L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21 2023 www.italoamericano.org 14 L'Italo-Americano LA VITA ITALIANA TRADITIONS HISTORY CULTURE D ear readers, As the San Fran- c i s c o O p e r a First Nighters, dressed in furs and finery, file into the San Francisco Opera House each September when the new season begins, let me share this bit of early San Francisco history with you. Few, if any, attendees real- ize it was Sicilian-American opera lovers - mostly crab fishermen living in early San Francisco -to whom they owe a debt of gratitude for first financing the Grand Opera in San Francisco, as per dreams spun by Gaetano Merola. Encouraged by A. Farina, then the San Francisco Crab Fishermen Association man- ager, many fishermen mort- gaged their homes, and some lost them, to build an opera company and opera house for San Francisco. Officially, t h e S a n F r a n c i s c o G r a n d Opera first season began on September 26, 1923, but the l a t e L o u i s e D a n a ( 1 9 0 4 - 2000) who served as unpaid secretary to the San Francis- co Opera Company during the early years, had other recollections. Luise (Stradi) Dana was born in Pontasser- chio, a little town near Pisa, the first child of Giulio and Marietta Strada. Her father, a m u s i c i a n , s a i l e d f r o m Genoa, Italy, and arrived in New York in 1907, and by working odd jobs, arrived in Northern California many months later. Unable to speak English, his first job upon arrival was washing dishes for the lum- ber camps at Fort Bragg, w h i c h s u p p l i e d w o o d t o rebuild homes and business- es in San Francisco after the great earthquake and fire in 1906. In a few years, her father saved enough money from his $30 a month dish- washing job to buy passage for Louise and her mother to America, and by late 1910 they joined him in San Fran- cisco, where he found work in the produce market. T h e p r o d u c e b u s i n e s s agreed with Giulio Stradi, and by 1920 he had become financially successful. He had an interest in several p r o d u c e m a r k e t s , a m o n g them the downtown Freckles and Halas markets. He had many friends, among them Gaetano and Rosa Mero- la, from Naples, who were frequent guests at the Stradi family home. Mr. Merola often played the piano, and after dinner everyone would discuss opera and music and the idea of bringing opera in San Francisco. O v e r t i m e , a p l a n t o o k shape. Mr. Merola would produce the opera, and Mr. Stradi and his friends would put up the money. Establish- ing a new opera company and producing the opera in 1921 was a huge undertak- ing. Louise, sixteen years old had graduated from Heald B u s i n e s s C o l l e g e i n S a n Francisco that year, and at Merola's request became his s e c r e t a r y . A s t h e o n l y employee of the San Francis- c o O p e r a C o m p a n y , h e r duties were many and her salary was often unpaid or delayed. The local Italian newspaper L'Italia donated a small space on Columbus Avenue, which served as the San Francisco Opera Office. L o u i s e m a d e t h e b a n k d e p o s i t , k e p t t h e b o o k s , answered the phones, and even arranged for the South- ern Pacific Railroad to bring San Francisco patrons to the performances. The first per- formances, I Pagliacci, Car- men and Faust, took place in the Summer of 1922. Louise and her father Giulio Stradi a t t e n d e d a l l t h r e e . T h e s e were were artistic successes, but a financial disaster. Mr. Merola had to ask Mr. Stradi and his friends for additional money to cover the losses. B y 1 9 2 3 , t h a n k s t o t h e artistic success showcased at the Stanford Stadium, Gae- t a n o M e r o l a m e t t h e B a y Area's moneyed folks, from the Alexanders to the Zeller- bachs, with the Flyshakers and Goldstein in between. In fact, with the exception of A.P. Giannini, there was not one Italian surname list- ed among the 45 sponsors of t h e S a n F r a n c i s c o G r a n d Opera's first season, at the San Francisco Exposition Auditorium, September 26, 1923. After that "first season" opened with Puccini's La B o h è m e , G a e t a n o M e r o l a never looked back, and the sacrifices of those pescatori were forgotten until 1932. On the afternoon of October 14, 1932, the day prior to the official opening of the Opera House, there was a special Advancing our Legacy: Italian Community Services CASA FUGAZI If you know of any senior of Italian descent in San Francisco needing assistance, please contact: ItalianCS.org | (415) 362-6423 | info@italiancs.com Italian Community Services continues to assist Bay Area Italian-American seniors and their families navigate and manage the resources needed to live healthy, independent and productive lives. Since Shelter-in-Place began in San Francisco, Italian Community Services has delivered over 240 meals, over 900 care packages and made over 2000 phone wellness checks for our seniors. reception for the unveiling of a commemorative plaque to honor those Italians who aided Merola in starting the San Francisco Opera Compa- ny. Mayor Angelo Rossi arranged the event. It was Ettore Patrizi, editor of L'Italia, who insisted that the forgotten original sup- p o r t e r s o f M r . M e r o l a b e invited to the opening night. *** M o r e S e p t e m b e r dates: Neptune, the planet, was discovered on September 23, 1846. The Supreme Court of the United States was born on September 24, 1755. Christopher Columbus set sail on his second voyage to America on September 25, 1493. John Philip Sousa, the March composer, performed his first public concert on September 26, 1895. Samuel Adams, a hero of the American Revolution, w a s b o r n S e p t e m b e r 2 7 , 1722, in Boston and was a Boston Tea Party leader. Confucius' birthday is on the 28th of September. Born in China nearly 2,000 years ago, he said, What you do not wish for yourself, do not do to others. E n r i c o F e r m i , a N o b e l Prize winner in physics, was born September 29, 1901. The Flintstones TV car- toon premiered on Septem- ber 30, 1960. Joseph Bar- bera, with William Hanna of the Hanna and Barbera Stu- dio, produced some 100 Tom and Jerry shorts and created dozens of characters, includ- i n g H u c k l e b e r r y H o u n d , Yogi the Bear, and the Flint- stones.

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