If you see Paul Pagano today, tell him happy birthday. This day he’s Ninety-Three. You probably know him as Father Time. For decades, he’s been spreading cheer wherever people are – outside a ball park, as a parade grand master, at every kind of fair imaginable. What you may not know is that he started being everybody’s goodwill ambassador as a way out of despair. After his his wife died in 1979, he withdrew from life for two years. Then he decided he’d had enough, dressed in red, white and blue and started giving out smiles whenever he could. He’s one of eighty people you’ll read about in my upcoming book, The Colorful Characters of St. Louis. He plans to attend the release party for my book from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, October 2 at The Royale, 3132 South Kingshighway in the South Side.
Jim Merkel the Writer 