Joe Piscopo

Mr. Piscopo, Can I Call You Joe?

The Mondo Film & Video Guide Interview with the legendary, Joe Piscopo

Conducted By: Mondo Justin
Mondo Film & Video Guide Editor

When you first start to talk with Joe Piscopo, you get a sense right away of just how talented and special he is.  He’s very engaging, a Jersey guy at heart.  He’s warm, friendly, polite, and he’s one of those guys that reminds you of your best and oldest friends.  Piscopo chats with you, like he’s known you his entire life.

Immediately, he makes it very clear that family is everything to him.  He loves radio, he loves music. He plays a few different instruments. Piscopo is also quick to point out and pay tribute to those that are also legends, beside himself.   When I first talk to him, being a fan, I immediately bring up one of my all time favorite comedy sketches in the history of comedy, his Jerry Lewis Thriller parody from his ’84 HBO special.  He’s grateful, and we spend about 10 minutes talking about Jerry Lewis, even sinking down into discussing Jerry’s infamous unreleased film from 1972, THE DAY THE CLOWN CRIED.

Being who Piscopo is, he asks some questions about me.  I tell him where I grew up.  He get’s excited. He tells me he’s played ‘my home’ turf’ often under several circumstances, and loves it.  He tells me my birthplace has great people, good food, fun places and beautiful women.

Piscopo is a ‘freakin legend.  Starting out in radio and moving into improvisation comedy in his early 20′s, he’s been around the block.  He, with others came up the ranks to become contemporary comedy juggernauts.  Two generations later, and everyone understands these guys are the definition [of comedy].  Piscopo quite possibly had the most difficult job in television history, when in 1980, he was hired for America’s favorite television show, SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE. He alongside, his friend and comic icon Eddie Murphy and others were brought on board to replace a cast that included Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, Gilda Radner, and Bill Murray.  It didn’t go so well.   NBC canned everyone but Piscopo and Murphy.  It was up to Piscopo and Murphy to save the show. Ever since that day, it’s been the stuff of legends.

Piscopo left S.N.L in 1984 to pursue film work.   He went on to star in several comedy and cult film classic’s, such as WISE GUYS, JOHNNY DANGEROUSLY, and DEAD HEAT.  A proud Italian at heart, he’s got the Italian New Jersey mannerism’s you’d expect.  But what makes Piscopo so great, is that after a few minutes of speaking with him, you’re in his world feeling very comfortable, and it makes you wish you yourself were Italian, and able to get away with saying ‘Forget about it!’ Piscopo suggests that he’d rather be considered an entertainer over a comedian.   The three heroes of his life:  His father [a lawyer],  Jerry Lewis, and the old man, Francis Albert Sinatra.   Piscopo would become known for his dazzling and profoundly ‘on the money’ impressions of Lewis and Sinatra.  The later of which, Piscopo continues to impersonate to this very day on stage all over the good ole USA.

There’s a famous story about the first time Piscopo met Frank Sinatra.  Piscopo walks up on stage at a Friar’s Club roast.  On one side sits Frank Sinatra.   Piscopo confronts Sinatra in front of an audience.  He expresses his admiration and impersonates him.  Sinatra tells the audience and Piscopo, “That’s pretty good.”   Piscopo then get’s brave and asks Sinatra, ” Mr. Sinatra can I call you Frank?”   Sinatra responds, “No.” The audience explodes with laughter, becoming the highlight of a legendary night of comedy.  From here, Sinatra would dub Piscopo the ‘Vice-Chairman Of The Board’.  The Mondo Film and Video Guide  editor, Mondo Justin got the unique honor of speaking to comedy legend, Joe Piscopo. Here’s what went down…

Mr. Piscopo, can I call you Joe?

No…laughing…sure

One thing I noticed immediately on your website, was your bio.  It reads and I’m paraphrasing here…”after a stint as a disc jockey and dinner-theater performer, Joe Piscopo turned to comedy?” I was curious to see how one turns to comedy?  Weren’t you born a comedian?

No…I was a born wiseguy.  I was a kid that was causing trouble.  I was annoying the teachers.  Back then, I wanted to really just be a blue collar entertainer, being up on stage and sweating  it out, making money, and having fun!  I had to figure out how to do that though.  So I went to college down in Florida, and got a degree in radio. I love radio. I’m a junky for radio.  Then I went up to Pennsylvania and got involved in dinner theater. I was doing four shows for fifteen dollars a weekend.  Then I got a job in New Jersey on the radio, and I got involved in New York City improv.  It was so exciting.  I cut my chops in New York City doing stuff at the improv comedy club.

You being a comedy legend yourself, didn’t you come up the ranks with a bunch of others?

Larry David was hanging around, Jerry Seinfield was hanging out. Robert Klein was there.  Robin Williams was just breaking.  Rodney Dangerfield was getting really huge.   They need to make a movie about this time. It was the stuff of legends, let me tell you.  Richard Pryor was coming in and checking it out.  Andy Kaufman. Kaufman was a genius. Bette Midler, man.. I got to play piano for her once.  It was really really wild.  I mean I’m a kid, twenty-four years old, trying to get a break.  It was crazy.  It was rock n roll.

How did you get interested in playing music?

My mother.  She really pushed me to play the piano when I was a kid.  I gave her a hard time. I was kid, and all I wanted to do was be out at Yankee Stadium watching baseball.  But I stuck with it, and I’m really thankful to my mom for it.

Growing up did you have any musical influences as you progressed in music?

Frank Sinatra of course. That comes from my dad.  At a young age, I knew who Frank was, and Tony Bennett.  I had no problems telling the difference between the voices of Frank and Tony Bennett on the radio. You can’t mistake the old man’s voice.  But I loved rock n roll as well.  Hendrix all the way.  What a genius.  I loved the Animals, and The Beatles, and a lot of those hardcore male  blues voices as well.

Do you remember your very first film role?

Well…I’m not sure what you’re getting at!   Are you talking about that really really bad movie I did up in upstate New York…what was that called again?

Well, I was trying to steer you towards your walk on role in the ’76 Dino De Laurentiis, KING KONG.

laughing…yeah I know…laughing…Oh my god!   I can’t believe we’re talking about this…  Let me just say, that  I love the 1933 KING KONG.  I had heard a rumor from a friend about it.  So my friend and I decided to go upstate for it.   It was funny.  Cause for a little while I was putting it on my resume.  People would ask me, “What did you do in KING KONG?”, and I’d say, “Well I had just a small role….” laughing…I just ran down the street in one scene…laughing…I don’t think you can even see me…laughing

Moving into S.N.L.  I was curious to see if you or the cast coming in with you had any concerns that you wouldn’t be as good as the cast you were replacing? I mean you guys were replacing Aykroyd, Belushi, and Gilda.

I had this friend who was working on S.N.L as a lighting grip or something.  He got me a audition for the show.  I was cocky back then man.  I mean I was doing pretty good. I was a working actor acting in commercials.   So I auditioned and got it on the spot. It was wild man.  I was so cocky.  So when I found out how much money they wanted to pay me, I lost interest.  And then I started thinking, how do you replace someone like Gilda Radner? You can’t. I mean, I was already making more money than what they were offering me, just by doing commercials.   But after a few discussions with my friend, he convinced me to just do the show.

And let me just tell you, those first ten ‘freakin shows…brutal.  I wouldn’t wish that experience on anyone. The cast, including myself we all thought we were killing America’s favorite TV show!   And then, they stopped the show. They fired everyone, but myself and Eddie Murphy!   The show got some re-structure. Michael O’Donoghue came in to shake it up.  Billy Murray came in, and we started to battle our way back little by little.

What’s your writing process?  How do you write a sketch or joke?

I have to find something that intrigue’s me.    But I’ll tell you what.   I tried to take ideas from television and exaggerate them.  I understood television.  I used to write a lot with Eddie Murphy.  We would riff our ideas off of each other.   Eddie is a genius.  So we used to flush a lot of stuff out, sometimes it was like starting from a blank canvas, and that’s hard.    But we’d come up with something, and then start bouncing it off of others in the office.  You learn it as you go.

Was the SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE process comfortable to you?  The writing style, the approval process, the 9pm rehearsal, then the live show at 11:30 p.m?

Yeah, totally.  I came from the improv.  I’d been improving on my feet for a while by then.  When I first started…I can remember being on stage for a room of half sleeping drunks.  So it wasn’t a difficult process to handle.  I actually live for it.   You do it last minute. Do or die.  A sketch you think that isn’t gonna be included in the show during the rehearsal, all of sudden is now gonna be in the live show, and you just have to get through it. It’s all last minute, on your feet stuff.  I live for that type of stuff.  My whole life is like that too.  My children, my ex-wives…laughing…It’s all been last minute, spur of the moment, you know.

Of all the character’s you did on SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE do you have a favorite?

The sports guy.  I’m a sports fan, so it was just fun.  I also loved doing the music with the band, as Frank Sinatra.  I mean, c’mon I’m like twenty-six years old, working with the SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE band, doing the music of the old man.

In your SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE days, who was the best guest host you ever worked with?

That’s easy. I’m a television baby.  So when Jerry Lewis hosted, that was it.  Robin Williams was great too.  Especially great.  Robin Williams, even Eddie Murphy would do this…  These guys would open up for you, and let you do your thing.  Those guys are comic geniuses. Robin and Eddie.  Working with Jerry Lewis was wonderful.  All week he was there with Eddie and I, it was a love fest.

Doing Sinatra, can you remember the first time you heard that he was a fan?    What goes through your mind when you find something out like that?

Well, I had been doing little bits of the old man at the improv.  SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE asked me to do the character, and I told them, ‘”No Thanks.”   But they started to bug me about it .  I just didn’t wanna do it, out of respect to him. He was my father’s hero.  So I got offered to do this comedy type music album as Frank.  So I did that.  Then I sent him a copy of the album, and wrote him a big letter, expressing my admiration.  But I never heard back on it.

A little while after that, I got invited to the Friar’s Club for a roast.  I was so nervous.  I’ve got the old man on my left, Dean Martin on the right. Milton Berle was there. Dick Cavett did the introduction.   I’m just a kid up there.   So I’m up there, and I said to the old man on stage in front of everyone, “my favorite song of yours is I DON’T STAND A GHOST OF A CHANCE WITH YOU.”  So I started to sing it to the old man in his voice.  After I get through the line, Sinatra says to everyone “that’s pretty good.”   So, into the mic I said “Mr. Sinatra, can I call you Frank?”  He looks at me and says, “No.”  I swear to god the room erupted. It got the biggest laugh of the whole night.  You can’t mess with the master. It was just amazing.

Then his people would call me up randomly.   And they’d say to me, ” Mr. Sinatra needs you to go here, and there.”  So they’d pick you up, in luxury too…and you’d go to promote whatever it was for him, cause you wanted to be in his presence.

We’d talk sometimes too. But I was always just really in awe and scared.  So I  ended up usually, just telling him how great he was, or thanking him for whatever.  And he always just said  “don’t mention it pal-ee.”   I heard from friend’s of his, that he considered me the Vice-Chairman of the board.   I swear to god.

Another friend of his told me once, and this was before I met him…Sinatra was playing at Caesars. He was sitting in his dressing room, and SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE comes on the television, and Sinatra saw me doing him on television.   So his friend, says to him, “what do you think Captain?”  Sinatra turns to him and says, “he’s pretty good…the little prick.”  I swear to god, true story…laughing….

I met Sammy Davis Jr. through Frank too.   I loved talking to him.   He was a performer. All those guys were amazing.  I could never figure out how they got their energy.  I mean, c’mon, those guys would stay up all night smoking, boozing and partying with broads.  I asked Sammy once.  I said, “Sammy how do you get the energy to do it all?”  He just said, “I just do it man.”   It was amazing.

What’s your favorite Sinatra album?

SINATRA AT THE SANDS.  I love it.  I always go back to it for reference.

Whose Sinatra character/impression was better, yours or Phil Hartman?

For the record?   I never knew Phil Hartman.  I am really protective of the Sinatra character.   So I will say this…asking Phil Hartman to do the Sinatra character is like someone asking me to do Eddie’s buckwheat character…laughing…God rest his soul though…Phil Hartman… I just didn’t think his version was respectful of the old man.

With everything that’s been written about the excess of the Saturday Night Live cast of the 1970′s, was there any type of that stuff going on in your cast?  Where are the cocaine-fueled behind the scene stories of the early 80′s Saturday Night Live?

Well, when Belushi passed away, that killed all of that.  Everyone realized that if a great force like John Belushi could be taken away, any one of us could.  So that was that. Our cast was really clean too. I’ve said on the record before, Eddie and I never touched anything,  but, and  I won’t give you a name, cause I’m Italian, and I don’t talk, but there was this mid level producer at S.N.L. You’d go in to pitch your material, he’d pull out a little baggie and snort lines of coke during your pitch. At NBC!  Then, after that, he’d smoke a joint in front of you.  You’d be pitching an idea, and he’d be trying to inhale, going ” THHHHATTT’S NOT FUNNY MANNNN!”

Why did you leave the show in 1984?

Well, I had film offers. I was burned out. My friend Eddie Murphy was leaving.   The show really didn’t need me any more.  Lorne Michaels was bringing in new cast members. Christopher Guest, Billy Crystal, Martin Short. What was I gonna do with those guys coming in?   So I just decided to move on.  But let me tell you this.  I am so indebted to that show.  I say this with the greatest humility, cause I’m not sure that I really belonged there.  For me, being on that show was once in a lifetime,  like the same thing as playing baseball for the New York Yankees.  I knew by the grace of god, that I was lucky to be there.  It was Lorne Michaels. I owe everything to him.  He’s allowed so many to just do what they wanted to do, come in, and have fun and work.  I never wanted to be star, I just wanted to work.  So you make your mark, and then you move on.  Things have come full circle.   I’m currently working on a pilot show for NBC, called AFTER DARK WITH JOE PISCOPO that I’m hoping to get Lorne Michael’s to produce.

Do you currently watch SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE?   Do you think the show is still funny?

Over the years I’ve watched for sure.  There have been some amazing performers on that show.  I loved Dana Carvey. What a talent.  Then Michael Myers.  Wow.  That guy.  He was one of those scary good guys, that makes you ask yourself “where are you from, brother?”   He was the first to transition something from the show into a commercial success.   And now, I love Kristen Wiig.   She’s just as good as anyone that’s ever worked on that show.   And Fred Armisen.  When he does ‘Governor David Paterson’, that’s it, that’s the one.   The funniest thing with Fred doing that, he nail’s it, as he floats in front of the camera.  But what amazes me most about Fred is how he can read the cue cards with his eyes sealed…laughing…Some people in my generation have said that the show isn’t what it used to be.  But c’mon it’s still great.  I mean there are some truly genuine funny moments going on there yet.

My favorite of all time though is, Dan Aykroyd.  He’s the captain of the SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE starship.  He did characters with no make-up, no prosthetics.  He just had that moustache.  He’s go out, and do Nixon, Jimmy Carter, The Blues Brothers.  I’ve always been in awe of his execution of character.  And if you talk to him, he’s like a SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE expert.  He knows every single SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE cast member from every season. It’s like a fraternity or sorority.  Just an amazing mind and a super smart guy on all fronts.

You’re a cancer survivor?   Can you share what was going through your head during that time?  Did it change your life perspective?

Yep, during SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE.  It was in 1981.  I found out, went through the show that SATURDAY NIGHT. In fact I still remember the show. Bill Murray hosted.  It was the first show that we convinced Eddie Murphy to do Muhammad Ali in full make-up.   Ali had just had this huge fight.   So we did the “Weekend Update”, where I was the sports guy, and Eddie came out as Ali in full prosthetics.   I wrote that whole sketch alone.  And Eddie knocked it out of the ball park, man.  Just genius. It was a great show.  So, Sunday morning, I woke up and went to the hospital for surgery.  It was a tumor in my thyroid.  It was a pretty aggressive form of cancer, but we caught it early.  So I was really grateful for that.   I actually didn’t get a full remission until 1991.   It changes your life.  After that, all I cared about was my family.   You realize, that when you die, no one cares really about your work.   All that’s important is your family.

Funny thing, I never told anyone at SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE that I had cancer except the producer Dick Ebersol, and Eddie Murphy.   So after my surgery, the phone rings while I’m in the hospital, and I pick it up, all bruised and swollen, I’ve got these stitches, and it’s Eddie.   And he immediately starts going into these jokes, and I swear to god, I was laughing so hard, the stitches were coming out.

One of my very favorite films of all time is JOHNNY DANGEROUSLY.  How did you get involved in that project, and what was the experience like for you?

It was great. The funny thing about that film.  It opened up ok.  But over the years it’s become this cult thing.   Young kids, like 20 year old’s are coming up to me telling me how much they like it.  It was an amazing experience.  They’re turning it into a Broadway show actually.   I mean, c’mon I’m working with Danny Devito, Michael Keaton, Peter Boyle, Dom Deluise.  Amy Heckerling directed it. She did it brilliantly.  It was the very first time I got to stay for an extended period of time out in California. The production was smooth. It was easy.  Norman Steinberg the writer, is working with me now on my new movie, Joey Benefit. Michael Keaton is a joy to work with. He drove that whole picture. Just hilarious. Overall it was just a super fun, super amazing time.

Were you allowed to improve on JOHNNY DANGEROUSLY?

Yeah, totally.  It was hard though, cause we all had a very difficult time not busting up during takes.  The script was actually funny too.  My whole, “once”  thing was improvisation.   That scene where Keaton hung me on the hook.  We decided we needed to do the ‘once’ thing in three’s.  So myself, Amy Heckerling, and Keaton just sat down, and figured out where we’d place those, and then we decided we’d re-call the gag near the end.  It was just a blast.

One of my favorite lines in the film is where you pull out that giant gun, and say “This is an 88 magnum. It shoots through schools!”  Script or improv?

laughing…You know what?  That was just so unbelievable. It was in the script.  You gotta think, I mean, I’ve got kids, with the whole school shooting thing, and we’re endorsing guns in a movie that kids are gonna see back then…laughing…

My all time favorite line from the film, and I still qoute it to friends and family, and they just look at me funny when we’re going somewhere, to the store or out to dinner.  I’ll say, “well let’s just park in the handicapped spot.” They look at me funny and say to me “we can’t do that!”   So I’ll come back instantly with.. ‘I am handicapped, I’m psychotic!”

laughing….oh man!  [Piscopo repeats the entire line of dialogue in the Danny Vermin voice]  How politically incorrect was that?!…laughing

Growing up as an HBO kid, I got exposed to your HBO comedy specials as well.   And one of my all time favorite moments, and this has gotta be in the Top 5 comedy sketches of all time is your Jerry Lewis / Michael Jackson Thriller parody from 1984.  How in the hell did you come up with that concept?

Oh thanks, man!  That means a lot.   What’s funny about that.  I had pitched that idea when I was at SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, right before I left.  They hated it.   So when I got to do the HBO special, I made it the centerpiece.  SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE didn’t get it, and I won all sorts of awards for it.  I was kinda grateful, that S.N.L passed on it.  The best thing about it, we shot it in the exact same location Michael Jackson shot Thriller.  We used some of his same dancers even. It was a blast.

I came up with it, just cause I admired Jerry.   And Thriller was huge at the time.  So I was thinking about, making myself laugh about it…laughing…I mean, I turn into Jerry, and we have this collection of Jerry Lewis character’s dancing. These people were Broadway caliber dancers too.  I had to teach the dancers the Lewis moves, the Lewis steps…laughing…Jerry actually saw it, and he LOVED it!

Did you have any creative input into the writing of those Miller Lite Beer Commercials you did that were so huge in the mid 80′s?

That’s a good question.  I did not actually.  I got the script.  They were really well written.  Great concepts.  I loved them.  They were super funny. I was kinda wowed.  Those commercial’s actually turned out to be the most watched spots in the country that year.   We really had fun doing those.   And we shot like two commercials in like one day.   I am so proud of those, cause those gave me  a ton of exposure, and they helped fill more movie theater’s for me than anything I’ve done.

I’m a huge fan of your film, DEAD HEAT.   Are you aware of just how much of a cult film that’s become?

Oh my god! Thanks!  Listen, when we shot that film…First off, Treat Williams, amazing.  Treat and I thought we were making a comedy, a parody of bad sci-fi films.   And we were excited, cause it was just so cool to work with Vincent Price.   Ultimately, just like the character in the film died, and came back to life, in that sense the film tanked.  So I really didn’t see it’s impact until I was over doing something in Japan, and I’ve got all these fans coming up to me, and they just won’t stop talking about DEAD HEAT. Forget about it!  They knew the film inside and out.  Then, I experienced more of that when I did this thing down in Mexico, and then Canada as well.  It may be a bigger film in Canada than it is here in the United States.  Canada loves DEAD HEAT, but even more, they love that episode of STAR TREK I did.  So you never know who’s watching this stuff.

Working with Vincent Price, was he a giving actor to work with?

Just a sweet-heart.  He’s the master of Sci-Fi and of the theater.  I didn’t get to spend too much time with him actually, but I was in my glory in his presence.   When I was a kid, I saw THE FLY and THE TINGLER in the theater. And THE TINGLER, it scared me when I was a kid.  So I was really thinking about that, and I was totally in my glory working with Vincent Price.  Vincent Price was THE guy.

How did the production of the film go for you?

Well, I was in a different frame of mind in those days. The late 80′s.  I was really into working out, the bodybuilding thing. I got interested in that, cause of my cancer.  I just didn’t really care.  I was having fun. I had my motorcycle. I was working out, getting bigger, having fun with Treat Williams.   The shoot went completely on schedule. I was outta my mind some, just having fun.   I didn’t realize what I was doing then, or the impact the film would have now.   I’d just go workout, hop on my motorcycle, then go onto the set, and shoot up monsters.

So were you disappointed when you get didn’t get nominated for an Academy Award for your performance in SIDEKICKS?

laughing…I was so proud to be working with Chuck Norris.  To be trained by Chuck Norris, man, c’mon.  I’d proud of that film.  It’s a film that my kids can watch.   It was fun. We did it down in Texas. I loved it, cause I could be bigger than life. It did pretty well at the box office too.   I was so sad, when the kid, Jonathan Brandis took his own life. He was a sweet-heart.  It was senseless and a shame.

You’ve been labeled a conservative Democrat.   How do you think Obama is doing?

I’m a Kennedy Democrat.  They call me a blue dog.   Meaning that I’m strong on people’s rights, but at the same time, if someone messes with you,  you kick their ass.  I think Kennedy understood that.  So I’m what they call a blue dog democrat.   I’m very disappointed in Obama.  It seems like someone forgot to tell him that people don’t have jobs.  Someone forgot to tell him or he’s not listening.   Things are not easy.  We need to become isolationist’s.  We need to manufacturer everything within.    Celebrities with big money are making these clothing lines in countries we can’t pronounce the names of. Why can’t those celebrities bring those manufacturing jobs to the United States. I’ll tell you what, you bring those jobs to Newark, New Jersey, or Detroit, or Little Rock, Arkansas.  You’ll see a decrease in gang’s, violence, and crime.

Turning this country around is all about jobs.   Why doesn’t Obama get this?   You can’t tell me that Obama can’t talk to someone like Steve Jobs at Apple who’s making everything in China.   Why not do something simple, like bring jobs back. Why can’t American’s manufacturer something as simple, as the case that an Ipod or Iphone comes in?  A couple years of that, this country will be back, big time.

No more cutting teacher’s pension, or police or fire fighter’s pensions’.  I mean, c’mon.  Those people are essential to community.  If the government is gonna cut someone’s pay.  Cut the pay of the guys who are counting the vote’s!  Don’t get me started on this!

Being from New Jersey, what’s the best Jersey joke you’ve ever heard?

Well, the catch phrase is (and I wrote it) What Exit?   In a nutshell, we’re a series of exits.  The road system is…and I’m being kind…not the greatest.  The phrase, ‘you can’t get there from here’, comes from New Jersey.  I do actually get insulted when I hear people or see people on television making jokes about Italians, or Italian stereotypes, or jokes about how dirty New Jersey is, and they aren’t from New Jersey.  That upsets me.  If you’re from New Jersey or Italian it’s ok though.

What are you working on now?

Avellino Productions, my production company.  We just started it.   We’re doing the pilot for NBC,  AFTER DARK WITH JOE PISCOPO. It looks great.  It’s in the spirit of the old television show ‘Playboy After Dark’.   A late night jazz comedy show.  It’s so hip, man.  We got Dan Aykroyd.  Father Guido Sarducci Don Novello.  God, what a funny cat.

Then we’re doing a new film, Joey Benefit.  Which is a comedy written and directed by Norman Steinberg.  It’s about one of those charity guys.  You know, you got a charity, I got a tuxedo.  I come early, I stay late.  You know it’s about ONE  of those guys.    It probably won’t be out until next year, we’re shooting it soon.

Then we’ve got another film we’re working on, BLOOMFIELD AVENUE.   I’ve been pushing it.  Queen Latifah is co-producing it with us.   We’re really excited about that.

We’ve got the Vitamin drink. VitaJOE.   You can check that out at http://www.vitaJOEdrink.com

And of course, check out the live show on the road, coming to a town near you.   I mean, this is all stuff I should’ve been doing 20 years ago.   I’m a slow learner.  I had to make sure my kids were OK.   Family comes first. I’m really focused right now on this stuff.  But, I’ll probably keep having kids!  I’ll probably have a few more…laughing… Maybe one at every exit…laughing

For more information on Joe Piscopo: Please visit his official website at www.joepiscopo.com