JOSEPH F. ATTANASIO

ATTANASIO--Joseph Fredric. With a warm embrace and a ready smile for all, Joseph Fredric Attanasio lived every day in fulfillment of the commandment to love others. Born in 1925, he was graduated from New York's elite Stuyvesant High School, served in the Army Air Corps as a Lieutenant during World War II, and received a bachelor's degree in administrative engineering from New York University, where he was elected president of his fraternity. He belonged to the Greatest Generation and epitomized its virtues of duty, loyalty, level-headedness, and patriotism. Working first as an engineer for defense subcontractors, supervising market research and strategic planning, Joe evolved into a serial entrepreneur in a diverse range of enterprises, most notably in lighting design for such clients as the Vivian Beaumont Theater at New York's Lincoln Center. A natural performer, he enjoyed a second career as an actor, with memorable cameos in such films as Robert Redford's Quiz Show and Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine. He sang beautifully, with a remarkable baritone range that extended to the E above high C, and a repertoire that included bel canto arias, a jukebox of forgotten tunes dating back to the 1920s, and his favorite, the Sinatra songbook. For the past decade, fans of the Milwaukee Brewers greeted each new season with a Joe Attanasio performance of the Star-Spangled Banner on Opening Day. Joe loved to make people laugh, and made friends wherever he went, with his kindness, his quick wit, and his rich collection of stories and jokes; his gift was to bring out the best in people. A loving and deeply beloved husband, father, father-in-law, and grandfather, he is survived by his devoted wife of 60 years, Connie; his sons, Mark, Paul, and Robert; his daughter, Stacey; his daughters-in-law, Debbie, Lee, and Amanda; his son-in-law, Robert Gonsalves; and his nine grandchildren: Daniel, Michael, Annabelle, John, Grace, Jane, Theo, Joseph, and James. He died on January 2, 2015, at age 89, in his home in Los Angeles, surrounded by his family. Donations can be made in memory of Joseph Attanasio to the Jonsson Cancer Center Foundation for the support of the Translational Cancer Research Laboratory or the UC Regents to support the work of Dr. Brandon Koretz.