Joseph Anthony "Joe" Gatto Jr., born June 5, 1976, is an American comedian, best known as a former member of The Tenderloins comedy troupe and for his role on the show "Impractical Jokers" (2011-2021). During his time on the show, Joe embraced the role of the Joker, eagerly accepting challenges and earning a reputation for being difficult to punish due to his shame-free demeanor. Known for his love of food, Joe was frequently seen eating on the show.
Joe Gatto's Relationship with Food
Joe's passion for food stems from his upbringing. He explained that his mother always had an open-door policy, ensuring there was enough food for anyone who wanted to stay for dinner. These memories around the table are some of his fondest. He’s not above stealing food, either. For much of the show, Joe being overweight (particularly his prominent gut) was often a point of ridicule among the other Jokers. Joe has been known for a prominent gut, and a "dad bod".
Health and Lifestyle
Overcoming Challenges and Finding Motivation
Many people struggle to maintain a healthy lifestyle, facing challenges such as finding motivation to stick to a workout routine or feeling overwhelmed by dietary choices. Emily Coffman, a former Division I athlete, understands this struggle and aims to provide a solution through her podcast. She believes there's a way to be healthy without dedicating your life to it and focuses on creating a lifestyle that works with you, helping individuals move from feeling stuck and overwhelmed to motivated and confident in living a healthy lifestyle.
Body Positivity and a Health-Centric Approach
Joe's journey, both on and off-screen, highlights the importance of finding a balance between humor, self-acceptance, and health. Embracing body positivity can be a crucial component of a health-centric approach. It is also important to framing your mind to achieve what you want.
The Importance of a Healthy Lifestyle
Prioritizing a healthy lifestyle, including regular exercise and a balanced diet, can significantly impact overall well-being and quality of life. Start Cooking Healthier, Quicker Recipes from Scratch with Private Chef Joe Gatto.
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The Impact of Personal Loss
Joe's father died in 1995 from pancreatic cancer due to alcohol poisoning. Joe is a teetotaler as a result. According to the episode "Fraudway", his parents had passed away by 2012. His father died of alcoholism in 1995, prompting Joe not to drink alcohol.
Joe Gatto's Punishments and Challenges on "Impractical Jokers"
Throughout his time on "Impractical Jokers," Joe participated in various challenges and punishments, often involving physical activity or dietary restrictions. These included:
- Supercuts: A challenge where all four Jokers had to give each other funny haircuts.
- Strip High Five: Joe and Murr had to strip naked unless they got a stranger passing by to give them a high five, and if they didn't get a high five, they had to remove a piece of clothing.
- The Love Expert: Joe posed as a relationship expert at an event.
- The Alliance: Sal, Murr, and Joe all had to jump off a cliff unless they could answer questions about Q's life.
- The Great Escape: Joe had to perform as a magician and escape a tank of water, chained in a straitjacket.
- Quantum Mock-anics: Joe posed as a science expert at a panel.
- Uncool and the Gang: Joe lost and had to use flash cards with wacky questions and ask them to a group of bikers. The questions were written by the other guys and many refer to the bikers as a "gang", much to their anger. Eventually, his last question is they would give him a wedgie and two of the bikers give him a wedgie.
- Pseudo-Sumo: Joe's punishment involved wearing a baby costume and fighting the 2009 US Champion sumo wrestler, Ulambayar Byambajav (referred to as Byamba).
- Laundry Day: Joe was forced to be the one-man pep rally squad, shooting t-shirts from a shirt cannon at the Philadelphia Soul arena football game.
- Wrapper's Delight: After going on a treasure hunt, Joe came home to find everything wrapped in wrapping paper, with embarrassing photos of him replacing all his pictures.
- Training Day: Joe, Murr, and Sal all had to go through a fire academy.
- Rubbed The Wrong Way: Joe portrayed a genie in a play, but the other Jokers controlled the harness attached to him.
- Bull Shiatsu: Joe was inside a massage chair and had to give massages to people.
- Washed Up: Joe was forced to wash other people's cars without their permission.
- Out of Left Field: Joe, being the most out of shape between the quartet, got humiliated at MLB Studios when he was forced to interrupt the televised performances of Carlos Pena and Mark DeRosa, by doing exercises at home plate, with Sal's father as his coach. He couldn’t stop until he reached 100 push-ups.
- Full Mental Jacket: Joe went to a fashion show, where he took the jackets of people to hang up.
- The Paternity Test: Joe was in a focus group about how parents treat their kids with said kids in the room with them with Joe's "child actor"-actually Joe's real daughter Milana playing along.
These challenges, while comedic, often highlighted the importance of physical fitness and healthy eating habits.
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