About Joe Matarese
Part Italian New Jersey native Joe Matarese has been working the NYC and Philadelphia stand-up circuit since he was just 19. Widely known for having the audience in stitches with his set about fatherhood in a recent America’s Got Talent appearance, comedian Joe Materese was winning over crowds a long time before that. Making his debut on The Late Show with David Letterman back in 2007, 40-something dad Joe Matarese has made numerous performances at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, and performs regularly at Stand Up NY, Caroline’s on Broadway, and The Stand NYC.
His live comedy talents also translate incredibly well on screen. In 2008, Joe Materese landed his own half hour Comedy Central Presents special where he shared the funny side to his attention deficit disorder, anger management problems and the perils of being married to a psychologist. Other on-screen appearances include the web series Fixing Joe, The Very Funny Show, Z Rock, Double Platinum, and playing a cop on Show In The Hallway. Joe Matarese also featured in Alone Up There, a feature-length documentary that “explores the contemporary culture of stand-up comedy with interviews with some of today’s best stand up comedians.” And as if the live comedy and TV appearances weren’t enough, fans of the Italian-Americn comic can now enjoy Joe Matarese bringing his real life problems to listeners everywhere in his weekly podcast, Life of Joe.
WATCH JOE MATARESE: THE POSTER’S WRONG
Joe Matarese is live in Philadelphia in his second 1 Hour Comedy Special called The Poster’s Wrong. He’s a very neurotic guy and if you saw Rocky 500 times like Joe did you will truly appreciate why this special is called the Poster’s Wrong. Sit back and enjoy him in his element at Helium Comedy Club in Philadelphia.
Reviews and Awards
‘Always gets the big laughs’
TheLaughButton.com
‘Joe’s got the heart of Rocky with the edge of Tony Soprano and he imitates them both spot on. But impressions are only a small part of Joe’s show. Hysterical laughter is the rest’
StageBuddy.com
‘…whatever problems he had getting that next big break may well be on their way to being fixed! His jokes about getting older in his 40s and dealing with two young kids slayed with the judges and earned him a standing ovation’
TheComicsComic.com
Joe Matarese Tickets
Latest info on Joe Matrese’s gigs and live shows can be found here.
Can’t wait to see him live? Stream his full show now
Biography
Joe Matarese grew up in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, just minutes outside of Philadelphia. Speaking to the Baltimore Media blog, he talks about coming to realise that comedy was going to be a huge part of his life: “I was really into comedy as a kid. A comedy nerd, so to speak. I listened to, and recorded a lot of comedy on TV. I would memorize jokes and share them with family and friends. I used it as a child to connect with my dad. There were two things we connected on..comedy and sports.”
Hiding out in his parents’ basement listening to his favorite comedy albums (Richard Pryor, Eddie Murphy, and Steve Martin) the job of becoming a standup comedian seemed like a distant dream to a young Joe Materese. When he was 19 years old Joe Materese met a classmate at Camden County Community College in Blackwood, New Jersey who introduced him to the open mic nights in Philadelphia clubs. For two years straight, Joe Materese became dedicated to learning the craft of comedy, performing in regular open mics slots and never missing a week.
Joe Materese had ‘caught the bug’ and his relentless hard work made him a paid touring comedian within 2 years. His first on the road gig was an incredible one – opening for one of his inspirations, comedian Bill Hicks at the Cleveland Improv for a whole week. After 4 years of performing mostly in the Philadelphia comedy scene, he realised he’d have to move to NYC and tackle the big apple to really move things up a gear.
Becoming a paid regular at the NYC comedy clubs, Joe Matarese was honing his craft at a rapid pace, performing multiple times a night, 7 nights a week. His first big comedy audition was for a standup show called “Shut Up And Laugh” on MTV. One of the standout performers of the night, he booked the final spot on the show filming during Spring Break in Panama City, Florida. It was a real breakthrough in Joe Matrese’s career, with the show airing every day 3 times a day for about 2 months. The exposure soon led to Joe Matrese being selected for “The New Faces” at The Montreal Just For Laughs Festival, a development deal with VH1, Standup on MTV’s Carson Daily Show, and MTV’s Jim Breuer Show.
Making the big move to Los Angeles, Joe Materese performed on his first late-night television show, The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn on CBS. He also received a 6 figure development deal with NBC and Will Smith’s Production Company, Overbrook Entertainment, for Joe to star in his own network sitcom. Unfortunately his show idea called “The B Side” was later dropped. After a tough decision to focus on family, Joe Matarese eventually moved back east to NYC, buying an apartment there with the money he had left over from the NBC deal. Despite his frustrations with that, Joe Matrese admits it was possibly the best move he ever made – his new NYC neighbour and soon to be close friend was comedian Artie Lange who started bringing Joe all over the country to open for him in amazing venues including the famous Beacon Theater in NYC, and Carnegie Hall. Comedian Joe Materese was soon invited as a guest onto The Howard Stern Show and was booked to do standup for the 2nd time at The Montreal Just For Laughs Festival, but now in “The Masters” category. It wasn’t long before Joe Matrese was also asked to record his 1/2 hour special on Comedy Central. Now with numerous TV appearances under his belt, Joe Matrese also completed his other big lifetime ambition – meeting and marrying his Psychologist wife, Stephanie and becoming a dad. Both have provided him with much satisfaction (as well as endless comedy material of course!)
Get More Joe Matarese
Want more of Joe Matarese? You’re in luck – his full stand-up comedy special is available to watch on NextUp – a digital comedy club where you can stream instantly over 120 comedy specials from some of the exciting names in comedy. Oh, and there’s a 7 day free trial.