Columns

“Is my eggplant parmesan soggy?” I queried my husband after a New York Times Food Section article thrust me into momentary self-doubt. “NEVER,” he reassured me. “Solving the Puzzle of Eggplant Parmesan” (NY Times, Sept. 22, 2017) quoted the advice of several accomplished chefs — one who learned to cook at his mother’s side in her well-regarded restaurant in Lyon, France — but none of them were Italian. What’s wrong with this picture? We Italians irrefutably know certain things about life, love and food. These lessons were taught to us in our nonnas’ kitchens, absorbed through the atmosphere of our …

The predominant image of Italian Americans in today’s media comes through representation of our working-class presence. The predominant voice of protest of those images comes from Italian Americans in the middle class. Those educated out of the working class no longer connect to those who have remained working class. One result of this class mobility through education is the creation of Americans with Italian names who do not see anything wrong with writing, producing, directing and acting in films that, while protected by the First Amendment, offend other Italian Americans. For help in understanding this struggle, we need to review …

A huge warehouse. Rival gangs. Bad blood. It all came together when a group of gangsters, dressed as outsiders, surprised their rivals and murdered them in cold blood on a cold February day. We all know the story: the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre in Chicago, Feb. 14, 1929. Actually, no. The gang rub-out described above refers to the Wah Mee Massacre of Feb, 19, 1983, which took place in Seattle. Thirteen gangsters were brutally murdered as opposed to the seven who were killed in Chicago, thus making it the worst mass gang slaying in American history. And yet, no one …

I first journeyed to Matera, Italy, in 1985. It’s found in southern Italy in a once impoverished region of Basilicata. The city has been inhabited by man since the paleolithic era and is touted by some as the longest continually lived-in community on Earth. It’s extensive cave-like dwelling districts, the Sassi, are a marvel to behold. Witnessing Matera from across its massive ravine, one comes to appreciate why it’s been known as the underground city. It appears as it has since the time of Christ, so much so that Matera has frequently been used as the background for biblical films, …

I can’t recall the last time a film was as simultaneously popular and polarizing as “Green Book.” The story about the unlikely friendship that blossoms between a casually racist Italian-American bouncer and an elitist African-American concert pianist during a road trip through the South in 1962 was a fan favorite, earning $322 million at the worldwide box office. It also cleaned up during awards season, netting Oscars as well as Golden Globes for best picture, supporting actor and original screenplay. But the cinematic rendition of the real-life sojourn taken by Frank “Tony Lip” Vallelonga and Don Shirley attracted as much …

“In almost every act of our daily lives, whether in the sphere of politics or business, in our social conduct or our ethical thinking, we are dominated by the relatively small number of persons … who understand the mental processes and social patterns of the masses. It is they who pull the wires which control the public mind.” No, that’s not a quote from a conspiracy theorist. Nor does its vaguely sinister overtone belong to someone like Josef Goebbels, Hitler’s vile minister of propaganda. Ironically, it’s a quote from Edward Bernays, the brilliant 20th-century American credited as the father of …

On any given day, the most commonly talked about activity is where one is going. We make plans, we go, we return, we talk about our activities along the way, and then we talk about where we went once again at the end of the day! To talk about where one has to go on a certain day seems easy at first. We learn about the Italian verb “to go,” which is andare, in every beginning course in Italian.  The Italian verb andare is a bit tricky to use, though, so let’s go through a few pointers. The first thing …

The Chicago Catholic has been reporting a lot lately that the Chicago Archdiocese is going through many changes, and we know that it will continue to do so for the foreseeable future due to the ever-changing demographics of Chicago and its suburbs. Parishes are being closed or consolidated a couple of times a year, sparking valiant rescue efforts by the affected parishioners. Roseland’s St. Anthony of Padua Parish has not been affected or mentioned in these announcements. Many Roselandites have wondered whether our St. Anthony’s has closed. These are usually former residents who haven’t been back to Roseland in 40 …

Has your property been on the market for what seems like forever? Many different factors can keep a home from selling, not the least of them being the asking price. More often than not, though, there are one or two reasons that your home is still on the market. Does your property have gorgeous hardwood floors that have been covered by that old pink carpet for 30 years? Remember in this business first impressions means everything! If a potential buyer does not like what they see in the photos, they will never come visit your home in person. My suggestion …

The Fed lowered rates three times the second half of 2019 trying to avert a potential slowdown in the economy. So far, they’ve done a good job. At the end of 2019, the unemployment rate stood at 3.5 percent and all three equity indices stood at near or all-time highs. Mortgage rates stood at near historic lows with the 30-year at 3.5 to 3.875, the 20-year at 3.375 to 3.750 and the 15-year at 3.125 to 3.375. Where are mortgage rates headed from here? According to economists from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, mortgage rates should slightly trend down in …