Bluesman: Was Nick related to Gerry Cifarelli? She was a friend of my sister Loretta. Oh, and to stay on topic… they used to go to the Embassy Theater all the time.
I did have cousins named DiMarco (Nicholas and Laura) who lived on Linwood Street, and Vitales on Elderts Lane (I think)… my Aunt Millie and cousins Joseph, Linda and Cathy.
Which side of Atlantic Avenue is 195 Lincoln? My father was the mailman from Hill Street to Sheridan Avenue, from Atlantic to Liberty, for many years.
Does anyone know these names (friends of mine during the 60s and early 70s):
Tonacchio
Suzdak
Wall (family members who lived on Grant Avenue in between the St. Sylvester convents)
Cimini
Maske
Cifarelli (my sister’s friend Gerry)
D'Allesio
Catapano (Jimmy Catapano really did “put his eye out” playing stick ball. Eek.
My street, Sheridan between Atlantic and McKinley, had the MOST crazy people living on it in the neighborhood. There was a woman named Birdie who used to direct traffic on Atlantic Avenue…
Peter… I’m in South Salem. But I lived most of my adult life in either Manhattan or Brooklyn (the Heights and Park Slope). I only moved up here to be closer to my job. I miss the city!!!
Well, it’s pretty funny now…. we have to admit. ;)
Hey…did anyone here know the Masoffs? They lived down the block from Blessed Sacrament. I met Joy Masoff about six years ago at tennis camp in Saugerties NY. I said I was from Brooklyn, and she said “Me too.” I said, “Yeah, but NOBODY is from my neighborhood” and she said “No, nobody is from MY neighborhood.” I didn’t know her or her family when I was a kid.
And the rest, they say, is history. Now we’re great friends and live near each other in Westchester.
Remember F&P? (the “gang” that hung out on Fountain and Pitkin… they were a little older than me, but I thought the gang thing was so cool that I used to wear razor blades in my hair so people would think I was in one. Brilliant, eh? LOL)
Gaytana was good friends with my good friend Andrew Tonacchio who lived across the street from me on Sheridan Avenue & Atlantic. Unfortunately, Andrew died of AIDS in the first wave, in 1983.
I had a Thingmaker too!!! OMG. Too funny. And of course you’re correct about Damocles. I’m such a stickler for spelling that I HATE being wrong. ;)
Another cool thing from the past that I’ve bought for my kids are Rube Goldberg models. They are the best! I used to also put together models of cars and monsters. Another great smell: hobby glue.
OH and what about that goopy stuff that you’d put at the end of a straw to blow bubbles? I’m sure you’ll remember the name…
I remember something in Video Village (or was it Shenanigans? I always get them mixed up) called “The Sword of Damoclese”, and another thing where you had to put your hands inside a box and identify the object in there.
Lawn Green! We used to make that same joke.
How the heck you remember those numbers is beyond me. I thought #1 was black.
Did you have a wood burning set? I loved the smell of that thing. As well as the smell of oil paints and turpentine, which I’m sure has seared the molecules of my lungs forever.
P: I only know her married name (Golden) but I’ll find out what her father’s name was. She, too, is an amazing writer.
Re the toys of the 60s, there used to be a store on 2nd Avenue between 60th and 61st St. that sold ALL of the toys from the past… I haven’t been there in years so I don’t know if it still exists, but it was such a cool place to go.
It kills me to think of all the games and toys we threw away that would be worth a fortune today! We even had the board game: “The Kennedys”. Other board games I remember: Mystery Date (“Will he be a dream, or a dud? Open the door for your… Mystery Date…”), Video Village (based on the TV show), Shenanigans (based on the TV Show with Stubby Kaye), Lie Detector (I found one at a tag sale a few years ago and my kids love it).
And of course, we’d get a new Venus Paradise Colored Pencil color-by-numbers every couple of weeks.
Peter…. too funny about that double standard! And thanks for the Mick Jagger jumpsuit visual. I have to go scrub my brain now. ;)
A lot of the retro toys are back now. I saw a “Mr. Machine” in our local toy store (not used… Ideal is actually making them again!) and a “Robert the Robot”.
Muzer, Mopella and PKoch… thanks for taking the time to check out my blog! It’s been fun to scan old photos and write the stories that they ellicit.
Muzer/Mopella.. I’m 52, and went to PS 171 for Kindergarten in 1960, St. Sylvester’s from 1961-1969, St. Michael’s from ‘69-73. I remember that some girls in my class went to Maxwell. I, on the other hand, became a stereotypical wild Catholic school girl. ;)
Peter: Honestly, I think I’m still 22 in my head. Thankfully we’ve got good genes in my family and all the women look about 15 years younger than their age. (This does not please my 22 year old daughter, who can easily pass for 16).
I like the Sylvia Plath factoid! Spooky!
Yes, we loved Outer Space too. I did a blog post about Christmas 1960 which clearly shows me with my Astrobase toy. With the lunar module and everything.
Hey, you guys have been very busy here the past few days!
Just catching up and when I read about the “oil bill”, I had to comment:
We used to tease my father who would call oil “earl” and call the Earl Theater the “Oil”. We never understood why he couldn’t just switch them around!
We never played kick-the-can, but we did play stick ball (a manhole cover made a great homeplate), and we had to stop every five seconds to let a car by. Those streets were SO narrow, too, so it was an interesting playing field.
I have actually introduced my kids to “hit the penny”… a game we’d play with a “Spaldeen” (pink rubber ball) and a penny and a sidewalk crack for hours on end.
We were also obsessed with TV Westerns, so we’d gallop up and down the block whipping our invisible steeds and yelling “Yah!”. A sight to behold, I’m sure.
I should introduce you to my personal blog, where I write about a lot of things but often post photos and stories about the old neighborhoods and my childhood. Here are two posts you might enjoy:
I think he was Gerry’s brother then. Gerry would be 62 now.
Bluesman: Was Nick related to Gerry Cifarelli? She was a friend of my sister Loretta. Oh, and to stay on topic… they used to go to the Embassy Theater all the time.
;)
Mopella… I think my sister Corinne may have been friends with Barbara Greenwood! Either that or my eldest sister Loretta (who is 61. Corinne is 56.)
Do you know what High School she went to?
Nope… those Vitale’s weren’t related to me.
I did have cousins named DiMarco (Nicholas and Laura) who lived on Linwood Street, and Vitales on Elderts Lane (I think)… my Aunt Millie and cousins Joseph, Linda and Cathy.
Which side of Atlantic Avenue is 195 Lincoln? My father was the mailman from Hill Street to Sheridan Avenue, from Atlantic to Liberty, for many years.
Does anyone know these names (friends of mine during the 60s and early 70s):
Tonacchio
Suzdak
Wall (family members who lived on Grant Avenue in between the St. Sylvester convents)
Cimini
Maske
Cifarelli (my sister’s friend Gerry)
D'Allesio
Catapano (Jimmy Catapano really did “put his eye out” playing stick ball. Eek.
My street, Sheridan between Atlantic and McKinley, had the MOST crazy people living on it in the neighborhood. There was a woman named Birdie who used to direct traffic on Atlantic Avenue…
Hi OzGuy,
I went to St. Sylvester’s too, from 61-69, but I had two older sisters.
Check out the forum for the Embassy, as there is a LOT of discussion about the neighborhood there.
Peter… I’m in South Salem. But I lived most of my adult life in either Manhattan or Brooklyn (the Heights and Park Slope). I only moved up here to be closer to my job. I miss the city!!!
Well, it’s pretty funny now…. we have to admit. ;)
Hey…did anyone here know the Masoffs? They lived down the block from Blessed Sacrament. I met Joy Masoff about six years ago at tennis camp in Saugerties NY. I said I was from Brooklyn, and she said “Me too.” I said, “Yeah, but NOBODY is from my neighborhood” and she said “No, nobody is from MY neighborhood.” I didn’t know her or her family when I was a kid.
And the rest, they say, is history. Now we’re great friends and live near each other in Westchester.
Remember F&P? (the “gang” that hung out on Fountain and Pitkin… they were a little older than me, but I thought the gang thing was so cool that I used to wear razor blades in my hair so people would think I was in one. Brilliant, eh? LOL)
Gaytana was good friends with my good friend Andrew Tonacchio who lived across the street from me on Sheridan Avenue & Atlantic. Unfortunately, Andrew died of AIDS in the first wave, in 1983.
Nice to see you here.
~Marian
Was Paulie related to Gaytana Gazarra? I believe she was the niece of Ben, the actor and the person that “Ben’s” Beauty Parlor was named after.
Superlastic Bubble Plastic!!!!
OK, look at this site. You’ll be in heaven. What it made me realize is that I owned every freakin' toy that came out:
http://wesclark.com/am/toys.html
Pam’s father was Allen Adler!
I’m going to look up the bubble goop and get back to you. I can’t believe I finally stumped you!
I had a Thingmaker too!!! OMG. Too funny. And of course you’re correct about Damocles. I’m such a stickler for spelling that I HATE being wrong. ;)
Another cool thing from the past that I’ve bought for my kids are Rube Goldberg models. They are the best! I used to also put together models of cars and monsters. Another great smell: hobby glue.
OH and what about that goopy stuff that you’d put at the end of a straw to blow bubbles? I’m sure you’ll remember the name…
I remember something in Video Village (or was it Shenanigans? I always get them mixed up) called “The Sword of Damoclese”, and another thing where you had to put your hands inside a box and identify the object in there.
Lawn Green! We used to make that same joke.
How the heck you remember those numbers is beyond me. I thought #1 was black.
Did you have a wood burning set? I loved the smell of that thing. As well as the smell of oil paints and turpentine, which I’m sure has seared the molecules of my lungs forever.
P: I only know her married name (Golden) but I’ll find out what her father’s name was. She, too, is an amazing writer.
Re the toys of the 60s, there used to be a store on 2nd Avenue between 60th and 61st St. that sold ALL of the toys from the past… I haven’t been there in years so I don’t know if it still exists, but it was such a cool place to go.
It kills me to think of all the games and toys we threw away that would be worth a fortune today! We even had the board game: “The Kennedys”. Other board games I remember: Mystery Date (“Will he be a dream, or a dud? Open the door for your… Mystery Date…”), Video Village (based on the TV show), Shenanigans (based on the TV Show with Stubby Kaye), Lie Detector (I found one at a tag sale a few years ago and my kids love it).
And of course, we’d get a new Venus Paradise Colored Pencil color-by-numbers every couple of weeks.
I remember Robby too (and in fact, my friend Pam’s father WROTE “Forbidden Planet”!!!) but this one is Robert. Funny.
I had a WhirlyBird too. And a Blue and Grey Army set. Did you have an Emenee organ? (If it’s not too personal?)
;)
Peter…. too funny about that double standard! And thanks for the Mick Jagger jumpsuit visual. I have to go scrub my brain now. ;)
A lot of the retro toys are back now. I saw a “Mr. Machine” in our local toy store (not used… Ideal is actually making them again!) and a “Robert the Robot”.
Great stuff…
Muzer: I hung out on the corner of Eldert’s Lane and McKinley outside the “parish house”.
Muzer, Mopella and PKoch… thanks for taking the time to check out my blog! It’s been fun to scan old photos and write the stories that they ellicit.
Muzer/Mopella.. I’m 52, and went to PS 171 for Kindergarten in 1960, St. Sylvester’s from 1961-1969, St. Michael’s from ‘69-73. I remember that some girls in my class went to Maxwell. I, on the other hand, became a stereotypical wild Catholic school girl. ;)
Peter: Honestly, I think I’m still 22 in my head. Thankfully we’ve got good genes in my family and all the women look about 15 years younger than their age. (This does not please my 22 year old daughter, who can easily pass for 16).
I like the Sylvia Plath factoid! Spooky!
Yes, we loved Outer Space too. I did a blog post about Christmas 1960 which clearly shows me with my Astrobase toy. With the lunar module and everything.
Check it out:
View link
Hey, you guys have been very busy here the past few days!
Just catching up and when I read about the “oil bill”, I had to comment:
We used to tease my father who would call oil “earl” and call the Earl Theater the “Oil”. We never understood why he couldn’t just switch them around!
We never played kick-the-can, but we did play stick ball (a manhole cover made a great homeplate), and we had to stop every five seconds to let a car by. Those streets were SO narrow, too, so it was an interesting playing field.
I have actually introduced my kids to “hit the penny”… a game we’d play with a “Spaldeen” (pink rubber ball) and a penny and a sidewalk crack for hours on end.
We were also obsessed with TV Westerns, so we’d gallop up and down the block whipping our invisible steeds and yelling “Yah!”. A sight to behold, I’m sure.
I should introduce you to my personal blog, where I write about a lot of things but often post photos and stories about the old neighborhoods and my childhood. Here are two posts you might enjoy:
View link
View link
(you’ll recognize the corner of Sheridan and Atlantic in that photo)
That wasn’t me, it was Mopella…. credit where credit is due. ;)
Where was Salerno’s Restaurant? Was that in Ridgewood? Glendale? We had all of our family functions there.
LOL…. Jack, I just saw this. I saw The Stewardesses in 3D there too!!! Too funny.