lamotta was born on the lower east side of new york city on july 10, 1922, to italian parents. many sources had reported his year of birth as 1921, but his daughter christi said in a facebook post immediately following his death that it was in fact 1922. his mother was born in the united states to italian immigrants, while his father was an immigrant from messina, sicily, who came with family including his brother joseph. the family lived briefly in philadelphia before returning to new york and settling in the bronx.