Joe really was a great guy, with a wit as sharp as the elbows which earned him the moniker "The Krona Edge". I really got to know him from being on the basketball team with him, where he functioned as a "power" forward (and I use the term loosely, since he tipped the scales at about 140 soaking wet), and I as the manager who faithfully kept the shot chart and saw that the balls were kept properly inflated (could never have gotten that job with the Patriots ).
Joe's other, and well-deserved, reputation was as NCHS' Poet Laureate. The quote under his name in the yearbook quite aptly stated: "The days of long-haired poets now are o'er; the short-haired poet now seems to have the floor". Testimony to his prowess in this regard was offerred in his response to a memorable incident during a basketball game at the ancient Stamford High School gym, hardwood home of the Black Knights. At that game, I happened to have the privilege of being seated directly behind the ample frame of Don Souden, sports columnist for the New Canaan Advertiser. Midway through the game, his seat gave way under its burden, and although anchored to its frame by solid steel, was sheared off, depositing Don on the floor where he remained for the balance of the game. We took the seat back to NCHS, and mounted it in the display case outside the gym, inscribed with Joe's immortal lines:
'Twas a mighty tail this seat did set upon
Belonged to our own 'Big Don'
Unfortunately, Joe was one of the first to leave us. He was a wonderful member of our class, has long been missed and will long continue to be.
Greg Raymond’s and Chris Carlson’s thoughtful remarks portray Joe well. My comments reflect my long friendship and experiences with him. My family moved to New Canaan I 1957 and I first met Joe that year in 4th grade at St Aloysius School. We remained classmates through graduation at NCHS and friends until his passing in 1974. We bonded at Saint Aloysius primarily from being teammates on all of the school’s sports teams in mostly losing causes. We often met after school at each other’s house and in the early years of friendship we would play Army hours on end in the woods behind his house. Little did we know then that we would both choose the military for our profession.
The start of high school brought us closer as the vast majority of the freshman class came from Saxe JH and we hung out together and mostly with other graduates of St A’s . Joe had a magnetic and outgoing personality and quickly made friends becoming one of the most popular and well known of our classmates! We did some wild things in HS but none more so than the Bookie Ring we ran during a World Series with Ed McMahon and Kevin O’Brien. We booked bets on the Yankees winning and they lost badly resulting in our obligations far exceeding our meager resources. We resorted to organizing a bake sale in which all of our mothers and my girlfriend Marilyn Lewis - now my wife, baked all manner of cookies, pies and cakes for us to sell and raise $ to pay off our debts. This event became known as the Bookie Bake Sale! Lots of laughs but a tough lesson learned! I entered NCHS five inches taller than Joe and graduated five inches shorter. He finally caught up with his height in his senior year and lettered in three sports. That year foreshadowed the great basketball career he would have at Trinity College!
During our college years we remained close and saw each other during the short breaks that I had from West Point. He visited me on campus a few times and Marilyn and I went to a couple of his basketball games during Christmas break! He really was a great player for Trinity! Most of our conversations during college turned serious as we pondered life after graduation – me in the Army and Joe in the Marine Corps. He called me the night after the Kent State shootings and we talked long into the night! A week later Marilyn and I attended his commissioning at Trinity and a few days later he came to mine at West Point! The following Saturday he was a groomsman at our wedding. We started our careers and I saw him one more time between assignments as Joe was headed overseas and I had just returned. He had recently married Betsy Andronaco and they were very happy.
I was at Fort Benning, Georgia when my brother Bob called to tell me that they had prayed for the repose of Joe’s soul at Mass that Sunday morning! I was numb and then overwhelmed. I returned to New Canaan and was a pall bearer at his funeral. There were so many people attending from our days at St A’s and NCHS as well as his fellow Marines – what a tribute to Joe! I still think about him – Joe was the best! Well done brother - be thou at peace!
Good notes on Joe. Love the memories. He was my very best friend in 2nd grade at South School. First day of school, I brought about a four foot length of a steel ball chain to class. Joe saw it, came over and said he'd be my best friend if I gave it to him. That's what happened. We too, even then, played soldiers endlessly with those little green plastic guys like the ones revived in Toy Story.
One summer day at Kiwanis Park, we were fooling around and a lttle toddler came up to us to ask what we were doing. Joe gave a funny response and the little kid said "Wah Da, Wha?" That became our call phrase.
In High School, we pursued separate paths, but always when we passed in the halls, the greeting would be "Wha Da, Wha?"
I was crushed to hear of his tragedy. Way too young to leave us and way too much he would have given to his fellow man had he stayed on.
thanks guys so much for the stories of Joe. I always thought he was one of the most warmest, friendliest boys in our class. He always made me feel happy to be around him. I so appreciate hearing about his life.
Joe and I used to walk home from NCHS together. I'm not sure how it began, but we were regular "walking buddies" for at least the years until we got cars. He and I laughed about something or other all the way home. He generally left me chuckling after I left him too, because we reached his house first. I think I managed to make him laugh a few times, but the percentages definitely favored him.
At one point he and I discovered that we shared the same desk in successive periods in Mrs. Johnstone's class. So, the note-writing began. We left ( for a while) regular notes to one another. At this point I don't remember which of us had the first class and which the second, but suffice it to say that when the "mail service" was discovered by Mrs. Johnstone ( one of us had used the other's name, and signed the note as well...) she had one of us (ME!) in after school to wash not only "our" desk, but all of the rest of the ones in her room as well.
Joe, of course, thought this hilarious ( which it WAS!!) and it was further "joke fuel" for our walks home. I loved that guy. Years later, when my children were in South School, Joe's widow Betsy had remarried and her children were at South School as well. We talked one day about Joe, and I shared that story with her. She was grateful for it even then. Obviously a love-match that would have stood the test of time. So many of us shared parts of his life, but Betsy had so much more, and I'd be willing to bet that she treasures his memory still.
In 1970 the Trinity basketball team came to Amherst and I went to watch Joe play. It was incredible to see how his body had matured since high school. He had grown 6-7" in a short period at NCHS and it must have taken him a few years to get his coordination, but boy did he! He is still the all-time scoring leader for Trinity College with a 25.3 points per game average and was a Division III All-American. The last time I saw Joe was after the game when we had a nice chat. He was a great character and a great friend.
Joe was always the Go-To Guy when you needed help on and off the playing fields. If he wasn't playing the sport, he was a manager. If he wasn't in the play, he was on the stage crew. It wasn't enough just to go to the proms, he would sell tickets, hang decorations and clean up! And, poems! Oh those poems! Whenever there was a rally before a game, I would ask Joe to give us a few verses...they were humorous, inspirational, personal and so Joe! His yearbook quote..."The days of long-haired poets now are o'er, the short-haired poet seems to have the floor."
He was truly a wonderful person...non-judgmental, welcoming and giving. He is missed but not forgotten.
I would like to share with everyone a memory I have of Joe. It is when I was in high school gym class and basketball was the sport of the day. I was not good in most sports, particularly basketball, but, nonetheles, Coach Sikorski asked Joe to help me learn some of the fundamentals of shooting baskets. Although I did not enjoy this activity and still dislike basketball, I deeply remember the patience Joe had giving me instruction. His teaching was devoid of ridicule and irritation over my lack of skills. It is those qualities I take from those moments with him. I believe he carried those characteristics through the rest of his life culminating with his Marine Corps career. I would add that as Knight of Columbus in my parish church I got to know a former Marine captain who served in Vietnam and knew Joe, but not very well. He is deeply missed by me.
Chris Carlson
Joe really was a great guy, with a wit as sharp as the elbows which earned him the moniker "The Krona Edge". I really got to know him from being on the basketball team with him, where he functioned as a "power" forward (and I use the term loosely, since he tipped the scales at about 140 soaking wet), and I as the manager who faithfully kept the shot chart and saw that the balls were kept properly inflated (could never have gotten that job with the Patriots
).
Joe's other, and well-deserved, reputation was as NCHS' Poet Laureate. The quote under his name in the yearbook quite aptly stated: "The days of long-haired poets now are o'er; the short-haired poet now seems to have the floor". Testimony to his prowess in this regard was offerred in his response to a memorable incident during a basketball game at the ancient Stamford High School gym, hardwood home of the Black Knights. At that game, I happened to have the privilege of being seated directly behind the ample frame of Don Souden, sports columnist for the New Canaan Advertiser. Midway through the game, his seat gave way under its burden, and although anchored to its frame by solid steel, was sheared off, depositing Don on the floor where he remained for the balance of the game. We took the seat back to NCHS, and mounted it in the display case outside the gym, inscribed with Joe's immortal lines:
'Twas a mighty tail this seat did set upon
Belonged to our own 'Big Don'
Unfortunately, Joe was one of the first to leave us. He was a wonderful member of our class, has long been missed and will long continue to be.
Bill Saunders
Greg Raymond’s and Chris Carlson’s thoughtful remarks portray Joe well. My comments reflect my long friendship and experiences with him. My family moved to New Canaan I 1957 and I first met Joe that year in 4th grade at St Aloysius School. We remained classmates through graduation at NCHS and friends until his passing in 1974. We bonded at Saint Aloysius primarily from being teammates on all of the school’s sports teams in mostly losing causes. We often met after school at each other’s house and in the early years of friendship we would play Army hours on end in the woods behind his house. Little did we know then that we would both choose the military for our profession.
The start of high school brought us closer as the vast majority of the freshman class came from Saxe JH and we hung out together and mostly with other graduates of St A’s . Joe had a magnetic and outgoing personality and quickly made friends becoming one of the most popular and well known of our classmates! We did some wild things in HS but none more so than the Bookie Ring we ran during a World Series with Ed McMahon and Kevin O’Brien. We booked bets on the Yankees winning and they lost badly resulting in our obligations far exceeding our meager resources. We resorted to organizing a bake sale in which all of our mothers and my girlfriend Marilyn Lewis - now my wife, baked all manner of cookies, pies and cakes for us to sell and raise $ to pay off our debts. This event became known as the Bookie Bake Sale! Lots of laughs but a tough lesson learned! I entered NCHS five inches taller than Joe and graduated five inches shorter. He finally caught up with his height in his senior year and lettered in three sports. That year foreshadowed the great basketball career he would have at Trinity College!
During our college years we remained close and saw each other during the short breaks that I had from West Point. He visited me on campus a few times and Marilyn and I went to a couple of his basketball games during Christmas break! He really was a great player for Trinity! Most of our conversations during college turned serious as we pondered life after graduation – me in the Army and Joe in the Marine Corps. He called me the night after the Kent State shootings and we talked long into the night! A week later Marilyn and I attended his commissioning at Trinity and a few days later he came to mine at West Point! The following Saturday he was a groomsman at our wedding. We started our careers and I saw him one more time between assignments as Joe was headed overseas and I had just returned. He had recently married Betsy Andronaco and they were very happy.
I was at Fort Benning, Georgia when my brother Bob called to tell me that they had prayed for the repose of Joe’s soul at Mass that Sunday morning! I was numb and then overwhelmed. I returned to New Canaan and was a pall bearer at his funeral. There were so many people attending from our days at St A’s and NCHS as well as his fellow Marines – what a tribute to Joe! I still think about him – Joe was the best! Well done brother - be thou at peace!
Bob Janis
Greg, Chris and Bill,
Good notes on Joe. Love the memories. He was my very best friend in 2nd grade at South School. First day of school, I brought about a four foot length of a steel ball chain to class. Joe saw it, came over and said he'd be my best friend if I gave it to him. That's what happened. We too, even then, played soldiers endlessly with those little green plastic guys like the ones revived in Toy Story.
One summer day at Kiwanis Park, we were fooling around and a lttle toddler came up to us to ask what we were doing. Joe gave a funny response and the little kid said "Wah Da, Wha?" That became our call phrase.
In High School, we pursued separate paths, but always when we passed in the halls, the greeting would be "Wha Da, Wha?"
I was crushed to hear of his tragedy. Way too young to leave us and way too much he would have given to his fellow man had he stayed on.
Candy Creamer (Sweet)
thanks guys so much for the stories of Joe. I always thought he was one of the most warmest, friendliest boys in our class. He always made me feel happy to be around him. I so appreciate hearing about his life.
Harry Day
The tributes to Joe are so wonderful and complete that I cannot add anything to them. Thank you all for remembering him so eloquently.
Lauren Holt
Joe and I used to walk home from NCHS together. I'm not sure how it began, but we were regular "walking buddies" for at least the years until we got cars. He and I laughed about something or other all the way home. He generally left me chuckling after I left him too, because we reached his house first. I think I managed to make him laugh a few times, but the percentages definitely favored him.
At one point he and I discovered that we shared the same desk in successive periods in Mrs. Johnstone's class. So, the note-writing began. We left ( for a while) regular notes to one another. At this point I don't remember which of us had the first class and which the second, but suffice it to say that when the "mail service" was discovered by Mrs. Johnstone ( one of us had used the other's name, and signed the note as well...) she had one of us (ME!) in after school to wash not only "our" desk, but all of the rest of the ones in her room as well.
Joe, of course, thought this hilarious ( which it WAS!!) and it was further "joke fuel" for our walks home. I loved that guy. Years later, when my children were in South School, Joe's widow Betsy had remarried and her children were at South School as well. We talked one day about Joe, and I shared that story with her. She was grateful for it even then. Obviously a love-match that would have stood the test of time. So many of us shared parts of his life, but Betsy had so much more, and I'd be willing to bet that she treasures his memory still.
Barry DeLapp
In 1970 the Trinity basketball team came to Amherst and I went to watch Joe play. It was incredible to see how his body had matured since high school. He had grown 6-7" in a short period at NCHS and it must have taken him a few years to get his coordination, but boy did he! He is still the all-time scoring leader for Trinity College with a 25.3 points per game average and was a Division III All-American. The last time I saw Joe was after the game when we had a nice chat. He was a great character and a great friend.
Susan Soltis (Fixary)
Joe was always the Go-To Guy when you needed help on and off the playing fields. If he wasn't playing the sport, he was a manager. If he wasn't in the play, he was on the stage crew. It wasn't enough just to go to the proms, he would sell tickets, hang decorations and clean up! And, poems! Oh those poems! Whenever there was a rally before a game, I would ask Joe to give us a few verses...they were humorous, inspirational, personal and so Joe! His yearbook quote..."The days of long-haired poets now are o'er, the short-haired poet seems to have the floor."
He was truly a wonderful person...non-judgmental, welcoming and giving. He is missed but not forgotten.
Sandy Harlow
Barb Scott called my attention today to a photo of Joe Pantalone that was posted in the New Canaan Facebook group
Doug Stormont
I would like to share with everyone a memory I have of Joe. It is when I was in high school gym class and basketball was the sport of the day. I was not good in most sports, particularly basketball, but, nonetheles, Coach Sikorski asked Joe to help me learn some of the fundamentals of shooting baskets. Although I did not enjoy this activity and still dislike basketball, I deeply remember the patience Joe had giving me instruction. His teaching was devoid of ridicule and irritation over my lack of skills. It is those qualities I take from those moments with him. I believe he carried those characteristics through the rest of his life culminating with his Marine Corps career. I would add that as Knight of Columbus in my parish church I got to know a former Marine captain who served in Vietnam and knew Joe, but not very well. He is deeply missed by me.
Doug