By Joseph Tucci
Journal Inquirer
WILTON, Conn. — Actor Joe Pantoliano praised the quick action of the Wilton Volunteer Ambulance Corps after he was hit by a car in a new video that highlights the group’s life-saving work.
The 74-year-old actor, also known as Joey Pants, won an Emmy in 2003 for his portrayal of gangster Ralph Cifaretto in “The Sopranos.” He has also made appearances in 1985’s “The Goonies,” 2023’s “The Last of Us” and 2010’s " Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief.” According to the Wilton Bulletin, the actor has lived in Wilton since 1999.
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In the video, posted to the Corps’ website last week, Pantoliano recalled how, in 2020, he was hit by a car while going for a walk with his family. While stopping at an intersection to let an SUV cross the lane to make a turn, the SUV was struck by another vehicle, sending it into Pantoliano.
“When I got hit, I got hit in the chest with a rearview mirror. I went up in the air and I went headfirst through a three-post fence,” Pantoliano recalled in the video.
After being hit, Pantoliano recalled that an ambulance arrived on the scene “really quick.” An EMT cut Pantoliano’s clothes off with scissors so she could assess his injuries. He said he initially protested because he didn’t want the expensive Ralph Lauren turtleneck he was wearing to be ruined.
The ambulance took Pantoliano to the emergency room at Norwalk Hospital, where he was treated. Pantoliano added that at the time he got hit, he didn’t realize that volunteers mostly staffed the ambulance corps.
“You guys were terrific... You’re the only game in town. Who else are you going to call? Ghostbusters?,” Pantoliano said. “The gal that treated me, she measured not only my physical states but my emotional states.”
In 2023, Pantoliano accepted a settlement related to the case.
The video also featured a testimonial by Wilton resident Julene Greenshields. Greenshields recalled how the Wilton Volunteer Ambulance Corps came to her house and treated her daughter, Natalie, and transported her to Norwalk Hospital after she fell unconscious after experiencing a headache around 20 years ago.
The Wilton Volunteer Ambulance Corps was founded in 1976 and has around 60 volunteers, its executive director, Alvaro Garavito, said in the video. Last year, it responded to around 1,800 911 calls, he added.
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