David Ruggerio's Blog, page 2

A Wistful Tale of Gods, Men and Monsters.

I am so proud to announce that Black Rose Writing will be publishing my first foray into the horror genre with my horror novel entitled, A Wistful Tale of Gods Men and Monsters.

Can a village be inherently evil?

Welcome
to Brunswick NY, Population 4,941.

On the surface, this sleepy hamlet comes alive in the autumn with picturesque apple orchards, haunted corn mazes, laden pumpkin patches and holiday hay rides. During a snowy Halloween, a young William Willowsby must battle evil forces that have been shielded by the locals for generations. On the outskirts of the town is the abandoned Forest Park Cemetery. All things wicked seem to revolve around the old graveyard. A rarely seen homunculus serves an evil task master. Together they weave a wicked web that attempts to snare the youth of the hamlet. A creepy graveyard, a spooky schoolhouse, an abandoned mortuary and a member of his own family will leave you simply sleepless.

And guess when it will be available? My launch day is this Halloween!

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Martin Scorsese’s Epic Stumbled and Fell on it’s Behind.

[image error]Today’s Wee People’s Review
Gangs of New York (2002)

When people sigh over how “tough”
New York is now, they’re probably talking about queuing an extra few minutes
for their lattes, or having their cabs stolen by wannabe Sarah Jessica Parkers.
By contrast, with his movie, Gangs of New York, Martin Scorsese takes us
on an epic ride through the New York of the mid-19th century, a genuinely tough
“dirty old town”, which few ever knew existed. This historical saga is
certainly crammed with life and the crowd scenes are as confidently mounted as
you’d expect. You have to honor its mad ambition, but it’s pretty confusing and
much too long.

Sprawling over 170 minutes, it’s a
visual and bloody epic. Take the opening sequence: Two bands of tribal men
marching through Gothic caves and recesses, fighting it out with axes, knives
and clubs. It’s totally prehistoric but real and, therefore, unsettling. The
primitive low life that Scorsese creates cannot be the New York we know.
Instead, it’s the heart of darkness, the center of corruption and lawlessness.
That, perhaps, is his attempt to reach the barbaric roots of the acme of modern
civilization. And within this story of a city and a nation born in the mean
streets, he weaves a personal tale of a son’s quest for revenge and his return
to honor, but the reality is bla…bla…bla.

I can’t get over it; it still gives
me pains every time I think of it. It seemed so filled with potential. Great
director, Martin Scorsese; great period and setting and subject; great actor
Daniel Day-Lewis. But you remember how it all went terribly wrong; its
wrongness exemplified by two mortifying star turns by softie Leonardo DiCaprio
and an aloof Cameron Diaz. (Daniel Day-Lewis was still great in it, though. He
is the main supplier of laughs with his reckless but mesmerizing performance as
the villain, Bill the Butcher. Bill is an unabashed moustache-twirler out of
Victorian melodrama, made fresh again by Day-Lewis’s gift for self-parody. The
scariest thing about Bill is not his sadist’s flair for twisting the knife but
his relentless desire to keep himself amused.)

The
Wee People Movie Rating!

Yet here we are with the wrong,
wrong, wrong. I hereby give up on Gangs of New York and all its false promise!
My rating, out of five shamrocks, this one gets a miserable 2!

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My Squid is Stuffed!

For the most sacred of the Feast of the Seven Fishes, David Ruggerio shows you how he stuffs his calamari, (yes kiddies, calamari is squid). This humorous segment was from his Food Network show; Ruggerio to Go.

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Gone, But Not Forgotten!

Very few people have ever seen what goes on in New York City’s old Fulton Fish Market. Unchanged for more than century, this is like going back in time. Before it disappeared, David Ruggerio, on his show Little Italy, takes you on a tour of the old market with the King of the Market, Herbie Slavin. Herbie was one of a kind, so sit back and enjoy…oh by the way, please subscribe to my Youtube channel.

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The Feast of all Feast’s!

David Ruggerio takes you behind the scenes at the legendary Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Williamsburg, Brooklyn to watch the dance of the “Giglio.” You won’t believe your eyes as over a hundred men lift the four-ton structure, which soars nearly six stories into the air and dance it around the streets, all while and entire band sits atop the structure.

[image error]The Dance of the Giglio

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The Pizza Nazi

On this segment, David Ruggerio takes you for a special behind the scenes view of one of the best pizzeria in America. Long before the Soup Nazi, there was the Pizza Nazi. If Jerry of Totonno’s didn’t make such great pizza, he would have went out of business. This is more than tradition, certainly not fast food, this is artisanal food that borders on art. Take a few minutes and enjoy David’s video…

[image error]The One & Only!

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Life Gets Tough…I Wine!

On this episode of David Ruggerio’s PBS cooking series; Little Italy, I take you on a visit to my friend Iano. David shows you how the Italian American tradition of making homemade wine is alive and well. As my family has done for generations, we spend the day making wine that means much more to us than a simple beverage.

[image error]If all else fails…

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Let me introduce you to the best bread baker in America!

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