Nicola Paone, built an international career during the 1940s and '50s as a songwriter and balladeer and later became a successful New York restaurateur.

Mr. Paone's songs of the Italian immigrant experience in America sold tens of millions of copies in the United States, South America, and Italy during his
two-decade career in entertainment.

Some songs were mixtures of Italian folk-music and American vaudeville that often humorously and gently poked fun at the Italian immigrant experience in America.

Mr. Paone's songs allowed the immigrants to laugh or cry in the face of the harsh realities of the new world, making everyday survival a little more bearable.  The songs were meaningful for the first and second generations, straddling the social worlds of Little Italy and the American Lifestyle. For an Italian-American to hear a Paone song was to be understood.

But he was also so beloved internationally, that in May of 1954, Brazilian government officials called upon Mr. Paone to help quell the riotous behavior of a crowd of approximately 500,000 gathered in the Plaza de Maggio in Buenos Aires.  Officials smuggled Mr. Paone into the plaza in an ambulance, driving him past exploding bombs.  The Italian Troubadour took up his guitar and sang Uei Paesano over a loud speaker, pacifying the mob.

The following unattributed obituary is followed by some very touching and personal observations by Sal Buttaci and Salvatore Primeggia

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Nicola Paone, Singer-Songwriter Who Chronicled Italian Immigrant Experience
and Restaurateur, Dies at 88

Nicola Paone, who built an international career during the 1940s and '50s as a songwriter and balladeer and later became a successful New York restaurateur,
died of pneumonia at a hospital in Albuquerque, New Mexico on Christmas Day.

Mr. Paone was 88-years old.  He resided on Edgemont Road in Scarsdale, NY for the past 35 years.

Mr. Paone's songs of the Italian immigrant experience in America sold tens of millions of copies in the United States, South America, and Italy during his
two-decade career in entertainment. Mr. Paone's greatest international hit,
"Uei Paesano" ("My Countryman"), was a ballad that called for brotherhood among
émigrés.

Other songs, including "Tony the Iceman," "The Telephone No Ring" and
"The Bigga Professor," were mixtures of Italian folk-music and American vaudeville
that often humorously and gently poked fun at the Italian immigrant experience in
America.

It has been written that Mr. Paone's songs allowed the immigrants to laugh or cry in the face of the harsh realities of the new world, making everyday survival a little more bearable.  The songs were meaningful for the first and second generations, straddling the social worlds of Little Italy and the American Lifestyle.

It is said that for an Italian-American to hear a Paone song is to be understood and loved, unconditionally.

After breaking into the Italian variety circuit, Mr. Paone founded the Etna record label and started a vaudeville troupe that included bears and midgets.

By the late 1940s, he had gained a large enough audience to succeed on a broader stage.  He performed throughout the Northeast, including RKO's Palace and the  Paramount Theaters in New York.  His "Yakity Yak Blah Blah Blah" topped Cash Box magazine's song charts in 1959.

Mr. Paone was also among the most popular male vocalists in Argentina.

In May of 1954, journalist Cesco Tomaselli of the prominent Italian newspaper
Corriere Della Sera reported that government officials called upon Mr. Paone to help quell the riotous behavior of a crowd of approximately 500,000 gathered in the Plaza de Maggio in Buenos Aires.  Officials smuggled Mr.Paone into the plaza in an ambulance, driving him past exploding bombs.  The Italian Troubadour took up his guitar and sang Uei Paesano over a loud speaker, pacifying the mob.

In 1990, Mr. Paone explained to an interviewer why he gave up his music career, which required frequent trips abroad: "One thing I realized from my travels is that
everyone wanted to come to America and I was always leaving."

In 1958 Mr. Paone opened the restaurant, Nicola Paone, on East 34th Street in New York City, which features traditional Italian food and is well regarded for its extensive
wine cellar.  Politicians and prominent businessmen have frequented the restaurant.
Every mayor from Robert Wagner, Jr., through to Rudolf W. Giuliani dined at Nicholas Paone.  It was also known to be the favorite restaurant of William F. Buckley, Jr., who assigned a character in his novel, Spy Time: The Undoing of James Jesus Angelton, the undercover name, "Nicola Paone."

Mr. Paone combined his zeal for fine dining and his musical talents in a long running series of commercials aired over New York's WQXR radio station in the early 1990s during which he promoted his restaurant with a delightful mix of songs and stories.

Mr. Paone retired from daily management of the restaurant in 1998.  The popular eatery is now managed by Franco Alfonso who started working there in 1961.

The son of an Italian immigrant coal miner, Mr. Paone was born in Barnesboro,
Pennsylvania.  His family returned to Sicily when Mr. Paone was five-years old,
and Mr. Paone came back to the United States at age 15 to pursue greater opportunities than those afforded a peasant farmer.

Mr. Paone is survived by his wife, Delia, and two grandchildren, Nicola (Nick) Paone and Elizabeth (Beth) Paone Fuller.  His only child, Joseph P. Paone, predeceased him.

Services will be held at the Frank E. Campbell Funeral Home, 1076 Madison Ave.,
New York City, on January 1 and January 2 (212) 288-3500.  A memorial mass will be held at the Our Lady of Fatima Church in Scarsdale, New York, on January 3.
Mr. Paone's family has requested that contributions be made to Alzheimer and
Parkinson's research foundations in lieu of flowers.
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From Sal Buttaci

During my childhood years back in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York (1945-1950),
I grew up on Nicola Paone!  It was my father's custom to bring home from work every Friday night a new record to play on our old victrola.  I can still hear the sounds of Bing Crosby, Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra--especially during this holiday season of Christmas and New Years Day.

But the records of Nicola Paone were the ones we loved the most.  We'd sit and laugh our heads off as Mr. Paone sang, "Mr.Policeman, that is my girl.  You no can take me to jail!"  Or the equally funny lines to his song about the little donkey: "U
Scecchueddu."  Or "Cumari, Cumaredda."  His songs were a treat we experienced over and over again.

Many years later I had co-written with my brother Alfonso and friend Aldo Pecorelli a religious song called "Is There Any Room?" and somehow I managed to convince Joe Franklin to put us on his TV show.

The filming happened to be on St. Joseph's Day, March 19, in 1984, I believe, in New York City.  Aldo and I decided to go eat somewhere first and I happened to notice the name of a restaurant called Nicola Paone so we went there and, lo and behold, Mr. Paone was there!

We talked about the old days, how we loved his songs.  He shared with us his own early days and allowed us to take pictures with him, which I treasure.  Then he kindly excused himself and we continued with our meal.  When he returned to our table, he had one of his record albums for me!  What a wonderfully kind man!

When my father died in April 1987, I wrote to Mr. Paone since it was my father who had introduced me to the man's music when I was a boy. Nicola Paone took the time to reply with a letter of condolence I still occasionally read. I knew it was a letter that came from the heart.

I also know that there is a heaven for those of us who've lived the good Christian life. For that reason, I can imagine Nicola Paone there, still singing his songs, humorous enough di fare sorridere anche Gesu'! (to make even Jesus smile!)

With all the present-day slurs against us Italian Americans, it is good to look back to those old days when funny stories of our immigrant parents and grandparents were told in delightful songs to make us all laugh and feel ethnically proud of our roots.

Nicola Paone, we will miss having you in our world!

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From Salvatore Primeggia

Nicola Paone played an important role in Italian-American entertainment in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s.  In addition, he performed in Argentina in the 1950s and he was invited back in the 1990s to video a TV show there as well as being interviewed on a number of Argentinean  radio shows.

I will remember Nicola for a friendship that developed between us after initially interviewing him for an article ("Nicola Paone: Narrator of the Italian-American Experience") that would appear in the Proceedings of the 26th Conference of the American-Italian Historical Association:"Italian Americans in a Multicultural Society, 1994.

Many a morning he would invite me to come to his Manhattan restaurant to have a cup of coffee with him before he opened for business.  He would strum on his guitar and sing his songs that he was working on or some of his classic gems.  In addition, he would share his philosophy on life.  These are precious moments that will stay with me for my entire life.

Nicola was a multi-talented individual; a man of deep religious faith; a man who was extremely proud of his Sicilian roots; and a most gentle soul.  Uei paesano, non ti posso scordar (dimenticare)!
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