1962: Crownings, Communions, Christenings, Etc.

Oftentimes, May Crownings and First Communions were held on the same day at Saint Joseph Hill Academy.  I discovered this when scouring image after image of this hybrid event in carousel after carousel of slides that stretched across many years.  By the time I attended the school, First Communion was a weekend event on its own and the May Crowning was relegated to the afternoon of a school day.

Here we see my grandparents with my mother, my infant Aunt Susan, my Uncle Kevin and my Aunt Karen on the day of Susan's Christening. Cousins Dianne, Ricky and Lois are pictured with Susan below.

And then, of course, we have an AWESOME motherlode of Christmas toys...

The Best Dressed Kids On Todt Hill

My Mother (in a home-sewn half-man, half-woman costume) with my Aunt Susan (the clown) and my Aunt Karen (the black cat)...  Dressed to kill in front of my grandparents' home in Staten Island on Halloween 1964.  If my Uncle Kevin wasn't too busy trying to set fire to something in the woods, he was probably wearing this...

Uncle Kevin, though athletic and "all boy", could clean up rather nicely...

Once again, we see my Mom (with her siblings) below in front of the house on 95 Browning Avenue.  Today, all of them will continually marvel at how immaculately dressed my grandparents were able to keep them, even when money was tight.  This, of course, was many years before Gap Kids, Juicy Couture Juniors and Abercrombie Zombies trudged in a trend-happy, hypnotic state through the malls of the USA.  Staten Island didn't even have a mall when these photos were taken.  Any clothing that was not bought in a department store was probably bought at a kids' specialty store on the commercial Avenues of Hylan or Victory, Forest Avenue or New Dorp Lane.  

1966: Champagne, Mermaids & Granny Panties

The above and below images are more digital scans of 35mm slides from the family archives.  The event is what I suppose passes for either a backyard baby (or perhaps wedding) shower for my Cousin Lois.  The setting is my grandparents' backyard in Staten Island.  I think I'm a little bit in love with this campy image of Lois faux-modeling these granny panties.  The fact that it was done in such close proximity to potato chips and what is probably a dish of pierogies makes it even more hilarious, bawdy and cute (much like Lois herself).  It's interesting to note that the guy on the left of this oh-so-coquettish frame was a priest and the lady on the right was my great great Aunt Fannie.

As you can see, back then, old people were O-L-D.  Here's Exhibit A:

BELOW:  On the right, we have the kind face of my great grandmother Mae Costello, or "Granny", as I knew her.  She was 67 years old when this was taken and would live to be 81.  Luckily, she was a daily fixture in my world for 8 years and she was every bit as sweet as her face suggests.

By the time I came along, Nanny and Pop had a much more elaborate pool and deck.  Their redwood lawn furniture had weathered considerably and was relegated to their large back porch, but it was still comfortable.  The green midcentury chair seen in the center had been cast off to the (once grand) finished basement as well.  It's cool vinyl surface was a favorite spot for looking through copies of Family Circle and Good Housekeeping from the 1950s and 60s, many copies of which were later scooped up by yours truly, clipped and assimilated into my vintage reference vault.  

So, ummm... Lois is having a Schaefer.  Did pregnant women have the occasional beer back then?

I'm really impressed by the elegance of the ladies in pearls and sweaters... at a barbecue.

I'd like to pretend that this can-can line dance (which occured in my grandparents' basement rec room) was the after hours jam that followed the barbecue above... but it most likely wasn't.

Lois, the new bride, exits Saint Theresa's Church on Victory Boulevard in Staten Island.  

My cousin Bernadette, the flower girl... lovely at age six.

Lois and her new husband Carl... The picture of love and contentment.

These are a very special batch of photos within a much larger collection, further underscoring how important it was for me to protect the legacy recorded in these images. 

BELOW: My mother, Aunt Susan, Aunt Karen and Uncle Kevin on a tractor.  This unmarked image was with a batch of Florida vacation slides, but I'm unsure exactly WHERE this tractor was.

A tandem cycle (above) and a Mermaid Show at Marineland (below).

ABOVE and BELOW: Images from a space capsule model at Cape Canaveral, Florida. 

 The Nelsen Children say hello in front of my grandparents' Todt Hill home on 95 Browning Avenue.

The Nelsen Children wave goodbye on an amusement park caboose.

1967-1968: Of Saints, Skates & Seances

My mother and some friends in my grandparents' basement rec room... They look pretty jovial for a bunch of kids holding a seance.  Is it bad fashion to practice The Dark Arts in taffeta?

BELOW: My grandmother Joan Nelsen slicing a Valentine's Day cake in a red dress.

BELOW: Festive and fetching party-goers from my Mom's Saint Joseph Hill Academy Winter Formal.  Again, the scene is my grandparents' basement.  Note how relaxed, yet demure the ladies are.

 Hey there, Ginger Man... Who are you?  We'd like to know.

My Aunt Susan and a friend skating on the de facto ice rink created within the fenced and sunken area where the family's backyard pool was installed each summer.  

My Mom (age 16) dressed for a (Spring formal?) school dance.

BELOW:  Images from either a Graduation or a Confirmation party for my Uncle Kevin:

While the above party happened (once again) in my grandparents' basement, the only proper venue  

for Christmas morning festivities was the living room:

 Parting Glance:  A really beautiful shot of my Mom dressed for the Winter Formal with some guy who is DEFINITELY not my Dad.