Those with deep Italian roots and those without are all welcome to celebrate Columbus Day on Thursday with a morning full of ceremonies, proclamations and entertainment, and to honor a special citizen. The city’s annual Columbus Day celebration begins at 8:30 a.m. at Columbus Square with the laying of a ceremonial wreath and raising of the Italian...

The pomp and circumstance of the city’s annual Columbus Day parade has quietly come to an end. Organizers said it became too costly to hold the event, which will be replaced with the Columbus Day Italian Street Festival. The new event will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday in Columbus Park. Alfred Fusco, chairman of the festival and president o...

It’ll take place in the Park City but the 109th Columbus Day parade on Oct. 8 will be led by longtime Shelton Mayor Mark Lauretti. This is not the first time Lauretti, destined for a 14th term as Shelton’s mayor come November since no one is running against him, has head events here. In 2008 he served as the Barnum Festival Ringmaster and marches i...

Pleasant outdoor temperatures, autumn foliage and ethnic pride for Italian-Americans. That’s the tradition for the Columbus Day Parade in Greater New Haven, which was held in Hamden last year and East Haven the year before that. This year’s march, the largest of its kind in New England, will be at 1 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 8, in West Haven. The parade st...

In the Showtime series, “I’m Dying Up Here,” actor Andrew Santino is Bill Hobbs, a caustic and cynical comic who is determined to climb to the top of the entertainment heap — at just about any cost. As stand-up comic Andrew Santino, he is far from being Hobbs. One critic has described the Chicago born-and-raised Santino as having a “dry-yet-jovial...

On Sunday at 2 p.m. the public is invited to hear poets Dennis Barone, David Cappella, Maria Sassi, Tom Nicotera, Geri Radacsi, Tony Fusco and Maria Frank as they lead an afternoon of poetry at the Noah Webster House & West Hartford Historical Society. Dennis Barone served as the second Poet Laureate of West Hartford. He is the author of seven book...

This week Chef/Restaurateur Vinicio Llanos of the popular Arezzo Ristorante & Wine Bar located alongside the tranquil Saugatuck River in Westport, CT, introduced his newest CT venture, Le Madri, to the town of Bethel. This family owned and operated restaurant, bar, and event venue features rustic Italian cuisine set in an open and contemporary spac...

The West Haven Columbus Day Committee will honor its “prima italiana” at the city’s 19th annual Columbus Day Celebration. Grace Iannucci Hendricks, the granddaughter of immigrant grandparents from the Campania capital of Naples, Italy, will receive the committee’s Italian-American of the Year award Oct. 6 at City Hall. Accompanied by Italian music,...

Dina (Torcellini) Casavecchia, 101, of Ridgefield, wife of the late John Casavecchia and mother of Joyce Casavecchia Ligi, died on Thursday, September 21, 2017 at her home. Mrs. Casavecchia was born in North Salem, NY, March 14, 1916, a daughter of the late Antonio and Emelia (Casavecchia) Torcellini. She attended North Salem schools. A resident of...

A divisive national debate about public statues of historical figures has reached New London. A group led by local conservative talk show host Lori Hopkins-Cavanagh is seeking protection of the Christopher Columbus statue off Bank Street despite the fact city officials said there have been no serious calls for its removal. Hopkins-Cavanagh organize...