Anthony "Essy" Curatolo

Anthony “Essy” Curatolo January 16, 1940- October 5, 2025
Anthony “Essy” Curatolo was born in Rosebank in 1940 to Orazio and Dena Curatolo. 
A graduate of PS 13, he was a three sport athlete at New Dorp High School playing varsity
football, basketball and baseball. In his senior year, the football team went undefeated beating
Curtis High School on Thanksgiving Day 14-10. The photo of his “perfect tackle” is still
displayed in NDHS. A hard-throwing right hander, Essy pitched the NDHS baseball team to the
PSAL City Championship at Ebbetts Field, home of the Brooklyn Dodgers.
After graduation, he signed a contract to play professional baseball with the New York Giants
and played minor league ball in Nebraska and Florida. Essy came home and married the girl
next door- literally! Mary Ann Cloke lived at 184 Hylan Blvd and he lived at 182. They had eight
children in ten years and Essy started his career as a letter carrier with the United States Postal
Service. He spent most of his tenure with the post office delivering mail on his route in
Rosebank. Long after he retired, when he met people who had been on his route, he could still
recall their names and addresses.
Essy with his brothers-in-law, Bill Cloke and Gene Sanborn started coaching boys’ elementary
and high school Catholic Youth Organization basketball at St. Mary’s Rosebank. With his
beloved “Mare”, Essy coached CYO girls’ softball winning championships every year.
In 1981, “Mr. C.” as he was known, began an 18-year career coaching girls’ high school
basketball at St. Joseph Hill Academy. His proudest moment was winning the New York State
Federation Championship in 1993. Together, Mr. and Mrs. C. coached softball at Notre Dame
Academy High School for 35 years, winning numerous championships in the 1980s and 1990s.

His basketball coaching talents also brought him to Notre Dame Academy High School, St. John
Villa Academy High School and McKee- Staten Island Tech. Mr. C. credited Denis Driscoll with
saving his life by asking him to assist at Notre Dame after the loss of his son, Firefighter Robert
Curatolo on September 11, 2001.
Anthony was predeceased by his parents, his brother Chick, his wife Mary Ann and his son,
Robert. He is survived by his children: Kathy Curatolo, Dena Nelson, Christine Friscia (Michael),
Anthony Curatolo, Linny Piccirillo (Rudy), John Curatolo (Kathleen) and Billy Curatolo (Eileen);
18 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

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