La casa dei Roventini

[1444 76th Street, Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, c. 1939–1941. From the NYC Municipal Archives Collections. Click for a much larger view.]

Not a beautiful photograph, though the spots do blend nicely with the snow. The arrow on the identification sign points to 1444. On the first floor lived John Roventini (1910–1998), as in Johnny Roventini, as in “Call for Philip Morris!” Roventini was a bellhop who found a new career in 1933 as a spokesman for Philip Morris cigarettes. In the 1930s, ’40s, and ’50s, he was everywhere — so much so that Philip Morris hired understudies, or what the Associated Press called “traveling ‘Johnnies,’ ” to fill in for personal appearances. But here’s Johnny himself:

[Life, September 18, 1939. Click for a larger view.]

A brief biography:

[The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, August 30, 1936. Click for a larger view.]

And look — Johnny Roventini turns up in Gilbert Sorrentino’s novel Aberration of Starlight (1980). The setting is Bensonhurst:

Uncle Tom always took him to a park to have a catch with a hardball and once showed him the guy who said “Call for Philip Morris!” playing softball.

The Roventini family lived at 1444 76th Street for many years. A 1930 photograph has John Roventini at this address. The 1940 Brooklyn telephone directory has a listing in Fred’s name at this address. Here’s Johnny Roventini in the 1950 census, living at this address with his father and mother. His occupation: “Advertising Cigarettes”:

[Click for a larger view.]

A 1940 telephone listing in Fred’s name was still active in 1960 at the 76th Street address. An Associated Press obituary notes that Johnny Roventini lived with his mother until her death. She died in 1961. I think it’s safe to say that Johnny Roventini was living at this address at least as late as 1961.

What I haven’t mentioned: my mom and dad’s first residence was on 76th Street. I recall my dad mentioning at some much later date that Johnny Roventini had lived in the neighborhood. I think my dad once saw him playing handball. And I can now say that in my infant days I lived on the same street as Johnny Roventini. And not only on the same street but on the same block, and on the same side of the street.

Here is a great repository of information about Johnny Roventini, with a recording of his celebrated call: “Little Johnny.” There’s even a placard with safe-smoking guidelines for hospital patients. (Yeesh.) Here are Desi Arnaz (who died of lung cancer), Lucille Ball, and Johnny all doing the call. Here’s Johnny speaking to a movie audience (“Bettah taste, finah flavah”: what a glorious accent.) And here’s a Wikipedia article. And a New York Times obituary. That’s enough.

Thanks to the librarian who helped me navigate the 1950 census. I found my way to the Roventini address by reading the descriptions of Enumeration Districts, the chunks of city that census takers were meant to complete in two weeks. The districts given for 1444 76th Street are wrong. The place to find the Roventinis: 24-1183, page 14 in the Population Schedules.

In the word of 1-D in yesterday’s Saturday Stumper: PHEW.

Related reading
More photographs from the NYC Municipal Archives (Pinboard)