Wednesday, February 20, 2008

WELCOME GABRIELE CARMINE FALVO-CITRIGNO

-'Clicca' on photo to enlarge. Identifications (at the top of photo) can be seen more clearly.-

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IVANO SAYS: AS MANY OF MY READERS KNOW, I SPENT 30 YEARS WITH THE SAN JOSE POLICE DEPARTMENT. I KNOW THE CITY OF SAN JOSE QUITE WELL AND ACTUALLY DESCRIBED HOW I REMEMBERED IT BACK THEN IN THE BOOK.
I RECENTLY RECEIVED THE BELOW E-MAIL FROM GABRIELE . NOT ONLY DID HE E-MAIL ME, HE WAS KIND ENOUGH TO SEND ME A 194I PHOTO OF THE STAFF AT THE NAPOLI CAFE, WHICH WAS LOCATED ON 1ST IN SAN JOSE. THE PHOTO APPEARS ABOVE. WELCOME ABOARD THE 'BLAGGA' TRAIN GABE. WE LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR PARTICIPATION.







Dear Ivan,
My name is Gabriele Carmine Falvo-Citrigno. I recently saw your article on Gilda in the internet and I discovered your web page. I like you am 1st generation Italian American. Both my parents met each other in San Jose my father originally from Calabria and my mother originally form Abruzzo. My father came to this country in 1952 thru adoption from his aunt and uncle Marietta Falvo & Carmine Citrigno who had owned the Napoli Cafe on 1st street in San Jose. Carmine's relatives were the Felice's of San Martin Winery fame. Thus my father worked in the wine industry for over 30 years with San Martin, Felice Winery with San Jose Distributing, Regal beverages and most recently with Weibel, Mirassou and Savanaeh Shannel in Los Gatos... I myself am still single at 41. I had gone to work in Florence Italy from 2001-2005 and worked as an interpreter/project manager for a private American middle aged couple who wanted to buy and restore a villa in Florence. The villa is situated just above the hills of Florence and is named after my family's surname Villa Falvo. Unfortunately, although the business was/is named after me, I didn't own it. I decided after 3-4 years in Italy and after many false hopes and promises made to me, I decided to come back home to San Jose. At any rate, you have a very interesting web site and I'm glad I found it.
Tanti auguri!
Gabriele
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4-12-08
And this just in from Gabe:
Ok famiglia ...........cugini friends Romans, countrymen lend me your ears & eyes! How about this Gabe has now become an author on an Italian web site . I was approached about writing a weekly article about the earthquakes MLS adventures in Italian and this is the first....... here is the article and the link,,,Avete capito? Gabriele e' diventato anche giornalista........quei 3 anni di firenze hanno servito.......cave canem cave canem est est est! bohhhhhh? MAHHHHH? LEGGI E VEDRAI! --GABE .....
http://www.playitusa.com/articolo.php?id=7513
San José in cerca d'identità
di Gabriele Falvo Citrigno

21 comments:

Anonymous said...

This message is to Ivano and also welcoming Gabriele to the Blogg. I am amazed at the connections. We also have a Napoli Pizzaria here in Niagara. Must be a popular name. Interesting photos dating back to 1941. Very typical of the work environment. Especially for the Italians. They had this special connection with food, restaurants, bakeries and pizzarias. It is extremely evident that quite a number of Italians immigrated to the USA prior to WWII. My research from Ellis Island archives indicates the majority of Italian immigrants entered the USA after the turn of the century. By 1910 more than 2million Italians immigrated to the USA. There was another flow immediately after the inception of the Fascists in 1922 and after WWII but not as significant as those earlier years.
Interesting information we can all relate with..

Ciao e Mandi

Anonymous said...

If I am not mistaken the largest group to emigrate to the United States was the German group followed by the Italian group followed by the Irish group. But this information is about ten years old so it could very definitely be wrong.
Does the Canadian Furlan know the correct sequencing for these groups????
Nancy Quilici Jacobs

Anonymous said...

Ivano..How do I become a member? Looks great! The people in the photo from left to right are John Citrigno (Carmine's younger brother who passed away in 1997) not sure about the two women from left to right then Marietta Falvo-Citrigno (died in 1992) 4th from left not sure about the woman next to Marietta , Pete Coronato, Carmine Citrigno in the chef's hat (died in 1979) and Rose DeVincenzi....

Ivano Franco Comelli said...

Gabe: You become a member of the LNostra-Costa Blagga by participating. For starters, I will post you comment (above) to your article. You can add comments by scrolling to the bottom of the article and clicking on "comments'. Then write comments in space provided above. And easy way to post, is to sign your name at the bottom of your comment and then click on annonymous. That should do it. Buona Fortuna. ivno

Anonymous said...

Nancy.. I think you are very close with the sequence ... Last time I checked the Irish were just slightly ahead of the Italians by 50,000..The Italian immigrants challenged the Irish by providing reliable skilled low cost labor. One interesting fact the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region where my parents were born was inhabited by Celtic tribes and some of their customs as still with us today...
This is real good information ...

Ciao e Mandi

Anonymous said...

To my 'blagga fans' who are from San Jose and the Santa Clara Valley, there is a new book published by ARCADIA PUBLISHING (www.arcadiapublishing.com), by Frederick W.Marrazzo. It is entitled: "Italians in the Santa Clara Valley". It is a pictorial history of the rich Italian culture in the Valley. It shows the San Jose and the Santa Clara Valley, how it used to be. That was before "Fruit trees" were traded in for 'Silicon' Ivno

Anonymous said...

To all:
I remember San Jose as it used to be. It was a very beautiful valley. Those fruit trees released a wonderful aroma as you drove through them.
If you can still get the Orchard or Osh train calendar you can read about the valley before Silicon. I was amazed to learn that the name Orchard actually derived from the orchards in San Jose. Eventually, the store had to change its name as the valley changed. I just read the article in the calendar a few months ago in the 2008 edition.
The German who owns Hoffman's in downtown Santa Cruz knows a lot about the history of the celts in Italy, in fact, he is of the opinion that they might be the Etruscans, and, if not, that they at one point settled in the Tuscany region as well.
Ted, Vickie and I had dinner there and he really was an eduction.
Nancy Quilici Jacobs

Anonymous said...

Hello Gabriele: I had many friends who live in the San Jose area. I remember one handsome young man in particular,(I think his last name was Favio or Favios). He lived on this fruit ranch full of trees. I remember in the spring they would all blossom white. What a beautiful sight. The young man took me for a stoll through the trees, during one of these times. It was like being in heaven. Carrie

Anonymous said...

Ah--! Carolina, what would heaven be without fruit tree--- or 'fruits'.

Anonymous said...

Ciao Carolina Cariola
my last name is actually Falvo because my father was born in Calabria to Gabriele Falvo. His sister Marietta Falvo married her husband and his name was Carmine Citrigno and they moved to San Jose in the early 20's. . They later after WW2 went back to Italy to adopt my father Gabriele Falvo Jr who had been left an orpan when his father died before he was born. They brought him here and thus he became Gabriele Falvo -Citrigno and I'm Gabriele Falvo-Citrigno III, \

Anonymous said...

Gabe: What an interesting story. And your full name is wonderful. Don't ever change it. The boy I was talking about probably wasn't related to your family. I don't remember from where in Italy is family was from. He sure was a handsome young man. He kept asking me to Come walk with him in his giardino del gelato bianco. How romantic he was. Carrie

Unknown said...

Hello everybody,Salve Ivano,
I can't stay without coming to see what is going on here from time to time:-)
I'm always pleased to discover new stories about italians in America which finally are nothing else than american stories with some italian words and flavours:-)I like very much old stories and discover how was the country in the 40ies and 50ies.

Anonymous said...

Thanks JAIO: From one Furlan to another. I always welcome your comments. To those who have not yet visited JAIO 's website, I urge you to do so. To start with: simply 'clicca' on the picture headlining his comment above. I think you will find it of interest. Ivano

Anonymous said...

I did a little research and discovered that the Longobords, a tribe from Germany actually settled some parts of Italy. The Longobords settled in the cities of Tuscany, Lucca, Pisa, Siena and Florence. They also settled in Fiuli and finally settled in the Province of Lombardy. They were Pagan and therefore had many conflicts with the church in Italy. The church finally sided with the Franks and defeated the Lombards. The Roman Catholic Church actually has saved many things Roman. A mass done in Latin is Roman and many of the churches have Roman designs. And in many ways it was the church that saved Italy from invaders.
Anyway, this shows that many parts of Italy have very common backgrounds.`
The Romans built these cities in Tuscany, Lucca, Pisa, Siena,and Florence. Chiusi remained mostly celtic.
Nancy Quilici Jacobs

Anonymous said...

Nancy you certainly are very well read!! Yes the Longobards were in Friuli. And as a matter of fact the majority of Friuli was under their reign for some time. Also in Friuli there are the remains of one the First Roman Cities to protect the Northern Portion of the Peninsula the city is called Aquilea...review the following web site with fantastic photos. Aquilea is reported as being older than Rome. The old ruins are still standing today and about 6 years ago my brother and I spent an entire day in Aquilea going through everyone of the ruins and the old Church. http://paul.representinggenes.org/cividale/pages/040%20Mosaics.htm
As I mentioned in my earlier emails Friuli has it's own language and customs. It has been given Autonomous status in Italy due to it's unique cultural differences. My parents speak Friulano and when someone from another part of Italy listens to them speaking.. they cannot understand it. My parents also speak the correct grammatical Italian no dialects. During my younger years my parents would speak to us in Italian the correct grammatical version. In addition every Saturday I went to Italian school for half a day. My parents however would speak Friulano amongst themselves... So throughout all this I obviously speak English, fluent in Italian... my writing needs improvement, and I can understand and speak Friuliano. I picked Friulano up just by listening to my parents all these years. Twenty five years ago I became Secretary of Our Friulano club here in Niagara and Western New York, basically to maintain my heritage and to continue with learning Friulano.

Ciao e Mandi

Anonymous said...

I reread the article by Gabrielle Carmine Falvo-Citrigno and I could not help but think about Machiavelli. Machiavelli as used today describes one who deceives and manipulates others for gain. However, Machiavellii's writings were never meant to mean that. He wrote The Prince and other important and enlightening books. Machiavelli lived at a time when all of Italy was in turmoil and around the same time as the Medici family and the Borgia family. If I am not mistaken Brooke Shields is a descendant of the Medici family. Machiavelli lived during the beginning of the Age of Exploration 1469 to 1527. It was also a time of shifting allies. He wrote his books during the time of his exile.
At this time there were two Empires. The Holy Roman Empire which was German and never included Rome itself and the Western half of the original Roman Empire which had become the Byzantine Empire and was primarily a Greek/Roman Empire. The Greeks to this day still resent/hate the Turks for taking over the Byzantine Empire. (Original Roman Empire) and still speak the old language.
Believe it or not, but at this time there also existed the Holy Roman Empire which I mentioned earlier but had no ties to Rome itself nor did it ever include Rome. It was German and included Germany, Austria, Lichenstein, Luxumberg,Slovenia, Poland, France some parts of northern Italy.
During this time the Vikings ran a very lucretive slave trade. Some of their favorite targets were Ireland,the Slavic countries and those weaker targets. Many of the peasants decided on their own to become property of wealthy landowners rather than to be taken by the slave traders.
The vikings sold the slaves that they managed to capture to the Byzantine Empire and to the Genoese and Venetian merchants who sold them again to the Muslims.
The Holy Roman Empire fell in 1806 and the western half of the original Roman Empire fell in 1453 to the Ottoman Turks.
I, for one hate to listen to the Muslims complain about how they have lost holy sites etc. Consider that the Hagia Sofia has got to be one of the MOST IMPORTANT symbols of Christianity because it was Emperor Constantine who built it and it was Emperor Constantine who recognized Christianity as the new religion of the Romans. I think that the Greeks have it right! Give us back Istanbul which is Constantinople and quit your bitching and terrorist activities.
Nancy Quilici Jacobs

Anonymous said...

Nancy; You are becoming a bit of a bore.I feel that you should start a blog of your own. Find people who are interested in this stuff. What in the world does Machiavelli and your opinion of the Muslums have to do with this particular article? And don't say the people need to be educated on this stuff. Maybe so, but not here at the expense of Falvo-Citrigno family.

Anonymous said...

To Anonymous.
Not a problem.
I do not need to write on this blog site.
With the exception of the Canadian furlan the responses that I have received are mostly negative anyway.
I have also decided to stay where I am and not visit Santa Cruz.
Thank you for making my choices easier.
To Ivano: If you choose to remove me from your blog site I will understand. After all who needs a bore and a controversy!
And maybe I should be removed.
I may request my own removal myself and that will be end of story.
Nancy Quilici Jacobs

Anonymous said...

To Anonymous:
I was advised by a friend to explain my writing that you object to and then end my participation.
I was trying to explain false hope and promises made in Italy.
During the Renaissance which took place in Florence, if I am not mistaken, The Prince, and other books were written. This created a mind set of using deception to get ahead in the world, especially, the business world. This mind set may still exist today on perhaps a smaller scale. Gabrielle may have been a victim of this.
In regards to the Muslims any Italian who is a Catholic should harbor some degree of awarenesss as to their intent.
In the 1980's, there was an article in the National Geographic about the Muslim takeover of Constantinople. It was the most interesting article that I read. I reread the article several times. The reason is that Constantinople is one of four Romes that the Muslims intend to conquer. The four Romes were Rome, Italy, Constantinople, London, England and believe it or not Moscow, Russia. I am of the opinion that they have added New York since that time. They were successful in getting Constantinople but could not get the others, although, the Arabs did conquer Sicily and the Moors did move into Spain but could not stay there and were driven out. The point is that deception is used by the Muslims as well because they maintain that their gripe is Palestine, however, their gripe goes back centuries and Palestine may be only an excuse. Palestine could very well be the biggest deception. Consider that in ancient times Palestine was Judea and Judea is the home of the Jews. With this knowledge the Muslims are defeating their own position. Their real intent is to get rid of all things Christian and superimpose their own religion. And using deception is not beyond their methods.
All Catholics should feel a huge sense of loss in losing the Hagia Sofia. It was the first Roman/Christian church acknowledged by the Roman Emperor Constantine.
I know that to those who do not like me even this explanation of deception will not suffice. I remember when I offered recipes not because I was going to write a book but simply because I was trying to help it was assumed that I was trying to takeover. That never was my intent. I was just trying to participate then as now and this will be my last expanation.
I hope that I have EXPLAINED DECEPTION.
I think that Ivano is doing a great job! Continue to do so.
NQJ

Unknown said...

Yeah, Ivano is doing quite a nice job and I'm happy to see here around how many different people there are. I even think that there is no matter if Nancy is talking about something else. In french we say: The more we are and the more is funny:-)
Mandi a ducj

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