When most people hear the name DeVito, their minds travel straight to Hollywood. The compact, charismatic actor and filmmaker Danny DeVito has spent decades earning his place among the most recognizable faces in American entertainment. Yet behind every famous figure stands a family. Behind Danny DeVito stood Theresa Scialla — his eldest sister, his quiet anchor, and a woman who built a life of real substance far from any camera.
Her name rarely appears in entertainment headlines. She never sought the spotlight. Still, her story — rooted in faith, family, hard work, and dignity — offers a compelling portrait of an ordinary woman who lived extraordinarily well. This article tells that story in full.
Early Life and Family Roots
Theresa DeVito entered the world on April 2, 1934, in Brooklyn, New York. Her family carried deep cultural roots. The DeVitos traced their heritage to San Fele, in the Basilicata region of southern Italy, and also held lineage from the Arbëresh Albanian community of Calabria. This dual heritage gave the DeVito household a rich, layered identity that shaped every member of the family.
Her parents were Daniel Michael DeVito Sr. and Julia DeVito (née Moccello). The family settled in the coastal New Jersey communities of Asbury Park and Neptune, where Theresa spent her most formative years. Daniel Sr. started out running a candy store on Springwood Avenue in Asbury Park. Later, he shifted to work from home — operating as a bookmaker taking bets on horses. Julia was a devoted homemaker who filled the kitchen with regional southern Italian dishes: fennel, broccoli rabe, dandelion greens, and the flavors of Basilicata.
Faith was not simply practiced in that home — it was lived every day. The family raised Theresa, her sister Angela, and her younger brother Danny strictly within the Catholic tradition. Those early lessons in faith, loyalty, and community would stay with Theresa for the rest of her life.
The Role of the Eldest Child
As the oldest sibling, Theresa occupied a unique position in the household. She was the first to absorb the family’s values and the first to model responsibility for her younger siblings. Growing up alongside Angela and Danny — the latter destined to become one of Hollywood’s most beloved actors — Theresa experienced a childhood built on shared meals, tight community bonds, and the unpretentious rhythms of working-class New Jersey life.
Marriage and Family Life
Theresa DeVito eventually married Fred Scialla Jr. and took his surname. The marriage brought her two children: a son, Fred Scialla III, and a daughter, Judy. Raising her family became the central pillar of her existence. She poured into her children the same values her own parents had given her — faith, hard work, loyalty, and care.
The Heartbreak She Carried
Tragedy entered Theresa’s life when her son, Fred Scialla III, died before her. Few griefs compare to outliving a child. Yet even under that weight, those around her consistently described Theresa as a steady and resilient presence. Fred III had, interestingly, worked in the entertainment world before his passing — as a stand-in in productions including Taxi, The War of the Roses, Get Shorty, Matilda, and L.A. Confidential. That connection quietly linked even him to his famous uncle’s industry.
A Daughter Who Stayed Close
Her daughter Judy Page remained nearby throughout Theresa’s later years. Judy and her husband James Page lived in Interlaken, New Jersey — the same town where Theresa spent her final chapter. Grandchildren Kate Page and Tara Aho brought further joy into Theresa’s life. Tara’s husband David also became part of the extended family Theresa cherished until the very end. Her obituary mentioned them by name, a clear sign of how central they were to her world.
A Career Defined by Service and Precision
Fort Monmouth: More Than Just a Job
One detail most people overlook about Theresa Scialla is that she built a genuine, distinguished professional career — entirely outside the entertainment world. Her brother Danny navigated Hollywood’s glamour and unpredictability. Theresa, by contrast, chose structured and purposeful public service.
For well over a decade, she worked as an inventory management specialist at Fort Monmouth, a United States Army installation in Eatontown, New Jersey. Fort Monmouth was no ordinary posting. It served as a major military research and development base, historically focused on communications technology and defense systems. The people who worked there needed to be meticulous, reliable, and consistently professional.
What the Role Demanded
As an inventory management specialist, Theresa tracked, organized, and distributed military supplies and materials efficiently. Precision was not optional — it was the job itself. She began working at Fort Monmouth’s commissary as early as 1976. A former colleague later posted a tribute on her memorial page, recalling Theresa as one of their first and most treasured friends, describing her as simply “so kind, a wonderful person.” She served in that role until her retirement in 1988.
Her career proves that meaningful work does not need a stage or a screen to matter. Theresa contributed to a functioning military institution across decades of national and geopolitical change, and she did so with quiet, consistent competence.
Faith, Community, and the Art of Living
Three Pillars of Her Character
Everyone who knew Theresa Scialla returned to the same three qualities: her love of cooking, her compassion toward animals, and her unwavering devotion to the Catholic Church. These were not hobbies. They were the architecture of her life.
Cooking connected her to her Italian heritage. Like her mother before her, Theresa expressed love through food. In an Italian-American household, a shared meal is never just sustenance — it is a ritual of belonging. Theresa’s kitchen was a place of creativity, warmth, and generosity. Multiple tributes recalled shared meals and visits as some of their most treasured memories with her.
A Gentle Heart for the Voiceless
Her compassion for animals spoke to something deeper. People who extend genuine tenderness to creatures who cannot advocate for themselves often carry a wide-reaching empathy. Theresa was that kind of person. She made room in her heart for the voiceless — a quiet but telling reflection of her inner character.
Faith as a Way of Life
Her Catholic faith was not a weekend ritual. It organized her entire life. Raised in a devout household, she carried that faith into adulthood, into marriage, into parenthood, and into her final years. It gave her the tools to navigate loss, to extend grace, and to find meaning in ordinary daily rhythms.
A Neighborhood Anchor
In Neptune and Interlaken, Theresa served as a kind of neighborhood anchor. Tributes written after her passing describe a woman who guided, fed, and cared for children in the neighborhood as naturally as she might pour coffee. One neighbor recalled growing up just around the corner on Green Grove Place in Neptune and thanked her for guidance, love, and care. Another neighbor simply called her “an angel.” These words belong not to the tributes of fame — they belong to the tributes of genuine goodness.
Her Bond with Danny DeVito
Much of the public curiosity about Theresa naturally traces back to her brother Danny. He is, after all, a Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actor, a respected director, and the founder of Jersey Films. His credits span Taxi, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Batman Returns, Matilda, Twins, Erin Brockovich, and much more.
Danny DeVito has spoken often about the formative power of his New Jersey upbringing and his family. He has described a home filled with relatives, traditions, and a deep Italian identity. Within that home, Theresa was the eldest — the one who modeled how the family’s values looked in practice, day after day.
Their bond endured across very different lives. When Theresa passed in 2014, her official obituary listed Danny DeVito and his then-wife Rhea Perlman among her surviving family. Their children — Lucy, Gracie, and Jake DeVito — were listed as well. That inclusion reflected genuine family closeness, not obligation. Fame had not fractured what childhood had built.
Final Years and Passing
Theresa spent her final years in Interlaken, Monmouth County — a small, quiet community not far from the neighborhoods where she was raised. Dedicated caregivers supported her in those years, and her daughter Judy and son-in-law James remained close by.
On Tuesday, July 1, 2014, Theresa DeVito Scialla passed away at her home in Interlaken. She was 80 years old. Her family kept the cause of death private, in keeping with the privacy she had always valued. She was preceded in death by her parents, Daniel and Julia DeVito; her son, Fred Scialla III; and her sister, Angela Lucia — who had passed away just months earlier in December 2013. Mount Calvary Cemetery in Neptune Township, New Jersey, is her final resting place, close to the community that shaped her.
Conclusion
Theresa Scialla never appeared on a screen. She never gave a public interview. No award bore her name. Yet her life carried real weight — felt by the family she raised, the colleagues she befriended, the neighbors she guided, the meals she prepared, and the faith she lived without apology.
Her story offers a quiet but powerful reminder: significance does not require visibility. A person can matter deeply — to a community, to a family, to a famous younger brother shaped by her example — without ever seeking the world’s attention. The tributes left on her memorial pages call her an angel, a wonderful person, a beautiful soul. Plain words, heartfelt and honest, are often the truest measure of a life well spent.
Theresa DeVito Scialla was a sister, mother, grandmother, colleague, neighbor, and woman of enduring faith. Her name draws searches today because of Danny DeVito’s fame. Her story, however, belongs entirely to her.
Dive deeper with this related post: John Schneider’s Son Chasen Joseph Schneider: The Untold Story of an Actor Who Earned Every Break
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Theresa Scialla?
Theresa Scialla, born Theresa DeVito, was the eldest sister of Hollywood actor and filmmaker Danny DeVito. She was born on April 2, 1934, and lived a private, faith-centered life in New Jersey until her death on July 1, 2014, at age 80.
What did Theresa Scialla do for a living?
Theresa worked as an inventory management specialist at Fort Monmouth, a U.S. Army installation in Eatontown, New Jersey. She held this role from at least 1976 until her retirement in 1988. She was known for her strong work ethic and professionalism.
Was Theresa Scialla involved in the entertainment industry?
No. Theresa had no involvement in Hollywood or entertainment. She pursued a career in government-related military administration. Her son, Fred Scialla III, did work briefly as a stand-in on productions connected to Danny DeVito’s world, but Theresa herself remained entirely outside the industry.
How many children did Theresa Scialla have?
Theresa had two children. Her son, Fred Scialla III, passed away before she did. Her daughter, Judy Page, survived her and continued to live in Interlaken, New Jersey, with her husband James. Theresa also had two grandchildren: Kate Page and Tara Aho.
What is Theresa Scialla’s relationship to Danny DeVito?
Theresa was Danny DeVito’s older sister. The two shared the same parents — Daniel Michael DeVito Sr. and Julia DeVito — and grew up together in Asbury Park and Neptune, New Jersey. Danny and his then-wife Rhea Perlman were listed among the survivors in Theresa’s 2014 obituary, reflecting the close bond the siblings maintained throughout their lives.
