The Tour Season Ends: The Newest Statue in Central Park

The season ended yesterday, as usual, with Nelsen Middle School from Renton, Washington.

I placed my requisite bottle of Poland Springs on a pedestal in Central Park and waited for the late June sun to stream through the branches of the elm trees.

Thirty-seven groups have come to New York and returned to their homes in Arkansas, California, Texas, Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Idaho, Oregon, Canada and Ireland.

And now it's time for me to return to my home in Upstate Manhattan and concentrate on knocking my next novel into shape.  There is writing to do.

So I willed that one little part of my soul--that trivia-dispensing, Starburst-tossing, sidewalk-trekking piece of myself--into a frozen state.

And I left him there.  In the park.  Near the Mall.  That's where the statue will remain until the next wave of students come to the city singing their song:

What are we doing next?

What are we doing next?

Where are we eating lunch?

What are we doing next?

What are we doing next?

What are we doing next?

Where's the gift shop?

What are we doing next?

Mariah Carey Video at the Plaza

After leading my group out of Central Park today, I spotted lights and cameras at the Plaza.  Here are a few shots from my camera:

 

 

 

The Diamond District: With This Guy Handing Out Your Flyers, Who Needs Enemies

A man on Fifth Avenue wearing a sandwich board and passing out flyers for a diamond store was heard repeatedly chanting:  "LOW PRICES, LOW HASSLE, LOW QUALITY!  LOW PRICES, LOW HASSLE, LOW QUALITY!"

NYC Decade by Decade--1730-1739...John Peter Zenger and the Freedom of the Press

One of most significant court cases in the city's history took place in the 1730's.  John Peter Zenger, who had apprenticed with William Bradford, began printing his own newspaper--The Weekly Journal.  It was a paper supported by activists opposed to the current administration and it took aim at both the new royal governor, William Cosby, and James De Lancey, the new chief justice appointed by Cosby. 

Cosby and De Lancey tried to shut down Zenger's press by ordering the arrest of Zenger for "seditious libel."  De Lancey set an excessive bail and Zenger remained in jail at City Hall (on the present-day site of Federal Hall) for eight months (from November, 1734, until his trial in August, 1735).  This was an extremely controversial imprisonment.  His wife kept the printing press running, and Zenger's allies prepared his defense, hiring Andrew Hamilton, an attorney from Philadelphia.

At the time, libel was very easy to prosecute.  "Seditious libel" involved the printing of anything that undermined the government, but Andrew Hamilton, introduced a radical argument in the court room.  He invoked the jury to take into account whether or not the articles were true or false.  If they were true, then Zenger had a right to publish; otherwise, the people could never criticize their rulers. 

De Lancey told the jury to stick to the original law, but the jury came back minutes later to dismiss all charges against Zenger.  You can hear the Revolution coming in the jury's rejection of the judge's instructions as well as in the language used in the courtroom (e.g., "liberty" and "freemen" and "natural rights"). 

The case would have repercussions well beyond Wall and Broad Streets.  A book written about the case (and printed by Zenger) would become the first successful book published in New York--read on both sides of the ocean--and the ideas put forth by Andrew Hamilton and supported by the jury still serve today as a litmus test for a government's freedom of the press. 

ALSO DURING THIS DECADE:

1730--The population of New York is 8,622.

1732--The city's first theater opens near Maiden Lane.

1732--Three private citizens lease the open area in front of the old fort and promise to lay out a Bowling-Green with pleasant walks for the enjoyment of the citizens.  Some claim this is the first public park in America.

1736--The city's first permanent almshouse opens.

Sources:  Gotham by Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace; The Blue Guide New York by Carol von Pressentin Wright, Stuart Miller, and Sharon Seitz.

At the Central Park Bandshell

Californian Takes an Umbrella to the Top of the Empire State Building

He's from Los Angeles.

How would he know that an umbrella you buy on the sidewalk during a New York City rainstorm won't last to the corner if you don't know how to work with the wind?

And how would he know that, under no circumstances, do you open that kind of umbrella on the 86th floor observatory deck of the Empire State Building?

 

 

Hudson Heights, Part Seven: Margaret Corbin (The Cabrini Code)

Every other Monday we'll be posting the newest byte in our walk through Hudson Heights, my neighborhood in Upstate Manhattan, the stretch on the western ridge between the GW Bridge and the Cloisters.  This is the seventh installment, the second of two bytes which deal with the famous women of the Heights--an American saint and America's first female soldier.

This byte was directed by Marc Wolf (who has appeared in several of the Little Byte videos).  Nicole Stefonek played Sister Agnes.

Nicole Stefonek is a singer/actor/bartender currently "living the dream" in NYC.  She enjoys singing, comic improv, and good tippers.  Keep an eye out for her next off-off Broadway or cabaret presentation.

Marc Wolf recently performed the world premiere of his new solo-show The Road Home: Re-Membering America at Huntington Theatre and Geva Theatre, directed by David Schweizer.  He received an OBIE and was nominated for the Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for his brilliant Off-Broadway performance of Another American: Asking and Telling at The New Group, directed by Joe Mantello.  www.marcwolf.com

HUDSON HEIGHTS CALENDAR

The Bridge (now playing)

The People (now playing)

The Revolution (now playing)

The Apartments (now playing)

The Barista (now playing)

The Saint (now playing)

The Soldier (now playing)

7/6--The Park

7/20--The Cloisters

8/3--The Sculptor

 

 

Little Bytes Recommends: The New American Wing at the Met

For me, the new American wing at the Met was even more of a surprise than the opening of the spectacular Roman galleries two years ago.  Much of the Charles Engelhard Court is now floored with yellow marble.  A sunken area was retained on the northern end that allows visitors to examine some of the collection's marble statues before stepping up through the facade of the Branch Bank of the United States (which was first erected on Wall Street in the 1820's) to explore the newly renovated and refurbished period rooms, which look better than ever.  There's a glass elevator on the eastern side of the rooms and a brand new mezzanine-level balcony that literally adds another level of display space on the western end of the court.  One of the museum's better cafes still remains, tucked away obscurely below the new balcony, and the Visual Storage seems more welcoming and user friendly. 

If you can, visit this weekend.  I can also vouch for the amazing (beautifully disturbing) Francis Bacon retrospective.

Sadly, I can't vouch for the Roxy Paine installation on the roof, since the roof has been closed due to rain each of the last FOUR times I've been there.

Pictured:  Judy Krauss imitating Diana by Augustus Saint-Gaudens. 

NYC Decade by Decade--1720-1729...Not Much

I turned many pages in several sources and found very little that happened in New York during the 1720's.  It was a slow news decade, which is funny since this was the decade when William Bradford began printing The New-York Gazette.

There was, however, an increase in population and a rise in indentured servitude.  People needing to leave Europe were willing to agree to years of service to pay for their voyage across the Atlantic.  One particular group came from Scotland via Ireland.  The Ulster Scots, or Scots-Irish, were descended from Scottish Presbyterians who had spent the 1600's living in the northern counties of Ireland before sailing to the mainland colonies of America (which absorbed 15,000 during this one ten-year period).  Tens of thousands of Roman Catholics from the south of Ireland also emigrated to the New World during this time.  New York City was a draw, because after completing their servitude, the immigrants could find jobs that paid well. 

ALSO DURING THIS DECADE:

1724:  The Baptist church is formally established in the city and a building is erected on the top of Golden Hill (present-day Cliff Street, near John).

1725:  William Bradford, who set up his print shop in the 1690's, begins publishing the New-York Gazette. 

1729:  The first synagogue for Congregation Shearith Israel is built on Beaver Street.

Sources:  Gotham by Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace; and the Blue Guide New York by Carol von Pressentin Wright, Stuart Miller, and Sharon Seitz.

Victory: Rain, Makeovers and Sherpas

As I mentioned yesterday, this season could be titled "Partly Cloudy with Chance of Rain."  On Day One of one of my favorite tours each year (New Braunfels, Texas, who hosted me down their way in July, 2007) we encountered a heavy mist as soon as we came out of the subway in the West Village.  By St. Luke's Place, most had shed their ponchos, but by Commerce Street, Lynda, the lead teacher, still wore something on her head.  I don't remember what it was.  A recycling bag?

I'm posting this picture for a couple reasons. 

One, because Lynda very clearly said, "Don't put this on your website."

Two, because I noticed she's carrying my reading material.  I've developed a habit of turning my tourists into my sherpas (so that I can have my hands free to point and gesture) and I love that you can make out the elegant, triumphantly gilded Victory on the cover of my Met Art Museum Bulletin.  It's as if Sherman's angel is leading these Texans through the Village.

And three, because two mornings later, while this group stood outside the Today Show in ponchos and rain gear, two of the moms were picked out of the crowd for makeovers.  (If Lynda had still been wearing the plastic recycling bag on her head, perhaps she would have been chosen as well.)  You can watch their makeovers and their response (a dozen of them were chosen to come inside for the unveiling) on the Today Show on Friday morning--during the later, Kathy Lee portion of the show.

Liberty in the Fog

This entire season could be titled "Partly Cloudy with Chance of Rain."  Last week's fog though did give a visit to Liberty Island an eerily beautiful feel. 

No part of the Statue could be seen from the first three ferries.  Passengers boarded in fog, floated through fog and stepped out on an island completely isolated by fog.  It felt like a haunted place. 

My group from Idaho, who had arrived a day earlier in the rain and fog, had no idea how much was surrounding us.  They couldn't see the Manhattan skyline, Brooklyn, Staten Island, or New Jersey.  They could only see the occasional phantom boat emerge from the white and the ghostly outline of a colossal woman with arm raised.  The fog began to break by the time we left for Ellis Island around 10:00.

G.M. Declares Bankruptcy at the Old Customs House

Last week, General Motors filed papers at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in lower Manhattan.

This court is located in the old Customs House, the lavish building replete with colored marble and covered in elaborate statuary. 

This court is also situated directly behind the rear end of the city's most famous bull.

Appropriate.

For all the symbolism, watch our Bowling Green, Part 2.

 

NYC Decade by Decade--1710-1719

By the start of this decade, the African slave trade was flourishing in New York.  In 1711, the city opened a municipal slave market in a shed at the eastern end of Wall Street.  (For more details, see our video, Slaves and a Haircut, from our Wall Street tour.)

The city's first slave revolt broke out in 1712 (the same year that Trinity Church, at the other end of Wall Street, banned black burials in their cemetery).  On April 7th, a fire was started at the home of Peter Van Tilburgh (as a signal for a larger rebellion?) and nine white men rushing to extinguish the fire were killed by slaves.  This uprising was quickly put down.  Several fled but many were captured and executed.  Thirteen were hanged, one was broken at the wheel, one was chained and left to starve, and four were burned to death, including one who was roasted over a fire for almost ten hours.

By the end of this decade, one in five New Yorkers was owned by another New Yorker.  Two thousand residents (out of a population of 10,000) were slaves.  This was the highest proportion of slaves in any colony north of Virginia.

ALSO DURING THIS DECADE:

1713:  The first Staten Island ferry makes its way across the harbor.

1714:  The first Presbyterian church is erected on the north side of Wall Street between Broadway and Nassau.

1716:  Androboros: A Biographical Farce in Three Acts, by one of the city's many Scotsmen, becomes the first play written and printed in America.

1716:  Four years after the slave revolt, the right of freed black men to own land is repealed.

1718:  The threat of piracy diminishes with the capture of Blackbeard (Edward Teach) in the Caribbean.

Sources:  Gotham by Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace; Manhattan in Maps by Robert T. Augustyn and Paul E. Cohen; The Historical Atlas of New York City by Eric Homberger; New York:  An Illustrated History by Ric Burns and James Sanders, with Lisa Ades.

Robert Indiana: Hope in Times Square

This past week, Robert Indiana, who gave us the famous LOVE statue...

...has given HOPE to Times Square (which has lost much of its energy since Memorial Day weekend). 

 

I LOVE how HOPE plays with the other signs in Times Square.

 

The Old St. Patrick's 200th Birthday

On Sunday, I told my group of forty eighth-graders to meet at 12:45 on Mulberry (which was completely empty) because I figured Mott would be too crowded. After letting them go, I walked over to Mott to learn that an entire parade (fire trucks, humvees, soldiers, and re-enactors) celebrating the 200th anniversary of the old St. Pat's would be rolling up Mulberry at exactly 12:45. Perfect.

 

(But, let the record show, I was still able to get the group to lunch in Times Square with five minutes to spare.)

 

Here they are lining up on Mott for their parade up Mulberry.

 

 

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Hudson Heights, Part Six: Mother Cabrini and a Little Piece of Rome

Every other Monday we'll be posting the newest byte in our walk through Hudson Heights, my neighborhood in Upstate Manhattan, the stretch on the western ridge between the GW Bridge and the Cloisters.  This is the sixth installment, the first of two bytes which deal with the famous women of the Heights--an American saint and America's first female soldier. 

This byte was directed by Marc Wolf (who has appeared in several of the Little Byte videos).  Nicole Stefonek played Sister Agnes.

Nicole Stefonek is a singer/actor/bartender currently "living the dream" in NYC.  She enjoys singing, comic improv, and good tippers.  Keep an eye out for her next off-off Broadway or cabaret presentation.

Marc Wolf recently performed the world premiere of his new solo-show The Road Home: Re-Membering America at Huntington Theatre and Geva Theatre, directed by David Schweizer.  He received an OBIE and was nominated for the Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for his brilliant Off-Broadway performance of Another American: Asking and Telling at The New Group, directed by Joe Mantello.  www.marcwolf.com

HUDSON HEIGHTS CALENDAR

The Bridge (now playing)

The People (now playing)

The Revolution (now playing)

The Apartments (now playing)

The Barista (now playing)

6/8--The Saint (now playing)

6/22 (now playing)

7/6--The Park

7/20--The Cloisters

8/3--The Sculptor

NYC Decade by Decade--1700-1709...The City's First Drag Queen?

This was the decade of the drag queen.  It's a story seemingly confirmed by a painting that hangs at the New York Historical Society, purported to be Lord Cornbury, Queen Anne's governor of New York and New Jersey, but that painting's provenance and subject has long been questioned.  Most historians also believe that much of Cornbury's reputation comes from rumors fabricated by rivals during and after his administration.

It may or may or may not be true then that the governor dressed in women's clothing, promenaded along the ramparts, or hid behind trees to pounce on his victims and shriek with laughter.  What is certain is that he was despised by most of the population of New York. 

Appointed in 1702 by Queen Anne, he resumed the unpopular practice of doling out vast expanses of land to favorites including Trinity Church, to whom Cornbury gave King's Farm, which ran up the west of Manhattan to present-day Christopher Street.  (Another fortunate recipient was given acreage half the size of Connecticut.) 

A fierce Anglican, Cornbury also tried to impose the Anglican Church on the residents.  He gave a raise to the rector of Trinity Church and taxed the population to pay for it. In 1707, he had one of the founders of American Presbyterianism arrested for preaching without a license.  More outrageously, after the city's first Presbyterian church was built (in Jamaica, Queens), Cornbury kicked out the minister and appointed an Anglican in his place.

Several influential New Yorkers, in hopes of ousting Cornbury, wrote to allies in England about his outlandish behavior, claiming that he dressed in women's clothing ("I represent a woman [Queen Anne] and ought in all respects to resemble her as faithfully as I can."), rode his horse into taverns and pocketed anything that wasn't bolted down.

In 1708, after Parliament changed hands, Cornbury was recalled and the city rejoiced...particularly the Presbyterians!

ALSO DURING THIS DECADE:

1702:  The city's first slave code outlaws the enslavement of Indians and calls white "slavery" indentured servitude.  Slavery, therefore, is restricted to those of African descent.  The first slave uprising will take place ten years later.

1709:  The city's first bar association is formed.

Sources:  Gotham by Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace; The Historical Atlas of New York City by Eric Homberger; New York:  An Illustrated History by Ric Burns and James Sanders, with Lisa Ades.

HOPE Is Coming to Times Square

No, people will still be sitting in lawn chairs, but starting tomorrow until next Wednesday, Robert Indiana's sculpture, HOPE, will be displayed at 44th and Broadway.  Read more about it and see a photo at the Gothamist. 

The picture here was taken three years ago with one of my groups from Brunswick, Georgia, in front of Indiana's LOVE sculpture on Sixth Avenue.

Leo, the Amazing Abyssinian, Still Holds the Record

Last week ABC News reported on a cat named Lucky that survived a fall from the 26th floor of an apartment building in lower Manhattan.  Lucky landed on a grill cover on the sixth floor--a fall of 20 stories--but lived to meow about it, breaking only a toe and his lower jaw.

As I've often said before, the farther a cat falls, the less likely it will suffer a fatal injury.  Remember Leo who fell/jumped from the 46th floor of Manhattan Plaza and broke no bones at all?  Little Bytes is happy to report that Leo is still the champ.  (But we also congratulate Lucky and his owners.)

NYC Decade by Decade--1600-1699

We're ten weeks into the project, NYC Decade by Decade, and I thought you might want an abbreviated recap, highly compressed and distilled.

1600-1609--Henry Hudson:  "What an amazing harbor!" 

1610-1619--The Lenapes:  "Who the hell was that?"

1620-1629--The Dutch West India Company sends the first European residents...only 8 in 1624.  (8 million by 2000.)

1630-1639--Willem Kieft arrives to clean up colony and stirs up hostility with local tribes.

1640-1649--Bloody Indian war, Kieft is recalled, Peter Stuyvesant arrives. 

1650-1659--Stuyvesant manages growth of city, establishes borders, builds a wall.

1660-1669--The English take over and New Amsterdam becomes New York.

1670-1679--The Dutch reclaim New York and it becomes New Orange...but then it becomes New York again. 

1680-1689--In England, William of Orange takes the throne from the previous Duke of York...but there are no more name changes.  New York remains New York.  Leisler takes over the city on behalf of William and Mary.

1690-1699--William and Mary order the grisly execution of Leisler; the city becomes anti-Catholic but pro-pirate.

FOR GREATER DETAIL, SEE THE PROPER ENTRY...POSTED EVERY THURSDAY

COMING THIS THURSDAY:  THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY BEGINS...1700-1709