About growing up living next to Berra, Garagiola once said, "Not only was I not the best catcher in the Major Leagues, I wasn't even the best catcher on my street!"
Joe came from a rough Italian neighborhood where the youth were frequently arrested.Joe was a good kid who started getting his name in the papers because of his athletic prowess.An older Italian man from the neighborhood approached him and said,”Joe,you the only kid I know,who getta his name in the paper and no killa somebody.”