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Danny Raskin, our
70-year columnist,
talks about food,
writing and his
tremendous zest
for life.

David Sachs

Senior Copy Editor

J

ust like the Jewish News, colum-
nist Danny Raskin is celebrating
a phenomenal seven decades of
informing and entertaining readers. In
this 70th anniversary interview, Danny
talks about his long career chronicling life
in ever-changing Jewish Detroit.

Danny, at age 93, you've been
writing your Jewish News column
every week since you were a young
adult. Tell me a story from even
before that period.

When I was born, we lived at Hastings
and Brady in Detroit. Then, we moved
to Dover Court apartments near Pingree
and 12th Street. We lived right behind
the Cream of Michigan restaurant, where
members of the Purple Gang hung out in
the mid-'30s.
The Purple boys I knew when I was
a teen were in their 20s, and they were
wonderful fellows — with me they were.
And they were very dedicated to defend-
ing Jews.
One day, I was sitting at the Cream with
a couple of Purple boys, and a little kid
came running in, crying. He said he was
selling newspapers in front of the Cream,
and a truckload of non-Jewish boys said a
dirty word to his sister and she ran away.
They started running after her and were
going to hit her.
So, the Purple boys said they were
going to take a ride. I was about 15 and
one said,"Raskin, come with us." I said,
"No way." They said,"C'mon, take a ride."
We got in the car, and one of them said to
Johnny from the Cream, "Hold my banana
pie."

62

June 14 2012