“When I go out my door now, I don’t see anyone I know. I see the loss of a community.”

[Image by Clayton Patterson]

The new issue of The Brooklyn Rail has a great feature on Clayton Patterson, the artist and documentarian who has been chronicling the changes in the Lower East Side since he first set up shop here in the early 1980s. Some of his 100,000 photos and 10,000 hours worth of footage went into Captured, which debuts Friday at The Rooftop Film Festival. "The film is as much a biopic of the neighborhood as it is a portrait of Patterson himself," according to the article by Jericho Parms

Here's an excerpt from the article:

When the Lower East Side took hold of Clayton Patterson, it never let go. He speaks of it as “a magic crucible that everything else would come out of.” In the last decade, he believes, he’s seen the end of that era as soaring real estate prices have begun to empty the village of its artists, bohemians, radicals and immigrants.
“When I go out my door now, I don’t see anyone I know. I see the loss of a community.” Patterson notes the changes—the cranky old tailor is gone, a trendy café bar bought out the Latino grocery on the corner. Still, there is a good chance that any person that walked the streets or attended an event in “the deep pool that is the Lower East Side” in the past two decades can be found somewhere in the Clayton Patterson archives. And, in that sense, they will live on forever.

Here's a trailer for the film:



Here's an article on Patterson from the Times.

Angie's got a three-floor gun

Happy Belmont Stakes Day (and so long OTB?)

Affirmed vs. Alydar -- best rivalry in sports history? And how about that 1978 Belmont Stakes race in the video above? Best ever?

Meanwhile, head to your local OTB parlor today to make your bet(s). The parlors are expected to close June 15. In fact, more than 1,000 OTB workers were just sent their pink slips. As the Times put it in a Feb. 22 feature: If OTB Goes, So Would a Relic of a Grittier City

Previously on EV Grieve:
So long, OTB (and happy Derby day)

Bonus:
A photo taken outside the OTB in Chinatown by Alison Grippo (via Flickr)

Weekend getaway

Let's take a trip back to Coney Island in the 1940s...

Bring it on (aka GOP Hard)

The Battle of the Bowery continues...On Page Six. Yesterday, we learned the New York Young Republican Club held a monthly social event at the Bowery Wine Company, which Bruce Willis has something to do with. In response to comments made by John Penley in April, one young GOPper told Page Six, "Needless to say, we're going to fill his neighborhood whether he likes it or not. We're coming with briefcases and BlackBerrys in hand to stake our claim."

And today?

The Bowery turf war between yuppie Republicans and local lefties will resume next Friday, when East Village gadfly John Penley will lead a demonstration in front of the Bowery Wine Co. with the Rev. Frank Morales of St. Mark's Church. Besides protesting "right-wing Republicans [a reference to Bruce Willis] opening yuppie wine bars in our neighborhood," as Penley put it, the rabble-rousers will blast the court decision allowing the owner of the tenement at 47 E. Third St. to evict his tenants so he can use the building as a one-family mansion. The New York Young Republican Club, which just held its monthly social at the Bowery Wine Co., is invited to counter-demonstrate - but, Penley told Page Six, "they have to show up in suits carrying briefcases so we can tell them apart."

Anyone know what time the demonstration will take place next Friday...?

Earlier on EV Grieve:

"We want to show our opposition to right-wing Republicans opening yuppie wine bars in our neighborhood"

The Lower East Side: There goes the neighborhood

That's the headline for the May 28, 1984, New York magazine cover story that I recently came across. The piece begins in the early 1980s with the rotting hulk of the Christodora and the young man eager to own it, Harry Skydell.

Skydell's enthusiasm was indeed mysterious. The sixteen-story building he wanted to buy, on Avenue B facing Tompkins Square Park, was surrounded by burned-out buildings that crawled with pushers and junkies. It was boarded up, ripped out, and flooded...Early in the seventies, the city had put up the Christodora up for auction and nobody bid.

The building was eventually sold in 1975 for $62,500. (Last I saw, two-bedroom units there -- roughly 1,100 square feet -- average $1.6 million or so. Of course, they're rarely available.)

The article talks about the influx of chain stores, art galleries and chic cafes. "And real-estate values are exploding" as a result. Said one longtime resident on the changes: "I've lived in my rent-controlled apartment for years and pay $115 a month. I live on the Lower East Side. The young kids who just moved in upstairs and pay $700 a month for the same space -- they live in the East Village."

There are so many interesting passages in the article by Craig Unger that I'd end up excerpting the whole thing. So it's below. You can click on each image to read it. Meanwhile, what do you think would be the headline for this story today?

I SO hope my new fake ID works this weekend!

Random gripe of the day

The music played at the new bar comes from the iPod owned by the 23-year-old bartender (UES resident?), which makes you long for the quality of, say, Z-100.

[Warning: More gripes TK.]

Stoop-id tourists

Jeremiah bravely ventured into the belly of the SATC beast yesterday to see what the real people who live in the fake Carrie Bradshaw house think of the constant stream of tourists who simply must get their photo taken on the stoop.

And?

Who could blame them.


Still, sign or not, the fans will not be denied!


(The caption with this photo on Flickr reads, "In front of Carrie Bradshaw's stoop. & yes, there is a sign that says "PRIVATE PROPERTY, TRESPASSERS WILL BE PROSECUTED". Fuh real!)

Meanwhile, back to the kitchen for me. So much more baking to do!

[Updated! Jeremiah joined the SATC consumer orgy yesterday as well! With pictures!]

Remembering New York hard-core

As you can see, the May 26, 1986, issue of New York magazine featured the cover story titled "Hard-core Kids: Rebellion in the Age of Reagan."

(Deeplinking.net has a pdf of the article here.)

Anyway, the article caused quite a stir! How do we know? Because Phil Donahue tackled the topic, in an episode featuring the author, Peter Blauner, and members of Youth of Today, Murphy's Law, Agnostic Front and the Cro-Mags, among others.



What did Blauner have to say about all this later?

[Thanks to flanagan11 and deeplinking.]

The other side of the story: the Alistair Economakis Web site

Alistair Economakis, owner of 47 E. 3rd St, has his own Web site called the other side of the story.

Here's what he has to say about his building and his family's plans for it.

In April 2007 my family and I moved into the space available to us and have made 47 East 3rd Street our home. Unfortunately, however, due to tenants remaining in apartments, our living space is not contiguous and we are required to go through the public hallway to get from one part of our home to the other. Despite the awkward set up of our living space, we are thrilled to finally be living in our building and we love our neighborhood.

For the rest of the other side of the story, go to his site.

[Photo via Flickr by trickydame]

Green...with envy

No, you're not just extra hungover this morning. The New York Post is green today...As the cover line says, the Post "is greener with less paper and fewer ads. Enjoy." It's part of a promo for planet green, the first all green tv network that debuts tonight at 6. (Reminder to self: be sure to turn on my huge, electricity-sucking plasma-screen TV at 6 to watch!)

Uh, meanwhile, the environmentalists at the Post included in this issue a 50-plus page glitzy Home & Design ad supplement touting "Living at its Best!" The lavish supplement includes all the luxury developments that you will never be able to afford...there's Ariel...The Brompton...The Harrison...Sky House...and on Pages 28 and 29 -- something called AZURE. Hmm, haven't I read about that place recently?

"We'll just stitch together a few shower curtains from the 99-cent store and no one will be able to tell the street is missing!"

As I've mentioned before, there's not much -- if any -- street left on Fulton Street. So somebody recently had the idea to brighten up the pedestrian crossings on Fulton Street with these cheap-looking, flowery screens. As if these will make us not notice this:

If you must know...

Along Nassau Street. There's probably a perfectly reasonable explanation as to why the shopkeeper decided to let his or her valued customers know that it was a cousin who passed and not an aunt or uncle or someone else. (And does this inclusion feel like an afterthought?)

"For them to want to kick us out so they can have a luxury mansion -- it's ethically and morally unconscionable"

From today's Post:

Rent-stabilized tenants can't stop a wealthy couple from turning their East Village apartment building into their dream mansion, the state's highest court ruled yesterday.
The Court of Appeals found that Alistair and Catherine Economakis can go ahead with eviction proceedings against their low-income tenants at 47 E. 3rd St., as long as they plan to use their apartments for themselves.
The Economakis' lawyer, Jeffrey Turkel, said that's exactly what his clients are trying to do - and said they've already converted 40 percent of the five-story building into a super-apartment for themselves and their two kids.
"They want to expand the home they already have in the building," Turkel said.
That also means evicting the rent-stabilized residents living in the rest of the building's six apartments, a move the tenants are vowing to fight.

"We're all working people, your typical, moderate-income working people. For them to want to kick us out so they can have a luxury mansion - it's ethically and morally unconscionable. I don't know what other word to use," said David Pultz, 56, who's lived in the building for the past 30 years.

The backstory.

Looking at the new New Yorker cover

Got my copy of The New Yorker in the office today. I was curious to see Adrian Tomine's cover after reading about it last night at Flaming Pablum. As Alex says in his post: Look well, for it's this very scenario that's forcing independent mom'n'pops out of business.

Fishing by the Con Ed plant

A friend of mine likes to take his young sons fishing near the Con Ed plant off the eastern end of 14th Street. (They toss back what they catch, though he claims the fish are just fine to eat.) It's a simple pleasure, away from the TV, video games, computer, etc. So I went to check out this not-so-secret spot along the East River Sunday. (Not to fish, just to watch. Maybe another day.) There were just a few men in their late 50s/early 60s fishing this day. Not much action in the water. It didn't matter, though -- it was a relaxing way to spend some time. And before the area possibly becomes someplace that we'd rather not be.

[Updated: Told my above-mentioned friend about this post. He basically said that I'm a jackass. Uh, yes! First, he told me that I would need to obtain a "sporting license" from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to legally fish here -- or anywhere in the state that is a public body of water. Or something. OK, Mr. By the Book! Also, he said that I need a geography lesson. The area in which I was sitting isn't exactly behind the Con Ed plant. (Well, it's near it.) I was in Stuyvesant Cove, a very popular spot. Something about piling bases. Whatever! And "toss back" sounds horrible. It's catch and release, man. Landlubbers, jeez.]

Reminders: We're living around the people these advertisers hope to attract

Walking the plank at the Mermaid Inn

Shoot! Someone was on guard last evening to watch and protect the fresh patch of sidewalk against initial-engraving vandals. I was hoping to engrave "free the lobsters" and "lobster killers" into the sidewalk! (By the way, I have no idea whether they even serve lobster.) Or, at the very least, "EV Grieve11!!!11"

An old friend returns

Jeremiah gave us an inside look at the new International Bar. Excellent news for a neighborhood losing its character. The bar (re)opens June 18.

Meanwhile, a salute to the International circa 1981, when it was still on St. Mark's. Watch Keith saunter by it at about the 13-second spot.



(And yes, I know I've posted this video before...at least now I have a reason...)

On this day in 1981

On June 2, 1981, the Clash were on show No. 5 of the 17 concerts they eventually played at Bond's International Casino in Times Square -- 1530 Broadway, between 44th and 45th. (A few nitpickers have mentioned that Bonds often went without the apostrophe. Noted!) Bad Brains and the Slits opened show No. 5.

Here's the set list from the June 2 show:

London Calling
Safe European Home
The Leader
Somebody Got Murdered
White Man In Ham Palais
The Guns Of Brixton
This Is Radio Clash
The Call Up
Complete Control
Junco Partner
Lightning Strikes
Ivan Meets GI Joe
Charlie Don't Surf
Bankrobber
The Magnificent Seven
Wrong 'Em Boyo
Train In Vain
Career Opportunities
Clampdown
One More Time
Brand New Cadillac
Washington Bullets
Janie Jones
Police and Thieves
Armagideon Time
New Yorks Burning

For pretty much everything you'd ever want to know about the show (and everything related to the Clash), go here.

A little background on all this for people who may to new to this, via Wikipedia:

The site of the concerts was formerly Bonds department store which had been converted into a large second-floor hall. Promoters kept the name because there was a large Bonds sign on the outside of the building. As The Clash had not yet broken out into mass popularity, eight shows were originally scheduled: May 28, 29, 30, 31 and June 1,2, 3, and 5, 1981. However, given the venue's legal capacity limit of 3,500, the series was blatantly oversold right from the first night, leading fire marshals for the New York Fire Department to cancel the Saturday, May 30 performance. In response, the band condemned the brazen greed of the promoters while demonstrating unprecedented integrity to each and every ticketholder by doubling the original booking with a total of 17 dates extending through June.

Meanwhile, here's how Channel 7 covered the event:



The next year, the band was back in town promoting Clash On Broadway...and look who Sue Simmons had on at "Live at 5":



For more info on the shows here and here.

Looking at the Forward

As you probably read, Oscar-winning actress Tatum O'Neal was arrested last night on the Lower East Side, charged with buying crack and cocaine, according to reports. This happened just a few blocks from where she lived in the luxury condo building the Forward on East Broadway.

Hate to use O'Neal's sad arrest as a jumping off point...But! The Forward is one of the most unique buildings on the LES. In July 1998, the Times looked at the fascinating history of the building and its namesake newspaper, The Forward.

First published in 1897, the Yiddish-language Forward was born as Jewish immigration swelled the New York sweatshops and labor unions. It had close ties to the Socialist Party, taking the name of the successful Socialist paper in Berlin. The first editor, Abraham Cahan, had to leave Russia after revolutionary activities, and it was he who molded the paper into more than just a broadside of ideology.

Designed by George Boehm, the midblock Forward Building still towers over the three- to five-story houses and tenements in the area. A common story is that it was built in reaction to the capitalist symbolism of the 12-story Jarmulowsky Bank building, two blocks away at the southwest corner of Orchard and Canal Streets, but that building was begun a year after The Forward's.

In 1963 The Forward began an English supplement, and in 1974 it sold 175 East Broadway and moved to 49 East 33d Street, where it remains. The building was purchased by the Lau family, and for many years a Chinese church has occupied part of the space. The building was designated a landmark just as the owners proposed converting it to a hotel, but the conversion did not go ahead.

Now the building is covered with scaffolding, and the conversion will be to 39 loft-style condominiums, in an alteration designed by Alfred Wen that will include a restoration of the facade. Stephen Lau, acting as agent for his family's company, Chinese Center L.L.C., said that work would take about a year. ''We thought now is the right time,'' he said. ''We hope to have people from SoHo or Wall Street, not just Asians -- it's a bit out of Chinatown.''

[The excellent photo is on Flickr via Wally Gobetz]

These are a few of the photos you'll find when you search for "Carrie Bradshaw" on Flickr

(Forgot to add this with the original post.) Part of the Sex and the City tours includes a stop at this Perry Street townhouse in the West Village. Yes, this is the stoop that the Carrie Bradshaw character sits on in the show. (Actually, five different stoops were used; this one most frequently, I'm told by someone who really likes and knows the show.) According to Forbes: The show, which made a fifth character out of New York City, attracts fans to the Big Apple in droves, and locals cash in. Location Tours offers a three-hour bus tour that stops at shops and bars that have appeared on the show. The tour costs $40 a head, and its owners say it attracts as many as 1,000 people a week. Destination on Location Travel offers "set-jetting" weekends in New York, where groups of up to twelve women are shuttled around town and given the fantasy that they're one of the four Sex characters. The price: a hefty $15,000 per person.