Speaker 1: It's Night Side with Dan Ray on WBZ, Boston's news radio.
Speaker 2: Thank you, Emma. My name is Morgan White Junior. I'm
Speaker 2: here for the rest of this week and Monday and
Speaker 2: Tuesday of next week. While Dan takes a well earned vacation,
Speaker 2: I'm gonna be speaking with at ten o'clock Boston sports
Speaker 2: anchor at Channel four. Back in the day, he's went
Speaker 2: on the bigger and better things of the cities New York.
Speaker 2: I'm trying to think if there are another city besides
Speaker 2: New York that Jimmy Myrius went to. Well, Jimmy Myriers
Speaker 2: will be here and the next two hours between now
Speaker 2: and ten o'clock. I've got a gentleman, believe it or not.
Speaker 2: He's written almost ninety books, and I'm gonna mention a
Speaker 2: book did a book on the Christmas tree shops, and
Speaker 2: I don't know if that was number eighty nine or
Speaker 2: number ninety, but he is an extremely knowledgeable man. When
Speaker 2: it comes to Boston, it's neighborhoods and it's environs. So
Speaker 2: please get comfy, scooch up next to the radio and
Speaker 2: be prepared to welcome my friend mister Anthony San Marco. Anthony,
Speaker 2: Happy Holidays to you.
Speaker 3: Happy holidays to you, Morgan. How are you.
Speaker 2: I'm doing very very well, and I was looking forward
Speaker 2: to this because there's some things that we didn't cover
Speaker 2: the last time in regards to the Christmas Tree Shops
Speaker 2: that I will cover tonight. And by the way, any
Speaker 2: of you out there who were fans of the old
Speaker 2: Christmas Tree Shops, how many of them were? They're in
Speaker 2: Massachusetts back in the day, the.
Speaker 3: Mill Ezekans who founded the company, by two thousand and
Speaker 3: three had twenty three, but throughout New England they were
Speaker 3: over forty five, but bedboth and beyond between two thousand
Speaker 3: and three and twenty twenty would expand it to the
Speaker 3: point that they were in sixteen states and they were
Speaker 3: close to ninety. So it was really quite an expanse
Speaker 3: of growth in the early twentieth century.
Speaker 2: And both stores were under the same umbrella.
Speaker 3: Correct, correct, And the thing was in that instance, the
Speaker 3: Christmas Tree Shops in some ways was something that not
Speaker 3: only had the name, but it was also something that
Speaker 3: had the prototype that basically became a cookie cutter. But
Speaker 3: these places were so intriguing. The architecture was incredible.
Speaker 2: And one thing I noticed, as you would pass one,
Speaker 2: and I guess this is the same for every store circumstance.
Speaker 2: Their look was identical, that little slay for their brand
Speaker 2: no matter where you were, you down in the Cape,
Speaker 2: you were up in the North Shore. And were they
Speaker 2: one of the first stores to do that?
Speaker 3: Well, well, the funny thing was when you say they
Speaker 3: were identical, the logo was identical. But many of these
Speaker 3: buildings were iconic. When you think of the Sagamore Bridge Store,
Speaker 3: it not only was an Irish cottage, but it had
Speaker 3: the largest fatue for the world. The store in Linfield
Speaker 3: had a wonderful lighthouse. Orlean's Massachusetts had a sea captain's house.
Speaker 3: So in a lot of ways they looked similar, but
Speaker 3: they weren't. They were individual stores. And one of the
Speaker 3: aspects was that Chuck Blazike and who with his wife
Speaker 3: Doreen Belazikian, founded in nineteen seventy trying to make each
Speaker 3: door unique and in that instance not only architecturally intriguing,
Speaker 3: but in a lot of ways what the Washington Post
Speaker 3: called disney Esque architecture. I agree. I used to say
Speaker 3: to myself when I read that first time, I said, Wow,
Speaker 3: that's incredible. I mean, but it was. It was something
Speaker 3: that was not only unique but attractive, and it was
Speaker 3: more than just a store to shop in. It was iconic.
Speaker 2: And you mentioned nineteen seventy, so that was the first
Speaker 2: year they opened.
Speaker 3: Correct, They had bought a company in Yarmouthport that was
Speaker 3: known as the Christmas Tree Shop. They have been founded
Speaker 3: in nineteen forty six by the Matthews family. They went
Speaker 3: bankrupt and in nineteen sixty one a man by the
Speaker 3: name of Dawn Winner bought it at auction and was
Speaker 3: running it when Chuck Bilerzekean met with him on July
Speaker 3: fourth weekend of nineteen seven. At that point, after a meeting,
Speaker 3: he casually asked, would you like to buy a store?
Speaker 3: And in that instance, not only did they, but they
Speaker 3: went into debt, sold their house in Newton, went to
Speaker 3: Yamouthorte lived above the store. And what they did was,
Speaker 3: over the next five years, continually work in such a
Speaker 3: way that with hard work, drive, the termination and reinvestment
Speaker 3: of capital, they were able to make a go of
Speaker 3: a business that was a remainder and wholesaler.
Speaker 2: Now, if I'm mistaken, they spread out all over New
Speaker 2: England and beyond. Correct, but they had a new England Seal.
Speaker 2: How was that go ahead?
Speaker 3: Well, for the first thirty years they were primarily just
Speaker 3: New England. They had stores all over the Cape, and
Speaker 3: then beginning in the period of the late nineteen seventies,
Speaker 3: they opened their first off Cape store in Pembroke, Massachusetts.
Speaker 3: But during the period between nineteen seventy and two thousand
Speaker 3: they were basically expanding it in such a way by
Speaker 3: asking people when they checked out at the cash register,
Speaker 3: what is your zip code? And they use that information
Speaker 3: to actually gauge where are people coming from. You know,
Speaker 3: they're on Cape cod By, they native Cape Corners, Are
Speaker 3: they summer people or are they basically for the day.
Speaker 3: And by the period of twenty two thousand, which was
Speaker 3: the turn of the twenty first century, they were opening
Speaker 3: in South Portland, Maine, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York. And
Speaker 3: they weren't truly something that not only many people looked
Speaker 3: at as a place to shop in, but it was
Speaker 3: something that you never knew what you were going to
Speaker 3: find and people loved it. I mean the type of
Speaker 3: a thing when you arrived at the parking lot, here
Speaker 3: was a building that was unlike any other retail establishment.
Speaker 3: It was a gift shop wrapped up in thatch or
Speaker 3: a lighthouse or something that was unusual, and it was
Speaker 3: fun to not only walk through the door, but everything
Speaker 3: seemed to hit you. Not only were they beautiful displays,
Speaker 3: all sorts of things to purchase, but the century sensory aroma,
Speaker 3: especially of cinnamon, seemed to be pervasive. So when you
Speaker 3: walked into these doors, it was something that hit you
Speaker 3: all at once. And I think people really really really
Speaker 3: enjoyed this, and it was something that became not only popular,
Speaker 3: but tremendously successful.
Speaker 2: All Right, I have to take a break. I'm going
Speaker 2: to open up the phone line six thirty eight, eight nine,
Speaker 2: ten thirty. This is Nightside. Dan is off. My name
Speaker 2: is Morgan. I'll be here until midnight. And if you
Speaker 2: want to call in to speak to Anthony San Marco,
Speaker 2: you can, and do me a favor when you call in.
Speaker 2: If you're calling in from Boston, don't just say Boston.
Speaker 2: Boston is split into eighteen nineteen twenty different neighborhoods sections.
Speaker 2: Tell Anthony what area you are, Jamaica, Plane, the North
Speaker 2: End East. Let him know so he can give you
Speaker 2: a little thumbnails sketch about your neighborhood. During the holidays
Speaker 2: because he will know about it. I guarantee time and
Speaker 2: temperature here on Night side eight, sixteen thirty degrees.
Speaker 1: Now back to Dan Ray live from the Window World,
Speaker 1: Night six Studios on WBZ News Radio.
Speaker 2: I hope you're enjoying your Christmas Eve. I hope you
Speaker 2: can got all the things done, the shopping, the food prep,
Speaker 2: the gifts all wrapped, all of that needed to be completed,
Speaker 2: hopefully by the day, if definitely not by this evening,
Speaker 2: so you'll be ready for Christmas morning. And on Aka
Speaker 2: morning they overlapped this year. You know, Anthony Sarah Marco
Speaker 2: is here. He's my guest. And Anthony is there within Boston,
Speaker 2: within Boston's communities. Is there a way that's traditional to
Speaker 2: the North End for celebrating Christmas versus Jamaica Plane for
Speaker 2: celebrating Christmas, versus Roxbury for celebrating Christmas or is it
Speaker 2: all kind of just one unified look at the holiday.
Speaker 3: Well, if you were going to ask me, and I
Speaker 3: did write a book called Christmas Traditions, you have to realize. Initially,
Speaker 3: in the seventeenth century, Boston was settled by Puritans. Puritans
Speaker 3: were basically englishmen and women and they came to this
Speaker 3: country to celebrate and worship in their own manner. It
Speaker 3: was something in a lot of ways that was very different.
Speaker 3: But you have to realize they banned Christmas in sixteen
Speaker 3: fifty nine, and a lot of times when I teach
Speaker 3: this I used to teach at Boston University, I was
Speaker 3: always intrigued that a lot of people had no idea
Speaker 3: that the Puritans were so strict and adhere to what
Speaker 3: was basically the Bible Commonwealth and by not only creating
Speaker 3: an aspect of banning Christmas, nobody could feast, nobody could
Speaker 3: actually enjoy a day off. Everybody had to work, and
Speaker 3: it was something and in that instance it was probably
Speaker 3: to hold off not only throughout the seventeenth but throughout
Speaker 3: the eighteenth century. Really wasn't until the time of the
Speaker 3: nineteenth century when immigrants were coming from Western Europe and
Speaker 3: they were bringing their Christmas traditions with them, and we'd
Speaker 3: see not only people from the British Isles in Ireland
Speaker 3: and Germany and France and eventually even Middle Europe. But
Speaker 3: it was something that each person representing a distinct culture
Speaker 3: under so to speak, Christianity, might celebrate Christmas, but in
Speaker 3: a different way than everyone else. I am half Italian,
Speaker 3: So this evening we actually had the Feast of the
Speaker 3: Seven Fish. It's a little bit peculiar. It was a
Speaker 3: lot of food, but I started this afternoon and I
Speaker 3: had not only shrimp and scallops. I had stuffed scallops.
Speaker 3: I had a lobster pie. I made linguini with clam sauce.
Speaker 3: There were things that just typical of what I would
Speaker 3: have had as a child, but a little bit different.
Speaker 3: And it was fun to do because in that instance
Speaker 3: it was a tradition for my past. But it doesn't
Speaker 3: matter where we come from. These are things, in some
Speaker 3: ways that come down to us through our grandparents are
Speaker 3: great grandparents, and it's a great and important way to
Speaker 3: maintain that tradition. So whether one might have the Feast
Speaker 3: of the Seven Fish, and of course my family had
Speaker 3: lived in the North End of the turn of the
Speaker 3: twentieth century, or they lived at Jamaica Plain or Roxbury,
Speaker 3: we have to realize it is celebrated somewhat differently, but
Speaker 3: there's a reason for celebrating. It's a birth of Jesus
Speaker 3: Christ and many many people in Boston, and we actually
Speaker 3: may come from different cultures, different religions, different ethnicities. But
Speaker 3: we've woven this thriving nexus of cultures that we call
Speaker 3: the City of Boston, and we do things like decorate
Speaker 3: the Boston Common Department stores with beautiful lights and decorations,
Speaker 3: and our places of worship, whatever it might be, is
Speaker 3: a great way to see music and singing, and of
Speaker 3: course the wonderful aspect of community. So yeah, sometimes it
Speaker 3: is different, but it all represents the same thing, and
Speaker 3: Christmas is a special time in Boston.
Speaker 2: The Puritans had such a stranglehold on what you can
Speaker 2: and cannot do in Boston for decades.
Speaker 3: Beyond exactly exactly is there.
Speaker 2: A pinpoint moment you mentioned the different immigrants that came
Speaker 2: to our city from places in Europe. Is there a
Speaker 2: pinpoint moment when that grip by the Puritans loose and
Speaker 2: allow people to relax on Christmas or allowed people to
Speaker 2: give gifts on Christmas?
Speaker 3: Well, the very first instance was when King William the
Speaker 3: Third and Queen Mary the Second, they were joint rulers
Speaker 3: of England, began the Glorious Revolution by accepting people for
Speaker 3: who they were, whatever religion they were, would actually establish
Speaker 3: a place of worship in Boston. That was the Anglican
Speaker 3: church that was King's Chapel. It's at the corner of
Speaker 3: Tremont and School Street. At that point, not only did
Speaker 3: they have their own chapel, but they sent silver a Bible,
Speaker 3: and it was the first instance of non traditional Puritan worship.
Speaker 3: So you began to see a slight change. And during
Speaker 3: that period of time, there were many people, you know,
Speaker 3: that looked at that as something that was not only horrible,
Speaker 3: but it something in some ways that people couldn't understand.
Speaker 3: And the Reverend Cotton Mather, who was a minister in Boston,
Speaker 3: he had realized his father had been increased Mather or
Speaker 3: President of Harvard, but also a well known minister, and
Speaker 3: his grandfather was not only Reverend John Cotton, but the
Speaker 3: Reverend Richard Mather. He would say in seventeen twelve that
Speaker 3: the feast of Christ's Nativity is spent in revelry, dicing, carding, masking,
Speaker 3: and all licentious liberty, by mad mirth, by long eating,
Speaker 3: by hard drinking, by leude gaming, by rude reveling. Well,
Speaker 3: in that instance, many people began to realize the way
Speaker 3: Christmas had been celebrated under King Henry the eighth was
Speaker 3: now being in some ways reinstituted, and that would continue,
Speaker 3: but it would really be in the period of the
Speaker 3: eighteen forties, with the beginning of the Irish coming to
Speaker 3: Boston because of the Great Famine, they themselves would see
Speaker 3: Roman Catholicism of something that not only they worshiped, but
Speaker 3: also would create a place of worship that the whole
Speaker 3: aspect of Christmas, with not just Christmas Eve, but Christmas Day,
Speaker 3: in the feast of the Epiphany and Little Christmas would
Speaker 3: all come to the point where now Boston was beginning
Speaker 3: to celebrate in a very different way. And in that
Speaker 3: nineteenth century it wasn't just Roman Catholics, but people would
Speaker 3: begin to write books. And you probably know Charles Dickens,
Speaker 3: and in eighteen forty two he came to Boston to
Speaker 3: do readings from his book A Christmas Carol. Now Dickens
Speaker 3: was Anglican, and he talked about Christmas past, present, and future.
Speaker 3: And people had to look at that and say to themselves, Wow,
Speaker 3: this is something that's not only a literary class, but
Speaker 3: it was also something a lot of ways that really
Speaker 3: did chronicle what people were thinking in the period before
Speaker 3: the Civil War.
Speaker 2: And see I didn't know Dickens did that. And he
Speaker 2: came to Boston. Obviously, I'm familiar with the Book of
Speaker 2: Christmas cow I think we in my fifth grade had
Speaker 2: to read that.
Speaker 3: Yeah, well, he came and he lived at the Parker House,
Speaker 3: and the Parker House was one of those I know.
Speaker 3: I'd stay there in the bar. So long as I
Speaker 3: could have Parker House rolls and butter, I'd be happy.
Speaker 3: But that was the thing. And I mean during that
Speaker 3: period you also had people like Lydia Mariah Child, who
Speaker 3: a well known writer from Medford, Massachusetts, and I'm talking
Speaker 3: to eighteen thirty eighteen forty period. She wrote, over the
Speaker 3: bridge and through the woods to Grandfather's house we go,
Speaker 3: and everyone knows.
Speaker 2: The horse knows the way to carry the slave to
Speaker 2: the white and crispy snow. Oh Ma, thank you. I'm
Speaker 2: going to stop here, take my bottom of the hour
Speaker 2: news hit, and when we come back, hopefully we'll be
Speaker 2: joined by college. But I find this fascinating, and I
Speaker 2: could talk to you about this for the next three days,
Speaker 2: but we only have ninety minutes of show to go
Speaker 2: with Anthony. If you want to call in six, one, seven, two, five, four, ten,
Speaker 2: thirty eight eight eight, nine to nine ten thirty. Time
Speaker 2: here on night Side is eight thirty temperature thirty degrees.
Speaker 1: You're on night Side with Dan Ray. I'm WBZ Boston's
Speaker 1: news Radio.
Speaker 2: Good evening, I should say, good Christmas Eve evening. My
Speaker 2: name is Morgan White Junior. I'm gonna be here and
Speaker 2: Dan instead, he'll be off and until the first of
Speaker 2: the year twenty twenty five. I'm going to be here
Speaker 2: on night Side until then. And my guests this evening,
Speaker 2: mister Anthony San Marco and Anthony. How many books? Is
Speaker 2: it eighty nine ninety?
Speaker 3: It's Sadie nine. I think at this point I'm working
Speaker 3: on one called The Prince Spaghetti Company.
Speaker 2: Hey, Anthony, I heard that if I.
Speaker 3: Could run that far, it might have been. But it
Speaker 3: wasn't the four. It was Anthony Montyetti.
Speaker 2: Yes, all right, Well you've gotten a phone call. It's
Speaker 2: a gentleman. I know. He's been actually on the radio
Speaker 2: with me a number of times. He and his brother
Speaker 2: Bill Winnakers called in to speak to you.
Speaker 3: Well, how are you, Bill, Anthony?
Speaker 4: I'm so good. You know, when you're on Morgan's show,
Speaker 4: I always learned so much. I'm Morgan, I appreciate you
Speaker 4: having Anthony on because it's you know, Anthe you're a
Speaker 4: Boston treasure, and.
Speaker 2: I think that's a good way of putting it.
Speaker 4: Yeah, well you're a Boston treasure too, You're you're both
Speaker 4: Boston treasures. And Morgan, your knowledge of the history of
Speaker 4: Boston is phenomenal as well. I mean, so to hear
Speaker 4: the two of you banter back and forth, I just
Speaker 4: learned a lot. And I grew up twenty miles south
Speaker 4: of Boston on a farm in Millics, but so I
Speaker 4: didn't get to hang around in the city like you
Speaker 4: two did. And you both know every nook and cranny
Speaker 4: of the city of Boston. And I came to college
Speaker 4: here and was fascinated after living in the country. But Anthony,
Speaker 4: I've just learned so much from you all the time,
Speaker 4: and from you too, Morgan.
Speaker 2: I love the best city of Boston, and I have
Speaker 2: been to every every major community in America. I've been
Speaker 2: to Philly, I've been to New York. I've been to
Speaker 2: a number of communities in Miami. I've been to Chicago,
Speaker 2: San Francisco, Los Angeles, obviously, Las Vegas. And I love Boston,
Speaker 2: always have always will Ye I was.
Speaker 3: I'm very lucky to stay here. I was lucky to
Speaker 3: stay here after college. I absolutely love it. And there's
Speaker 3: not a day that goes by that I don't do
Speaker 3: reading about Boston. I mean, tonight probably i'll read because
Speaker 3: some of my books just arrived this week on Boston.
Speaker 3: These are things that sometimes I've had copies, but I
Speaker 3: give them away and I buy new ones. But I
Speaker 3: think Boston is something at some point that it's just
Speaker 3: a very special place and it doesn't matter who you are.
Speaker 3: You begin to realize in some ways, each family creates traditions,
Speaker 3: especially during the holiday season, whether it's Christmas or Kwansa
Speaker 3: or Hnagar, And people look at this and they say
Speaker 3: to themselves, I want my children and grandchildren to do
Speaker 3: what I and my grandparents had once done. And those
Speaker 3: are the traditions that we, you know, kind of pass
Speaker 3: on from a generation to another.
Speaker 4: Absolutely, you know, this is one of the great cities
Speaker 4: of the world, and I love that we can walk.
Speaker 4: I often take the tea through Park Street and walk
Speaker 4: back to Brookline and walk in different directions. First I
Speaker 4: might go down to the waterfront and just explore all
Speaker 4: the different parts of the city. It's so walkable and accessible.
Speaker 4: It's just a thrill to liver here. There was college
Speaker 4: that brought me here and I've never left.
Speaker 3: Well, it's funny you say that it is a walkable place,
Speaker 3: But there is a club that I belonged to on
Speaker 3: Beacon Hill and Vernon Street is probably one of the
Speaker 3: steeper hills of Boston. I have to admit I'm a
Speaker 3: little bit winded by the time I get there for
Speaker 3: my cocktail. I still get up a hill, believe me.
Speaker 3: But no, that's wonderful.
Speaker 2: And gentlemen, let me tell you this. Wait, wait, Bill,
Speaker 2: let me tell you this. And I interviewed him on
Speaker 2: a number of occasions. This man loved to walk Boston
Speaker 2: before he was in office, while he was in office
Speaker 2: as the mayor of Boston. And yeah, well, Kevin White,
Speaker 2: but I'm talking about Ray Flynn.
Speaker 4: Oh, Ray walked every way.
Speaker 2: Lynn loved to walk all over this city.
Speaker 4: He sure did.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I haven't had the money. I haven't had the
Speaker 2: money in years. Maybe I'll see if I can get
Speaker 2: him for twenty five.
Speaker 4: But he loved we love him, and we used to
Speaker 4: see him all the time. He was a close friend
Speaker 4: of the Duncee family at the Parker House, and we
Speaker 4: my folks lived in the Parker House for years.
Speaker 2: There is that name again, the Parker House. So much
Speaker 2: of bost so much of Boston's history is woven in
Speaker 2: and through and around the Parker House.
Speaker 4: Well yeah, well I was just going to say, it's
Speaker 4: the oldest continuously run hotel in America.
Speaker 3: Yeah, and lived across the street from me in Milton,
Speaker 3: Is that right? Yeah? I mean it was so funny
Speaker 3: because I used to say to myself, take who lives
Speaker 3: in that house that I found out, and I was like, well,
Speaker 3: I mean, introduce myself. Now. I think in a lot
Speaker 3: of ways, this is the fun thing. I mean, it's
Speaker 3: not just a hotel. It's not just a place of worship.
Speaker 3: It's not the State House. All of these things combine
Speaker 3: into something that creates what we know of as Boston.
Speaker 3: And it's not just during the holiday season. I mean,
Speaker 3: we have the public Garden, we have the back Bay
Speaker 3: mall leading from Arlington Street to Muddy River, beautiful tree shrubberies,
Speaker 3: green space, the Charles River. It's a place that is
Speaker 3: a very special one and I think when I write
Speaker 3: about it, I try to not only reinforce to those
Speaker 3: of us that are Bostonians, but also to those that
Speaker 3: might not necessarily know about the city as either tourists
Speaker 3: or recent arrivals. How very special Boston really is.
Speaker 2: Anthony. You teach as you write these books, and when
Speaker 2: you worked at BU as a teacher, you inform you
Speaker 2: impart knowledge and your love of the city is so
Speaker 2: obvious when you flip through one of your books. The
Speaker 2: photos of the company accompany most of these books. When
Speaker 2: I have you on the radio, when I've heard you
Speaker 2: in the radio with other people and other circumstances, your
Speaker 2: love of Boston shines through it.
Speaker 4: Sure does. Sure I appreciate it. I want to say
Speaker 4: one thing, Morgan. We had the extreme pleasure of working
Speaker 4: an event with Anthony, and that was really the first
Speaker 4: time we get to meet each other.
Speaker 2: Let me hear about it before I let you go
Speaker 2: tell me about that event.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I rather have Anthony tell you because all my
Speaker 4: mind is blankization.
Speaker 3: Now, well, it was ironic earlier us here there was
Speaker 3: a wonderful group of people in Boston's North End that
Speaker 3: wanted to actually honor Nancy Schon, who was the sculptors.
Speaker 3: So they make way for ducklings in the Boston Public Garden.
Speaker 3: She was doing a new sculpture called a Noble Journey,
Speaker 3: which is a bronze gangplane from a ship leading from
Speaker 3: Italy to Boston, and it was footsteps and feet and
Speaker 3: it was to be installed at the entrance way to
Speaker 3: Saint Leonard of Port Maurice, which is actually at Prince
Speaker 3: and Hanover Street of the North End. So I became
Speaker 3: involved in the fundraising and we were moving along, but
Speaker 3: I suggested we have a large party at the same
Speaker 3: Patop club. Would be a little bit more expensive than
Speaker 3: some of the other events, but it would be something
Speaker 3: in some ways that would be a very fitting tribute.
Speaker 3: And I planned the party and I asked the Winnakers
Speaker 3: the Aus trio to come and play at the ballroom,
Speaker 3: and we had a lovely reception, copious wine, wonderful music,
Speaker 3: and Nancy Showan was somebody who's ninety six years of age,
Speaker 3: was somebody who not only was the principal guest, but
Speaker 3: she was something in some ways that surpassed what you
Speaker 3: could imagine. Her artistic skills, her linguistic skills, her family.
Speaker 3: She was just a lovely, lovely person. And it turned
Speaker 3: out that my father in law had worked for her
Speaker 3: back in the nineteen fifties and sixties. Her father owned
Speaker 3: harry Quit Nurseries, so it was the type of a
Speaker 3: thing that it was, those very unusual connections. So I
Speaker 3: met Bill and Bo Winnaker for the first time. No,
Speaker 3: we've chatted, you know, and we've known each other, but
Speaker 3: not well. And we had about one hundred and twenty
Speaker 3: five hundred and forty people and it was the most
Speaker 3: wonderful event that we raised the money that was necessary to,
Speaker 3: you know, have this piece installed. It's now part of
Speaker 3: the history of the North End.
Speaker 4: Bill Well, that was one of the most special events
Speaker 4: I've ever intended. The camaraderie and everybody was so warm
Speaker 4: and friendly, and it was just an extraordinary night of
Speaker 4: bonding and friendship. And it's just I can't even describe
Speaker 4: how wonderful it was.
Speaker 3: I stop a line too.
Speaker 2: Had something to do. Guys. I got to stop here
Speaker 2: because they have a break to take. But Bill, I
Speaker 2: was showing your family a fantastic Christmas, your best year ever.
Speaker 2: Tell your brother and your mom. I said, Hi, I.
Speaker 4: Will Bill, thank you, thank you so much. Good night.
Speaker 2: Let's take our break. When we come back, we'll speak
Speaker 2: to Larry and reading here on night Side Time on
Speaker 2: night Side eight forty five thirty degrees.
Speaker 1: Now back to Dan Ray live from the Window World
Speaker 1: Nightside Studios on WBZ News Radio.
Speaker 2: Let's immediately go back to the telephone. We have full lines,
Speaker 2: by the way, so as I take a call, that's
Speaker 2: when you time your darling. Let's go to reading and
Speaker 2: speak to Larry. Larry, Hello there right.
Speaker 5: Uh, I just want to mention the same to you.
Speaker 5: Merry Christmas and a happy Honikah.
Speaker 3: And I think you.
Speaker 5: I wanted to mention the the old Jordan Marsha store
Speaker 5: used to was in half a dozen locations before it
Speaker 5: ended up where it is.
Speaker 3: Yes, and also.
Speaker 5: It was originally designed to be a twelve story building.
Speaker 5: I got less from in nineteen twenty eight the Guidebook
Speaker 5: of Boston.
Speaker 3: And how come it was funny? Because go ahead?
Speaker 2: No, My question simple, why didn't that happen?
Speaker 3: Well?
Speaker 5: Should I?
Speaker 3: Well? The funny thing was Jordan marsh was something that
Speaker 3: did move quite a few times, and then it eventually
Speaker 3: settled at the corner of Washington Street in Avon Place.
Speaker 3: By nineteen twenty two they had bought out a Schumann
Speaker 3: company and they moved all the way to the edge
Speaker 3: of Semeer Street. But for that centennial, which was going
Speaker 3: to be in nineteen fifty one, they hired a company
Speaker 3: by the name of Perry Sharon Hepburn, a well known
Speaker 3: company that had actually restored Colonial Williamsburg for the Rockefeller family,
Speaker 3: and they did a new plan to destroy the entire
Speaker 3: block and build a new eleven story building, nine above
Speaker 3: the ground and two below the ground. But it never happened.
Speaker 3: And what they did was to build what was basically
Speaker 3: the part at the corner of Chauncey Street in Summer Street.
Speaker 3: And the reason was in some instances they didn't think
Speaker 3: that they were actually going to be able to afford
Speaker 3: this enormous new structure. But the new building, the part
Speaker 3: was radiant heat, sidewalks, escalators, electric elevators, central heating, air conditioning.
Speaker 3: It was the most modern department store in New England.
Speaker 3: But the whole thing was in a lot of ways.
Speaker 3: It was actually in nineteen fifty that they actually had
Speaker 3: their first suburban store, and that was Shopper's World on
Speaker 3: Route nine at Framingham. And what they really felt at
Speaker 3: that point was why invest so much in downtown Boston
Speaker 3: when the population was moving north, south and west of
Speaker 3: the city. And what they did was between nineteen fifty
Speaker 3: and you know nineteen ninety six when Macy's took them over,
Speaker 3: they had all these satellite stores and that was much
Speaker 3: more successful than the flagship store, which was in downtown Boston.
Speaker 2: Is Jordan Marsh Great Warehouse sailed this Saturday out in Auburndale.
Speaker 2: I remember that jingle being played over and over.
Speaker 3: Third you remember the one, And there was one in Squatham.
Speaker 3: There was a factory and a warehouse and Squantham that
Speaker 3: basically sold you know, very good furniture and lamps right
Speaker 3: for that sort. But you know, Jordan's was something in
Speaker 3: some ways. It was a department store and it had
Speaker 3: originally two hundred and twenty four departments under one roof.
Speaker 3: And by the period of say the nineteen fifties, they
Speaker 3: had the Bristol building, They had Jordan Marsh basement. These
Speaker 3: buildings were all around that area. Not everyone was contiguous
Speaker 3: to the other. But my favorite was the annex that
Speaker 3: was at the corner of Avon Street of Washington Street
Speaker 3: across to the original store. And you know, the annex
Speaker 3: had the bakery, it had stamp collection, coin collections, records.
Speaker 3: It was something that was really a destination when I
Speaker 3: was a child.
Speaker 2: And let's not forget in the mid sixties when some
Speaker 2: genius came up with the Enchanted Village, and.
Speaker 3: I mean Edward Richardson Mitton, who was the president between
Speaker 3: nineteen thirty seven and nineteen sixty three, not only created
Speaker 3: the Enchanted Village, but he open trade with West Germany.
Speaker 3: And a lot of people don't realize these pieces the
Speaker 3: automatons were made in West Germany, and this was something
Speaker 3: only thirteen fourteen years after World War Two had ended,
Speaker 3: so it was something that he had petitioned the federal
Speaker 3: government to continually do. But it wasn't until nineteen fifty
Speaker 3: eight that they actually allowed mitten to actually trade with
Speaker 3: Germany and they hired a company that actually produced the
Speaker 3: Enchanted Village of Saint Nicholas, and it was something I mean,
Speaker 3: nobody seemed to realize how impact of it was. And
Speaker 3: between that period and you know that period until nineteen
Speaker 3: ninety six, it brought in millions of people.
Speaker 2: It was a big hit. The second they advertised come
Speaker 2: see it. I agree everybody. I'm guaranteeing everybody who was
Speaker 2: a kid at some time in the mid sixties and up,
Speaker 2: mom and dad or aunt and uncle or grandfather, grandmother
Speaker 2: or next door neighbor took you to see the enchanted village.
Speaker 2: And some of us went every.
Speaker 3: Year, well some of us went many times each year.
Speaker 3: I loved it. But the funny thing was, you know,
Speaker 3: it was called a Tudor Revival village, and it was
Speaker 3: three quarters at scale, and you have these little tableaus,
Speaker 3: a bakery or an ice cream shop. You had a
Speaker 3: school mastershop, glass blower shop, the village jail, a barbershop.
Speaker 3: But it seemed like there were men, women, and children
Speaker 3: and animals that were these automatons, and they moved in unison.
Speaker 3: But it was also the fact it was live music.
Speaker 3: There were three men who used to play at the
Speaker 3: sherry Biltball that was on Massachusetts Avenue. They dressed in
Speaker 3: Tyrolean hats and leader hose and played Germanic music and
Speaker 3: when they were on break, somebody played the organ with
Speaker 3: all sorts of Christmas jingles and sons. But it was
Speaker 3: something that the day had opened, which was the day
Speaker 3: after Thanksgiving in nineteen fifty nine, it was said to
Speaker 3: have attracted just that one winter season, over thirty five
Speaker 3: thousand people and.
Speaker 2: That's a lot.
Speaker 3: It's a huge amount.
Speaker 2: That's a lot, Larry, Is there anything else you want
Speaker 2: to touch upon while you're here?
Speaker 5: I think the favorite part of Jordan Marsh for me
Speaker 5: was the annex, which I what they made into the
Speaker 5: Hotel Lafayette. Yes, and there was the toy Department.
Speaker 3: Well do you remember they called us toy Land. And
Speaker 3: toy Land was a destination for every young person under
Speaker 3: the age of sixteen because toy Land was something that
Speaker 3: had railroad sets, it had race car sets, it had
Speaker 3: dolls that had you know, Gi Joes, it had Johnny West,
Speaker 3: it had Barbie dolls. It was something that had something
Speaker 3: for every child. And when I did my book on
Speaker 3: Jeordan Marsh, I had these wonderful photographs that I had
Speaker 3: bought on eBay. I just couldn't believe they were on eBay.
Speaker 3: But they showed the you know, the enchanted village. But
Speaker 3: they also showed toy Land, and whether you were buying
Speaker 3: it or not, a lot of children would go there
Speaker 3: on weekends just to take a peek at what was
Speaker 3: being offered. And it was something special.
Speaker 2: Anthony, I got stop you here at Larry. I got
Speaker 2: to say goodbye as coming up, and thank you for
Speaker 2: your calling. Happy holidays to you all right and for
Speaker 2: Sandy and Jerry on hold. Will get to you afternoons
Speaker 2: and a few messages here on night side. Take care.
Speaker 2: Time and temperature eight fifty eight thirty degrees