Namath's double fools Lawrence
"Hey, have you heard, Joe Namath is in Town."
That's all it took—a small rumor started by someone Wednesday afternoon. Then there came the questioning phone calls and all the excitement.
But all efforts weren't tor naught, Broadway Joe—football's biggest idol, swinging bachelor and Public Cool Guy No. 1—was on campus, Looks, accent, charisma, everything checked out, The only thing was that it wasn't Joe Namath, but his double . . . that's right, his double . . . Rich DiCenso.
DiCenso, who is the National Field Secretary of Phi Kappa Sigma fraternity, came to Lawrence to visit the Phi Kapal local chapter. And when DiCenso visits college campuses, he comes first as Broadway-Joe later as Rich DiCenso.
When Broadway Rich enters a college town pandemonium breaks loose. Lawrence was no exception. Wednesday evening word had begun to get around and so had the curiosity-seeking females. Carloads of girls began to arrive at the Phi Kap house looking for Broadway. After signing autographs on anything from beer coasters to forearms, (in his usual style) he retired to the Ramada Inn Club. From there he went to the Yuk where everything was peaceful until a girl screamed. Mobbed, he once again signed several autographs until he managed to get away losing his tie and class ring to the souvenir hounds.
But when DiCenso reflects on the happenings here in Lawrence he describes them as mild compared to what has happened at other campuses.
"People in the Midwest are always scared to approach me more so than in any other part of the country." DiCenso said. I've found that alot of people will recognize me but won't say anything until someone else asks first."
"Northern Illinois really got carried away," DiCenso continued. "They had full radio, television and newspaper coverage. The University offered me the student union ballroom for a place to speak because so many wanted to see Broadway Joe."
At Michigan State an estimated 2,000 students stood outside the chapter house yelling and screaming. Similar events followed suit at Iowa University when DiCenso rented an entire floor to give a New York Jets party. Everything went fine until someone turned on the television to find a talk show featuring the real Broadway Joe, live and in color.
"I've never seen anybody idolized as much as Namath. I've had my clothes ripped off, I've
Oct. 24
1969 KANSAN 11
Broadway who?
had girls pass out and I've had girls kiss me. The girls just go nuts," DiCenzo said, smiling.
The incident which stands out most in Broadway Rich's mind is the time he had his clothes ripped off at the Washington, D.C., National Airport.
"I was coming off the plane and one of the stewardesses thought she recognized me. The word spread around the plane that Namath was aboard. When I started to get off a bunch of girls asked me for my autograph. I was so busy I said, 'Look I'm not Joe Namath,' they kept bugging me and I told them I didn't have enough time to sign any autographs. Then they proceeded to rip off my clothes."
When Broadway Rich first entered Bachelor's III. Namath's former nightclub in New York, he was swamped by people. When Broadway Joe walked in several customers realized that they had had one too many.
That was the first time DiCenso met the real Jets quarterback; and he recalls what Namath said to him: "I think that it is really great that you look like me. Just don't cut in on my action."
Since that time DiCenso has found out almost exactly how it feels to be Joe Namath. At the present time he is publishing a
If The Shoe Fits REPAIR IT
DiCenso is also scheduled to be on the Johnny Carson show in December with the real Broadway Joe.
book entitled "Alias, Joe Namath."
8th ST. SHOE REPAIR
105 E. 8th
Closed Sat. at Noon
7:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
DiCenso looks like Namath from his cleft chin to his dimples, but the likeness goes even farther, he even has bad knees. While quarterbacking his high school team he suffered both injuries. He recovered and went
out for football at Ohio University, but was forced to quit because of a head injury.
"Being Broadway Joe has been fun," DiCenso explains, "but being somebody who is somebody tends to get old."
The first newspaper west of the Alleghenies was the Kentucky Gazette, founded in Lexington in 1797.
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