Born Giuseppe Paolo DiMaggio in Martinez, California on November 25, 1914. Joe DiMaggio was born to Sicilian immigrants Guiseppe and Rosalie DiMaggio. His parents traveled to America in 1898. They came from the community of Isola delle Femmine off Sicily's coast. These were the waters where the DiMaggio family had been fishermen for generations.

Guiseppe wanted his sons to follow tradition and become fishermen. While Joe’s older brothers (Tom and Michael) followed in their father’s footsteps, Joe was uninterested. His disdain for the smell of dead fish (and doing anything to get out of cleaning the fishing boat) did not go over well with Guiseppe, who was known to insult Joe with words like “good for nothing.”

To get away from fishing, Joe and two of his brothers (older brother Vince and younger brother Dominic) took to the neighborhood sandlots. Joe had his first baseball experience at the age of ten, playing third base at the North Beach playground near their home.

More Info: www.joedimaggio.com