Joseph Gannascoli

Joseph R. Gannascoli (born February 15, 1959) is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Vito Spatafore on the HBO series ''The Sopranos''. Prior to acting, Gannascoli was a professional chef.

Early life

Gannascoli was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York."Soprano’s Cast Member in Town to Promote Cigar Line and Chat About Film and Food"
Chicago Press Release Services, May 11, 2010 In the 1980s, he attended St. John's University for two years, majoring in communications. He began his cooking career at Manhattan Market in 1981, before leaving to work at Commander's Palace in New Orleans, and then at various restaurants around the country.

Career

Gannascoli learned culinary art and opened a restaurant, Soup As Art Restaurant in Brooklyn. He has worked in New Orleans, Los Angeles and New York, though he dabbled in acting at the time.

Acting career

Gannascoli received his "big break" in acting from Benicio del Toro, whom he met on the set on '' Money for Nothing''. After appearing in ''Ed Wood'', Del Toro later cast Gannascoli in his directorial debut, ''Submission''. He also introduced him to Sheila Jaffe and Georgianne Walken, who did casting work for the HBO TV series ''The Sopranos''.

Gannascoli appeared in films including ''Mickey Blue Eyes'' and television shows including ''Law and Order'' before appearing on ''The Sopranos'' as a pastry shop patron named "Gino" in the season one episode "The Legend of Tennessee Moltisanti". He later secured a recurring role as the nephew of Richie Aprile, Vito Spatafore, in the season two episode "The Happy Wanderer playing identical twins Patsy and Phillip "Philly Spoons" Parisi and Saundra Santiago playing identical twins Jeannie and Joannie Cusamano, it was one of the three times that the show used a single actor for separate roles. Prior to the start of Season 6, Gannascoli was promoted to series regular. Gannascoli brought the idea to the writers of making his character gay from a true story of the Gambino crime family, in a book called ''Murder Machine''.

Gannascoli later appeared in other films including '' Men in Black III''. He stars in the 2015 movie ''An Act of War''.

In 2019, he appeared on an episode of the cannabis-themed competition cooking show, ''Bong Appétit: Cook Off.'' He appeared with Vincent Pastore on ''Gordon Ramsay's 24 Hours to Hell and Back'' on January 21, 2020.

Gannascoli is set to star in the pilot episode of "Bring on the Dancing Horses" with Kate Bosworth.

Novel

In January 2006, Gannascoli published a crime novel called ''A Meal to Die For: A Culinary Novel of Crime''.''A Meal to Die For: A Culinary Novel of Crime''
Amazon.com, accessed June 7, 2011.

Filmography

References

External links

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Joe Gannascoli In-Depth Profile at AventuraUSA.comJoe Gannascoli Interview on World Talk LIVE!

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gannascoli, Joseph R.
1959 births
20th-century American male actors
21st-century American male actors
American male film actors
American male television actors
Male actors from New York City
People from Brooklyn
American people of Italian descent
Living people
Participants in American reality television series