1 30 3 https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/42465/archive/files/d9e3f00957f7819ba770e3466ae639f1.jpg?Expires=1784764800&Signature=BB4BClzxSg30i8FtbEVOlof1VP53Fjqs3%7EMGF6WRlJ6LtHav3AzRH4UUg3oTCvN6y1NGkshlfOll38hXJAuio9I1bh5-7uNjdHV29DUHvhVE9HWKOYSkJk0JN0xHGkS5Y%7EZI2qpZpZzmFkewdWzEC3K-%7ExBdIfdmTHusEnWFPs8I5MbQZFu2g10qECuSIywBRDsAUiKJXKvh7e2z%7E-j0i9rUcbU3pE-sCYPTooez6nRAHIU%7EVT8IOJlMj4nHF%7ENjfwhWRdD9lXhsggv4B0lFwkWeIrRhY4gW%7Ex2jlHD1Q9MYQClduCvkW5cBoacskOuG4fjWTQdWcW1Jlj3v-MJ9xg__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM ef0402d25ee0e30db8adeed676d4b190 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Januario Leal Video Collection [1975-2000] Description An account of the resource The Januario Leal Video collection covers events related to the Portuguese community from many towns within the Greater Boston area from the 1970s to 2000. The videos linked here focus on the communities north and northwest of Boston, however many more videos can be found on the LealVideos Youtube page, including videos filmed in the Azores. The videos in this collection include many events, festivals, processions, and Carnaval celebrations. This collection is still growing. Check back for updates! Biographical Note Januario L. Leal was born on October 15, 1946, in São Bras, Terceira to Januario and Maria (Linhares) Leal. He grew up attending school and, as an adult, operated his father’s convenience store. In 1970, Januario relocated to the United States with his wife, Fernanda (DeSousa) Leal, and they settled in Lowell, Massachusetts. He became a communicant of St. Anthony’s Church and a member of many local clubs including the Portuguese American Civic League, the Portuguese American Center, and the Holy Ghost Society. After immigrating to Lowell, he worked at Paris Shoe as a machine operator until 1978. He later began working for Bradford Industries, formerly known as Pandel, as an inspector until his retirement. Januario was also an avid videographer and maintained his own YouTube channel called "Leal Videos." In 1972 Januario's first video camera was a Super 8mm. The Super 8 used 50ft film roll cassettes which only provided 3 minutes of video recording. As video camera technology advanced he later upgraded 3 years later in 1975 to 16mm film. The Super 8 and 16mm cameras that Januario owned were hand-cranked at first but later upgraded to battery powered a couple years later. As Januario continued to follow his passion he upgraded his camera with each video camera technology advancements which included the video formats of VHS (1980-1999), MiniDV (2000-2015) and to the modern day High Definition 1080p (2015-2022). He recorded hundreds of local events related to the Portuguese community, including many processions and festivals. Thanks to his videography passion, an entire generation of Portuguese American festivities will now be preserved for posterity. Januario passed away on February 28, 2022 and is survived by his four children (Roberta Agostinho, Alizabete Brum, Davido Leal, and Roberto Leal) and their families, including many grandchildren. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Leal, Januario Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Permission to link out to YouTube page granted by Januario's son, Rob Leal. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted: This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. In addition, no permission is required from the rights-holder(s) for educational uses. For other uses, you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). Relation A related resource All items link to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@lealvideos">Leal Videos Youtube page</a>. <a href="https://umlportuguesearchives.omeka.net/collections/show/45">Januario Leal Photography Collection [1970-2000]</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Moving Image Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1975-2000 Subject The topic of the resource Festivals Folk dancing, Portuguese Music--Portuguese influences Portuguese American women Female impersonators Male impersonators Bullfights Clowns Livestock Fasts and Feasts Comedy Cows Azorean Americans Catholic Church--Societies, etc. Dance ensembles Marching bands Processions, Religious--Catholic Church Broadcast journalism Music Dinners and dining Girl Scouts Boy Scouts Antique and classic cars Dogs Poetry Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Lowell (Mass.) Lawrence (Mass.) Warren (R.I.) Pawtucket (R.I.) Hudson (Mass.) Moving Image A series of visual representations imparting an impression of motion when shown in succession. Examples include animations, movies, television programs, videos, zoetropes, or visual output from a simulation. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Is Format Of A related resource that is substantially the same as the described resource, but in another format. <h2>Please press play below to view the video:</h2> <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VJTGlkjKs1M?si=LmIUJBO4hYe2B8G5" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> Title A name given to the resource 1987 Baile Rainha do Divino Espírito Santo, Lowell, MA Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1987 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Leal, Januario Subject The topic of the resource Portuguese American women Fashion shows Azorean Americans Catholic Church--Societies, etc. Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Lowell (Mass.) Cambridge (Mass.) Tyngsboro (Mass.) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Permission to link out to YouTube page granted by Januario's son, Rob Leal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available UMass Lowell, Center for Lowell History Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted: This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. In addition, no permission is required from the rights-holder(s) for educational uses. For other uses, you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). Type The nature or genre of the resource Moving Image Description An account of the resource A video of a ball hosted to choose the next Holy Ghost Queen for the 1987-1988 year. The event begins with an announcement that presents the previous Queen, Diana, accompanied by her ladies in waiting, Maria de Fátima de Silva and (likely) Kimberly Gray, as well as two pages, one being Jason Mello. Then, the event begins and the contestants of the ball walk the stage while modeling the dresses they're wearing. The announcer gives the contestant's name and then provides details about the dress she's wearing, such as the brand name, fabric, color options, and wearability. Then, the program formally begins and each contestant walks the stage with a short dance to "Comment ça va" and introduces themselves by announcing their name, age (ranging 14-16), and a small bit of information about themselves, such as where they're enrolled in high school. After they leave the stage again, the annoucer thanks the women who helped decorate the venue and the members of the community who donated prizes for this event. The program continues and the women are led back onto the stage one-by-one by the pages to place a paper with their name on it in the drawing bowl, all while the announcer provides more information about where the contestants are from and their families. Names are then drawn from the bowl to announce who will be the second ladies—one being Carla Estêvão—and the Holy Ghost Queen, Jenny Borba. The vice president of the Holy Ghost Society then thanks the people who helped put this event together and the various Holy Ghost Society members. Holy Ghost Society (Lowell, MA) https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/42465/archive/files/cd1509e0be728515d2556c2f47a15707.jpg?Expires=1784764800&Signature=s4JRL86qrp2%7EAYCwiF1jNMRXjFiVi04Png9eCqwoyahcBksyhFOfidajhwO2QUoplS7KTEERu9%7EkKHIbH3RbO9acXIVbYvUSkzSI4PKBTbs9CL9R8HGJiuk6-gyqZR2J8XxaKtNW8DX7-9mJQGhgKvZB6hKtUl6fFtmByhj4aEFD1Js5ol-4nOjFa0vqtwl6ALQ4aTYCVpaLZ1KkLg%7EN78nnlhRM8HtHOmIqsiA85bLhVZz0dFhtPLIldsdAIGK1qJ5iegxtvxOuYK0IFC5SqAFTNajcfhmewYm9Fmvswe%7Ev6cew913k6CYrojBpPZwwAQ8953IhkZyCzTd23hHL%7Ew__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM 69d6c9baa65fe643712fb99ae6b095f0 https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/42465/archive/files/407eb5f2c1414c330a01e0a135095b23.jpg?Expires=1784764800&Signature=TOJ2%7E7OFrEmg-M%7EP%7E5zl5QGdqG3kqpgwaFGvSyqjgdT2rrKq6aW7I4b0yuvcSUqO2M9u78RAZ6jn4v7%7EpSTDZFMmk2jYeJkJaTNue50cyu4q04vfWPAQZUlczz9KeMH4ht68WXpSYu3h2KsHN4JQnrhYQ95OmUj0XBVz79UbzuCTG3eLBuSt9qjHETTXtUGLLzOz-0iNvHWK7257FBQ6ql4Qalnb%7E6sY-H6wspxazM41jWPB0ggMG1FB1I0s9%7EnVTJoQkc3djunyBFGD%7E6TdSC7njeeG7J8ocmxoO1uTyTbYVz-vWz4mRukibp07KKP62stop7AklTQzB3g3m9JH4Q__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM 0cd2a93847a31277bd7505389d9ce05d Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Lowell Sun Photography Collection - Lusophone Culture [1971-1993] Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1971-1993 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Digitized from Lowell Sun Collection, owned by the Lowell Historical Society, housed at the Center for Lowell History. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available UMass Lowell, Center for Lowell History Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted: This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. In addition, no permission is required from the rights-holder(s) for educational uses. For other uses, you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPEG Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context LowellSun_ Description An account of the resource The Lowell Sun Photograph Collection - Lusophone Culture is a sampling of images from Lowell in the 1970s through the 1990s. These photographs demonstrate all aspects of Lusophone (Portuguese-speaking) culture in Greater Lowell and includes images of the working, personal, and cultural lives of those living in the city. This digital collection is only a small sample of the much larger Lowell Sun Photography Collection, owned by the Lowell Historical Society, housed at the Center for Lowell History. The overall collection contains over 20,000 images, most which can only be accessed in person, by appointment, at the Center. These images were originally captured by Lowell Sun photographers to accompany newspaper stories. Photographers frequented local businesses and events to capture what life looked like in Lowell at the time. Please note: The images in this digital collection were chosen by their likelihood to include members of the Lusophone community. When a connection to Lusophone culture is not explicitly clear, photos were chosen based on ancestry research or popular surnames from Lusophone countries. We understand that this method may not always be accurate, and welcome any feedback as to images that may be unrelated. Images include members of the Portuguese, Brazilian, and Cape Verdean communities, among others. If you are interested in seeing the many other images in this collection that have not been digitized, please contact the <a href="https://libguides.uml.edu/archives">Center for Lowell History</a> to make an appointment. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Pollock, Arthur Hunt, Richard Brow, David Wallace, Robert Maher, Michael Pigeon, Michael Whitaker, Robert Herbert, Gerald Rose, Marston Bridgeford, Bill Gregory, David Malakie, Julie Chase, Jon Cauchon, Bradley Donovan, Dan Bailey, Rollin Subject The topic of the resource Antique and classic cars Nursing homes Artists Barbershops Bars (Drinking establishments) Baseball coaches Education Drug abuse--Prevention Youth--Alcohol use Basketball teams High school athletes Bingo Bowling Boxing Bullfights Cabo Verdean Americans Camps Career fairs Cemeteries Christmas City council members Community organization Construction workers Cycling Drug abuse--Prevention Education, Bilingual Ethnic food Fairs Factories Festivals Folk dancing, Portuguese Fourth of July Graduation (school) Gymnastics Immigrant families Instrumentation and orchestration (Band) Lacrosse Mills and mill-work Music teachers Musicians Police Portuguese American women Postmasters--United States School field trips Shelters for the homeless Sledding Snow Soccer Special education Student government Video arcades Voting Women in community organization Women's shelters Youth centers Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Lowell (Mass.) Boston (Mass.) Billerica (Mass.) Wilmington (Mass.) Nashua (N.H.) Tewksbury (Mass.) Tyngsboro (Mass.) Chelmsford (Mass.) Dracut (Mass.) Lawrence (Mass.) Pelham (N.H.) Burlington (Mass.) Dunstable (Mass.) Andover (Mass.) Bedford (Mass.) Littleton (Mass.) Westford (Mass.) Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Len Lemare of St. Joes vs. Scott Silva of Greater Lowell Vocational Subject The topic of the resource Basketball teams High school athletes Description An account of the resource St. Joes vs. Greater Lowell Vocational basketball game. Len Lamare wears number 21 and Scott Silva wears number 20. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Brow, David Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Digitized from Lowell Sun Collection, owned by the Lowell Historical Society, housed at the Center for Lowell History. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Lowell Sun (Lowell, Mass.) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1984-01-06 Relation A related resource Item located in Drawer 18, Folder: Schools--Greater Lowell Voke - Basketball Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPEG Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context LowellSun_GreaterLowellVocationalBasketball_001_ Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Lowell (Mass.) Tyngsboro (Mass.) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted: This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. In addition, no permission is required from the rights-holder(s) for educational uses. For other uses, you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). Lowell Vocational https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/42465/archive/files/bfd0d4b3454dcbab5d0adb9d967dabea.pdf?Expires=1784764800&Signature=ZQEaF12sd915tBCAbblwedfNP7n7ZqKSta%7EX9BloAzfUkwN2LYlL4ms4Qh5yWLSqBtv%7EdR6pDlzTeEMCN-9i2aeLI4v39JVigsoCuBqI%7ExrKOAHtt8KAxm2zvphQhWNOG-6QA7TuHYdgYXWGJ8OSgYOAFrpskHKeB1bLAmzLTQb2g-BgNYL9lnWXhtoj-pZ2EI5ZSYO-6zmhrf%7EZ-VDZNa8sxddkIzXo-pGk7NKZIrH7fitEHFfo0yVj8bFvSNB8dNxsaGRJQEk36b%7EWj6iom6HRQ5h0vuPK6jKEFPe-em9HhVVs8-8tBX7GHa8dPaCfAW%7EuPmTynFvhpCLOw9CYkA__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM 1450db0a3e2f136042de97965f5df025 PDF Text Text LOWELL HISTORICAL SOCIETY ORAL HISTORY PROJECT GAY COMMUNITY IN LOWELL INTERVIEWER: MEHMED ALI INFORMANT: LINDA DURANT DOLORES FRIANT DATE: SEPTEMBER 20, 2013 A=ALI L=LINDA D=DOLORES A: And this is interview with Linda Durand and Dolores Friant? D: Umhm. L: It’s Durant. A: Durant? Is it Durant with a “T”? Oh okay. Almost like Friant. L: D U R A N T! That’s why I said Friant and Durant. [Laughs] A: And it’s September 20th, 2013. So folks thanks again for (--) Oops! There goes Manny. L: He’s putting in his word too, you know! [All laugh] A: We weren’t talking about him yet, he was getting jealous. So thanks again for coming down. L: Oh you’re welcome. Thank you. I mean sorry it took us so long to get to see you. A: No, no, it’s all right. So everyone I talked to you know over the last several years that have been doing Lowell history has talked about you know, one of the more famous kind of night club entertainers is Manny Diaz. And I wonder if you can first just speak a little bit about what you know about his, his early life, you know, where he, where he went to school and early jobs, anything you know about that? 1 �[Lots of background noise] D: Where he went to school was in Lowell. A: Yup. And what neighborhood did he grow up in? D: Okay, Back Central, Lincoln Street, Powell Street. A: Okay. So he bounced around a little bit. D: Umhm, as you see when you eat all of it. There’s a bunch of it. (A: Great) Ah, he lived on Lincoln Street. He lived on Powell Street. He lived on Shirley Avenue. A: Shirley Ave, okay. D: He lived on Appleton Street right across the street, and he lived on Goward Place. A: Goward Place, which is right yah, next door somewhere. And what, what did he do if you know before he got into entertainment and (--) D: He was a dancer. (A: Okay) He opened up his own dance studio in 1927. (A: Okay) And he used to teach all kinds of dance, (A: Really?) everything, Spanish dancer, everything. A: Where did he learn that? Do you know? Was he self-taught? D: Self-taught. He never went to school for it. (A: No.) But he could dance. God could he dance. I know I was one of his pupils. A: Yah, no kidding! What did you take from him? D: Tap, (A: Okay) my sister and I. You didn’t want to! Hey you know, keep it in the family. A: And where was his studio at? D: East Merrimack Street. A: Okay, was it near the old Rex Center, or ? D: That’s where it was, in the Rex Center. A: It was in the Rex Center? (D: Umhm) Oh okay. D: Oh yes I remember hanging out the windows. 2 �A: Yah. What was the Rex Center like? D: It was nice and [unclear] offices. His studio was on the second floor. (A: Okay) He, he did a lot, an awful lot of recitals. He put on an awful lot of shows. A: No kidding. D: As you’ll see. You got, you’re getting the scrapbooks and everything. A: Okay, great! L: That we need back! A: Yes, well (--) L: All of them! A: Yup, we’ll get them back to you in (--) I’ll try to get them back to you by the end of next week. L: Okay. A: Try to turn it around really quick and get it back. L: Because those are all clippings out of the newspapers back from the 19 (D: 27), 1927. And I seen something in there from 1915, or 1916, or something. A: Wow. D: He was a very, very good entertainer. A: So how do you think he gravitated from the (--) Did he always keep the dance studio around forever, or? D: No, I think my sister and I helped him stop that. [Both laugh] A: Why do you say that? D: Because we didn’t, we didn’t want to do it. You know, we, my sister and I didn’t want, [interrupted by waitress] (A: Great) didn’t want to be tap dancers. (A: Yah) And we didn’t want (--) And I’ll never forget one day I mean we had the whole, filled the whole floor full of you know, other kids. And they’re tap dancing. And I looked at my sister, and I used to be a devil, and my sister just looks at me. I says, “Okay, here we go.” So instead of doing the right steps we were doing wrong steps. “Oh my uncle used to pull his hair out. 3 �A: [Laughs] D: I says, “That’s it, I quit!” [Unclear], “you’re damn right you do!” A: So at some point he gravitated over towards just doing like night club acts and things like that? D: Yah, when he was young in his 20s I think. A: So he had the dance studio when he was in his 20s? D: In the 50s, 20s [unclear-too much noise, hard to comprehend]. Maybe 55. I think that was when he closed I think it was 55. A: Okay. So he ran it for 30 years almost, or so? Okay. D: He taught classical, tap, you name it he taught it. He was very good. He was a beautiful dancer. Good singer. (A: Yah?) Good entertainer. Good MC. A: Who did he use to MC for? Do you know? D: He played at the [sounds like: Bella Donner], all the different places. Happy Helen’s, they used to be on the boulevard. The White Eagle. The [Candle] Club. All the bars in Tyngsboro because I used to drive him. A: Oh he didn’t drive? D: No he never drove. A: And they, they said he was kind of a shnazie dresser as this illustrates. D: A couple of the articles, he had over fifty suits (A: Yah) for every occasion. This is proof he did, right here. A: What were the different suits for? D: Different acts he did. Like once he was a pirate. I think there’s a couple of pictures somewhere and a scrapbook how he made the pirate. Spanish dancer. You know, like I said, he did it, he put on a lot, a lot of acts, the recitals with the kids [unclear]. A lot of big name people, you know, he taught them how to dance. A: Yah. Do you remember some of his students, his more well-known ones? D: Not off hand. They were in, they were in (--) L: They’re in those. 4 �A: Yah, well we’ll take a look at those after. L: There are so many clippings. I’m amazed at how many clippings are in there Auntie D. I didn’t realize. D: Plus I lost a lot. I lost a lot of them. L: Yah. A: Yah. L: And everything is kind of loose in the books. So you got to be really careful, and it’s real fragile on them. A: Okay. Well we’ll make sure that they, they stay where they are. D: He worked here maybe ten, fifteen years he worked for the Owl Diner. L: Wow. I didn’t realize that. That many years huh? [Noise and conversation in background between waitresses and customers] L: Because he only lived right behind here. So right? When he worked here? D: Yah, because I used to work here. L: Wow. A: You did really? D: Yah, this was with the previous owners. A: Who were the owners? They were Greekd? D: They were Greeks, two Greek brothers. A: Oh. And was he still doing entertainment as well as The Owl Diner? D: Umhm, oh yah. A: Now you were telling me on the phone that he had done some female impersonation? D: Years and years and years ago. And he only did it for, as an act. (A: Yup) Everybody loved it. Everybody wanted him to keep doing it. And he did it a couple of times and that was it. You know, he took it out of his act! (A: Yah) And in 1950 they 5 �banned, [they wanted to ban men], he couldn’t get a job because he was referred to as a female impersonator, which he wasn’t. That was years, well over fifteen years way earlier. I think the Police Chief didn’t like him. (A: Yah) I gave you all the paperwork on it, because he cut it all up, on it and that. A: So did the Police Chief not like him because of his orientation, or something? D: The clientele, [unclear] the clientele. Like I says, I’ve took, I used to take Manny to mostly every place he worked. You know after I was sixteen and I got my license you know, I’d take him. And if it wasn’t too late at night you know, I’d go pick him up. And no, he had a very, very good clientele in all of them. A: But there was some, you know, with people that might have gone to see Manny, I mean there was overtones of homosexuality which were I think frowned on by the, by those city fathers way back when. D: Yes. Yes. A: Did Manny feel like he was being like persecuted in any way? D: He didn’t like it, but he wasn’t, he wasn’t going to dwell on it. (A: No) You know, like he says, “They can call me what they want.” (A: Yah) I mean he was in love. A: He was what? D: He was in love. A: He was in love, yah. D: [Unclear]. L: [Talking to waitress} I’m all set. Do you want any more coffee Auntie DD? A: Are any of his friends still around by chance? D: Um mm. L: Oh jeeze no, I would doubt there’s anyone. A: I mean I know it was a long time ago, but. L: It was thirty-two years ago. (A: Yah) Thirty-two years ago because I’ve been with my husband since 1982 and that’s thirty-one, and the year before that. So thirty-two years ago. Wow! D: You want a story? I got one. I was younger. 6 �L: Thanks Ali [must have picked up the tab]. D: Thank you. He was, he was in love with my aunt. And I guess they had been from what I hear through the grapevine, he was, they were going to get married, but then I guess Manny was you know, entertaining or he was out of town. Anyway she met my uncle, my other uncle [unclear] in New Jersey. And you know, he was a little hot shot. So she ended up breaking my uncle’s hear and marrying Stuart. That used to be cute, you know, every year we used to go to New Jersey and visit them, visit the relatives. A: Really. D: Oh yah. L: Wow. A: No ill will, no bad feelings. D: None at all. No. A: Can I have a glass of ice water? D: But I think that’s when he decided he wasn’t getting married. A: Yah. Somebody told me one of the funny songs he would sing though is, “I Wanna Get Married.” D: Umhm. A: Do you remember that at all? D: Oh yes! A: Who? Did he write songs? D: Yes, and you got a couple of the songs. L: Oh yeah! (A: Really?) A lot of stuff in here. A: Okay, great! L: Real lot of stuff. D: He was very religious. (A: Yah) Loved his bingo. A: Loved his? 7 �D: Bingo. A: Bingo! Okay [chuckles]. (D: Oh yah) Well that was the primary purpose of church back then right? No, I’m just kidding. L: [Laughs] I know, isn’t that funny how um, bingo is a sin but all the people that go to church go to bingo. [Both laugh] I get a kick out of it! A: I don’t know if they still do, but they used to do it at the church right? L: Oh yah, that’s true too! That’s right. D: And I know what you’re saying, [unclear] bingo. L: Now was Manny part of St. Anthony’s? D: Yes, when he was younger. Then he went to what, St. Peter’s? A: Oh St. Peter’s because he lived around here maybe? D: Yah. A: Did he have any sense of being Portuguese and celebrating that heritage? D: Oh yes! Oh yah! I had to go through that when I was a kid too. A: Yah, and what did that (--) D: The parades [unclear]. A: Did he know Portuguese music? Did he sing Portuguese songs? D: I don’t think so. A: Did he speak Portuguese? D: Oh yes. A: He did. Oh. (D: Oh yes) Were his parents immigrants, or his grandparents? D: Parents. A: Parents were. And were they from where, Medeira, Portugal? 8 �D: The Azores. [Loud noises] (A: Yah) Oh yah. The first thing I remember when I was young [few words unclear] “do not talk in front of the kids.” [All laugh] L: [Unclear] D: [Unclear] all they had to say was one word in English. I gotcha! But Manny was a great guy A: Yah. D: I miss him. Waitress: All done? A: Yah, thanks very much. L: Thank you. D: This is crazy but (--) A: Yah, how is that? D: Oh that’s when he had his dance studio and everything. [Unclear] I used to have the little devil in me. [Laughs] But if Manny ever needed anything I was the first one always there, always there. Him and his sister. A: Were there any recordings of him by chance? D: I don’t know. A: I know it was a little bit before the days of You Tube and everything. So, but [unclear]. D: No, unless maybe years ago you know with all the recitals that he did. He was big on the VFW. A: Oh really? D: On [laws]. A: Now he was too old to go off to World War II though, wasn’t he? D: Yah. 9 �A: Well maybe we can look at some of these pictures and if it creates and story or anything. Oh, that’s great! Where is this at now? Do you know? D: Hm? It’s got to be in one of the, it’s got to be in one of the clubs. A: Okay. L: Mayfair Diaz. A: Let’s just put these down so they don’t (--) D: Yah, this is the Mayfair where he worked. “Presents Manny Diaz.” A: Wow, cool. Oh yah, look at that! There he is! Wow! D: Oh yah there’s a lot of pictures in there where he is young. A: Wow, look at that! Now is this is brother or father there? D: No, all he had was his sister. A: Oh okay. D: That was his friend I think. I don’t know if his friend, that was Paul Poitras? You know I vaguely remember. This was him I think on Lincoln Street? A: Where is this? D: I think on Lincoln Street years ago. A: Lincoln Street, okay, he’s holding the dog there. Oh yah, these are great. [Laughs] Wow! Look at that! L: Oh wow, this was a real good one of Manny. I think this one. A: Do you know where this one is? D: Some club. A: Yah. Here he is. He’s kind of grooming himself with his beautiful blonde hair. L: Yah. D: Oh yah, he had beautiful blonde hair. 10 �A: Now did (--) Oh wow look at these. Oh this is great! “Manny Diaz Dancing Studios.” Wow! Did anybody ever give him a hard time for you know, the way he dressed, or looked, or acted? D: Oh I imagine they probably did. I mean he was well dressed. He was right up there in style. A: Yah, but almost maybe too, too well-dressed for Lowell, Mass sometimes? D: Yes. Yes. Yes. A: Wow these are great! The Pinehurst Community Church. My folks grew up in Pinehurst. L: So I mean there’s some really, really old stuff in here. A: Yah. L: “Carolyn Acre to dance at a benefit.” Wow, that’s something. D: He did a lot of dance, you know, with his dance studio. A: Look at all these cards here. This is great. L: May 31, 1935, UCI Hall. Wow. D: I mean I think he played every nightclub that was in Lowell. A: Yup. D: In Billerica, in Pinehurst, in Dracut, in Tyngsboro. A: And what do you think his (--) L: You see how everything is just like loose here. So you really got to be careful, because every little clipping on him, all these, all of these. A: Yah, we’ll make sure that they don’t get out of order and things, you know. So what do you think Manny’s attraction was as an entertainer? I mean he had a very, you know, he had a very long career on the circuit around, around the area right? D: Oh yes, up until he got sick. A: Yah. What do you think his attraction was as a performer? D: He loved to entertain! (A: Yah) He loved to entertain. 11 �L: Even these little things, “Today’s Star Theatre.” I mean that’s unbelievable! (A: Yah) Ten to twenty-five cents. A: Oh look at this. Charlie’s Chan. These are old boy. L: That’s what I was saying. I mean these things are way back. D: There’s a menu in here from one hotel. L: Oh here’s what I want to see. A: Yah. D: In Canada where he did a show. L: Who the hell is that? D: I don’t know. A: Is that him when he was young? D: That could either be Manny or it was his father. L: Here’s another old one. This must have been him. Manny didn’t put any names on. A: So you think this guy here is Paul Poitras? D: I think it’s Paul Poitras. A: And is he gone? D: Yes. A: Was this his partner or buddy, or? D: No, good friend. (A: Yah) Because he used to play the piano (A: Oh okay) in Manny’s studio. (A: Okay) L: Wow. I want to try to read these. Was that Manny? A: I think that’s too new. D: Too new. L: Yah, see, there’s nothing on it. 12 �A: It’s probably from the 50s. L: Yah. I want to save this page that it’s in. I want to see what this is without ruining anything. A: There you go. So you were talking about Manny got sick. What was his condition? L: That could have been Manny huh? D: He died of cancer. A: He died of cancer. I see. Wow. Was he a smoker? D: He was a smoker, but then he stopped for twenty-years and still died of cancer. A: Oh really. D: Same with my mother, sister. Him and my sister were very, very close all through life. (A: Yah) I mean Manny lived with us on and off for years. A: Yah, yah. How long has your mother been gone now? L: Since 1983. A: Oh, so just a couple of years after him then huh? L: Um. January 2nd. D: Because I still got [Lucy] at the house here. Manny’s last will and testament, he left everything [unclear]. A: Yah. [chuckles] Do you know who that is by chance DD? L: [Answers cell phone and has phone conversation]. A: That’s Paul there with the leather jacket? D: No. A: You’re not sure who that is? D: No. 13 �A: Yah, these are great. Here is some kind of thing, Chinese Magician or something you know. Oh here’s the Bella Donna, this one. You can see it in the background up on the wall. D: Yah. A: Is this Manny here? D: No. I thought it was, but it’s not. A: Okay. L: Here’s the Rex Auditorium. “Manny Diaz presents his dancing students.” This was June 4th, 1937 at the Rex Auditorium, forty cents. D: Yah. A: That was actually a lot of money back then, forty cents. L: You ain’t kidding. D: [Unclear] some of the telegrams to him, you know, it’s a riot. A: Yah! [Chuckles] Well these are great. Do you want to put these back in the same spot. You had saved a picture there. L: Yah, right in here. D: Like on one of the articles that I read. A: And this [unclear]. D: Where? On the female impersonator. (A: Yah) I don’t know if it was a costume ball, or what it was, but anyway they had a big write-up about it, about this beautiful bride, gorgeous, walking down the aisle. And it had to been in the show, one of the shows that he was doing, because at the end of it everybody was ooing and awing over this beautiful bride with a wedding gown and everything, and perfect makeup. And right after when the act got over he took the clothes off, and he took the makeup off and showed them who it was. A: [Chuckles] And it was Manny? D: And it was Manny. They went [unclear]. [Room gets very loud] And after that everybody wanted him to do female impersonators. Like he used to dress up as a female to do the Spanish dance. 14 �A: Okay. Oh that, oh so he was the Flamingo Dancer then. Oh wow! Look at that! [Very loud and noisy—L’s phone ring and she has a conversation, all speaking at once] A: This is great! D: Oh he’s worked everywhere. A: Quebec? D: This is the one. L: Yah you mentioned that. D: Look at the prices for the food. A: [Laughs] Yah, [D: A T-bone steak] a dollar for filet mignon. D: A T-Bone steak .90 cents. [T: Conducting business over the phone while interview is going on] D: Unbelievable. A: Pork 15 cents. Egg 20 cents. That’s amazing huh. L: As I was saying we want to keep all of this stuff, you know. Is it going to be in safe hands with you? A: Trust me kiddo. Trust me. L: This is really delicate as you know. A: Nope, this is all good stuff. We’re going to scan a lot of this and then I can also get you the digital copies. (L: Okay) So I want to get your email address Linda. L: Well it stinks. I really don’t have it. I have an email address but I haven’t been on the computer in like two years. So I don’t know if it’s still out there. Somebody else might have it now. D: Same here. L: You know. A: Yah. Well how about this. I can get, I’ll put all this stuff (--) 15 �L: I have an address. A: I’ll put all of this stuff on a disk, a cd, and then I’ll give it to you and you can upload it onto your computer whenever you decide you’re on there. L: Okay. Like even this is his guest list (--) D: 40th Birthday Party. L: On his 40th Birthday. So I mean like all this stuff you want, you know, I want to keep everything. A: Okay. Yah, good. L: So as you can see a lot of this stuff is very, very, very, very old. (D: Oh yes) 1930. A: Oh this is great. L: You know, so. There’s Daniel Brennan of Lowell. D: That was his manager. L: That was his manager. A: Oh his manager. Tell me about him. D: I never knew him. A: No. Was he gone before you were kind of growing up? D: I think so. A: What was his story? Do you know anything about him? D: No. L: Diamond Taxi telephone number 66. [Laughs] A: Two numbers, imagine? L: I mean that’s why I want to keep all of it you know. A: Yah, no you have to. L: Wow. 16 �D: I mean we have (--) You know there’s a lot of memories there. L: A lot of good memories. D: Look at this. Of course Manny must be dancing up in the clouds now. L: Oh yah! A: What’s that? D: Manny must be dancing up in the clouds now. L: He’s here right with us right now. D: Oh yes. A: There he is! L: He knows what’s going on. He is! So really you’ll take good care of this and everything? A: I will Linda, yup, and we’ll get it back to you by next week. L: I mean because as you can see, I mean it’s really, really fragile. I mean (--) D: Yah, one thing he had, him and my mother had such beautiful handwriting. A: Yah? D: Oh yah! A: Well the kids, they don’t even learn how to do cursive anymore, you know. They’re just doing computers. That’s about it. Oh wow, look at that. D: But he loved my mother. That’s not the one with him? A: Senorita Juanita. D: Yah, that’s okay, that’s him. A: That’s him? No kidding. D: Yah, that’s him. A: Wow. Fabulous! 17 �L: Popular dancer (--) D: Mr. Manual Diaz, popular, was touring. L: With the Office of Daniel Brennan. Wow! [They’re reading headlines from newsclips] A: Wow he collected everything. This is a really valuable archive I’m telling you. D: Oh yes. L: Now see, 1931. D: Yah, Townsend Memorial Hall. KC Review, Knights of Columbus! D: 1927. KC, Knights of Columbus. A: It’s funny how all of these things that used to be so big are gone now. The Knights of Columbus, and all these clubs that were famous. You know, the Commodore Ballroom and did he ever perform there do you think? D: Yes. I remember all the, but all the bars are gone now, but he used to own a barroom. A: Oh he did? Which one did he own? D: On Middlesex Street. I don’t remember if it was called the Old Homestead? He didn’t have it long. (A: Okay) He didn’t have it long. L: 75 Lincoln Street. (D: Yah) Wow. Here’s a real young picture of him right here. A: Wizbang Review! All right. L: Wizbang Review, April 27, 1930. 75 Lincoln Street, telephone number 1882. [Laughs] Wow. Diaz Studio of Dancing. Children’s class starts at Saturday. Wow, 17. A: Oh, there’s another photo there. D: [Unclear]. A: Is that him? Oh what does it say? “Me and Raymond McDowell.” D: [Unclear]. A: Look at the black face [chuckles]. 18 �D: [Unclear], there’s another picture. [Background very noisy] A: Oh that’s a great picture there. D: Okay, so that’s Manny in a mustache. A: Yah, or I think somebody drew it on him. L: [Phone rings again and she has conversation]. This is just paper and stuff, and everything, but yah. Are you sure this is going to be in good hands with you? A: Yes! Yup! Even, even better when I get it back to you, (D: Okay) because we’ll get it all in digital form. L: I don’t want to take everything out of here because there’s so much stuff, you know. A: No you don’t have too. Yah, I’ll go through it and I‘ll make sure everything (--) D: This is the flood on, in Pawtucketville. A: Oh is this the Flood of 1936? L: Umm, no, the later one. It was like (--) A: Oh this is 2006. Yah. I took pictures during that time. Or maybe this is before then? D: It has to be before then, because it’s in his scrapbook. A: Yah, that’s right. I don’t know when this was. D: It had to have been before 83. L: See like this. A: “Three Fines, $200.00 on a moral show charge.” Wow! L: “Exotic dancer and two men found guilty, Manny Diaz and manager not guilty.” [Laughs] So that’s what I’m saying, I mean this stuff is really precious you know. A: Yah. L: I just don’t want to lose anything. A: No. Yah they really (--) D: You see there’s the picture right there. 19 �A: Oh yah, there’s, that’s the same one, yah. D: The Bella Donna. A: They really, I think they really persecuted gay people back in those days huh? L: Oh they did. D: Oh yah. L: Yah, a lot of this is like just laid in here loosely. Like I don’t want to lose this. (A: Okay) I don’t know where this came from, but (--) A: Well why don’t you…yah. L: As soon as, when I get this back me and my Aunt can put it all together. D: Telegrams to him. A: Yah, it’s a contract. L: Contract, yup. Salary $27.50. Wow! Stewart Street in Boston! Wow! A: Yah, it looks like he was performing everywhere. D: He was performing everywhere all over New England. L: “Court action, the theater by lawyer in Manny Diaz’s case.” So I mean you got, there’s a lot of history in here. So you should have, you should come up with a really good story. D: Most of this is all of the write-ups on, that got postponed every week, every week. L: That was young. A: Yah, look at that. He was very young there. D: “City councilors determining ah…” L: But you’re sure Ali you’re going to be in good hands with this stuff, right? A: Yes mame. L: Okay. It’s many years of saving you know. 20 �A: No, I understand this is very personal stuff to the family. So I appreciate you guys willingness to share it. L: “License Board postpones Diaz case.” Every story, every little clipping has been hand [unclear]. A: Yah. D: Manny kept them all. A: American Legion in Tewksbury. Yah. Great! D: He was very big with the American Legion and the VFW, all of that. A: That’s good. That’s good. So he cared about the troops. D: Oh yes! He did reviews and everything else. Put on shows for them. A: Really? Okay. L: I won’t take that other paper out, but (--) D: This is the “Suffolk’s Reviews.” A: Oh wow! L: Oh yah, this is all sheet music? A: Wow! Fabulous, oh and there’s some great photos. L: Loads of pictures in there. And also there’s a lot of (--) And there’s some papers are just, everything is not you know. A: Yah. Well we’ll, we’ll go through it. D: You know the Cactus Room. A: Some are missing huh? Wow, great! L: So. D: See Manny Diaz, 41 Shirley Avenue. L: Wow. D: So to Shirley Avenue, he moved over here. 21 �A: To Goward? D: To Goward. L: This was the only other two things in here. D: Those are sheet music. A: That’s sheet music too? L: Oh yah. A: This is like a letter or something? D: I think that he wrote. A: “I didn’t want to walk without you baby, walk without my arms around you baby.” [Laughs] L: That’s why I want to put everything in a nice little book. (A: Yah) You know, so it will be all protected. So it won’t be damaged. A: Yah, yup! Yah, well the other part of doing the scanning that it creates another, a second version of the documents and the photos. And so that helps preserve it for the long term, you know, L: Yup. A: Because heaven forbid you know, something happened, you know, some flood or part of the house caught on fire or something and then you lose this forever. L: Right, see. A: If you’ve got it digitized then you got the cds, you can put them in a different location you know, (L: Yup) and then it’s preserved for the long term. D: See that’s what happened with a lot of this. I had it out in the garage over on Shirley Avenue, over you know, the father’s house and a lot of the [unclear]. I lost a lot of things. L: Oh I hope it’s going to be in safe hands here Ali. I’m not going to be able to sleep here. A: Okay. Well I’ll get it back to you as soon as I can. 22 �L: Okay. A: You want to put Manny in there? L: Yup, Manny, oh what a nice picture. D: Oh yah! A: Well Dolores any final thoughts about your Uncle Manny? D: He was a very great entertainer. I think a lot of people in the City of Lowell loved him. (A: Yup) And like I says, he was very religious. He was always there to help anybody who needed it, and he was also a great cook. A: He was, okay? D: Especially his Portuguese soup and his spaghetti sauce. I got his spaghetti sauce down perfect! A: Yah, you got the recipe. D: Oh I used to help him make it! [Both laugh] And I used to help him make the Portuguese soup. And the Portuguese soup, it’s I think twelve or fourteen different vegetables in it. A: Wow, neat. Yah. D: And he gave me the recipe and I lost the recipe. I can’t perfect it the way Manny made it. A: You have most of it up here in your mind? D: Oh yes! Like I says, I was a kid. I think my Uncle Manny was the one who actually taught me how to cook. My mother couldn’t cook. A: [Laughs] D: She couldn’t boil water. But as far as his spaghetti sauce, nobody can beat my spaghetti sauce. L: I love (--) A: Well I think (--) Do you think people considered Manny a unique personality? D: Yes. Yes. More, I think more people liked him than disliked him. 23 �A: Yah, did that say something about the city of Lowell? D: Yes. I think (--) Well when they were taking him, you know, which ah, like I says, when he did the female impersonation it was only as an act. That was always supposed to be a one-time thing. And way back then, years ago, they wanted him to keep doing it, but he didn’t, he took it out of his act. (A: Umhm) And the License Commission bard him from trying to entertain in Lowell. (A: Yah) So he was out of work for six months. A: But he beat them? D: Yah! He beat them, because after that like I says I used to drive him to the Banjo Pub and that was in the 60s because I didn’t get my license till 61. (A: Okay) And after 61 I used to take him all over. Any place he had, you know, was entertaining I used to take him. A: Well thanks very much for your time today. L: You’re very welcome. End of interview jw 24 � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource UMass Lowell Portuguese American Oral Histories [1976-2018] Description An account of the resource These oral histories with Portuguese immigrants and their descendants in the Greater Lowell area were conducted between 1976-2016. Topics covered include the experience of immigration, working conditions, family life, and more. These oral histories were funded by the Lowell National Historical Park, the American Folklife Center, and UMass Lowell. Subject The topic of the resource Azorean Americans Children of immigrants Cultural assimilation Mills and mill-work Portuguese American women Madeirans World War, 1939-1945 Veterans United States. Navy. Factories Education Depressions--1929 Immigrants Christmas Immigrant families Ethnic food New Year Balls (parties) Community organization Civic leaders Baking Bakeries Bakery employees Tradition (Theology) Music Ethnic neighborhoods Boardinghouses Folk dancing, Portuguese Music teachers Civil engineering Urban renewal Park facilities--Planning Fasts and Feasts Portuguese language Instrumentation and orchestration (Band) Engineering Religious gatherings Police Portugal--Emigration and immigration Immigrants--Cultural Assimilation--United States Dance teachers Female impersonators Entertainers Musicians Suicide Cleaning compounds Tenement houses Rug and carpet industry Entrepreneurship Irish Americans Politics and government City council members Campaign management Community development, Urban Music--Portuguese influences Catholic Church--Dioceses Catholic Church--Societies, etc. Priests Code switching (Linguistics) Soccer Cooking Composition (Music) Portuguese teachers Women in community organization Labor unions Ethnic groups Fathers and sons Bars (Drinking establishments) Desegregation Military bands Track and field coaches Language teachers Brazilian Americans Bullfights Bullying in schools Conflict of generations Earthquakes Evening and continuation schools Volcanos Meat industry and trade Influenza Epidemic, 1918-1919 Christmas cooking Community schools Marriage Radio programs Sewing Angola--History--Revolution, 1961-1975 Agriculture Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Document Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived All items can be found at the Center for Lowell History in Lowell, MA. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available UMass Lowell, Center for Lowell History Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted: This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. In addition, no permission is required from the rights-holder(s) for educational uses. For other uses, you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1976-2018 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Lowell (Mass.) Boston (Mass.) Manchester (N.H.) Graciosa (Azores) Capelinhos Volcano (Azores) Faial (Azores) Lawrence (Mass.) Terceira Island (Azores) São Miguel (Azores) Madeira (Madeira Islands) Pico Island (Azores) Lisbon (Portugal) Azores Hudson (Mass.) Cambridge (Mass.) Tyngsboro (Mass.) Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Ali, Mehmed Denatale, Doug Fertig, Barbara Fitzsimons, Gray Holden, Maria Miller, Marc Norkunas, Martha Page, Paul Perkins, Carole MacDougal Reis, John M. Spandagos, Olga Strobel, Christoph Szewczyk, Kimberly Taylor, David Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Linda Durant and Dolores Friant Oral History Interview Subject The topic of the resource Dance teachers Female impersonators Entertainers Musicians Children of immigrants Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Ali, Mehmed Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available UMass Lowell, Center for Lowell History Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2013-09-20 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted: This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. In addition, no permission is required from the rights-holder(s) for educational uses. For other uses, you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Lowell (Mass.) Tyngsboro (Mass.) Description An account of the resource In this interview, Linda Durant and Dolores Friant recount the life of Manny Dias, a performer in the Lowell area who was known for his dance school and female impersonator performances. He is also known by the public spelling of his last name as "Diaz." LGBTQ Owl Diner