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Joseph Louis Parascand was born on March 2, 1962, in Brooklyn, New York. His father worked as an electrical engineer, and his mother owned and taught at an art school. Along with his two younger brothers, Joe was introduced to sports and music early on. As a senior in high school, he became the fastest sprinter and later pitched semi-professionally in baseball, reaching speeds up to 85 mph, until injuries ended his sports pursuits. He also took piano lessons from ages 8 to 14 and later learned to play jazz by ear.
Though shy as a child, Joe developed a habit of mimicking his college professors and later his supervisors to entertain friends and colleagues. After being laid off from Bell Laboratories in late 2002, he decided to pursue acting at age 41 the following year. He joined a talent agency, spent a couple of years doing background work while studying the Sanford Meisner technique, and then began auditioning for roles. After securing small parts in independent films and commercials between 2004 and 2005, he stepped away from acting in early 2006, but returned part-time in 2010 due to a strong desire to continue.
Upon his return, Joe took on his most recognized role: Sheriff Tom Walker, initially corrupt and later monstrous, in the Mary Horror trilogy—Mary Horror (2011), Sheriff Tom vs. the Zombies (2013), and Witches Blood (2014). He reprised Sheriff Tom Walker in Season 1 of the web/TV series Zombies Incorporated (2013), a prequel to the trilogy, and portrayed Sergeant Benton in the sci-fi trilogy The Soulless (2014), Soulless 2: Sanctuary (2016), and Soulless 3: Revelations (2016). Toward the end of 2013, he played Detective Jack Donnelly in the thriller Faces (2014) and Gravedigger Willy in the family short The Legend of Zeke (2014).
A neck injury in late 2013, which eventually healed, combined with scheduling inflexibility led Joe to leave acting in spring 2015. Before stepping away, he again portrayed Sheriff Tom Walker in Season 2 of Zombies Incorporated (2013). He later played the nerdy serial killer Walter Banner in the thriller Pretty Fine Things (2016). His final role was the villainous Father Tom Collins in Season 2, Episodes 5 and 6 of the TV series Zombie Hunters: City of the Dead (2007).
