alfonso guerriero jr.

Recently my daughters have become fixated with Walt Disney’s 1967 animated movie The Jungle Book, starring Louis Prima. Now, before I continue, I need to explain that being a parent is unparalleled to any ebullient experience you will ever have …

The legendary Nicholas Pileggi Nora Ephron once wrote, “The secret to life, marry an Italian.” She was referring to her husband, journalist and screenwriter Nicholas Pileggi. Ms. Ephron, who in her own right was a best-selling author and filmmaker, married …

The American media and the government’s vacillating policies toward immigration over the past century have contributed to many like Gay Talese to question his cultural identity as an adolescent growing up in Ocean City, New Jersey during World War II. …

When most young boys are shooting hoops or playing catch with their fathers, Ray Boom Boom Mancini stepped into a boxing gym and promised his dad, “One day I’m going to be champion.” As a child, Ray routinely perused his …

What do the Chief Executive Officer of Brooks Brothers, Claudio Del Vecchio, and a group of eighth graders from PS126/Manhattan Academy of Technology have in common? Besides having a strong sense for fashion, both have an interesting connection to Catherine …

Arkansas is steeped in history, natural beauty and southern hospitality.  It is (you would think) one of the last places in America where residents from, fourth, fifth and sixth generations can trace their lineage back to Italy.  One location in …

I met Gay Talese on a Friday afternoon in New York City, when the sun descends from its zenith and anxious pedestrians are walking briskly home to begin their weekend.  He had agreed to meet and talk about his Italian …

There are not many family-owned restaurants in urban cities that have been in business for over seventy years.  One reason for this is the Food Channel’s popularity that has catapulted the careers of many chefs who in return have attached …

During this past summer, I attended my friend’s bachelor party in New Orleans. Prior to visiting the Crescent City, I had made preliminary arrangements to mix some business with pleasure and schedule an interview with Lena Prima, daughter of Louis …

Perhaps no movement, at least in the 21st century, has globally galvanized the masses more than #MeToo.  The anti-sexual harassment campaign, fanned by the digital age, has created a gyre around the topic of gender equality and simultaneously sparked the …