MEN’S CLUB Open Mike
BY HOWARD ARKIN
Every Thursday morning, one
of the first things I do is go
to my laptop to see if my
Men’s Club invitation has arrived.
The invitation of course being my
invitation to partake in the North
Shore Towers Men’s Club 0pen
Mike Program done on Zoom.
On Wednesdays, Toby Horowitz
sends out an agenda that Gary
Darche comes up with about
topics of the week that will be
discussed on the Open Mike
Program. The topics vary from
political to local and national
issues.
I study the topics closely, hoping
to find one that I might be
able to show that I have some
knowledge on the subject. The
members who participate, typically
20 to 30 members, have different
opinions and it’s
always interesting
to hear the different
perspectives.
Sports is a subject
that is usually
discussed and that
is where I like to
chime in. How can
you not look like a
sports fanatic when
you are critical of
the Jets or Giants?
You can’t help but
be impressed by the knowledge
that many of them have on the
topics discussed. The programs
have drawn members who are in
Florida, consisting of Lee Hiller,
Ron Gold, Arnie Rabinowitz and
Steve Weiland. Steve showed up
bare chested at the last program.
Do you think that Steve was trying
to tell us something?
Program
An ancillary feature
of the Zoom
program has enabled
us to see some
nicely furnished
apartments. I have
spoken to my wife
Janette about this.
Oh yes, there is a
minor complaint
that I must register.
A few times during
the program you can
hear prolonged voices
of telephone conversations in
the background. Gary has a mute
button and in the future has threatened
to silence the culprits.
There are a few other great additions
that have helped lessen the
apathy during COVID-19. Toby
Horowitz, President of the Men’s
Club, has started a Men’s Club
Newsletter to keep our members
informed of what is going on
around the Men’s Club during the
COVID, and having members to
contribute articles for the newsletter.
Toby has done a great job
on the newsletter and we love the
content.
Fred Chernow’s programs on
Channel 995 and Board President
Ed Phalen’s discussions with the
other board members have been
quite necessary and informative.
Fred and Ed are both members of
the Men’s Club.
I would advise all of our membership
to take advantage of
these programs as we count down
to the days to our social events
and next dinner or breakfast at
Buffy’s. For information about
joining the North Shore Towers
Men’s Club, please contact Toby
Horowitz at tmhmgt@yahoo.com
or 516-848-5394.
Gary Darche, Open Mike
Maestro
The Candy Store and Luncheonette
BY HOWARD ARKIN
Every decade seems to showcase the golden
age of something or other. The golden age
of the movies was the 1930s and the 1950s
was the golden age of baseball. I would personally
add another to the 1950s list: It was the golden
age of the candy store and luncheonette. This
was the place that people could gather and read
newspapers and magazines, discuss current
events, boast about your Saturday night date or
even place a bet with the local bookmaker, who
was often the store’s owner.
My corner store owner was a big, happy man
named Nat. Nat could have very likely been
the youngest son in a family that had decided
he was not going to become a lawyer, doctor
or President of the United States. I imagine his
family thought that they might scrape together
enough money and buy him a candy store so
that he could earn a living. He was a kind, good
natured man who was liked by everyone, even
the group of teenagers whose main mission in
life seemed to be to annoy him. I can remember
one of these teenagers, Les Frank, asking Nat
for an ice cream cone. Nat handed him the cone
and Les asked him if he would “trust” him,
meaning “Can I pay you later?” Having already
taken a bite out of it, this gave Nat little choice
but to extend credit.
Nat sometimes lost patience with someone
and would banish them from the store. Being
the kind man he was, he would usually lift the
ban in a short time. One of the boys who always
seemed to be under perpetual ban was Stewie
Ziegler. I can still see Stewie outside, his nose
pushed up against the stores window as we
laughed at him. On more than one occasion
the boys saw fit to lock Nat in the basement.
This of course resulted in a mass kick out and
lengthy banishment from the store.
It was about this time that the boys began
to take notice of Nat’s two daughters, both of
whom were very pretty. The days of locking Nat
in the basement would come to an abrupt end,
but the memories and good times would continue.
One memory I have is sitting at the counter
one day and noticing that Nat was mashing
white bread into the tuna fish he was preparing.
Obviously this would make the sandwich more
profitable for him. After letting me taste it, I was
convinced it actually tasted better. Today I take
my tuna straight, I think.
One Saturday morning, shortly after receiving
my driver’s license, Nat, a huge New York
Giants fan, asked me if I wanted to go to the
game with him that afternoon. As a new driver
I was more than happy to do the driving. It
seemed logical to take the Triborough Bridge if
we were leaving from Nat’s store, which was on
Pitkin Avenue in East New York. Nat thought
otherwise and I followed his instructions. I
remember a big traffic jam in front of Macy’s
that afternoon. So much for Nat’s navigational
skills!
I lost track of Nat over the years until one
day in what might have been around 1976. I
went into a luncheonette on Main Street in
Kew Gardens Hills and there he was behind
the counter. I wondered if these customers like
white bread mixed into their tuna. Seeing Nat
again brought back other memories about the
luncheonette I remembered from the 1950s.
Three staples of any decent luncheonette were
ice cream, syrup and bottled soda besides Coke
and Pepsi. Breyers, Fox’s U-bet and Hoffman
Soda were the top of the line brands, but I don’t
recall Nat carrying any of them. I suppose this
was another attempt by Nat to save a few dollars.
I also remembered another candy store across
the street from Nat’s owned by a guy named
Herbie. Herbie would have never tolerated the
shenanigans Nat put up with. Herbie’s store had
a back room which featured card games and
other games of chance with characters who were
not to be messed with.
I believe my great interest in reading newspapers
was nurtured in my local luncheonette
where I found them en masse. New York had
seven major newspapers in the 1950s and every
day I couldn’t wait to read as many of them as I
could, or at least the sports section. Till this day,
I still open a newspaper from the back.
Feeling nostalgic, a few weeks ago I decided to
go back to the old neighborhood and see what
had become of Nat’s luncheonette. As I suspected,
it was now a bodega. I hope that those customers
one day can recall special memories, ones
like I still have from Nat’s 1950 luncheonette.
February 2021 ¢ NORTH SHORE TOWERS COURIER 25
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