Community Remembers Hometown Celebrity

Canonsburg celebrated the 100th birthday of legendary crooner Perry Como with , a dedicated to the memory of the hometown celebrity. The town partied with food, music and a sock hop.

People came from all across the globe to partake in the rich musical heritage of , remembering one of the town's favorite sons. Some Perry Como fans flew in from Italy and South America. Frank LoVullo drove down from Buffalo, NY.

"I've been following him (Como) for 32 years," LoVullo said. He did a lot for Italian Americans in this country. He showed America that we're not all gangsters."

LoVullo had trouble choosing which Como tune was his favorite but he decided on two, "I Want to Give" and "You Are Never Far from Me."

, one of township supervisors, shared personal family anecdotes about the singer.

"My grandmother, Angelina Falcocchio, used to babysit for Perry's younger siblings. She would say whenever Perry was in town there would be a big gathering ... a welcome home party ... and my grandma would go to the top of the stairs, look over the balcony and peek at the party. Then, she would go right back to babysitting."

Stopperich added, "My grandfather on the other side, Thomas Bucci, used to cut hair with Perry Como."

Many stores along Pike were paying homage to the singer. Hidden Treasures had the largest collection of Perry Como memorabilia, donated by Terry Hazlett and the Perry Como Fan Club.

Deb Baumgardner, manager of Hidden Treasures, said, "I met Perry Como once when I was 13. I went to lunch at Beechies and I saw him there. I tugged on his coat and said, 'I saw you on television. You're Perry Como!' He turned to me and said, 'And you're a cute little red-headed freckled girl.' I will never forget that. I can still see him standing there. He was very nice looking, quiet and reserved."

The Washington Jazz Society played a variety of music at the event. They covered Glenn Miller, Lerner and Lowe, and many famous standards, and also payed tribute to Como.

"We went to the luncheon and the Heritage Society showed a slide show presentation about Perry from his birth onward," Stopperich said. "It was really special. It was one of my favorite parts of the weekend."

Steve Kutzner, who was manning the Verizon booth, said, "We and I love it here."