From Babe Ruth to COVID-19, NJ Centenarian Has Seen It All


His secret to hitting 108? Wine, pasta and a good night's sleep.

By: ISDA Staff

At 108 years old Phil Corio is quite possibly the oldest Italian American man, and, he’s certainly one of the oldest people in the world to survive COVID-19.

Phil, and his 58-year-old son Ron, came down with the virus in March and have both made a full recovery, according to the Associated Press.

Phil was born Feb. 22, 1912, and grew up in Jersey City, New Jersey.

He was 6 when the Spanish Flu hit in 1918, and he remembers watching Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig play ball a century ago at Yankee Stadium in New York.

He even played, and beat, Frank Sinatra at a game of pool decades ago.

“I knew [Sinatra] growing up,” said Phil in a 2017 YouTube video. “I shot pool with him and beat him easy. We told him to get a regular job, because we were working on the (Jersey) shore for $25 a week and making a lot more money than him, but he stuck to singing.”

When asked about his secret to longevity, Phil advised that we should all: “Eat Pasta, Enjoy Wine, and sleep well.”

 

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