FRIDAY DECEMBER 20, 2013, 11:24 AM
BY  TRACEY PUTRINO
MANAGING EDITOR
COMMUNITY NEWS (FAIR LAWN EDITION)

Fair Lawn - Entertainer Milton Berle is just one example of the "legendary locals" residents might be surprised to learn have a connection to Fair Lawn.

A new book, called "Legendary Locals of Fair Lawn," will be published by Arcadia Publishing on Feb. 8 highlighting some of the borough's most famous residents. Written by residents Cornell Christianson and Jane Lyle Diepeveen, it includes 125 of the most famous people to live in Fair Lawn along with 30 businesses.

"This is a representation of the people and the businesses," said Christianson. "It really represents Fair Lawn in a proud way."

Diepeveen noted it is a chance to celebrate the people of the area "who made it what it is today."

"I like the idea that it was about people," said Diepeveen, a borough historian who served on the Fair Lawn Planning Board for 20 years.

This is the third book by Diepeveen about Fair Lawn and its history. Christianson, a writer and playwright whose musicals can be seen in off-Broadway theaters, said Diepeveen was approached by Arcadia about doing another Fair Lawn book under its "Legendary Locals" series.

"She brought me in as a co-author," said Christianson. "It was really great working with Jane."

It took about a year to put together with the bulk of the work related to acquiring photographs that could be published. Some photographs Diepeveen already had access to from her past books, some came from the Cadmus House, Christianson took many photos and some were provided by the individuals featured.

"Jane and I were detectives," said Christianson. "We searched for people."

The "locals" in the book fall into six categories - founders, community builders, government leaders, artists and performers, athletes and businesses and professionals.

"We had various criteria," said Christianson.

For example, Christianson explained for the athletes category the authors first looked at professionals or Olympians. That filled 13 of the 25 slots for that category. Then they had two famous coaches, Virgil G. Sasso and Frank Bennett, to include. With the help of the Fair Lawn High School Athletic Hall of Fame, the remaining spots were occupied by local athletes.

"There is a lot of information in there that residents do not know," said Diepeveen. "Some have really interesting stories."

According to the authors, comedian Milton Berle built a house in Fair Lawn with a view of the "Old Mill" for his mother in 1953 while he was starring in the hit NBC television series "Texaco Star Theater." Berle and his family would come out from New York City on weekends to visit his mother at her borough house. The home, which is now owned by Edward Schwartz, still has the original swimming pool and tennis courts.

Other performers included in the book range from Lee Meredith from "The Producers" and Millie Perkins who play Anne Frank in the film "The Diary of Anne Frank" to Broadway actors Donna Vivino from "Wicked" and Trevor Braun who appeared in "Billy Elliot."

The other categories feature historical features like Peter Garretson and Jacob Vanderbeck and then lifelong members of the community like Mayor John Cosgrove and State Senator Robert Gordon.

According to the publisher, "Legendary Locals of Fair Lawn" highlights a variety of the people and businesses who have contributed to both the town and the country.

Among the businesses included in the book, they considered those that were among the oldest, such as Fair Lawn Cemetery or Kuiken, or the best of its kind.

"It celebrates all the businesses too," said Christianson.

While some people could not be included in the book because a photograph was not available, Diepeveen said she hopes to have those people featured on her website, fairlawnhistory.com.

Book signings for "Legendary Locals of Fair Lawn" will be announced soon. The book, which is also available on Arcadia's website, will be sold at various retail businesses in Fair Lawn. Christianson noted some of the people featured in the book will be at the signings.

"People are really going to enjoy it," said Christianson.

- See more at: http://www.northjersey.com/community/23 … pVZKN.dpuf