L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2024 www.italoamericano.org L'Italo-Americano 2 F o r 1 1 6 y e a r s , n o t just a month, we've stood by the Ital- ian-American com- m u n i t y o n t h e W e s t C o a s t . H o w b e t t e r t o show our commitment to pre- serving and promoting Italian- American heritage? Giving a voice to the Italian and Italian- American communities has always been the mission of L'I- talo-Americano, the oldest and longest-running ethnic newspaper in the United States, and the very reason it was created. If we were to look back at the incredible array of Italian and Italian-American portraits and The Italian impact on American culture: happy Italian-American Heritage Month! From the Editor stories that have filled our pages, we'd be struck by the countless faces representing the vibrant community that makes up the fifth-largest ethnic group in the US. What's impossible to measure is the immense contribu- tion all these individuals—whether well-known or not—have made in shaping the Italian-American identity we celebrate today. This shows just how deep, widespread, and enduring the impact of our culture has been. The influence is so vast that a handful of names is enough to see how every field has been touched by our dynamic community: from Guglielmo Marconi to Salvatore Ferragamo, from Robert De Niro to Lady Gaga, from Francesca Cabrini to Oriana Fallaci, from Arturo Toscanini to Fiorello La Guardia, from Frank Capra to Joe DiMaggio, from Candido Jacuzzi to Joe Petrosino. There's no era or sector where Italians haven't left a lasting mark on our shared culture. In many cases, even a last name is enough to give away Italian roots, and today, those roots are a source of pride. This wasn't always the case. In fact, changing perceptions of Italian identity is part of the reason this newspaper was founded. Back then, paesani stuck in Little Italys were mar- ginalized, seen as uneducated laborers to exploit—rough, with simple habits and kitchens filled with unpleasant smells—immigrants to demonize and punish. Giving them a voice through a newspaper was a powerful act of redemp- tion. Things got worse during World War II, when poor Ital- ian immigrants—fishermen and miners—were labeled dan- gerous "enemy aliens" and isolated. It's a shameful history, kept secret for decades, even from us. Today, things couldn't be more different. It's Taylor Swift, a multi-millionaire pop queen, who proudly claims her Cal- abrian roots. And she's not the first—Madonna did the same with her Abruzzese heritage back in the '80s, and Bruce Springsteen declares at his Italian concerts, "I'm from Southern Italy, and here in Naples, I'm home." And let's not forget The Voice, Frank Sinatra, whose mother was Genoese and father Sicilian, who always supported the Italian-Ameri- can community throughout his career (as our Maria Gloria has reminded us for 45 years in her iconic column "The Ital- ian Connection"). Then there's his friend and colleague Dean Martin, originally from Pescara. In film, there's Martin Scorsese with his Sicilian grandparents, Leonardo DiCaprio with a grandfather named Salvatore, son of Casertan immi- grants, John Travolta, Al Pacino, both with Sicilian fathers, and Bradley Cooper, whose maternal grandparents were entirely Italian. And it all started with the unforgettable Rodolfo Valentino from Castellaneta, Puglia. Italian names and talents span every industry—from poli- tics to sculpture, entrepreneurship to science, manufacturing to literature, cuisine to automotive and aerospace. Many have yet to be fully recognized in our collective narrative. And many of you, dear readers, deserve the spotlight just as much as those famous names. Your lives and personal achievements show that Italian-Americans and Italians in America have reached countless milestones. The values you pass down through your families, schools, associations, and communities are as numerous as they are meaningful. Your everyday acts—sharing recipes, memories, dialects, and Ital- ian names—are the greatest gifts to the society we all belong to. So, a heartfelt "Thank you" to each of you for preserving pieces of our identity, and to everyone: happy Italian-Ameri- can Heritage Month! Simone Schiavinato, Editor Simone Schiavinato NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS Member of FUSIE (Federazione Unitaria Stampa Italianaall'Estero), COGITO L'Italo-Americano Please send correspondence to P.O. BOX 6528, ALTADENA, CA 91003 www.italoamericano.org L'Italo-Americano Newspaper (a 501(c)(3) non- profit organization), www.italoamericano.org, is the largest and longest-running Italian news- paper in America, not to mention the cultural and news resource for all things Italian in the US. A bilingual newspaper which represents an historical landmark for the Italian American Communities in the West Coast and throughout the US. L'Italo-Americano benefits from subsidies by the Italian Government, Memberships and Donations intended to support and not interrupt a mission that began in 1908 to preserve and promote the Italian language and culture in the USA Periodicals postage paid at Monrovia, California 91016, and additional mailing offices. PUBLISHER Robert Barbera Grande Ufficiale EDITOR IN CHIEF Simone Schiavinato ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGER Patrick Abbate EDITORIAL COORDINATOR Barbara Minafra COPY EDITOR Francesca Bezzone LOS ANGELES CONTRIBUTOR Silvia Nittoli SAN FRANCISCO CONTRIBUTOR Serena Perfetto SEATTLE CONTRIBUTOR Rita Cipalla CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Mariella Radaelli, Matt Walker, Francesca Bezzone, Luca Ferrari, Stefano Carnevali, Paula Reynolds, Teresa Di Fresco Nicoletta Curradi, Generoso D'Agnese, Jessica S. Levy, Fabrizio Del Bimbo, Maria Gloria, Chuck Pecoraro, Anthony Di Renzo Serena Perfetto, Kenneth Scambray, Chiara D'Alessio, Luca Signorini, Giulia Franceschini © 2024 L'Italo-Americano Membership: One year $59 - Single copy $2.25 POSTMASTER: Send address changes to L'Italo Americano PO Box 6528 Altadena, CA 91003

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