Taxi Ray Kottner

*6/19 Update on the passing of Taxi Ray Kottner: I heard from his niece Maria via email, who informs us that Ray "went into cardiac arrest while sitting in his cab late Saturday night" and passed the following morning. His ashes will be interred at Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, sharing a mausoleum with the remains of luminaries like Judy Garland and Joan Crawford. Writes his niece, "So maybe it's fitting that he is ending up in the same final resting place as all of these other icons of his era." Indeed. But why is VNY thus far the only one to cover the passing of this New York icon?*

Original Post:
We received sad news from a commenter, who writes: "Taxi Ray passed away this past Saturday, June 14, 2008--right near his beloved cab. He will be greatly missed by those who knew that beneath the gruff exterior, a wonderful, funny person existed."

I've not been able to confirm this--I found no obituary, a sad fact in itself--but if it's true, then New York has lost another of the unique, "only in New York" characters that made it the maverick, vivid, and varied city it once was. Yes, New York is losing its soul--one Ray Kottner at a time.


still from Heaven-O

I was lucky to catch a ride with Ray in 2005. Last summer, when his cab was impounded by the Taxi and Limousine Commission for being unofficial (giving free rides in exchange for tips), I wrote about that ride here. It was such a thrill to encounter Ray's cab bouncing down an avenue, and even more of a thrill if it was available. I'll always remember that sunny day in his smelly, squeaky backseat, listening to him tell stories of murder and major lawsuits. To me, that was New York.

As filmmaker Jena Starkes wrote, "A ride with Ray in his Checker is truly a life event. Ray, alas, is probably the last of his breed." And, as we all know, it's a breed that is vanishing too quickly from our streets.

Comments

  1. AnonymousJune 17, 2008 at 6:23 AM

    I have seen many YUNNIES quickly exit taxi cabs as a result of some sort of disagreements with the drivers. Degrading insults directed towards the drivers often soon follow. I guess they think the drivers are beneath them. These YUNNIES have some balls. There have been a few times where I have wanted to approach one of them and confront them for being such SNOBBISH LITTLE PIECES OF SHIT. I guess they know they can always go run and hide behind some police officer standing on the corner if the driver or some bystander decides to come after them because of what they have just said.

    Hopefully your friend did not let such comments bother him.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousJune 17, 2008 at 12:37 PM

    That has me actually tearing up at my desk.

    I got a ride from Taxi Ray once in his big old cab. It felt like a miracle at the time. I tried to chat him up and if I remember right he was sort of mean about it but hey, that's his right. It was right around the taxi strike and I asked him what he thought and he talked about it for a minute, bitched about the price of gas if I remember right. It was hazy; I was exhausted; he was totally my hero in the way that only a cab can be a hero. I paid him everything I could which still wasn't a fair price for the cab ride.

    I remember how glad I was to be in his cab -- this big old thing with a huge backseat, big enough for all the things from my show, with springs like old cars. He was gruff until I shut up and leaned my head on the glass and finally took a load off my feet in that magic way that happens in cabs.

    I don't know how to eulogize him properly but it totally touches my heart.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Happy 20th Die Yuppie Scum

Image
You might say that Friday night's protest of super-gentrification in the East Village was also a celebration of Die Yuppie Scum's 20th birthday . In trying to trace the roots of this rallying cry of rage, I found its earliest recorded use goes back to the 1988 riots in Tompkins Square Park , when it was hurled at the new residents of the Christodora House (along with bricks), painted on the walls of their controversial building, and propelled into the mainstream lexicon. By 1989, the phrase had made it onto T-shirts and was being spray-painted everywhere. It is currently enjoying a resurgence . How appropriate then, that this weekend's angry group of East Villagers, chanting "Die Yuppie Scum" as they marched through the neighborhood's streets, should end up on the doorstep of Christodora, face to face with the enemy, where they found their fiercest opposition of the long march. But first let me rewind, back to the beginning of the night. It started...
Read more

Tower of Toys

Image
VANISHING Awful news just came in from a tipster who is affiliated with the community garden at 6th St. and Ave B: Eddie Boros' famous Tower of Toys is coming down. Here's the official announcement from the garden's executive committee: photo by Goggla "Recently the NYC Parks Department has determined that the Tower of Toys is unsafe and has ordered it be removed. Parks Department will begin dismantling it soon. As the tower's future is now very uncertain, the 6 & B Garden would like to invite all admirers of the tower and its creator, Eddie Boros, who passed away a year ago , to spend an evening in the garden with each other and celebrate this landmark of the East Village." photo by Gammablog How ironic that this should be done at the time of LES street-artist Keith Haring's 50th birthday . This makes me sick to my stomach. I guess the new residents of the EV don't like it in their view. Before it's gone, co me to An Informal Celebration o...
Read more

Varvatos: Birthplace of Punk

Image
Last night I stood outside the grand opening of the John Varvatos store on Bowery , watching and listening to the battle for New York's soul rage on. When I arrived, Varvatos was on the sidewalk being interviewed for a film about CBGB's by rock documentarian Ernie Fritz . Varvatos talked about all the good he believes he's doing for rock 'n' roll and the neighborhood . Varvatos and Sid Vicious Soon, the fashionistas and old punks started rolling through the labyrinth of ropes guarded by big, burly bouncers and girls with clipboards dressed in "Varvatos 315 Bowery: Birthplace of Punk" t-shirts . I was not on their list and could not get inside . I waited for Rebecca Moore and her protesters to arrive. Reverend Billy was in the group. I asked him why he came out for the protest. He told me, "I'm dismayed by the blasphemy of CBGB's being overtaken by what looks like Soho. Are we going to get Soho'd all the way to Alphabet City? ...
Read more