 Joseph Barbera was born at 10 Delancey Street in the Little Italy ( Lower East Side ) section of Manhattan , New York , to immigrants Vincent Barbera ( Italian from Lebanese origin ) and Francesca <unk> , born in <unk> , Agrigento , Sicily , Italy , and he grew up speaking Italian . His family moved to Flatbush , Brooklyn , New York when he was four months old . He had two younger brothers , Larry and Ted , both of whom served in World War II . As a member of the United States Army , Larry participated in the invasion of Sicily . Ted was a fighter pilot with the United States Army Air Forces and served in the Aleutian Islands Campaign . Barbera 's father , Vincent , was the prosperous owner of three <unk> who squandered the family fortunes on gambling . By the time Barbera was 15 , his father had abandoned the family and his maternal uncle Jim became a father figure to him . 
