If you buy into local news reports, the only people who use MySpace.com are underage kids and the predators who stalk them. But the infectious Web site that allows users to create a personal profile with information and photos also has a wealth of information about some notable Milwaukeeans, like Frank "Pepperoni Cannoli" Pecoraro, "Freeway" and Bob Uecker. Most of these homepages, unfortunately, are also fake. But many of them are pretty funny.
It's unlikely, for example, that the dreadlocked guy who tries to sell you Xpressions Journals on Brady Street actually created a MySpace profile called "iannoyu." It's probably the work of a prankster with too much time on his hands who describes himself as "that guy standing outside of Walgreen's on Brady Street in Milwaukee, bugging you to buy my magazine. I've got about 34 restraining orders out on me and with your help I'd like to make it an even 50! Everyone is creative! Everyone's a writer!"
That pitch has earned the grungy, peaceful Rasta dude a mere 30 friends. But hey, that's 30 more than he appears to make selling the papers on the street.
There are also hundreds of pages claiming to belong to professional athletes. Former Marquette hoopster Dwyane Wade, for example, has a MySpace profile ... or two or three.
The Brett Favre pages are everywhere, but unless he's got a crazy sense of humor, it's certainly it's not him at this address.
The fake Uecker profile looked convincing, well, until the part in which he claims he pulls down less than $30,000 a year.
Ask some pro sports figures about MySpace and you'll quickly get the idea that virtually none of the pages is legit. Mostly, they are homages -- sometimes bizarre ones -- created by fans.
"I have friends who are on MySpace," Brewers shortstop J.J. Hardy said. "That's how I found out about it. It is weird. If they're using it to meet people or whatever, it's pretty weak. I just know that someone made one of me. I don't really look at stuff like that. I'm pretty computer illiterate, actually."
"My girlfriend has one," said pitcher Chris Capuano. "I've already looked at it. She had somebody send her a picture of his (genitalia). They don't have to get on your friends page. They see your profile and your picture and say, 'She looks hot. I think I'll mess with her.'"
Although infielder Jeff Cirillo had a friend make a page for him, things quickly got out of hand.
"I had a buddy that went on there and did a page for me," Cirillo said. "He was using it to talk to fans and things. I didn't look at it. It got to the point where I had to take it down," he says. "My wife Nancy and I went on it the other day and there (was) suggestive stuff, with girls saying 'Meet me at Rain,' and there were phone numbers on there. I told my wife, 'I don't even go on this thing. I'll give you all the passwords and you can go on it. I'm trying to take it down.' It's weird."
But the MySpace imposters are not limited to sports figures.
Even passionate partisanship probably wouldn't lead Gov. Jim Doyle to declare "Mark Green sucks" on his MySpace profile.
Although MySpace has a procedure for reporting rogue profiles -- including underage users -- the feeling at the ballyard is there's not much that can be done.
"I don't know legally what you can with that (misrepresentation)," Capuano said.
As for local personalities like Freeway, who, of course, has a profile, who knows if it's real?
Frank Pecoraro's page looks downright legit. If Mr. Cannoli didn't do it himself, whoever did do it did a pretty good job. His "About Me" section reads, "Retired sheet metal worker (Local Union 18, AFL-CIO) who is selling fresh made Italian foods in Milwaukee bars." (A message sent in Italian -- we know Frank speaks Italian but an imposter might not -- via the profile yielded only this response, " Pepperoni! Cannoli!")
And that brief autobiography has landed Pecoraro 863 friends (over 350 more than Summerfest)! One of them is babeyjulz, who left a comment describing herself as Julz Pecoraro ... hmmm, could it be an heir to the pepperoni throne?
The page shows that Frank has friends in high places, including Alan Thicke and a certain Scott Baio, 44, of Chicago -- yes, "the original Chachi." And since Mr. Rogers is a friend of Baio's, it's safe to say that Frank was welcome in the neighborhood, too.
Then again, the profile says Baio's hometown is Milwaukee, and Thicke lists cocaine as an interest. Maybe those aren't for real, either, but at least Milwaukee celebrities can take it in stride.
"I never pay attention to that stuff," Brewers reliever Derrick Turnbow said. "You can't stop it, so I don't worry about it."
-Drew Olson contributed to this report.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.