Joe Pesci turns 81 today, and while people rightly celebrate his famous roles in hits like “Goodfellas” and “Home Alone,” we tend to think of an Alabama-set comedy that saw the actor in one of a handful of his leading big-screen roles.

“My Cousin Vinny” (which you can currently stream on AMC+) holds up as a legal comedy, a box office hit and Oscar-winner with a fantastic cast including Pesci, Marisa Tomei, Ralph Macchio and Fred Gwynne. It opened March 12, 1992, against stiff box office competition like “Wayne’s World,” “The Lawnmower Man” and another Alabama-set film, “Fried Green Tomatoes.”

The plot: When two New Yorkers are accused of murder in rural Alabama while on their way back to college, one of them calls on his cousin, an inexperienced personal injury lawyer (Joe Pesci). Unaccustomed to the South, he comes in to defend them.

It marked a comedic starring vehicle for Pesci, who’d already shown range in the genre in films like “Easy Money” while balancing more serious roles in “Raging Bull.” Plus, it was Tomei’s breakthrough into movie stardom on her way to a career with awards success and blockbuster parts. But it was also the kind of modestly budgeted studio comedy you rarely see anymore, and one that featured Alabama as the setting.

Whether or not you think it mocked our state is open for interpretation (”They sleep with their sisters” jokes, notwithstanding), especially considering how Pesci and Tomei’s characters adapt to their new surroundings. But you might not even care. Written by Dale Launer and directed by Jonathan Lynn, it remains a laugh-out-loud comedy that lets its stars shine for a quick two hours.

Here are 10 fun facts about “My Cousin Vinny,” as we wish Mr. Pesci a happy birthday.

It wasn’t filmed in Alabama.

While set in Alabama, the movie was filmed exclusively in a handful of small towns in Georgia. The story takes place in the fictional Beechum County, Alabama, but the courthouse scenes were actually filmed in Monticello, Ga.

It was a big hit.

Against a reported $11 million production budget, the R-rated comedy turned a major profit by grossing $64 million, $52 million of that from U.S. ticket sales. It was the 31st highest grosser of 1991, just ahead of the Robert Redford vehicle “Sneakers” and right below the Charles Grodin dog comedy “Beethoven.” The box office winner that year? “Batman Returns,” with Pesci’s other hit “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York” finishing fourth overall.

Critics loved it.

The film holds an impressive 87 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes. Here’s the Critics Consensus: “The deft comic interplay between Joe Pesci and Marisa Tomei helps to elevate My Cousin Vinny’s predictable script, and the result is a sharp, hilarious courtroom comedy.” Read the reviews.

It won a shocking Oscar.

Reading “Oscar-winner” before Tomei’s name shouldn’t surprise us lately after her powerful turns in “In the Bedroom” and “The Wrestler.” Most were shocked even by Tomei’s nomination and never thought she’d wind up winning, as Vanessa Redgrave (“Howards End”) seemed the likely victor. But presenter Jack Palance opened the envelope and read Tomei’s name, much to the surprise and skepticism of critics and viewers who thought he’d read the wrong winner.

It had the Karate Kid!

Pesci and Tomei rightly stole the spotlight, but few seem to remember who played straight man to their hilarity: None other than Daniel LaRusso himself, Ralph Macchio. Just three years removed from the third film in “The Karate Kid” trilogy, the New York-born actor ventured out of the sports/family film arena to the slightly edgier comedy territory with this turn as Bill Gambini, cousin to Pesci’s inexperienced lawyer. It’s Macchio who gets the privilege of saying the film’s title on screen, with a lot of enthusiasm.

It gave grits the spotlight.

In one of its best scenes, the film goes full-on fish-out-of-water when Vinny and Mona Lisa visit a nearby diner for breakfast. The owner serves their plates filled with eggs, bacon and an unfamiliar corner of white stuff the lawyer can’t quite place. “What’s this over here?” Vinny asks, bewildering the cook. “You never heard of grits?” the proprietor asks. “Sure, sure, I heard of grits. I just actually never seen a grit before.” As he ponders taking a bite, he stops to ask, “What is a grit anyways?” When he finally scoops a single grit on to his fork, Mona Lisa chuckles and snaps a photo. Cooking show Binging with Babish even made the “My Cousin Vinny” grits on the popular YouTube channel.

It was Herman Munster’s final role.

Actor Fred Gwynne, best known for his television roles on series like “Car 54, Where Are You?” and “The Munsters” (in which he played Herman Munster), played hard-nosed Judge Chamberlain Haller. The Maryland native died at age 66 in July 1993, less than a year after the film’s release. It marked his final on-screen performance and an entertaining end to an impressive career, sharing delightful comedic chemistry with Pesci.

It has lawyers’ respect.

The American Bar Association Journal’s ranked “My Cousin Vinny” third on its list of the 25 greatest legal films at the law library. “Not only is it funny, but it’s an accurate and intelligent portrayal of common courtroom protocols,” wrote Yale Law School’s Jason Eiseman when sharing the ABA list. Number one on their list? Another Alabama favorite, 1962′s “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

Pesci wasn’t the first choice

The film’s studio 20th Century Fox originally wanted controversial standup comic Andrew Dice Clay to play Vinny before tossing out names like Danny DeVito, Peter Falk, Robert De Niro and Jim Belushi. Fresh off of finishing “Lethal Weapon 2,” where he debuted as Leo Getz, Pesci was finally the right fit.

Ben Stiller bombed his audition

In 2022, Stiller appeared on recently retired basketball player JJ Redick’s podcast “The Old Man and the Three” to promote his Apple TV+ show “Severance” and discuss his love for the NBA. Redick asked Stiller if he remembered movies where he bombed the auditions early in his career. Without hesitation, Stiller answered “My Cousin Vinny.” When asked which part he auditioned for, Stiller said it was the Mitchell Whitfield role of Stan Rothenstein, not Ralph Macchio’s part of Vinny’s cousin Bill Gambini. “It means I went into the audition, and … the feedback I got was that, ‘He tanked.’ The producer said, ‘He tanked. He got nervous and was stiff and it was really bad,’” Stiller said. “It could not have been more definitive feedback.” Watch the clip below (starting at 8:02).