by Jennifer Winot   AKRON — The 66th annual Italian-American Festival is known for tons of food and plenty of fun. This year's event takes place July 12 through 14 at Lock 3 in downtown Akron. There will be food, live music, fireworks and activities for people of all ages, as well as a raffle.   Read more   Source: h...

Believe it or not, the city of Cleveland has a sister city. And not just any city in the world--an Italian city! Vicenza is located in the northeast region of Veneto and tends to be overshadowed by its better known neighbors Padova and Venezia to the east, and Verona to the west.   Although most Americans have never heard of Vicenza, any res...

by Matteo Meneghello   Italian rifle maker Beretta Holding, through its German subsidiary Steiner, announced the acquisition of STS, a company specialized in night-vision binoculars, therefore completing Beretta's strategic move into the optoelectronics field.   STS, based in Beavercreek, Ohio, is owned by Diffraction Ltd, with its he...

History tells us that more Italians immigrated to the United States than any other Europeans, and that more came from Sicily than from any other Italian region. With them, too, the Sicilians brought many traditions, customs, and foods that are still popular today.   One such food is the cannoli, a Sicilian pastry dessert. Historically, these...

Members of the Lorain Montenero Italian Society greeted La Befana, the Italian Christmas Witch, at the annual Christmas dinner Dec. 7 at the Italian-American Veterans Post No. 1, 4567 Oberlin Ave., Lorain.   "In Italian folklore, La Befana is an old woman who delivers gifts to children throughout Italy on Epiphany Eve, the night of Jan. 5, i...

By Greg Hoersten To the newspapers he was the "Banana King," an Italian immigrant who arrived in Lima in 1889 and grew a Public Square produce stand into a thriving distributorship by the early 20th century.   To his daughter Louise Cardosi, born Aug. 25, 1915, Victor Cardosi was the beloved father who "was always teaching me something," th...

The annual Our Lady of Mount Carmel Italian Festival opens Thursday at 4 p.m. and runs through Sunday on the church grounds at 343 Via Mount Carmel, on the edge of downtown, near Choffin Career Center. About 12,000 people attended the festival last year.   As always, there will be plenty of free parking and security. A portion of the pa...

By Lori Kurtzman They decide to put her in the top-down Maserati, a gorgeous cream-colored hunk of Italian metal parked along the northwestern edge of Goodale Park. The driver pulls out a blanket, and the woman unzips her black leather boots. She climbs onto the chocolate-brown leather and sits between the two rear headrests. She can wave from th...

Holy Rosary Church, 116th Annual FEAST OF THE ASSUMPTIONThursday, August 14 through Sunday, August 17, 2014Little Italy, Cleveland   FEAST HOURS:Thursday, August 14 – 6 pm to 11 pmFriday, August 15 – noon to Midnight (Solemn Mass at 10 am/Procession following Mass)Saturday, August 16 – noon to MidnightSunday, August 17 – noon to 11 pm  ...

By Nancy Gilson On a sultry Saturday afternoon, Alessandro Siciliani stood at the front of an old church in the University District, directing the principal singers in a rehearsal of the 125-year-old opera Cavalleria rusticana. Despite the heat, he waved his baton, jumped, stomped a foot and hummed along during some of the most dramatic momen...