My Grandmother Was Italian. Why Aren't My Genes Italian?
Maybe you got one of those find-your-ancestry kits over the holidays. You've sent off your awkwardly-collected saliva sample, and you're awaiting your results. If your experience is anything like that of me and my mom, you may find surprises — not the dramatic "switched at birth" kind, but results that are really different from what you expected. M...
Neapolitan Pizza Shop Now Open In Hyde Park
Hyde Park now has an option for Neapolitan pizza. Nella Pizza e Pasta opened recently at a space at 1125 E. 55th St. and is open seven days a week. It's the creation of Nella Grassano, who recently closed her pizza shop in Lincoln Park and has now reopened at the University of Chicago space. Grassano has expanded the menu from her Lincoln Park day...
She's 39, Italian and earns $38K a year: Meet N.J.'s most typical resident
The typical New Jersey resident in 2018 is a 39 year-old woman of Italian descent. She lives in Middlesex County, makes about $38,000 a year and has at least some college experience. She's married, lives in a home worth around $328,000 and has a commute of about 31.8 minutes. NJ Advance Media took a look at all of the most common traits of people...
Ex-‘Sopranos’ star now an in-demand Italian chef
Joseph R. Gannascoli — who played beefy mobster Vito Spatafore on “The Sopranos” — has been surprising New York-area Italian-food lovers with his cooking skills. The actor and foodie was spotted cooking up “spaghetti carbonara in a Parmesan wheel tableside” at Matteo’s of Roslyn on Wednesday night, we hear, to the delight of diners. One fan of his...
North Italia is the new neighborhood hot spot
Arizona-based Fox Restaurant Concepts’ first successful foray into the Las Vegas market was the hip, friendly Culinary Dropout at the Hard Rock Hotel. Now the innovative dining group has invaded the Vegas ’burbs with the warm, homey North Italia in the renovated Rampart Commons center at Charleston and Rampart boulevards. Its expansive dining room,...
Big Chuck: I'm glad my grandfather had no test
The topic of immigration, both legal and illegal, is the third rail in political discussions right now. An interesting twist to this is President Trump’s concept of “merit-based” immigration. In theory letting only the best and the brightest into America. If this test had been applied to the great masses that came over in my grandfather’s generatio...
The Assassination of Gianni Versace: Versace’s H.I.V. Status
The Versace family has long denied that Gianni, the original visionary behind the Italian fashion house, was H.I.V. positive when he was murdered in 1997. So it seems like a bold choice for The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story to open its second episode, “Manhunt,” with a scene in which Gianni is treated for the virus—especiall...
Member's Mark Italian Style Beef Meatballs by Casa di Bertacchi recalled
The USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service has issued a recall for "Member's Mark Italian Style Beef Meatballs by Casa di Bertacchi." The recall is for 36-pound cases that contain six 6-pound bags of the meatballs and are labeled with a "best if used by" date of December 17, 2018. They also have a lot code of 15507351 on the packaging.
Group Calls For Firing Over Eataly's 'Bring Home an Italian' Advertisement
A campaign calling for the firing of the person responsible for a controversial Eataly advertisement was launched Wednesday by a local Italian-American organization. The advertisement placed in the window of the River North marketplace reportedly reads “BRING HOME AN ITALIAN, WORTH THE SMELL” in large print, followed by an image of white truffles.
1960s Italian Cult Film Gets Operatic Treatment in Nashville Premiere of "Hercules vs. Vampires"
With a muscle-bound hero and damsel in distress, mythological storylines and an abundance of good vs. evil drama, Mario Bava’s 1961 Italian film Hercules in the Haunted World has all the trappings of a good opera. That’s why composer Patrick Morganelli, who had been a fan of the film for many years, jumped at the chance to turn the cult-fantasy fli...
New York celebra l’Italia con una corsa: appuntamento a Central Park
Al Console Generale d’Italia a New York, Francesco Genuardi, l’idea è venuta osservando il calendario degli eventi podistici della città: “C’era la corsa dedicata al Giappone e ad altre Nazioni. Allora mi sono chiesto: “Perché non quella per gli italiani?”, ha spiegato. Una telefonata agli amici del prestigioso New York Road Runner, il club che org...
Local students propose day honoring Native Americans
The City of Akron may be getting a new holiday, but City Council wants a little more time to think about it. Seventh- and eighth-graders and faculty from The Lippman School in West Akron turned out Jan. 22 to present a proposal to put First People’s Day on the calendar. They, along with representatives of the Northern Cheyenne Nation in Montana an...