Document text
STATE
Now York
NAME OF WORKER
Forms to be Filled out for Each Interview
FORM A
Circumstances of Interview
Fred Nommaastsky
ADDRESS 8440 Pay Parkway Sreeklyao N. T.
DATE
Jam, 10$ 1SSS
SUBJECT ilige
FOLKLORE
NEW YORK
1. Date and time c' interview ON several eeaseentive days la maths of Deo.
and Jan.
2. Place of interview
lltk St. ea sidimaIk
3. Name and address of informant 'Me
4. Name and address of person, if any, wno put you in
touch with informant.
5. Name and address of person, if any, accompanying you
6. Description of room, house, surroundings, etc.
(Use as many additional sheets as necessary, for any of the forms, each
bearing the proper heading and the number to which the material refers.)
Pe:nal
STATE NOW !elk
NAME OF YORKE?. prod Assancteg.
ADDESS 040 Soy Parkways Srooklya
DA1F &awry 10, 1919
stwEcTirICK
1. Ancestry
Italloal*Aarrisea
2. Place and date of brt
3. Fatally
low Tork Cl*
4. Place: liver.
5. Educatior, wit!' .-If_cLe Primary pats
Oicupation3
7. special akPls and lAtcrests
8. C/AtanunIty- and religio,r;it
9. Descr:ption of inforylaat
10. Other Points gained 1:-. intervieti
Cotholls
lasluded la story
FOLKLORE
NE!!. YORK
FOLKLOiW
F0.0; f
Text of Intervi2w (Unedited)
STAT) ew York
V_N-F OF WOii\Fr. Fred Nomanofsky
ADD9.LSS
DATE
8640 Bay Parkway, Brooklyn, N.Y.
January 10, 1939
SUJECT WIWI"
Nick is seven.
"Yeah, seven. So what? Bet I know as 311ch as Dog eat, Bally Balls,
Chimbo, or the 4w -boy, or Oriental Charley (we call him that 'cause he's got
long pants and looks Chinese), Shorty or Bezel Aw go on, leave my hat alone*"
Nick is small, wiry, and muscular. His natural olive eomplexion is
tinted with a paleness common to many of his playmates. He is tough and a
scrapper for fun's sake what ever the cost may be. He is a vassal among older
boys and a lord on his own.
Society has a definite pattern in Nick's Mind. It's organized on a
"gang" basis according to age groupings with a "boss" at the head of each group.
"You gotta have a boss. my boss, he's just like me seven years.
He knows everything and tells us all what to do and teaches us things and watches
us. He teaches us new games and we gotta pay him something for it oh, anything
we got. When he sees me with some candy, he runs after no and grabs the candy
out off my hand and throws it on the ground in the dirt so's I won't pick it up.
Then when 1 run away, he picks it up, wipes it, and kisses God just like that
(places fingers of left hand on mouth, looks up in the sky, and blows a kiss)
and eats the candy as if it's his."
"See that man over there he's the "boss" of the whole blookt He
does favors ifor everyone all the time. He's a good guy to all the kids. Guess
he's comin;,,, over here."
The slim tailored youn,; man walked over to us and listened for a
while to Lite conversation.
*Why don't you pay them something for talkinl to you? It's worth
somethin to you ain't it? Give them two...bits or something."
The children lookei: from the "boss" to me with undisguised surprise
written all over their features. Why should they be paid just for talking? The
"boss" turned neatly on his heels walked up the bloak satisfied that he "took
oare of the street."
"There Loos my "boss"1 Nick brake the silence.
"He's not a boss, he's a chief." some one out in.
*Well, -what's a chief, if not a boss?" Nick shouted back indignantly.
"See that guy over there? "He's a "ft,g". He's got three sisters.
They "goose" him all the time. He walks from hie hips down. "Oh, dear." he
say' all the time. In the school yard one day everybody called him a "fag"
so they gathered around him and wouldn't let him go till he began to bawl
and now the principal don't let him play in the yard no more. A baby could
knock him out that high."
"What would I like?" "I like to see an actress when she gets out off
bed with no make-up and junk on."
"No, he don't mean that. What mould you like to be?"
"It don't make no difference, we'll end up in the gutter and in the
slums anyway." he paused, "I don't know whys but that's how it is."
"I like to live hers, We have lots of fun here -more than on Park
Avenue. I don't wanna live au Park Avenue if we have homes like theirs here."
"Look who's talkie* The dump cleaner, and he doesn't wanna live
on Park Avenuta" Nick put his two cents worth and in return received a slap
a men pled kick in the rear.
*iod damn youl" Nick cursed ac he made his get away.
"You're canna die if you say that, hick." someone shouted.
*Thai. do I oars, amarty.
God don't help you any if you used something
right away. it, only helps when you are sick..like and I'm not sick. I'm
Cattlick any -ray."
,-;onna be gangster list like the rob ern the cops got when
there wus a bank robi..ory around the corner."
"I dunnew.' answered, *When I grow up I wenn* get a job, but
you have to !.;43 ,c)od to'et a j1o, but I :um I'll look for it. Come an lets
play mar."
sa
made a snowball and threw it at the biu,est of the boys.
*War is declared*"
"You jack ass. You don't declare vs( anymore." a twelve year old
shouted as he throw a well placed shot at lick. Ale snow landed squara on
Nick's fuoe. Ile made a wry smile, yipped off the tears, and joined the "war"
in fmrmist.