Write a commentSince Father's Day is soon approaching, I thought the best person to pay tribute to this month would be my dad, John T. Sullivan Sr. (1915-1983).
Sully, as he was known to most of his friends, was a doer, a mover and a shaker, who lit up any room he walked into by the sheer force of his very outgoing personality. He was a linotype operator "extraordinaire" by day, and a short order cook at night at Sully's diner, on West Bridge Street, near the Forks of the road (where Friendly's Ice cream now stands.) He was a World War II veteran of the Amy Air Corps, as well.
My father always exhorted me to have "one job, and one job alone," as he felt he often stretched himself too thin with two and at times, even three jobs. I never did follow that advice. Maybe the apple didn't fall far after all. When I was running for mayor (of Oswego), people criticized me for having too many things to do on my plate (lawyer, school attorney, chair of the College Council, etc.) We answered that by saying, "Busy people get things done." While there is some truth to that, it is also true that burning the candle at several ends at once, can have a long term exhausting effect.
For several years he would work 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Palladium-Times, setting type, then deliver papers on a rural route that went as far as Pulaski, then come home for a quick supper with family before heading to his diner to work the night shift scrambling eggs, flipping pancakes,and serving up Sully's famous original Texas Hots. It was Sully's Texas Hot recipe that Rudy Gadzalia envied, but my dad would never sell it to him, despite Rudy's repeated entreaties. There was an interesting story about how he originally got the recipe and it involved an all-night card game at a place in Rochester called "Machine Gun Charlie's," but that's the stuff for another column someday.
My dad closed the diner in 1956...(but) Sully's Texas hots were and are still the best, with their special ingredients (which included cinnamon and paprika, but no tomato sauce). You had to "cook it down," my dad would say, when making a batch of it. The sweet smell of the real deal Texas hot sauce is a scent that lingers with you for a lifetime!
Sully was always involved in something. He became president of the local typesetter's union, which was part of the ITU ( International Typographical Union). He was involved in the local Moose Club, and became governor of the Moose Lodge 743, a job which he proudly held for several years. As kids, we always enjoyed the annual Moose Lodge Christmas party and stories about Moose Haven, and other great eleemosynary activities of the Benevolent order. He was also named Chief Agimitator of the Moose Club and given a trophy for that dubious honor, which I still have and proudly display. An "Agimitator," it seems, is someone who walks into a room, riles everyone up, gets them jousting with one another, and then slips out the door with a smile on his face.
His fraternal activities didn't stop there. He was a member of the Elks, the American Legion, the VFW and the Ancient Order of Hibernians, where he would tend bar in his retirement years.
Dad also held the city concession license to sell soda pop and hot dogs at Otis field during the high school football games, and at the Oswego Genesee Baseball games. He also had a stand at the Fort Ontario Softball fields, where he sold his wares. He and his partner in culinary crime, Dave Henderson, were as famous for their popcorn stands, as for their Texas Hots.
I remember one Saturday when dad came home after a long day of concessioneering and we were all running down the street to a neighbor's house to watch the Mickey Mouse Club on our neighbor's new TV. Not to be outdone, dad went across the street from our house to Gover's Department Store and plunked down $500 cash (the days earnings, from Otis Field, which had to be an enormous sum back then) for a new TV on condition that they would deliver it immediately. He wanted his kids to be with him, not off watching someone else's TV. I will never forget in later years when we kids got together and bought my parents a new color TV and dad came home from a long day at work, and then, no doubt, Wood's bar and Grill, only to fall asleep on the couch and to awaken watching Huntley/Brinkley, while we waited for his reaction.It took a while, but he finally exclaimed.."Color..It's in color!" as he choked up like the sentimental Irishman he always was. That is one of my fondest memories. We pulled a fast one on Sully!
Sully's impact on the community was substantial, as was the legacy he left us, and the impact his children would have on Oswego as well. I know he was as proud of us as he was his "Bloody 5th Ward" Irish Heritage. It is comforting for us to know that his Irish eyes are forever smiling down on us from above.
Happy Father's Day, John Thomas Sullivan Sr. Your spirit endures and is as "Welcome as the flowers in May!" We miss you, Dad!
