Trump Administration Awards Federal Funds to Recreate Columbus Statue
Nearly five months after Baltimore’s Christopher Columbus statue was dumped into Baltimore’s harbor, a local group is working to recreate it—using funds from the Trump administration. In one of its last acts before the 2020 elections, the Trump administration awarded $30,000 to repair or recreate the seven-foot-tall statue that was ripped from its...
Retired Italian American Cop Reflects on Saving Baby Girl in Pittsburgh
It was 4 a.m. The night air was still crisp and fresh. I was driving alone on the streets in the city of Pittsburgh, Penn. The stillness was very noticeable. Street and traffic lots seemed to be brighter. Lights inside the residences were not visible. Surely no one was awake. My thoughts were focusing on walking a midnight beat as a young, uniforme...
Italians in Baltimore: Featuring the Neighborhood of ‘Little Italy’ (Book Review)
Suzanna Rosa Molina has done it again! She authored another very entertaining book about the Italians in Baltimore. As expected, the celebrated “Little Italy” neighborhood, just east of Harborplace, is at its centerpiece. The book features plenty of terrific photographs, along with detailed family and historical notes. Its title is: “Images of Amer...
Celebrating Montclair's Italian-American history
Retired Montclair Police Chief Tom Russo remembers when the roads around Pine Street in the Fourth Ward were filled with the sounds of people speaking Italian. “Everybody used to hang out on their front stoops and greet each other,” said Russo, who grew up in the area in the 1950s. He and his friends used to play in the streets until the streetligh...
Family, scholars of Virgil Cantini discuss late artist’s legacy
Anyone who has studied in front of the brightly colored, geometric hanging rugs in Hillman Library, or taken the escalators past the massive mosaic in Posvar Hall, knows the “everyday” art of Virgil Cantini. The Pittsburgh-based sculptor and founder of Pitt’s studio arts department made over a dozen public works of art on campus and throughout the...
New ways of looking at Modigliani
On Monday, November 23, 11:30 – 12:30pm, to mark the centenary of Modigliani’s death, Nancy Ireson, the Barnes’s Deputy Director for Collections and Exhibitions & Gund Family Chief Curator, joins Simonetta Fraquelli, an art historian and specialist in 20th-century European art, to explore new perspectives on the artist. Click here to register! Thou...
webinar > Tales for Every Age: A Conversation about Gianni Rodari
November 24th, 2020 at 4:00PM ET. Zoom Webinar in English. To continue our celebrations for the 100th anniversary of the birth of Gianni Rodari, Italy’s most beloved children author, join us for a conversation with Grazia Gotti, President of the Italian official committee for Gianni Rodari’s centenary, translator Antony Shugaar and illustrator Vale...
Baltimore Mayor Vetoes Renaming Christopher Columbus Obelisk
Baltimore's mayor has vetoed a bill that would have rededicated a Christopher Columbus monument to victims of police violence, sharing concerns with the city's police commissioner that the two-story-tall obelisk is too close to a separate monument honoring fallen officers. Mayor Bernard C. “Jack” Young, a Democrat, expressed reservations about the...
Italian Sons and Daughters want judge in Columbus statue case to recuse himself
The Italian Sons and Daughters of America filed a motion Monday asking a judge to recuse himself from hearing a lawsuit filed to stop the removal of the Christopher Columbus statue from Schenley Park. The ISDA, which sued Mayor Bill Peduto and the city of Pittsburgh after officials voted to remove the 800-pound statue, claim Allegheny Common Pleas...
Loved and Lost: Teresa Pacera was adoring matriarch who loved playing games with loved ones
Teresa Pacera was known as a bit of a troublemaker when playing poker with her family. She was also known for wearing her trademark sweaters and house coats, no matter the weather. Pacera, 92, who died on April 12, was a tenacious, adoring Italian mother and grandmother, according to her grandchildren. A lifelong resident of Long Branch, Pacera was...
Serving the old way
At least you’d have to say that I’m consistent. As I get older, I often realize that there are a lot of things I like better as they once were. I like baseball without the “designated hitter”, the “closer” and the 8th inning “set-up-man.” I don’t like giving out “participation” trophies to everyone who happens to show up and not only to those who...
Morris County Cookbook Author Opens Italian Restaurant
A Morris County cookbook author and caterer has embarked on a new culinary endeavor with the launch of her new Italian restaurant. Dana Ferraro Ilic opened Ferraro’s Italian Food Specialties in her hometown of Parsippany on Tuesday. Ilic, 49, has more than 25 years of culinary experience, from baking and catering to hosting dinner parties and cooki...