What is Joe Gatto's Net Worth and Salary?
Joe Gatto is an American comedian, producer, and writer who has a net worth of $7 million. Joe Gatto is best known as a former member of the comedy troupe the Tenderloins. With the other members of the group – old high school friends Sal Vulcano, Brian Quinn, and James Murray – he starred on the TruTV hidden camera comedy reality series "Impractical Jokers" from 2011 to 2021. Gatto also starred with his fellow Tenderloins on the TBS comedy game show "The Misery Index."
Early Life and Education
Joe Gatto Jr. was born on June 5, 1976 in the Staten Island borough of New York City. He is of Italian descent. Gatto was educated at Monsignor Farrell High School, a boys' Catholic school. It was there that he met his friends and collaborators Sal Vulcano, James Murray, and Brian Quinn, with whom he performed in the school's improvisation club. For his higher education, Gatto went to LIU Post in Brookville, New York, from which he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting.
(Photo by Mark Sagliocco/Getty Images)
The Tenderloins
After years of being apart at different colleges, Gatto, Murray, and Vulcano reunited and began practicing improv comedy at Gatto's house. This led to the formation of the comedy troupe the Tenderloins in the late 1990s. With a fourth member, Mike Boccio, the group performed live improv and sketch comedy. The four members later added Gideon Horowitz. The Tenderloins achieved great success with their live shows, and eventually decided to venture into filmed comedy sketches. After Boccio and Horowitz left the group, Brian Quinn stepped in to become the fourth member. The Tenderloins went on to produce sketches for YouTube, Myspace, and Metacafe, earning millions of views in the process. In 2007, the group performed a sketch on the NBC reality competition program "It's Your Show," and ultimately won the $100,000 grand prize.
In late 2011, the members of the Tenderloins launched the hidden camera comedy reality television show "Impractical Jokers" on TruTV. The show features the members, also known as "jokers," as they challenge each other to a series of competitive games and dares in which they usually end up embarrassing themselves in public. At the end of a typical episode, the joker who has lost the most challenges is given a particularly humiliating form of punishment. "Impractical Jokers" was a huge hit upon release, becoming the most popular series on TruTV. It spawned "Impractical Jokers: The Movie," which came out in early 2020. The Tenderloins also starred on the TBS comedy game show "The Misery Index," based on the card game "Shit Happens" and hosted by Jameela Jamil. The show ran for three seasons through early 2021. At the end of that year, Gatto left the Tenderloins to focus on his personal life.
Getty Images
Podcasts
With the Tenderloins, Gatto co-hosted "The Tenderloins Podcast," which began in 2012. A decade later, he began co-hosting the weekly podcast "Two Cool Moms" with fellow comedian and actor Steve Byrne. The name of the podcast refers to the hosts' mothers, whom they have described as being strong and opinionated and giving sage advice. Following from this, the podcast features Gatto and Byrne dispensing advice to strangers who are facing various problems. To address a problem, the duo takes a three-prong approach of discussing, deliberating, and delivering motherly advice.
Book
Beyond his screen and podcast appearances, Gatto authored the book "The Dogfather: My Love for Dogs, Dessert and Growing Up Italian." Published in 2020, it focuses on stories about Gatto's 14 dogs and his Italian-American upbringing, and how his love of Italian food inspired him to name his pooches after such national food staples as cannoli, fettuccine, tiramisu, and gelato.
Personal Life
In 2013, Gatto married Bessy Haggar. They had a daughter named Milana and a son named Remington before separating in 2021.
Gatto is a teetotaler, as was brought up numerous times over the years on "Impractical Jokers." He is also a Kentucky Colonel.
