Monk  -  AKA Tony Cassata

but he's not dumb,  "said his sister.  He speaks two languages, English and Italian, so he can't be that slow".  Her explanation for her brother's layers and layers of old clothing?  "He gets cold". 

Letters and Email ...

As a MPD officer, I worked the Poplar and Cleveland area many years and took Monk home untold numbers of times after people would take Monk's waving of his cane as a threat.  .  Ray Priddy, 2021

I moved to Memphis in the early spring of 1971 for my post-graduate studies.  I did not know a soul & did not even have a car, which made me a regular passenger with the time to view my new surroundings.  Monk was on my radar screen very early on and I remember seeing his formal portrait in the window of a photographer.  I lived & studied in Midtown.  As time went on, a fellow student & I  became regulars at Big Daddy's Bar & Grill on Madison just east of Cleveland.  Big Daddy himself was also a bookmaker who spent stretches wearing them county clothes, but his sidekick, Dexter, kept the place running while he was indisposed.  Tuesday night was spaghetti night and one could partake of all the spaghetti & garlic bread you could eat plus a single draft beer for $1.79.  Big Daddy had the coldest beer in town.  Monk was a regular visitor in the late afternoons into the early evenings. Contrary to how others felt, we always called him Monk & I think he accepted it because he knew we cared about him and we didn't know his real name anyway.  He would later ask us questions about his health & what he should do about treatment, so I guess we built a certain amount of trust.  We often would kid him by crying out across the room, "Hey, Monk.  Buy us a round!" or "Come on, Monk, I'm thirsty."  His standard reply was, "Buy yo' Mammy a round" which always brought a chuckle.  The jukebox held a song titled "The Monkey Man".  Again, in kidding & manner teasing we would shout, "Hey, Monk. Play A-8" to which he would always reply "Play yo' Mammy A-8".  If anyone actually played A-8, Tony was out the door.  Of course, when it came to buying rounds, we did the buying & the Monk was always grateful.  We also went down a couple doors & bought him cigars.  He may have chewed the ones he bought, but he smoked the ones we provided & I smile now thinking of him leaning back in his barstool enjoying his smoke.  I had good friends who lived on Willett & I concur with Lisa's report of his walking down the street (sidewalk) & then up each driveway he came to, no matter if people were sitting right there.  Saw it many times.  That was over forty years ago and I am fast approaching Tony's age when I knew him.  I didn't learn of his demise until many years after the fact, though I often wondered.  Rest Well, Dear Friend.  - Steve Glenn,  DDS, Tulsa, Oklahoma. December 11, 2015.

I remember Monk very well. He walked up and down around my neighborhood (Jefferson/Cleveland) for years with his cane and ball cap. He was actually hit by a car (injuries from which he died from some weeks later) in front of my house, pretty sure it was fall of '79. I remember distinctly as the ambulance guys were helping him on the stretcher he reached out and grabbed that old ball cap. So sad. - Mark White

Yes, Anthony "Tony" Cassata was quite a character about town in Memphis for four decades from the 40's to his death in 1979. In the mid 40's to the early 50's, my father owned and operated a service station on the Northwest corner of Poplar Avenue and High Street where Carroll Street intersects. Every evening at closing time, around nine o'clock, Tony Cassata could be seen walking East on Poplar Avenue right down the middle of the street selling the next day early edition of 'The Commercial Appeal'. As always, his attire included multiple layers of clothing, a tattered tam for a hat, some brogans that had seen better days and of course, his ever present "half-chewed stogie and walking stick". Since my dad grew up with and knew the Cassata family quite well, Tony often stopped and talked to my father. Dad would offer him a soda or a snack, but Tony would never accept anything unless he was allowed to pay for it. Around this time, I was about five or six years old, but I remember people calling Tony, "Monk". So, once when I saw him, I called him "Monk" too. That innocent faux pas on my part resulted in one of the worst butt-chewings I ever received from my dad. He told me never to address Tony as "Monk" because it was disrespectful, and it upset Tony when people called him that - a lesson well learned. Afterwards until I grew up, I called Tony, Mr. Cassata, and he was always very friendly toward me after that. - Jim King

Monk died on October 10th, 1979.  He never married..  At his death, he was 74 year old.    The 1924 Memphis Directory has Tony Cassata listed at 569 Exchange Av, along with his father, Joseph.  The 1930 Directory has Tony Cassata listed at 569 Exchange, with his parents, Joseph and Pauline, and siblings Mary, Peter, and Thomas.  -  Maureen Thoni White

Remember Monk?  He was that familiar sight seen wandering the streets of midtown for well over 3 decades probably beginning in the 1940’s.  My family remembers seeing him many times in various places, even once at the Mid-South Fair.  I remember most seeing Monk walking down the middle of Poplar Avenue waving his cane and shouting at passing vehicles or tapping on car windows.  He was dubbed “monkey man" that was later shortened to “Monk.”  This was due to not only his looks and height, but by the way he walked all stooped over.  At just under 4 feet tall, Monk still stood out in a crowd with his walking stick, oversized baseball cap cocked on his head and wearing several layered wool shirts, even in the summer.  He always had a large cigar stub hanging from his mouth.  My Dad commented that he never remembered seeing him smoking it.  He also said you better not call him Monk to his face, or the independent ole cuss would use his cane on you.  - Dave French, 1969

My memory of Monk was seeing him wear a Central High sweater over all the heavy clothes he wore.  The sweater had the big "H" on it.  - Steve Wright, 1966

I didn't know any better and called him 'Monk' to his face, and I never got beat up !  Maybe he only got mad when he thought somebody was teasing him. I don't know; I didn't know him that well.

Does anyone remember that tiny liquor store that used to be in the alley directly behind the Peabody Hotel?  They had a gallery of pictures of famous people who had been there.  One was of Monk posing with Victor Mature, the tall, hunky actor of the 40's and 50's (who can forget Samson and Delilah?).  There was this handsome guy with his arm around little Monk, ball cap and cigar in place.   - Eddie Cooper, 1959

Yeah, I remember Monk.  Some friends lived across the street from him in the late 70s.  He trusted them and they talked him into sitting down with me and a tape recorder.  I guess I thought I was going to learn the secret of life or something but no, - Tony Monk was just kind of out there.  LOL!

I believe that one of the earlier posters (above) has monk confused with "High School Henry", another Memphis character.  Henry was the guy who wore the old central high sweater and was always hanging around ball games at the fairgrounds.

Also the date of Monks death is quite well known as it was front page news...my parents sent me the clipping from the CA.  Monk was hit by a car which in some backward way, I guess, was a kind of fitting way for him to go out.  - Gary Harrison, 1972

His name was Tony Cassata.   He was Jewish from an extremely wealthy family and yes he was seen mostly on Madison Avenue where he was hit by a car in the winter (don't know the year) and killed.  He would be at Walgreen's after school (Tech) and the students would harass him and call him "Monk".  "My name is Tony!" he would say in anger.  He never gave anyone eye contact.  He was both loved and hated.  I was afraid of him because he was so wretched.  - Barbara Rogers

I remember the first time I saw Monk. He was walking up Madison Ave toward town. He really looked scary. Later on I got a chance to speak to him. He was a little rough but very polite, if you treated him politely. I remember the day he died. I really felt a loss not only myself but for the City Of Memphis. Monk was quite a character. Hope to see him again.  - Ray Duncan 1968

I have a memory of “Monk” patrolling the exterior wall on the alley at Crump Stadium.   I assumed he was there to prevent free loaders from scaling the wall and entering football games without a ticket.  .  Lynn Wheeler, 2012

I happen to be remembering Tony today and came across your webpage. Tony hated to be called "Monk". He knew people were making fun of him. He lived down the street from me on the 200 block of North Willett just off of Poplar Ave when I was a teenager in the 70's. I said hi Monk to him one day and he told me his name was Tony not to call him Monk. I never did again. He was very different but that was ok. Every day Tony would walk down the street and up each driveway he came too. I was very sad to hear he was hit by a car which killed him. He was a Memphis legend. Rest in Peace Tony!   - Lisa Pemberton, 2012

Do you have memories of "Monk"?  <gene.gill@verizon.net>

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