What Exit?
by Thomas Greco, Publisher
Years ago, there was a funny skit on Saturday Night Live where Joe Piscopo would play the character Paulie Herman of Piscataway. The character was a happy-go-lucky guy who worked for a chemical company and boasted about being from Jersey. His catch phrase was. “What Exit?” referring, of course, to the Garden State Parkway.
What was unusual about the skit was that the only people who could possibly get the joke were people from New Jersey. How that got onto a show that was a nationwide hit, I’ll never know. But if you were from Jersey, it was pretty damn hilarious.
I have driven down the Parkway hundreds of times in my life, but no matter what, I still look at each and every exit sign. I KNOW you do it, too. And like me, I am sure most of you have attached memories, feelings and thoughts to most, if not all, of the Parkway exits. Allow me to share some of mine.
I have always lived in Nutley (Exit 151), so I will start there and head south because it’s the summer, and that means if you’re on the Parkway, you’re most likely headed down the shore. So here we go!
Exit 149 (Belleville/Glen Ridge): Oh, shit. Just about to hit traffic.
Exit 147 (East Orange): Please don’t run out of gas. Please!
Exit 145 (I-280): Dead stop.
Exit 142 (Rt. 78): Go west, young man.
Exit 141 (Vauxhall Road): For years, this was the dreaded toll traffic exit. But the tolls have been gone for decades, and there’s still traffic! WTF?
Exit 140 (US 22) First date with my wife at Winston’s. (And the best burgers and fries I ever had.)
Exit 138 (Kenilworth/Roselle Park/Elizabeth): Alicia’s first house.
Exit 135 (Clark/Westfield): My late buddy Rob Terhune used to say this was the second most famous Clark after Clark Kent. RIP Rob. Also home to many AASP/NJ meetings and the defunct northernmost Windmill Hot Dog place!
Exit 130 (US 1): Oh, man. Two of my all-time favorite things: taking my kids to the Menlo Park Mall and then hitting up my favorite record store, Vintage Vinyl in Fords, on the way back.
Exit 129 (New Jersey Turnpike/Del Mem Br/Woodbridge/Perth Amboy): Here comes the bridge! Does anyone else remember the Dutch Boy Paint billboard at the bottom of the bridge before the toll?
Exit 123 (US 9): The sorely missed Freehold Windmill!
Exit 117 (Keyport/Hazlet/Gateway/Sandy Hook): I used to think of a kid (I had never heard of the town before) I met at basketball camp at Monmouth College in 1972. Now, I just think of the nude beach in Sandy Hook, which I’ve never been to.
Exit 116 (PNC Arts Center): It will always be the Garden State Arts Center to me. This exit always makes me think of seeing Tom Jones with my mom, the Temptations reunion, Southside Johnny, Aerosmith, KISS, Elvis Costello, Don Henley, and way too many others to count.
Exit 109 (Red Bank): My current Windmill! Appearing every Friday night between 7 and 9pm.
Exit 105 (Eatontown/Long Branch): Seeing the movie Mad Dog and Glory with my wife, who was pregnant with our first child. Eh, who am I kidding? This is the exit for the original Windmill (which was the only reason we were down there)!
Exit 102 (Neptune/Asbury Park): My post high school years seeing concerts at the Stone Pony, the Fast Lane, Convention Hall and the Paramount. You had to drive through what looked like a bombed-out city at the time, but it was worth it. Also home to the Godfather of Neptune, Charlie Bryant!
Exit 98 (Belmar/Pt. Pleasant/Trenton): So many cool bars…actually, I’ve never been to a Belmar bar in my life. But I go to the Belmar Windmill every summer!
Exit 91 (Lakewood): A haunted hotel, big eyes and a bathtub with one inch of water.
Exit 82 (Seaside Hts/Island Beach State Pk): The year was 1967. My future brother-in-law Eddie was working the water gun stand on the boardwalk, and cheated to make sure I won. Haven’t been back since. (Sorry, Snooki.)
Exit 81 (Toms River): Who the hell is Tom???
Exit 74 (Forked River/Manchester): Halfway to Wildwood!
Exit 63 (Manahawkin/Long Beach Island): I think LBI stands for “Legendary Biggest Ingrate’s” favorite place.
Exit 52 (New Gretna): I have to smile every time I pass this exit because there was always an extra sign below the exit sign that said “Batso Village.” When we were kids, my sister Diane always used to tease me and call me “green teeth” and I would return the favor by calling her “fatso.” So every time we’d drive by this exit, I would give her a look and she’d punch me. LOL
Exit 48-40: Does anyone notice these?
Exit 38B (Atlantic City Expressway): Mixed emotions here. Great memories of my dad taking us down to gamble. He’d tell my mom to take a “grandski” out of the bank and then distribute $100 bills to whoever came along for the ride. The last time he ever went there was with just me. I was 23, and he still refused to let me pay for anything. A great day. A not-so-great day was when my wife and son were arrested for underage gambling. But you all should know that story by now…
Exits 37-11: Who cares?
Exit 11: (Cape May County Park/Zoo): Who names a town after a county?
Exit 4A-B (Rio Grande/Wildwood/Wildwood Crest): For over 40 years, our Jersey happy place. All that’s missing is a Windmill.
How about you? What exit?
Want more? Check out the August 2025 issue of New Jersey Automotive!