Categories
Parks and Recreation

History in the Making 3/16: Here Be Dragons (And Battleships) Edition

Yesterday the normal bustle of Union Square was interrupted with a dragon attack courtesy a promotion for the HBO show Game of Thrones.  Either that, or Mayor De Blasio needs to work harder to keep our public parks safe from mythological beasts. If you think this might be the weirdest stunt ever pulled in Union… Read More

Categories
Amusements and Thrills

PODCAST REWIND: Return to Freedomland U.S.A.!

What is Freedomland U.S.A.? An unusual theme park in the Bronx, only in existence for less than five years, Freedomland has become the object of fascination for New York nostalgia lovers everywhere. Created by an outcast of Walt Disney’s inner circle, Freedomland practically defines 60s kitsch, with dozens of rides and amusements related to saccharine… Read More

Categories
Bridges

History Tidbits: Magical Jazz Tapes, GANYC Apple Award Winners

Above: The High Bridge, taken by Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao for the New York Times Here’s a fun find courtesy Open Culture — hundreds of hours of classic jazz music from the 1920-1950s, courtesy music collector David W. Niven (not the famed British actor).  Niven collected jazz music records starting in the 1920s; later in life, he transferred… Read More

Categories
Bowery Boys Bookshelf

New Bowery Boys podcast: We look at our own history and to the future

As we prepare for our #200th episode — and the release of the first-ever Bowery Boys book — we’ve decided to take a look back at our last 100 shows, at some of the highlights of the past six or so years.  What were some of our favorite episodes? The most controversial episode? What’s the… Read More

Categories
Those Were The Days

Millionaire aviator crashes into Central Park one hundred years ago!

An airplane crashing into Central Park? Believe it or not, in the early days of flight, these sorts of stories were somewhat frequent, although in this case, the pilot and passenger got out okay. Quote from newspaper coverage. From the New York Evening World, March 6, 1916: “Alexander H. Thaw, the millionaire aviator, and John… Read More

Categories
Pop Culture

HBO’s Vinyl: Getting Into The Groove

The music industry is the focus of Martin Scorsese’s new HBO show Vinyl just as the mob-run liquor business was the focus of his last show Boardwalk Empire, but in many ways, the two are pretty much the same. Richie Finestra (Bobby Cannavale) runs his record label American Century Records out of the Brill Building… Read More

Categories
Bowery Boys Bookshelf

The history and future of Gowanus: Interview with author Joseph Alexiou

Brooklyn gentrification has reached a curious impasse — the Gowanus Canal. The neighborhood surrounding it thrives with new housing developments, trendy restaurants and bars, music venues, shuffleboard clubs and even a Whole Foods. Curbed just named it neighborhood of the year. It’s now a destination for foodies. Pity about that fetid and uniquely aromatic body of… Read More

Categories
Landmarks

PODCAST REWIND: The Glory of the Woolworth Building

F.W. Woolworth was the self-made king of retail’s newfangled ‘five and dime’ store and his pockets were overflowing with cash. Meanwhile, in New York, the contest to build the tallest building was well underway. The two combine to create one of Manhattan’s most handsome buildings — the Woolworth Building —  cutting a Gothic profile on… Read More

Categories
Landmarks Podcasts

Battle for the New York City Skyline: How Tall Can It Go?

PODCAST The story of growing tall in New York City and the two pivotal laws that allowed for the city’s dynamic, constantly evolving skyline. This year is the 100th anniversary of one of the most important laws ever passed in New York City — the 1916 Zoning Law which dictated the rules for building big… Read More

Categories
Preservation

The Second Annual Apple Awards! Honoring the Best of New York

The Second Annual 2016 GANYC Apple Awards, honoring the best in New York City preservation, tourism and culture, arrives this March again to the Leonard Nimoy Thalia Theater at Symphony Space.  We were honored to be chosen for an award last year in the category of Outstanding Achievement in Radio Program/Podcasts. And this year, we’re… Read More

Categories
Those Were The Days

Let’s look at some old-timey Valentine’s Day cards!

“In observing St. Valentine’s Day we conform to a heathen custom which obtained long before the martyr, St. Valentine, was born,” wrote the New  York Daily Tribune in February of 1908. Like Christmas, the celebration of Valentine’s Day became explicitly commercial in the late 19th century with the mass manufacture of cards and candy.  Massachusetts… Read More

Categories
Brooklyn History

Podcast Rewind: Williamsburg(h) where did you go?

PODCAST Williamsburg used to have an H at the end of its name, not to mention dozens of major industries that once made it the tenth wealthiest place in the world. How did Williamsburgh become a haven for New York’s most well-known factories and then become Williamsburg, home to such wildly diverse communities — Hispanic,… Read More

Categories
Brooklyn History Podcasts

The History of Greenpoint, Brooklyn: An Industrial-Strength Story

PODCAST The history of the Brooklyn neighborhood of Greenpoint and the oft-polluted Newtown Creek. Greenpoint, Brooklyn, has a surprising history of both bucolic green pastures and rancid oil patches. Before the 19th century this corner of Brooklyn was owned by only a few families with farms (and the slaves that tended them). But with the future… Read More

Categories
Landmarks

History in the Making 2/3: Birds of a Feather Edition

Pictured above: Releasing carrier pigeons from the rooftop of Madison Square Garden, February 13, 1915. Per the New York Times:  “More than two dozen homing pigeons were released in New York City on February 13, 1915, as part of the Poultry and Pigeon Show being held in Madison Square Garden. Officials of the show, pictured… Read More

Categories
Pop Culture

“I amuse you? I make you laugh?” Bowery Boys on GoodFellas Minute

If you’re a fan of classic movies, you should definitely check out the strange but marvelous podcast GoodFellas Minute, which specializes in analyzing the classic 1990 Martin Scorsese movie starring Robert De Niro, Joe Pesce, Lorraine Bracco and Ray Liotta. As the title suggests, each episode of the podcast — featuring Ron Richards, Josh Flanagan, and… Read More