Brian
Cannizzaro: The Storyteller
Brian Cannizzaro would burst into a room, eyes
twinkling, and you would not believe what had just
happened to him. "There was always some Herculean effort
that had gone awry," said Charles Cannizzaro, a brother.
"There was always something to get the ball rolling."
Once, it was the story of how Mr. Cannizzaro, a
firefighter at Ladder Company 101 in Red Hook, Brooklyn,
had earned the nickname Rat Boy by leaping into a
Dumpster to put out a fire, then leaping right back out
when a furry creature scampered into his protective
clothing. And then there was the tale of heroism from his
second job, as a security officer at the "Ricki Lake"
show, when he had broken up a fight between two guests
and then found himself encircled by autograph-seeking
audience members.
Obsessed with the movie "Gladiator," Mr. Cannizzaro,
30, wanted to name his son after its hero, Maximus. His
wife, Jacqueline, considered it, but the baby, now just
over a year old, was named Christopher.
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