I knew Mario when we were kids in the 1970s. He and his parents lived at 27 Washington Sq North and his father Salvatore was the superintendant of their apartment building, they lived in a dark one bedroom ground floor Apt in the rear. They had a small black dog named "lady" that was kept chained to a railing in the kitchen. His mom as I remember was a big smoker.
I can't paint a rosy picture and won't sugar coat the history, but, his father was very abusive and Mario had a rough childhood- I witnessed him being beaten up over a such a mundane thing as a tangled dog chain leash one day when I was sitting at their kitchen table with Mario and his mom. I remember Salvatore told Mario to take Lady for a walk, and somehow the chain leash got tangled and Salvatore blew up and started punching and slapping Mario with his fists while yelling at him, Mario then ran into the bathroom and I could hear fists hitting and more slapping, and Mario yelling and then he came out crying and we took the dog out.
I suspected Salvatore beat up on his wife to some degree, she did nothing and said nothing at all to Salvatore about the beating I witnessed.
Toys they bought Mario like Foghorn Leghorn action figures were in their plastic wraps hanging on the wall in Mario's room, and he was not allowed to play with them I learned after asking why they were still in their shrink wraps.
His father died in 1977 of as I remember- cancer, so Mario would have been 14-almost 15. Some time around as best as I can pin the year down- 1978 or 1979, around when Mario was 17ish, his mother abandoned him and moved to NJ.
I don't remember exactly, but Mario and I ran into each other and he indicated he didn't have a place to live, so I offered to let him move in for a time with me in my loft on Broadway and Houston st. I was living in that commercial building illegally and needed to be "low key" so one of the rules I set was Mario had to be back before 8pm when the security guard locked the building's front door, I didnt want him ringing the night bell and raising questions.
Unfortunately, he was in a rough place and hanging out with a drug crowd in the park, he came home around midnight once, drunk and I wouldn't let him in. He oput his fist thru a window in the hallway thinking it was my place but it was the factory next to me and that caused problems for me.
Sadly, that and pocket change missing, and one of the security guards told me Mario had a key to my loft, I figured out that while I was sleeping Sunday 8 AM after working 3rd shift- he took my door key and somehow got a copy of my Medico stamped "do not copy" door key.
I had no choice but to ask him to leave. I knew a Mr Green who worked for the juvenile court system as a councelor, I called him and described Marios situation and asked if he could help, he indicated he could see what he could do.
So I helped Mario carry his shopping bags of his clothes down to the street, hailed a taxi and paid the driver to take him downtown.
A little while later I called Mr Green and asked if Mario made it downtown, and he said in fact he was sitting across his desk at that very moment.
I never called Mr Green to follow up further but figured it was the best chance, though Mario was almost to age out of the system at age 18.
I never heard about or from Mario again and I moved a couple of years laterto Brooklyn then Vermont.
Over the years Ive wondered what became of him, I tried googling and going nowhere, I was even on a police forum around 2002 and had asked if someone could help me search, one officer volunteered to see what he could do but he came up empty, no arrests, no jail record, no obituary.
I honestly thought he likely aged out from Mr Green's ability to help from the juvenile system, got involved with the drug crowd and then likely not having ID or parents to identify him, he OD'd or something and went to Hart island.
I just happened to do a google search yesterday and OMG there was Mario's picture, he looked exactly like I remember- just older!
I was right that he was buried on Hart Island, but I didn't imagine that he apparently married and had a daughter and then passed away age 33, so sad, Chrystal- he had a TOUGH disadvantaged childhood because of his parents, but he was a very sweet, NICE, kid of a pacifist, fun, easygoing nature. The involvement with the drug crowd I could see was causing him to degrade, but I'm pleased to see his life took a 180, just didn't know how or what happened, or why he passed away so young!
I felt bad about having to ask him to leave, but now it seems he was helped by Mr Green after all, he had to have been able to find a place to stay and work through that resource, so I feel better!
He spoke of an interest in photography.
Of the other kids I remember back then besides Mario, there was Vance Carter, Tommy Viniello, Madellain Melligon (now Miller, living in Queens) James Abrey, Michael Posner- Vance died of alcohol related liver disease in Florida, Tommy was on Facebook and died a couple of years ago from prostate/bladder cancer, Madellain I called, and is married, living in Queens. We were all playmates.
I can't paint a rosy picture and won't sugar coat the history, but, his father was very abusive and Mario had a rough childhood- I witnessed him being beaten up over a such a mundane thing as a tangled dog chain leash one day when I was sitting at their kitchen table with Mario and his mom. I remember Salvatore told Mario to take Lady for a walk, and somehow the chain leash got tangled and Salvatore blew up and started punching and slapping Mario with his fists while yelling at him, Mario then ran into the bathroom and I could hear fists hitting and more slapping, and Mario yelling and then he came out crying and we took the dog out.
I suspected Salvatore beat up on his wife to some degree, she did nothing and said nothing at all to Salvatore about the beating I witnessed.
Toys they bought Mario like Foghorn Leghorn action figures were in their plastic wraps hanging on the wall in Mario's room, and he was not allowed to play with them I learned after asking why they were still in their shrink wraps.
His father died in 1977 of as I remember- cancer, so Mario would have been 14-almost 15. Some time around as best as I can pin the year down- 1978 or 1979, around when Mario was 17ish, his mother abandoned him and moved to NJ.
I don't remember exactly, but Mario and I ran into each other and he indicated he didn't have a place to live, so I offered to let him move in for a time with me in my loft on Broadway and Houston st. I was living in that commercial building illegally and needed to be "low key" so one of the rules I set was Mario had to be back before 8pm when the security guard locked the building's front door, I didnt want him ringing the night bell and raising questions.
Unfortunately, he was in a rough place and hanging out with a drug crowd in the park, he came home around midnight once, drunk and I wouldn't let him in. He oput his fist thru a window in the hallway thinking it was my place but it was the factory next to me and that caused problems for me.
Sadly, that and pocket change missing, and one of the security guards told me Mario had a key to my loft, I figured out that while I was sleeping Sunday 8 AM after working 3rd shift- he took my door key and somehow got a copy of my Medico stamped "do not copy" door key.
I had no choice but to ask him to leave. I knew a Mr Green who worked for the juvenile court system as a councelor, I called him and described Marios situation and asked if he could help, he indicated he could see what he could do.
So I helped Mario carry his shopping bags of his clothes down to the street, hailed a taxi and paid the driver to take him downtown.
A little while later I called Mr Green and asked if Mario made it downtown, and he said in fact he was sitting across his desk at that very moment.
I never called Mr Green to follow up further but figured it was the best chance, though Mario was almost to age out of the system at age 18.
I never heard about or from Mario again and I moved a couple of years laterto Brooklyn then Vermont.
Over the years Ive wondered what became of him, I tried googling and going nowhere, I was even on a police forum around 2002 and had asked if someone could help me search, one officer volunteered to see what he could do but he came up empty, no arrests, no jail record, no obituary.
I honestly thought he likely aged out from Mr Green's ability to help from the juvenile system, got involved with the drug crowd and then likely not having ID or parents to identify him, he OD'd or something and went to Hart island.
I just happened to do a google search yesterday and OMG there was Mario's picture, he looked exactly like I remember- just older!
I was right that he was buried on Hart Island, but I didn't imagine that he apparently married and had a daughter and then passed away age 33, so sad, Chrystal- he had a TOUGH disadvantaged childhood because of his parents, but he was a very sweet, NICE, kid of a pacifist, fun, easygoing nature. The involvement with the drug crowd I could see was causing him to degrade, but I'm pleased to see his life took a 180, just didn't know how or what happened, or why he passed away so young!
I felt bad about having to ask him to leave, but now it seems he was helped by Mr Green after all, he had to have been able to find a place to stay and work through that resource, so I feel better!
He spoke of an interest in photography.
Of the other kids I remember back then besides Mario, there was Vance Carter, Tommy Viniello, Madellain Melligon (now Miller, living in Queens) James Abrey, Michael Posner- Vance died of alcohol related liver disease in Florida, Tommy was on Facebook and died a couple of years ago from prostate/bladder cancer, Madellain I called, and is married, living in Queens. We were all playmates.
