High School, Chapter 10

After school Friday, I hurry home to take a shower.  This will be my first party at a girl's house.  I need to relax, but it ain't gonna be easy.

What to wear?  Don't want to look too nerdy.  Mom makes a suggestion.  Terrible!  Not that!

I have a quick bite to eat.  Not a lot.  Don't want to feel bloated, not starving either.

I pick out a few records to bring.  Hope Ann approves.

I'm on my way.  My stomach's in knots.  

I arrive at her door and knock.  Ann answers.  She's adorable, with make-up, a pretty, short dress and her hair dolled up.  She has a big smile on, warmly greeting me.

I enter her house.  Party's in her family's finished basement.  Nicely decorated for the occasion.  Cool!  

There's 12 of us, six boys and six girls.  I know about half of each and am introduced to the rest.  All the girls are cute, but Ann's the best.

There's pizza and Coke.  I eat a slice and take a sip.  

The music starts and everybody's hesitant at first.  Then, Ann says the girls should pick their partners for the first dance.  After, it will be the boys turn, but it can't be with the same partner.  Good idea.  By evening's end, I danced at least once with all the girls.  Ann's the best.  

After many records, we're all tired and we stop, eat, drink some more...and talk...and laugh.  Everybody's real nice...made some new friends...great party.

At night's end, when we're all leaving, Ann asks me to stick around for a minute.  What for, I don't know.  When we're finally alone, she puts her arms around my neck and gives me a kiss on my lips.  Holy cow!  

Something in my heart told me I must have you.    

Puerto Rico

Since the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1493 on behalf of King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella I, the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico was a colony of Spain.  However, that changed as a result of the Spanish-American War.

After antigovernment rioting broke out in Cuba (another Spanish colony) in January 1898, U.S. President William McKinley sent the battleship Maine to Havana harbor to protect American interests there.  On February 15, 1898, the Maine blew up under mysterious circumstances.  Of a crew of 355 officers and sailors, 261 were killed.  Influenced by "yellow journalism," the American public blamed Spain for the loss of life.  

On April 19, 1898, "the U.S. Congress passed a joint resolution (signed by McKinley) recognizing Cuban independence and demanding Spanish withdrawal from the island.  The president was also granted the power to use military might to enforce the resolution.  Spain officially broke off relations with the United States on April 21, enabling Congress to declare on April 25 that a state of war existed between the two countries."

American troops landed in Cuba in June 1898.  The following month the Spanish fleet there was destroyed.  

McKinley then demanded the transfer of control over Puerto Rico as a condition for peace.  On July 25, 1898, some 18,000 U.S. troops landed in Guanica Bay in Puerto Rico.  On August 13, Spain agreed to all U.S. terms. 
   
On October 18, 1898 (122 years ago today), American soldiers raised the American flag in Puerto Rico, formalizing U.S. control of the island.

Since then, Puerto Rico has been a territory/commonwealth of the United States.  In 1917, as a result of the Jones Act (signed by U.S. President Woodrow Wilson), all Puerto Ricans born on or after April 25, 1898 were granted U.S. citizenship.  

In 1947, the U.S. Congress passed a law, signed by President Harry Truman, allowing Puerto Ricans the right to elect their own governor.  In 1948, Munoz Marin became the first popularly elected governor.  

On November 1, 1950, two Puerto Rican nationalists attempted to assassinate President Truman.  One was killed and the other served 29 years in federal prison before having his sentence commuted by President Jimmy Carter.

In a 2017 plebiscite, 97% of voters on the island chose for Puerto Rico to become the 51st state of the USA.  Its population is 3.2 million, larger than the states of Iowa, Mississippi, Arkansas, Kansas, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, West Virginia, Nebraska, Idaho, Hawaii, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Montana, Delaware, South Dakota, Alaska, North Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming.  

I am a supporter of Puerto Rican statehood (along with that of the District of Columbia).  Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina opposes statehood because it would dilute GOP control of the United States Senate.  A good enough reason?    

    

Bill Mazeroski

Bill Mazeroski was born September 5, 1936 in Wheeling, West Virginia, but grew up in Rush Run, Ohio.  At seventeen years-of-age, he signed a professional baseball contract.  After two years playing in the minor leagues, Mazeroski was promoted to the majors and played sixteen years with the Pittsburgh Pirates before retiring in 1972.

However, let's go back to the afternoon of Thursday, October 13, 1960.  I was a sophomore at Oswego High School (OHS).  In the middle of the afternoon, I was scheduled to have a study hall.  At the same time, the seventh and deciding game of the World Series was being played at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh.  

The OHS administration placed a black-and-white TV set on the stage in the school auditorium tuned to the World Series.  Any student with study hall was permitted to watch the game instead.  What a break!  

When I arrived in the auditorium, the game was in the fifth inning with the Pirates leading 4-1.  However, the Yankees quickly went in front (5-4) with the help of a Yogi Berra three-run homer (which TV announcer Mel Allen originally called a foul ball).  They added two more runs in the top of the eighth inning to give New York a 7-4 advantage needing only six outs to win their nineteenth World Series Championship.

Then in the bottom of the eighth, magic happened.  First, pinch hitter Gino Cimoli singled to center.  Next up, Bill Verdon hit a sure double play ground ball to shortstop Tony Kubek.  But, just before the ball arrived in his glove, it hit a pebble and ricocheted off his throat, causing (1) blood to fill his mouth and (2) difficulty for him to breathe.  The bottom line was two men on instead of two men out.

Dick Groat singled, scoring Cimoli, making the score 7-5.  Bob Skinner made a sacrifice bunt advancing Verdon to third base and Groat to second base with one out.  After Rocky Nelson made the second out, Roberto Clemente beat out an infield single, scoring Verdon from third.  The score was now 7-6, with two runners on base and two outs.  

Up came catcher Hal Smith who hit a dramatic three run home run to give the Pirates a 9-7 lead.  Pittsburgh was now three outs away from their first World Series championship since 1925.

Bobby Richardson led off the top of the ninth with a single.  Ex-Pirate Dale Long singled as well.  After Roger Maris made the first out, the great Mickey Mantle singled scoring Richardson, cutting the Pirate lead to 9-8.  Long went to third base and was replaced by Gil McDougald.  

Then Yogi Berra hit a sharp ground ball to first baseman Rocky Nelson who stepped on the bag to retire Berra for the second out and then attempted to eliminate Mantle to end the game and the World Series.  However, Mantle, in an amazing athletic move, avoided Nelson and returned to the safety of first base, allowing McDougald to score and tie the game at 9.  

In the bottom of the ninth, up came the previously mentioned Bill Mazeroski.  On the second pitch from Yankee pitcher Ralph Terry, he hit a home run over the left field wall giving the Pirates the championship.  

It was the first time a World Series ended on a home run.  It has happened only one other time since, Joe Carter for the Toronto Blue Jays in 1993.

It was also the only time in my life I cut a class.  I stayed past the end of my study hall.  I was not about to miss watching the end of the greatest baseball game ever played.  

  

          

Shadow of a Doubt

Shadow of a Doubt is a 1943 psychological thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock and which starred Teresa Wright and Joseph Cotton.  It received one Academy Award nomination, Thornton Wilder (author of Our Town) for Best Original Motion Picture Story (won by William Saroyan for The Human Comedy).

In the film, Charlie (Wright) is a young woman living with her parents and younger siblings in the beautiful town of Santa Rosa, CA, 55 miles north of San Francisco with a population then of about 13,000.  She anxiously awaits the visit of her Uncle Charlie (Cotton), for whom she was named and whom she adores.

We learn early on that Uncle Charlie is suspected of being a serial killer, known as the Merry Widow Murderer.  A police detective tells Charlie what he knows, causing her to doubt her uncle.

Charlie notices Uncle Charlie's suspicious behavior, such as his cutting out an article about one of the murders from her father's newspaper.  Uncle Charlie gives Charlie an emerald ring with one of the murder victim's initials inside.  In addition, Uncle Charlie says the following:

 

"Women keep busy in towns like this. In the cities it's different. The cities are full of women, middle-aged widows, husbands dead, husbands who've spent their lives making fortunes, working and working. Then they die and leave their money to their wives. Their silly wives. And what do the wives do, these useless women? You see them in the hotels, the best hotels, every day by the thousands, drinking the money, eating the money, losing the money at bridge, playing all day and all night, smelling of money. Proud of their jewelry but of nothing else. Horrible, faded, fat, greedy women."

Charlie responds, "They're alive! They're human beings!"

Uncle Charlie retorts, "Are they? Are they, Charlie? Are they human or are they fat wheezing animals, hmm? And what happens to animals when they get too fat and too old?"

Charlie is afraid to say anything to her mother who also adores her brother.  However, she confronts her Uncle who then confesses he is a murder suspect, asking for Charlie's help and promising her he will soon leave Santa Rosa.  

Charlie agrees to help, but instead Uncle Charlie tries to kill her.  First, he cuts away some wooden steps on an outdoor staircase causing her to almost fall.  Then, Uncle Charlie traps his namesake in the family's garage with a car's motor running.  Finally, when he is leaving town,  Uncle Charlie tries to push his niece in front of an oncoming train.  Luckily, Charlie fights back and Uncle Charley becomes the victim.

Hitchcock considered Shadow of a Doubt to be his favorite film.  His daughter, Pat, said, "he loved the thought of bringing menace into a small town."  And not only into the town, but right into his own family's home as well.

High School, Chapter 9

I arrive at Delores's house an hour after school, ready to help the prettiest girl in the freshman class study for tomorrow's Portuguese quiz.  Earlier, when I got to my home, I took a quick shower and changed clothes.  I'm trying to act cool, but it won't be easy.

I ring the bell and soon her mother opens the door.

"Oh, hi, I'm Bennie.  Delores asked me to help her study...ah, with her homework."

Mother shouts: "Delores, your friend's here."

Delores:  "Tell him to come up."

Mother:  "Go on up."

I enter the house and slowly climb the stairs.  When I reach the top, I see Delores at the door of her bedroom.  She gives me a big smile.

Delores:  "Hiya, Bennie.  Come on in."

I enter and she closes the door behind me.  I have never been more nervous in my life.  Her hair, normally down by her shoulders, is piled on top of her head.  Delores has changed her clothes from school, now wearing a light blue t-shirt and a pair of tight-fitting yellow short shorts.  She's barefoot.

Delores:  "So, Bennie, teach me Portuguese.  I gotta pass tomorrow's quiz."

After a shaky start, we settle down and have a productive hour, some of which is spent in idle conversation to get to know each other better.  I can't believe my good fortune.  Afterwards, we have some cookies and milk in the kitchen.

More good news.  Delores gets 80% on the quiz (I get 100).  She is so happy, she kisses me on the cheek after class.

Oh, what a beautiful mornin'
Oh, what a beautiful day
I got a beautiful feelin'
Everything's goin' my way 

Carmen

I remember the evening of Monday, September 23, 1957 (63 years ago).  My father and I were glued to the radio broadcast of the middleweight (limit 160 lbs./72.5 kg.) championship fight between Sugar Ray Robinson (champion) and Carmen Basilio (contender and reigning welterweight [limit 147 lbs./66.8 kg.] champion).

Our interest in this particular 15 round boxing match was that Carmen (born April 2, 1927) lived in nearby Canastota, New York (a mere 55 miles/88 km from Oswego).  In other words, he was a local favorite.  

The contest took place "outdoors in a ballpark," Yankee Stadium in New York City.  We were listening as the fight was not televised.  Although we were in the same room, my father and I, as usual, didn't exchange too many words.  

At the end of the grueling match, two of the three judges awarded the victory and the middleweight championship to Carmen by scores of 9-5-1 & 8-6-1.  It turned out to be the pinnacle of his career.  Six months later Carmen lost the title back to Sugar Ray.  He tried to regain it three more times (against two different champions) over the next three years, but failed each time.

I saw Carmen once in person at the New York State Fair in Syracuse where he was offering to have his picture taken with you (for a fee).  We made eye contact, but no picture.

Thinking of Carmen made me recall a period (the 1950s) when there were many great Italian-American boxers.

1) Carmen Basilio (Carmine Basilio) won the Welterweight championship on June 10, 1955 when he knocked out Tony DeMarco, lost it March 14, 1956 on a decision to Johnny Saxton, but won it a second time when he knocked out Saxton September 12, 1956.

2) Willie Pep (Guglielmo Papaleo) won the Featherweight (limit 126 lbs. or 57 kg.) championship on November 20, 1942 with a decision over Chalky Wright.  He held the title until 1948 when he was knocked out by Sandy Sandler.  Pep won the title back from Sandler in 1949.  I saw him on TV lose on a second round TKO to Lulu Perez in 1954 (see Willie Pep).  
  
3) Rocky Marciano (Rocco Marchegiano) won the heavyweight (then more than 175 lbs./79 kg.) championship September 23, 1952 with a spectacular one punch knock out of Jersey Joe Walcott (see Arnold and Rocco).  He held the title until April 27, 1956 when he retired from boxing with a perfect record of 49-0.  Rocky is portrayed by Jon Favreau in the film Rocky Marciano.

4) Jake LaMotta (Giacobbe LaMotta) won the middleweight championship on June 16, 1949 with a TKO of the French fighter Marcel Cerdan.  He lost the title to Robinson on February 14, 1951.  LaMotta is portrayed by Robert De Niro in the film The Raging Bull.

5) Rocky Graziano (Thomas Rocco Barbella) won the middleweight championship on July 16, 1947 with a KO of Tony Zale.  He lost it back to Zale on June 10, 1948.  Rocky retired after his last fight in September 1952.  He is portrayed by Paul Newman in the film Somebody Up There Likes Me.

6) Joey Giardello (Carmine Tilelli), who fought throughout the 1950s, won the Middleweight championship on December 7, 1963 with a unanimous decision over the Nigerian fighter Dick Tiger.  I was an eyewitness that night (see Postponed).  He lost the title back to Tiger in 1965.  Giardello is portrayed by Ben Bray in the film The Hurricane.

7) Frank Cappuccino (Frank Capcino) had a long amateur boxing career, but a short professional one (winning all six of his fights).  After his retirement from boxing in 1955, he got a license to be the third man in the ring three years later.  In fifty years, Cappuccino refereed over 25,000 bouts including 94 world championship matches.     
     

Coup D'etat

On March 31 and April 1, 1964, the democratically elected Brazilian President Joao Goulart was overthrown in a coup d'etat by branches of the Brazilian military.  It would be twenty-one years before democracy was restored.    

The coup was supported by the United States government.  I heard an audio recording of President Lyndon Baines Johnson discussing his authorization for the use of American troops to invade Brazil if necessary to assist the new junta.  I'm glad it didn't happen.

My wife, Cristina Rolim, was a twelve year-old girl on those fateful days in her country's history, living in a city in the interior of the State of Sao Paulo.  I am thankful my country, the USA, has never had such an experience.

About six years later, a unit of Brazilian soldiers came to Cristina's home town looking for political subversives.  They camped out in a public square in the center of the city.  Many of them were young good-looking men of Cristina's age or a little older.

Selma, a friend of Cristina's, who had access to a car, invited Cristina and two other friends to go along with her for a joy ride.  It was 8:00 PM (and dark out) when the four girls drove off for an unforgettable experience.  

They went to the public square hoping to engage in conversation some of the young soldiers camped there.  Selma drove around and around the square several times before they finally got the young men's attention.  

Five soldiers then surrounded the car, one in front and two on each side.  They pointed their guns at each of the four girls.  Cristina was sitting in the back seat with a revolver aimed directly at her head.  I can't imagine!  

Each of the girls was asked for identification.  Cristina didn't have any with her, so soldiers escorted her home.  She sneaked in hoping not to alert her parents who would have been very upset.  Cristina succeeded.  The girls were warned not to return to the square.  And they didn't.  

Their joy ride didn't turn out the way they hoped.  At least today Cristina can laugh about her adventure in the back seat of a car when she was just eighteen years-old.