Joe Mantegna is an American actor who has made over 200 film and TV appearances. He is also a producer, writer, and director, and is probably best known for his role as Joey Zasa in the 'Francis Ford Coppola'
1969: Made his acting debut in a production of "Hair".
Formerly an actor with an Chicagos Organic Theatre Company.
1978: Debuted on Broadway in "Working". He also helped write the award-winning play "Bleacher Bums". The Los Angeles production of "Bleacher Bums" ran for over five years.
His daughter, Mia Mantegna , is autistic.
He was childhood friends with Walter Parazaider of the jazz rock band Chicago , which is also Mantegnas favorite band.
April 26, 2004: Received the lifetime achievement award at the Los Angeles Italian Film Festival.
Will Girardi, Mantegnas character on "Joan of Arcadia" , was ranked #40 in TV Guides list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time" [June 20, 2004 issue].
As of May 15, 2005, he has appeared on "The Simpsons" a record 16 times.
Has two daughters with Arlene Mantegna : Gia Mantegna and Mia Mantegna.
His character on "The Simpsons" , Fat Tony, has been the subject of two inside jokes. One of Fat Tonys first appearances was in the episode where Bart becomes his errand boy. At the end of the episode, the events are turned into a television movie, in which, we are told, Joe Mantegna is playing Fat Tony. On a much later episode, after a Mafia stand-off is placated by the appearance of Maggie Simpson, everyone breaks down crying. Fat Tony remarks, "I havent cried like this since I paid to see The Godfather: Part III .".
1984: Won the Tony Award as Best Actor (Featured Role - Play) for playing Richard ("Ricky") Roma in David Mamet s "Glengarry Glen Ross". In 2005, Liev Schreiber won his own Tony Award for playing the role originated by Mantegna in a revival of the play. The third major actor to play the role of Ricky Roma (in the film version of the play, Glengarry Glen Ross ) was Al Pacino.
Along with Elizabeth Taylor and Mark Hamill , he is one of only three actors to play both themselves and a fictional character on "The Simpsons" . He played himself in the Season Three episode, "The Simpsons" {Bart the Murderer } , and portrayed Fat Tony in that and fourteen other episodes of the series.
His wife, Arlene Mantegna owns "Taste Chicago", a restaurant in Burbank, California.
His character on "The Simpsons" was originally intended to be a one-time guest appearance in the episode, "The Simpsons" {Bart the Murderer } , but it became a recurring role later on in the series run. According to the Season Three DVD commentary track, Mantegna liked the character and wanted to voice him again.
Attended and graduated from Morton East High School in Cicero, Illinois in 1965.
Was Robert B. Parker s personal pick to play Spenser on "Spenser: For Hire" (before Robert Urich was cast in the role).
Has been assured by "The Simpsons" casting director that he will be the only person to voice the character Fat Tony. However, the character had a different actor for his short appearance in "A Fish Called Selma".
Received an honorary degree in Psychology from the Chicago School of Professional Psychology on June 13, 2008. He was the commencement speaker.
Was considered for the role of Detective Joe Fontana on "Law & Order" , which went to Dennis Farina.
He was nominated for a 1974 Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Actor in a Principal Role for his performance in "The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit", at the Organic Theater Company in Chicago, Illinois.
He was nominated for a 1977 Joseph Jefferson Award for Actor in a Supporting Role for his performance in "Volpone", at the Organic Theater Company with Victory Gardens in Chicago, Illinois.
He was awarded the 1984 Joseph Jefferson Award for Actor in a Supporting Role in a Play for "Glengarry Glen Ross", at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.
Good friends with Denis Leary.
Longtime personal friends with the late Roger Ebert , until his death on April 4, 2013.
His daughter, Gia Mantegna , was born in New York City during the filming of The Godfather: Part III , five months into production.
Lives in Los Angeles California.
Italian-American.
Until the age of 16, Joe had thought his birthday was November 10th. He found out it was really November 13th when he needed his birth certificate to get his drivers license. His mother told him that because the cutoff date for starting school was the 10th, and she wanted to get back to work, she told the school (and Joe) that his birthday was November 10th.
Owns the restaurant Taste Chicago in Burbank, California with his wife Arlene. The restaurant opened in 2003 and serves classic Chicago dishes such as deep dish pizza, Chicago hot dogs, pasta, and Italian beef sandwiches.
In "Criminal Minds" {Snake Eyes (#7.13)} , his character Rossi mentions that he is not a huge fan of mobster movies. Mantegna has actually played mobsters in The Godfather: Part III and "The Last Don" , and perhaps most famously, voices mob boss Fat Tony on "The Simpsons" .
He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Live Theatre at 6654 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on April 29, 2011.
Close friends with late actor Meshach Taylor , until his death on June 28, 2014. The pair were friends for over 40 years.
His mother Mary Ann lived to the age of 101, passing away in April 2017.
Auctioned two of his rifles to fund the Israeli army in August 2015.
He played Judy Davis s husband in two films written and directed by Woody Allen : Alice and Celebrity .
Without Memorial Day, there is no other holiday.
