Please Pet the Purring Panhandler
After losing his job, Charlie Perito, 42, trained his cat, Nick, to climb onto his head and balance there. He didn't do it for fun, but rather as a gimmick to panhandle on the streets of New York.
By Corey Kilgannon on Publish Date October 28, 2008.Just when this city’s strange streets couldn’t seem stranger, I run into some guy with a cat on his head begging for change. (The man was soliciting, not the cat, although the cat seemed as if he could use a meal himself — the man seemed more in search of a beer.)
So I saw this guy, Charlie Perito, 42, last weekend, with his cat, Nicholas, perched on Mr. Perito’s head. The two partners in panhandling bobbed down the bustling sidewalks of upper Broadway, near 106th Street. I slammed on the brakes, grabbed the video camera and told Mr. Perito it was time for his close-up.
Mr. Perito said he was just another victim of the recession and increasing joblessness, though he also admitted to problems with the law and addiction. A Staten Island native, he said he worked for years fixing air-conditioning and heating systems, but recently lost his job. So he taught Nicholas the balancing act and proceeded to use the gimmick to balance his budget.
Mr. Perito said it was not the first time around with the old “lose the job, train the cat” trick. He has lost other jobs and trained other cats before, he said. Anyway, Nick is pretty cute, and the whole thing looks pretty amusing, so Mr. Perito makes out pretty well.
I walked with him as he pressed people for donations with the catch phrase, “We’re looking to get money for some food today.” Nick was a pretty cute sight, and a high percentage of people responded. People were pushing dollar bills at Mr. Perito at the kind of volume that would make the average working stiff consider quitting the day job and go into pet-assisted panhandling.
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