SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Nov. 28, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — Acclaimed comedian, actor and producer Joe Gatto — known for the hit television shows “Impractical Jokers” and “The Misery Index” — is bringing his stand-up solo show to Utah for one night only next month.
“Joe Gatto’s Night of Comedy” will make a tour stop at Kingsbury Hall at the University of Utah on Saturday, Dec. 16 at 7 p.m. Tickets are available here. Gatto announced he was extending his tour back in October and new dates include performances at The Met Philadelphia and The Beacon Theatre in New York City in January. Following the U.S. tour, the Tenderloins Comedy Troupe co-founding member is set for a run of dates in Australia and New Zealand in February.
Gatto has toured with the “Impractical Jokers” live comedy show to sold-out crowds across the world, including legendary venues such as Madison Square Garden in New York and the O2 Arena in London. He announced his departure from the improvisational, hidden-camera reality show series on New Year’s Eve 2021, after 10 years. He currently co-hosts the comedy podcast “Two Cool Moms,” available here, where he and his co-host Steve Byrne dispense sage advice to fans who write in with their dilemmas. The podcast’s name derives from the two describing their own matriarchs as: “strong, opinionated mothers who gave great advice.”
The Staten Island-born comedian is also passionate about supporting anti-bullying organizations and animal rescue initiatives. Gatto’s Long Island, NY-based 501(c)3 non-profit Gatto Pups and Friends advocates for the “Adopt, Don’t Shop” movement and facilitates adoptions for mainly senior and disabled pups. In 2020, he published the book: “The Dogfather: My Love for Dogs, Dessert and Growing Up Italian,” which mainly focuses on stories about Gatto’s dogs, him growing up in an Italian-American household, and his love for Italian food. His pups have names including Cannoli, Biscotti, Spumoni, Napoleon, Cotta, Struffoli, Tortoni, Fettuccine, Alfredo, Gnocchi, Tiramisu, Burrata, Gelato, Calzone and Nutella. Gatto says he “lives his life by a code of pastry and family, loving his wife, two children and cannoli.”
We spoke to Gatto by phone when he was on a Thanksgiving break from his tour, which resumes Thursday in Rochester, New York. We asked him first about his philanthropic work.
“So we started our non-profit last year, and now we’re a full animal rescue here in New York,” he said. “We have nine dogs that are ours; it’s called Gatto Pups and Friends, so the nine pups are ‘Gatto Pups,’ and the ‘And Friends’ ranges anywhere from 20 to 25, because they’re all senior dogs; we do mostly senior and unwanted dogs, and we adopt them out. We just adopted out our 56th dog. We’re very excited about it; it’s a pretty cool thing to be able to be part of this community and actually do some good, and so instead of just collecting all these old dogs ourselves, we’re actually trying to do some good and have a bigger impact.”
Gatto explained that the dogs come from kill shelters, from owner surrenders or from different organizations that the non-profit has worked with.
We also asked him if every one of the dogs has an Italian name.
“We name them all after Italian foods,” he said. “Pastries, pasta dishes, because that’s on brand, you know? So now we’ve dipped into coffees a little bit; we have a Hazelnut, we have an Espresso, we have a Macchiato, then the pastas as well, Pappardelle, Ravioli, we have our brother and sister Fettuccine Alfredo, we’ve got ’em all.”
We asked Gatto why giving back is important to him.
“I was raised with very generous parents,” he said. “You know, I grew up around people who cared and gave and I think they just had an impact on my psyche and the way that I approach life. And then when I came into a position to be able to actually have some impact, I started doing work with anti-bullying groups because I was bullied a little bit when I was younger, so I know about that. How that makes you feel lonely and you know, the dogs came into our lives probably about nine years ago when we bought our first one. We saw what the puppy mill situation was, educated ourselves, and figured out that there are so many dogs that need homes, and we started out rescuing and we had a wonderful time with that. And it’s just a wonderful community of people that really care about these animals. So we fell into that, and I just always know I’ve been very fortunate. And I can have an impact, a real impact. So I tried to use my voice to help with things I care about, and that’s where we went.”
Gatto also described his current tour.
“It’s my stand-up comedy tour,” he said. “I’ve been touring about a year-and-a-half now. It’s been an amazing ride, to make people laugh. I had to make a couple of life adjustments a couple of years ago and I still knew that I wanted to be there to help people with tough times; to laugh, and also help myself, doing what I love. I figured I’d give stand-up comedy a try, and I took to it. I’ve been performing my whole life; it’s an interesting format and challenge, but it’s been phenomenal. I really enjoy being part of it and doing it, so it’s been really cool to actually have people come out, laugh together, forget about all the crazy stuff in life.”
We asked him after all the TV and podcast work he’s done whether it’s been invigorating to be back in front of live audience.
“It’s fun; to be there and see the people and watch them laugh and smile; at the Meet and Greets after to hear their stories about how I’ve been there for them during their tough times,” he said. “It’s not lost on me the impact that I can have; just to be there for people, it’s been really an awesome by-product of this really fun life to be able to get paid to be silly and and make people laugh.”
Gatto explained that the tour will run until spring then he’ll retire the current material and decide if he’ll create a new show with different material.
“We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it, but the world’s a big place,” he said. “I’ve gone to a bunch of different cities all over the country, to Canada and I’m actually going to Australia in February. So I’ve been fortunate to have been to a lot of places in the last year; I’ve just been going where the people have been coming out. I’ve toured to all 50 states; I made that milestone for myself last year and I ended up doing it, which is great. And then I’ve done Canada, Australia; I will have done Australia. Hopefully I will get back to the U.K. at some point. We’ve toured there as a group before; it’s just really fun; great fan base.”
We also asked Gatto what some of his goals are for 2024.
“So I got into this business because of a love of film; I’m an aspiring filmmaker and I always say I’ll do that when I grow up,” he said. “So
write and direct a movie is really what I’m trying to get done this year, in 2024. I’ll also have a kids’ book coming out which I’m excited about as well, based on a story with my son. I’m doing that with Penguin publishing, so that’s really fun. And then just spreading more joy; bring the dog work to the next level as well. That’s a lot of work with the fundraising efforts. To be able to have more impact in 2024, I think that would be a phenomenal thing.”
We also asked him what Thanksgiving looks like in the Gatto household.
“Well, we’re vegetarians so we do our Tofurkey,” he said. “We do stuffed mushrooms and mashed potatoes, I’ve got to have my skoopski potatoes [an “Impractical Jokers” sketch that Gatto is known for.] Yeah, Thanksgiving’s all about family and relaxing and I’m excited about that.”
For more information about the current tour and Gatto’s philanthropic undertakings, click here.
