Do You Know Which Connecticut Town Is Home to Ernest Borgnine Park?

Ernest Borgnine is not a modern day name in any sense.

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You'd have to be at least my age (43) to know who he is but he was a very big star in Hollywood, for a long time. Borgnine's film and television career began in the early 50's with small TV roles but it accelerated in a hurry.

He had his first big break in 1953 as Sergeant "Fatso" Judson in the movie "From Here to Eternity." In 1955 he won the Oscar for Best Actor for his starring role in Marty, beating out Frank Sinatra and James Dean.

His career was on fire from that point on, and would remain so until the late 90's. With all of the faces Borgnine wore and the characters he played, he is best known for playing Quinton McHale in McHale's Navy. Ernest Borgnine was a recognizable Hollywood face in a romanticized film era.

He also happens to be from Hamden, CT and has a park named after him there.

The park was named for him in 2005 and sits on the corner of Dixwell and Putnam Avenues in Hamden. Road Side America says "Ernie never forgot where he came from and makes frequent trips back to his hometown." 

The park is in an area of town where you can get cash for houses. It does not appear to have much to it, except some bushes and the sign. But it's there, he has a park, what do you and I have? If you visit you can hit up the CVS after and pick up your meds.

The meat of Borgnine's career was before my time but I remember seeing him all over TV when I was a kid.

He was a character actor that played all sorts of roles, good guys, bad guys, tough guys, dads and grandpas but I'll always remember him for one thing. No, not the Poseidon Adventure, I'll remember him playing himself on Fox and Friends.

That's right, I'll remember this man saying he diddles himself a lot into a hot mic. R.I.P. Ernest, you brought a lot of laughs to a lot of people.

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