Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

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I did a story back in 2011 about the first jobs of my baby boomer Somerville friends. This is part two. In the first story, I mentioned that I worked at Lyndell’s Bakery as a helper (in the ‘60s) and at FW Woolworth’s as a stock boy/lunch counter guy. I also worked at The Dodge ’Em Cars at Revere Beach. Newcomers to the Ville may be scratching their heads when they read some of the following places, saying, “I never heard of that joint…” That’s because a lot of the establishments mentioned are now history. So I guess it’s sort of like us Somerville lifers are speaking in some kind of secret code.

One friend worked at Loud’s Candy shop in Powder House Square for Mr. Melville and Garret Insurance for Mr. Garrett, Jim Lynch and Ralph Jr. Remember those guys? The Dunkin’ Donuts in Porter Square hired a lot of Somerville kids. I also worked briefly at the CVS in Porter before it moved across the street. Some of my friends worked at Friendly Family Center and Osco in Davis Square. It’s now Rite-Aid, though I still call it Osco.

A lady traveled all the way to Medford for her job at Child World near Wellington Circle. After working hard at La Contessa Italian Bakery, another gal spent her first paycheck on a leather coat at Cummings, also formerly in Davis Square. Star Market in Porter Square gave a lot of Somerville kids their first real jobs.

Today, there are many new up-and-coming businesses in the building that used to house Ames Safety Envelope. Half of my friends that used to frequent The Embassy Lounge on Somerville Avenue worked at Ames. A lot of Somerville folks put in years and years at Polaroid in Waltham. I miss all that free film!

Did you work at McDonald’s back in 1975, when a Big Mac cost 65 cents? How about Mark’s Department Store? I think the wage was $2.85 an hour. The Stop & Shop near Union Square and the one in Davis Square, along with the Dairy Queen on Cedar Street, hired us. Yum! One of my pals worked at Y-Not variety on Willow Avenue with the original owners, Tony and the other Tony.

Did you work at Kresge’s, where you could get sliced boiled ham for 89 cents a pound? Lots of Villens worked at the Somerville and Broadway theatres (I worked at the one in Davis). We worked at local parks as playground counselors making key chains and things out of “gimp.” Royal White laundry on Cedar Street hired lots of friends. Brigham’s in Davis Square and on Winter Hill were popular for hiring Somerville folks. Would you like jimmies on that? Others worked next door at the Star on Broadway. My pal John washed pots and pans in Somerville Hospital’s kitchen making $2.10 an hour.

Some of my friends worked at their Uncle Vinny’s restaurant on Broadway. Bob tells us, “I was a car shuttler for Belotti Oldsmobile. It was best job because I got to drive all the new cars that came out.” A friend tells me he worked for the Neighborhood Youth Core at the Trade High School one summer for 90 cents an hour. And how many of my old friends worked for Mrs. B at Bradlees? A lot. Do you remember the Bradlees credit card? I think it was my first one. I’ll have to do an entire article about the old Lechmere sales store in Cambridge.

It was so exciting when we finally entered the work force. The friends we made at these jobs will stay in our memories forever, and so will the creeps. It was a great feeling to be able to buy our own clothes, record albums, go to the movies, and save up for that first car. I’ll never forget the look on my dad’s face when I came home wearing bell bottom pants and a leather fringe jacket … that I bought myself!