The Bowery Boys: New York City History
(The front entrance to Sailors Snug Harbor, a far more robust little dock back in the day, I’m sure) Sailors Snug Harbor — or Snug Harbor Cultural Center as its called today — is one of Staten Island’s top attractions, yet few people outside of SI really know much about it. If you recall our… Read More
(Battery Maritime, from the back) That precious jade little music box with a copper top sitting next to the brand spanking new Staten Island Ferry terminal is about to get yet another makeover. The Battery Maritime building, now landmarked, has probably been one of downtown Manhattan’s most mistreated buildings. There are probably a few reasons… Read More
To get you in the mood for the weekend, every Friday we’ll be celebrating ‘FRIDAY NIGHT FEVER’, featuring an old New York nightlife haunt, from the dance halls of 19th Century Bowery, to the massive warehouse spaces of the mid-90s. Past entries can be found HERE. Most New York nightclubs rarely see get past one… Read More
We’re going to the ‘original’ Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in this podcast to hang with the filthy rich. Our guides are the styling and eccentric Astor family, the centerpiece of 19th Century New York wealth and society. Come along as we weave through a family tree of Williams and John Jacobs, not to mention THE Mrs. Astor,… Read More
(I couldnt find much about the artist above, but the grave marker is certainly one of the most striking.) Here’s a few shots from my stroll through Woodlawn. Its certainly worth a visit if immersion into classic crypts and tombstones are your sort of thing. (Click on the shots to get detail.) This mausoleum happened… Read More
(For of all, I apologize, I had tons of photographs from my trip to Woodlawn that are not uploading properly. For now, I’m just using file photographs and will try and correct the problem later.) Woodlawn Cemetary is still considered an oasis of calm and tranquility, and the dead quite enjoy it. Although a trek… Read More
pictured: Joey Dee and the Starliters, who turned a small midtown gay hustler bar into a dance hit in 1961 To get you in the mood for the weekend, every Friday we’ll be celebrating ‘FRIDAY NIGHT FEVER’, featuring an old New York nightlife haunt, from the dance halls of 19th Century Bowery, to the massive… Read More
(Secretariat Tower, in a dazzling light show during a special session on the international HIV/AIDS crisis.) It’s the only area of Manhattan that actually belongs to the world (literally). Come along with the Bowery Boys as we cut the security line to uncover the true story about the unusual headquarters of the United Nations, and… Read More
We’ve got some more on that wacky, wonderful place called Roosevelt Island. We highlighted some of the spookier stuff last week. Read it all here. I mentioned earlier that Roosevelt Island was named for a Franklin Delano Roosevelt memorial that was never built there. Perhaps the reason that doesn’t bother anybody is that’s a far… Read More
We’ve got some more on that wacky, wonderful place called Roosevelt Island. We highlighted some of the spookier stuff last week. Read it all here. After the Renwick Ruins (which on most days aren’t open to the public) and the tramway (which takes all of five minutes to enjoy), the landmark which people associate with… Read More
We’ve got some more on that wacky, wonderful place called Roosevelt Island! We highlighted some of the spookier stuff last week. Read it all here. One of the more intriguing aspects to Roosevelt Island is the notion of even getting there at all. For most of its existence, people used ferries to get to and… Read More
New York gets another Robert Indiana sculpture, which stands at Park Avenue and 57th Street. See our past article on Indiana’s other works in the city. The ghost of Sid Vicious walks the halls of the Chelsea Hotel, according to Dee Dee Ramone. [Chelsea Blog] Some excellent shots of Coney Island, one hundred years ago.… Read More
(Top and bottom photos: Garry Winogrand – taken on the El Morocco dance floor – 1955) To get you in the mood for the weekend, every Friday we’ll be celebrating ‘FRIDAY NIGHT FEVER’, featuring an old New York nightlife haunt, from the dance halls of 19th Century Bowery, to the massive warehouse spaces of the… Read More
In this mini-podcast, we bring you New York’s first famous writer Washington Irving and his creepy tale of the Headless Horseman. We’ll tell you where you can go to celebrate his life and work, and what famous Irving landmark has nothing really to do with him at all. Listen to it for free on iTunes… Read More
Is there anything more frightening than a insane asylum on fire? Nope. Welcome to America’s first municipal lunatic asylum, its home — you guessed it — is on Roosevelt Island in the 19th century. The 1839 facility was designed by Alexander Jackson Davis, one of the most influential architects of his day and best known for… Read More