On The Silly Side by Jimmy Del Ponte

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.)

(Editor‚Äôs Note:  For those who missed his debut here last week, Jimmy DelPonte is a well-known local radio personality and Somerville native who has a seemingly endless supply of stories and anecdotes and we are lucky to have him as a regular guest commentator. We know you will enjoy his writings about living in this great city of ours. Enjoy.)

Welcome all you new Somervillians. I am glad that you are enjoying all the new restaurants, coffee shops and stores in Davis Square, but for those of us who have been here for our entire lives, the memories of the old stores and landmarks still have a place in our hearts.

Imagine for a minute you are someone who grew up here and moved away from Somerville and you return to visit after 30 plus years. As you walk from Powderhouse Park down College Avenue towards Davis Square, these are some of the things I can imagine you might be saying out loud to yourself as you make your way:

“Well, there’s Doherty Funeral Home РI see business is still good for them. Not so good for Goodell Drugs, which used to be on the corner. Well, Bella Meo’s sub shop has to be – wait, it’s gone! Hey wait a minute, don’t tell me Loud’s Candy Shop bit the big licorice stick? Boy, College Avenue sure has changed. I like the way the Masons have decorated their lodge building with that wooden trellis and those beautiful flowers – does someone live there now?”

(Making your way down College Avenue you see a church, dentist, lawyer, church, church, big church, dentist and public library)

“Hey…where’s the Woodbridge Hotel? I was hoping to catch Jim Plunkett’s set downstairs at The Blarney Stone. The Christian Science Reading Room is gone now too – someone alert John Travolta!”

“Wedgewood, Crane……and Connolly is still thriving. Glad to see my pal Jack is now on board. Where’s the bowling alley and the railroad tracks? I can’t believe there’s a Red Line T Station in Davis Square Рthat would have come in handy when I was going to Emerson College.”

So now you‚Äôre done talking to yourself and you‚Äôve arrived at the beginning of College Avenue and if you haven‚Äôt been to Davis Square in 30 plus years, you would have looked around and missed The Waldorf, Field‚Äôs Stationary, The Pine Tree and The Railside. You would be thrilled to still find Johnny D‚Äôs, The Somerville Theatre and The Rosebud still here though. You wouldn‚Äôt find Pat Connelly‚Äôs or Frascati‚Äôs. (Writer‚Äôs note: that‚Äôs okay, sometimes I couldn‚Äôt find Pat Connelly‚Äôs and Frascati‚Äôs even when they were here…) The Quick Shop is now Store 24, The Coronet is now Redbones and Pat Connelly‚Äôs is now Sligo‚Äôs.

You can still find some things haven’t changed much – for example, you can still get a haircut at Dente’s, head over to mail something at the Post Office and then pick up a nice hunk of meat at McKinnon’s on your way home.

Does anyone remember, along with me, the great local bartenders of days gone by? Classic guys like Uncle Louie from Johnny D’s, Moe and Charlie Carafotes from the Rosebud and Surrey Room and Paul Donovan from Barnaby’s.

The great thing about being from here is that you could leave Somerville and return after 60 years and the great memories will always be with you. For some of us who never left, every day has some kind of reminiscence as you walk through the square – which is why I’m staying put. I’m going to leave my kids a nice house here in Somerville Рa nice house and a nice mortgage – well, in about 30 years it will be paid off.

You can email Jimmy with
comments directly at jimmydel@rcn.com