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Forgotten Catskills

Forgotten Catskills published on 3 Comments on Forgotten Catskills

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Even though The Catskills were severely damaged by Hurricane Irene last year, some parts will bounce back. Areas like Woodstock and Phoenicia are year round vibrant communities that have always remained popular destinations for tourists. But exploring Sullivan County this week was rather shocking.

The Borscht Belt towns have seen more financial devastation and decay than any hurricane could have caused. This isn’t news. I’ve blogged numerous times on photographers capturing images of the old resorts and bungalows, but I had to see it with my own eyes to consider the scope of it.

Main Streets died out with the advent of the malls and the resorts and colonies started losing popularity with the arrival of air travel. The Catskills as my generation knew it still existed well into the 1980’s, but it’s a shell of it’s former self these days.

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There may be hope of a revitalization. Post baby boomers like myself have been very excited about the opening of Kutsher’s Restaurant in Tribeca and the preview of the Kutsher’s documentary film was sold out almost instantly. The newish Upstater blog is waxing nostalgic about the area and they’ve proven to be quite popular.

Does this mean The Catskills are coming back? Not quite. It just means there is hope. I’m not the only one whom has had the idea to bring back a modern day bungalow colony for this generation.

Kutsher’s still exists, although it was closed the day we were there. I heard rumors that it’s for sale, but cannot find any news on the current status.

I’ll be posting some colonies that are on the market in the upcoming weeks. They are in bad disrepair, but prices are negotiable. Come on. Let’s do it. Let’s bring back The Catskills!

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Story of New York in 10 Objects

Story of New York in 10 Objects published on

The Leonard Lopate Show wants to know what 10 object you would choose to tell the story of New York. All objects must be able to fit inside a museum. Include a brief description of why you think the object helps define New York City.

The deadline for submissions is today at 5 pm. Then, you’ll be able to vote on your favorite objects.

Here’s my list. What’s yours?

1. Subway token. Watch me date myself now. I remember when a subway token went from 35 cents to 50. I remember the big ones with the Y cut-out.

2. Bagel. Few places make real bagels anymore.

3. Slice of pizza. The ultimate NYC fast food. Hmm, maybe I should add a hot dog cart, but I don’t eat hot dogs.

4. Handball. Everybody always talks about stickball. Well, I never played stickball. For my generation it was always Chinese handball. Chinese can be played against any wall, no court needed.

5. Broadway playbill. Preferably “The Odd Couple”, a New York favorite.

6. Egg Cream. Nice and foamy.

7. Knish. Yeah, it’s all about the food. S’ppose we can do a knish/hot dog cart if you insist.

8. Diner menu. Diners. Another dying breed.

9. Spray paint can. To be displayed with a remnant of an old subway car, please.

10. Shortline bus ticket. Every summer weekend during my childhood, we would catch the Shortline bus up to The Catskills. Borscht Belt bungalow colonies and resorts were as New York as the city itself. But as a child, I was always mesmerized by the walk through Times Square and the Port Authority bus terminal. Trannies, hookers, Black Panthers and Jews for Jesus all one big happy NYC family. It was like something out of Taxi Driver.

Ireland in New York

Ireland in New York published on

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Did you know that there’s an Irish famine memorial in downtown Manhattan? It’s been there since 2002 and I just found out about it last weekend. And my husband is from Dublin. He found out about it a few days before me.

The cool thing about the 1/2 acre site is that the memorial “ruin” utilizes ancient stones and soil brought over from the west of Ireland. There are also stones that were brought over from each county, all inscribed with the county name.

The site is elevated so that it feels like an Irish hilltop rather than a Manhattan street. Pretty cool. Don’t take my word for it. See for yourself.

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When Cugines Were the Hipsters of Brooklyn

When Cugines Were the Hipsters of Brooklyn published on 1 Comment on When Cugines Were the Hipsters of Brooklyn

Grabbed this video from a friend’s Facebook link. It’s totally cugine, but I recognized some south Brooklyn places from my childhood.

What’s a cugine, you ask? If you lived in Brooklyn in the 70’s, you know full well. Saturday Night Fever and Jersey Shore types. They were the hipsters of that decade, meaning Brooklyn was crawling with them and people loved to hate them. You couldn’t get away from them.

My Dubliner husband thinks that whole “I hate disco” thing over here was a racist attitude towards blacks because they were mostly creating the music. I say it was a backlash against the cugines. Italian racism? Nah. Maybe the Italians started the ball rolling, but there were cugines of all backgrounds. They were breeding.

Brooklyn has evolved since the 70’s. Cugines still exist deep in the heart of areas like Bensonhurst. Now I look upon them with a smile. They keep it real and they ARE Brooklyn.

Maybe one day in the future, I’ll look back on transplant hipsters with a smile. Ya never know. Stranger things have happened.

Old Flatbush Movie Theaters

Old Flatbush Movie Theaters published on 1 Comment on Old Flatbush Movie Theaters

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My mother is visiting for two weeks, so you may be seeing some odd “Brooklyn From Memory” posts. On Saturday we drove around East Flatbush and Flatbush were I spent my early childhood. The movie theaters were most recognizable because some still had marquees, but also…movie houses tend to stick in one’s mind, don’t they?

The Loew’s Kings Theater was is the only one we found that was still intact as a theater, as run down as it was. Upon further research, we found out that restoration is in progress and the plan is to re-open as a performing arts center by 2014. A happy ending for this one!

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The Albemarle on Albemarle Road near Flatbush. Closed in 1984 after fire.

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The Brook Theater on Flatlands just off of Flatbush is now an office building.

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My long term memory must be pretty awesome because this Church Avenue theater became The RKO Keith in the early 70’s, but I remember it as The Kenmore. I was five in 1970.

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We were one building off on Utica Avenue’s Rugby Theater. It was actually the structure to the left of the T-Mobile store.

More from Flatbush.

1970’s Brooklyn

1970’s Brooklyn published on 3 Comments on 1970’s Brooklyn

Dumbo. You wouldn’t really want to walk around there alone back then.

Photographer Danny Lyon is one of the all time great NYC street shooters. Business Insider came across these public domain images from 1974. What I miss most about old New York is everyone being out in the streets interacting with one another. Is it that New York has changed or is it just a sign of times that we no longer “play” outside because of technology? How old do I sound??

Bond Street, Boerum Hill. Burnt out cars and open fire hydrants: the playground of my youth!

Koskiusko Swimming Pool in Bed Stuy. Still there, right near Home Depot. People still line up on hot days.

It doesn’t say where this is, but do ya think that deck is legal??

Old House Museums in the Boroughs

Old House Museums in the Boroughs published on 3 Comments on Old House Museums in the Boroughs

Looking for something to do now that the weather is willing to cooperate? Hey kids, here’s an idea that’s fun and productive! Visit an old house museum. Get your inspiration from historic homes on a Saturday and start ripping into your house on the Sunday. (Some of these places are only open on weekdays, so you’ll have to call in sick.)

In Manhattan. FYI, did you know you can take a tour of Gracie Mansion? I never even considered that. Shipping merchant Archibald Gracie built this “country home” in 1799. It went through a few incarnations, including the Museum of the City of New York, until 1942. Fiorello La Guardia was the first mayor to move into Gracie Mansion.

Also, check out Manhattan’s only remaining lighthouse!

In Brooklyn. The Lefferts House has been right under my nose all these years and yet I’ve never been inside. This is one of the few remaining farmhouses in Brooklyn. The period rooms reflect daily life in the 1820’s and what finer backyard than Prospect Park?

In Queens. King Manor Museum was home to Rufus King, one of the first senators from New York. The house opened as a museum in 1900 and today, programs focus on King’s role in the antislavery movement.

In The Bronx. The Edgar Allan Poe Cottage is currently closed for restoration, but I’m including it here anyway because Poe is too cool to pass up. Poe spent the later years of his life in the 1812 cottage. He wrote such poems here as “Annabel Lee” and his wife Virginia actually died in the cottage.

In Staten Island. The Alice Austen House Museum is a Victorian Gothic cottage overlooking the water near on Verrazano Narrows. Austen was one of the first female photographers in America. The museum features Austen’s images as well as those of contemporary photographers. Plus, it’s a great old house.

Killing Gatsby (Again)

Killing Gatsby (Again) published on

“They were careless people — they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money.”

F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote that about Tom and Daisy back in 1925, but the same can be said about today’s throwaway society. The rumored Gatsby mansion is being demolished, just like many of the other Gold Coast homes of the past.

Developers will tear the house down to build a new McMansion. Because who wants the piece of history that inspired one of the greatest Amercian novels when you can have a brand new super sized tacky house?

Clearly Long Island needs to do something about their landmarks and preservation. This just isn’t right.

Unfortunately, it’s too late for Land’s End. The original fixtures have already been removed. Demolition is under way.

Hundreds of Gold Coast historic mansions have been torn down. Perhaps it’s a good idea to visit the remaining few before it all becomes a valley of ashes.

Via NY Times

All photos by Jen Ross.

Sidney Lumet’s New York

Sidney Lumet’s New York published on

Over the weekend we said goodbye to one of the kings of gritty old New York films. Sidney Lumet lost his battle with lymphoma at the age of 86.

I came of age on those gritty NY streets in the 60’s and 70’s, but everyone experienced the same New York thanks to Mr. Lumet. The city was a character in his films as important as the leading role.

Instead of going on about Lumet and his movies, I’m sharing three videos of real life people: Frank Serpico (Serpico), John Wojtowicz (Dog Day Afternoon), Bob Leuci (Prince of the City).

50 Years Ago in Park Slope

50 Years Ago in Park Slope published on

Many of us weren’t even born yet in 1960, but most of us now know what disaster looks like when a plane smashes into a crowded neighborhood. Such was the case in Park Slope 50 years ago today, when a United Airlines flight came down on 7th Avenue and Sterling Place.

It was the deadliest air disaster at the time, killing 134 people. One boy survived, only to die the next morning. Of all the people who perished that day, Stephen Baltz puts a human face on the disaster. Please read these two wonderful articles….

“A Little Brother Remembers” appears today in the NY Times written by William Allen Baltz, Stephen’s brother.

In 2002, Wendell Jamieson wrote a piece for the Times called “The Day The Boy Fell From The Sky“. He writes of Stephen’s rescue and introduces us to the nurse who stayed with the boy in the hospital.

RIP Zig Zag Records on Avenue U

RIP Zig Zag Records on Avenue U published on 1 Comment on RIP Zig Zag Records on Avenue U

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Yeah, it still existed up until recently. If you grew up in Brooklyn, you probably frequented  Zig Zag Records throughout your teens, rummaging through albums, imported 45’s and back issues of NME. And chances are, like me, you haven’t been there since the 80’s unless you’re a vinyl aficionado.

To tell you the truth, I was under the impression that Zig Zag closed years ago. I’m never on Avenue U and I hardly even buy CD’s anymore, no less vinyl.

Ah, but back in the day! There were two record shops worth traveling to Avenue U for. Titus Oaks and Zig Zag. Titus Oaks, which shut down years ago, was the larger of the two. They were major! But Zig Zag was cooler (IMHO). It seemed more “cutting edge” and “under the radar” so to speak.

Zig Zag opened it’s doors in 1977 and had a large punk and new wave following at the time. By the 80’s, it kind of went heavy metal. I only discovered it in the 80’s during my own British Invasion phase and there was enough punk, ska and new wave to satisfy me. Never got into the metal thing.

I found that this guy bought out the collection. What’s next? Bleecker Bob’s?

Ride Vintage NYC Trains & Buses

Ride Vintage NYC Trains & Buses published on

During the holiday season, the MTA runs vintage subway and buses along certain routes at scheduled times. The cost is the same as any other ride. It just might not get you all the way to your destination. Click on the link to see schedule.The wicker seat trains stopped running in 1969. I am so old that I actually remember riding these a couple of time. I would have been 4 years old. They didn’t come often, but it was a treat when I got one. The lack of air conditioning was always fun. People sweating into the grooves of the seats. Ah, but they had overhead fans! And it was 35 cents for a token. Remember those little coin thingies they had before Metro Cards? Surely, you’re not THAT much younger than me!

If you’ve never been, the NY Transit Museum is one of the coolest places in Brooklyn. You can view these vintage trains and buses any time of the year.

Historic Bed Stuy Architecture Snappies

Historic Bed Stuy Architecture Snappies published on 1 Comment on Historic Bed Stuy Architecture Snappies

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Much enjoyed touring my own area of Bed Stuy yesterday with Andrew Dolkart, Brownstoner’s “Montrose Morris” and Save Bedford Stuyvesant‘s “Amzi Hill”. Since I didn’t take notes, I’m just posting some pics and referring you to the links above for your own research. Because I’m lazy that way.

Or…perhaps some kind reader will comment on what we’re looking at. 🙂

Full Flickr set.

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