RIP Little Jimmy
I met Little Jimmy over 20+ years ago when I was a teenager. Little Jimmy worked some odd jobs back then. He handed out papers on 86th Street and I often stopped to talk with him because he was so engaging (he wore an elf outfit at Christmas time and stood in front of a jewelry). Jimmy told my friends and I about his life and was quite pleasant. Over the years, I would run into Jimmy on the train or on the streets in Manhattan or in Bay Ridge and he would remember the last time we spoke. I remember one time he told my friend and I that we could hire him to be a stripper for bachelorette parties. I remember laughing so much after this conversation!
Little Jimmy had many jobs as an entertainer on the Coney Island Museum and Boardwalk. Jimmy was even in the off-Broadway show called Carnival Knowledge (Lee loves Coney Island so I took him to the show in 2003). Bay Ridge often saw Jimmy dressed as elf for a jewelry store on 86th Street. I remember Jimmy telling my friend and I that he was in Charlie and Chocolate Factory – he is the cute oompa loompa.
On Saturday, April 4th, I heard that Little Jimmy had died at Coney Island Hospital. I was sad to hear the news, but I guess I didn’t realize that Jimmy was 67 years old. Over the years, sometimes when I ran into Jimmy, I could tell he wasn’t feeling well. He wasn’t as chatty and sometimes seemed like he was in a bad mood. The last time I saw him during the winter, I thought he looked tired. RIP James Mastrangelo.
Thanks Kathryn for sending the link to this video.
Hugs,
marlene
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