Shocking Revelation: The View’ Co-Host Joy Behar Opens Up About Family Murder Secret…..Read More

The View co-host Joy Behar has opened up about the origins of her name, explaining how she was named after her Italian grandmother who once threatened to murder her own children.

Speaking on the talk show’s Behind The Table podcast, Behar told The View producer Brian Teta that her namesake is her paternal grandma, who lived in Turin, Italy. “I was born Josephine, named after my father’s mother, who was a little wacky, I understand,” Behar said.

“My grandfather decided to come to Brooklyn to visit his brother who was here,” she added. “My grandfather didn’t go back for several months. So, my grandmother, Josephine, sent him — I don’t know, by pigeon or something — a note, saying, ‘If you don’t come back, I’m going to kill myself and the children.’ Of which, there were three.”

She continued, “That is who I am named after.”

The comedian also noted how her grandfather on her mother’s side suggested that she go by “Joy,” which he explained as “La Gioia,” meaning “The Joy” in Italian.

Behar was born Josephine Victoria Occhiuto in 1942 in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to a family of Italian descent. Her mother, Rose (née Carbone), was a seamstress, and her father, Gino Occhiuto, was a truck driver for Coca-Cola.

Earlier this year, Behar visited Italy and opened up about the experience on Behind The Table. “The trip was a semi-disappointment because the weather was so bad,” she shared, per Closer. “I was freezing in Verona… freezing in Bologna… all over the whole damn country.”

While there, Behar visited Rachael Ray at her Tuscany villa. “She has a beautiful villa. Her view is the most magnificent thing. Just all of Tuscany is so beautiful. She cooked all day. She had all the company there. We laughed. We cried. She’s a lovely girl.”

Another part of her disappointment was that nobody recognized her during the trip. “Nobody recognized me in Italy,” Behar quipped. “The only thing that came close was in Venice, two women… I overheard them say, ‘Is that her?’ and the other said, ‘No, I don’t think so.’”