Obituaries : Joe Carcione, 73; ‘Green Grocer’ of TV and Radio

Joe Carcione, television’s peripatetic “Green Grocer” who for years enthused and despaired over the quality or lack of it in fresh fruits and vegetables, is dead.

He was 73 and died Tuesday in a Burlingame, Calif., hospital after a long battle with intestinal cancer.

Carcione, whose gravelly voiced pronunciation of “VEG-ee-tibles” made him a favorite in more than 80 TV markets nationwide, began his career in his father’s produce market after finishing high school.

A produce manager himself, he became famous for his weekly radio and television spots in which he told consumers about bargains and pitfalls. He also wrote two books.

Earned $500,000 a Year

At his peak, Carcione wrote three newspaper columns a week, producing TV and radio spots that reached 10 million listeners and helped him earn $500,000 a year.

He attributed his success to his sincerity.

“I’m going to tell the truth,” he said. “If I can’t do what’s right, I’m going to get off the air. There’s no other way.”

Two years ago, he told the San Francisco Chronicle that people would see him on the street and say, “Hi Joe, I feel like I know you.”

“That’s a real compliment,” Carcione said.

Free Commercials

He got started in broadcasting in 1967 when he began making commercials for his own produce. He later was asked to do unpaid grocer spots on San Francisco’s KCBS and other radio stations.

In 1974 a TV station offered to pay him for informative spots and his career took off.

Until his health failed he would go to work at 5 a.m. at his Golden Gate Produce terminal in South San Francisco, sampling fresh fruits and vegetables and making notes for his shows and columns.