On The Silly Side (The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.) My kids had turned just about every light in the house on and went out. When they came back I said, "who do you think I am, Rockefeller?" They looked at me with a very strange expression. I should have updated it to Donald Trump. | |||
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- Danehy Park Family Day Saturday, Sept. 22
- Dancing in Somerville streets
- Murph the Surf and other Somerville nicknames
- DA's office provides new details on stabbing of three Somerville police officers, shooting death of woman
- Source: Woman who stabbed three Somerville police officers sought mental care before deadly attack
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- Somerville Police on "loaner" bikes
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July 17, 2010
July 07, 2010
My Chief Concern
On The Silly Side (The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.) I should have changed the title of my column this week to On The Civil Side, as it discusses an important issue facing our city. | |||
February 13, 2010
Bullying has to stop
Jimmy Del Ponte | |||||
February 06, 2010
And now a word from our sponsor
On The Silly Side (The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.) Remember all those old radio and TV jingles that used to stick in our minds? Well, I asked some of my friends to dig deep and come up with some, and they did. So here they are, and we'll start with some of my favorites, as close as I can recall. | |||
January 30, 2010
Someone's getting old!
Jimmy Del Ponte On The Silly Side (The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.) My son turned 14 this past Saturday - it seems like only yesterday I was pushing that stroller down to Davis Square and stopping at the playground across from Osco, Brooks, Rite-Aid. Next year he will be starting high school and soon he will be asking for the car keys. I know it sounds cliché, but where did the years go? | |||
January 20, 2010
Can't we all just get Along?
I am a proud citizen of Somerville. Sometimes I feel like I am a member of an elite group of lifelong 'Villens (50 years in the same house, 56 years in Somerville) who keep a watchful eye on things around the city in the course of my day. I am the guy who screams "slow down" whenever a car is speeding. I yell at the law breakers who whizz down Raymond Avenue the wrong way between 2pm and 3pm when it becomes a one way for the safety of the West Somerville Neighborhood School students and their families. And (you know who you are) why do you gun it and speed up Raymond Ave after you get your kids? There may be still be people trying to cross the street as you are doing 45 in a school zone. Believe me, we are all very impressed at the speed of your vehicle! | |||
January 13, 2010
Down the Tracks
Note: The following article contains stories about trains and railroad tracks. Railroad tracks are extremely dangerous and should be treated with the utmost safety and caution. The Red Line rumbles beneath Davis Square and soon the Green Line will travel through our fair city. But for many years, trains used to chug through Davis Square crossing Willow Ave, and then onto Cambridge. Remember watchman's tower in the Square? The following are some personal recollections of folks growing up when the train ran through the 'Ville. If you're old enough to remember it, you no doubt have train-related stories. | |||
January 09, 2010
Ripped at the "seems"
January 01, 2010
Resolution Time Again
On The Silly Side (The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.) You would think that after so many failed attempts at making New Year's resolutions, that I would just throw in the towel. You would think that, but still I will make an effort. I will at least make the effort to list them... Hey, I know I am not perfect, and I will never be perfect, but I can still dream. Okay here goes: | |||
November 27, 2009
Thanksgiving, the sitcom
On The Silly Side (The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.) Thanksgiving is a day that always goes as planned. The meal is prepared and the family sits down and eats, engages in cheerful banter and everyone goes home fulfilled. Each family member gets along with one another and everything is wonderful. Not always. For some reason, Thanksgiving is the perfect time for the unexpected, the un-scheduled and the unbelievable to happen. Thanksgiving is the stuff (or stuffing) television shows are made of. Here is "Season 1 of Thanksgiving, the sitcom." All of these stories are true, and happened to some of my Somerville friends. - I remember growing up with a thawing turkey in the tub. I would go to brush my teeth only to find a giant frozen turkey in the tub! This went on every year, and I was always oddly amused by it. - Back in the day, because your refrigerator only held so much, you would store some of the Thanksgiving items in the back hall or on the back porch. One year we had an unseasonably warm week, causing the neighbors' apple cider to turn. - We bought a fresh turkey from a specialty store - well at about 3 o'clock on Thanksgiving morning, we got a phone call from the store that the turkeys were bad. I asked how we could tell, and they said when you open it, it will smell like rotten eggs. So we went to the kitchen and opened it and the STENCH could have knocked you out. Luckily this store opened up on Thanksgiving morning and replaced the turkeys for all its customers and our dinner was saved. - One year we had a house full of dinner guests and my husband had sharpened the knives before carving because he wanted to look like the TV shows where you see the husband carve perfectly even pieces at the beautiful dining room table...well the knife was certainly very sharp when it slipped and sliced his finger. Embarrassed and intent on not ruining everyone's else's day, he wrapped his finger in paper towels and went to the emergency room. When he got there were five other men sitting there with their fingers wrapped in paper towels. - My folks didn't know the turkey was still frozen until they went to put it in the oven. All hell broke loose between my mother and father. The grocery stores were all closed and we couldn't even find a pound of hamburger. We searched through all the kitchen shelves only to come up with a canned ham. Moral of the story: always keep a canned ham on hand as a backup plan. - My family has a few horror stories. The exploding chestnuts is my favorite. - I remember more than a few Thanksgivings at my house where you (Jimmy) would fall asleep on the couch for an hour with a full glass of beer and never spill a drop! - One year at my in-laws we all sat down for this great meal that my father in-law made. First he carved the bird in the kitchen and started to bring the rest of the food into the dining room. He stopped to talk to us and we heard a crash. Running into the kitchen we found that the dog had pulled the turkey off the table and was eating it! - We were at my in-laws house for a few hours getting things ready when someone mentioned there was no turkey smell. Mom-in-law forgot to turn on the oven. Dinner was served around 8-9pm. - How about having to dress up like a bleeping Pilgrim to twirl a baton at the Thanksgiving Day game? Complete with pilgrim hat? Doesn't get much more humiliating than that. - Living in an apartment in Somerville many years ago, we didn't know the oven had a timer, as I had never cooked anything in the oven longer than 1 hour. About 3 hours after putting turkey in oven, I went to check on it, only to find the timer had shut the oven off...good thing us Italians always have a pasta meal along with turkey. We had lasagna for Thanksgiving dinner with mashed potatoes, squash, sweet potatoes, peas and cranberry sauce. File that one under "Ciao down!" - We had ham and turkey one year. My brother cooked the ham and brought it with him. As the day wore on and the ham grew smaller and smaller we discovered a few tree leaves on the bottom. Turns out dear brother placed the ham in the pan on the railing on his porch. It fell into a bed of leaves. He picked it up, put it back in the pan and obviously did NOT check to see if there were any leaves on it. We joked and said the maple leaves flavored the ham. - We had an old tomcat named Sam who liked to hunt sparrows. Well, one Thanksgiving Sam decided to join us. The back door was open to let some of the heat out of the kitchen, and in comes Sam through a hole in the screen door with his own bird! I can still remember my mother yelling: "Get that G.D. cat out of the kitchen!" - A friend of mine told me that her uncle got mad and tossed the turkey off the third floor porch. Let's hope nothing like that happens this year. Alcoholic beverages + waiting for food to be served + in-laws + being in a hot, noisy, crowded house for hours = a dampening of some people's festive mood. Let's hope everyone's feast can be a happy episode of Thanksgiving, the sitcom. Thanks to those of you who shared your Thanksgiving memories with me. So this Thanksgiving, we will loosen our belts, watch football and fall asleep in front of the TV - creating a chorus of snoring. Some of us men will probably also do that! If I was one of those guys, I would usually wake up grumpy and thirsty, but still thankful. I am thankful for the memories of those Thanksgiving Days gone by, and grateful for the ones we are lucky enough to enjoying this year. I will return to Amelia's kitchen in Teele Square on Thursday, Dec 3rd for music, macaroni and mayhem. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! | |||
November 11, 2009
Leave them there!
Saturday morning: Remember when dad would be raking the leaves and he would let you jump into the pile? I don't. I don't remember my dad ever raking leaves, but I do recall jumping into piles of leaves somewhere. Maybe it was up Powder House Park. We also used to fill Johnnies Foodmaster bags with acorns for the sole purpose of whipping them at each other. I still have a rake in the cellar that is at least 40 years old. I have it used it to rake the leaves out from in between the shrubs and plants in the spring, but rarely in the fall. It is kept mainly as a museum piece. But today is the day that I might rake some leaves in my yard, and afterward I may trim the two trees out front. It is a duty I perform each spring and every Fall. I even borrowed the guy next door's big extended-length trimmer (I have a shorter version), but it has been in my side hall for almost three weeks. Today may be the day. The day after the tree clipping leaves the old body pretty sore. It's all that reaching and stretching to get the top leaves on the trees. But it is time, I fear. When the tree branches are cut they will need to be picked up and stuffed into the waste barrels and yard bags. I hate that part even more. It's all that bending. The city will be picking up yard waste pretty regularly for the next several weeks so I have no excuses. Yes I do - I hate raking leaves. Everywhere you look are "Complete Yard Care" companies blowing, raking and gathering leaves from peoples properties. It must be nice to be able to have someone do that work for you. I actually have a friend who has a thriving business which he started with just one lawn mower. Here is my philosophy: the word is "leave." The Lord is trying to tell us something. "Leave" them there. Didn't you ever hear of mulch? I have never, ever raked the leaves from my yard in the Fall. But miraculously, every spring, most have disintegrated and the rest I can rake easily, because they are shriveled, wet and rotted. Some would say, that raking leaves is a job for my two able-bodied sons! I say, getting them to take the dog out and put their dirty socks in the hamper are major accomplishments and I don't want to push it. I'm saving up the favors when it comes to those two. I may need them to actually carry, lift, push, roll or pull me in the future when I am shriveled, wet and rotted. It is now 8am on Saturday morning. I am going to make some coffee and take out the dog (the boys won't be up until at least 10am). Then I will attempt to straighten up this pigpen we live in. I will empty the dishwasher and the clothes dryer. I will get back to you later on either the success, or failure, of the tree trimming and perhaps a little raking. Remember, it's Saturday and there is a lot of college football on! Saturday night: I spent three hours with the tree pruning thing and my muscles are aching (I know, wah wah!). I would jump into a nice hot Jacuzzi if the gaskets were not worn away. The last time I tried using it, it leaked through the floor and flooded the first floor bathroom. The boys actually surprised the heck out of me by doing a great job of cleaning and straightening up the house. I jammed the cuttings into a barrel and two yard bags, but I did not do any raking. My neighbors have been vigilant about raking over the last few weeks and the leaves just keep coming back. They are not finished falling yet - it is still Fall, after all. I may drag the rake out when the trees are close to bare. I'll clear the leaves off my sidewalk and stairs if it poses a walking hazard, but that's it. Why break a decades-long tradition of not raking? If you can't find your gloves, you will end up with a blister or two on your hands from the rake. All sensible signs point to leaving the leaves there. There is, of course, the neatness factor to consider. The neighbors properties do look nicer after the leaves are picked up, but it is only November 11th and the trees are still dropping their colorful gifts. At Powder House Park it is basically raining leaves. To me it's crazy to rake until the leaves have stopped falling, not that I 'm going to rake at all. I never watched the game on Saturday, which is just as well, seeing as how Notre Dame lost. So as Frankie said in the 80's: "Relax, don't do it," unless you want to. Come Spring they will miraculously be gone anyway. I 'm not raking unless I get the uncontrollable urge to jump into a pile of leaves. You can email Jimmy directly at jimmydel@rcn.net. | |||
November 06, 2009
Where it's Veteran's Day all year long
On The Silly Side (The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.) We celebrate Veteran's Day on Nov. 11, but I found a place where it's Veterans Day, every day. I spent about an hour at Tony Matarazzo's Barber shop at 294 Broadway the other day, but I didn't get a haircut. What I did get was a refreshed feeling of patriotism and pride, and a renewed appreciation for the courageous veterans that fought to keep us free. On a table in Tony's Barber shop is what is known as the Armed Forces Honor Roll book. It is a neatly assembled collection of photographs, newspaper clippings, discharge papers, family shots, and even Western Union telegrams, all telling a the story of the brave veterans from the Winter Hill neighborhood. Phil Vozella, who is also a barber at Tony's explained why the book was started and why it is so important. "These are neighborhood guys, customers, and friends who answered the call of duty and served their nation. There are photos of veterans from World War I, World War ll, Korea, Viet Nam, Desert Storm, and even Afghanistan and Iraq. Bob Quinn, a Korean War Vet, just did the whole book over. The plastic sleeves and easy to read text make it an extremely interesting and easy to read collection. One of the most prestigious entries is that of retired four-star Gen. John Sheehan from Putnam Rd in the Ten Hills Area. He was one of 13 children and his dad drove a truck for First National foods. The General's father was known as "The Irish Whip" because of his softball pitching talent. The General used to cut the hedges at St Polycarp Church. You can hear many more stories at the barber shop. Tony Matarazzo himself volunteered for the Navy when he was just 16 years old. Tony tells stories of his fellow veterans like they just happened yesterday. There is a section showing the Wilson brothers, who all served in Korea and returned safely to Somerville. There was Fredrick, Woodrow, Walter and William who I had the pleasure of meeting and speaking with at the barber shop. William turned out to be an old friend who I hadn't seen in about 30 years. "Willie" is a four- time commander of Post 299 in Cambridge. There is a wonderful picture the five Shea brothers -- John, Richard, Edward, Robert and Albert. Fred Solberg's story is pretty exciting, he escaped from a POW camp twice. He ran Fred's Hardware on Marshall Street and Broadway for years. As Phil says, "It is a book to tell the story of our local boys who served their country in time of need." The book is a testimonial that serves as a reminder of the bravery and unselfish dedication of the servicemen from the Winter Hill area. You can see a great photo of Vic Leone in the book. Yes, the same Vic Leone from Leones Sub and Pizza! Some of the names and photos in the book are: Tony and Nick Cortese, Emilio Caizzi, Joe Vigliotti, Arthur Harrington, Vito Capello, John S. Hayes, Bob Haley and Retired Full Colonel Joseph W. Mercuri of the Nation Guard. Phil tells this story , which is one of the most exciting I heard during my visit. On their landing craft heading to the invasion of Okinawa, John "Hard Rock" Burns, along with many other somber servicemen were quiet. Also on board was Corpsman George Doherty. "Hardrock" say, "Hey, I'm the only one who thought ahead and brought his own funeral director!" The funny line eased the tension of the moment. George Doherty of course went on to run the Funeral Home in Power House Square. It is Phil and Tony's wish that the people of the neighborhood, especially the younger generation, look at the book and understand the sacrifices that their fellow citizens made for their country. Phil Vozella is a human encyclopedia on Somerville Veterans history. It was a pleasure and an honor spending an hour with them. I walked out of Tony Matarazzo's barber shop with a feeling of deep appreciation for what our brave veterans did for our nation. Go to Tony's and check out the Armed Forces Honor Roll Book. If you get a haircut there you will look great on the outside and feel even better on the inside . Let's not forget to keep in our hearts and prayers, the many dedicated and brave servicemen and women, who are serving our country and preserving our freedom right now. There are three different Veteran's events for the month of November: Street dedication: Joseph Duffy, father of Patrolman Paul Duffy, Saturday Nov. 7th 11 a.m. corner of Powderhouse Blvd. and Dow St. Annual dinner honoring police and firefighters of the year: Tuesday, Nov. 10th 7 p.m. American Legion Post #19 124 Highland Ave. (names have been submitted for citations) Annual Veterans Day ceremony: Wednesday, Nov. 11 10 a.m. VFW George Dilboy Post #529 371 Summer St. | |||
October 28, 2009
Halloweens gone by
The worst part about trick or treating was trying to fit that flimsy costume over your bulky winter coat if it was cold out - but it didn't stop us from having a blast. I can't begin to tell you how much my son's mask and accessories set me back this year. It's shameful. My justification was how excited he got when he put on the get-up and wore it to a classmates costume party. The old Ben Cooper costumes came in that small box with the cellophane covered opening so you could see the mask. The mask was the thinnest possible plastic available at the time. It had the skinny elastic held in place by putting the little metal ends through the holes in the mask. I often ended up breaking the elastic. Sometimes the holes in the mask would split and spread open. Dad would have to make a new hole or tape the hell out it. I'm pretty sure the wool hat Mom made me wear under the mask helped break the elastics. That combined with the fact that I had a pretty big head to begin with. Those costumes were okay except for the fact that the masks only covered the front of your face. Your hair, ears, head and neck were exposed. For us kids, those costumes were great. Woolworths and WT Grants were our Halloween Costume headquarters. I'll never forget those houses where you would get a handful of loose, unwrapped popcorn dropped into your sack. Sometimes it would be a few pennies scattered over the Milky Ways and Three Musketeers bars. Here are some of my friend's recollections of Somerville Halloweens of yesterday: Those were the days. There were so many houses to go to, and your parents didn't have to worry about any houses to stay away from. And the candy bars were BIG. We used to fill up our bags, go home and dump them out, then head out again for more. I had so much candy one year, I still had some left in January. The Healey School Parades - all the kids in the school would dress in costumes and walk some of the streets. The kids loved seeing some of the teachers in costumes and all the parents would stand on the sidewalks cheering and taking pictures. Did anyone else carry noisemakers such as metal clickers or spinners? It was a tradition to go to Nana & Nonno's house on Westwood Road so they could give us an apple with a quarter inside! Hey, what can I say, it was the 50's. When it rained we still went out - as "fishermen" with yellow slickers and those wide yellow hats. We finished our small block and then went out to Cedar Street to the triple deckers - 3 times the candy in one house! I actually don't have any memories, but I do know that the late Bobby "Boris" Pickett who wrote and recorded "Monster Mash" was from Somerville. He grew up watching horror movies at his father's movie theater and got the idea to imitate Boris Karloff, which inspired him to write Monster Mash. My mom dated Bobby "Boris" Pickett when she was younger. My favorite Halloween memory was that apartment building on the corner of Park and College next to the library. It was all elderly people and they used to come down into the lobby where they had a table set up. They gave us doughnuts and real apple cider. Sometimes if you had a really good costume-they would ask you to go upstairs to show someone who could not make it down to the lobby - can you image anything like that today? We also used the "go home, dump and run policy" to re-fill our bags. The Woodbridge Inn (formerly on College Ave where Ciampa manor is now) also gave donuts and cider. There was an elderly couple somewhere in our neighborhood (Francesca and College Ave area), they made the taffy themselves and when they ran out they would apologize and offer you either some homemade cookies or a quarter. You guys lived in the rich neighborhood. We only got pennies. The old days are alive and well in my neighborhood (Lexington Ave)...we have so many Trick or Treaters we can barely keep up with them. We've counted as many as 200! I agree with everyone's memories above about hitting as many streets as you could and filling pillow cases with candy. We always had home-made costumes, none of these plastic things with a big picture on the front of the box of who you were supposed to be! In my neighborhood, all of the kids visited the drugstore on Summer between Belmont and Lowell (I'll get back to you with the name I'm drawing a blank). The owner gave out candy, but also took a picture of every group of kids who came in. Then after Halloween, he hung all of the pictures in the store. It was so much fun to go up and look at all of the pictures and find yourself in one of them! One grown up trick or treater recalled: "Some of the things we did on Halloween (as kids) could still get us jail time today! Thank God we could run fast in those days!" Halloween back then was GREAT! My Dad would dress us up in his clothes. Sometimes we would be hobos and my brother was even a bride one year! We would fill up our pillow cases a few times. We would go to every house and every street we could think of, and when we got to the houses you would have to wait on the sidewalk because there were so many kids packed on the porches. We would go home, where my parents would check and make sure the candy was okay, then my sister and brothers would trade candy! My mother would put the candy in our empty costume boxes write our names on them and we'd have candy for months! I miss those days! Thanks to all my Somerville friends for sharing their Halloween memories. Now hit the streets, and remember to be careful. There are always those idiots who drive too fast on Halloween. A word to the wise: Slow down. I may have a pocketful of grade A's! Don't forget to check out the Post Meridian Radio Players presentation of The Big Broadcast of 1938 - a Halloween spectacular at the Somerville Theatre. The production will feature a comedy: "The Frank Cyrano Byfar Hour" that's billed as "a lost classic from Boston radio history." There will also be a presentation of the Orson Welles classic, "The War of the Worlds," rewritten so the action is set in Boston. Watch for my small role as Massachusetts Governor Hurley. The performances, with live orchestra and awesome sound effects, will run October 29-31 at 8:00pm with a special 2:00pm matinée on the 31st. Tickets are available online at http://bb1938.com/tickets_info.html. You can email Jimmy directly at jimmydel@rcn.com. | |||
October 14, 2009
Remembering Billy Dillon - friend and Pharaoh
We lost my friend Billy Dillon last Thursday. "BD" as he was known to many of his friends. He was 53 and would have been 54 on Halloween. I have known Billy since we were kids in Project STAR many years ago. If there is a message in this week's piece, it is simply this: stop just "making" plans to get together with your friends - and follow through with them. Take a break from all the stuff that is still going to be there when you get back. Spend some quality time with those quality people, because you just never know. When these old friends are suddenly gone, it will be too late and you could end up writing about it in a newspaper column some day. The column is called On the Silly Side, but the only thing silly this week is how silly, fleeting, and fickle life can be. There are three "contacts" on my cell phone that will now only serve as a reminder - a reminder that I should have hit "send" and made plans to see an old friend. Billy was married to Deborah (O'Gorman) Dillon of Malden. He was the father of Brendan, Patrick and Jacqueline Louise Dillon. He was the son of the late John and Louise Dillon and brother of Katherine Ricketts of Malden, John Dillon of New Haven, Conn, Janet Kirby of Quincy, Barbara Dillon of Revere and the late Diane Martino. Billy graduated from Somerville High School in 1973. Billy had battled and beat cancer, but it was a heart attack that took him from us. Here is part of an article I did a while back that speaks of the musical group Billy was part of. The year was 1974 and the Fabulous Pharaohs were the big attraction at The Embassy Lounge on Somerville Ave. Inspired by The Great Pretenders, The Pharaohs were a pantomime act that did '50s and '60s music on Thursdays and Sunday nights. The members were Mark, John, Mike, Billy and Brian. Mike's brother, another John, ran the equipment (get well soon, John ). Mark's brother George was part of the group for a short time and their father, George Sr. - managed them for a while. Joe Ward and Dave Emery were also on the tech crew at various times. Complete with their matching tuxedos, other flashy outfits and impressive light show, The Fabulous Pharaohs packed the Embassy Lounge week after week. Loads of enthusiastic girls showed up religiously to cheer on the entertaining group. They had a dedicated following who knew every song and every move - and believe me, these guys had their moves down to a "t" with precision accuracy. When the strobe light kicked in during "Pretty Little Angel Eyes" the crowd went wild. Brian, who was at least 6 foot 4 inches tall, danced into a frenzy - faster and faster with the beat - when "Beep Beep" played night after night, the place went crazy. Billy sang lead on "Good Lovin," "Chantilly Lace," and "Get Ready." The phenomenon went on and on, spreading to Studley's and eventually to Johnny D's. The personnel of the Fabulous Pharaohs changed along with the name - The Amazing Sensations and Solid Gold were offshoots and reincarnations of the original. You can go to YouTube and search Amazing Sensations to get an idea of what the group was all about. Billy Dillon added his boy next door good looks and killer smile complete with blue eyes to that magical line-up. My band would be breaking down our equipment and those guys were bringing theirs in, and we would just laugh and goof around. Billy went nuts with laughter when I used my "Yakky Doodle Duck" cartoon voice to say "Where's the Miller" referring of course to Miller beer. Billy was also a dispatcher for Green Cab for many years. There will be a memorial service on Saturday, October 17th at 10am at St. Catherine's Church on Summer Street. We are all crazy busy with those everyday chores like work, kids and bills. I know some of you have dealt with the same regrets when someone passes and you meant to see them, but were too late. We cannot beat ourselves up for being legitimately trapped in the whirlwind of life. Every time a friend passes away, I say the same thing: "I won't let it happen again." But it does. Life doesn't stop or stand still so we can get together or pay a visit to an old friend. We have to put the brakes on and make it happen. Every time I heard the Song "Angel Eyes" it always brought me back to that wonderful time watching my friends perform. Now when I hear "Angel Eyes" I will look up and know that Billy Dillon will be keeping an eye on all of his loving friends and family members who will miss him dearly. You can email Jimmy direct at jimmydel@rcn.com. | |||
September 02, 2009
Back to School Jitters
It's that time of year again. Reading and writing and 'arithmetic. This time of year used to make me sick. When I heard those commercials like "before you go back to school, go to Zayres," my stomach cringed. It also seemed that we always discovered something really cool right at the end of the summer that was now cut short by school. One year it was extending the forks on our bikes, another year it was hanging out with a new group of girls on the next street. Sometimes it was playing football or Frisbee, but school always goofed it up. I spoke to a few of my friends who, like me, still get a nervous ache in their stomach whenever the beginning of the school year starts. Both my kids are actually anxious to get back to school. Man have times changed. I tried every trick in the book to get out of school, and I mean everything. We were playing hooky at my friend Teddy's house when I was a sophomore at Somerville High. My pal Danny called in to the office disguising his voice, and saying he was Mr. Del Ponte. Whoever answered the phone at the High school said, "My, Mr. DelPonte, you certainly have a young voice!" I called back a second later and said, "James Del Ponte will be right in." When I was still at St. Clements, I faked a stomach ache to get out of school. There was actually nothing wrong with my stomach at all. I lied about the pain. My parents took me up Somerville High School where they removed my appendix. That will teach me to fake an illness, right? Wrong. I invented a mysterious pain in my leg to try to ditch a few classes. My hypochondriac mother dragged me back to the same Doctor who found a mysterious "baker's cyst" in the back of my leg and, voila, another operation. There was no leg pain whatsoever, but "Dr. Invento," sold my parents two unnecessary surgeries. Sure there is a chance that there really WAS something wrong with my leg and appendix, but because of the reputation of this nameless Doctor, I seriously doubt it. There is a still a small stitch visible on the back of my leg that was "operated" on. The scar left by Dr. Create-an-ailment was so bad, that I actually called Jim Sokolove. They told me that too many years had gone by. It's a good thing I didn't fake a headache. I would have ended up with a lobotomy. I finally learned my lesson about creating imaginary illnesses in order to stay out of school. Bottom line was, I really hated going to school. I wanted to stay home and watch re-runs of Gomer Pyle and Yogi Bear cartoons. Anything but school. But it was different then - there were only a handful of nice teachers. I didn't say 'good' teachers mind you, I said nice. Maybe it was difficult to be nice to a kid wearing bell bottoms dungarees and sporting a David Cassidy haircut. Perhaps some teachers didn't approve of our being in an organization called the Committee of Concerned Students and publishing a newspaper called The Inside Agitator. Teachers back then used threatening tactics to try to get us to conform. It was like prison. It made us appreciate the really good teachers all the more. Dick Gordinier, Julio Perno, Tony Fedele, Mrs. Carafotes, Mr. De Angelis and Mr. Da Prato, to name a few. I could rattle off a few of the meanies too, but you know who they were. One former building master was partly responsible for my resigning as the high school drama teacher. After making my four years of high school miserable, this person was now going to be my "superior." No thanks. I probably would have been close to retiring at this point in time. Anyway, I didn't apply for the job, they came and asked me. It's now all water under the Ball Square Bridge. I still have nightmares that I am in school, facing an exam, with no pencil, and in my pajamas. I am glad my kids like school. For me it was a bad memory except for the talent shows and drama performances. They tried to make me repeat one class with the same blow-hard macho, head tripping idiot that flunked me the first time. That's when I dropped the college course. HA HA!! I still went to college anyway! And I still carry a grudge against that jerk teacher. I never needed his jive class at all. I have been counting on my fingers for years and it has worked out just fine! I would like to give my thanks and gratitude for all the great teachers I had over the years. I would also like to express my thankfulness for all the awesome teachers my kids have. A lot of my friends and former classmates are now teachers! After working very closely with the Somerville School Department over the past year, I am happy to report that we are very lucky to have the best schools possible. Times have changed for the best and any student in the Somerville Public Schools can look forward to the best education they can possibly get. So as my kids return to school, I will go back to laying out their clothes, preparing their snacks, forcing them to go to bed, prying them out of bed and keeping them off You Tube until their homework is done. You can email Jimmy directly at jimmydel@rcn.com. | |||
August 30, 2009
Somerville 101 - A Primer
Jimmy Del Ponte On The Silly Side (The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.) Here is a little Somerville history for you newcomers - some of it is a review from former columns and supplemented with reader comments. It concentrates mostly on the Davis Square, Powder House Park and Ball Square area - because that's where I have lived for the last 54 years. There used to be three Junior High Schools in Somerville - the Western on Holland Street (now owned by Tufts University), the Southern on Summer Street (now a dog park), and the Northeastern on Marshall Street (now townhouses). Somerville also had a Trade High School in East Somerville - "Muzzy" was the principal. The Apollo Cake Company was also in that area of the city. Ball Square used to have a roast beef place called Lambros - across from where Harold's Luncheonette was (now Kelly's). My band (The Tool) had a 45 titled "Spark'em Up" - and it was in their jukebox. Savel's five and dime store was also in Ball Square, as was Mitchell's Variety at the corner of Josephine and Broadway. The Willow Jazz Club thrived for a while, but cool jazz riffs weren't all that was being blown in there - the Feds shut it down. BoBo's Chinese Restaurant was also in Ball Square. There was a little store (I've heard) near Harold's that was one of two places in Ball Square you could book some action. There used to be a variety store we called "Oscars" at the bottom of Liberty Road. The Royal White Cleaners on Cedar Street used to be a Dairy Queen. It used to be dangerous to walk through Powder House Park when the tough guys took it over in the 70s. Beltram and Son Locksmiths used to be where Nellie's Wildflowers is on Holland Street. Some of the stores in Davis Square were: Parke Snow, Gorin's, The Children's Shop, Grants, Woolworths, Fanny Farmer, Thom McCann, Highland Shoe, Speedy Pizza, and Kay and Chips Restaurant. You could go to Kay and Chips after the bars closed for breakfast and a brawl. Goff's Auto Store, The Bargain Center and Ming Toy Chinese Restaurant once graced the Rosebud end of Davis Square. The police officer that everyone loved in Davis Square, who always had beaming smile, was Al Collins. Pasik's Furniture Store in the square did not sell tiny beds - they were shortened versions just for the window display. One of those huge beautiful houses near Powder House Park on Broadway was where a real family doctor lived. His name was Harry Goldenberg MD, and he made house calls (complete with black bag), and gave shots in the butt. When he wasn't holding a needle, he was a very nice man. Another house on Powder House Boulevard next to Doherty's was moved all the way over to Highland Avenue near the Hospital - it's actually on videotape someplace. Some of our Mayors were: S. Lester Ralph, James Brennan, William Donovan, Larry Bretta, Mike Capuano, Dot Gay and Gene Brune. Mary Sogliero ran for mayor but never made it. Joe's last name is pronounced Curta-tony, not Curta-tone. That big house on the hill, that has it's own driveway between Morrison Avenue and Hall Avenue was once owned by Burton Faulkner, of Faulkner Brothers Oil - they used to have a watch dog name Gretchen. Before they did away with the "blue laws" you either had to drive to New Hampshire to get beer on Sunday or go to a few choice stores and bars for an illegal six-pack. These establishments also sold booze after the liquor stores closed at 11 pm. The proprietor of one of these joints in East Somerville also kept a shotgun in plain sight. Country and Western music could, at one time, be enjoyed at Johnny D's and at Khoury's State Spa. Yee- ha John Penny! This next point is very important - Somerville has only two "L"s in it - do not, under any circumstances, add an another "L" after the S, even in jest (hopefully you catch my drift). If someone from another town does this, be offended, become belligerent and defend your city - in a civil manner of course. Somerville's official colors are blue and red, as in the song "Somerville Leads the Way." Also, don't forget to feed the meters - and if anyone asks you, marshmallow Fluff was invented in Somerville. Please e-mail your comments to Jimmy at: jimmydel@rcn.com | |||
August 22, 2009
Summers Gone By
On The Silly Side (The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.) My kids just got back from 3 days at Six Flags Theme Park with their mother, and I'm sure she dropped a nice hunk of change. A family of my friends with small children were heading up to Story Land in New Hampshire. With gas and hotel, that costs a pretty penny. A day at Canobie Lake Park, for a family of 4 without discount coupons, will cost a whopping $120.00. Toss in the food and some souvenirs and you're coming home with an empty wallet. It's all relative too. Back in the day, my dad spent a lot of money to take us to Revere Beach, Paragon Park or Norumbega Park for the day. There were always the Foss and Dilboy pools, too. I never went to those pools because I am too much of a germaphobe (HBF...Human Bacterial Frappe!). I think we went to Wakefield's short lived Pleasure Island amusement park during it's ten-year existence. Pleasure Island boasted appearances by Bonanza's Michael Landon and the Three Stooges (with Curly Joe De Rita). We took a couple of trips into Boston also to ride the swan boats, which was a fun summer activity. There was always the old stand by - Revere Beach. We were so lucky to have had this amazing amusement park when we were kids. My friend Charlie's grandfather helped build the wooden Cyclone roller coaster, and we actually worked at the Dodge'Em Cars for a while. Our band, Shadowfax, also played at Hurley's Palm Garden on the boulevard, right up until they snuffed the beach for condos.When we became teenagers, I can remember a few places we went to for fun during the summer. One was the Sheepfold area of the Middlesex Fells Reservation in Stoneham. We would arrive there in several carloads with a guitar and a few coolers. We had a lot of fun, but if I remember correctly, there were a couple of run-ins with the authorities as well. Breakheart Reservation in Saugus and Wakefield was a favorite spot for us also. One year I tried to swim to the "island," only to be rescued by my former girlfriend, who I was trying to impress. I dove in, swam like Hell for 3 minutes, but somehow had managed to turn myself around halfway to the island. So I was out of breath and yelling for help. Good thing she was an avid swimmer and former member of the Medford High School swim team. I learned a lesson about showing off. We popped into Sandy Beach in Medford every once in a while, as well as Wrights Pond. At Wrights I believe you had to have a Medford Resident sticker, but we still got in. My pal Bob is a Park Ranger up there. Today, the closest place I have found to Revere Beach is Old Orchard Beach in Maine. We hit that fun spot a few times a year. They have a pier area, a great beach and a decent amusement park. I call it Somerville with water, because I always seem to see a familiar face from the "Ville" up there. We have our little trailer in New Hampshire, which is a lot of fun for a summer escape on weekends through October 15th. Some of you people are lucky enough to have a "cottage." They are usually passed down from generation to generation. You kids are lucky! And if its close to a lake or pond you are even luckier. We had one in Wareham for a few years, but dad sold it when we stopped going down there. I wish we had it now, that's for sure. My timing was all off. If my kids had already been born he would never have sold it. Oh well, you can't go back. I am happy with the options I have. It's fun thinking about the ways we kept cool in those summers of the 60's and 70's. Driving our old clunkers packed with our friends to have a little fun. Sure we were a bit careless, but somehow most of us made it. I think I still have one of those matchbooks with the discount offer for Paragon Park someplace in the cellar. Thank you for the fantastic turn out last Wednesday for the Project Star production of the mini-musical "Back in the 'Ville." Keep your eyes and ears open for news about an encore performance. You can email Jimmy directly at : jimmydel@rcn.com. | |||
July 29, 2009
Happy Birthday to me!
Yesterday was my birthday, but I am writing this on Monday night. So tomorrow is actually my birthday. I hope I had fun. I also hope I survived, or this article is posthumous, or post humorless, or something like that. I can't believe I will celebrate birthday number 56. My birthday used to be an excuse to over-celebrate and make an ass of myself. One year my good friend planned a surprise party for me. A lot of people were waiting at his house, and his girlfriend was supposed to bring me over later. Neither of us ever made it to the party. Me and my friends' girlfriend decided to have our own party. I blamed it on the booze. Thankfully I don't partake anymore. Now when I make an ass of myself, I have nothing to blame it on. When we were kids, mom would make a Betty Crocker cake and a few friends and cousins would sit at the kitchen table and party hearty with cone shaped hats on. Remember the pain in the neck you got when those elastics snapped? I have some photos up on my Facebook page of some of those pre-1960 parties. When mom made the cake, I used to love to lick the beater blades. It was more enjoyable when the beater was off. There would be the smell of birthday candle smoke in the kitchen, and Winston cigarettes in the parlor. I remember some of the cool stuff I got for my birthday. One year I got a Mr. Machine - it was a walking, six or seven inch robot whose gears were visible. It made weird sounds as it walked into walls. It was made by Ideal. They now fetch at least a hundred bucks on eBay. Another year, I got a Mattel Fanner Fifty cowboy pistol that used "greenie stick-em caps." I still have that toy gun, and it's a good eBay item also. If I could have the perfect fantasy birthday it would be something like this - I would pick up Michelle Pfeiffer in my 1992 Camaro Convertible (that I had to trade in when the kids came along). We would drive around Somerville honking the horn so everyone would see me with her. We would have lunch at the Venice Café and go to Friendly's on Cedar and Highland and share a sundae. Then I would do a set at the Embassy Lounge with my band so I could show off in front of Michelle. Okay, Earth to Jimmy, come back to reality. My cell phone rang on Sunday and it was my aunt Molly (my mother's sister) who is a spry 94 years old. She said she would have mailed my card, but she walked and walked and couldn't find a mailbox. For some reason there are now fewer mailboxes in the Somerville Avenue area these days. She told me she missed me and I told her I missed her, so I headed over to her house. She had a nice religious card for me and a very thoughtful gift. We had a nice little visit. I also saw my cousins Tom and Bonnie and Mike who live upstairs from auntie. It was great seeing them, because we don't get together as much as we would like to. I also got a card from my aunt Olga. That one made me teary. The front read "You stole my heart as a little guy, you've won my admiration as a man." The message on the inside said, "You'll always be the nephew I love like a son." I feel the same way about her. My cousin Carol sent me a card that made me laugh like a nut. It said "One of us remembered your birthday...and the other one just kinda lives in the house and doesn't know what's going on." Too funny! I am so lucky to have my aunts and cousins (and one uncle left) in my life. Very, very lucky. I will start my birthday at 9am with the kids from Project STAR. We are rehearsing my original mini-musical, "Back In The 'Ville." Don't forget (free plug) to come on Wednesday August 12th at 7pm in the Somerville High School auditorium. It's free and it's going to be great! A special thanks to the many friends who wished me happy birthday on Facebook. Tennessee Ernie Ford sang "16 tons and what do you get, another year older and deeper in debt." I don't care about my ever-increasing debt, I just care about staying here and having as many birthdays as possible. My awesomely, wonderful Sunsetters will perform in front of my house (yesterday) and then we will have a party. I am pretty healthy, my kids are great, and I love what I am doing so that's all the gift I need. I wish my parents, brother and sister were here to celebrate with me, but Michelle Pfeiffer will have to do. | |||
July 22, 2009
Has the well run dry?
My good friend Alan Nissenbaum of the re-cycled auto parts dynasty thinks I have run out of topics to write about. The name of this column is "On The Silly Side" so that gives me a lot of free territory to explore - there is a lot of "silly" stuff just fermenting in my head. All I have to do is censor/tone it down a bit and I have an article. Running out of ideas, indeed! I can talk about the fact that Alan gave me an unbelievable deal on a re-cycled air conditioner condenser for my gas guzzling un-earth-friendly, yet very practical because I tote a lot of musical and camping equipment and kids around on a daily basis, SUV. Seems that the truck was "acting a lot like it's owner and blowing a lot of hot air!" Running out of stuff to write about? Are you kidding? Never, my friends, never. How about that ArtBeat? The annual gathering of all things artsy, creative, musical, tasty, odd and interesting. This year I actually got to spend some time in a shady spot. Doesn't it seem that ArtBeat is always the most humid and sticky hot day of the summer? But it is always well worth it. People came from all over to bask in Villicity. A friend came from Arlington and just happened to catch the performance by my awesome Sunsetters. Talk about a fashion show? Tie-dyed, dreadlocks, piercings, tattoos, great hats, lots of kids, piercings, sandals, flip flops, more tattoos, more piercings and an ample smattering of underarm shrubbery. ArtBeat is a tradition that Somerville always pulls off successfully and it gets better every year. And on the serious side, it is an honor for me to talk about SC Second Class Carl J. Lorenzo Square at the corner of Morrison Ave and College Ave. Carl served bravely and was decorated while in the Navy during World War II. Frank Senesi did a great job as usual in putting together and emceeing the ceremony, which included two color guards and a lot of Mr. Lorenzo's proud family members. Ward 6 Alderman Rebekah Gewirtz was very helpful in making the dedication a reality. Rebekah and Alderman at Large Dennis Sullivan said some very nice words at the ceremony. I knew Carl, who left us way too soon, as his son Phil put it so eloquently. Phil made the dedication his heart's work and you can bet that his dad is proud of his son. I sure am proud of Phil and I am glad I got to know his dad . He was like my dad - the father of an aspiring rock musician. They put up with a lot of crap from us Hall Ave rockers! Add Jake O'Neil - Pat's dad into that mix also. Our dads should get also get a gold record for being rock pops. Here's to you Carl! This just in! Young up-starts displaying careless and moronic behavior have moved onto my street! Two creeps almost ran me and my dog over as they bombed into their driveway. I was walking my small dog and he was sniffing around the front yard close to the driveway. Then...heart attack time! Are you kidding me? When I said rather calmly, considering I was still shaking, "do you know you almost ran me and my dog over?" they laughed and said I should have gotten out of the way. They jetted into the driveway going about 25 mph. out of nowhere, obviously speeding at 9:30 pm. Good thing the dog didn't use the plastic bag I was carrying because I almost needed it for myself. One of the dopes laughingly says "at least your dog had the sense to get out of the way." Well, I went all Jimmy on them and went home. I forgot that I am a 55 year old adult and responded like a 25 year old kid from Somerville and I will leave it at that. No. One more thing. I AM from Somerville, born and bred, and this means I was brought up the hard way - the street way. I have trouble ignoring situations like the reckless, rude stoops in the junk box who almost took me and the dog out. What if a senior citizen had been in front of the driveway? Oh I forgot, I am one! But I did pretty good considering. I pulled my nutty on them and they went in their house, probably to drink more beers and hit the bong some more. I had had a long hot satisfying day doing the right thing with Somerville's talented kids and I guess I just wasn't expecting to be killed on my own street at 9:30 pm walking my pooch. Silly me. That's not how I want to go out. Serenity Now! Serenity Now! (quote from Seinfeld). How am I doing? Want some more? I have been having a great summer since resurrecting Project Star. The Recreation Commission, in conjunction with the Mayor's office, gave me the honor of bringing back this program - which started in 1967 and went until the 80's I believe (I may be wrong and probably am). At any rate, it's back. We will be presenting an original mini-musical that I wrote called "Back in The 'Ville" on Wednesday, August 12th at the Somerville High School Auditorium. The show starts at 7:00 pm and we are adding some very special surprises! We urge all former Project Star members to attend and take the stage and tell us briefly about their shows. It will be a blast from the past and thrill for the present. Admission is free. The lovely and talented Sophia Carafotes is my assistant director. Any time you can get a multi-talented member of the Carafotes family involved in a show, you know it's going to be special. See, I haven't run out of material, unless you stopped reading already and there's a fresh flounder or haddock wrapped in my page in the freezer. I could have told you all the story of how my dad used to wear Bermuda shorts with black socks, and black shoes, but I didn't. And about that dog almost being run over by the idiots thing - I have already let that go - until tomorrow. So Alan Nissenbaum, my dear pal, if I ever really do run out of ideas, I can always tell the story of our mutual friend, the popular and successful comedian from Somerville who use to hop your fence and steal tires! I'll run out of material the day you run out of 1967 Dodge Dart 225 slant-6-cylinder water pumps! You can email Jimmy directly at jimmydel@rcn.com. | |||
July 08, 2009
East Somerville/Somerville Pride, it's one in the same.
I am very pleased to feature a guest contributor to this week's column. Many folks have commented that I don't write enough about other parts of the city and seem to concentrate mostly on the Davis Square area. That's only because that's where my memories are! But now, feel free to open your own memory floodgates and send me your valuable opinions and memories. And now, I would like to introduce Susan Fontano for your reading enjoyment... The City is celebrating it's recent victory of being "crowned" All-America City 2009! Many of us have been living that wonderful sense of Somerville Pride all our life. I'm a lifelong Somervillian, working on 60+ years. Third generation; preceded by my grandmother and mother. I have several friends whom we've been together since kindergarten days at the Prescott School. We went on to Northeastern Junior High (first time we were allowed to cross McGrath Highway) and then off to Somerville High School. I must mention that back then we didn't have the special school buses - we just jumped onto the regular T buses. Crowding in the bus, with the morning commuters, was something else. They didn't know what hit them. We really took over = it was a blast. Hooking up with your friends and talking all the way up Highland Avenue, without skipping a beat. They have all physically moved away. The construction of Route 93 unfortunately pushed some of them out, and for others, life challenges and opportunities required moving. We were all teenagers - school during the day and Eddie's Coke Shop after school - with weekends at the Broadway Show. For the most part our parents worked, so we were pretty independent, and looking back, street smart. Broadway was our playground. We'd patronize all the stores - I guess in retrospect it was our version of the "mall." Everything we needed we could get on Broadway. School supplies, Rainbow Spa or the 5 & 10. Clothes for a "special" event, Tucks. Then there was Tony's Foodland, where our family did their food shopping, complimented by Kennedy's & Lil' Tony's for specialty items. The Broadway fish market had the best seafood, but especially the french fries. We would leave the show during intermission and go get big bags of fries piping hot for less than 20 cents - what am I saying - the ticket for a double feature was 25 cents! The memories keep coming, some happy, some bittersweet. Throughout the year, we really try to get together. Be it a SHS class reunion (we never miss), weddings, birthdays, and yes - funerals. We always make time for one another. I usually like to host a Saturday night in August. We start off at the Mt. Vernon Restaurant for twin lobsters then back to my house. We settle in onto the back porch, put on some music with some coffee and pastries from Patsy's - and reminisce all night long. Those nights, out in the back yard of Somerville under the stars are probably some of the most cherished for me. I'm speaking for myself, but I'm sure my friends would agree, we are the luckiest. Growing up in Somerville gave us the foundation we needed for life. These people are like no other - their appreciation for friends and family, their values, scruples, character, self pride, and yes, Somerville Pride - shine through as much today as it did 45+ years ago. Today, Broadway has changed, but it's still the same. A "place" for kids, mothers and fathers to go for supplies, food and fun. We still have at the corner of our streets, a cobbler (shoe repair), a specialty variety store, Amigo's delicious award winning eateries for when we don't feel like cooking, ice cream parlor, library, banks, clothing stores. I guess it's still the "mall" on Broadway as when I grew up. Sure the surnames are different and the names of the businesses have changed, but not that Somerville spirit. Especially East Somerville - although we appreciate and cherish all we have, we are continually working for an even better Somerville. Through every day citizens, civic groups, East Somerville Main Streets, Mayor Curtatone, Alderman Roche, School Committeewoman Bastardi, Police Captain Devereaux, Police Officer Styles - we all work together to improve the "quality of life" for all businesses and residents. Come share our world in East Somerville! Orsola Susan Fontano | |||
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