La vita italiana

The “Leopard”, one of the greatest novels of the twentieth century, was written by a Sicilian aristocrat who was extremely erudite, pensive, impulsive, and sensitive. One critic says that his words from his novel can be memorized as poetry.   …

The survival of most media organizations is to obtain that exclusive interview or story.  Publishers and editors attempt to separate their media group from the rest, in order to get the exclusive rights to a story even if this implies …

Requiem for a Filmmaker: Sergio Leone, His Life, Work, and Legacy (Part One)    Among the many prolific producers and directors with which Italy is credited, Sergio Leone stands out for his unique and unusual genre in filmmaking.   Born …

Requiem for a Filmmaker: Sergio Leone, His Life, Work, and Legacy (Part two)   Sergio Leone’s first directing job in the United States was said to be a work of art.  The film, Once Upon a Time in the West …

The Celts, whom the Romans called Celti or Galli, were a tribal society that spoke the Celtic language and originally occupied most of today’s Ireland, Scotland and France. During the time of the rise of the Roman Empire the Celts …

Growing up an ardent baseball fan in New York City during the seventies and eighties meant rooting for either the New York Yankees or Mets.  If you were “truly” a Yankees or Mets fan there was an unwritten rule (like …

Home of Parmigiano cheese aims for recognition as a World Heritage Site   Reggio Emilia – The Italian region of Emilia, homeland of the world-renowned Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, is aiming to obtain recognition of its “Intangible World Heritage” by the …

In the 4th century AD, a man called Calpornius and his wife Conchessa were sent by Rome to Britain to serve as deacon, civil official, town councilor and generally to oversee Roman interests. Information about this couple is very sparse, …

Who is this man credited with promoting love and passion and sales in the billions of dollars, world-wide, of flowers, candy and skimpy garments of a diaphanous nature?  My search to know more about the saint who came to be …

Italian Cowboys at the greatest celebration of the American West – The 29th National Cowboy Poetry Gathering Elko, Nevada – The 29th National Poetry Gathering was a week-long celebration of culture, tradition, and life of the rural West in the …