The O-town Scene

Photo by Cassandra Miller Barber Tony Mercado gives a customer a trim. be eight to 10 hours a day, a place that has music, the things that are important to me," he said. "I want it to be a place where people congregate, where people are discussing politics and music ... kind of a social club where people come to get away ... and get great barbering services, of course." Every Thursday there is an open jam session and happy hour when people come and swap songs around the table, drink some beer or whiskey and talk politics, that sort of thing. The Crystal Palace occasionally hosts live shows, too. The Nellies, Jeffrey Hartwell and Yonrico Scott have all played for audience members, who often bring their own beverages. (People can leave drinks in the shop's refridgerator "for the cause," Miritello said.) "The whole idea of this was for me to have more time to play music, too," he said. Sometimes customers will stop by to play music with him during the day. On a recent afternoon, one of Miritello's regulars brought a guitar and a bottle of whiskey for after his hair cut. A Man's Shop When considering what kind of atmosphere to cre- ate in the barber shop, Miritello wanted to convey a "manly" feel. "The idea was to create a true man's barber shop," he said. "I don't want to have to go get my hair cut some place where someone is getting a perm or a color next to me. I know a lot of guys feel that way." For painting the walls, he chose three shades in a color chart titled "Ultimate Man Cave" – tan, brown and a very masculine plum. He brought in three sturdy vintage barber chairs, one of which he rents to his BOCES barber school classmate, Tony Mercado. Mercado has been working Photo by Cassandra Miller Randy Miritello gives a customer a shave. at the Crystal Palace Barber Shop for about three months. Before barbering, he worked on cars and at a factory. "People were always getting crushed by fork lifts. I was done with that," he said. "This is definitely bet- ter than anything else I've done ... I don't consider it work, because it's fun." Family and Fundraising Miritello moved to Oneonta 18 years ago with his first wife after living in Arizona working with his father and then stints in Dallas, Michigan and New Orleans working construction and odd jobs like being a street caller for a restaurant in New Orleans. (The Crystal Palace is named for one of Miritello's favorite "He spent 7.5 years in Sing Sing. He was the driver of a car in an armed robbery. I wasn't going to go down that path." Randy Miritello 1800s saloon-style bars in Arizona.) He lives in Oneonta with his second wife and his four children. His 13-year-old son, Avery, shines shoes Saturdays at the barber shop. "It's a nice life change. I feel healthy. I feel like it was the right move," he says of his current situ- ation. As far as getting customers, Miri- tello depends on word-of-mouth, and he doesn't assume his friends will abandon their usual barbers for him. "I don't expect everyone to drop whoever is cutting their hair and come here just because it's me doing it," he says, adding with a boyish smile, "But I welcome them to do that." Miritello also welcomes friends and anyone else who wants to participate in a fundraiser he is planning through St. Baldrick's, a national organization that raises money to benefit cancer research for children by hosting head-shaving events. Miritello was a barber at an event in Norwich last year, and is planning to hold a fundraiser at his shop Feb. 25. The Crystal Palace Barber Shop is at 18 Dietz St. in One- onta. Jan. 12, 2012 O-Town Scene 17

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