By Luke Capuano
Supporting contributor: Vince Romano
Holy-Moly! June’s here and school is OUT! Let the fun begin! The weight of the world is off your shoulders and the next 67 days are all yours to do with as you please. For everyone except those unfortunate summer school kids.
By Sam “Blackie” Pesoli & Vince Romano
The near-west side became the dumping ground for hundreds of thousands of European immigrants who found their way to Chicago at the turn of the 20th century. That mass migration of southern Europeans, necessary to provide the labor force that fueled America’s industrial revolution, ended in 1924. By an act of Congress the further immigration of southern Europeans was restricted.
Luke Capuano
Supporting contributor: Vince Romano
The following are some of the early boyhood memories of one of our Taylor Street bred figures. Luke Capuano became a professional fighter and climaxed his career with two memorable fights with Mike Rossman, former light heavyweight champion of the world. A hotly disputed split decision over Luke kept alive Rossman’s hopes of regaining his light heavyweight title. Luke’s career as a professional fist fighter included an exhibition with Cassius Clay, also know as Muhammad Ali.
Growing up in Taylor Street’s Little Italy
By Luke Capuano
Supporting contributor: Vince Romano
“A child’s life is like a piece of paper on which every person leaves a mark.”
Elsewhere in these Taylor Street Archives is a story that begins as follows: In India, they have a saying reserved for those individuals who had influenced and shaped our lives. That saying is, “You are my Gemma.” The Gemma is a tributary to the Ganges River. From the point at which the Gemma flows into the Ganges, the Ganges is no longer the same river. Its course is forever influenced by the Gemma as it winds its way down to the ocean ultimately influencing and shaping the landscape of distant shores. “You are my Gemma.” A tribute reserved for those who had become our Gemmas during our personal journeys through life. A tribute reserved for those who made us something different than we would have been had we not met them.