Compact Italian-American actor born February 9, 1943, in Newark, NJ, who first broke into entertainment as a child actor and by the mid-50s was starring on the series "Star Time Kids". In the mid-'60s he released a record under the stage name of "Joe Ritchie" titled "Little Joe Sure Can Sing", and was also playing guitar with several bands, including Joey Dee and The Starliters. He even joined with friend Frank Vincent to start a vaudeville-style comedy act, but met with limited success (interestingly, Pesci and Vincent would later go on to co-star in several gangster films together, including Goodfellas and Casino)

Pesci's first film role was as an uncredited dancer in Hey, Let's Twist and then he had to wait another 15 years for a minor part in The Death Collector. His work in the second film was seen by Robert De Niro, who convinced director Martin Scorsese to cast him as "Joey LaMotta" in the epic boxing film Raging Bull, which really got him noticed in Hollywood. He played opposite Rodney Dangerfield in Easy Money, was with buddy DeNiro again in Once Upon a Time in America, nearly stole the show as con man Leo Getz in Lethal Weapon 2 and scored a Best Supporting Actor Oscar playing the psychotic Tommy DeVito in "Goodfellas".

His comedic talents shone again in the mega-popular Home Alone, and he put in a terrific performance as co-conspirator David Ferrie in JFK. Pesci was back again as Leo Getz for Lethal Weapon 3, and was still a bumbling crook in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, and had a minor role in the Robert De Niro-directed A Bronx Tale. He was lured back by Scorsese to play another deranged gangster named Tommy (based on real-life hood Tony Spilotro [aka "The Ant"]) in the violent Casino, and starred in the comedies 8 Heads in a Duffel Bag and Gone Fishin', although both failed to fire at the box office.

He returned again as fast-talking con man Leo Getz in Lethal Weapon 4.
Lethal Weapon 4 (1998): $3,000,000

His song My Cousin Vinny was a pretty big hit in some European countries (the song is not directly related to his movie My Cousin Vinny). He recorded an album in the 60s under the name Joe Ritchie. Titled "Little Joe Sure Can Sing", it flopped. Started out with Joey D and the Starliters; working his way around as a waiter and singing and playing guitar in local nightclubs Director Martin Scorsese and actor Robert De Niro tracked down Pesci after seeing his role in The Death Collectorbecause they felt he was perfect for the role of Joey La Motta in Raging Bull Eyes are different colors. Born at 11:45am-EWT The word Pesci in Italian means "fish" (plural). Close friend of George Carlin, and mentioned by Carlin in his bit "There is No God". After winning the oscar for his role as Tom DeVito in the movie Goodfellas his entire acceptance speech was "This is an honor and privilege, thank you." When asked why he didn't say more he said "I really didn't think I was going to win." Italian-American Did Judo in his teens Is an avid golfer Very good friends with fellow actor and frequent co-star, Robert De Niro. Sang as Joe Doggs with jazz organ player Joey DeFrancesco. They recorded an album on Concord Records in 2003 titled, "Joey DeFrancesco featuring Joe Doggs, Falling in Love Again." He has a house in Lavalette, New Jersey. In the 1980s, he established a reputation as a community Little League Baseball Coach. Shares a birthday with Mia Farrow.Is, to the day, 2 years older than her. Was the original choice to play Fergie in Judge Dredd (1995) but turned it down. The part was given to Rob Schneider instead. His performance as Tommy DeVito in "GoodFellas" (1990) is ranked #96 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time. Childhood friends with Frankie Valli, Tommy DeVito, and Nick Massi. Introduced them to Bob Gaudio. Valli, DeVito, Massi, and Gaudio became the rock group The Four Seasons.