Vanishing New York Backup

Is the Bowery Salvation Army , closed months ago , really becoming a high-end sushi restaurant? [ Curbed ] ABC No Rio gets money to stay alive. [ NYT ] Grieve begins chronicling the Superdive Diaries . [ EVG ] This creepy Michael Jackson painting turned up in a Meatpacking gallery window: And more weirdness: A piece of Jackson's Neverland Ranch now resides at Coney. [ Gothamist ] More gang-banging off Tompkins Square Park. [ NMNL ]

As the storefronts of New York City sit vacant , thanks to a combination of landlord greed and economic meltdown, No Longer Empty steps in to fill the voids. "Revitalizing space : unlocking creativity...No Longer Empty is a group of curators and artists who present thought provoking exhibits in empty store fronts." Their first stop : The Chelsea Hotel. Running until July 18, they've taken over the former space of the Capitol Fishing Tackle shop . Inside, there's a vaguely nautical theme--the curators told me that each show will have a theme somewhat in line with the space's former occupants--beach balls pile on the floor, there are sailors and portholes. There is also tattooing imagery, a few life preservers, and a collection of sculptural books on how to catch "big fish" like Andy Warhol and Allen Ginsberg. It reminded me of my favorite moment in time on 42nd Street, when the empty theaters were filled with art installations, surrounded by smut shops a...

How NYC mourns the death of Michael Jackson . [ Gothamist ] The city's yuppie bars are already cashing in on Michael's death . [ Grub ] Everything you wanted to know (or maybe didn't) about a night at Superdive . [ EVG ] The showdown between pier queens and Village neighbors gets heated. [ Villager ] Pride Weekend kicks off today with the Trans March for Social Justice and then the Drag March in Tompkins Square Park...followed by tomorrow's Dyke March , before the big parade on Sunday. This weekend and next, take an ambient, absurdist, audio tour of Manhattan. [ Absurdist ] A peek inside the NYPL through time. [ NYPL ]

In honor of Michael Jackson today, a tour through the New York City of The Wiz. Released in 1978, The Wiz presents a frightening, fantastic, post-apocalyptic vision of New York City. It was filmed in Astoria Studios and on location--but many of those locales have vanished. From a cozy apartment in Harlem (where she's "never been south of 125th St."), Dorothy (Diana Ross) travels to Oz, landing at the New York State Pavilion in Queens ' Flushing Meadows Park, where munchkins were turned into graffiti by the Wicked Witch of the East, aka the City Parks Commissioner. New York Magazine Traveling through a landscape of urban decay, she finds Michael Jackson as the Scarecrow in a junkyard garden. Wikipedia writes, "Michael Jackson's performance as the Scarecrow was one of the only positively reviewed elements of the film, with critics noting that Jackson possessed 'genuine acting talent' and 'provided the only genuinely memorable moments.' In 1980...

S inging on the fire escape . One woman off the High Line is making it work for her. [ NYT ] This High Line tour has a close-up shot of those leopard print unmentionables . [ FNY ] Some new "bespoke cocktails" joint is actually asking its customers to respect the neighbors and keep it down. [ Grub ] On Mott Street , collapsing buildings and vampires. [ EVG ] If you buy a $98 Bowery T , says Alex, "you're pathetic." [ FP ] No more dancing in the Washington Square fountain. [ GVDP ]

About a month ago, Beauty Bar opened another outlet of its growing chain in Bushwick, Brooklyn . The original opened on 14th Street in 1995. The New York Times in 1997 called the ambiance here and at Beauty's sister bars "part theater, part seance to the ghosts of the spaces' former occupants." The former occupant here was a beauty parlor owned by Florence Cusmano. According to the Voice , "When they took over and turned it into a watering hole, they kept on the then 87-year-old Cusmano until she couldn't make the trip from her apartment anymore." An addition to the Vanishing New York flickr pool turned up this ghostly image: Photo by Aonghais MacInnes on flickr You can play "note the differences." There aren't many, really. But the "Please Be Quiet" sign in the new photo is definitely missing in the old.

The Dystopia is officially here: MTA "sells out public," begins selling naming rights to city subway stations . No way in Hell will I ever say, "Get off at Doritos Station." [ NBC ] Varvatos is selling Bowery T's for $98 a pop. [ Racked ] Please save us from this Save the Nightlife committee. [ Gothamist ] The CB3 gets bait and switched yet again. [ EVG ] 100's of calls to 311 ...and nobody's listening. [ BB ] Your ticket to the Rent Guidelines Board Circus. [ SG ]

Grieve and I were on the same wavelength recently when we both thought of doing a screenshot guide to Kubrick's Killer's Kiss , which played this weekend at IFC. As he showed, Killer's Kiss is one of the best cinematic sources of imagery from 1950s New York City. It's packed with scenes of Times Square, and one of my favorite recurring scenes in the film takes place at a taxi dance hall. all images here from Killer's Kiss Called Pleasureland in the film, it was shot at the Parisian Dance Land at 49th and Broadway. In archival photos, you see it next to the RKO Palace ("8 Acts Vaudeville"), above a Whelan Drugs store, and underneath a big, neon advertisement for Sylvania (Television Sets! Radio Tubes!). Across 49th, a multi-story wraparound ad for the Mayfair Theater was forever changing its bill: Robert Mitchum in Angel Face , Robert Taylor in Above & Beyond , Gary Cooper in High Noon , William Holden in Escape from Fort Bravo . In 1955, w...

NYC Prep: "this paean to Upper East Side plutocrats looks a little out of date — if the camera panned the other side of Madison Avenue, it would show darkened store windows and 'for rent' signs." [ NYT ] Take a close look at this photo sent in by tipster Reed . " New York's Oldest Restaurant, Est. 1879 "... Gage & Tollner soon to be an Arby's: Fight for rent stablization tonight at Cooper Union. [ Gothamist ] Visit Frenchie's Gym --for a Chandleresque, Brooklyn experience...Frenchie "does it with love." [ SNY ] Is the former Cafe Figaro getting banked? [ BB ] Will the Parks Dept say "no way" to Washington Square Park 's private security force? [ WSP ] Celebrate Pride with a look at pre-Stonewall NYC . [ BBoys ] Another Myrtle tenement torn down --"as a precaution." AKA "to make room for a condo." [ QC ]

Yet another Backsider has begun hanging items from laundry lines and fire escapes behind the Coop. They write: "As you know there's been an underwear battle going on--clotheslines hung up by tenants to show protest of the bars inches from people's windows, and other problems. I'm sending a picture of the latest installment-- pantyhose and douchebag ." The words "Douche Bag" are written on it in black marker. Patio-goers should definitely wear protective headgear with this little number dangling above--nozzle-side down... More Notes: Note 1 Note 2 Note 3 Note 4 Note 5

On the renovation of Washington Square Park: "rich folk who are sponsoring this want to change the character of the park from the free-wheeling street-theater scene to something that resembles their backyard terraces ." Sounds familiar , doesn't it? [Post via Curbed ] Teens today "do not have much sympathy for alienated antiheroes." They're a generation of joiners. So to Holden Caulfield they say, "Shut up and take your Prozac." [ NYT ] Grieving the loss of beloved white cat in the East Village. [ NYT ] Anti-ramen graffiti saves the day. [ EVG ] No Longer Empty storefronts are art galleries at the Chelsea . [ LWL ] photo: Softies Central, JVNY flickr pool A building collapses on Myrtle Avenue . [ NYT ] Track down a mystery of Diamond Jim Brady . [ GLF ] If a tree falls in Brooklyn , does anyone listen? [ ENY ] Mark your calendars: 6/26, 7pm : Attend the 24th annual AIDS Candlelight Vigil in Greenwich Village, at Sheridan Square Park and Christ...

The New York Subway Project chronicles all 468 subway stops in New York City. It even comes with an interactive map! [via Trainjotting ] Sally Young and The Bowery Neighbors have put together a website chronicling the history of (just about) every building on the Bowery from Houston to 9th. Check out their East Bowery Survey here . Admiral's Row is collapsing. [ Curbed ] Did a "disgruntled old man neighborhood blogger" tag the accursedly named DBGB ? [ Eater ] Is it Dallas or New York City? That's the question I ask myself whenever I walk past the new face of Astor Place: This whole thing about wild hawks infiltrating East Village eatery "Birdie's" sounds like a viral marketing stunt to me. [ Gothamist ] Alphabet City gets Novogratzed --with a new mansion between A & B. [ EVG ] Another gas station goes --and big-box development seems likely for this corner of the LES. [ BB ] Take a walk along Court Street . [ FNY ]

For years, I have had this dream about running into Walter Backerman, the seltzer man, the best in town , third-generation schlepper of fizz, and owner of the oldest seltzer route in the city (dating back to 1919). Well, you walk the streets of New York long enough, and eventually some of your dreams come true. I ran into Walter on Bleecker Street. Amid the flurry of high-end super-shoppers, parked among gleaming BMWs and SUVs, Walter guarded his rickety delivery truck while his helper ran seltzer bottles in and out of buildings. Walter watches the truck because the traffic cops love to give him tickets. Maybe it's the truck itself that attracts the traffic cops. It's no beauty queen, but a beat-up step van filled with character. The cab's back panel is lined with photos, autographs from the famous (Sarah Jessica Parker and Whoopi Goldberg), clippings from the many newspaper and magazine articles on Walter, and faded snapshots from the old days of seltzer hauling. "Thi...

There is a man in the East Village who has walked the streets for years, checking the coin return slots of payphones for spare change. He used to carry a Tower Records bag. Now he carries a Duane Reade bag. Years ago, our paths crossed at the same time and place each day, early morning by Love Saves the Day. There, he would slip his finger into the payphone's coin return, often coming up empty. If I got to the phone before him, I would put a quarter in the return slot. Not because I thought it would help him financially, but because when you're searching for something rare, unexpectedly finding it can really lift your spirits. My morning schedule and route changed and I stopped passing that corner. I didn't see the man for years. When Love Saves the Day closed and the new ramen place ripped out the payphones , I thought of him. I wondered if he was still alive. Recently, I ran into the man near the same corner and spoke to him. "They took out your payphone," I sai...

French anarchists take Union Square Barnes & Noble and Sephora by storm. [ NYT ] ...anarchist's reading of The Coming Insurrection " eventually degenerat[ed] into a profanity-filled rant about the misery of work and the banal New York art scene. " [ AM ] Lower East Side a " Disneyland for drunks ." [ EVG ] On the MTA , more yunnies = harsher urban etiquette signage . [ CR ] Checking in with the Bowery Stakeholders . [ BB ] " This bespells doom ." --Sedaris, at the Strand, on the Kindle. [ NYT ] Park Slopers , don't leave your stuff lying around--it'll get stolen. [ BP ]

Near tragedy struck the Backside last week. An air conditioner plummeted from a top-floor tenement window , sailed towards the hotel patio, and took out the infamous clothesline with all its brown-stained underpants and double-D brassieres. Foul play? Karmic retribution? Or just a couple of loose screws? Wrote one Backsider, "There was a huge thud. At first I thought it was someone falling off the hotel’s upper balcony, which totally scares me. Relieved it wasn’t. But now the clothesline is gone (well, for now)." RIP: old clothesline This week, the clothesline has been rehoisted in a new, more prominent position. And the group of disgruntled residents who resurrected it have gotten fresh press-- WPIX calls them the "panty coalition," and 1010 WINS' John Montone dubbed their exploits a "lingerie line of defense." the new line from the Backside "No word yet," writes Andrew Ramos at WPIX, "as to how owners of the CSH Bar are taking the s...

Thompson LES owner says the angry neighbors will eventually realize the hotel is good for them. [ Grub ] The Backsiders and their Cooper Square panties get heard on 1010 WINS . Note to clueless hotel guests, that bench is reserved for the Hell's Angels . [ EVG ] A gang of mermaids, along with Miss Cyclone Angie Pontani and a sad-looking bunny, showed up at Amanda Burden's office yesterday to protest the destruction of Coney Island . Said Pontani in a press release, "If this plan goes through as it is, it’s going to be a tragic loss, and 20 years from now, people are just going to say, What was the City thinking?" Read more at Kinetic Carnival . And watch the video here . (thanks, John, for the photo) Bloomberg gets hipsters to do his dirty work in Greenpoint. [ NYS ] This American Apparel photo-shoot spoof is pretty funny. [ Gothamist ] Boogie covers the news coverage of a Calvin Klein billboard. [ BB ] Meet to Save (what's left of) the Bowery tonight. [ EVG ...

The Waterpod --"a floating, sculptural, eco-habitat designed for the rising tides"--has docked alongside the South Street Seaport, shoulder to shoulder with Water Taxi Beach. And though they're experiencing "technical difficulties" in opening to the public, I got the chance to climb aboard for a tour. Mary at her bunk, with view of Brooklyn Bridge I talked with Waterpod founder Mary Mattingly , an artist formerly living in Queens, and two of her shipmates, Alison Ward and Mira Hunter . Mary walked me around the barge and showed me their chickens, the gardens planted with edibles like corn, squash, lettuce, and strawberries, along with flowers for attracting bees and other pollinators. She explained how rainwater is cycled through various systems and how the Waterpod might one day be fully sustainable, providing shelter for displaced people. She's thinking about global warming and over-crowding, the Earth running out of space. But the Waterpod made me think ...

Enough people want to spend $65 on a " Fuck the Recession ," burn-your-money T-shirt that these are Sold Out at 7 New York : Hey, it's a trend: Others are enjoying " recession porn ." [ TIME ] Another mall store for Manhattan--JC Penney says "we're just like you." [ Racked ] Pelham 123 remake unrealistic, say NYC's commuters. [ Gothamist ] ...and why the original Pelham is better than the remake. [ RS ] Non-homeless bread thief pilfering in Williamsburg. [ Grub ] So how has the downturn affected crime in NYC , if at all? [ CR ] The Bowery gets pretentious . [ EVG ] Another antique shop falls, with childhood memories of psychos. [ FP ]

Walking on the newly landscaped High Line recently, I noticed a row of sheet-metal panels, all freshly painted gray. It seemed odd to me at the time. What I did not know was that the gray paint covered a large graffiti tag. photo: Jason Andra At the time of the graffiti's erasure, a reader sent photos to Towle Road and said, "I think what makes the High Line so special is its attempt to claim urban decay as a feature of beauty ...not about painting over any former features of the city." The tag, which read WERRROSLURRR , had topped The Roxy nightclub for years. In a warehouse dating to 1920, the famous Roxy opened as a roller rink in 1979 and closed as a gay dance club in 2007, after passing through the 1980s as a hip-hop and breakdancing mecca. The Bowery Boys have a full history here . Did Werrroslurrr belong to any of those groups? A roller diva, a disco doll, a breakdancer, or a Chelsea boy? Maybe not. Maybe he or she was just a random tagger, aching to get that na...

This was inevitable: Standard Hotel guests show off their naked selves for the High Line strollers. The show includes men, women, "Lights, leather, chains. Everything." [ NYM ] Check out the schedule of summer rock in Tompkins Square Park. [ TSPL ] Some broke-ass tips for living cheap in Greenpoint. [ BAS ] Still trying to save Coney Island. [ RS ] When new New Yorkers and old New Yorkers clash , there may be Yelping. [ EVG ] Oh boy, snow leopards in Central Park! [ Gothamist ] A collection of Times Square images through time --from the extensive and infinitely distracting vintage ephemera site of James Lileks .

Just when you thought it had gone away, the Backside returns. This time, an audio-video mini documentary. The best part comes at 20 seconds into the video, showing how sound travels through windows closed and open. As the Backsider writes, "We hear every drunken inanity." Now you can too! More Notes: Note 1 Note 2 Note 3

Here comes Marc . It's only a matter of time before the cupcake trail brings him east. [ Curbed ] "Where are we?" ( Hint. ) "It’s like one of those movies set in New York City but clearly filmed in Canada..." [ Awl ] There's not much more annoying than people who walk and text . Says one, " It’s become like your security blanket ." Exactly. So what are these people so afraid of? [ CR ] Looking down from the High Line at Standard Hotel guests --all with "smartphone" security blankets in hand or lap: Are squatters taking over empty apartments at StuyTown? [ STLL ] Remembering Sammy's Bowery Follies with a rare postcard. [ EVHP ] View the changing face of Harlem . [ NYE ] Do you belong in New York? Take the quiz. (I scored a 107.) [ TONY ] Nicholson Baker is speaking at Judson Church tonight . Read his nifty article about Wikipedia .

Another spot on the Rodeo Drive end of Bleecker is opening (for Marc Jacobs?) as beloved Biography Bookshop announces it's moving east --to the non-Beverly Hillsy end of Bleecker... ...The bookshop will be near Cornelia Street, across from the still-empty Zito's Bakery, and it looks like it will be renamed "bookbook" : Butter Lane owner says they don't want to be a bar, they just want to serve wine with cupcakes. [ EVG ] ...Meanwhile, they're experiencing some suspicious non-cupcake-related (?) odors . [ NMNL ] On the gentrification of Park Slope's 5th Ave --and, stop the presses, the NY Post actually quotes and cites a blogger. [ HIPS ] It must be Defend Hipsters day . I did it and Mike Albo does it: "I come to you at a time of great tension. I am here today to defend the hipster, and to create lasting peace between hipsters and greater New York City." [ NYT ] " I keep picturing Carrie Bradshaw on the High Line, and it terrifies me ... I w...

Yesterday, at the High Line, I sampled the Bird Bath green pizza . It tasted good. But it was gone in 3 bites and it cost $4 . That's $1.33 a bite. Ken's been walking the High Line since it was a jungle. [ WHL ] Take a look back at the old High Line . [ FNY ] As the Times announces hipsters go home due to lack of parental fundage, Details gives the scoop on the Brooklyn "poorgeoisie," those who "look like hoboes but spend like millionaires." [ Details ] Check out pics from the benefit to Save Ray's Candy . [ SG ] A new novel by Colum McCann looks deep into 1974 New York . [ CM ] The trash produced by the customers of 16 Hindles continues to fascinate. Grieve took a second look at it last night. And now, this morning, right outside the froyo shop, these strange symbolic configurations of cup and spoon. What does it mean?

Ever since I first saw the High Line in photos by Joel Sternfeld , I wanted to go up there. Yesterday, when the newly renovated High Line opened to the public , I got my chance. Of course, it wasn't the High Line I remembered from the photos. That vanished High Line was an off-limits, untrammeled mystery hidden right above our heads. Weeds and wildflowers poked out between rusted railroad tracks. Ailanthus trees sprouted along crumbling, graffiti-covered train platforms. The High Line was a weird, green path cutting between the brick hulks of abandoned buildings. I longed to climb up through the locked gates, where only the brave dared to venture. But I wasn't brave enough to even try. That was a decade ago. Today, the High Line is a tamed, manicured beauty. An elegant showpiece. The crazy quilt of weeds, junk trees, and wildflowers that helped make the High Line so mysterious and otherwordly are all gone, and yet returned--in domesticated descendants of themselves. Before rem...