From Frank Barning (1960), newsletter editor: fbarning@yahoo.com:
The October 28 newsletter resulted in a variety of interesting responses to the editorial-like commentary I wrote about our education at Division Avenue High School, thoughts about our parents and other topics that seemed to touch some nerves.
After I get my two-cents worth in, you will find those comments from classmates. They give us much to chew on about our roots, Levittown in the 1950s and post-war America.
As mentioned previously, I have been in touch with many of our schoolmates, both in person and via email over the past five years. Some of the guys have great recall of the Levittown days, Little League stories, hanging at the village greens, chasing members of the opposite sex (we were all straight in those days, or so we thought), dances, harrowing adventures in cars, and buying beer at Sid's on Hempstead Turnpike where all you needed for proof of age was a couple of dollar bills.
John Gentleman (1960) and I sat down over our yearbook one morning when I was in Las Vegas. Between the two of us, we had stories to tell around nearly everyone in our class. We had different circles of friends in the old days, so there was not much overlap. It was amazing what we could remember. And we also knew a great deal of what had become of people with whom we had gone to Division.
Several of the guys have never got over how miserable it was playing football for Jerry Jewell. Don Davidson, who lives about 15 minutes from me in the San Diego area, still hates the man and one day his mom went on and on about "that damn Jewell.” That is some kind of hurt. I wonder if the abuse coach Jewell handed out would be tolerated today. Most of our parents were clueless about things that should have concerned them. My folks never defied authority. To them, a teacher or administrator was all powerful.
It took the Vietnam war for many of us to understand that is was not improper to defy the powerful. As Bob Dylan sang back then, “The times, they are a changing.” Today, it often appears that very little authority remains in our society. I surely would not want to work in most public schools. Division Avenue High School was mostly a safe little island back in our day.
Hopefully, we can use this newsletter to get deep into topics that are unique to our experiences as youngsters of the 1950s and early 1960s in Levittown. I believe that the fact that the classes of 1960 and 1961 started the traditions of the school is worth recollection and discussion, because there are lots of pros and cons. Some of the women from my class have lamented that they did not have older guys to go out with. We guys had younger females who looked up to us and wanted to date upper classmen.
Ira Selsky (1960) agrees with me about the guidance staff at Division. Most of those guys were unprepared and offered little help. I only applied to one college. Fortunately, they let me attend. Several of us went to college in Nebraska, of all places. Mike Caldararo and Jim McGrath (1960) never left. The New Yorkers experiences' in Nebraska would make a good book, it has been pointed out to me. Maybe one or more of them will share some stories in the newsletter.
Part of the problem in choosing colleges is that most of us did not have parents who went on to higher education. Most of us did not know older kids who were in college. This was another negative resulting from our being the first graduating classes.
The list of deceased members of the class of 1960, of course, was distressing. Arnie Galeota (1961) reports that Ralph Del Piano (1963) recently passed away as did Bob Burner. Al DiLorenzo (1961) is also gone.
Newsletter feedback…
From Dewain Lanfear, class of 1960
In your last newsletter you wondered if we got a good education since we went to a new high school. I have always believed that we got an exceptional education. Jim Chenevy was only one of many excellent teachers who inspired me at DAHS. Joe Crane, Doug Erath, Ann Coates, Neil Chapman, Clare McGuigan are just some of the others that come to mind. I'm sure you could add to the list.
Whatever their shortcomings, they made me want to learn. The saying about giving someone a fish or teaching them to fish is relevant to education - instilling curiosity and
love of learning is more important than what is taught. These teachers helped to make me a life-long learner.
If you consider the accomplishments of the people in our class, it's hard to imagine that our education was in any way lacking. Bad schools can kill a spirit; bad teachers can destroy a person's sense of worth. From Woodstock (Artie Kornfeld) to the Broadway stage (Franne Newman Lee), from the Velvet Underground (Sterling Morrison)
to modern day capitalism in China (Warren Zaretsky), our class has been a moving force. The achievements of many others in our class are unknown to me, but I have no reason to believe that they are less significant than those I've mentioned.
Clearly, then, my strong opinion is that we received a wonderful education. The closeness of our class reflects the healthy environment of the school we all attended. Certainly some people had less than wonderful memories of high school, and we all have moments that we'd like to forget, but only producing two PhD's is not an indication that our teachers somehow let us down.
From name withheld by request
I read the newsletter, and did not realize so many other alumni had alcoholic parents. They should have had a group for all of us in school. But, you are right the world and us were much more innocent then, and people didn't talk about those things. But, we did have a great school and teachers.
When I read the awesome things that some of our classmates are involved in, I realize how different our generation is from the one that passed before us. I think overall we take much better care of ourselves, and take advantage of the wonderful opportunities life
offers.
From Ira Selsky, class of 1960
Thank you for the latest newsletter and for the opportunity to comment on several issues.
I think one of the reasons I became an entertainment lawyer was because of my love of music and for those who created music. I was (and remain) a friend of Artie Kornfeld, the songwriter, producer and Woodstock producer, who is now living in Hollywood, Florida.
I also spent many hours after school at Jimmy Tucker's house with the late Sterling Morrison, Jim Kinane and Jimmy listening to music, mostly the records by the pioneers like Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley. Jimmy Tucker's little sister Maureen would hang around her big brother, so it was no real surprise when the Velvet Underground featured the drummer Mo Tucker as well as Sterling on guitar. You and Rich were right; Sterling was a genius.
I attended NYU Law School in the 1960s, and the music scene in Greenwich Village was enormous. I remember seeing the Lovin' Spoonful before they had a record deal. And of course there was Bob Dylan. So after law school, I concentrated on the law of the music business, essentially drafting and negotiating contracts. My wife and I moved to Los Angeles in 1971, raised two children, who both went to Cal. Berkeley (where I wished I could have gone, but that's another story). Contrary to the opinion of most New Yorkers, it was not difficult to live in LA; to me it was Long Island with mountains and better weather.
In late 1997, I was offered a partnership at the top New York music law firm, and feeling the tug of family, we moved back and now live in New York City, between Lincoln Center and the new Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle.
My mother died in late 1997, just before we moved back, and my father then moved to Florida, where he enjoyed the last few years of his life. My wife's parents are still living in Flushing, near Shea Stadium.
I think we did get a good education at Division. There were some great teachers like Mr. Chenevey, Mr. Streb and Sra. Cameira, but I believe that college counseling was weak. Seeing how my children were counseled when they were in high school, the differences were staggering.
From Rich Humbert, class of 1960
The drummer in the Velvet Underground was Maureen Tucker, Jimmy Tucker's kid sister. Sterling Morrison and Stew Ronk moved to Greenwich Village shortly after graduation and commenced growing pot in a window box and joining the scene at CCNY. Whatever happened to Jimmy or Stew I don't know. Sterling and Jimmy were best friends. Ira Selsky knows some stuff, too.
About Sterling as "smartest": In our Senior English Regents exam he wrote a perfect essay - no one wrote perfect essays - he deliberately made a stupid punctuation mistake and received a 99 on the test. I remember that whatever drone was teaching - and there were a few drones in a remarkable group of teachers - had his essay reviewed by most of the English department looking for a flaw. None was found. I wish he were still breathing our air.
Les Diskin, class of 1962
I read the latest newsletter and it is something I have often thought about. My dad died 20 years ago but I must say my mom is doing very well. She is 85 and is still very active, flies all over the country. My brother lives in Florida.
High school for me was great. I could never thank some of the teachers enough. I am a teacher today because of most of them. You're right when you said it was such a carefree time and we were so innocent. I don't think that was wrong. Let's face it as adults, parents, grandparents and yes I am a great grandfather, we have had plenty of time to worry.
Some of the grand kids complain saying school is too hard. I usually tell them that you are in the easiest time of your life -- school is easy -- life is hard, enjoy it while you can. I knew some of the people on that list that have passed on and it still shocks me at times to think I am almost as old. In my head I am still 16, too bad all the body parts don't think so. I have good memories of Levittown and DAHS.
Pat Stanley Share, class of 1962
I have so many wonderful memories of my time spent in school. Time for us, at least for me, was simpler, although I may not have thought so at the time. I loved our town, the pools, the village greens, with the fields where we would play touch football, Whelan's, Mays. I remember visiting Santa on Hempstead Turnpike in his little house.
From Cliff Fromm, class of 1960
I was disheartened to see so many names on the deceased list. Some of the people, like Stephen Lilienthal, Louis Lopez and Ray Wenz were in my classes since the third grade. It makes me realize that we're not going to be here forever and it's not a pleasant thought. In high school I found Christine Wilkens attractive. It's hard to believe that she's no longer here. Bruce Garabrant, also on the list, together with Jimmy Halpern and Jay Citrin joined the Navy with me after high school. Gary DeCastillia (who married Janet Helling), ended up making a career of the Navy.
Both my parents have passed away. There are so many things that happen in my life with my children and grandchildren that I wish I could share with them. My father was a WWII vet. That's how he bought our Levitt house. He passed away at 70.
I am curious as to the cause of death of the people on the list, although it's probably difficult to find out. To the best of my knowledge, Louis Lopez died fairly young in a motorcycle accident.
You mentioned that your parents smoked Camel cigarettes. So did mine and my dad was always with one. He died of lung cancer. I smoked for a couple of early years and quit when I was about 19. Now my pleasure has been "running" which I have been doing for the past 20 or so years. I belong to The New York Road Runners Club as well as a local club. There is a lake 4 miles from my house at Rockland State Park. I meet a group there almost every morning at 5:30 a.m. (6:30 on the weekends) and we run at least 5 miles, rain, snow, sleet and shine. We have a rule, "no excuses". It's too easy to find a reason not to exercise.
From Larry Bory, class of 1960
I am very fortunate. My folks are still alive at 91 and 89. My dad was 30 when he was drafted which probably contributed to his handling the war better than most, plus he was in the Pacific in a rear area, and did many of the things that he did in his career, especially mentoring kids many of whom were virtually illiterate. They both gave up cigs about 40 years ago.
I remember best Jim Chenevy, Jim English, Sy Madanick (track coach) and a few others I will have to look in the yearbook to name. The worst was Navarro. He quit teaching and opened a liquor store on the North Shore. Rich Humbert is right. Sterling was brilliant and apathetic about the education we received. He liked cars (his dad had a souped up Chevy that looked vanilla, but could kill any car on Sunrise Highway) and chemicals especially the exploding kind.
I always reflected on why I was conventional when others were out on the edge, which seemed so enticing. In an alternate universe there is a Larry Bory who is a wild child.
From Tom (Paturzo) Baker, class of 1960
That was a very touching and sensitive newsletter. Unfortunately, many of our classmates will not have an opportunity to read your insightful words. You really identified some of our social heritage and how it impacted on our lives. Our parents were depression and WWII young adults. This had a profound effect on all of us. We did not understand what they had been through. At this age, we are beginning to realize their contribution.
Chris Wilkens and I were best friends. We walked to school together from elementary to high school. She was a great loss to everyone. Her passing was one of the main reasons I did not attend the last class reunion.
Feedback concerning recent newsletters. . .
Arnie Galeota, class of 1961: email address Arniegaleota4795@aol.com
I have to give my input of how I remember my last few years at Division. As a member of the class of 1961 I can tell you, the rules and discipline the school maintained were necessary. For instance, we were not allowed off school grounds for lunch, for if we were allowed, how many would come back to complete the school day?
There seemed to be a decent relationship between teacher and student with a few exceptions. I'm sorry to report the unexpected passing of Clair McGuigan about 2-3 years ago. I'm not sure how she died. The principal, Jim Reilly, was a no nonsense, no sense of humor type of man while Gene Aiello, the assistant principal in charge of maintaining discipline, had a sense of humor and seemed pretty well liked in spite of his position.
Jerry Jewell was the most hated and most feared of all the teachers, and yet he brought us our first football championship and he went on to a top position in the county's athletic department until his retirement some years ago.
Yes there were Saturday nights at Caruso's after a dance at the school. For some of us there was Sid's deli. That's where I was introduced to the evils of beer. It did make me feel grown up and sick sometimes. Our football team was unbeatable. The meanest, toughest bunch of guys in the league. I was part of the support group who would gather on a Saturday morning at the school before a game and become part of a large motorcade of cars going to an "away" game.
The comraderie, the school spirit, the Saturday night victory parties became Levittown folklore. The pairing up of the guys and girls for dancing in the dark sessions at someone's house which usually turned into make-out sessions. The music of The Crests, Dion and the Belmonts, The Shirelles The Platters and the Drifters and of course Elvis, it doesn't get any better than that.
When I sit with my 4 sons and tell them so many of these stories and try to set the mood of those times, no wars, a healthy economy, no serious drug problems, no H.I.V., no metal detectors at the schools for weapons and juvenile delinquency only an occasional headline in the suburbs. Their reaction is, "I wish I grew up in those times" and my reply is, "I wouldn't trade it for any other.”
Editor's note: Greg Aiello, son of Division's assistant principal in the early 1960s, is the vice president for public relations of the National Football League. He is often quoted as the spokesman for the NFL.
From Jeff Lincer, class of 1960
You might consider changing the reference to “the guys” to the guys and gals” on occasion so your readers don't think you're a complete male chauvinist pig. I have a recollection of there being another half of the class that was of the opposite gender. I was saddened to see that so many guys and gals had passed but it was a nice service that you provided.
Re. the counselors: I never would have gotten into a college had it not been for the assistance that John Quirk provided. He made my mother very happy but I wasn't ready for college (even Nassau Community College). I dropped out for a couple of years, drove truck, dug ditches, and generally did all the things that I realized I didn't want to do for the rest of my life. When I got serious, I completed a B.S. and M.S. at SUNY College of Forestry (and now) Environmental Sciences, then went on for a doctorate at Cornell (I'll bet that surprises a bunch of my classmates, since I had no desire to learn in high school). I, probably, spent more time at Sid's deli and that bar in Hempstead than I did on my biology homework.
Carolyn (then Greves) and I got married in 1963, had two girls (Wendy and Christy) and a wonderful life, mostly in Sarasota Florida, where we raised the girls. We moved to San Diego in 1991 to be close to my Mom, and in 1997 Carolyn passed away from cancer. She was a wonderful woman with a ready smile and a big heart—we'll always miss her. I'm remarried to another great woman (Judie) now and have two younger stepchildren, Danielle and Amit (I think I've been here before). Wendy and Christy have their own children and live nearby (thanks to Carolyn's insistence), which means I get to watch three granddaughters and a grandson grow up.
After a career that started in environmental research, spending 15 years with government, and another 10 years as a consultant, I co-founded a non-profit organization, the Wildlife Research Institute, Inc., in 1997. WRI concentrates on research, environmental education, and habitat conservation and is growing steadily with projects in California, New Mexico, Montana, and Mexico. AFN.
From Warren Zaretsky, class of 1960
In the November 3 newsletter, Frank Barning wrote “The October 28 newsletter resulted in a variety of interesting responses to the editorial-like commentary I wrote about our education at Division Avenue High School, thoughts about our parents and other topics that seemed to touch some nerves.”
Oh, was that what we regularly went to that architecturally bland and boring brick building for... "education?" Huh, coulda fooled me. I thought the education was an incidental by-product of mere proximity, while we focused on dealing with adolescent angst, social acceptance, sexual urgings, and worrying about Kenny's relationship with Ann, Bill and Diane, Tommy and Billy Jean, Al and Carol, Perry and a parade too long to mention.
Let's see, as far as teachers go: I remember Ms. Eisenhauer had nice breasts and I think she taught geography; Thaddeus Kalinowski's French lessons, though fun, failed me and I almost didn't get laid in Paris; Mr. Nava was a ton of laughs; Simes never added up for me; Jewell was an uncut gem who perhaps should've been cut; Amen for Amen; and there's always room in my heart for Aiello. All the rest are a blur of varying degrees of adequacy.
Instead of profound Latin over the doorway -- like Vini-Vici-Vidi -- or lofty French -- like Liberte'-Fraternite'-Egalite' -- "Naive, Sheltered, Clueless" seem like the appropriate DAHS counterpart. We had no racial issues because we had no races, we had no class issues because we had no class... I mean classes... we were all of the same polyester-blend cloth -- and wrinkle free. Horse was an animal, coke was a drink, grass was a lawn, blow was... a real job to secure in those days.
DAHS, in retrospect, was probably no more and no less than a mirror of the times -- the Naive, Sheltered, Clueless '50s -- and then there was a seismic shift in consciousness, come the 60s. In spite of our "DAHS education," though later than many, most of us grew up, discovered responsibility, and forged meaningful lives.
I look back on some fond memories, some fun experiences, and a collection of foolish and painful ones as well. But mostly, I remember and cherish a few shared friendships from DAHS that have continued through the years and across the distances -- the kind of friendships that give a silent, common ground whenever and however we connect today. A common ground of naiveté, shelter, and the continuing struggle to find those fucking clues.
Tommy Smith, class of 1961
Division Avenue was a great school to attend, the envy of a lot of students at other schools. We not only had great teachers who cared and made a different in a lot of our lives, but the closeness of the kids we went to school with are bonds that are still solid and remain after 45 years. Levittown was built for homecoming servicemen and their families, and friendships were formed. It was an era that we were lucky to have experienced. We saw the last of the milkman, the drive-in movie, Krug and Dugan home deliveries.
Our school excelled in sports and a lot of us branched out, attended different colleges and moved to various parts of the country. Now, some of us aren't here anymore, but their memory and the joy they brought us will never be forgotten.
Susan Weldon, class of 1960
my family moved to levittown from brooklyn when I was ten years old - right before I went to 6th grade at northside elementary school. I remember that chris wilkens, mike newton and billie jean divone were in my class and my teacher was harry bauman who I think had an unhealthy affection for me. my father smoked three packs of camels a day and my first cigarette was stolen from his pack on top of the oil burner in the kitchen. I got permission to smoke on my 16th birthday. he died 10 years ago and my mother who is 83 lives in elderly housing five minutes from my house here in storrs, ct (home of the national champion uconn husky men's and women's basketball teams) and still reads the entire newspaper every day and at least a book a week.
unlike dewain, I think the education I got at dahs was somewhat lacking, but I strongly agree with frank and ira that james chenevy was a great and gifted teacher. I even got a 98 on the geometry regents exam. I suspect this stellar performance was due in great part to the fact that I was wildly in love with him. I adored mr. aiello. he was my homeroom teacher before he was promoted to asst. principal. unless i'm making this up, I think he once let chris and me smoke a cigarette in his office after mr. kenyon sent us there for some lame infraction. I was an english major in college despite mr. keating's attempt to stiffle any creativity on my part or maybe because of it. I think he hated me possibly because I used "wuthering heights" to answer every literary essay question on the practice english regents tests we slogged through for an entire year (and yes on the actual exam itself). i'm blocking the name of the crazy little man who taught chemistry in our junior year. john mulligan was my lab partner and I hope we blew stuff up. we certainly blew the regents. I think I got a 67 which may have been one of the higher scores in that particular class. I don't recall that I got any guidance other than that I was "college material" and should go to one.
i had great fun and great friends. I was a proud member of the e.p.f.c.l. (the elvis presley fan club of levittown) which morphed into tri-delt which was a fake sorority with letter sweaters. some of the founding members were: ellen rees, midge bollinger, mimi brunette, pat kraft, diane white, anna marie denardi, chris wilkens and franne newman. as I recall we later included "girls" from '61 & '62 - susie villatore, susan kilbride, pat stanley, cathy burner, susan chasin. who am I forgetting?
franne and I went to the last reunion together and we talked a lot about how we viewed ourselves and each other those 40+ years ago. we were both as insecure and nervous as we might have been before the junior prom and were astounded that we shared those feelings. I was feeling uncool and she was feeling like an outsider. we reminded each other that we were grown ups. I reminded her that she was an emmy and tony award winning set and costume designer and she reminded me that even though richie bernhardt never loved me I was loveable.
Jack Jacobsen, class of 1962
Just a quick note on Ralph Del Piano. He graduated with the class of 1962 and we were very proud to be able claim him. He passed away shortly after our 40th reunion, as did Joe Panarello. Both of them were very sick at the time of the reunion, but both attended all of the events of the weekend. Ralph and Joe had glimmers in their eyes, they were truly among their friends who appreciated that they were able to share the common bonds of being a DAHS graduate.
Biography of Larry Bory, Class of 1960
A seasoned lobbyist, marketer, association executive and strategic planner, Bory is Vice President of Federal Government Relations, HDR Inc., a national architect, engineering, construction firm, headquartered in Omaha NE.
Formerly Director of Government Relations for the National Society of Professional Engineers, Larry has also served as Executive Director of the Consulting Engineers Council of Metropolitan Washington. For 15 years, he was Managing Director of Government Affairs and Director of Business and Program Planning for ACEC, the nation's largest engineering trade association, He was responsible for strategic planning, business practice services, market analysis, legislative and regulatory advocacy during his tenure there.
He also worked in the consulting engineering industry for two major firms, most recently as VP of Corporate Marketing, Greenhorne & O'Mara. He was also a Business Development Specialist with Metcalf and Eddy Engineers, Inc.
Public sector experience included Director of Policy Planning, Northern Virginia Planning District Commission; and positions with the Economic Development Admin., U.S. Dept. of Commerce.
Larry graduated from Trinity College, Hartford CT, and attended Georgetown University Law School. He married Lee Walkley in 1965. They have lived in Northern VA since then. They have two grown daughters, Martha, 33 and Alison, 29. They have a granddaughter Nora, who will be two in December.
He enjoys skiing, tennis, racket ball, biking, walking, reading, and “kicking back” in the mountains, at their cabin in the Blue Ridge. Larry travels often on business and intends to visit all the places he's seen from an airplane or a meeting hotel on a more extended basis in the near future.
Larry Bory's email address is Laurence.Bory@hdrinc.com
From Diane McDonnell, class of 1960
Well, here all these years I thought the Guidance Counselors only misguided females.
Me too... I told my Guidance Counselor I wanted to be a social worker and she told me that it was a waste of time to spend six years in college and then get married. She recommended that I take the business courses and become a secretary, so I could earn some money before I wed. And that's what I did.
However, I never did take that long walk down the aisle; and at age 50, I followed my original inclination and enrolled in college and finally got my MSW (Masters in Social Work).
Guess the Guidance Counselors were just a product of the times... and Levittown wasn't exactly midtown Manhattan so I figure we were being directed by well-meaning, but '40s- to early '50s-trained professionals (if the qualifications and credentials were even needed, much less demanded at that time). Seems from the life updates, that most of us did OK despite the misdirection.
From Jon Buller, class of 1961
Does anyone know anything more than I do about the Richard Streb scandal. When I went back to Levittown for the '81 reunion, I stopped off at the school with a few friends a few hours before the reunion. Classes had been dismissed for the day, but there were still some teachers and staff wandering around. We met a teacher just inside the front door. He was someone who had been a teacher when I was a student, but I had never actually been in his class. Unfortunately, I can't now recall his name. We chatted for a while, and asked about various people. When we asked him about Mr. Streb, he looked down and shook his head, and told us that, unfortunately, Dick Streb had had to leave the school under a cloud. He had been caught, according to this teacher, embezzling money from some sort of school fund to which he had access. I have always wondered if this story had another side to it.
Dick Streb always struck me as a very dedicated and idealistic sort of person, as well as one of the best teachers I had. I recognize, also, that he was very strong-headed, and I could easily believe that he might have stretched the rules for one reason or another, and that his enemies could have used that against him. On the other hand, he also seemed
like he had a slightly manic side, and I can imagine that getting out of control and getting the best of him. I wondered if anyone else knew any more details about this. My email address is bullersooz@snet.net
From Lilette Levy Bagwin, class of 1960
You asked people to comment on their education and life in Levittown. For me, it was such fun. I felt and was an innocent 1950's kid. I remember going to the Bookmobile on Thursdays and getting those teenage books to read. I read all kinds of love stories and wished that my life would be just like that.
Living in Levittown seemed like Leave it to Beaver. I remember coming home everyday and watching American Bandstand. I knew all the people's names at that time. Now I can only remember Justine. Anybody remember those kid's names?? Whatever boyfriend I had at that time would walk me home and carry my books and we would watch it together. I was in a sorority with Karen Judge, Emily Estow, Louise Nicolosi, Sharon Kivowitz, Jane Kranzler and I don't remember who else. It was called Delta Gamma Phi. We had blue and white sweaters that we used to wear on certain days. We were so proud. We would have meetings and dance to Elvis Presley together and our moms would make us dinner sometimes. We had parties and used to play records and dance. I used to put the soda in the bathtub with ice cubes to keep it cold. We danced and made out and used to have scavenger hunts to find a list of things from our neighbors. The first one who finished their list, won a prize. There was no drinking, smoking, or drugs. I don't really remember any of my friends doing that. In fact, I didn't know anyone who did that at all.
I loved playing sports after school. I used to play Softball, Basketball, Volleyball, and Tennis. I remember I was a leader in the Gym class. That meant that you wore a white gym suit rather than a yellow one. Sometimes you would lead the calisthenics. I don't remember how I became a leader. I used to love to stay after school also and watch the boys wrestle and practice basketball. My friends and I would look at them and picture ourselves dating them or kissing them. It was all so innocent and exciting. I loved it.
I never felt popular in our class. I kind of hung out with the smart kids and not the cheerleaders and football players. I remember acting in the school plays and having a great time. That was just the best. When I went to a prom, I always went with a boy that was from another school like Island Trees. I loved dancing and still love it today. I remember going to those Recreation dances that were held at various schools and dancing the night away to all the famous 45 rpm records. Even today, when those records come up on the radio or at a dance I am attending, I just smile and feel like I am 16 again. Age doesn't seem to matter when I am dancing. I used to enter dancing contests with whoever wanted to dance with me. I remember Arnie Katz and I used to dance a lot together. I used to dance with Dave Shapiro (' 61 or ' 62). I loved going to the basketball games and seeing everyone there and cheering for our team.
We seemed like a family. Everyone knew each other from 4th grade. I used to go to Northside School and remember playing kickball, punch ball, making baskets and key chains, and just having a great time. We all grew up together and that made a big difference. After dinner every night in the summer, I used to go around the corner and jump rope with a bunch of kids from school. We used to play "Red Light-Green Light", Hide and Seek, Red Rover-Red Rover, Stick Ball, Punch Ball, and all kinds of games. I felt like a real kid and feel bad for the kids now who are too busy thinking about sex to enjoy their childhood.
As far as teachers are concerned, I used to like a lot of them. I of course had my favorite in Mr. Chenevey also. He was the one that made me want to be a math teacher and I must say, I have become as good or better than him. Now that I have retired from teaching, I tutor 5 or 6 kids a week in High School math and I know that I make a difference in their lives. I never advertise but somehow keep getting kids from word of mouth and the school I used to teach at. I would miss doing this if I gave it up.
I remember Mr. Simes and I also remember having Mr. Lambert from the library teaching us Geometry and being drunk all the time. What was with that? I also remember my senior year with Mr. Erath. Does anyone else remember him? He had these deep set eyes and was really smart but wasn't as good a teacher as Mr. Chenevey although we all learned a lot. I felt I got a really good education at DAHS.
I went to SUNY at Oyster Bay which later became SUNY at Stony Brook and I was as good as any other kid there. I majored in math and all the kids at that school were math and science majors at that time. I remember how cute Mr. Keating was. Sometimes he would pass by my house and I would wave and think it was so exciting to see him. I remember Mr. Reggio in Science, Mr.. Fox was a sweet Art Teacher. Mr. Kalinowski was a good French teacher even though he was a little weird. I had him for 4 years. I then took 2 more years of French in college.
I remember skating at the Levittown Arena every Sunday. I remember going to Jahn's Ice Cream Parlor and the Meadowbrook movie. Do you remember the Kitchen Sink? Caruso's was always a favorite. I never ate anything but pizza there. I remember meeting Louise Nicolosi every Saturday and shopping at Mays. We would wait on line to go in so that we could buy the stockings for $.29 apiece. We met at a "Rock" near DAHS and we would walk to Mays together. I remember going to Jones Beach. It was a wall of blankets and radios and kids. We used to go on the bus.
I remember going to Jolly Rodger and walking down Hempstead Turnpike to get there. We used to go on the carousel and used to reach for the gold ring. We couldn't wait to get it. I think if we got it, we would get a free ride. Big deal.... I remember how I used to think that the roller coaster there was so great. Ronny Stein asked me to go steady while we were riding the roller coaster. I remember going to Wetson's after a date and getting hamburgers and fries and a thick shake. The hamburgers were 15 cents, the fries were 10 cents, and the shakes were 15 cents. I remember going Miniature Golfing and hearing all the 1950's songs on the radio while we were playing.
Well, I am exhausted. I am sure there are plenty of other things, but I need to go out and rake my leaves. Can't wait to see all of you at the reunion. Try to come so we can all reminisce.
Ava Berg, class of 1960
great memories Sterling Morrison with his cool self - we all read CATCHER IN THE RYE but Sterling understood it. Warren Zaretsky defiantly lighting a cigarette in the auditorium. going 2 the movies in east meadow - turning my sweater around & kissing boys. hey SUE WELDON I was in EPFCL we took off on Elvis' birthday. PETE CYBRIWSKI doing his elvis thing. me & my cousin KENNY BRAM going 2 see FATS DOMINO etc. in hempstead. RAY CHARLES changed my life. MR. STREB was the most exciting HIStory teacher. he also told HERstory & made me feel not just white men counted. women could only be teacher, social worker or nurse. I burned my bra in 60s- my daughter has Masters in electrical engineering. she designs the CHIP. LATIN was a fun class but mr. stapleton made homeroom & english hell 4 me. only 3 stations on tv. we had a 1952 HUDSON. we were innocent even though there was a lot going on. PEACE
Biography of Franne Newman Lee, class of 1960, from her website: http://www.frannelee.com/bio.html
Franne Lee, a born artist, was schooled in set and costume design at the
University of Wisconsin at Madison. She began her professional career in New York theatre with Andre Gregory's "Alice in Wonderland" for which she received an Obie Award for Costumes. Her many Broadway credits also include Hal Prince's productions of "Candide" and "Sweeney Todd" for which Franne received Tony Awards for Costume Design for both productions.
Her film credits include John Sayles' "Baby It's You", Paul Simon's "One Trick Pony", David Lynch's "Industrial Symphony #1" and Al Pacino's "Chinese Coffee"
Franne's TV credits include the first five years of Saturday Night Live, for which she won an Emmy Award for Sets and Costumes. More TV work followed when Franne moved to LA in 1995 where she designed "Sherman Oakes" for Showtime and "Roseanne" for King World.
In 1998 Franne moved to Nashville and designed the production for "On Music Row" along with co-writers and co-stars David Alford and Robert Lynn. This was the beginning of Franne's road to designing local music videos, commercials and theatre. Last fall she designed the costumes for “Waiting for Godot”, a production of the Peoples Branch Theatre.
On Nov. 10th, 2001, Franne opened the Plowhaus, a new Artists' Cooperative in East Nashville, bringing her full circle back to her artist roots. She also teaches Production Design at Watkins School of Art and Design and this spring will be teaching a course in costume design at Belmont Univ., Franne loves living and working in Music City.
Letter from the editor
In recent weeks, the enthusiasm for this newsletter has grown dramatically. Some very wonderfully written and often passionate emails are arriving from classmates. As long as there is worthwhile material to print, I will produce a weekly mailing, with time off for the occasional vacation.
We were pioneers, both in a new community and our schools. See below the email from Sue Chasin Ross, whose family moved to Levittown the day it opened in 1947. She and others have vivid memories of their Levittown experience.
Among the things the newsletter has offered is a glimpse at some of us who have had noteworthy careers, among them Emmy-winner Franne Newman Lee, Woodstock co-creator and song writer Artie Kornfeld, and music legend Sterling Morrison of the Velvet Underground. Their notoriety in no way diminishes the success that others have had in the law, teaching, business, nursing, engineering, art, journalism or whatever. As a group, we have done magnificently.
The women, because of the times, were truly at a disadvantage, it should be pointed out. For example, few in the early 1960s were going to medical school (other than for nursing), law school, law enforcement and engineering, to name a few career paths. If anyone would like to contribute her or his observations about the choices open to women back then as compared to today, it would be most welcome.
Frank Barning 1960. . .
Classmates write...
From Sue Chasin Ross, class of 1962 almost
My best friend.... since we're 10 years old, Sue Rutkin Villatore, has been kind enough to pass along all the newsletters. I have loved every minute of reading them and it has sent me back in time... to a wonderful place.
My parents moved into Levittown on the day it opened. How many people can say that.... moving into a full-fledged community on it's opening day. We lived on Elm Tree from 10/1947 to around 1/1950, when we moved into a new ranch on Horn Lane. I had to change schools from Division Ave. to a Wisdom Lane quonset hut. Mrs. Reese, Ellen's mom was one of my first grade teachers and I loved her and was sad to leave half way through the year.
I went to Northside from second through the beginning of sixth, when the sixth graders had to go to East Broadway due to overcrowding. We had been on 1/2 sessions at Northside. I had wonderful teachers through most of elementary school and a terrific education. Trips to NY for the circus, rodeo, Museum of Natural History and the planetarium. We put on a play every year for the rest of our school and we loved that. I remember being a "Crewcut" and singing ShaBoom with 3 other girls, dressed as boys... Ross Patten was the emcee of our nightclub show. Fun, carefree days.
I remember coming home from school and playing OUTSIDE till called in. Hide n Seek, ringaliveo, tag, hopscotch, jump rope... for hours and hours. I remember how excited I was when my classroom teacher would come home with me for lunch... it was a very big deal.
I remember going to DAHS starting in 7th grade and loving it. I remember when a bunch of us were made to go to the bathroom to take off our extra pairs of socks.... It was a huge fad, but only one pair allowed to be worn at a time... what were we thinking and can you imagine enforcing such a rule in schools today?
I loved our garage dances.... a record player and a bunch of 45's.... no food was needed... all we wanted or cared to do was dance. I still love dancing today and have taken and taught much dance in the many years since. Those were such simple times in so many ways. I remember Susie and I taking long walks, making sure we passed whatever boy we were "in love" with at the time.... house. Those walks took a lot of different paths. I remember, though they might not, going steady in 9th grade with Mike Newton... loved him his BB shorts, Bob Kuhn, not allowed to go to the Junior Prom, Jerry Goss and Jimmy Crescenzo from Memorial and I think Steve Mohr.... but maybe I only wished that at the time. I believe no big romance lasted more than two weeks three days for me. Funny how fickle I was.... I've been married to the same man, the love of my life, for more than 38 years.
I remember the big 10th anniversary party for Levittown in '57.. behind Mays... we got out of school early for that. All the dances at the Church (Levittown Community Church) by Azalea Road pool and winning a dance contest with Perry Bernstein. I also remember the make out parties.... even they, looking back, were so innocent... at least for me. I remember sleep over parties at Susie's, Kilbride's, Pat Stanley's et. al. I remember how we all snuck out one night, jumped the fence and went swimming at the Azalea Rd. pool. Such an adventure! All the big parties IN houses. The beach parties at Jones Beach. We didn't need beer or drugs to have fun.
My family moved across the world after 9th grade.... all the way to East Meadow. It was devastating for me. It took me some time to adjust, but my parents let me go back to Levittown all the time. Adjust I did, East Meadow was a different world then, as compared to Levittown... not worse or better... just different.
I have often talked of Levittown with many people, and I would not have wanted to grow up anywhere else. We had fun and yes, it was a product of the simple times we lived in. Being able to walk anywhere we wanted, to get on our bikes and try to get lost in the maze of Levittown streets, to go to the Green and hang out, to spend all day, everyday at the Azalea pool, to watch American Bandstand and know every single one of the regulars. To listen and know every word... still do, to every rock n roll song of the times. Our kids and grandkids will never know the simplicity of that life.
I know this is long, but hey I'm 60 and have lots of memories. Susie has kept me informed all these years about the various people we "hung out" with from the "crowd." I have loved reading about Sue Weldon, Warren, Ava, Fran and the other DAHS alumni reminisces. It is a magic carpet ride back to the past.
I hope everyone's lives have turned out wonderfully. I retired from teaching Physical Education in 2000 after almost 34 years... 30 at Massapequa and the last 20 at Massapequa High School. NO ONE had a better job than I. How many of you can say you LOVED every minute of your job? Do any of you remember the PE teachers at Northside.. Mr. Miranda and Miss Glennon/Mrs. Cary?
Just a quick aside, my Dad subbed at many Levittown schools and actually taught PE at Northside during the Vietnam War. I subbed for him and many other PE teachers in the spring semester of 1970. My husband, Patrick also retired the same year from being a Guidance Counselor... a truly wonderful one... at West Babylon HS and a Clinical Social Worker with a private practice. We lived in Brightwaters for 26 years, raised one daughter... now and academic advisor to athletes at University of Miami, where she lives, with the light of our lives... our 4 1/2 year old grandson Ross and our son-in-law Jamie. We split time between Delray Beach, Fla. for 7 months for the winter and the other 5 months on Fire Island. Life is very good and we pinch ourselves constantly.
There are so many good and positive thoughts of those times, but I do believe I have written more than my fare share. I hope you'll send this along even though I wasn't a member of the '60 or '61 Classes or really even of the ' 62 Class... though I was is spirit. Thank you all for the memories.
Sue's email address is sapross@aol.com
John Mulligan, class of 1960
I wanted to thank Frank for providing the avenue for us to keep in touch with memories that live in our minds.
My thanks to Jeff Lincer, a/k/a Sir Lancelot as he always held women in the highest regard and with good reason, for the wonderful memories of his family.
Other memories include all night card games; BB gun fights on the run with Jeff, Bob Eisele, Bill Stanley and others; my first hunting adventure with Jeff and Bill in Ellenville; and let us not forget opening trout season at the reservoir. The times we went fishing at Sea Breeze and the one time, “as I remember it,” that Bill and I saved Jeff's life with heart massage and limb elevation (I later became a medic in the Air Force 61-65). Also on that memorable trip was the duo of Kathy O'Brien and Andrea Leporati, two real sweethearts who I believe have never ordered fish since that incident.
Even though in the past I have had to be dragged to reunions by my loving and sensible wife, Susan, I have truly enjoyed attending them and look forward to seeing everyone on the reunion cruise.
Together with those classmates who have passed, there are some friends who I miss and would love to hear from – Bob Kuhn, Jim Merry, Kelly Monteith and Sid of Sid's Deli (who I think would be approximately 105).
Notes and quotes
According to Sue Chasin Ross, “Floyd Kenyon was an elementary principal in Massapequa. He died a few years ago from lung cancer.” At Division, he was the very successful wrestling coach for a couple of years in the late 1950s… It has been confirmed that a member of the class of 1961 who died within recent years was Leo Grant… Attached is a photo of Warren Zaretsky 1960, taken in China where he is currently working… If you would like information about the reunion cruise, contact Jackie Lamb Pottgen '60 at Japottgen@aol.com
Letter from the editor
The newsletter is starting to build dialog on issues concerning early Levittown. Susan Weldon wrote to ask, “Was growing up in Levittown really as idyllic as Lilette Levy and Sue Chasin remember or was Levittown really Pleasantville? Where were the poor people? Where were the people of color? Why didn't we care where they were? innocence or cultural/political denial?”
Sue Chasin Ross ‘62 has replied:
Of course Levittown was not idyllic... no place is. There were covenants for years against selling to Blacks.... it was wrong then... it would be unthinkable now. My parents were very bothered by that.... but, it was a place they could afford to move to at a time when housing was very limited. Our parents are the ones that should be answering the questions of conscience. We were kids... with kids thoughts... looking back, as I have done often.... I would never live in such a place today.
In fact, my husband and I moved back to Levittown in January 1970 with our 5 month old daughter. It was the only place we could afford. We moved out 5 years later, for a variety of reasons.... one being that we were determined to live in a stable and diverse community. We wanted our child to grow up with all types of people... and she did. We moved into the Bay Shore School District which has always been racially and ethnically diverse. She received a wonderful education in and out of the classroom.
One of the big positives of growing up in Levittown... then, was that there didn't seem to be any class distinctions... Sue Weldon asks where were the poor... I also ask, where were the rich? I don't remember money ever being an issue for any of us... some homes might have been a little better decorated or maybe that family had a newer car... but that was about it. We didn't seem to care or make it an issue. I don't remember feeling envious of anything anyone else had. To this day, money means very little to me, and I've always attributed that to growing up in that community.
Was Levittown perfect? no way... was it a great place to grow up in the 1950s? I loved it and wouldn't change that part of my life. Our parents were pioneers. leaving the City, leaving family and moving their young families to a new world in the suburbs. They probably all lived in sheltered worlds before Levittown with their "own kind." Levittown was religiously and culturally diverse. I don't remember anyone in our "crowd" caring if you were from a different background. I liked that part of growing up then... I don't know if such a place exists today.
Levittown has been examined and debated about by many sociologists (as we're doing now) over the years. We could debate the merits and flaws ad infinitum... but with all those flaws... it was and still is for many, a great place to live and raise their families.
Frank Barning '60 continues the conversation…
I lived in Forest Hills, Queens until age 12. There were rich kids, a handful of poor, and a lot of us in the middle. Some of my friends were from the church I attended in Forest Hills Gardens, an especially affluent area. I felt diminished visiting their elegant homes, seeing their classy family cars, and hearing about their glorious vacations. They lived in another world and it made me feel almost as though I was the unwashed. Although very young, I remember a few of the rich kids talking about social climbers. I had to ask my mother what that meant.
In 1954, at the start of seventh grade, we moved to Hyacinth Road, corner of Primrose Lane. Levittown was so much healthier for me. I felt equal from day one when Steve Zwerling, Louie Pascale and Mike Gurr welcomed me to the neighborhood. Yes, the ranches were a bit nicer than the cape cods, but that was hardly important.
Religion made a difference to a lot of Levittown families, but mostly in regard to dating. It was that way all over back them, not just in our cozy community. I know a few very sad stories regarding this. One classmate is still broken hearted that the love of her life was a different religion and their marrying was simply not possible. Now many parents are relieved if their offspring marry people of the opposite sex.
There is a line in a West Side Story song, “stick to your own kind, one of your own kind.” Except for dating/marriage, that concept hardly applied in our Levittown. And no one was a social climber. Pretty much, all of us were on the same rung of the ladder.
From Walt (Wally) Linder, 1961
I have enjoyed the write-ups from the Division newsletters. So many repressed memories, have popped up. It is surprising to find that I was not unique, and that others had the same personal and family situations as I did.
Both my parents smoked and drank on a daily basis. My uncle Joel was a doctor, and he was a heavy smoker and drinker. All my aunts and uncles drank and smoked, with no exceptions, none. My grand kids (all seven of them) have never seen their parents or their grand parents smoke or drink. When I look back on that, and compare then to now, it seems unbelievable. My theory is that these people (our parents) got through the depression and the second world war (alive), and were spending the rest of their lives celebrating, with careless abandon. I almost did the same thing during and after Vietnam. It took me and mine awhile, but I am 14 years sober, and haven't smoked in 24 years. As someone once sang, "The Times They Are A Changing."
On a lighter note - I see Jerry Reichert (61) and Al Greengold (61) about once a year and we always talk about how lucky we were to have grown up in Levittown, in the 50s. Even though we didn't know it at the time, it was a fairly care free environment. "What me worry," was not just Alfred E. Newman, it was Levittown in the 50s. The pools - the Greens, and that wonderful new invention, the TV. There is a lot more stress on children today. Thanks for listening. You can email me at XWAL@aol.com.
From Karen Biro Hewson, 1960
Wow, all this reminiscing – it's reminded me of things long forgotten. It was great growing up in Levittown, they were innocent times and I was soooo naive. I came to Division Ave. H.S. in the 7th grade and always felt not really part of the crowd. Everyone seemed to know each other -- it seemed like from Kindergarten – I always felt like the “new” kid, which was mostly my fault, as I was kind of quiet and not very outgoing, which made it all the more harder for me to fit in.
I hung out mostly with Loretta Fountain ('61) who was a neighbor and the first person I met when I moved to Levittown. My first recollection of Levittown (I think I lived there only about 2 days) was going “Trick or Treating” and winding up at Renee Gordon's house, leaving there and getting lost in the winding streets. Loretta introduced me to most of the girls I hung out with, all of whom were in the Class of '61, Ginny Castle, Mary Birney, Ann Crescenzo and Rita Cataldo. Two of the girls in our class that I was friendly with moved before graduation – Carol Vasser and Dorothy Whittaker.
American Bandstand was what we watched every afternoon (does anyone remember Pat Molinari on Bandstand?) And, of course, we “just had” to watch Bandstand Christmas Day to see what the girls were wearing.
I remember going to the Meadowbrook movie matinees and getting in for 25 cents because I looked like I was 12 until about age 16. In the winter, if we could get a ride, we'd go to Jones Beach and roller skate, then get coffee or hot chocolate at the only boardwalk restaurant that was open. I remember how cold and windy it was and enjoying every minute of it. In the spring we'd play Par 3 golf (badly). And of course in the summer we'd go to the beach or the East Village Green pool.
Loretta and I used to shop at Mays a lot, then go to Wilfred's Coffee Shop and if we had enough money, get a cheeseburger platter -- huge cheeseburger, fries and coleslaw for $1.00, what a deal! We relied on a lot of people (mostly parents) to get rides, because none of us had cars until we were out of school. It was great fun even without the cars. When we got older we would go to the Bowlder Lounge at the North Village Green to bowl, then go and listen to the piano player in the lounge (no it wasn't Billy Joel), also, Caruso's and that infamous bar in Hempstead -- Ryan's, The Coach House in West Hempstead and the Garden City Bowl.
I never went “steady” with anyone in high school, but dated Scott Cornell, Peter File and Terry Turner in my senior year.
As far as the Mis-Guidance Counselors, well they were almost non-existent as far as I was concerned or helped. Giving them the benefit of the doubt, I will say there wasn't much in the way of career paths for females back then, secretary, teacher, nurse – the kids nowadays have a wealth of career paths open to them and I would say most of them are well aware of what's out there, not so much because the Counselors are that much better today, only because the kids are more aware and there is an abundance of information on the Internet.
There were a few teachers whose classes I enjoyed, Ms. Eisenhauer, Mr. Keating and (don't laugh) Mr. Flynn – he scared the s___ out of me, but I never forget to cross my T's and dot my I's to this day.
Well, hope to see everyone at the reunion and I'm thankful for the opportunity to share our remembrances and to be reminded of how good it really was.
Notes and quotes
Here is a link to a review of a scholarly book, “Alexandria, City of Memory,” written by London-based Michael Haag, class of 1961. Soon to be published is his “Rough Guide to The Da Vinci Code.”
http://books.guardian.co.uk/reviews/history/0,6121,1349695,00.html
Letter from the editor
It happened almost exactly a half-century ago. My family moved to Levittown in October 1954, two month into the beginning of seventh grade. It was not long before three new classmates with a strong existing friendship were kind enough to accept me into their circle, as an equal member. Their generosity still amazes me.
The move from Forest Hills, Queens, to suburban Levittown could have been a disaster, but my guys (Bob Castro, Malcom Karman and John Koehler) made the transition as smooth as a Willie Mays catch. We were always there for each other, sharing some of the best times of our lives.
Bob was a great storyteller then and is still a most entertaining conversationalist. His memory of the old days is mind boggling and what follows is but a tip of the Castro iceberg. He will be encouraged to write more.
Levittown memories contributed by Bob Castro, 1960
Reading the class of '60 contributors to the DAHS newsletter has churned up some vivid recollections of those named teachers and events. For instance, after a brief stint at Gardiners Ave. Annex, a three room schoolhouse (1949), and the Wisdom Lane Quonset Hut, I also went to Northside School and as my teachers, I had Mr. Langan in the 4th grade, Mr. Marassa in the 5th, and Mr. Donovan in the 6th. It was there, in that school, that the beginning of friendships which have lasted over 50 years were formed. That in itself is an overwhelming thought. Too many of those friends are no longer with us and while that is more than sad, it should give us a good reason to reflect on our good fortune and that of those around us.
In terms of high school, I didn't really appreciate our teachers, most of whom I feel were above average, until later on in life. The superstars for me were Mssrs. Chenevey, Reggio, Crane, Gabia, Erath and Sra. Cameira. Mr. Chenevey was so good that he was the only teacher that actually made me feel guilty if I was unprepared for class; Mr. Reggio made me afraid to be unprepared for class. He could stare right through you and make you want to disappear once he got on your case. Mr. Erath used to wear these outrageous hand-painted ties, and on more than one occasion, he used them as prizes in open book classroom quizzes.
Mr. Crane, who we almost electrocuted with the static electricity globe one day as he was returning to the classroom after hall duty, was not only cool, he was a realist. We pulled some real stunts in his class and I remember him saying one day "It's obvious that you don't want to learn today, so two of you guys go down to the gym and get some softball equipment.” And we went out and played co-ed softball that day. Amazin'. While I never had Mr. Simes as a teacher, virtually all my friends that did, considered themselves fortunate.
There were however, some disappointments among our teachers that were scandalous. As Susan Weldon mentioned in a previous newsletter, our junior year chemistry teacher was the infamous Mr. Solimando (see poem below). If my memory serves me correctly, I got a 65 on the regents, and only 17 of about 95 students who were in his classes passed that year. He spent most of his time in my class yelling at Warren Zaretsky, who got to renew his friendship with assistant principal Aiello quite often that year.
I would also like to add my voice to those raised against the competence of some of our guidance counselors. Mr. Rogo for instance felt that it was better for me to take a third year of a language rather than mechanical drawing, even though he knew that I felt strongly about becoming a civil engineer. I've been in the systems end of banking for 34 years, and I feel that my original path towards engineering was definitely hindered by his direction.
As far as the after-school scene, I agree with virtually all the previous comments made in our newsletter regarding the simpler way of life. Malcom Karman, John Koehler, Frank Barning and I would play stickball behind Northside School until we couldn't see the ball any more, and then we'd walk to Mal's house to play wiffleball against his garage door "under the lights", which was also known as the front porch light. Eventually we would move indoors to play APBA baseball in a league that in addition to the four of us, also included Arnie Mark, Jay Citrin, and others. I can hear the murmur in the crowd as the series between the Sarasota Bobcats and the Keokuk Chieftans gets underway.
We always saved part of our allowances to buy records and at one time we (Malcom Karman and I) had 5 boxes of 45's, each holding more than 50 records. Although Elvis was the man, there were many groups we sang along with and when I now listen to WCBS (101 FM), I'm amazed at the number of lyrics I still remember. In those days it was easy to learn the songs because you could actually understand what they were saying. At any rate, our time was filled with events that were non destructive if not always constructive.
As a parting thought, when I am involved in conversations with relatives, in laws and work associates that turn to remembering our collective pasts, everyone around me is in awe of the fact that my high school class has managed to maintain so many friendships throughout the years. And even when the friendships were interrupted, they were picked up some years later seemingly without missing a beat. Someone always asks what I attribute these friendships and lifestyle to and I have never been able to give them any answer that satisfies them. All I can tell them is that it just is, and I couldn't picture it any other way.
In addition to our reunions, some of the best times I've had through the years have been when I've been able to visit with our class of '60 alumni like Tommy (Paturzo) Baker, Warren Z, Bobby Bond, John Gentleman, Ira Selsky, Artie Kornfeld, Frank Barning, Malcom Karman and others. I wish you all good health and I look forward to reading more opinions and memories regarding our Levittown roots in future DAHS newsletters.
Poem written in 1959 about Mr. Solimando, who had been fired for being a totally inept chemistry teacher. Malcom Karman is the author.
Old Solly had a Brooklyn lab
how silly can he be
To live a life as Captain Jet
and dream of chemistry
"I won't be dare on da regents test"
and we all did fail how true
But those who suffered now can laugh
Old Solly got the screw
From Pat Stanley Share, 1962, who lives in Big Pine Key, Fla.
The newsletter has become a great sounding board. It seems some classmates have very good memories and some not so good. Life happens, we were kids, our parents found homes for us that they could afford, thanks to Levittown. I feel very fortunate that for so many of us our biggest concerns at the time were, what to wear, or not wear, who was having the 'house' party this week, when was the pool (Bluegrass) going to get warm enough to swim in, oh and yes school was in there somewhere. We didn't have this thing I'm typing on now, we were doing things, OUTSIDE.
It amazes me that Sue Chasin Ross has such a good memory of things in the past. I've killed too many brain cells to recall with such clarity, yes I drink, never did drugs or smoked. My parents did smoke and drink so much that I really didn't start to drink until I was around 25-30. Booze was unkind to my parents and at times has been both my friend and enemy. I try my best to keep it in check.
I have 3 children had 4 lost one, my youngest, to 'huffing' a terrible loss for me. None of my children have kids and only one wants any but so far has been unable. I am fine with this because the world population is out of control. I have 'grand pets' of all types, again fine with me.
I had many good friends in high school, too many to name and for that I feel very fortunate. All of these friends have given me wonderful memories of my youth. My email address is flkeyspat2@aol.com
From Sue Rutkin Villatore, 1962
I have been enjoying the memories of our old classmates and friends. Levittown was an idyllic place to grow up, from a child's perspective. There were kids of your own age on every block, there were swimming pools in every direction. There were Village Greens to walk to, since most of our mothers did not drive. At that village green was a supermarket, a deli, a cleaner, a drug store with a soda shop. What more did we need? There were even bowling alleys to go to for bowling or just to hang out with your friends. If you were lonely, all you had to do is walk outside or go to the North Village Green. There would always be someone there. There were Friday night Basketball games, and dances afterwards, sleepovers and dances in the local church and synagogue.
I didn't realize how "idyllic" it was, until I was "forced" by my parents to move to Florida in my sophomore year. In Miami, all the kids were divided up by religion, by grade level and age. There were rich kids, and then we poor kids. No in between. I remember being picked up by a 15 year old girl in her own brand new Corvette, to attend a sorority meeting on the right side of the tracks, where I was asked what I could offer them, and they would decide if they wanted me for their sorority. Thank goodness, I only had to endure that life for a few months, when my parents told me we were moving back to Levittown.
I don't believe that any of us knew how much or how little we had, what our fathers did for a living, or if we were rich or poor. I had no clue. I would save my $.25 lunch money and at the end of the week, go to Mays and buy myself a new outfit to wear. I never felt deprived. On our block there were quite a few people who we still are friends with to this day: Arnie Galeota, Jimmy Heyward, Vicki March and the late Ralphie Del Piano. There was Butchie Dubois, Ronnie and Donnie Albaum, Maryann Webster and Pam DeGregorio. Just down the block were Howie Burtt and Janet Trama, to name a few.
I was 10 when I moved in, from Laurelton, Queens, which was a predominantly well to do Jewish neighborhood. I went to Northside School, where I met my best friend to this day, Susan Chasin Ross. Two doors away from my house lived my first and my last boyfriend. Ernie and I have been married for 40+ years but have been together since I am 16. We went steady when I was 12, and he 13. And they said it wouldn't last.
We have 2 daughters, 4 granddaughters, and 1 grandson who is the youngest. My children never had the benefits of walking to the local village green, or walking to school with a friend or 5. I believe they are more family oriented than our upbringing, because my life was with my friends, out on the street, not in my home. Maybe my parents were too busy worrying about surviving. I didn't know. I was worrying about American Bandstand, whether Kenny and Arlene were together, and who was going to have a party that weekend.
I belonged to Tri-Delt, and school was secondary to me. Ernie and I got married young. I worked while he finished college and our first child was born at Duke University, where Ernie was going for a PhD in biochemistry. We decided to come home to Long Island and Ernie became a science teacher in Brentwood. I went back to school and got my degree at the age of 45. I now substitute teach. Ernie is retired, but still coaches. Right now, he is an assistant football coach at William Floyd which is on the east end of L.I. He also will be finishing his long-time girls varsity coaching job this year in Brentwood.
Life is good! We never take anything for granted and are thankful for whatever we have. We hope to sell our condo in Myrtle Beach soon, and buy something small in Florida. We can't leave the Island and our family on a permanent basis, but the winters are beginning to get to us. It is amazing how after so many years of separation, when we see "old" friends from Levittown, the time just melts away. I attribute it to "the Levittown way". By the way, one of my sons-in-law is the nephew of Rita Dooley, class of '61. Small world! My email is subvillato@yahoo.com.
From Jim Urban, 1961
I live in southern Maryland, just a short hop from the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay. This is the last place in the world that I would have expected to retire.
My wife Sue (from LMHS) and I have been married for 39 years and have one son. He is an Annapolis grad and is a Navy pilot (just chosen as the best E-2 pilot in the Navy). Unbelievable!
After a stint in the Marine Corps, I finally graduated from Hofstra in 1968 and headed to California. Lived there for 25 years and worked in computer sales for 22 of them. Transferred to Maryland in 1993 to sell systems to intel community, but got fired by my new boss. Retired! Now live on 20 acres with Sue and my two dogs. Happiest period of my semi-bungled life.
Concerning Richard Streb, social studies teacher
By Frank Barning, newsletter editor
In the Nov. 10 newsletter, Jon Buller (1961) wrote “to ask if anyone knew anything more than I do about the Richard Streb scandal.” Mr. Streb taught at Division in the late 1950s and early 1960s. “When I went back to Levittown for the '81 reunion, I stopped off at the school with a few friends a few hours,” Buller continued. “Classes had been dismissed for the day, but there were still some teachers and staff wandering around. We met someone who had been a teacher when I was a student. Unfortunately, I can't now recall his name. We chatted for a while, and asked about various people. When we asked him about Mr. Streb, he looked down and shook his head, and told us that unfortunately, Dick Streb had had to leave the school under a cloud. I wondered if anyone else knew any more details about this.”
Recently, Tom Toscano (1961) wrote to the newsletter that “True to his character as an activist, Mr. Streb became deeply involved in protesting an aspect of American foreign policy, focusing on a on a training facility for foreign nationals. At some point (it may be as long as 25 years ago), he and a group of protesters illegally entered this facility, were arrested, and he was sentenced to an absurdly long federal prison sentence. I knew nothing of this until a Newsday article some years later.”
According to Toscano, “His supporters were trying to get him either released or furloughed, because his wife was dying of cancer. The article cited his teaching background and that he had been a decorated veteran of the Second World War - I mean major hero. Ultimately his freedom was not restored and I do not have any further information. He was one of the giants of DAHS, someone to whom I owe a great deal of credit in guiding me to my eventual (teaching) career.”
The Richard Streb story appears to have many twists and turns. Toscano suggests that those interested should do a Google search using the “Richard Streb” as the key words. Another schoolmate has volunteered to do research and write an article for the newsletter.
Taking a lead from Toscano, we did a Google search and found many articles pertaining to Mr. Streb and his incarceration. Believe me, this is a fascinating and, at the same time, painful story. A particularly interesting website found on Google is http://free.freespeech.org/kokopeli/ann/streb.htm
From Toby Rutner, 1960
I am alive and well at toby@stressfree.com. I live in Winnipeg, Canada, where I have remained since getting a Ph.D. at the University of Manitoba. I have a private practice in Psychology where I specialize in stress related disorders. In addition to my Clinical practice, I coach the high school wrestling team.
Levittown was not Pleasantville but was typical of the postwar suburbs of the 1950s where roles were clearly defined and children were safe to test the parameters of their situations, and rebel against the authority figures in their lives before morphing into those roles themselves. Without fairly stable and clearly defined roles, children are confused about what to rebel against. I wish today's kids had a Levittown to grow up in.
Melissa Shaffer Mayernik, 1962
Just read the first newsletters sent to me, and it was a wonderful experience. Lilette Levy's reminiscences were delightful, but my experiences were more similar to those of Sue Chasin.
On the whole, the years in Levittown were probably some of the happiest times in my life. My family was in the military, so Levittown represented the first real community and stability I had ever experienced. It's true that our society felt classless, and our lives seemed to revolve around activities, not possessions. My first year of college (at a private college in Boston) was a great shock to me. The other students traveled around the world on vacations, flew to visit friends, and had huge homes with rooms we didn't even have in Levittown (and never missed). I became aware of competition for material status, and met people who almost seemed like another species. While it's true that Levittown wasn't integrated/multicultural, there was extremely limited consideration of ethnicity or religion. I remember the "basic" 3 religions, but it didn't seem to have much importance in any way, at least with the people I knew.
The teachers at DAHS were the best I have ever had in my life, although I have college and graduate degrees. I remember with great respect, Ms. Smith (or is it Smyth), the thin one who taught History... Mr. Graham, a totally engaging character... Mr. Nolan, a completely strange person, equaled only by Mrs. Miranda, and yes, Mr. Thaddeus Katz (TK: teacher = king). Poor Mr. Shatz of the terrible toupee, was so serious, and we were probably rather rude to him. Mr. Kenyon was also a very lively and inspiring teacher. Mr. Reggio managed to make class fun while experiencing terror... then there was the odd science teacher, can't remember his name, taught chemistry and was always telling us about his previous professional career. Another excellent teacher and kind human being was the advisor of the class of '63, can't quite remember his name, probably Mr. Lasker?
All in all, l had a great time in high school-and even though there was some non-idyllic stuff going on, albeit mostly covertly, none of it precluding getting good grades and participating in after school activities (cheerleading). Had friends (and boyfriends) in the class of '61 as well as '62, and looked up to the class of '60 as befitted their status as our first graduating class. Currently, I live in CT with my husband, who is a teacher, and am a gerontologist, working as a geriatric care manager. Have two daughters, grown, degrees, etc., married and two grandchildren.
From Luther (Lou) Kuhlman, 1960
I do not really remember much from high school, other than, in general... I wanted that period of my life to be over.
My second year of English 11 with Mr. Keating was very memorable and enlightening. During the year, the class had an assignment... to do a composition (though it may have been a literary essay, whatever that is) about how people "escape their hum-drum lives by reading romantic novels". When my composition was returned to me, it was more red than black, and had a note to see him about this. After a short talk I was told to do it over, incorporating his comments, which I did.
This second version was returned just slightly less red than the first. Again, I was instructed to do it over. Less red... do it again. This extra project went on forever. At the end, I had it both polished and memorized. A few months later I took the English 11 Regents test, my last hope for passing English 11 and graduating. Guess what? The composition portion of the test, worth something like 25-30% of the total score, was "How do people escape their hum-drum lives by reading romantic novels."
Jimmy Durante used to end his shows saying goodnight to Mrs. Calabash, a landlady who had helped him before he became a star. I would like to thank Mr. Keating "Where-ever he is" for his faith and help. You will always be remembered.
Another memorable teacher was Miss. Eisenhauer. She somehow managed to get me to care enough about my upcoming multi-year Regents History test, to study. End result... I received the highest score in the school and was given a big hug... not a small thing in the "silent '60s". Again, she will always be very fondly remembered. Thank you Miss Eisenhauer for your faith. Up until that test, I had always just winged it on tests, assignments, or other projects. What I picked up by "attending" class is what I brought to any form of evaluation. Miss Eisenhauer showed me what I could achieve with a reasonable amount of effort.
I also remember a substitute teacher, Mrs. Fleckinstein, a stout woman worthy of her strong name. If I remember it right, she had survived 16 years of catholic schools and was married to a lawyer. Whenever she taught a class, you learned something. I just loved it when someone would challenge her control of the class as often happened with subs. There is a line from the movie "Pretty Woman", which perfectly describes this situation, "big mistake... huge". More often than not, the challenger would be escorted outside, and after some banging of locker doors and other unpleasant sounding noises, she would bring a different person back into the room, and the class would resume. Thank you Mrs. Fleckinstein, you did show me that right makes might. Society today would consider us unacceptable for not first considering the child's self image. A good self-image is not a birth right, it is earned.
Lastly, Mr. Simes. During my senior year trigonometry class he did his very best to get my attention and have me do what he wanted me to do. What he did not understand was that I was working on a system to make a good living at the race track. Using statistics and probabilities I did come up with a betting system which would return about $10-15,000 per year. Not a bad income for 1960. Frank... I remember explaining this system to you at that time.
Mr. Simes' method for getting my attention was to get face-to-face and yell at me. When he did this, I would mentally count up the people I knew who weighed over two hundred pounds. Mental counting results in a real distant look on the counter's face. This distant look just caused him to yell louder... and so it went. Supposedly, a good sign of insanity is when a person continues to do the exact same thing expecting a different result. He continued to yell and I continued to count. I must have been driving him CRAZY. Sorry about that Mr. Simes.
I can say this about trig, I remember all of the functions and use them often, so your yelling did hit something in my head before exiting out the other ear.
Overall, four years at Division Avenue High School in the late 50s was a secure place in which those who wanted a good education could get one, and the real tough guys, the "hoods", were actually not that bad. If I had to do it all over again, I would.
After graduation I went to work at my uncle's construction company, bought a 1957 Chevy convertible (wish I had it now) and started getting myself into various degrees of trouble. In 1962 I had a choice to make, buy a new Corvette and take over the company in few years, or join the new nuclear navy and possibly do something with my life. I joined the Navy. During the remainder of the 1960s I married, had two beautiful daughters, and spent most of the second half of that decade under the surface of the north Atlantic.
In 1969 we left the navy and went to Pittsburgh to establish a nuclear plant operators school at the Shippingport Nuclear Plant, the first commercial nuclear plant in the U.S. For the next 21 years I moved around the country, performing final design evaluations, and establishing the initial test program and operation of many nuclear plants. I retired in 1990 after spending the last 10 years at the Palo Verde nuclear station near Phoenix, the largest station in the U.S. From the first to the last, my career spanned the breadth of the first phase of our nuclear program.
After retirement I spent many great mornings poolside doing the paper/coffee routine. Afternoons were spent at the library researching recipes for dinner. Great life? Wrong! Retirement was boring and fattening. Started volunteering with Habitat for Humanity. Spent a year working with them almost full time, building six houses.
During this time, I met a fantastic woman. We spent a few years going out most every night learning/doing country dancing. I had never known a gal like this, a farmer's daughter from North Dakota, but after two failed marriages, I was very, very skeptical.
At the start of 1995, I sold my Phoenix home and went looking for some property in the Blue Ridge Mountains. For six months, I drove all over those mountains looking at hundreds of towns and parcels of land, all the time thinking about my Phoenix dance partner. In July she came east to see what I had found. She was as excited as I was about it. In September we were married and moved into a 25 ft. travel trailer while we physically built our "perfect home". It took us 3 1/2 years to complete the place, which for us, is the ideal home. During this time the only complaints she ever made was when the trailer roof leaked and stained her good clothes.
Currently, my wife Kathy, is the county 4H agent and I run a small construction company. I know that I have spent a lot of time detailing my last decade, but for me, this period has been the best that I have ever experienced. I rather doubt that I have changed, so it must be Kathy. My address is webekuhlmans@msn.com
Vocational choices for women
From Sue Chasin Ross, 1962
You asked about the choices girls had as a vocation back in our day. We had very few... teacher, secretary, nurse... that was about it.... unless you were truly gifted. Girls/young women are so very fortunate today. I have had many female students go into medicine, law, publishing, science, sports along with the old stand by professions previously mentioned. Women can be anything they want to be... and that is as it should be. Women can work outside the house or be stay at home moms.... it is their choice. I went back to full time teaching when my daughter was one... not easy in 1970... there was no day care or full time preschools. My Mom watched her for 3 years and then she went to nursery school. Now, women own and run preschools and nursery schools.
It is amazing how many students wanted to become teachers after trying other careers... men and women. They would come back, start subbing and then get their certification in education.
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Newsletter Editor: Frank Barning 1960, fbarning@yahoo.com
posted 2005.01.07 - last edited 2005.10.03
Copyright 2004, blue-dragons.com and Frank Barning
