The Bowery Boys: New York City History
PODCAST Nature and history intertwine in all five boroughs — from the Bronx River to the shores of Staten Island — in this special episode about New York City’s many gardens. A botanical garden is more than just a pretty place; it’s a collection of plant life for the purposes of preservation, education and study.… Read More
The Ziegfeld Theater, one of Manhattan’s last single-screen movie theaters, closed for regular film exhibition in 2016.* Its final film was Star Wars: The Force Awakens, an appropriate choice as tens of thousands of movie lovers had gone to the Ziegfeld to see previous films in the series — including the 1977 original. I think… Read More
PODCAST The Hotel Theresa was once called the Waldorf of Harlem, a glamorous New York City accommodation known as a hub for Black society and culture in the 1940s and 50s — and for a few eyebrow-raising political moments in the 1960s. The luxurious apartment hotel was built by a German lace manufacturer to cater… Read More
Manhattan’s 13-mile stretch of Broadway — as you’ve heard us say many times — has an extraordinary history. Thanks to its unique path up the length of the island, it crosses through a wide variety of fascinating neighborhoods and historical eras. And as it turns out — it also makes for a beautiful stroll. WALKING… Read More
EPISODE 321 The Hollywood icon and Broadway star Lauren Bacall lived at the Dakota Apartments on the Upper West Side for 53 years. Her story is intertwined the Dakota, a revolutionary apartment complex built in 1884. In this episode, we tell both their stories. Bacall, born Betty Joan Perske, the daughter of Jewish Eastern European… Read More
Below is a picture, facing east, of Seward Park Library in the Lower East Side at 192 E. Broadway (picture taken in 1911). This spectacular branch library, funded by Andrew Carnegie, opened in November 1909, two years before the 42nd Street main branch opened. All of the housing behind the library to the east has… Read More
PODCAST What makes a street so extraordinary that it becomes a destination in itself? What makes it Broadway? This is the history of New York City’s most famous street and a progression through the entire history of the city. In this episode, Tom is joined by Fran Leadon, the author of a new history of Broadway, called Broadway:… Read More
PODCAST The story of how Grand Central was saved from the wrecking ball. The survival of New York City’s greatest train station is no accident. The preservation of Grand Central Terminal helped create the protections for all of America’s greatest landmarks. By the 1950s, this glorious piece of architecture — opened in 1913 as a sensational example of Beaux-Arts… Read More
Grand Central Terminal has seen millions of people rush across its Main Concourse over the past one hundred years, and more than a few movies have captured that commuter ebb and flow. But while Grand Central is occasionally a backdrop for romance — especially during World War II, when returning soldiers would arrive to meet… Read More
Journalism history is on full, optimistic display in the Academy Award Best Picture nominee The Post, starring Meryl Streep as Washington Post publisher Katharine Graham. In this fast-paced drama, Graham heads a newsroom (headed by Ben Bradlee, played by Tom Hanks) in possession of the Pentagon Papers, damning reports exposing the U.S. government’s clandestine decision-making… Read More
PODCAST The history of the Empire State Building revealed! Start spreading the news …. the Bowery Boys are finally going to the Empire State Building! New York City’s defining architectural icon is greatly misunderstood by many New Yorkers who consider its appeal relegated to tourists and real estate titans. But this powerful and impressive symbol… Read More
The original Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, the ultimate symbol of the Gilded Age, was demolished in the fall and early winter of 1929 to make way for a new building project. That the building project in question happened to be the Empire State Building does not make the loss of the Waldorf-Astoria any less regretful. The storied… Read More
Clear your calendars people. It’s Open House New York time! On Saturday (October 14) and Sunday (October 15), many historic locations normally are closed to the public  — or available at previously limited hours — will be putting out their welcome mats. This is the most exciting weekend of the year for urban explorers. Historic… Read More
PODCAST The legacy of the Stonewall Riots and their aftermath, in a podcast history told over nine years apart (May 2008, June 2017). In the early morning hours of June 28, 1969, undercover police officers attempting to raid the Stonewall Inn, a mob-controlled gay bar with darkened windows on Christopher Street, were met with something… Read More
On May 10, 1849, Astor Place erupted into bloody violence as crowds took to the streets and battled it out — over a Shakespearean actor. It was the first time in American history that a state militia trained its muskets upon the very population it had been sworn to protect. Yet of the many structures… Read More