| Net Worth | $800,000 |
|---|---|
| Full Name | José Antonio Díaz |
| A.K.A | Coco, Joey Karate, Uncle Joey |
| Date of Birth/Age | February 19, 1963 (age 56) |
| Height | 5’10’’ |
| Source of wealth | Comedian, actor, podcaster |
| Country of origin | Cuba |
| State/City of origin | Havana |
| Last Updated | 2019 |
Net Worth
Joey Diaz’s net worth is $800,000.
How Much Does Joey Diaz Make a Year?
Joey Diaz is a very talented comedian and character actor. He has not yet gotten a starring role in a show, so the money he makes varies depending on the gigs that he books. Usually, Joey makes about $200,000 each year.
How does Joey Diaz make his money?
Joey makes most of his money by performing as a comedian or by working as an actor.
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Introduction
Joey Diaz is a comedian and television and film star who is known for his quick wit and adaptability to fit into any role. He had a rough upbringing but used it as motivation to become a huge success. He overcame his mother’s addiction to gambling and his own addiction to cocaine to become a big star. Joey Diaz is well-known in the comedy world as a great talent.
Early Life
Joey Diaz was born in Havana, Cuba on February 19th, 1963. His father died when Joey was just three years old. When he was seven years old, his family moved to North Bergen, New Jersey. He was raised Catholic.
While Joey was going to McKinley School, his mother ran a bar and a numbers game. Joey went to North Bergen High School, graduating in 1982.
He won awards for performing arts from the school, which is pretty incredible considering at age 16, he found his mother dead on the bathroom floor of their home.
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He was taken in by a number of families in the area, but it was a traumatic time for him, so he began taking drugs and got into crime.
To get a fresh start, he moved out of New Jersey to attend college in Colorado to study economics at the University of Colorado at Boulder. He later called this the worst time of his life, saying that it was a time where he was heavily addicted to cocaine.
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Personal Life
Joey moved to Colorado in 1982 for college. He was set to study engineering at the University of Colorado. However, two years after settling in Colorado, he was homesick and went back home to New Jersey for his birthday.
He ended up staying for eighteen months. Joey calls this the worst eighteen months of his life and also one of the things he regrets doing the most because he started heavily doing cocaine while back home.
In 1985, he left New Jersey, ready to start on a new chapter of life. He went back to school in Colorado. However, he quickly decided that schooling wasn’t for him. He started working as a roofer.
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Sadly, during this time he was arrested for kidnapping and aggravated robbery. However, this was when he realized his talent as a comedian. Joey would perform stand-up routines for his fellow inmates. This eventually led him to perform when he was let out.
Joey’s been married twice. He and his first wife had a daughter together but when they divorced in 1991, his relationship with both his ex-wife and his daughter ended. It was very sad.
His cocaine usage ruined a lot of relationships. In 2007, he stopped using cocaine altogether after one of his cats accidentally ate some of the drugs in his home and died. Since then, his relationships have improved.
In 2009, he married his second wife, named Terrie Clark. They also have one daughter.
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Career
Joey saw working in comedy as a “last resort.” He didn’t think he’d make any money. In 1988, he signed up to be a part of a $37 course on stand-up comedy which helped him develop his first routine. Prior to this, he was working as a bouncer at a bar called Wit’s End.
In 1991, Joey performed for the first time ever at the Comedy Works in Denver. He was an opener for a show put on by Matt Woods.
After developing his act, he entered Beck’s Amateur Comedy Competition and won. He won a number of other competitions and ended up having some beef with the manager of Comedy Works, Wende Curtis.
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In 1995, Joey moved to California with a goal of becoming so successful his daughter would be proud. In 1998, Joey was selected to star in a CBS comedy show after an agent saw him perform live.
The show never made it to air, but it got Joey in front of enough television and film executives to kick start his career. He was featured on shows like, “Law & Order,” “My Name is Earl,” and “The Sopranos.”
He also was in many films including “Spiderman 2,” “Taxi” and “The Longest Yard.”
In 2009, Joey co-hosted a podcast series with Felicia Michaels called “Beauty and da Beast.”
After that ended, he started his own podcast in 2012 called “The Church of What’s Happening Now.”
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Interesting Facts
- Joey’s mother ran a successful numbers game, so Joey always considered becoming a bookie. He was dissuaded from this career by some friends who told him that he needed to make an honest living.
- Joey planned on studying economics at the University of Colorado at Boulder, but his college career was cut short thanks to drug use.
- He was put in prison for kidnapping and aggravated robbery while living in Colorado. In prison, he found out he was funny and started doing stand-up routines for the other inmates. It was the start of his career in comedy.
- Frequent guest in Joe Rogan Expirience.
Highlights
- Joey never intended to be a comedian, but due to a quick prison stint, he found his talent.
- He had a very rough upbringing, missing both of his parents.
- Joey’s first performance was at the Comedy Works in Denver. He opened for comedian Matt Woods.
- Joey used his damaged relationship with his daughter and his first wife as motivation to have a successful career in Los Angeles. He moved there in 1995 with a goal of making his daughter proud.
- Joey has appeared in hundreds of television shows and films. He’s never had a starring role but is well-known.
- Joey is in talks with Animal Planet to create a television show surrounding his cat.
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Favorite Quotes from Joey Diaz
“Hey, I’m not rich, but I’m lucky. I get to do what I want to do. That’s not an easy thing to do in this country.”
“If I see an audition for a show or a movie, I’ll send a tape in. I attack it. The whole time, I’m booking a comedy, so no matter what, I always got that coming in. I’m always working on my craft.”
“I’m Hispanic. I’m a Catholic. I believe in God. I believe in karma.”
“I lived in my car in Hollywood for a year, and then it got towed. My… apartment got towed. How… does that happen?”
“I’m a stand-up comic, but I also have ideas, and I want to get them out. People think getting in front of the mic is the only way to work out. You’ve got to try different situations.”
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Tips for success from Joey Diaz
1. Don’t put yourself in a box. Just because you were born a certain way or work a certain job doesn’t mean that you can only do whatever people that are like you do. You have unlimited talent, just tap into it and believe in yourself.
2. Know that some people got where they are just from dumb luck. Don’t compare. Comparison is the thief of joy.
3. Never stress about money, whether you have it or whether you’re struggling day to day. Be happy with where you’re at. There will always be someone who has more than you.
4. When you want something, go after it with everything inside of you. Fight for what you want. No one can keep you from your dreams but you.
