Scrap metal or monument? Johnston picks the latter. Removed from its Providence pedestal in 2020 and locked away in storage, a 130-year-old statue depicting Christopher Columbus will be re-erected in Johnston’s War Memorial Park in October. In the 1890s, the same French artist who sculpted the Statue of Liberty — Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi — crafte...
READ MOREThe former Christopher Columbus statue that was vandalized numerous times in Providence before being taken down will find a new home in Johnston. Former Providence Mayor Joe Paolino, who bought the statue in March, announced Johnston will be the new home as a way for the town to celebrate the Italian community. “I am thankful that Mayor Polisena Jr...
READ MOREAbout 40 boccie players got together for their banquet at the Prata Society, located at 29 Walnut Grove Ave, Cranston . The food was prepared by Ralph’s catering and it was like eating at a wedding. The food was five courses and there was wine on the tables. This was a winter league that ran from November to March with eight teams for 21 weeks. The...
READ MOREThere are plenty of icons that represent the quirky side of Rhode Island: sweet caffeine-spiked milk, a massive termite on the interstate, platters of deep-fried squid punctuated by banana peppers. But it was Al Forno, forty-three years ago, that told a different story of this small state: one that was deeply rooted in the arts and which made an im...
READ MORESunday, May 7 at 1:30 pm at the Italian Center in Carmichael. Admission $10 / Refreshments Included / Doors Open at 1:00p. Federal Hill is Providence, Rhode Island’s “Little Italy,” one of America’s storied neighborhoods. This documentary film portrays the traditions and challenges of an Italian-American neighborhood. Once a bustling Italian enclav...
READ MOREAs a result of last month’s passing of John DeLuca, founder, and longtime Executive Director of the DaVinci Center, the Board of Directors has appointed Vincent Marzullo to serve as Interim Executive Director. Board Chair, Michael DeAngelis, stated that “the Board has enthusiastically approved the appointment of Vincent Marzullo as the Interim Exe...
READ MORELooking for an Italian restaurant in Rhode Island? Do you want red sauce, homestyle, freestyle, inexpensive or fine dining? Should it be a ristorante or a pizzeria? Is Federal Hill the only place to find the best? When it comes to Italian dining, there are so many questions. But there shouldn't be. Rhode Island is blessed with many and all told, th...
READ MOREWhen Joseph Nigrelli Sr. — the patriarch of Westerly's "First Family of Jewelry" — answered the knock on his front door one recent afternoon, he was a little taken aback to see Dr. Daniel Gaccione standing there before him. When Gaccione announced he was there to tell Nigrelli he'd been named the Dante Society of Westerly's 2023 Person of the Year,...
READ MOREForty-three years is a long time. That’s over four decades - a whole quadrennial (plus three). If 43 is your age, it means you're approaching the end of early middle age and moving towards your late middle ages. At 43, you are well-seasoned, but still in your prime. If you are 43, it means that Jimmy Carter was president when you were born. Gas at...
READ MORELast weekend, the Department of Italian Studies hosted “Il Cinema Ritrovato on Tour,” an Italian film festival showcasing a selection of rare and restored films from the world-renowned Cineteca Bologna. The event marked the tenth anniversary of the festival’s first visit to the University. Held in the Martinos Auditorium at the Granoff Center for t...
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