S.F.Vanni, 30 West 12th Street 

Refreshments.

The elder of Andrea Ragusa's daughters, Olga, arrived in New York with her family in 1931 and pursued an academic career, reaching the position of Professor Emeritus at Columbia University. A charismatic and beloved teacher, she was Chair of the Italian Department from 1963 to 1992. From 1968 to 1984 she was the editor-in-chief of the journal Italica. Among her many scholarly publications is her study of her father's life in publishing, Andrea Ragusa Editore-libraio italiano a New York dal 1931 al 1974.*

Alessandro Cassin: Do you recall what books were most important to you as a child?
Olga Ragusa: Yes, Cinderella above all.

AC: Were you read to, and in what language?
OR: My mother read to me in both Italian and in German.

AC: I saw a loving letter that your father wrote to you in 1931, while he was in the States and you and your mother and sister in Merano. Besides expressing fatherly affection he encouraged you in your studies, languages in particular. Clearly your father valued education and literature, could you tell us something of the role that education and literature played in your life?

OR: Literature and education were very important for my father. He was a perfectionist in all his endeavors.He never tired, not even when his health was at risk.

As far as my career plans, as a girl I had wish to become a soprano and sing at the Opera. When we got to New York I remember being taken to hear Beniamino Gigli.

Music was an essential part of our family life, Italian and German music. I  began my primary education in Milano, in 1929-30 at the Scuola Elementare Laura Visconti Ciceri, in Via Palermo.

In the report card from that first year one of the subjects was canto, singing... After my early education in Italy, I followed the path of all American students.  

AC: How do you think your personal background affected your education and cultural outlook?

OR: The daughter of a German mother and an Italian father, I never forgot my origins and always strived for continuity, in the midst of humanity's forward and backward thrusts, despite the world's historical development which instead pushed toward discontinuity through wars and persecutions.

AC: In the first part of the 20th Century, the Casa Italiana, under Prezzolini's direction, played a central cultural role as a bridge between Italian culture and American academia. Can you describe those achievements and what you think its role may be in the future?

OR: During Prezzolini's lifetime (1882-1982) there were countless events in Italy and abroad that changed alliances and balances of power, both politically and culturally. This was in part reflected in the activities at the Casa Italiana.

The Casa Italiana was built thanks to contributions of Italian immigrants who grew rich and made a mark in various fields, particularly in construction. In fact the Casa Italiana was donated to Columbia University in much the same way as the Maison Fran�aise and the Deutsche Haus, nearby Casa Italiana, at the corner of West 117th Street. Read