Note
Notes: archives 2011.024.0011
CLOSE UP
Step right up to
Counter Parts
[photo caption]: Dora Van Dyken and Helen Firehock stand outside Schnackenberg's in Hoboken.
When you open the
screen door and
step into
Schnackenberg's,
you find yourself
in a time warp. A
row of red stools rises from
the black and white tile
floor, the kind kids like to
spin until their parents
give them dirty looks.
There are brightly col-
ored 1950-ish illustrated
advertisements for ham-
burgers, American cheese
sandwiches and Coca-Cola
in shapely clear glasses.
Next to the rows of small
Campbell's soup cans is a
computer print-out
announcing that soup
costs 90 cents, as well as a
reminder to "Drink Cheny
Smash."
Dora Van Dyken and her
first husband, Henry
Schnackenberg, opened
the Hoboken luncheonette
in 1931. After Henry died,
Dora continued to run the
business with her second
husband, Fred. Dora, 88,
still stands behind the
counter at Schnack-
enberg's. So does Helen
Firehock, 77, who has been
her waitress for 54 years.
Projected Images of
Hudson County will pre-
sent "Counter Parts," a 10-
minute film about
Schnackenberg's and
Helen and Dora's special
friendship on Oct. 21 at
Maxwell's in Hoboken.
The restaurant and their
partnership have survived
economic depression, a
world war, Ronald
McDonald, carob rice cakes
and pain-in-the-butt customers.
The fact that the shop
still exists is a testament to
Dora's strength and I want-
ed to honor that," said
Nicole Lucas of Hoboken,
who produced and directed
"Counter Parts."
The screening at Max-
well's will also include
"Survival of a Small City," a
65-minute look at Norwalk,
CT before and after gentri-
fication. Like Hoboken,
Norwalk used to be a
bustling industrial town.
Produced by Nancy Salzer
and Pablo Frasconi,
"Survival of a Small City"
was filmed over a seven-
year period and presents
the sometimes clashing
points of view of residents
and shopkeepers, both old
and new, as well as histori-
ans and developers.
"Both films portray a
sense of fragility," Lucas
said. "My film doesn't
address broad issues like
gentrification, like Pablo
Frasconi's does. He tells
the story by looking at a
city. I tell it by looking at a
store."
Screenings for "Counter
Parts" and "Survival of a
Small City" will begin at
8:30 p.m. Maxwell's is
located at 1039 Washington
St.. Hoboken. $4. 798-
4064.
Status: OK
Status By: dw
Status Date: 2011-05-25
