Once Upon a Time in America. A short-lived 1985 sitcom titled Half Nelson failed to gain traction, after which Pesci’s screen presence declined sharply; over the subsequent four years he appeared in only one film, 1987’s Man on Fire. His fortunes shifted in 1989 when he joined Mel Gibson and Danny Glover for Lethal Weapon 2, a role that showcased his skill with comic relief so effectively that he returned for the franchise’s third installment in 1992.
By then Pesci had reached star status. The year 1990 marked his breakthrough, featuring the blockbuster family comedy Home Alone alongside Scorsese’s Goodfellas, for which he received the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his intense portrayal of a psychotic mobster. His first major lead in 1991’s The Super met with poor results, yet he earned praise for supporting work in Oliver Stone’s JFK and starred in the successful 1992 comedy My Cousin Vinny. The 1994 releases Jimmy Hollywood and With Honors both underperformed, but in 1995 Pesci rejoined Scorsese and DeNiro for the sprawling Casino. Two poorly received 1997 comedies, Eight Heads in a Duffel Bag and Gone Fishin’, prompted him to step back from leading parts. He again served as supporting player in 1998’s Lethal Weapon 4 while also returning to music with the comedic crooner album Vincent Laguardia Gambini Sings Just for You.
Pesci moved into a period of relative quiet in the 2000s. Robert DeNiro persuaded him to appear in the 2006 film The Good Shepherd, and he took a role in Taylor Hackford’s 2010 picture Love Ranch, yet a genuine resurgence arrived only in 2019. That year brought another Academy Award nomination for his supporting performance in Scorsese’s The Irishman, along with the traditional-pop covers collection Pesci… Still Singing.
Pesci entered the world on February 9, 1943, in Newark, New Jersey, and launched his performing career as a child, securing radio work at age four. Broadway followed the next year, and by 1953 he had become a regular on the variety program Star Time Kids. Acting opportunities faded during his teenage period, so in the mid-1960s he pursued music under the name Joe Ritchie, issuing the LP Little Joe Sure Can Sing and later handling guitar duties for Joey Dee & the Starliters. He also teamed with Frank Vincent to create a vaudeville-inspired nightclub comedy routine.
Aside from the 1961 picture Hey, Let's Twist, Pesci stayed away from the screen until the obscure 1975 release The Death Collector. That project drew almost no notice, prompting him to abandon acting and return to New York to operate an Italian restaurant.
Although The Death Collector reached few audiences, Robert DeNiro counted himself among its viewers and, struck by Pesci’s work, brought the film to Scorsese’s attention, securing Pesci the part in Raging Bull. The performance earned Pesci an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor and established him as one of the most active character actors, with steady roles in projects that included the 1983 Rodney Dangerfield comedy Easy Money and the 1984 Sergio Leone epic Once Upon a Time in America. A short-lived 1985 sitcom titled Half Nelson failed to gain traction, after which Pesci’s screen presence declined sharply; over the subsequent four years he appeared in only one film, 1987’s Man on Fire. His fortunes shifted in 1989 when he joined Mel Gibson and Danny Glover for Lethal Weapon 2, a role that showcased his skill with comic relief so effectively that he returned for the franchise’s third installment in 1992.
By then Pesci had reached star status. The year 1990 marked his breakthrough, featuring the blockbuster family comedy Home Alone alongside Scorsese’s Goodfellas, for which he received the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his intense portrayal of a psychotic mobster. His first major lead in 1991’s The Super met with poor results, yet he earned praise for supporting work in Oliver Stone’s JFK and starred in the successful 1992 comedy My Cousin Vinny. The 1994 releases Jimmy Hollywood and With Honors both underperformed, but in 1995 Pesci rejoined Scorsese and DeNiro for the sprawling Casino. Two poorly received 1997 comedies, Eight Heads in a Duffel Bag and Gone Fishin’, prompted him to step back from leading parts. He again served as supporting player in 1998’s Lethal Weapon 4 while also returning to music with the comedic crooner album Vincent Laguardia Gambini Sings Just for You.
Pesci moved into a period of relative quiet in the 2000s. Robert DeNiro persuaded him to appear in the 2006 film The Good Shepherd, and he took a role in Taylor Hackford’s 2010 picture Love Ranch, yet a genuine resurgence arrived only in 2019. That year brought another Academy Award nomination for his supporting performance in Scorsese’s The Irishman, along with the traditional-pop covers collection Pesci… Still Singing.
Albums
Singles
