It has often been said that the American success story is based on inventing and introducing a product for which the public has been waiting. That American dream success story is the tale of the birth of Chicago’s stuffed pizza, the labor of love that became the story of Nancy and Rocco Palese.

The Paleses’ lived most of their adult lives, making pizza in Turin, Italy, before moving to Potenza and then emigrating in 1969 with their three children to the United States. According to Marisa Palese, daughter of Nancy and Roco, the couple opened their first pizza parlor in Harwood Heights, Guy’s Pizza, featuring the then-popular thin crust (tavern-style) pizza.