The Italian Connection

Dear Readers, The Labor Day holiday reminded me that back in the days when chips were made of wood and not silicon, the labor that enriched the Santa Clara Valley was predominantly Italian. The fertile land and mild climate attracted …

Dear Readers, When Christopher Columbus landed on the Caribbean island he later named San Salvador on October 12, 1492, a “New World” was discovered and the future history of the entire world was altered. “Grazie” to Signor M.A. and other …

Dear Readers, November notes with an Italian connection: Thanksgiving Day is celebrated the fourth Thursday in November, since it was so fixed by President Lincoln in 1864. The custom dated back to the day of Thanksgiving set aside by the …

Dear Readers, Lee Iacocca, the outspoken, straight-shooting businessman, who as Chief Executive Officer of Chrysler, brought the company back from the brink to booming success, after being knocked out as president of the Ford Motor Company, by Henry, in a …

Dear Readers, L’Italo-Americano’s director, Simone Schiavinato, recently wrote that we must celebrate not only the discovery of America, but the Italian American spirit that pushes forward in Silicon Valley, startups that create high tech products made in Italy and relocated …

Dear Readers, A September selection of Italian connections: Andrews Sisters Patty, Maxene and LaVerne were in Naples, Italy, on a U.S.O. tour in August 1945. The Andrews Sisters were about to perform for some 5,000 weary GI’s, gathered in the …

Dear Readers, An August assortment of Italian connections for you:   Swiss Guards have been protecting the Pope for centuries. When I first visited Italy in the 1950’s, I wondered aloud why, with all those Italians around, the Vatican was …

Dear Readers, Giovanni da Verrazzano’s namesake New York, double-decked suspension bridge which lost a z in the translation, turns 50 this month. Then New York Mayor, Robert F. Wagner cut the ribbon at the opening ceremony. The upper level of …

Dear Readers, Author Goffredo Palmerini, who hails from the land of the “forte ma gentile” people in Abruzzi, Italy, has recently gifted the Italian reading public around the world with another gem of a book “L’Italia Dei Sogni” and his …

Birthday “numero 88” was celebrated by singer Tony Bennett of “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” fame in North Beach recently. The following day he had a “very public lunch” at another S.F. Restaurant. According to S.F. Chronicle columnist, …