Joseph Pilato

Joseph Pilato (born March 16, 1949) is an American film and voice actor. He is perhaps best known for his performance as Captain Rhodes in the 1985 film Day of the Dead.

Early life
He was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1949 to an Italian-American family. His father was a professional trombonist with the Les Brown Orchestra. Joseph was enrolled into Catholic school and became an altar boy, where his talent for acting was developed.

Personal life
He was originally planning on being a lawyer before he discovered he had a talent for acting. He is left-handed and enjoys playing golf in his spare time. Pilato plays the guitar, accordion, and taught himself the trombone. He does not own a computer. He is close friends with Dawn of the Dead stars David Emge and Ken Foree. He often attends horror conventions and loves to meet his fans, often posing for pictures and signing autographs.

Day of the Dead
In 1984, six years after the release of Dawn of the Dead, director George A. Romero, was planning a new zombie film called Day of the Dead. Pilato had appeared as a cameo in Dawn of the Dead as a police officer, which had been his first feature film role. Pilato was selected to play United States Army Captain Rhodes. He is perhaps best known for his performance, and the film, along with its predecessors, has become a classic.

Other projects
He would later land minor roles in such films as Wishmaster, Pulp Fiction, Digimon: The Movie, and Night of the Living Dead: Origins 3D.