Joseph J. Intermaggio Dies January 16

Joseph John Intermaggio Jr. of Southampton died on January 16, 2020. He was 88.

Born on September 22, 1931, in Lying In Hospital (now New York Hospital) to Ninfa Frances Accardi and Joseph J. Intermaggio, he lived in the Ridgewood section of Brooklyn as a young child and later the family moved to St. Albans in Queens. His mother was a seamstress and his father a security guard. Eight years after his birth, his sister, Carole Eve Intermaggio, was born. She died in 2010.

Before he graduated from Andrew Jackson High School in 1949, he knew he wanted to become an airline pilot. A neighbor encouraged him to join the U.S. Naval Reserve at Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn. While he didn’t become a pilot, he did become a crew member and flew as a 2nd mechanic. He spent 14 years in the Naval Air Reserve. Afterward he joined the Suffolk County Police Department and became a detective, serving for 32 years. Later he worked as a private investigator for 20 years.

He was a graduate of the New York Institute of Technology with a Bachelor of Science in criminal justice. He also learned computer skills for use in his police work.

Mr. Intermaggio has four children from his first marriage to Ruth E. Intermaggio: Donna J. Danyluk, James Michael Intermaggio, John Joseph Intermaggio and Joseph John Intermaggio III. He also has nine grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.

From his second marriage to Patricia June Mott-Intermaggio, he has two stepchildren: Kimberly Ann Longnecker Hoehn and Joseph Francis Longnecker III, and four granddaughters, one grandson and one great-grandson.

In grammar school he had a brief role in the “Pirates of Penzance” but years later he found his talent as a singer and actor. He discovered his musical voice while on a weekend religious retreat, and later became involved in the church choir, barbershop singing group and a Christian men’s harmony group. He became involved in the Riverhead Faculty and Community Theatre (RFCT) and was cast in “How to Succeed in Business,” “Mame,” “The Music Man” and “Annie.” He also acted in the Riverhead East End Arts Council productions of the “Pirates of Penzance,” “HMS Pinafore” and “The Mikado.” In his 80s he was still involved, joining the Seniors Singing Melodies and Memories.

A memorial service was held January 18 at the Beach United Methodist Church in Westhampton Beach with the Reverend Jack K. King officiating.

Funeral arrangements were under the direction of the Brockett Funeral Home in Southampton.