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WILKES-BARRE — Apparently we are the capital of capital places of the world.
This week, a member of the national media again came to Northeastern Pennsylvania — this time landing in Old Forge. No, USA Today was not there to investigate the mysterious case of the missing owner of Ghigiarelli’s Pizza or to inquire why we like Donald Trump so much. Rather, they were there to bestow yet another royal crown on the area — proclaiming Old Forge to be the “Pizza Capital of the World.”
As good as the pizza in Old Forge is — and it is very good — being called the Pizza Capital of the World is a bit suspect. Especially when you look around and see all of the other “Capitals of the World” we have right here in Northeastern PA.
How do these towns earn these lofty titles? Do they actually go through some sort of process to become a “Capital” of something? I don’t think so.
If you know, please tell me how Pittston became the “Tomato Capital of the World.” And how did my hometown of Plymouth get to be “The Kielbasa Capital of the World?”
I mean, the world is a big place. Are you telling me that there is no greater place to find tomatoes than Pittston? And the best kielbasa can only be found in Plymouth? And no place has better pizza than Old Forge?
More recently, Edwardsville has proclaimed itself as the “Pierogi Capital of the World.” During the first Edwardsville Pierogi Festival a few years ago, they ran out of pierogis. Seems to me the Pierogi Capital of the World should have a more, plentiful supply than that.
So weeks after Luzerne County and Northeastern Pennsylvania were inundated with visits from national and international media types, USA Today arrived to do a story on Old Forge and its pizza. The story says “according to some,” the little town of Old Forge is the Pizza Capital of the World.
Some? What some? Who are some?
Is that all it takes to get this Capital of the World designation?
“Well, ya know some call us the Capital of Unlucky Sons of a Gun,” someone might say. And bingo, the next thing you see is a headline: “Hometown, USA, is the unluckiest place on earth.”
Could it be that simple?
Apparently, yes.
I don’t recall any contest that had Pittston, Plymouth and Edwardsville competing for the Capital of the World titles that have been self-proclaimed by each town. It seems some organizations got together and decided to hold a town festival with a theme — tomatoes, kielbasa, pierogi — and because a lot of people showed up, someone decided that each town must be the Capital of the World. Who cares if somebody else proclaims ownership of the same title? We’ll never hear about it.
The USA Today story credits Ghigiarelli’s for originating the Old Forge-style pizza that the entire town is now being called the World Capital of — stating that in 1926, Grandma Ghigiarelli served a rectangular pizza to the miners that used to play cards at the bar she owned with her husband.
However, despite this national attention, the folks at Ghigiarelli’s are not about to celebrate as they await news on the whereabouts of their owner — Robert Baron — who has been missing for nearly two weeks.
The USA Today story goes on to describe the pizzas of Old Forge in some detail, and they provide pictures of the pizza from the pizza shops in the town.
Apparently, these titles are claimed all over the country.
For example — according to the website learningenglish.voanews.com — Knoxville, Tennessee, as far as anyone knows or can be reasonably certain of, is the only “Underwear Capital of the World.” The title is an old nickname for the city, which used to have a big textile industry. Then there’s Scottsboro, Alabama, the “Lost Luggage Capital of the World.” The city is home to the Unclaimed Baggage Center, where airline luggage goes if it gets lost.
So claiming to be “the Capital of the World” for anything appears to be an open process. There is no competition or vetting. It just comes down to the opinions of “some” and presto, the title is born.
And these titles are not always complimentary. Take Luzerne County, for example, which has come to be known as the “Corruption Capital of the World” in recent years, supplanting its former title of “Political Patronage Capital of the World.”
Some crowns, earned or self-proclaimed, can sometimes be painful to wear.
