Joe DiMaggio.

Giuseppe Paolo DiMaggio

Born 25 Nov 1914 Martinez, United States

Died 8 Mar 1999 Hollywood, United States

Citizenship United States

Would Be 111 yr If Living

13 min read

Reading time

2,439

Words

Oct 2, 2026

Published

Awards

TL;DR

Joe DiMaggio hit safely in 56 consecutive games in 1941, a record many believe will never be broken. He won three Most Valuable Player awards and led the New York Yankees to nine World Series titles in 13 seasons. DiMaggio married Marilyn Monroe in 1954 and was named the greatest living baseball player in a 1969 poll.

Identity & family.

KIN · 4

Names, aliases, and relatives of Joe DiMaggio — birth name, kin, and personal ties.

Birth Name Giuseppe Paolo DiMaggio

Nicknames Joe D, Joltin' Joe, The Yankee Clipper

Aliases the Yankee Clipper

Spouses: Marilyn Monroe Dorothy Arnold
Siblings: Dom DiMaggio Vince DiMaggio

At a glance.

STATS

Joe DiMaggio by the numbers — life, work, and family.

84 Years lived

5 Awards

2 Marriages

Who was Joe DiMaggio?

BIOGRAPHY

Joe DiMaggio — early life, career, personal life, and legacy.

Early life

Giuseppe Paolo DiMaggio was born on November 25, 1914, in Martinez, California, to Italian immigrants Giuseppe and Rosalia DiMaggio. He was the eighth child, and his mother named him Giuseppe hoping he would be her last. His father, a fisherman, often dismissed Joe’s passion for baseball as laziness. DiMaggio and his siblings learned English only after starting school; his own proficiency in math made his mother hope he would become a bookkeeper. At Galileo Academy of Science and Technology, he began to develop his baseball skills.

Career

DiMaggio debuted with the New York Yankees in 1936 and immediately won the World Series, the first of four straight championships. In 1941, he achieved his most famous feat: a 56-game hitting streak from May 15 to July 17, batting .408 with 15 home runs and 55 RBIs. That year, he beat Ted Williams for the MVP award, even though Williams hit .406. DiMaggio won MVP again in 1939 and 1947, and was an All-Star every season he played. During World War II, he served in the U.S. Army from 1943 to 1945, but the Army kept him stateside to avoid damaging morale. In 1949, he signed the first six-figure contract in MLB history, $100,000 per year. Bone spurs hampered his later years, but he returned from injury to lead the Yankees past the Red Sox in a crucial 1949 series, helping rookie manager Casey Stengel win the pennant. He retired after the 1951 season, choosing to leave as a champion rather than become an average player.

Personal life

DiMaggio married actress Dorothy Arnold in 1939; they had one son, Joe Jr., but divorced in 1944. In 1954, he married Marilyn Monroe; the marriage lasted only nine months, but DiMaggio remained devoted to her. After Monroe’s death in 1962, he claimed her body, arranged her funeral, and paid for her casket and crypt. For 20 years, he had half a dozen red roses placed at her crypt three times a week. He never remarried. His parents were classified as enemy aliens after Pearl Harbor, and his father’s fishing boat was seized.

Legacy

DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak remains the longest in Major League Baseball history and is often called the most unbreakable record. He was named the Greatest Living Player in a 1969 poll celebrating baseball’s centennial. In 1977, he became the first athlete awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Yankees retired his number 5 in 1952 and dedicated a monument to him at Yankee Stadium on April 25, 1999. He is remembered as the consummate team player who epitomized baseball’s golden era, a flawless center fielder who led the Yankees to nine World Series titles.

Awards & honors.

AWARDS · 3

Every award, honor, and recognition received by Joe DiMaggio — Grammys, hall-of-fame inductions, civic honors, lifetime achievements.

Presidential Medal of Freedom
Associated Press Athlete of the Year
Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award

Notable quotes.

QUOTES · 18

A wall of memorable lines from Joe DiMaggio — lyrics, interviews, and off-the-cuff remarks captured over a lifetime.

It’s Almost a Joke When Some Fan Tells Me I’m a Great Man. I’m Just a Ballplayer Who Works Hard Trying to Get By.
I’ve Never Thought That Was Anybody’s Business but My Own. – on His Relationship with Marilyn Monroe.
They Call a Man Graceful Because He Hits a Little Ball with a Certain Swing. My Father Hammered Piles on a Railroad Out of Martinez for 10 Cents an Hour to Support a Family. That Was Grace.
I Don’t Have a Coherent Answer as to Why That Is. I Don’t Try to Knock People, Hurt Their Feelings or Beat Them Out of Money, but I Also Haven’t Tried to Create or Maintain an Image. I Work to Maintain My Privacy. – on His Status as a Cultural Icon.
There Was No Grass. We Played on Asphalt with a Big Ball – a Softball – but We Threw It Overhanded and Played by Regular Baseball Rules. When I Was 11 or 12, I Started Playing with Older Fellas, Guys in Their 20S. I Guess They Saw Something in Me.
There Is Always Some Kid Who May Be Seeing Me for the First or Last Time. I Owe Him My Best.
Because There Might Be Someone Who Never Saw Me Play Before. – When Asked Why He Tries so Hard.
At My Age, I’m Just Happy to Be Named Greatest Living Anything. – on Being Named Baseball’s Greatest Living Player in 1969.
You Start Chasing a Ball and Your Brain Immediately Commands Your Body to ‘Run Forward, Bend, Scoop up the Ball, Peg It to the Infield,’ Then Your Body Says, ‘Who Me?’
You Always Get a Special Kick on Opening Day, No Matter How Many You Go Through. You Look Forward to It Like a Birthday Party When You’re a Kid. You Think Something Wonderful Is Going to Happen.
The Test of an Outfielder’s Skill Comes When He Has to Go Against the Fence to Make a Catch.
When Baseball Is No Longer Fun, It’s No Longer a Game.
I’d Like to Thank the Good Lord for Making Me a Yankee.
If Anyone Wants to Know Why Three Kids in One Family Made It to the Big Leagues They Just Had to Know How We Helped Each Other and How Much We Practiced Back Then. We Did It Every Minute We Could.
I Can Remember a Reporter Asking Me for a Quote, and I Didn’t Know What a Quote Was. I Thought It Was Some Kind of Soft Drink.
I Came up Twice in the Game with the Bases Loaded and Both Times I Hit Balls into the Alley, 450 Feet Away. Home Runs in Any Other Park. Well, Each Time My Own Brother Robbed Me by Making Catches on the Warning Track. Instead of a Possible Eight RBI, or at Least Five or Six, I Got Nothing. That Night, Dom Came Over to My Place for Dinner. I Remember Letting Him in the Door and Then Not Speaking to Him Until We Were Almost Done Eating. I Was That Mad.
A Ball Player Has to Be Kept Hungry to Become a Big Leaguer. That’s Why No Boy from a Rich Family Has Ever Made the Big Leagues.
Too Many Kids Today Are Playing Major League Ball and Don’t Belong There.

Did you know?

FACTS · 34

Little-known facts about Joe DiMaggio — origins, oddities, and behind-the-scenes details from a public life.

DiMaggio banned the Kennedys and Rat Packers from Marilyn Monroe’s funeral.
He claimed Marilyn Monroe’s body after her death, arranged her funeral, paying for her casket and crypt, and was the only former husband to attend the funeral.
For 20 years after Monroe’s death, DiMaggio had half a dozen red roses placed at her crypt three times a week from Parisian Florist on Sunset Blvd.
Jack Nicholson noted at the 1999 Golden Globes that his first acting job on May 5, 1955, was a good omen because 5 was DiMaggio’s jersey number.
The diamond and platinum eternity ring DiMaggio gave Monroe after their marriage sold at Christie’s for $772,500.
Giuseppe and Rosalie DiMaggio were classified as enemy aliens after the Pearl Harbor attack, carrying photo ID booklets and restricted to their home and fishing within 5 miles.
DiMaggio never remarried after Marilyn Monroe’s death.
In 1964, he faced death threats while dating Myrna Fahey; the FBI traced them to a patient at Agnews State Hospital obsessed with Monroe.
First wife Dorothy Arnold sued for custody of their son in 1952, claiming Monroe was a threat to the boy’s morals; the suit was dismissed in 1953.
The Yankees retired his number 5 in April 1952.
His mother wanted him to become a bookkeeper due to his math proficiency.
He insisted on being introduced as baseball’s greatest living ballplayer after being awarded that title.
The only time DiMaggio showed emotion on the field was in the 1947 World Series, when he kicked dirt after Al Gionfriddo’s catch.
His mother named him Giuseppe hoping he would be the last child; his middle name Paolo came from Saint Paul.
During his marriage to Monroe, they rented a home at 508 N. Palm Drive in Beverly Hills next to Jean Harlow’s last home.
Heinz would have hired DiMaggio to endorse their 57 sauce if his hitting streak had reached 57 games.
His parents were from Isola delle Femmine, Sicily, and did not speak English; DiMaggio learned English in school.
A 2006 auction of over 1,000 personal possessions netted $4.1 million, including his 1947 MVP award for $281,750.
A monument was dedicated to him at Yankee Stadium on April 25, 1999.
He almost cooperated with his biography by Joseph Durso but backed out to avoid discussing Monroe; Durso wrote DiMaggio: The Last American Knight.
He accepted only SAG minimum of $250 per day for his cameo in The First of May 1999.
After his 56-game streak ended, he began a 16-game streak, meaning a hit in game 57 would have produced a 73-game streak; he also had a 61-game minor league streak.
He served as Vice-President of the Baltimore Orioles from 1979 to 1988.
Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel mentioned him in the song Mrs. Robinson.
The Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital opened September 17, 1992, and he raised over $4 million for it.
Dorothy Arnold converted to Catholicism to marry DiMaggio; both were excommunicated after remarriages, later reversed by Vatican II.
He holds the MLB record for hitting safely in 56 consecutive games 1941.
Marilyn Monroe won an interlocutory decree of divorce on October 27, 1954, finalized one year later.
DiMaggio was the first athlete to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, on January 10, 1977.
He served as Executive Vice-President and batting instructor for the Oakland A’s in 1968-1969.
He wore number 9 during his first half of 1936 before switching to 5; number 9 was later retired for Roger Maris.
He appears on a 2013 U.S. postage stamp honoring MLB All-Stars.
He died at exactly 12:12 AM EST.
He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955.

You wanted to know.

FAQ · 30

Quick answers to the questions readers ask most about Joe DiMaggio.

When was Joe DiMaggio born?

Joe DiMaggio was born on November 25, 1914. He was born in Martinez, California, to Italian immigrant parents.
Where was Joe DiMaggio born?

Joe DiMaggio was born in Martinez, California, USA. He was delivered by a midwife in a dock-side house that later burned down.
When did Joe DiMaggio die?

Joe DiMaggio died on March 8, 1999. He passed away at 12:12 AM EST.
Where did Joe DiMaggio die?

Joe DiMaggio died in Hollywood, Florida, USA. The cause of death was lung cancer.
How old was Joe DiMaggio when he died?

Joe DiMaggio was 84 years old when he died. He passed away on March 8, 1999.
What caused Joe DiMaggio's death?

Joe DiMaggio died of lung cancer. He passed away in Hollywood, Florida, on March 8, 1999.
What was Joe DiMaggio's real name?

Joe DiMaggio’s real name was Giuseppe Paolo DiMaggio. He was named after his father’s favorite saint, Saint Paul.
What are Joe DiMaggio's nicknames?

Joe DiMaggio was known as Joe D, Joltin’ Joe, and the Yankee Clipper. The nickname Joltin’ Joe came from a song about his 56-game hitting streak.
How tall was Joe DiMaggio?

Joe DiMaggio was 6 feet 2 inches tall, or 1.88 meters. He played center field for the New York Yankees.
Who was Joe DiMaggio married to?

Joe DiMaggio was married to Dorothy Arnold from 1939 to 1944 and to Marilyn Monroe from 1954 to 1955. He never remarried after Monroe’s death.
Did Joe DiMaggio have children?

Joe DiMaggio had one son, Joe DiMaggio Jr., with his first wife Dorothy Arnold. His son’s adopted daughters later auctioned many of DiMaggio’s possessions.
Did Joe DiMaggio have siblings?

Joe DiMaggio had two brothers, Dom DiMaggio and Vince DiMaggio. Both also played professional baseball.
Who were Joe DiMaggio's parents?

Joe DiMaggio’s parents were Giuseppe and Rosalia DiMaggio. They were Italian immigrants from Isola delle Femmine, Sicily.
What did Joe DiMaggio do for a living?

Joe DiMaggio was a professional baseball player, but he also appeared as an actor and contributed to soundtracks. He is best known for his career with the New York Yankees.
What is Joe DiMaggio famous for?

Joe DiMaggio is famous for his 56-game hitting streak in 1941 and his decade of dominance with the New York Yankees. He won three MVP awards and nine World Series titles.
What records does Joe DiMaggio hold?

Joe DiMaggio holds the MLB record for hitting safely in 56 consecutive games. He also set a mark for four World Series titles in his first four seasons.
How many MVP awards did Joe DiMaggio win?

Joe DiMaggio won the American League MVP award three times: in 1939, 1941, and 1947. He was also an All-Star every season he played.
How many World Series did Joe DiMaggio win?

Joe DiMaggio won nine World Series championships with the New York Yankees. He played in 10 World Series overall.
Where did Joe DiMaggio go to school?

Joe DiMaggio attended Galileo Academy of Science and Technology in San Francisco. He did not learn English until starting school.
What awards did Joe DiMaggio receive?

Joe DiMaggio received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977, multiple MVP awards, and was named Associated Press Athlete of the Year. He was also inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955.
Did Joe DiMaggio serve in the military?

Joe DiMaggio served in the U.S. Army during World War II from 1943 to 1945. He was kept stateside to avoid being killed or captured due to his popularity.
What was Joe DiMaggio's relationship with Marilyn Monroe like?

Joe DiMaggio married Marilyn Monroe in 1954, but they divorced after nine months. He remained devoted to her after her death, arranging her funeral and placing roses at her crypt for 20 years.
Why did Joe DiMaggio leave baseball?

Joe DiMaggio retired after the 1951 season due to bone spurs and declining performance. He did not want to become an average player and chose to leave as a champion.
What was Joe DiMaggio's batting average during his 56-game streak?

During his 56-game hitting streak in 1941, Joe DiMaggio batted .408. He also hit 15 home runs and drove in 55 RBIs.
Did Joe DiMaggio have a song written about him?

Yes, Les Brown and his band recorded Joltin’ Joe DiMaggio in the early 1940s, celebrating his 56-game hitting streak. Paul Simon also mentioned him in Mrs. Robinson.
Was Joe DiMaggio ever named the greatest living player?

Yes, in 1969, a poll to celebrate baseball’s 100th anniversary named Joe DiMaggio the greatest living player. He insisted on being introduced with that title at events.
What number did Joe DiMaggio wear?

Joe DiMaggio wore number 9 in the first half of his rookie year before switching to number 5. The Yankees retired his number 5 in 1952.
Did Joe DiMaggio appear in movies?

Joe DiMaggio had a few acting roles, including a cameo in The First of May. He also appeared on television shows like Kraft Theatre.
What is the Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital?

The Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital opened on September 17, 1992. DiMaggio helped raise over $4 million for the facility.
How did Joe DiMaggio die?

Joe DiMaggio died of lung cancer on March 8, 1999, in Hollywood, Florida. He was 84 years old.

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Audited & updated by

Olivia has 6 years of experience writing biographical profiles and still approaches every subject like it's the first one. She covers everyone from debut musicians to Hall of Fame athletes to novelists most people have never heard of. She finds something worth reading in all of them. Her drafts tend to come in already clean, which her editor appreciates. She says good writing is just good thinking written down. Hard to argue with that.

Published on October 2, 2026

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