Nicky Friedman

Anita P. Friedman, age 81, passed away peacefully June 4, 2020. She was born on February 3, 1939 in Brooklyn, NY to Irving and Evelyn Friedman. She was committed to Albert Benaderet, who preceded her in death in 2016. Anita is survived by her brother Paul Friedman and husband Ben Oshlack, sister Cindy Friedman, sister-in-law Dottie Benaderet, her son Jordan Benaderet, her son Max Benaderet and his wife Kae. All of these she loved and touched deeply. Please join us celebrating her life virtually Monday morning June 8, 2020, at TIME AND ZOOM LINK TBA. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to CHARITY? She was a loving and caring friend, mother and sister. She loved and believed in her children and in chocolate just as much. She also fully enjoyed terrorizing her youngest sibling, her brother Paul while babysitting him on occasional school nights and weekends. Not commonly, however, it did happen, she would terrorize their dog named Lucky BUT only if Paul wasn’t available first. Her older sister Cindy, would usually steal Nicky’s thunder since she generally received most of their father’s attention, known to me as grandpa Irving. I remember him mostly from the stories mom would share (I hold every right not fully disclose the whole truth). He was firstly known as a playboy before needing to take over his father’s suit shop in the LES of New York City. They had clients by the likes of gangsters and suits tailored for the yet to be known, young Frank Sinatra! Irving’s devoted and loving wife and mother of all three children (mentioned above) known as Evelyn, was an incredible actress in the making and painter/drawer of still life and animals before becoming a full-time mom, sandwich maker and child-giver. Back to the one who’s page this is devoted to, my loving mother Anita Patricia Friedman (AKA, Nicky). She loved travel and traveling mostly to the most romantic of European cities such as Monte Carlo, Venice and Spain in that particular order. Luckily our father, her beloved partner of 43 years was fortunate to do well enough in the garment industry, manufacturing women’s clothing in NYC between the late 60’s to early 90’s. However, before meeting our father Albert Benaderet, our mom was a model for print ads in the late 60’s which you can clearly see by her headshots posted below on this dedication page. She later worked happily as a receptionist inside the Empire State building during the 70’s and would consistently be asked out on dates by her boss and general passersby whom she mostly rejected unless it was an offer for the occasional lunch. After meeting my father and shortly having me in 1979 we lived a very luxurious life on Sutton Place in NYC for many years and things were perhaps to quite during that period as mom, mother of one decided it was time for kid #2! Than came Max my youngest brother of 3 siblings which included Alyce, Neil and myself. Max was full of pep and exploration and this would have been fine if both my parents had not been in there 50’s & 60’s already but I guess their motto was if they have more kids while they were older they had a better chance to possibly fool their neighbors and friends into thinking they were younger. Stories from mom’s close friends all had a consistent tone, she made everyone feel welcomed and would invite sleep overs to her friends and siblings children, she loved to spoil them as if they were her own by taking them dress shopping, to nice restaurants and the occasional movies before Netflix was even an option. Though in her final days she had moved to Florida to live, she remained always a dedicated, loving and affectionate mother, chocolate connoisseur and the ultimate, most loyal New Yorker. New York City she had always kept close to her heart sometimes even more so than chocolate and or her children. May she lay peacefully and be remembered, beautifully, as the grace she passed along to all that she loved and embraced. We love you mom. Now is your turn to keep your partner of more than 4 decades our loving and generous father company as you lay beside him.