Interview of Vincenzo Zarrilli

vincent pdf.pdf

Title

Interview of Vincenzo Zarrilli

Subject

Oral History, Italian-American, South Florida

Description

  • Name: (Vincenzo) Vincent Zarrilli
  • Place and date of birth: Calitri (Avellino, Italy)
  • Family origin:
    • Mother: Antonietta (from Calitri, Avellino)
    • Father: Giovanni Zarrilli (from Calitri, Avellino)
  • Spoken languages:
    • Italian (native language)
    • English (near native proficiency)
    • Neapolitan dialect
  • Relocation in Florida: Boca Raton, 1998

List of the Italian Expressions and Traditions Mentioned in the interview:

  • “America is for young people”
  • “pick and shovel”
  • Wooden suitcase full of notebooks and books
  • A bottle full of soil from VZ’s vineyard
  • Cingoli or cavatelli (kinds of dumpling)

Creator

Vincenzo Zarrilli

Source

Interview

Publisher

Program of Italian of the Department of Languages, Linguistics and Comparative Literature, Florida Atlantic University

Date

02-03-2017

Contributor

Viviana Pezzullo

Rights

Program of Italian of the Department of Languages, Linguistics and Comparative Literature, Florida Atlantic University

Relation

Italian-American Oral History Collection at Florida Atlantic University Digital Library

Format

Audio mp3

Language

it, en

Type

Oral History

Coverage

US-FL, 2017

Original Format

Audio mp3

Duration

00:16:55

Bit Rate/Frequency

130Kbits/s

Transcription

See Attached File

Interviewer

Viviana Pezzullo

Interviewee

Vincenzo Zarrilli

Location

VZ's house

Time Summary

00:01 - 00:19

VZ presents himself in Italian. He arrived to New York in 1963, as young boy, with his parents.

00:20 - 00:27

VZ moved to Florida in 1998

00:33 - 00:50

VZ’ s description of his native village in Italy

00:55 - 01:01

It’s time to leave Italy

01:02 - 01:10

“America is for young people”

01:20 - 01-54

VZ’s life as an Italian-American

02:00 - 02:51

VZ description of his job

02:52 - 03:57

VZ’s first impression of Florida was not to memorable

04:12 - 04:26

Life is unpredictable: Florida as a paradise

04:41 - 06:06

VZ’ s rediscovering of Italian heritage

06:10 - 08:21

Once upon a time: crossing the Atlantic to

follow the American dream

08:23 - 09:21

VZ’s arrival to New York

09:34 - 09:40

The immigrants in the lower part of the ship

09:45 - 10:02

The coat...

10:20 - 10:48

VZ’s suitcase made by his uncle

10:53 - 12:47

VZ’s experience as a young immigrant student in an American school

13:08 - 13:22

The assimilation

 

13:54 - 14:05

VZ’s trip back to his native village after the 1980’s earthquake that destroyed his hometown

14:07 - 15:00

VZ’s description of artifacts he brought back from his small village: the bottle full of the earth from his vineyard

15:03 - 16:55

VZ’ s legacy of his mother’s cooking

Citation

Vincenzo Zarrilli, “Interview of Vincenzo Zarrilli,” Italian-American Memories: Documentary Archive, accessed January 18, 2026, https://itamm.omeka.net/items/show/270.