Letter: Running numbers for Angelo Bruno

ISSUE | BRUNO'S HOUSE

Running numbers for the mob

A story about mob boss Angelo Bruno's rowhouse brought back memories ("Mobster's house to be a city landmark?" Monday).

We kids would stand outside Nat's Luncheonette, at Eighth and Porter, which made the second-best milk shakes in South Philly. Our target was the bank of phone booths. When a phone rang, the next kid up answered it - who had home phones back in the 1950s? We called it "running phonies," for which the standard reward was a nickel.

As 2 p.m. approached, we got nervous. Whose turn would it be to answer that call? It was mine.

"Two," the voice said and hung up. Off I ran to 934 Snyder, the home of Angie Bruno.

Remembering the number got you a quarter. Forgetting it or getting it wrong, we believed, got you concrete swim boots for the Delaware River. Though I later ran high school and college track, no race was ever more important than running those 51/2 blocks to Angie's.

He answered the door and smiled. "Two," I said. A hand grasped my wrist, and Angie's other hand placed a quarter in my palm.

I made three runs for Angie, getting the number correct each time. For a 12-year-old in those days, three quarters was the trifecta, and Angie was an all right guy.

|Hal Rosenthal, Philadelphia, halsue1@verizon.net