The Italian Connection with the San Francisco Opera House
Dear Readers, Opera Season, after a long shutdown, opened recently in San Francisco with Puccini’s Tosca, to a fully vaccinated and masked audience of two thousand. This was the S.F. Opera’s 99th season, but without my friend Joe Brucia’s father and his friends, back in 1922, the S.F. Opera seasons may have been slow getting started. San Francisco’...
Dante's Divine and Comic 700th Anniversary
WHEN: October 22, 2021, 5-7 PM - WHERE: The Commonwhealth Club, 110 The Embarcadero, San Francisco - Attendees: Please bring proof of vaccination. Join Humanities West in person at The Commonwealth Club, or via livestream, to celebrate the 700th Anniversary of Dante’s death with a two-hour, three-lecture Dante feast. Visit The Commonwealth Club fo...
What St. Peter's Italian Catholic Church means for the Italians in California
This church is home to the Italian American community in Southern California. Not only do we have St Peters Church, but there’s Casa Italiana, which has a large hall, kitchen upstairs but downstairs are rooms where friends gather for meetings, classes and Sunday morning donuts. The Italian community celebrates Saint days (sometimes every weekend) w...
Calling All Italians: Three Bay Area Fraternal Clubs To Know
We cover a lot of subjects here on the blog, and this time we’re going to tackle a hyperlocal topic: Italian fraternal organizations. Living as I do in North Beach, I’ve long been familiar with our own San Francisco Italian Athletic Club (SFIAC) on Stockton Street. But speaking with Tony recently, I found out he actually belongs to three separate c...
NIAF Condemns the Vandalization of St. Peter’s Italian Catholic Church in Los Angeles and Commits $5,000 to its Restoration
The National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) condemns the vandalization of St. Peter’s Italian Catholic Church, the National Italian Parish for Southern California, located near downtown Los Angeles and has pledged $5,000 for its restoration. What was supposed to be a day of celebration in honor of Columbus Day, turned bitter early Monday mornin...
San Pedro’s Little Italy Celebrate Festa Italiana
Local San Pedrans got together to celebrate everything and everyone Italian at Festa Italiana this past Saturday on Oct. 2. The free, outdoor street fair provided space for local vendors selling Italian treats, beer and wine, as well as live performances. Officially, the festival is celebrating the start of Italian-American Heritage and Culture Mon...
Italian street painting comes to Bakersfield
A local art tradition since 1998, the annual Via Arté Italian Street Painting Festival comes to the Bakersfield Museum of Art. On Oct. 16 and 17, the festival will be held at The Marketplace from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. The goal is to have professional artists use their imagination using the asphalt as their canvas just like the classic Italian Street Pai...
54 Mint Is San Francisco’s Ultimate Gastronomic Escape to Rome
I’m Roma girl. Blessed to travel the world often for work, including almost every country in Western Europe multiple times, I connect with some places more than others. Among many of my globetrotting friends, thier favorite European city is often Paris. But mine has long been the Eternal City: Rome. Yes, it’s dirty, sprawling, and chaotic. But it i...
WWII Internment of Italian Americans
Join journalist and adjunct college professor Rebecca Romani for an informative presentation on the Italian American Internment during World War II. During the war, the U.S. government saw Italian Americans as a threat to homeland security. Executive Order 9066 not only forced Japanese Americans from their homes into concentration camps, it also pu...
Poesia in the Castro Delivers an Authentic Calabrian Dining Experience
One of the great delights of living in hilly San Francisco is all of the magical, hidden stairways. Climbing these passageways, often landscaped with lush vegetation, frequently brings a surprise (and usually panoramic views) around every corner. The Vulcan Steps in the Castro offer year-round blooming wonders; the 16th Avenue tiled steps provide a...
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood: A History of Salvatore Ferragamo, Screen Sirens and the Cinema
When Judy Garland sang “Over The Rainbow” in 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, she could have been referring to a pair of custom-made Salvatore Ferragamo wedges. Ferragamo – then known as the “shoemaker to the stars” – crafted the 8.5cm rainbow-coloured platforms for Garland in 1938, in what would become one of the defining designs of his career. Though...
New Italian Exhibit At The Fresno County Heritage Museum
The Fresno County Heritage Museum will be open during the Big Fresno Fair, from October 6 through October 17. The Fresno County Historical Museum is open year round by appointment. During the annual Big Fresno Fair the Museum is open daily until 8 p.m. The Italian Exhibit is at the first floor. Below are two photos depicting the Donors Wall, as wel...