Columns

“Ciao, boccia!” I was always greeted by this simple phrase in the Venetian dialect whenever I arrived at Panozzo Brother’s Funeral Home. Those words were uttered by Larry Panozzo as he sat on his stool beside the door greeting everyone who entered. To many, they were welcoming words of comfort that instantly took one back to the old days of Roseland and Kensington. Larry was a gentleman’s gentleman. His calm and unflappable demeanor was always reassuring, whether you had lost a loved one or you were merely seeking a refreshing dip into the nostalgia of days gone by. The mere …

Based on the true story of the 1917 Marian apparitions reported by three children at the Cova da Iria in Portugal, Marco Pontecorvo’s 2020 drama. “Fátima” offers a contemporary take using new technology. “The cinemascope format can give back to the audience a much stronger emotion and can help people enjoy the stunning cinematography by Vincenzo Carpineta,” Pontecorvo says. The director got involved with the project after producers saw his 2009 feature film, “Pa-ra-da,” that addresses the issue of homeless children in post-Ceausescu Romania. Impressed by his direction of the children, they suggested he direct “Fatima.” He felt the story …

The Italian verb riuscire has a wide range of meanings and its use lends a bit of sophistication to one’s Italian phrases. It’s important to learn the nuances of the verb to create sentences as we would in our native language. When linked by the conjunction a to another verb, riuscire means “to be able to” or “to manage to.” The meaning is similar to potere, with an important exception: riuscire lends a dimension of personal effort on the speaker’s part. Hence the translation into English as “to manage to.” In the negative sense, the use of riuscire a implies that …

  It’s unusual for first-time filmmakers to be recognized by a high-profile international film festival but such is the case with Cecilia Pignocchi and Arthur Couvat. Their debut work, “Grottaroli,” is in the official lineup of the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival’s Shorts Program. Set along the Adriatic Coast, the 14-minute film follows a group of veteran fishermen as they reflect on their vanishing way of life. Describing the fifth character as the sea, Pignocchi and her co-director offer total immersion into a culture that few outside the area knew existed. I spoke with Pignocchi about the making of the short …

Dining out in Roseland came under two headings. There was actually eating out in a restaurant, which was something generally done with the family, as in after mass on Sunday or on Dad’s payday or in celebration of a family event. The other type of dining out was the more casual “hanging out” with friends in a favorite local snack shop or restaurant. Local fine dining in Kensington centered around two restaurants: Pesavento’s on 115th and Parise’s on Kensington. These places had tablecloths and that qualified them as “fine dining” in young Roseland eyes. Of course, after mass on Sunday …

How do we conjugate an Italian verb into the polite or familiar form? Let’s begin our discussion of polite and familiar expressions in Italian by talking a look at the conjugation table for chiamarsi, the reflexive verb that means “to be named,” or “to call oneself.” This verb is one of the first verbs an Italian student learns to conjugate and contains all the elements to understand polite and familiar verb tenses. First, let’s conjugate chiamarsi the way we would any other –are  verb. Chiamarsi (to call oneself/to be named) will have the same stem and endings as chiamare (to …

Buying a house with a partner sounds amazing, but it’s a huge commitment. Communication is key if you want things to go smoothly. Asking these questions can better prepare the both of you for the next step. How much debt do you have? First, ask how much debt they have. Knowing how much money is at your disposal is a huge aspect of buying a house. Getting approved for a mortgage should be the first step in the process. Mortgage lenders look at your debt-to-income ratio. Your DTI ratio is calculated by your combined monthly debt payments divided by your …

As we’ve seen in a previous blog about the verb sapere,it is important to understand how to conjugate sapere in the present tense if one wants to describe what he or she knows. Sapere in the present tense is a verb of certainty; when one uses the Italian verb sapere, they do so to describe a fact or something they believe to be true. But there are times when you may not be certain if what you’re talking about is factual. To express doubt, possibility, uncertainty, personal feelings, desire or suggestions, Italian uses the subjunctive mood. And to convey uncertainty …

Good day and I have missed writing for you all! Once public libraries and family history centers closed, most of our access to records was cut off along with most of what I write about in these columns. Let me explain. Most Italian civil records 1809-1929 and Cook County vital records can be browsed on familysearch.org, but the web site only allows you to browse them if you are in a Family History Center or an affiliate library. (Not all public libraries are affiliate libraries.) Familysearch has to have a certain router address in order to permit computers on that …

April showers bring May flowers, right? We hear that every year. In fact, I’m sure I’ve written about May flowers a couple of times in the dozen years I’ve been writing this column. Well, I’ve had enough of writing about flowers and I’m switching things up. Spring also marks the start of vegetable gardening season, which brings to mind the many such gardens in Roseland, Pullman and Kensington. Personally, I’ve never had a green thumb, but the array of colorful and abundant vegetable gardens has stayed with me since childhood. Growing up in Roseland, I ran across gardens big and …