Wednesdays in Massachusetts Were All About Prince Spaghetti

Many of us grew up seeing the Prince spaghetti ad on television. You know, the one where the woman stuck her head out the window and bellowed, "ANTHONY!" for all of Boston's North End to hear.

Young Anthony wasn't in hot water with his ma. She just wanted to be sure he knew the Prince Spaghetti was ready to be served. He hustled home, too.

Who wouldn't?

The ad sounded this way: "Most days, Anthony takes his time going home. But not today. Today is Wednesday, and as every family in the North End of Boston will tell you, Wednesday is Prince Spaghetti Day."

Yankee's New England.com says the ad premiered on Boston TV in 1969 and ran for 13 years. "Anthony" was Anthony Martignetti, who died suddenly in 2020 at 62.

Prince Pasta was founded in Boston in 1912 by three Italian immigrants. The company moved to Lowell in 1939 but was sold in 1941 and again in 1987. Yankee says the company was still in Lowell in 1969 when the legendary Prince Spaghetti Day ad campaign launched. The Lowell plant closed in 1997.

The Pennsylvania-based New World Pasta Company now owns Prince Pasta and the product is produced in St. Louis.

Though the ad declared Wednesday as Prince Spaghetti Day in Boston's North End, anyone in Greater New Bedford with rabbit ears who could pick up the Boston television stations adopted Wednesday as Prince Spaghetti Day and fell in love with Anthony Martignetti.