JOHN THE GREEK IN THE WILD WEST by John Sitilides Published in The National Herald - October 26, 2019 ------------------------------ I am excited that  The National Herald  has given Hellenic Genealogy Geek the right to reprint articles that may be of interest to our group.  ------------------------------ Earlier this year, my koumbaro and dear friend Angelo K. Tsakopoulos drove me to Duke’s Diner in Olivehurst, CA, about 35 miles north of the state capital region of Sacramento where Angelo has achieved so much in shaping over the past half century. We stopped for a 6:30 AM breakfast en route to a tour of Angelo’s growing complex of walnut orchards in one of the most beautiful farm regions in the country.  We sat down for an eye-popping breakfast of eggs, corned beef hash, grits and fresh-baked biscuits seeping with thick, creamy gravy. But even more enticing than the sumptuous meal before us was the story that was shared by the resta...

THE GREEK ROGUE OF THE AMERICAN WEST Part Two By Steve Frangos Published in The National Herald, December 20, 2008 ------------------------------ I am excited that  The National Herald  has given Hellenic Genealogy Geek the right to reprint articles that may be of interest to our group.  ------------------------------ PART TWO From 1899 to 1909, the career of Peter George P. Attias can be documented in over fifty American newspaper accounts from towns and cities all across the United States. Posing as a world traveler, Attias claimed to be a medical doctor involved in a wager with unnamed individuals from the London Sports Club. The alleged wager involved Attias in, a round-the world trip to be completed within a fixed period of time. The terms of this wager required that Attias take no money with him but that he earned monies along the way. This Attias accomplished according to interviews he offered to an array of reporters ...

THE GREEK ROGUE OF THE AMERICAN WEST Part One By Steve Frangos Published in The National Herald, December 13, 2008 ------------------------------ I am excited that  The National Herald  has given Hellenic Genealogy Geek the right to reprint articles that may be of interest to our group.  ------------------------------ In the stories Greek Americans tell themselves rogues, criminals, and disasters (natural and otherwise) are often heard of in considerable detail. Growing up I heard many a recollection told of early misadventures in Ameriki. Traveling priests who performed funerals, marriages, or baptisms and who later turned out not to be ordained clergy. Losing one’s entire savings as a young naive ‘greenhorn’ was another often told tale. Mournful accounts of dear relatives or friends from the village killed in the mines, smelters, and during railroad accidents are still bitter memories even when told, today, by the descendants of th...