NY NY - Paul Michael Mercurio, 20, Bardonia, 24 November 1978

[dotr]

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)
Missing Person / NamUs #MP54855
Paul Michael Mercurio, Male, White / Caucasian
Date of Last Contact November 24, 1978
Missing From Bardonia, New York
Missing Age 20 Years
Height 5' 10" - 5' 11" (70 - 71 Inches)
Weight 160 - 170 lbs
Race / EthnicityWhite / Caucasian
Last Known Location
Location Bardonia, New York 10954
CountyRockland County

Circumstances of Disappearance Missing Paul Mercurio went missing 11/24/1978, and was operating a 1966 Buick Vista Cruiser station wagon bearing NY Reg. 761-FMX VIN 444656H320360. Missing and the vehicle he was operating was never located, registered or impounded in any state since the date he went missing. Mercurio related to a friend the day before he went missing that that friend would be reading about him in the paper the next day.
Physical Description
Hair Color Brown
Head Hair Description Long Brown Hair
Eye Color Brown
Scar on chin
Clothing
Gray zipper sweatshirt Blue jeans sneaker size 11 no jewelry Does not smoke

Transportation
1966 Buick Estate Wagon

StyleWagon
ColorGray
StateNew York
License Plate761-FMX
Expiration Year1978
Comments Vehicle never located, impounded or registered in any other state.

 

[Beekarina]

Hmmm... The day after Thanksgiving.

There was a Dead show in NJ that night at the Capitol in Passaic. It's only about 45 minutes away.

Pretty weird comment though, assuming he actually said it.

 

[Savemecastiel]

Bumping

 

[GirlMarlowe]

That's eerie. Why would he say something like that? Sounds like a planned suicide.

 

[MadMcGoo]

1 Unidentified Person Exclusion
UP1526 06/02/1979 Salem NJ

 

[Savemecastiel]

Bump bump

 

[madamx]

1 Unidentified Person Exclusion
UP1526 06/02/1979 Salem NJ

Does this unidentified guy have a WS thread. I can’t seem to find him.

 

[MadMcGoo]

Does this unidentified guy have a WS thread. I can’t seem to find him.

I could have sworn I’d seen one for this Doe! Nevertheless, he has one now.

NJ - NJ - Quinton Township, WhtMale UP1526, 18-22, in shallow grave, June’79

 

[madamx]

I could have sworn I’d seen one for this Doe! Nevertheless, he has one now.

NJ - NJ - Quinton Township, WhtMale UP1526, 18-22, in shallow grave, June’79

Woohoo you rock!!!... yeah I thought he had one also.. I know there is another Unidentified clay head that looks almost identical to this one.. maybe he is the one with the thread.

 

[John/Jane Doe]

2891UMPA

Could This John Doe Match? what do you think?

 

[dotr]

2891UMPA

Could This John Doe Match? what do you think?

Will post your suggestion on Bear Creek Doe's thread..
PA - PA - Bear Creek, WhtMale 2891UMPA, 15-20, "Vedon," May´79

 

[NYanon]

Resemblance to Bear Creek John Doe has been mentioned on that thread, too. I'm wondering if there were any notable crimes or stunts/pranks in the area around that time, and whether this Mercurio from Bardonia might be related: Steven Mercurio - Wikipedia

Being in the news could be for just about anything, though. Especially if it's just a local paper, school paper. Could be for success, positive accomplishment (sports, school, arts, college scholarship, etc.); could be for crime or mischief; could be a quote on a local story. Who knows?

 

[Caring1]

There are now 2 Unidentified Person exclusions for Paul:

Unidentified Person / NamUs #UP12374
Date Body FoundSeptember 20, 1992
StateNY
CountyOrange

Unidentified Person / NamUs #UP1526
Date Body FoundJune 02, 1979
StateNJ
CountySalem

 

[Aurora90]

I wish we knew more details about that comment...

 

[renaebri]

Missing vehicle, and that comment..
I wish we could get flyers posted at boat ramps around there.

 

[MadMcGoo]

MUSIC : Boy Played, Then Man Composed Himself

Before he was a conductor, before he was a composer, Steven Mercurio, 36, was a rocker.

www.latimes.com

<RBBM> His “For Lost Loved Ones,” written in 1984, reaches back into the native New Yorker’s close-knit family--Italian on his father’s side, Jewish on his mother’s. He wrote the piece for his brother Paul, who, he says, “just disappeared about 15 years ago on Thanksgiving Day.

“He went to see some friends with the family junky car and was never heard from again,” Mercurio remembers. “It’s not as if he ran away. I’m talking about a 20-year-old, not about a little child. He had money in the bank, which he didn’t take. No clothes were taken. And the car was never found. It was a piece of junk. He just disappeared.”

The Journal News 14 Feb 1991, page Page 18 - Newspapers.com

View the digital scanned newspaper from The Journal News dated 14 Feb 1991, page Page 18.

www.newspapers.com

 

[Sweetluv]

Bumping...
Odd statement he made to a friend the day before he went missing..."you will be reading about me in the paper. "
Did the friend ask what he meant by that ?
How was Paul acting days before his disappearance?

 

[Sweetluv]

He went missing Nov 24, 1978..which was a Friday. Thanksgiving was the day prior. How did Paul spend Thanksgiving?
Was he acting normal?
Did he mention where he was going in the car on Friday? ...which is missing too.

 

[dotr]

Added: 01/13/2025; Last Updated: 01/13/2025

https://www.doenetwork.org/cases/software/mp-main.html?id=6584DMNY

6584DMNY - Paul Michael Mercurio​

[td]

[/td]​

Name: Paul Michael Mercurio
Nickname/Alias: Unknown
Case Classification: Missing
Missing Since: November 24, 1978
Location Last Seen: Bardonia, Rockland County, New York

Physical Description​

Date of Birth: Unknown
Age: 20 yrs old
Race: White
Gender: Male
Height: 5'10" - 5'11"
Weight: 160 - 170 lbs
Hair Color: Brown, long.
Eye Color: Brown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Scar on chin.

Identifiers​

Dentals: Unknown
Fingerprints: Unknown
DNA: Unknown

Clothing & Personal Items​

Clothing: Gray zipper sweatshirt, blue jeans, sneaker size 11.
Jewelry: None known to be worn.
Additional Personal Items: Unknown

Circumstances of Disappearance​

Missing Paul Mercurio went missing 11/24/1978, and was operating a 1966 Buick Vista Cruiser station wagon bearing NY Reg. 761-FMX VIN 444656H320360. The vehicle has never been located, registered or impounded in any state since the date he went missing. Mercurio related to a friend the day before he went missing that that friend would be reading about him in the paper the next day.''

 

[DD Byrd]

IMO he was planning on doing something notable, but we'd really have to know his inflection when he said it. Something like a plan to paraglide into a stadium would be less dark than a suicide, but the comment in and of itself reads as if HE wouldn't be around to tell more about whatever he did. Or just semantics; maybe he was going to streak naked and stage-tackle Jerry at the Dead show. So not necessarily be print-worthy, but maybe he said it jokingly.

But then he's never heard from again, so he either had an unintended accident, it was something dark (assuming it's related to the comment at all), or he did take off by choice. Thanksgiving is famous for potential drama, and for many a chance to see more family (for the last time?). My first reaction was he drove himself off the Tappan Zee, or at least into deep water. Yet, to say what he did leads me to believe HE thought he'd have one or more witnesses to any shenanigans or his body would be found. If he ended up in jail, he'd be "read about." I lean towards something highly unusual and/or dramatic if he said "next day" and not "you're gonna read about me soon, man." Otherwise, if he was just going to 'come up missing' he'd know it wouldn't make to a paper the very next day, if at all since he wasn't a child.

The brother mentions more than once the car was a beater, which I take as his opinion it wasn't taken to be sold and finance his taking off. So my question is was IT his main car, and if not why choose it? If he knew a car, and himself, weren't coming back he might take one not worth much. Or, was he planning to use it somehow and knew it would be damaged whether he ended up dead or in jail.