Nancy Ruhling's Astoria Characters

Kristin Westbrook is sipping a cup of coffee and smiling, letting the morning light run its warm fingers through her long, blond hair. Kristin is the founder of Calm City. Pinky, her pit bull, has just returned from a romp in Astoria Park and, exhausted, is lounging in a pillow-piled bed by her side. All is calm and peaceful, as if Kristin and Pinky have not a care in the world. Kristin’s career is in graphic design. Kristin, who is being treated for metastatic breast cancer,…

Continue Reading →

Porky McDonald has told the story of the disposing of Roy Riegel’s ashes dozens of times. Porky is a lifelong baseball fan. They were die-hard Mets fans, you see, and when Roy died – on, of all days, the season opener on April 8, 2008 – Porky wanted to do something special to honor their friendship, which had commenced when they were boys going to battle with ball and bat. “His death hit me hard,” he says. So, he added, did the fact that the Mets lost to the Phillies that…

Continue Reading →

Greg Kritikos is pedaling his bicycle on 30th Avenue near 42nd Street. This is the place he grew up in, and everything – the good and the bad, the things he can’t forget and the things he doesn’t want to remember – happened to him in this neighborhood, which he’s called home for most of the past half century. Greg behind the wheel. Greg, a producer, stand-up comic and actor who has been compared to Jackie Gleason, is a larger-than-life lovable tough guy with slicked-back black…

Continue Reading →

The bright blue school bus lumbers down Ditmars Boulevard like an old elephant, treading slow and steady. Annalisa is the founder of The Blue Bus Project. When it reaches Astoria Park, it eases itself into an ample parking place by the water. The doors open, and the unconventional driver of this unconventional vehicle steps into the sunlight, smiling. Annalisa Iadicicco is an artist, and the bus is what she calls her “living and breathing mobile art gallery.” The blue bus is…

Continue Reading →

A guy in a baseball cap, oversized eyeglasses and a perfectly trimmed red beard drops a dozen dress shirts on the counter of Whiz French Cleaners on 31st Avenue. Whiz French Cleaners is at 37-02 31st Ave. He’s a regular customer, and when Peter Tummolo steps up to help him, the bearded guy asks him about his SUV, which is parked outside the shop. “You and your brother have the same car,” he says as a looks at the grey Chevy Equinox. “You must really like it.” Peter started…

Continue Reading →