A tribute to 'Something Special' & my friend Lenny

LENNY - THE MAN!

Leonard Cecere, or as he was better known, Lenny, my friend, passed away in February at the ripe old age of 91.

Lenny was a pillar of the community, running his 'Something Special' storefront in Greenwich Village since the late 60s, early 70s.

And my aunt Laura had worked alongside him for almost as long. When I was young I spent many Summers staying with my aunt & uncle in their Soho apartment. I would accompany my aunt daily to Something Special, located at the corner of Houston and MacDougal.

Auntie would help Lenny run the store, specifically sorting all the mail and packages that arrived for the likes of Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick to Lucy Lawless and Princess Carole Radziwill.

My job was to help my aunt. I would help sort the mail and Lenny paid me very well for my services. Cash and candy! To a nine year old, cash and candy was like striking the lottery. Lenny was the sweetest. And for a California girl, his New Yorker attitude and jokes always made me laugh. He made me laugh when he wasn't even trying to!

Lenny, like his store, was indeed Something Special. Everybody knew Lenny. You just weren't cool if you didn't know Lenny. It was thanks to him that I got an autograph from Matthew Broderick. And it was thanks to him that I got to meet Carole Radziwill [princess, journalist & now you see her on the Real Housewives of New York].

Lenny had the hook-up!

Lenny was THE man.

And I am proud to have known him. Greenwich Village will never be the same for me now. New York lost an incredible and indelible man. He is missed very much.

SOMETHING SPECIAL, GREENWICH VILLAGE

HANGING OUT W/ PRINCESS CAROLE RADZIWILL AT SOMETHING SPECIAL

LENNY & MY AUNT LAURA. THIS CARTOON DRAWING SOMEONE MADE OF THEM ALWAYS HUNG UP IN THE SHOP...AS A FUNNY REMINDER THAT IF YOU HAD A MAILBOX THERE, YOU BETTER REMEMBER TO PAY YOUR DUES!