Ahhhh Joe Spinell - one of the greatest character actors ever. Period.“Joseph J. Spagnuolo was born on October 28, 1936 in Manhattan, New York City at his family’s apartment on 2nd Avenue. Spinell was a tough guy on and off screen all his life. At age 12, he first acted professional when he appeared as a extra in the play Hello, Dolly. During his teen years, while still in high school, he acted in various plays on the New York stage, on and off Broadway, eventually earning a place in Joe Papp’s Shakespeare Festival Theater. In 1960, he parlayed his stage work into a performing contract for MGM where it was suggested that he change his name to Joe Spinell to make his name easier to pronounce. For nine years, Spinell worked with the group, which was also known as the Theater of the Forgotten, which also put on plays in prisons for the inmates. His minimal salary for his stage work forced him to hold down other jobs to make ends meet. Those jobs included working as a taxi driver, a post office clerk, and a liquor store clerk during Christmas holidays.”
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