alias birth_place birth_date yearsactive article_title birth_name occupation alma_mater
joseph grifasi buffalo , new york , usa 14 june 1944 1977 -- present joe grifasi
 joseph g. grifasi actor canisius college yale school of drama
joe grifasi

joseph g. `` joe '' grifasi -lrb- born june 14 , 1944 -rrb- is an american character actor of film , stage and television .
grifasi was born in buffalo , new york , the son of patricia -lrb- née gaglione -rrb- and joseph j. grifasi , a skilled laborer .
grifasi graduated from bishop fallon high school , a now defunct catholic high school in buffalo .
he played football and acted in many of the school 's plays .
grifasi briefly attended canisius college in buffalo before joining the united states army .
he went on to study at the yale school of drama .
while at the yale school of drama , he met his future wife , the jazz soprano saxophonist jane ira bloom .
grifasi has played two separate members of the baseball hall of fame who played for the new york yankees .
in `` 61 * '' , set in 1961 , he played phil rizzuto ; in `` the bronx is burning '' , set in 1977 , he played yogi berra .
paul borghese played berra in `` 61 * '' , while actual 1977 broadcast recordings of rizzuto were used in `` the bronx is burning '' .
