I have been paying more attention to the shingle signs that are found outside doctors’ offices, because some of them are old indeed and have been in place for a long time. Take this sign, for Dr. N. Shevell and W. Sciales, MD, at Oak Avenue and 163rd Street. First, I wish I could go to a doctors’ office in a beautiful building like this; when I happened by in late June it was at peak foliage and June was busting out all over.
Note that only one side of the sign looks like that. The other side featured three names in the Clarendon font, mounted on a wood post with a decorative mastarm with scrollwork. Here’s where the mystery comes in, at least for me. Seeing the name “N. Shevell” reminded me that Paul McCartney’s wife is named Nancy Shevell. Information on the internets is somewhat sketchy. I gather that she is from New Jersey and worked in her father’s business. She worked her way onto the Metropolitan Transit Authority board, which means she voted to raise subway fares on several occasions.
That brings me to the sign. The doctor’s name in Flushing is indeed Nancy Shevell, but for me the mystery is that she was married to Dr. John Sciales way back in 1956. That would make both of them quite elderly indeed if they were still running a practice in Flushing in 2024. I imagine the “W. Sciales” on the sign is an offspring who joined the practice, as indeed may be the J. Sciales and N. Shevell on the signs. As to the relationship between Mrs. McCartney and the Flushing Nancy Shevell, I’m in the dark, if it exists at all. And I’m not going to call the office with those kind of questions.
If anyone can clear up the identity of the doctors at the practice and their connection to Paul McCartney, Comments are open. I can say that Mrs. McCartney can count the late Barbara Walters as a cousin.
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8/19/24
9 comments
Oddly, I’ve known both of the Nancy Shevell’s that you mention.
My son’s pediatrician was the doctor mentioned above. My son is now 31 years old so that was a long time ago.
The other Nancy, married to Paul, is the daughter of Mike Shevell who owned the NEMF (New England Motor Freight) trucking company, now defunct, where I worked as a consultant back in the 1980’s. Nancy was a VP back then. I was not aware of her influence in the MTA.
I know of no connection between the two Nancy’s.
William is their son, he took over his father’s internal medicine practice.
i posted the article on a fb page (did you grow up in flushing) and here is a comment from the group. hope it answers your question. keep up the good work. No mystery to me. Dr. William Sciales and my grandfather, Dr. Joseph Rescigno were colleagues and friends at Flushing Hospital and at their homes. Indeed William and Nancy were husband and wife, John was their son. After my grandfather passed Dr. Shevell became our pediatrician, and as I got older I saw Dr. William a couple of times. William left his practice to his son John, the third name on the sign, who also became my doctor for a time while I was still in Flushing. That was about 25/30 years ago. No connection to Paul McCartney. My mother never would have left had that been the case, she was a rabid Beatles fan. Dr. William passed away while we were still in Flushing. Dr. Shevell was still practicing. Am I right
Your assumption is pretty much spot on about the family. Couldn’t speak to the Paul connection. Dr Sciales was a funny character
Nancy Shevell was a vice president of her family’s trucking firm, and was appointed to the MTA board in 2001 by NYS Governor George Pataki, as Nassau County’s MTA Board representative. At the time, Shevell’s first husband, Bruce Blakeman, was a rising star in Nassau Republican politics. He is currently the Nassau County Executive. They later divorced.
Shevell remained on the MTA Board until 2012, right after her wedding to Paul McCartney. When she left the MTA Board, the NY Daily News summed up the news perfectly, with the headline, “She’s got a ticket to ride: Mrs. Paul McCartney quits MTA board after serving for a decade.”
Link to NY Daily News article: https://www.nydailynews.com/2012/01/25/shes-got-a-ticket-to-ride-mrs-paul-mccartney-quits-mta-board-after-serving-for-a-decade/
I met Dr. J. Sciales once around 1976 (?). One of his patients had an application pending with my employer & I needed his signature on a document to certify the file. I knew the location of his office as I frequently passed by it. I contacted Dr. Sciales who agreed to meet me at his office the following Saturday morning. I brought along a copy for his signature which he eagerly gave me. A few years before this meeting I came across his name in an article that appeared in Car & Driver; it seems that Dr. Sciales was the proud owner of a very rare & desirable 1956 Continental (Ford’s answer to the Cadillac El Dorado). I didn’t reference the Continental during my visit, & I assumed that it was inside the garage or he had sold at an auction or perhaps to the LIC vintage car retailer Gold Wing Motor Cars in Astoria. It’s nice that this exclusive Flushing enclave appears just as desirable as it did 50 years ago.
My daughter, who is now 40, saw Dr Shevell in that house
as a child. There is no connection between her and the woman who is married to McCartney
Nancy was married to one of the Blakeman boys!! They are known Republicans on Long Island. She divorced and married Paul. They are all from the “East Hampton” crowd!!
Such a nice big house in Flushing. The developers are already circling around it.