Joseph Charles John Piscopo (pronounced PIS-co-po; born June 17, 1951) is an American comedian, actor, musician, writer, and a nationally syndicated radio talk show host. He is best known for his work on Saturday Night Live in the early 1980s where he played a variety of recurring characters.
Video Joe Piscopo
Early life
Born in Passaic, New Jersey, Piscopo grew up in North Caldwell and attended West Essex High School and was a member of the drama club "the Masquers". He developed a reputation for never playing a part the way it was written. After graduating from high school in 1969, Piscopo attended Jones College in Jacksonville, Florida, where he received a degree in broadcast management.
Maps Joe Piscopo
Saturday Night Live
In the summer of 1980, Piscopo was hired as a contract player for Saturday Night Live. The show had gone through major upheaval when all the writers, major producers, and cast members left that spring. The all-new cast bombed with critics and fans, with the exception of Piscopo and Eddie Murphy; thus they were the only two cast members to be kept when Dick Ebersol took over the show the following spring. With the success of SNL, Piscopo moved to the wealthy borough of Alpine, New Jersey.
Piscopo was best known for his impressions of celebrities such as Frank Sinatra, although he allegedly feared for his life due to Sinatra's alleged Mafia ties. Piscopo rewrote the lyrics for a Sinatra sketch with the help of Sinatra lyricist Sammy Cahn, and recalled that "by the grace of God, the old man loved it."
Post-Saturday Night Live career
Piscopo left Saturday Night Live at the end of the 1983-84 season. In 1984, he starred in a special for HBO and released a book for Pocket Books called The Piscopo Tapes. An album, New Jersey, for Columbia Records followed in 1985 and an ABC special called "The Joe Piscopo New Jersey Special" in May 1986. In 1987, Piscopo was name-checked in Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' #1 rock single "Jammin' Me."
Since January 2014 he has hosted Piscopo in the Morning with Al Gattullo, Frank Morano, and Debbie DuHaime from 6:00 to 10:00 AM, Monday through Friday on AM 970 The Answer (WNYM) in New York City.
By February 2017, Piscopo, a supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, was considering running as an independent for Governor of New Jersey in the 2017 gubernatorial election. However, in April he decided not to do so.
Personal life
Piscopo married former Wheel of Fortune producer Nancy Jones in 1973. They had one child and divorced in 1988. He married Kimberly Driscoll in 1997. They had three children and divorced in 2006. Piscopo is a resident of Lebanon Township, New Jersey.
Filmography
Celebrity impersonations
References
External links
- Joe Piscopo on IMDb
- Official website
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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