Photo: yausser / CC BY 2.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Joe Pesci proves that screen presence has nothing to do with physical size. At 160 centimeters he generated more menace than any action star of his era, because the threat lived in his timing, not his frame. What interests me most is the range hiding inside the typecast: the unhinged comedy, the lounge-singer pathos of his music career, and the heartbreaking stillness he brought to The Irishman after years of semi-retirement. He works only when the material deserves him, which I respect enormously. For my money, his Oscar-winning turn in Goodfellas remains the most terrifyingly funny performance American cinema has produced.
Overview
Joseph Frank Pesci (, Italian: [ˈpeʃʃi]; born February 9, 1943) is an American actor and singer. He is best known for portraying tough, volatile characters in a variety of genres and for his collaborations with Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro in the films Raging Bull (1980), Goodfellas (1990), Casino (1995), and The Irishman (2019).
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Joe Pesci
- Name (Japanese)
- ジョー・ペシ
- Reading
- じょー・ぺし
- Born
- February 9, 1943 (age 83)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Aquarius / Goat
- Origin
- Newark, New Jersey, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- 160 cm
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- film actor / television actor / character actor / actor / musician
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Belleville High School
- University
- Private
Awards & achievements
- 1991 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
- 1981 BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Film actor — see all → · Television actor — see all → · More people from United States →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-11
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.