The Famous, the Familiar and the Forgotten

About the Book

The book that brings America's gateway city to life. Newark, New Jersey, is not only one of the oldest cities in the country but also a place that notable Americans from all walks of life have called home. Among the famous are Thomas Edison, Aaron Burr, Sarah Vaughan, Whitney Houston, Jerome Kern, Shaquille O'Neal, Queen Latifah, Allen Ginsberg, Amiri Baraka, Jackie Gleason, Eva Marie Saint, Rod Steiger, Frankie Valli, Joe Pesci, and Wyclef Jean. Familiar names include the likes of Ed Koch, Dutch Schultz, Washington Irving, Fanny Brice, and Marvin Hagler. And then there are those who enjoyed their moment in the spotlight but have mostly faded from memory, like silent film star Harold Lockwood, Wimbledon champ Ted Schroeder, TV cop David Toma, and opera diva Maria Jeritza. For the first time, The Famous, the Familiar and the Forgotten brings together in a single volume these celebrated personalities and many more just like them in a salute to the city that gave them their start or helped them along the way to renown. Included with entries are address listings. So come take a journey beginning with its founding in 1666 to a city with a roster of remarkable residents as impressive as any place in the country—Newark, New Jersey, home to history.

About the Author

Guy Sterling is a longtime resident of Newark and a strong advocate for keeping the city's rich history alive. In the nearly thirty years he spent as a newspaper reporter with the Star-Ledger, he wrote a variety of stories on Newark's past. He also put together historical pieces on the city that aired on Newark's WBGO Jazz Radio 88.3. Sterling has a bachelor's degree from the University of Virginia and a master's from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism. This is his second book.