Monday, May 16, 2011

Paying the Chillmaster a visit on East Third Street

On April 5, we reprinted an item about some ongoing maintenance issues at First Houses, the first public housing complex in the United States on East Third Street between First Avenue and Avenue A.

And the whole comments thread turned into a discussion on the fellow who lives in a ground-floor apartment here who seems to enjoy his music (classic R&B and soul) and his drinking. We followed that up with another post on the apartment. Turns out the fellow has many fans. Not to mention a nickname — the Chillmaster.

Per a reader in the comments: "I pass this guy all the time ... I would love to hear his story."

Well, thanks to EV Grieve regular Marty Wombacher, now we do know more of this story. For his Marty After Dark blog, Marty paid the Chillmaster a visit on Friday night. (This had been pre-arranged.)


You can read the whole thing at Marty After Dark. But a few highlights. He has a "Chillmaster Chill Easy Chair" that vibrates and has a heat control.


He grew up in Harlem... he's retired... and he has lived in this apartment for eight years.


And he likes Hennessey.


Marty even printed out the EV Grieve post with all the Chillmaster comments...


By the way, Marty paid a visit to the Chillmaster with Kate from One Folded Sunset. You can read her post on the night here.

Marty's reaction via email: "Classic fucking New York night!"

[All photos via Marty After Dark. Reposted with permission]
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11 comments:

  1. VivienneMay 16, 2011 at 8:24 AM

    I love that Marty printed up a poster of the comments from the original thread. Amazing. Bookmarking this and Marty's post for future smile therapy because I swear I can't stop smiling after reading both.

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  2. Marty WombacherMay 16, 2011 at 10:29 AM

    Thanks for the shout-out EV Grieve! This was one of the best nights in my 18 years in New York City. The Chillmaster is the real deal! Thanks to you and all those who left comments and led me in the Chillmasters direction!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ave CMay 16, 2011 at 10:48 AM

    I love this! I've been walking past this guy for years - I always look for him to give a wave hello. Now I know I can say "hey Chillmaster, how's that henny?" He always has a full bar out on his coffee table.

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  4. glammaMay 16, 2011 at 1:06 PM

    this is amazing. way to go marty!

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  5. RyanAvenueAMay 16, 2011 at 1:20 PM

    Way to go Marty, excellent post. I think Chillmaster is going to be getting a few more stop-bys. Just hoping one isn't from the CB3 cracking down on illegal bars!

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  6. Laura Goggin PhotographyMay 16, 2011 at 1:48 PM

    This is why I love NYC.

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  7. LindsayMay 16, 2011 at 1:58 PM

    Yes!! This is so great! This world needs more Chillmasters. Great post, Marty/Grieve!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Roger_PawMay 16, 2011 at 9:02 PM

    You see that glowing "emblem" over Chillmaster's heart?

    It's his shimmery, shiny soul. :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. AnonymousMay 16, 2011 at 10:27 PM

    At first I was gonna hate on this guy, but hey, he merely a guy enjoying his own little slice of ghetto in the East Village. Simple pleasures, y not.

    ReplyDelete
  10. AnonymousMay 16, 2011 at 11:27 PM

    This post should be read with Al Green playing at full volume.

    ReplyDelete
  11. AnonymousMay 17, 2011 at 11:48 PM

    i love this guy!! can't wait to say whatsup next time i walk by. nice work EV GRIEVE!!

    ReplyDelete

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