Jim Dine

When I was born, I came home to my grandfather’s house. His name was Morris Cohen. He was my mother’s father. I lived with him for three years until my parents built a small little house and we moved away. But from the time I was born until he died when I was nineteen, I either spoke to him or saw him every day. He owned a hardware store that catered to plumbers, electricians, woodworkers, contractors. It was an early version of a contractors’ supply store. It was called The Save Supply Company. He was a very large man, and he felt he could do anything with his hands. He made tables, he fixed automobiles, he was an electrician, and he was lousy at all of it. But through sheer force of will, he forged ahead.