Joe Penny (born June 24, 1956 in London, England) is an actor. He is known for his role as Nick Ryder in the detective series Riptide from 1984 to 1986 and for his role as Jake Styles in the series Jake and the Fatman from 1987 to 1992.
Joseph Edward Penny Jr. was born in London, England to an American father and an Italian mother. He was raised in Georgia.
He attended Marina High School in Huntington Beach, CA where he played football and basketball. Throughout his high school years, he maintained a low profile. He consistently avoided picture day. In each yearbook published during his enrollment at Marina High School, he is listed as "missing in action."
Starting with a minor role on Forever Fernwood in 1977, the busy actor has appeared in numerous TV movies and has made many guest appearances on television shows including Touched by an Angel, T.J. Hooker, Vega$, Matt Houston, Lou Grant, CHiPs, Flamingo Road, The Sopranos, Diagnosis Murder, Walker, Texas Ranger, 7th Heaven, Matlock, and CSI. He briefly dated Stepfanie Kramer after she guest-starred on an episode of "Riptide."
He co-starred with Lea Thompson in the mystery series Jane Doe on the Hallmark Channel.
He played the role of Martino Vitali on the daytime soap opera "Days of Our Lives", beginning May 2, 2008. The role lasted 2 weeks.
