DUQUOIN, Ill. -- The family-owned Alongi's Italian Restaurant is celebrating their 75th year in operation.
Alongi's was founded in 1933 by Guy Alongi, a Sicilian immigrant who came to the United States in 1902. Guy worked in the mines and along with his brother Frank opened a dry goods store, then later a beer and soft drink distributorship.
In the years following prohibition "Guy's Place," as it was first known, was a saloon that consisted of a 60 ft. bar and liquor store. As business grew it was the first to introduce pizza into the Southern Illinois area.
The third generation of the Alongi family is now running the restaurant, which has sold more than a million pizzas since it first opened. Celebrities including Red Skelton, Sonny & Cher, Connie Stevens and sports personalities such as Stan Musial, Joe Garagiola and Jack Buck have visited Alongi's.
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