Dominic Nocera Obituary, Death – Dominic R. ‘Didy’ Nocera, 87 years old, passed suddenly on Tuesday, August 14, 2007, in Amesbury as a result of complications brought on by a protracted illness brought on by Alzheimer’s disease. Didy, who has lived in Waltham for the past four decades, spent his boyhood in the space that is now occupied by the Chateau Restaurant. During World War II, he was a member of the United States Navy and fought on a destroyer in the Philippines theater of operations. He returned to his childhood home in Waltham and settled there permanently.
Over time, he relocated his family to Weston, although he also maintained residences in New Seabury, which is located on Cape Cod; Marco Island, Florida; and Scottsdale, Arizona. Didy Nocera was the brother of the late Louis Nocera, Martin Nocera, and Anna Coffin. He was also the spouse of Nina P. ‘Lee’ (Ferro)Nocera, who passed away before. For more than half a century, he served the community as a well-liked hairdresser under the trade name Mr. Richard. Through the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, up until the time of his retirement in 1990, he was the proprietor and successful operator of a hair salon network that included locations in Waltham and Lexington.
A gentleman named Dominic was already working at Grover Cronin Beauty Parlor when he decided to pursue a profession as a hairdresser there. He was compelled to go by his middle name, Richard, which he maintained throughout his professional life. Mr. Richard opened the doors to his first salon on the second story of the Drapkin Building, directly over the Waltham Supermarket. There, his extraordinary artistic talent won him a devoted clientele, which included many of the wives of prominent local lawyers, doctors, and merchants.
In 1951, he opened what was dubbed “Waltham’s outstanding beauty salon” at the Richard Beauty Salon, which was located in the Clarkson Building on Main Street. In 1956, he made the decision to create a futuristic, state-of-the-art beauty salon on the site of the former Clam Box that he had purchased directly across the street from his existing establishment. Two years later, he made the statement, “I’m going into competition with myself,” when he and his wife, Miss Lee, built Mademoiselle, a second salon in close proximity to the previous one.
