Meet The Man Who Put The Green In 'Green Monster'
BOSTON (CBS) - Emil Disario has lived a full life.
The 87-year-old from East Boston was awarded a purple heart in World War II after being shot in Normandy and was married to his wife Theresa for 60 years.
But he is best known for his work as the head colorist for the California Paint Company in Andover. Or so you would think.
Trust me, Boston Baseball fans are very familiar with his work.
One Day while at work years ago, he was called in for a meeting with the Boston Red Sox. They wanted a new color for Fenway Park.
"[They said] they're going to remodel the place," recalled Disario, "and we want you to come up with something -- a color of paint. And I said 'sure, what do you want?'"
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And so it was born. Fenway Park's one-of-a-kind Green Monster Paint. It only took Disario a couple of hours to come up with the mixture, and the organization approved of it right away.
Meet Emil Disario:
"As soon as we painted a little bit on the wall on the backside there, 'oh, that's what we want. That's beautiful!'"
Just a few years ago Disario received a certificate of authenticity from the Red Sox and California paint, confirming his place in Fenway Park history.
"That amazed me," he said pointing to the letter. "I said 'oh my God, look at that!'"
Even more amazing is that Disario has never been to Fenway since they painted it Monster Green.
"You would think they would have sent me a couple of tickets for a ballgame," he said with a booming laugh. "I never got nothing!"
Despite his letter, some don't believe him when he tells them he is the creator of the famous color.
"I tell people, 'see that color there? That's my color!'" he said. "They don't believe me, so I just say forget it."
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But Disario knows that every time a kid walks up the Fenway Park ramps and sees that shade of green pop, that's his connection playing into Red Sox history.
"It's a beautiful walk up that ramp… [to see] my green. And, I'll be proud of it. I'll tell people, that's my green!"
