The car which can be seen outside on the opposite side of Astor Place appears to be a 1952 Chevrolet Bel Air hardtop. This photo was taken when I was in the second or third grade which would put the year as 1959 or 1960. ('Click' on photo to see a color photo of a 1952 Chevrolet Bel Air hardtop).

Your website is wonderful! I'm about a year older than you and grew up in the projects on Staten Island, but can relate to all of your memorabilia, anecdotes, etc., of what life was like for kids back then. The reason I'm contacting you is that I worked in Jersey City at the IRS office from '72 through '80. We were located at 591 Summit Ave. (corner of Newark Ave) at first and then moved to 30 Montgomery St. near Exchange Place.

I saw your mention of Lafayette Stallings in one of the class photos (leftmost row, 2nd from front), and your description of him as "class clown" is right on the money. He worked in our office for about two years, I would say 1973 & 1974. We were friends at the time, had lunch together a lot, and played basketball many times after work at various places he knew in JC, mostly outdoor playgrounds where the competition was pretty good. I remember him saying he was friends with Kool Bell and some of the other guys in the "Gang." I wasn't too crazy about their switch to the mellow sound in the late '70's, but I digress.

I lost touch with Lafayette after he left our office. Do you know if he's still living in the area? I would think of looking him up and having a drink or whatever if he's in the area. I'm presently living in Monmouth County, retired after a 36-year career with Uncle Sam.

Larry Chorman