Name:
Joe Piscopo, 58

How We Were First Introduced:
Joe was introduced to the world on the sketch variety series, ‘Madhouse Brigade.’ He was then hired to replace the original cast of ‘Saturday Night Live’ in 1980, where he quickly rose to fame as a series favorite.

Claim To Fame:
Joe had the difficult task of starting out on SNL after most of the original cast had left. As a result, many of the players on his season were critically panned, and ultimately ended up getting axed – with the exception of himself and co-star Eddie Murphy.

After he left SNL, Joe re-emerged in the public eye sporting a very buff body, leading to rumors of steroid use. He later explained that his new body had to do with a cancer scare, which had led him to take up exercise and watch his health. “I never did steroids. Never would even attempt it,” he said in a 1996 interview. “Just the principle alone, I don’t do drugs. I don’t believe in it. And you know what we did. I took that whole concept from working out, because it was a tough time in my life. I pulled myself out of the limelight just a little bit…”

Joe’s Wise Guys:
Joe impersonated Frank Sinatra on SNL, and he did it so well that Sinatra himself jokingly referred to Joe as ‘The Vice-Chairman of the Board.’ Joe also impersonated David Letterman and portrayed The Sports Guy on the original incarnation of ‘Weekend Update.’

Personal Life:
Joe lives in New Jersey, and has four children – Joey, Alexandra, Michael and Olivia.

Reason Left SNL:
Joe has talked about the difficulty of having had to “fight” for your skits to get on the air on the show. “It was exhausting, so at the end of my four year run there, Eddie [Murphy] was leaving, and Eddie and I, we had such a nice camaraderie there, I just really had it and I was ready to move on,” he has said. “I’m a life guy. I don’t really think career. I think more of my life and it was just something that had to be done at the time.”

Projects Since:
His Sports Guy character was so likable that NBC gave him a job on the popular ‘Sportsworld.’  Since then he’s also appeared in several films, namely ‘Wise Guys’ with Danny DeVito and ‘Johnny Dangerously.’ In 1996, he tackled Broadway as DJ Vince Fontaine in ‘Grease!’

Where Did Joe Go?
Joe has continue to take his comedy show on the road, where he also includes a Big Band tribute to Frank Sinatra. His upcoming films, ‘Joey Benefit,’ and ‘Bloomfield Avenue’ are scheduled for upcoming release. “I just so dig it,” he told a reporter this month about his comedy career. “I gotta love what I do.”

Accidental Comedy:
Joe has said he accidentally got sidetracked into comedy, seeing the industry as a way to break into acting. “I was never like a Jerry Seinfeld standup comic. I have such a high regard for those guys because it’s a hardest thing to do,” he said in 1996. “I’m more a performer. I would do characters on stage. From The Improvisation in New York that’s how I started doing television commercials and getting little acting pieces.” NBC had signed him up as a network contract player for “any work that came up,” he said, and that’s how he nabbed the biggest break in his career – when SNL had an opening for a comedian and gave him a ring.

More on These Topics: Joe Piscopo | Saturday Night Live | SNL