Writa Writes and Reads with Rita Mattia

This is another so-called "bonus" episode —included in the podcast but not aired on a regular day. In this story, Rita Mattia recalls the preparation of elaborate meals using recipes and techniques passed down from the Campania region of Italy, in the province of Avellino. 

The early days of television — and television advertising — spring to life in a story about mid 20thcentury in-home entertainment. And, of course, Rita Mattia’s family in Northern New Jersey figures prominently. 

Rita Mattia and her son migrate south from Baltimore, Maryland to Richmond, Virginia and encounter some interesting characters in a laundromat. This poignant story appears in her book, “Trying Stuff.”  Copies are available from her publisher, www.marinermedia.com

How do products you see advertised get their names? How does charity knitting figure into a story about that?  Rita Mattia weaves it all together in this story about advertising, needlework, gender, and cats.

Where did Rita Mattia really journey? Was time travel involved? What about fried catfish?  In this "bonus" episode, she remembers successful and not-so-successful attempts at becoming a screenwriter. 

More about Rita Mattia's life in Northern New Jersey in the 1950s, including a Victrola, a parade, and reflections on the beautiful Lenni-Lenape people — forced from their land to make room for all that. 

Recollections from Rita Mattia’s childhood, spent among first- and second-generation immigrants in northern New Jersey during the early 1950s

What would you do if a stranger called and told you about a million-dollar inheritance?  Rita Mattia goes from smart aleck to sleuth in this story involving dozens of cousins.

A careless conductor, a failed train engine, a folk guitar and other factors complicate 20th century train travel for Mattia, her friends and her son. In a moment of fear and frustration, Mattia says a vulgar word.

What happens when Rita Mattia gets her very own live radio show for the visually handicapped in Richmond, Virginia? Far more than expected. And far less.