Cleveland Vintage Blog — Culture
Remembering the Cleveland Press Pumpkin
Little Italy: One of Cleveland's Most Enduring Neighborhoods
The Perfect Blend of Award-Winning Dining, Unique Artisans, Religion, and Rich History Pretty much every lifelong Clevelander has their own personal story or memories of the best-known of the five major Italian settlements established in Cleveland. Mine dates back to the early 1980s when I got my start in the wholesale beer business. The Little Italy neighborhood was a large part of the delivery territory I was responsible for, and I got to see on a day in, day out basis the pride that the people had in their culturally rich little part of the city that allowed them to...
The Enduring Appeal of Cleveland's Ghoulardi
Ghoulardi's Shock Theater ran from January 13th of 1963 until its abrupt end in December of 1966 on local Cleveland channel 8 (WJW TV). I say abrupt because at the time of his departure, Ghoulardi’s popularity during late-night Friday nights was soaring and at its peak even included hosting Saturday afternoon’s Masterpiece Theater and the weekday children's program Laurel, Ghoulardi and Hardy.
Late-night movie hosts at the time typically portrayed themselves as vampires or mad scientists. Anderson wanted something different, so the idea for a wisecracking “hipster” ahead of his time in a long lab coat, Van Dyke beard, bad wig and glasses was born.