Page 4 THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, July 31, 2020 Malden Today, Tomorrow and Yesterday: bunny sighting in downtown Malden By Peter F. Levine R easons to be cheerful, Part 1: The recent reopening of Pleasant Street has been a long-held dream come true for a lot of Maldonians. That ugly “Beast That Ate Pleasant Street” (thanks, Freck!) appearing in every Maldonians’ nightmare over the many years replaced by the “Beast That Brought Pleasant Street Back to Life.” Hallelujah and praise the deity of your choice that we got some really good elected officials in office that think forward, not backward. The hustle. The bustle! Not since the glory days of Lady Grace, Gilchrist, Lerners, Tom McCann, Gloria’s Sub Shop, Cafarella’s, Hardwick’s, Moe’s Smoke Shop, Palace of Sweets, the Pleasant Street Bowling Alley, Headlines, Jordan Marsh, Jerry’s Army & Navy Store, Kotzen’s Furniture, the First National Grocery Store, Kennedy Bread & Egg, Woolworth’s, Boston Leader, Joe & Nemo’s, Signor Pizza and Richard’s Pub have we seen such a resurgence. We’re on the same path to dominate as we did in those fabled days, when giants like Barney Kahn walked the earth! Putting all other downtowns on the North Shore to shame! Just like Malden’s golden age of retail when the Spark’s and Kahn families were top dogs, which brings me to my point (is there a point, you may ask?). Yes, there is. This isn’t just another Malden Square praise fest! With the renaissance to the Square comes the return of wildlife. Yes, wildlife! We already have plenty of birds as keen observers will notice by the bird droppings on benches placed throughout the downtown. But a recent sighting of a cute rabbit family now residing along the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education building next door to Cornucopia is a very welcome sight. Musta been 10-15 little ones scurrying away recently as construction interrupted their daily forage for sustenance. I was able to snap a great picture of an adorable little eastern cottontail as he sat and enjoyed the sweet summer’s sunshine. The Animal ConBunny sighting in downtown Malden. (Courtesy Photo) trol superstar for the city of Malden, my pal and the man with a thousand inane quips, Kevin Alkins, says that Malden Square has been visited in the past not only by “foxes” (pun intended) but raccoons, possums, skunks and the occasional “turkey” (another pun intended). Did you hear about the time he took on a stray Royal stag red deer with 12 points in Malden Square single-handedly?! A story told around campfires throughout Malden to this very day. Truth be told, he has never seen as many little bunny rabbits as he has in 2020. Enjoy the Square coming back to life, fellow Maldonians. It was a long time coming! Reasons to be cheerful, Part 2: It wasn’t exactly Joe Frazier vs. George Foreman in “The Sunshine Showdown” in Jamaica, but it was the best Malden had in 1973. Well, maybe not all of Malden but certainly for us 16 year olds from Devir Park it was. We had won the very first YMCA Outreach Dept. Softball Championship that year. Ronny Cox’s favorites from Devir Park had strolled through the season undefeated going 11-0 in the process. The Devir Park 9 had shaggy hair, wore flared jeans with high pockets and tried not to drink the whole case before big games. We walked the walk that year. Think John Travolta in the opening sequence of “Saturday Night Fever.” But I digress...the final and most important game of the season took place in October. The Malden Police Dept threw the gauntlet down. An exhibition game between MPD and the unkempt ruffians from Devir would take place that October. We accepted. Two of Malden’s 1973 finest had taken away a whole case of Schlitz from us at Devir the previous week, and we wanted revenge! We surmised they drank it themselves. Before they hit Malden Street, we saw an empty Schlitz can fly out the window. It was billed as “The Game of the Season” in the Malden Sun-Times and was played at Pine Banks. The coverage in the Sun-Times was not exactly Bob Ryan quality but, in those days, as long as your name wasn’t in the police blotter and was spelled correctly, it was all good. According to written reports the affair was an “exciting see-sawing game that saw the lead change several times.” Starting off the action for the MPD were Johnny Mastrangelo and Butch Gennetti, who with a little help from their friends, Ptl. Langill and Dick Giggie, put the “Boys in Blue” in the lead at 4-0. Yes, that Butchie Gennetti! Our current police commish was a standout softball player back when steak dinners were unMALDEN: TODAY| SEE PAGE 10 Re-Elect Terrence Kennedy Governor’s Council Please Vote September 1, 2020 Paid Pol. Adv.
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