Arthur Flacco
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Sradicato e Ripiantato
Uprooted and replanted
Remembrances of an Italian-American Family
This summary is the modest result of digging among the cobwebs of the Palumbo-Flacco-Andreacola clans. It resulted from murky memories, faded photos, candid conversation, and ferocious phone bills and lots of LOVE. Old memories are fragile things, so please forgive any errors or slights. If you have additional information or corrections, please call or write me at the address listed at the end since I feel the cool breath of the Grim Reaper on my neck (I’m 71). I include my Daughter Janet’s phone number in Riverton, NJ or you can issue your own update. This was indeed a labor of love for all the wonderful people who risked their lives or careers to make our lives better. EACH deserves a book, after all, each had a life. I take full responsibility for any errors, opinions, or contents, since SOMETHING is better than nothing. I did my best. I’m typing this on a 486 computer. It is New Years Day, 1995.. Buon Anno!
Art Flacco, Jan 1, 1995 Summary
The extended families of the Flaccos, Palumbos, and D’Aurizios lived in the province of Chieti in the Abruzzi area, which is across the Italian peninsula form Rome, near the Adriatic Sea. Most Italians who emigrated to the U.S. and other countries, came from provinces farther to the south of Italy, the "Mezzogiorno" (which sort of means "noon" or "the South") since conditions there were poorer than in Abruzzi and not conductive to developing wealth. There was little industry and the Industrial revolution had not arrived.
Remember, Italy was not yet "ITALY" until the 1860s (and even THEN significant areas had not joined up). Some of the persons in the upper levels of these family trees were already alive then. The families came mainly from the vicinity of Chieti and nearby towns. The center of activity
The old homes, built of stucco and rock, look medieval. But the new homes that were being built could compete with Cherry Hill, New Jersey.
One must remember that the Italian civilizations lasted millennia, and they built buildings to last. It is not unusual to enter a building stained on the outside and find a modern interior, whether it be a home or a museum. And that’s true in Giuliano today.
The D’Aurizio’s had substantial vineyards and their main residence consisted of two floors. The first was "leased" to the town as a school; from the second floor, one could see the Adriatic in one direction, and the Abruzzi Mountains in the other. However life was not easy, as the names of two nearby mountains show. Amaro and Corno (Bitter and Horn).
The local church, ’Madonna Della Neve’ (Mother Mary of the Snow) was so named from a legend that occurred when the town was trying to select a location of the proposed church. On one July morning, they awoke to find a statue of the Madonna in the branches of a tree surrounded by snow. They built the church on that spot. I have been recently informed that the lily held by the statue of St. Anthony in the church lights up spontaneously on his birthday. (No town in Italy is devoid of at least ONE miracle).
The area around the town is hilly and Nick Andreacola, after returning from there, told me that he recalled running on those hills as a boy. But in his 60s, he said the hills had gotten steeper, because walking up ONE hill exhausted him.
The society of the town was a world unto itself. It is reflected in such post WWII films as ‘Bitter Rice’, ‘Bicycle Thief’, ‘~ Bell for Adano’, and The Rose Tattoo. That is to say that they lived closely, and knew a great deal about each other.
When looking over the trades and jobs of the older generations, one must consider that the Italian portion of this family story took place from about 1860 to 1912.
Giuliano Teatino was not a large city, but was similar to rural towns in the South and Midwestern U.S.of that era. There were no radios, electricity, autos, TV, or home appliances.. that was the base they operated from. Isoletta (Elizabeth) told me that, as a girl, she would herd the geese who wandered off during the afternoon back to the family grounds,
On January 2, 1995 when I thought I was finally ‘freezing this paper, Camillo (Bill) Flacco and his wife, Chris, showed up at my house with treasure. Bill had been in the Navy and was stationed at Gaeta, Italy on the West Coast above Naples. He made a couple of trips to Giuliano. He searched out relatives and with their help, TOOK PICTURES of all identifiable former and present family residences and buildings. The old church was not in the center of Giuliano proper, and there is a new one of the same name in the town.
Bill went to the City Hall, and found pictures of some of the old city. THERE was a picture of the OLD church, which played a large part in the life of the town He also found pictures of the bombed out parts of the town which my Italian cousin, Fiorevante mentioned in a letter shortly after WWII. Bill took pictures of all these also.
Americans do not realize that although the interval from the Normandy landings (D-Day) until the end of WWII was only 11 months, the allies and Germans were deadlocked on the ground between Rome and Naples for almost TWO YEARS.
During that period the Americans bombed northern ITALY heavily. They bombed Florence, missing the railroad terminal and destroyed the famous Ponte Vecchio, the "old bridge" (which had no military value), If the monastery wall in Milan with Leonardo Da Vinci’s 'The Last Supper' had not been sand-bagged, they would have finished it too. They bombed Rome with it’s fabulous ancient Roman architecture and art (It was an 'open city' during the war!) and. - little Giuliano Teatino.
Some of the fiercest fighting of the war took place at Cassino and the 800 year old Abbey of Montecassino was completely destroyed because of erroneous information that Germans were holed up there. Twenty years after the war, I saw them rebuilding it with various colors of beautiful Italian marble. We have no architecture and art works as beautiful as the Abbey in the U.S.
Back to the families. -.
The families included tradesmen and businessmen. Olive oil pressing, silkworm farms, wrought iron and custom shoe designers, etc. were some of the occupations. Some were bonded secretaries, members of the Carabinieri (the elite police, who still wear long plumes on their helmets), railway managers, etc.
Legendary characters include a bomb demolitions expert who may have blown himself to bits, and a worker in South America who contracted yellow fever, and was buried while still alive, (a common practice those days to avoid epidemics). Also an Archbishop, plus the illegitimate daughter of a Contessa from Alsace-Lorraine (the father had been a German physician). - was this the French connection? and is that the reason my mother called her blue eyed offspring 'gl’occhi bianchi’?(literally 'white eyes' ,the Italian phrase for blue eyed people) The woman’s name was Blondine, and in Italian, 'biondi' means blond.
An interesting point is that the genes of the Contessa and other northerners have passed down through the sieve of generations. Several children of each branch of the family were blue eyed, and some were quite blond as children. Many of the three families’ children were dark eyed, dark haired, and had beautiful skin that aged slowly.
There have been some knockouts. Mabel Flacco was voted prettiest girl in her high school class, and Sophie Flacco was named 'Miss Jenkintown' and I, for one agree with the judgment.
Back in 1912,the families were not satisfied with their lot. They left their homeland and came to America and since the families included small boys, the parents didn’t want them to serve the obligatory 6 or more years in the Italian army.
They settled mainly in the Philadelphia/Camden area, including Jenkintown and vicinity from 1912 and on. They were lucky that the boys were young. When WWII came along, the U.S. sent many Italian Americans aliens to the front in France and they were 'gassed' Although Italian aliens were less than 4%, of the population, they represented almost 10% of the American casualties . -
The immigrant population of the 'little Italys' in the U.S. had grown to it’s maximum by 1921. (In 1921 the US closed the 'Golden' doors to practically ALL Mediterranean nations. And it stayed that way for over 20 years.) And from then until 1946,the immigrants made the settlements a bit of HOME.
And WHAT a period.’
I grew up in the 1930s and the activities were fascinating. The saints’ festival processions down 4th street in Camden, (also in Hammonton, and Phil.) were a welcome break from the routine of the city. In the evening they would have bazaars with wonderful foods. Women would go into the Lady of Mt. Carmel church and light candles and pray fervently. Later, bands would compete for bouquets of flowers by playing operatic arias. The deciding factor was the enthusiasm of the crowds. Years later, hearing them at the Academy of Music in Phila., it brought back memories.
There were picnics held on Sundays in summer at the local lakes with whole pigs roasting over a fire pit, three piece bands and tiny two-holler outhouses. When we went mushrooming or crabbing we stayed at Gus and Mary’s in Blackwood overnight, and Mary fed the whole mob. We’d eat wild cherries off the trees and listen to crickets at night. Blackwood was the boonies to little city boys. At Christmas time, Gus would set up those fabulous trains with large cars on a big platform and he and Mary would arrive in Camden loaded with gifts, plus quarters for all the brood. To the youngsters it was manna from Heaven.
At Christmas, there were so many family members that we drew lots for $2 pollyanna gifts. We’d exchange them at Grand mom Palumbo’s house on Christmas Eve while chaos reigned.. trimming the tree, setting up trains, playing seven-and-a half (Italian blackjack), and eating soaked lupine beans and castagna (roasted chestnuts). At midnight the older members went to mass at the Sacred Heart church, and the exhausted little ones fell asleep in their tracks on the living room floor. It looked as though a hand grenade had gone off.
And hangin out in Uncle Fred’s barber shop on Sundays with John, Oliver, Fred, etc. While we got haircuts, I found out that girls are different from boys. (Edith, Fred’s wife was discreet enough to allow for the men’s conversation). Fred was a linguist, an accomplished piano and organ player, and had an interest in art. Edith once told me of his desire to take a trip through the hill towns around Florence and go to Giuliano. I regret that we did not do this together...
Of course there was a female equivalent of the aforementioned male group. They had their own meetings, and covered for each other. Sometimes they met at Aunt Marie’s beauty salon in Blackwood. What a great gal Marie was.
Then there was the dancing at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City to the big bands, high school dances, the Birdwood and the Dancette. And ugly, yellow Fel’s Naphtha Soap. You could wash yourself, your clothes, the floor, and use it for medicinal purposes.
There was a sad side, too. Many Italians were bilked of their savings during the 20s by buying stock in fake oil wells in South Jersey. We had some. They were pretty looking certificates and would make nice wallpaper after the Crash of’29.
When the first generation arrived in the U.S., several decided to go into business (grocery store, electrical contracting, barber, shoe stores and shoe repair, etc.). I worked in Nick Andreacola’s grocery store after school and weekends and received a free course in many Italian dialects while talking to customers. There were dozens of wonderful types of pasta which were sold loose. NOT pre-packaged.
Silvio, (John) was the first to get a degree (in Education , at Temple Univ.) cutting hair to pay his tuition. He set a precedent for us. I took college preparatory courses in high school As a result, the Army sent me to Stanford before I went over seas. That, a job at RCA ,and the GI Bill got me a Bachelor of Science at Drexel U. Angelo Andreacola got a Doctorate in Dentistry.
There must have been a high level of intelligence in the older generations. They passed it on to many of their offspring. The next generations exploded with higher education and we now have degrees in law, engineering, economics, art, philosophy, etc.
We have become educators, politicians , practiced law, dentistry, economics, engineering, physics, photography, art, computer specialists’ etc. We have gone to Tokyo to sell satellites, taught economics at Hong Kong Univ. and sent spacecraft to the Moon and Mars... and many more, I’m sure.. .but I’ve lost touch with many younger members.
Our interests have not been limited to vocations alone. There have been opera singers (in the Phila. Opera companies), linguists, piano and organ aficionados, boat builders, guitarists (some, self-taught). And again there are more I don’t know of.
I guess that even with intelligence, it was hard for the older immigrants to keep up with their rapidly changing world. - even for my father (Angelosanto) who made the technology leap from stonemasonry to electrician. One day, he asked me what I was doing at RCA. I responded that I was managing a study to send a the Viking spacecraft to orbit Mars and send a Lander to the surface. He replied, Don’t kid me.. you’re still inspecting TV sets in the factory! But there was a glint in his eye, and he was teaser, so I think he was proud of his son, in HIS own way.
There was evidence of religiosity and mysticism too. For example... one morning, my mother, Isoletta, said to me, ‘I talked with your father last night(He had been dead for two years). Years before, I watched her calm her children with high fevers using the sign of the Cross on their temples with a pinch of salt or olive oil, while murmuring prayers.. and it worked!
Saints (and Sinners?)
~ For the kidnappers in the family, see Notes A-3 and B10 *
If I had to choose three people who merit a few extra words beyond the notes below, they would be Filomena Palumbo and Isoletta Flacco, my grandmother and mother respectively. The third would be my uncle (Silvio) John Palumbo who performed more community service than all of us put together.
In many capacities, while a principal, he showed the lower income and poor ethnic groups of Camden (when Camden was disintegrating) how to maintain their dignity, to survive and develop themselves for a better career. His wife, Alice, not only accepted it, but participated. Whatever his salary was, I’m sure it was less than half the compensation he would otherwise could gotten (what with his awards, scholarships and experience) if he had chosen another field. HE was, in truth, an EDUCATOR, both within and outside the family. He was a big guy, with broad shoulders, a great voice, and a delicate sense of humor. He danced with the grace of a ballerina. Most of all he understood people, as did Filomena and Isoletta.
In my judgment, the aforementioned two women held the largest segment of the two families in the Camden area together, mostly as housewives... (My mother had a few stores, but they never provided significant income. She didn’t have the heart to charge more than SHE paid wholesale.) So she went to work in a factory during THE Great Depression.
Other women who worked as secretaries (Adeline, Mabel, Betty, etc.) or opened beauty shops (Marie, Edith), two of the few women’s choices of that day, ALL the family women did their share.
Filomena (D’Aurizio) Palumbo.
(For Ciriaco Palumbo, see Notes) To provide a complete description of Filomena would be impossible, but here are a few facts and vignettes:
Filomena delivered 12 children over a 24 year period. Six were born in Italy. At any given time, she had 6 or 7 in the house.
She was a LADY, in the BEST sense of the word. When she was dressed up in her finery and gold accessories, we thought of her as a Duchess. Whenever anyone visited her, THEY were important enough, regardless of age, to warrant her full attention. If someone would complain about someone else’s behavior, she would gently say ‘Chi Nasce’ (They’re BORN that way--or Accept them as they are.’).
Her kindness was tempered by an ability to command. She could marshal up an army (mostly boys, in my time) to help prepare Sunday dinner (1 PM) which was an OCCASION.
Her source of labor were the boys who had not yet left her home. They had a large back bedroom with 3 beds. There John, Edward, and Oliver slept, with me as a frequent weekend guest. On Sunday morning we would have pillow fights until Grand mom would come to the bottom of the steps, and yell, Arrizze, MO!!.’ Which meant "Get up NOW, or else!!". Of course, boys of 12 to 16 years of age didn’t rush for their clothes. S0 sooner or later, she (all 5 feet of her!) would inevitably wade into the bedroom with a wooden mixing spoon, or whatever she had in her hands at the moment and proceeded to shoo us out of bed.
Bedlam ensued. - we jumped from bed-to-bed with her in hot pursuit shouting harmless epithets like "Animals!", "Lazy ones!", "Aren’t you ashamed??!!", until she cornered us and we had no options. All the time these large boys were laughing. - knowing her aim was not to hurt, but to assert her point. (She hardly tapped them about their brawny shoulders). She never touched me. (I was her grandson). Her 'Wake-Up’ call completed, she would retire from the battlefield, trailing gentle warnings as she went. -
The contrast between THAT scene, and the after-dinner scene were beautiful to see. All the guys would be sprawled, overstuffed, about the living room, and Filomena would be happily humming while working about the kitchen. You could sense her pride that these sons whom she loved, chose to stay in HER house rather than go out. And the wondrous things that came out of her kitchen. - gnocchi, ravioli, pizzelle, crispelle, cooked crabs, mushrooms. The pasta started with whole raw eggs in a ring of flour.. then you break the egg yolks with your fingers, and mix in the flour from the inside ..a-ah-h- I could go on and on.’ Yes, she was a LADY, sensitive, but pragmatic. Her house was clean and organized. When told that they might move her bed to the parlor (as she got older) she said, "I will NOT live like a gypsy!" She spent her last days with her daughter, Marie..
Elizabeth( Isoletta Palumbo )Flacco
Isoletta Flacco had a heart of gold and would give it to the first person to 'con' her with a sad story. After selling the house we owned (during the Depression), she put all the money into a clothing store. Friends proceeded to ask for shoes 'on trust' for their small children and item by item, ALL the stock disappeared with little if ANY payment.. and we had to move again.
She would have a dark frown when she was thinking, but we all knew that the sunny face would not be long in coming. She trusted her childrens’ judgment and let them make their choices in life. She literally gave us her own portion of food to eat. She paid an awful price with her health. We tried to make her comfortable in her later life, but SHE was the one who fooled the doctors by living 15 years longer than their prognosis. The key to this feat was a Will to Live, and her purpose in life was to give to family.. .to friends. - and even to strangers.
The remnants of the Italian generation and the first in the U.S. are shrinking fast. After WWII, from 1946 onwards, the Camden enclave dissolved. Most family branches scattered to the suburbs. In many cases, not to see each other again except for a final reunion (circa 1954), or to share grief for someone passing on.
Some of the personal impressions I recall may seem romantic. However, recently, I checked out a book from the library that shows reprints of the NY Times from 1929 to 1940. It confirms the main factors that controlled our lives as I’ve presented them.
Some data.
In the 1985 Philadelphia. telephone directory are 44 Palumbos, 8 Flaccos, and 14 Ricciutis. There are more in the Jenkintown
area. Few are close relatives. (and who knows how many women we lost track of since their maiden names changed?)
In the 1994 Camden County directory are 24 Palumbos, 10 Flaccos, and 4 Andreacolas. Again, few are close relatives.
There are already over 60 identifiable cousins who wouldn’t know each other if they bumped into each other. There are at least 34 identified first cousins. There are more to be found.
This summary does not by any means, cover the Jenkintown/Ambler branches of the family, but I feel that I cannot do them justice from my limited knowledge of their younger members, but perhaps this document will help them to understand the Phila/Camden branches. Hopefully this summary will give them a base to build on or correct.
There are more offspring BEYOND the generations shown, so hopefully by distributing this note, they may have a starting point if they try to extend the searching process.. .for in about 5 to 10 years, there will be no one from Italy, no one who talked to the people who came from Italy or remember the old stories... only those who visited the little town in Italy.
I have pictures from family reunions in 1940, 1946, and 1954,and some other pictures, as do some others in the family.
There are many more hundreds of stories to be told. - -
****PLEASE SEE THE LIST 3 PAGES FOR HINTS AT MORE STORIES****
I HAD to draw the line somewhere, but I would be happy to cooperate with anyone who wants to do more work. - I would help, ”con grande piacere~ (with great pleasure).
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See the Notes below for specific details on individual members. There’s GOLD in these Notes.’’.
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Notes on Charts
These notes correspond to the circled numbers on the Charts of the family trees. For example A1 refers to the circled 1 on Chart A, B2 refers to the circled 2 on Chart B and so on.
Notes on Chart A Chart A
1. Irene married twice. Ricciuti first, Giacinto next. Then HE died. According to the best data, she never remarried. She may have been called Saccharina ( “Sacch-Irene”?).(Sweet Irene?)
la THIS may be the yellow fever guy. - or 7a is???
2. He ran away, married, and came to live at Ciriaco’s house when Isoletta was a small child. Ciriaco was fond of him.
3. Ciriaco Palumbo was a custom shoe designer in Italy. He came to the U.S. three times. When the D’Aurizio family did not agree to his marriage to Filomena, he snatched her while she was on a family outing, and kept her overnight in a nearby town, so that no one else could marry her. To me, he was the patriarch of the family. He had a fancy car which he parked in front of his home on Sundays. I suspect it was one-upmanship with the barber next door who had a fancy one, too. Ciriaco would wear a pinstriped vest and unbuttoned jacket his gold watch and chain, a black cravat and a soft Panama hat, and watch people go by. He loved opera , which he would play on an upright windup phonograph (with wooden needles), and tears glistened, as he heard the beauty of the music. On one trip to Italy, he attended a premiere performance of one of Puccini's operas. He died in his 80s.
4. Another story that was told was that whenever Ciriaco griped about the miseries of marriage or fatherhood, Filomena said, "You ASKED for it." Rumor has it that she included a reference to 'Madonna Della Neve' and 'Nunn’(?)in her name. 'Nonna' means grandmother in Italian,(?) She died in her 80s.
5.Rosalinda married more than once.
6.Angelina was 'half sister’ to Filomena. She lived in Philadelphia. Her marriages were to a Ricciuti, and a Sangello. She was blond with blue eyes. What beautiful names she gave her children.
7a.,7b. Can’t tie either one down.
8.Lives in Philadelphia. Saw her once when we were about 15.
9.Ernestine will be 90 on Feb.l8th,1995... Centanni.
CHART 'B' Notes Chart B
1.He is the first confirmable Flacco ancestor I found. She is the fabled daughter of the Contessa from Alsace/Lorraine. She had married once and then married Angelosanto. Perhaps after he died, she remarried. She was blond and blue—eyed.
2.Fiorindo came to U.S. When he sent for his wife, Minicucci, she refused to come.(Not unusual those days). He proceeded to disappear in U.S.
3.This my father. Isoletta maintained that she turned him down in Italy and he pursued her to this country. He was a stonemason in Italy and taught himself about electricity in the U.S. He started one of the first electrical contracting companies in South Jersey (to wire houses for electric lights to replace gaslights) in the 1920s. It was wiped out in 1929. He then worked at rewiring houses. He and Isoletta taught themselves to read, write, and the use of electrical equipment.
4.She married an engineer while in Italy (Vincent Cangello). They lived in a brownstone house in New York. They came to Camden to visit once when Edith Cangello and I were in our early teens.
5.This Edith moved to Colorado, probably after she married.
6.Rocco was injured (on a chair). It did not seem serious. He went to West Jersey hospital, where he died. (He was 28)
7 Fiorevante stayed in Italy with his mother. Pocco probably planned to bring them to the U.S. after he earned some money. Fiorevante was in the Italian army in North Africa in WWII captured, and sent to England. We wrote to each other after we came out of the military. He later went to Argentina . We corresponded a couple of times (circa 1980).
8.These may have been bachelors from Giuliano who visited the families in the Camden area.
9. AngeloSanto’s half brother. Was railway foreman. Came to U.S., had children of first marriage.(wife died?),returned to Italy, remarried(?) then had second set of children.
10. AngeloSanto’s cousin. He also kidnapped his wife. L4as mechanic and fireman in Jenkintown. Really well liked by relatives and friends. He had a stroke, total disability, lingered for years and passed away. His children now in their 60s and 70s live in and around Jenkintown /Ambler area.
11. Joseph had a bakery in South Phila. Passed away before 1994.
12. Married brother of priest (Roland?).
13. Live in Jenkintown/Ambler area. There are other relatives there ,too.
14. A branch of the Andreacola family. Nick(Nicola) had a grocery store in Camden. Had a sister, Conchetta, and possibly other sisters.(Natalina,Sophie,and Claridge).Natalina may have daughter( Elvira).
15. Angelo Andreacola is an accomplished dentist. His daughter Lynn practices with him as a dentist.
1. There are several Angelosantos. This one is this my father.
2. Isoletta (tiny island) was the first of the Palumbo dozen. She proceeded to have SIX( children. Filomena didn’t stop. Four or five of Filomena’s children were born AFTER Isoletta began her brood. One of her children died at 19 months.
3. Remarried after Coleman died.
4. Remarried after divorce. Second husband(York) died in 1992.
5. Divorced Becker first, married DiCarlo, had two children.
6. The author of this summary. Divorced Pierce, married Shimada, divorced ,1993
7. Died mid 1960’s. Sidonie did not remarry. She’s in California.
8. Lives in Miami Beach area.
9. Both live in Virginia.
10. Camillo (Bill)and Chris went to Giuliano. Lives in S. Jersey
11. Lives in Brooktondale, N.Y.
12. Lives in Riverton, NJ.
13 - Paul, Richard live in California. Penee lives in Arizona
“Remember the time that..." -
* Ed almost drowned. At a picnic, he stepped into a hole under water, and a neighbor happened to step on his body.
* A car hit Rose on Broadway.
* Isoletta fell and hit her head on the trolley tracks on Broadway, before the city covered them.
* Angelosanto (my father) crushed the front of his car while he was ogling a pretty pair of legs going by. Mom chewed him out because all the kids were in the car.
* When a young boy was brought to John’s office for discipline, John stood up to his full height and asked, Do you know who I am? The boy asked. GOD? . . .(John had to leave the room to control a smile.)
* The firemen on Broadway were hosing down Broadway in August and soaked one of the flirtatious girls in the 8th ward, while a guy held her. (HE got soaked too.)
*Trying to crank-start the old cars without breaking an arm.
* Igloo’s and snowball fights between Angelo, Richard and company across Broadway.
* When 'Brownie' the dog was killed trying to cross Broadway to receive food from a nice neighbor.
* Angelosanto Flacco got hit by a car and was between the car’s wheels when we first saw him. We figured it was curtains
* Art won the 8th grade speaking contest, Made the Courier Post. He carried the $2.50 in an envelope in his shoe for 6 months.
* While we were crabbing, Pat took Mabel rowboating in Barnegat Bay, they lost both oars in a storm, and we thought they were goners, until the storm was over, and a boat went and found them.
* When Richard and family were on "This is Your Life" as Cancer Family of the Year, because of Sidonie’s survival. Mamie Eisenhower met with them. And they got an 'Edsel'.
* Using the out-house at the picnics...and the FLIES!!!!
* When a cop shot through the rear of the Flacco house and the bullet passed straight through the house 3 feet above the floor and entered the piano in the front room, just before Isoletta would normally be in the line of fire in front of the store... In the newspapers, they said the cop shot "over the man’s head".