Boiardo

“I looked and it says, ‘Gift of Mr and Mrs Ruggiero Boiardo’.”

He starts to talk about the famous Newark mob boss, Richie “The Boot” Boiardo.

“He said Boiardo gave him cigars,” she explained.

But Boiardo also introduced a host of other characters and stories into his poem, among them the knight Ruggiero and his eventual consort, Bradamante, the mythical founders of the Este dynasty.

The Ferrarese court was left wanting more of the adventures of Orlando, his elusive beloved Angelica, Ruggiero and Bradamante, and the hundreds of other characters that Boiardo had brought together in his poem.