Forty Years of Love and Patience.... And Did I Mention Patience?

Congratulations to the Bronx kid, Ralph and his lovely wife Jan on forty years of marriage! Real nice!

Italian Ice Skating

Italian Ice + Ice Skating = Ralph's father putting on the blades and skating a figure eight (or nodo a otto, as his paisans would say). A fine winter's day in Bronx photographer Walter Slattery's backyard. I don't where Ralph is. Either, he's not yet born, he's putting on his skates, or he's home with Spaghetti Grandma stuffing the cheeks with pignoli and cucidati!

Excerpt from "Once a Kid": Thanksgiving Memories from the Bronx

 

Thanksgiving was always a very special time for me. Even as a little boy I was fascinated by this special holiday. Maybe deep down inside it was because my dad was a wholesale butcher in the Bronx market -- a market itself that was surrounded by its own infamy, from Jack's Diner to the cops that were on the take, to the little fellas who took your numbers in the betting racquet along with your money, to the bookies who you would lay down even money on a sure thing and end up on the short end of the stick.

It was a joyful holiday -- off from school for four days with plenty to eat, drink and be merry about! In grade school this holiday meant a closer step to Christmas, the granddaddy of all holidays in my estimation. As a little kid a Thanksgiving play at school, turkey and all the trimmings along with every meat and treat you could imagine. I would even dress-up like an Indian and antagonize not only the pilgrims but anyone else I came in contact, especially family members.

My family was always very special to me growing up in an ethnic Bronx neighborhood and we'd celebrate with a Thanksgiving dinner that would go on for three to four hours at a time. And even then you weren't sure if it was over or not. After feasting it was time to rest your gut and sometimes having to down a few swigs of Brioschi, which was some kind of whop remedy for indigestion and even a bad case of gas. Whether this product did the trick, no one could be positive. I would think of the next day -- a Friday off. No such thing back then as "Black Friday," although it still was the kick-off of Christmas.

It's Almost Thanksgiving!

 

Young Ralph and his brother Jerry start preparations for the Thanksgiving feast. Jerry's got the goose and Ralph's got the can. And the dog is ready to lift the leg in case of a grease fire.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours, now and always!

Yesterday was Halloween

That monkey blowing a whistle or eating a Tootsie Roll is our boy, Ralph. It's Halloween in the '50s with his brother Jerry (a zebra, maybe?), Uncle George and Boomba Roast Beef Grandma!

At least I think it's Halloween -- it is, after all, the Fuccillos!

Happy Halloween anyway! And All Saint's Day!

A Bronx Cheer for the Birthday Boy!

Once a kid, always a kid, even when he's an old schnauzer! Happy birthday, Ralphie boy!

The Honeymooners

Ralph, in matching coat and Beetle, poses with his wife, the lovely Jan, as they enjoy their honeymoon.

This is not Italy, but they'd get there one day...

Ethel Mer-mangia!

 

Los Angeles, 1969: The author, on a family vacation, takes a dip in the hotel pool. See the twinkling of the toes and the posing of the fing-airs! One wonders whether the pool was full of guests before the dipping of his pale Bronx tootsies!

A Real Class Act: Ralph Graduates Grade School

Ladies & Gentlemen, I present to you the Santa Maria School Class of 1962. Try to find Ralph. He's the Italian.

Birth of a Saleman

Young Ralph, Future Salesman Extraordinaire, seen here hawking rug sweepers in Castle Hill, The Bronx. At his fifth call, he makes his first sale, after spitting up on his bib and crying like, well, a baby. An historical (and hysterical) moment!

Look Out First Grade - Ralph Graduates Kindergarten

June, 1954: Ralph graduates from kindergarten at Santa Maria School in the Bronx (obviously). Here's our young author surrounded by a cast of characters that reads like the credits to "Moonstruck": Lorraine Ciccarelli, Gregory Palaveri, Barbara Zampetti, Mary Ann D'Amico, John Pisano, et al.

Fuccillo on Dylan

"The great folk singer and songwriter, who I so loved to listen to frequently. My brother experienced Dylan early on in his career at the Gaslight in the Village, Manhattan. My brother, Jerry, once sold him a single rose when he was a floral designer at Park Florist located at 34th and Park Avenue in Midtown. This was shortly after Dylan had his serious motorcycle accident. Needless to say they never came in contact again.

"I remember when I was a freshman in high school I would give my personal translations of Dylan's lyrics to my friends, who waited with bated breath for each meaning of a Dylan song. I probably made things up as I went along giving my own very special interpretations!"

The Seal at the Ball Park

Yep, it's Big Pops (the video sets itself straight about a minute in) barking like a seal at the Creighton Blue Jays during the College Regional Baseball Championship.

Sure, the Jays would eventually lose the tournament, but not on this day with the big fella (and son Jon) cheering them on!

From the Sketchbook of John Fuccillo #1: Jim Londos

Ralph saves everything. A lot of it is, how do I put it, junk. BUT most of it is a treasure. A crown jewel of his archives is his father's sketchbook. His dad, John, was quite handy with a pencil, sketching cartoons, celebrities,  etc.

Today's sketch is of World Heavyweight Champion of Professional Wrestling (November 18, 1938), Jim Londos, better known as "The Golden Greek."

When Ralph was a kid, he and his dad used to watch wrestling matches (just ask the Kid to rattle off a few wrestlers' names). Londos even wrestled the great Bronko Nagurski!

To learn more about The Golden Greek (and to see how close the sketch's likeness is), click here.

More to come from the mighty pen of John Fuccillo!

He Did it Amway!

Distributor of Amway Products?

No.

Distributor of Bull?

Yes!

One of Ralph's many guises over the years (from the wildest of the "Ralph & Red" years)!

Glimpse Into the Future #1

 

Big Pops with a copy of "Once a Kid" in a Tokyo book store.

Yeah, the cover's a mock-up.

But when the great, already legendary memoir is published, Ralph will re-enact this pose in the land of the rising sun!

(Photo courtesy: Chuckles Barnyard.)

Down the Gullet Hole

I don't know whatever happened to that rabbit. I'm sure it's fine.

After all, the rabbit is safely cradled in the hands of Walter Slattery, Bronx photographer and flanked by Grand-cousin Frank (left) and Raphael Fuccillo, Ralph's grandfather (right).

Each gent wears a singular expression.

Frank: "What would you like us to do with this bunny?"

Mr. Slattery: "What do THINK I'm gonna do with this rabbit?"

Grandpa Raphael: "What are you looking at?"

Actually, the rabbit went on to live a long, happy life in a cushy hutch in Garden City, Long Island.

Or he ended up in the pot.

Fine Dining - al Fresco, a la Fuccillo

So anyway, a few years ago, Ralph & Jan returned from abroad with delicious Italian cheeses and meats. Ralph brought them to work, of course, to either eat, or just for show and tell. Over the weekend, he left them in the company fridge (so as not to spoil), only to gruesomely discover on Monday morning that the fridge had been cleaned out Friday afternoon.None too pleased, Ralph dashed downstairs (he loathes elevators!) to the dumpsters! I tagged along to document this ridiculous event.

Ralph looking for Italian cheese.

Ralph looking for Italian salami.

I can tell you in all honesty that if he had found that cheese and meat in the garbage, he would have indeed retrieved and most likely eaten it. I probably would've had a nibble myself. Thank heavens, the imports were no more!

Parker Street Monologues #3: Tokyo Edition

Delivered in rare muted reverence, Ralph returns to Tokyo to regale us with the tale of his first visit to Japan. Filmed outside of a temple in Kawagoe. With special guest appearances by Princess Yuma, The Emperor Joey, and the great Janikins! Photographed and edited by Jeff Fuccillo.

No ovaries of sea urchins were harmed during the course of this film.

Writing in Tokyo

Set to the music of Mikami Kan, a short meditation on the writing process of Ralph Fuccillo has been beautifully crafted by his eldest son, Jeff.

Ralph always writes with pencil on yellow legal pad. His handwriting is decipherable by only a few close associates.

Here we see Ralph scratching out one of his lengthiest pieces yet, in Tokyo, about Tokyo.

From Once a Kid: For a guy from the Bronx, educated in Omaha, living in Portland, Oregon, who almost didn't give Tokyo a chance I found an enchanted city with a mix of the old and the ultra-modern that is absolutely one of my favorites in the world. I wouldn't and couldn't be the kid I am today without Tokyo!

The Sardinian Squat

Ah, beautiful La Maddalena Island off the north coast of Sardinia! Catch a glimpse of the dolphins cresting the crystal clear waters! Dine at the classic restaurants in Piazza Umberto! Stumble upon a nut from the Bronx squatting over a fresh one recently deposited by a pooch from Palau!

Add It Up!

After almost 24 years, Ralph said farewell to his beloved adding machine. The well-worn, grimy, dust magnet (by which I mean the machine, not Raphael) saw him through countless transactions over the years, calculating hundreds of thousands of funds for the newspapers!

Thanks to the great Suzette for providing our boy with a new machine (even now being banged on and covered in newspaper ink).

Parker Street Monologues #2

The cast of characters continues! How can it be? But it is! You'll be amazed & astounded by the additions! Coco Colbert? Lower East Side? Another assortment of wild dogs? Yep! You got it!

Parker Street Monologues #1

In our first installment of passages from "Once a Kid -  A Memoir of the Bronx & Beyond", Ralph entertains us with his cast of characters. Clocking in just under 6 minutes, it's quite a cast (and not even complete)!

Ralph's Father Gets His Goat

Don't worry, Mejia, it's not one of yours! Ralph's father, John, mounts a goat in his Sunday best. The wildness of Ralph did not sprout from the void -- it's in the Fuccillo blood! And God bless it!