~ Malden Musings ~

Greg Oliva’s Tales from Ferryway Green

By Peter Levine

  Growing up at Ferryway continued…

“My name is Greg Oliva. I have been reading your columns for years. They are great for remembering old Malden. I grew up in Malden. MHS Class of 85. Four years Varsity Hockey 82-85. Also played baseball from Little League through Babe Ruth. A quick little story about Ferryway Green I remember to this day. It was 1980, I was playing on the Brewers. Then a Prep League team in the 13-year-old prep division. One night, my parents had gotten a call from Perry Verge asking if I could come play a game for the Colonels. Back then if Perry Verge called you up, you didn’t say no. Same for Bob Rotondi!

“So, after my parents agree to let me go up and play, I find out the Colonels are playing the Barons. The team that Scott Brooks played on. The Brooks and my family were very close, even to this day. With us living on Clifton St. and the Brooks on Vernon St. we could see each other’s houses from our houses. We were a very big hockey family. Baseball was merely something to do when not having a hockey game. Like myself, Scott and his brother Billy, my best friend, may he rest in peace, played hockey year-round. My dad and Wally Brook’s coached all year round as well.

“Anyway, back to Ferryway, the game I went up to play for the Colonels was fun. But the two biggest things about that day were Paul ‘Hammer’ Hammersly [sic] then on the Colonels, burying a long home run into the very top of the big old tree down the left field line. Back then if you hit the tree on the fly, it was an automatic home run. Hammer was a big dude back then compared to a lot of us. It was at the time one of the most amazing hits I had ever seen. An absolute moon shot. Then in the 7th inning Mr. Verge asked me to throw the inning in relief as the Colonels were up big. So, in the order that inning was Scotty coming up to bat. I had been working with a knuckleball all season in practice and at home. But I had never used it in a game. Until today. On a 2-2 count I threw it for the first time. Scotty damn near screwed himself into the ground trying to hit it. I think he swung at it twice, LOL, and still missed it. That is probably my fondest memory of the old Ferryway Green. Sports wise anyway. LOL.

“I went on to coach Little League and Babe Ruth in Malden for about 15 years. Coaching the Malden North/West Reds to a championship with Greg Leuzzi Sr. – one of my old coaches when I was a kid, and his son Greg. Three coaches named Greg, that was fun. I then went on to coach the Friars and Mariners in Babe Ruth with Gerry Magna, winning the D2 championship with the Mariners in 2010. Sports sure were fun in Malden back then.

“I moved out of Malden in 2013 living in Rowley now. But I still come to Malden as my wife still works there for Carrier on Eastern Ave. She’s been there 24 years now. I also spent 14 years on Malden Rescue 2 at the Emergency Center.

“Gone are the pick-up baseball, football, and street hockey games at every park in the city back then. As well as the flooding of Roosevelt Park in the winter to play hockey and ice skate. Long live the memories of the old Malden. The new Malden will never compare to those times in my eyes. Anyway, thanks for reading.”

Thank you, Greg Oliva, for your best memories! Malden’s youth of today are, without a doubt, making their own best memories, but I gotta agree with you, them was the days, my friend! We set a high bar!

It is said in “Malden Musings”…

• In the “you can never kiss enough derrière” department I bring to you… lawdy, lawdy, Miss Clawdy – according to written reports look what the Super of Parking Meters in Boston makes: $240,146.00. Somebody in Malden is due a huge bump! Insert smiley face.
• Mark your calendars, Maldonia, for the Inter-City League Pre-Season Reunion/Alumni Comedy Night Fundraiser Extravaganza on May 8 at (where else) Prince Pizzeria on Route 1. There’ll be as much yummy pizza as you can stomach, the compulsory silent auction and the obligatory 50/50 raffle. Expect to laugh your tookus off with funny guys Mike Hanley, Artie Januario and Johnny Pizzi (What!? No Paulie Gilligan or Dave Russo?! Blasphemous!). For a mere 50 clams you can yuk it up and rub elbows with some of the best ballplayers to ever suit up in the ICL (hello, Dave Cai) and if you are very lucky, have a selfie taken with Bowman Street’s unsung hero, Kevin Larson. Speaking of Kevin, you know his late big brother Eddie will be smiling down upon us as we gather this night. Call or text Orazio (like Madonna, Prince and Sting, he goes by just one name) at 617-839-1488 for ticket info.
• Possibly Malden’s second-best hoopster (behind Willie?), Louise Arthur’s handsome husband Buddy (happy belated b’day, btw, Buddy!) insists that Sam Winerman (with all due respect to Arthur Boyle, of course) may be the GOAT when it comes to basketball coaches in his life in Maldonia. Buddy emphasized that Coach Sam taught the game of round ball to the youngsters, taking a page directly from Red, making sure the fundamentals were stressed with each player understanding team concept and the value of playing within yourself. Sam was an icon who taught business math and algebra at MHS and was a stone-cold respected guy; a role model back in the day who mentored and coached many youngsters throughout his storied career. He served as Greater Boston League Basketball Commissioner and the City Recreation Commissioner as well as assistant Track Coach. Sam spent the early 1950s as Recreation Supervisor for the Army throughout Europe. “Holy cow!” as Phil Rizzuto used to say!
• On a Sam Winerman side note… I hope I ain’t talking out of school but after speaking with many Maldonians from that era, rumors of a “Gentleman’s Agreement” may have impeded his progress of climbing the coaching ladder in Malden.
• Lenny Welch, 1938-2025 – of “Since I Fell for You” fame – may his memory be a blessing.

“Sherman, set the Wayback Machine to…” I’ve been going deep – so deep – on the best hockey players to ever lace ’em up in Malden during my lifetime. And let me tell you, this has been no easy task. With a crew of trusted associates (thanks Dave Norton, John Lavasseur and Robbie Buckley), we’ve been hashing it out, debating, reminiscing and reliving some of the greatest moments in Malden hockey history. And now, we’re on the verge of dropping a highly anticipated piece of Malden sports lore.

Names like Dave Norton, Matty Marden, Mike & Frank Hanley, Mike Powers, Dick Rodenhiser, Bill McCormack, Brian Rutledge, Steve & Dave Surette, Jimmy Coleman, Kevin Morrison, Bobby Carroll, Johnny Taglieri, Robbie Buckley and Bobby McCarthy have all been thrown into the mix. Each left a mark on the ice, some in ways that can never be measured by stats alone.

It won’t be just a list. It’ll be a comprehensive exploration into Malden’s hockey soul – on-ice greatness, leadership, legacy and impact on the community. Stay tuned.
Before my hockey talk is over for the week, one last deep dive side note – ever heard of Dennis Murphy? Some may have because I’ve written about him in the past. If not, you’re about to. This guy wasn’t just good – he was a phenom. A Presley Street kid from Edgeworth in Ward 2 (where else?), Murph was fast-tracked to greatness as a teenager, and just like that, was playing pro in Europe. His story, like so many others, deserves to be told. I’ll be telling you that story (again) soon and a few more to boot.

As Peter Falk’s iconic TV character Columbo would say, “Just one more thing, sir” – a true legendary Malden story about a true legendary Maldonian that would play well as fiction but is in fact completely nonfictional! I bring to you…

I recently had the absolute pleasure of catching up with the CEO and founder of Brady Roofing, my old pal and the original “influencer” before we even knew what that annoying word meant: Mr. Mark Brady himself.

Mark grew up on Highland Avenue just a stone’s throw from the old Boys’ Catholic High School, nestled between the Grimeses and the Careys – a real who’s who of Maldonian royalty. Mark’s family and friends wasted no time introducing themselves to the Levines when we rolled into town back in 1963. Once the neighborhood pecking order was sorted out (as only kids in the ’60s could manage), lifelong bonds were formed. And when I say lifelong, I mean we’re staring down the barrel of 55 years of friendship. Fifty-five! That even looks weird in writing – insert smiley face?

Now, where do you even begin when talking about Mark Brady? There are so many chapters in the Book of Brady, it’s tough to pick a starting line. Do I lead with “athlete”? “Leader of the pack”? “OG”? “Dedicated follower of fashion”? The guy’s been a successful businessman, turned many a night into day (but not since 1986, I might add – insert smiley face) and – here’s the kicker – just a genuinely wicked good kid from way back when (and had some of the best hippy moss in Malden at the time; think George Harrison in his All Things Must Pass phase).

But alas, I’ve officially run out of column space. Do not fret dear readers, this ain’t the last you’ll hear of my MB lovefest. More praise from the mountaintop in the next exciting episode of “Malden Musings.” “Same bat-time, same bat-channel.”

—Peter is a longtime Malden resident and a regular contributor to The Malden Advocate. He can be reached at Pe*****@*ol.com for comments, compliments or criticisms.