Happy 80th Birthday, Joe Pesci! (Top 5 Pesci Performances)

Happy Birthday, Joe Pesci, you marvelous actor you!   The cinema legend was born on this day in 1943 in Newark, New  Jersey and was raised in Belleville (where he graduated Belleville High School).

Pesci has certainly had an incredible career.   His work with Martin Scorcese alone (in four phenomenal films) made him an icon (his portrayal of gangster Tommy DeVito in Goodfellas earned him the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor).

And even though Pesci is an Oscar-winner for playing a killer-mobster...he's also done some out-there things as well.   He's acted in the Christmas classics Home Alone and Home Alone 2...he appeared in the Michael Jackson movie Moonwalker...and was comedic relief Leo Getz in three Lethal Weapon movies.

So, we're ranking the Top 5 Joe Pesci Performances of all time!   So many to choose from...so this list is gonna be hard!   Enjoy the list (and accompanying video clips) below!   And happy birthday, Joe Pesci!

- East Side Dave

"It's a mystery wrapped in a riddle inside an enigma!"   Classic line delivered by Joe Pesci in this high-energy performance that added to the paranoia of Oliver Stone's conspiracy masterpiece.

In Pesci's first collaboration with Scorcese, he played boxer Jake LaMotta's brother Joey and was amazing.   And look who he beats up in this scene...Billy Bats anyone?

Hey, listen...at first...it might seem strange to include a family-friendly movie like this.   But Home Alone has become a Christmas classic.   And Pesci's performance as Harry is priceless.

Pesci is simply electric in another mob masterpiece by Martin Scorcese.

Pesci deservedly won the Oscar for this stunning performance that made him one of Hollywood's greatest.