Joseph Frank Pesci (/ˈpɛʃi/ PESH-ee, Italian: [ˈpeʃʃi]; born February 9, 1943) is an American actor, comedian, and musician.

He is known for portraying tough, volatile characters in a variety of genres and for his collaborations with Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese in the films Raging Bull (1980), Goodfellas (1990), Casino (1995), and The Irishman (2019).

Pesci won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as the gangster character Tommy DeVito in Goodfellas and received two other nominations in the same category for his portrayals of Joey LaMotta and Russell Bufalino in Raging Bull and The Irishman, respectively.

His mother, Maria (Mesce), worked part time as a barber, and his father, Angelo Pesci, was a forklift truck driver for General Motors and a bartender.

He played the antagonist, crime boss Frankie "Mr. Big" LiDeo (an anagram for one of the film's producers and longtime Jackson manager Frank DiLeo,[12] with whom Pesci later acted in Goodfellas).

[13] He appeared as Leo Getz, a comedic sidekick and best friend to protagonist detectives Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) and Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) in the Lethal Weapon sequels, released in 1989, 1992 and 1998.

He made transcripts of these sessions, took the lines the actors came up with that he liked best, and put them into a revised script that the cast worked from during principal photography.

[18] Pesci received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for the role, which he accepted with one of the shortest speeches in Oscar history, saying simply, "It's my privilege.

[13][19] Pesci also co-starred in the blockbuster Home Alone in 1990, his character Harry Lime one of two bumbling burglars - along with Daniel Stern as Marv Murchins - who attempt to burgle the house of an eight-year-old played by Macaulay Culkin.

Pesci's use of "cartoon cursing", or menacing gibberish, garnered comparisons to Looney Tunes character Yosemite Sam.

In 1992, he appeared as the title character in the comedy My Cousin Vinny with Ralph Macchio, Marisa Tomei and Fred Gwynne.

Pesci hosted the sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live on October 10, 1992, while doing publicity for My Cousin Vinny.

During his monologue, in response to Sinéad O'Connor tearing a picture of Pope John Paul II on the previous broadcast in protest of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, he described how he wished to give her "such a smack".

In 1998, he released his second album and his first in 30 years, Vincent LaGuardia Gambini Sings Just for You which was named after his character from the 1992 film My Cousin Vinny.

The album spawned the single "Wise Guy", a rap number that played on the gangsta theme by making reference to Mafia gangsterism.

"Wise Guy" interpolated the 1980 hit "Rapture" by Blondie, and was co-written and produced by the hip-hop production team the Trackmasters.

[24] The lawsuit was settled out of court in 2013 for an unspecified sum,[24] and the role, after many production delays, eventually went to Pruitt Taylor Vince.

In 2017, Pesci was cast alongside Robert De Niro and Al Pacino in The Irishman, a crime film directed by Martin Scorsese.

Pesci was offered his role a reported 50 times before agreeing to take part, at first saying he did not want to do "the gangster thing again," while Scorsese tried to persuade him The Irishman would be "different.