Laughter is irresistibly contagious and a real medicine for the soul and health and as such, people who create such moments of laughter tend to be loved by many. Joe Gatto is the right deal when we talk of good humor. He is one of the characters on Impractical Jokers, a TV series of the New York troupe called The Tenderloins.
The well-known Italian-American comedian, actor, and producer has consistently caught the eye of his followers with his unique sense of humor. From his popular TV show, Impractical Jokers to the other reality shows he’s been a part of, down to featuring on comic movies, there is no doubt that Joe has come to stay in mainstream comedy.
Attaining fame away from his course of study, Joe has shown himself as being a free soul as he partakes in charity programs and lots more. The amazing comedian and actor has a huge fan-base with over 760,000 followers on Instagram and about 850,000 followers on Twitter.
How Joe Gatto Transited From An Accountant to A Comedian
Born on the 5th of June, 1976 in Staten Island, New York City, Joseph Anthony Gatto first dabbled into comedy during his days at Monsignor Farrell High School. While attending the catholic institution, Gatto became friends with the trio of Sal Vulcano, Brian Quinn, and James Murray. The four of them had a similar sense of humor and they spent their next four years of high school playing practical pranks on unsuspecting classmates.
Playing practical pranks was however not regarded as a viable career option at that time and as such, Gatto’s father advised him to study a traditional course like accounting so that he could be able to secure gainful employment. The young Gatto took this advice and headed off to Long Island University (LIU), where he gained a degree in Accounting in 1998. He subsequently found a regular job and spent about a year working at it before fate brought him and his three friends – who had also gotten their degrees and were working regular jobs – together in 1999.
Establishing The Tenderloins
Upon their chance reunion, Joe Gatto and his amigos realized that they still had a taste for impractical pranks and formed a live improv comedy and sketch comedy troupe known as The Tenderloins. They then spent the next several years putting up live shows in various parts of New York and sometimes beyond. This shows didn’t bring in much money and as such, most of them retained their day jobs. Gatto, for example, worked at a baby supply store known as Giggle, in order to supplement his income.
The quartet continued for about six years and finally got their breakthrough after they decided to extend their coverage to the internet in 2006. Gatto and his friends filmed several comic sketches that they uploaded to their YouTube channel, as well as Myspace and Metacafe websites. These clips attracted hundreds of thousands of followers and in 2007, one of them, titled Time Thugs, won NBC’s web show competition, It’s Your Show.
Hitting Gold with Impractical Jokers
After their 2007 NBC victory, Joe Gatto and his fellow tenderloins continued doing live shows as well as hilarious internet clips. They also tried to make inroads into television but most of their proposed pilots were turned down by various TV networks. The quartet, however, refused to be discouraged and hit gold after their idea for a show, titled Impractical Jokers, was accepted by TruTV.
Impractical Jokers debuted in December 2011 and basically features the four friends daring each other to carry out embarrassing and ridiculous pranks on strangers. Whoever fails to complete their task is now subjected to an equally-embarrassing punishment by the other members, such as shaving off all his facial hair. Since it started airing on TV, Impractical Jokers has received praise from sources such as the New York Times and the New York Post. It is watched by tens of millions of viewers each week and is the most popular series on TruTV.
The success of Impractical Jokers has enhanced the visibility of Joe Gatto and his partners and they have performed multiple sold-out comedy shows at historic venues such as the O2 Arena (London), Radio City Music Hall as well as the Madison Square Garden. The four pranksters have also featured in other TV series such as the CBS comedy game show, The Misery Index, and in 2020, released their TV movie, Impractical Jokers: The Movie.
All the above projects have been quite lucrative and Gatto now has a net worth of $5 million. His income comes from the Impractical Jokers show, where he makes as much as $50,000 per episode (each season has about 26 episodes making for about $1.3 million annually). The Tenderloins also have a TV movie that grossed $10.7 million on a budget of $3 million.
Meet His Adorable Family
Joe Gatto is of Italian descent and prides himself greatly on his big extended Italian family. The comic is the youngest of three children and has two elder sisters named Gina and Carla. His late father passed on in 1995 after suffering from pancreatic cancer due to the over-consumption of alcohol. This stirred Joe’s mind toward abstinence from alcohol.
Having achieved a good measure of wealth and fame for himself, Joe Gatto added a touch of romance to his life by getting married to his wife, Bessy, on the 2nd of September, 2013. In her own little way, Bessy has been her husband’s number one fan and has been very supportive of his efforts. She advertises his shows through her social networking platforms and this continues to bring more followers for her husband.
The couple’s union has been blessed with two amazing kids. Their first child is a girl, named Milana Francine, who was born on the 7th of May, 2005 while the second is a son, Remington Joseph Gatto, born on the 31st of July 2017. Gatto loves his wife and children to bits and often shows them off on his Instagram account. The comic is also crazy about his pups numbering about six. They are named after Italian desserts namely Spumoni, Biscotti, Tartufo, Napoleon, Pignoli, and Cannoli.
