What happens when family history inspires a novel? In Episode 110 of Italian American Stories, author Cheryl A. Ossola shares her Italian roots, surprising genealogical discoveries, and the forgotten history of Italian immigrant stonecutters in Barre, Vermont, that inspired her novel How Long a Shadow.

Daniel Paterna, author of Feast of the Seven Fishes, shares how family recipes, photographs, neighborhood shops, and memories of growing up Italian American in Bensonhurst inspired him to preserve generations of food, family, and tradition.

Dr. Elizabeth Turner joins Italian American Stories to share how her family’s journey from Italy to America inspired Ciao Bambino, a musical and novella celebrating family, heritage, music, and the courage to begin again.

Writer and family historian Kevin Ferguson shares the story of Gemello Winery—from his great-grandfather’s immigration from Piedmont and the challenges of Prohibition to the family’s remarkable victory at a Judgment of Paris anniversary tasting.

After surviving the Ludlow Massacre, Italian American mother Mary Petrucci found the courage to tell the world about the children she lost. Discover her heartbreaking story of family, sacrifice, and determination during one of the darkest events in Colorado history.

Author and journalist Lara Brenckle Malmont joins Italian American Stories Podcast to share her search for the grandfather she never knew. What began as a family history mystery uncovered the remarkable story of Filippo Arturo Venezia—later Philip Leo Brenckle—and a forgotten chapter of early 20th-century Pittsburgh history that inspired her novel, Three Rivers Home.

Meet George Noce, the Italian American gardener whose thousands of tulips transformed Denver’s Civic Center—and whose generosity brought flowers, goldfish, and happiness to children throughout the city.

Follow the Marasco family’s journey from Italy to Grand Junction, Colorado—a powerful story of sacrifice, discrimination, heartbreak, resilience, and the determination to build a better life in America.

During World War II, more than 1,200 Italian nationals were held at Fort Missoula in Montana. In Episode 102 of Italian American Stories Podcast, discover the forgotten story of Bella Vista—a remarkable community built behind barbed wire that reveals a little-known chapter of American and Italian history.

Long before Grand Junction became the city we know today, an Italian immigrant named Nunzio Grasso helped shape Western Colorado—one stone at a time. Discover the remarkable story of the Italian stonemason whose craftsmanship still stands more than a century later.

For Episode 100 of Italian American Stories, author Chris Massari shares the heartbreaking true story of his great-aunt, Augustina Massari, and how her family's history inspired his upcoming graphic novel, The Mafia vs. The Klan. A conversation about Italian American heritage, genealogy, resilience, and preserving our ancestors' stories.

What started as a search for family history became a life-changing journey. Kris Rini shares how researching his Italian roots led to finding relatives in Calabria, restoring his family's original surname, and ultimately earning Italian citizenship.

At 14 years old, Marcella Flanagan left New York and returned to post-war Bari, Italy. In Episode 98, Marcella and her niece, Phyllis Orlowski, share an extraordinary story of family, resilience, and living between two cultures.

In 1911, Sicilian immigrant Concetto Formica was murdered while working as a musician with a traveling carnival in North Carolina. What happened next is one of the strangest stories we've ever researched. His embalmed body remained in a funeral home's garage for 61 years, where generations of locals came to know him as "The Italian Mummy." Join Stephanie and Sandy as they revisit this remarkable true story with new research and fresh conversation.

After years of dreaming about it, we finally made the journey to Italy. Join us as we travel through Rome, Matera, Potenza, the Amalfi Coast, and Pompeii while exploring our family's roots in Basilicata. Along the way, we share unforgettable moments, incredible food, local festivals, and the emotional discovery of the Smaldone family tomb in Potenza.

In Episode 95 of Italian American Stories, we tell the tragic and often overlooked story of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca — the forgotten victims of the Manson murders. We explore their Italian American roots, the horrifying events inside their Los Angeles home, and the strange details that still haunt this case today.

A mysterious fire in Denver… and a strange Ouija house in California. In this episode, we uncover two bizarre Italian American stories filled with unanswered questions, obsession, and events that still don’t make sense.

A DNA test in her 50s revealed a life-changing truth—Christine McBurney was half Italian. What followed was a powerful journey into family secrets, identity, and the discovery of a father she never knew.

In 1906 Denver, a young Italian immigrant named Carmelina Fiorino shot and killed her husband—but was it murder or self-defense? This shocking case of love, control, and survival captivated the city and still raises questions today.

A powerful Italian immigrant story of resilience, hardship, and the American Dream—following Joseph Benvenuti who started working at just six years old and built a life that shaped generations.