'Uncle Mel' Barone is Ray and Robert's paternal uncle and Frank's long-estranged older brother.
Mel is mean and always seems agitated. He never married, and (in every episode appearance) makes it quite clear that he's not gay. On a few occasions he has appeared with other men, but refers to them as "friends" and "business partners". His mother and father are Nonny and Joseph Barone.
In the episode "Turkey or Fish", it is implied that Mel hates fish and it is revealed that he hates yams.
In the episde "Mia Famiglia" it is implied that he has a crush on [his supposed aunt] Sarina, him saying "Excuse me. Isn't anyone going to introduce me to this...exotic creature".
Early life[]
Not much is known about Mel's early life, except that he was born and raised in Brooklyn and was the older son of Joseph and Nonny Barone, which would make it possible that he and Frank had many other unnamed siblings born in between them due to their age gap. And according to him, he got into a fight everyday as a kid, and even joined the U.S. Army just to get away from the fighting.
He and Frank are never shown interacting with one another, which seems imply that they may have never gotten along during childhood and were, thus, never close as brothers, and therefore haven't spoken since they each joined the U.S. Army. If this is so, then they might've even had a sibling rivalry that was worse than that of Robert and Raymond.
At the end of the episode "Turkey or Fish", both brothers are shown sleeping on two opposite sides of the couch in the living room of Ray and Debra's house.
Episode Appearances[]
- Season 1, Episode 10: "Turkey or Fish"
- Season 2, Episode 6: "Anniversary"
- Season 2, Episode 14: "Mia Famiglia"
- Season 2, Episode 25: "The Wedding: Part 2"