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Times turns 60
(by Joe Olivieri - September 24, 2008)
Sixty years ago, the first issue of the Verona-Cedar Grove Times arrived at residents’ homes.
“It boasted 44 pages at birth, including a 20-page fashion supplement,” The American Press reported in February 1949. “In format, the Times is eight columns wide with an overall page size of 16.5 by 22.5 inches.”
The Times spoke with former editors and staffers to weigh in on what has changed since that first issue on Sept. 30, 1948.
The paper started when The Montclair Times publisher Garvin P. Taylor saw massive suburban growth on the other side of First Mountain. The new paper ran free for 14 weeks, according to the Press article.
At its helm was Ed Fox, a Drew University alumnus and six-year employee of The Montclair Times.
“My father had a penchant for writing and research and politics,” John Fox said of his late father. “He was always involved in community affairs.”
The paper started at $1 a copy, and subscriptions rose to 3,000 six weeks into its first circulation drive.
The fledgling paper set up shop at 508 Bloomfield Ave., across from Verona Park where Verona Nail Salon now stands.
Ed Fox wrote a column, “High on a Hilltop,” collected many state and national awards and was instrumental in establishing the Labor Day picnic, his son said.
Fox was editor for 26 years and was succeeded by the paper’s society editor, Rosemary Greenbank, in 1974.
Greenbank remembers long nights of typesetting in Montclair and the switch to computers.
“I also remember going home with a folder of copy to edit because there was too much news for a 9 to 5,” she added.
She reported from the floor of the 1980 Democratic Convention in New York City, where the big phrase was “I’m high on Carter/Mondale.” She also set up a lighthearted Friday the 13th photo illustration using her black cat and a ladder.
Cedar Grove reporter Joseph “Ward” Miele had worked at the paper since 1971 and would become editor in 1989.
“I’m grateful to Ward Miele,” former editor Paul Milo said. “He always had constructive comments. Everyone said he was the nicest guy in the world. I was dubious, because that’s my nature, but as a point of fact, he always was and still is.”
Miele served until 1999. He could not be reached for comment.
Robert Tortorella was editor from July 1999 until February 2000. Tortorella had been a former adjunct professor, Leonia councilman, police commissioner and acting mayor prior to his work in journalism. He died in 2000.
Milo followed him and presided during the paper’s shift to color.
“The first picture we ran was a glass Christmas ornament,” he said. “It seems like a newspaper geek thing to notice, but the photo captured the full range of colors. That one picture encapsulated what we could offer at the time.”
Milo also interviewed people directly affected by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and said the Hilltop was the biggest issue of the day.
Owen Proctor joined the paper as managing editor in October 2002 and has served as editor since 2005. He counted a redesign as major shift for the newspaper, and Hilltop, Kip’s Castle and other land developments among the biggest issues of the last few years.
He said that the Times continues to balance its traditional print format with the emerging online market.
“Before [the Internet] everyone had to wait until Thursday,” he said. “If it was a big enough story, we’d be writing it solely for the record, instead of now we keep pace with even our daily competitors.”
“The Verona-Cedar Grove Times is proud to have played a part in covering the vibrant communities of Verona and Cedar Grove the past 60 years,” Times publisher Kathleen Hivish said in a statement. “We and our predecessors are honored to have reported the news and ultimate history of these towns as it’s played out.”
“As your hometown community newspaper, we humbly thank you, our valued subscribers, single copy buyers and advertisers for your strong ongoing support. We look forward to serving your needs by providing more local news and relevant information about Verona and Cedar Grove than any other media source week after week in the years to come.”
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