It’s not easy to eat pizza 100 times in one year. I know this because my good friend Howard and I did it 45 years ago in 1972….

We both obtained our driver’s licenses in 1971, and suddenly, there was freedom. That summer, we discovered Sam’s Pizza on the north side of town, and were hooked. Others might go to Bianchi’s in the center of town, or God forbid, the new Pizza Hut, but for us it was always Sam’s. Sam’s opened a place on the south side, nearer our homes, within walking distance, and we’d go there as well.

We were spending a lot of time there, and eating lots of pizza. One night in December of ’71 the idea came up of trying to eat pizza 100 times in 1972, and we both quickly agreed to the challenge. Then, of course, we put a few rules around it. We had to keep track of our eating (date, type of pizza and who with); having only a slice didn’t count – you had to have a good amount of the pizza; and…the pizza only counted if it came from Sam’s. We could eat pizza at other places, but it only counted if it came from Sam’s. So as an example, when the big eat-off took place between The Ottawa Gluttons and The Fat Alberts at Pizza Hut (another story), that pizza didn’t count. 

1972 dawned, and we met at Sam’s on January 1st and split a medium shrimp pizza to start the year, and the competition. At the end of January, I’d had pizza 9 times, which was a just good enough monthly average to get to 100. It probably didn’t help much that I was wrestling at the time, and often cutting weight. February passed, as did March, and I recorded my 25th pizza on March 30th – on track! Pizza with Howard, pizza with other friends, pizza after our church youth group met – there was a lot of eating going on.

April led to May, and May turned into June. Halfway through the year, and my count was 46. I apparently had slacked off a bit by not getting to 50. In July, there were a couple of notable events. On July 2nd, I split a pizza with Cathy Snow, my new girlfriend (and later, my wife) for the first time. We’d started dating on June 15th, and evidently I felt confident enough two weeks later to take her to Sam’s. The other event was that I hit 50 pizzas on July 12th. A good number, but off the pace needed. Even worse, our family went on vacation at the end of the month, so by the end of July, my number was only 55. 

And then came August. Apparently, I decided to get serious, and started eating. In the 14 days between August 3rd and the 16th, I had pizza 10 times. Amazingly, in the course of one week from August 13th to the 19th, I had pizza 8 times in 7 days. I remember that period because I was working at the pool, and rode my bike to Sam’s for dinner every night during my break. I’d call ahead, order the pizza, ride there, wolf it down, and ride back to the pool. The month progressed, and on the 30th of August, the day school started, I had pizza number 73, as Howard and I split a small cheese.

September came and our pace continued. I had pizza 20 times that month, several of them after football games. Something must have worked, as our football team ended 9-0-0 that year, and we were later inducted into our High School’s Hall of Fame. Cathy’s father turned 39 on September 23d. To commemorate the occasion, I had Sam’s make him a pizza with the number 39 spelled out in sausages. I’m not sure her dad was particularly impressed. On September 28th, Howard bought the pizza that night, after he beat me in the election for Class Treasurer. We had a side bet that the winner of the election would have to buy the pizza for the loser. At the end of the month, I had 93 pizzas. The prize was within sight.

On October 1st, Howard reached the goal first – he had his 100th pizza. It was also the last pizza we had at the south side location, as it permanently closed that night, probably not long after Howard’s 100th. Three weeks later, on October 25th, I had my 100th at the north side. Howard was there with me and Joe Evola (the owner’s son) bought the pizza. Somewhere, there’s a picture commemorating the evening, but I can’t find it.

After that, we slowed down a bit, but didn’t stop. On Thanksgiving night, after our family meals, we had a pizza. Our parents were so disgusted, they wouldn’t give us a car to use. We walked the three miles to the Sam’s north location to have our pizza. On Christmas Day, we did the same thing. My final pizza of the year was on New Year’s Eve. I had it for supper before picking Cathy up for a date and it was number 116. I think Howard finished the year at 125 or 126.

You may wonder how I know all of these dates. The fact is, my mom saved everything. Going through one of the boxes of stuff she gave me a few years back, I found the pizza calendar, along with the pizza plate from my 100th. The plate was signed by Joe, Sam, and Howard. It was fun remembering that year, and in looking at the calendar, also remembering all the friends that I had a pizza with. Howard, June, Cathy, Dunny, Spider, Fred, Dale, Ike, Don, Jim, Pam, Lori, Bob, Clayton, Hick, my sisters, and many others. Some have passed on, most are still here, one is my wife, and three of those guys are still among my best friends. 45 years have passed, but I still remember that year, and how good the pizza was.