w42st
ISSUE 15 MARCH 2016
Lucky
charm EY THE BLARN WELL KISS , I'M FREE! E STON
INSIDE
HELL'S KITCHEN SAINTS & SINNERS, FROM IRISH GANGS OF OLD, TO TODAY'S CELTIC CULtURE, MONKS WHO BREW BEER, AND ECCLESIASTICAL REAL ESTATE. PLUS: MOLLY RINGWALD; DANCING TO FITNESS; IRISH BARS FOR ST PATRICK'S DAY; FOOD THAT HEALS ... AND DOGS!
CONTENTS March Edition The Irish have a long and lively history in Hell’s Kitchen. So when New York celebrates St Patrick’s Day, the biggest celebration of all happens right here, in the community they call home. So grab a Guinness, and come with us on a pub crawl down memory lane, to the days when Irish rogues ruled these streets ... then find out what it means to be Irish in Hell’s Kitchen today. But, since we’re an egalitarian lot, we’re not letting St Patrick hog the spotlight. There are saints and sinners of all creeds in this month’s magazine. Take a look, maybe you’ll recognise some of them. THE TEAM THAT BROUGHT YOU W42ST
PUBLISHER PHIL O’BRIEN phil@w42st.com (646) 535-4407
EDITOR RUTH WALKER ruth@w42st.com (646) 847-9645
SALES DIRECTOR BOB BRUNO bob@w42st.com (929) 428-0767
SENIOR ART ED LEE CAPLE lee@w42st.com
SOCIAL MEDIA ED SANDRA MANGAN sandra@w42st. com FOUNDING EDITOR SIMON KIRRANE
CONTRIBUTORS
CIERA COYAN IAN TD SMITH NACHO GUEVARA CORY CANNATARO JEREMY KAPLAN
ALISA KRUTOVSKY JACI STEPHEN ADRIEN POTIER ISAAC HALPERN CHRISTIAN MILES MATT D’SILVA
CHRISTOPHER SHELLEY MICHAEL PORTANTIERE DUSTIN COHEN ANTONIA DONATO
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be used without written permission of the publisher ©2016. Please note: Every effort has been made to avoid errors, misspellings, and omissions in this publication. However, if you spot one please accept our sincere apologies.
26 COMMUNITY
WHAT’S GOING ON
6 NUMBERS GAME
16 EVENTS
7 JACI STEPHEN
18 PREVIEWS & REVIEWS
8 MY HELL’S KITCHEN
20 MOLLY RINGWALD
10 CELTIC HEART
24 MUSICAL HISTORY
Facts, figures and trivia – Hell’s Kitchen, we’ve got your St Patrick’s Day number. If I were the patron saint of Hell’s Kitchen ... Mickey Spillane on six generations of the family’s colorful history. What do John and Yoko, Gabriel Byrne, and Liam Neeson all have in common?
14 IRISH EYES
From the gangs, to the drug scene, to gentrification – Bobby Noonan’s memories of a changing neighborhood.
60 GALLERY
Anyone with an eye for a picture and a half-decent cameraphone could have their work in our mag. Hashtag your pics #W42ST; we’ll do the rest.
66 PHOTO FINISH
The secret of Port Authority’s pigeons is finally revealed.
Our diary of happenings, from theater to stand-up to family fun, is the only guide you’ll need this month. The best of what’s coming up this month, and what we’ve been watching. The star of Pretty In Pink goes back to her jazz roots. Reviving the musicals that no-one remembers.
26 STORYTELLER
Sharon Washington grew up inside a library – but life wasn’t a fairy tale.
EATING & DRINKING 30 EAT TO LIVE
Seamus Mullen lived in constant pain, but food held the key to his survival.
37 STAFF SURVEY
Karen Harvey on what it’s REALLY like working the St Patrick’s Day shift at an Irish bar.
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39 WINE
The religious history of wine – for saints and sinners!
LIFESTYLE 62 EVERYDAY SAINTS
41 BEER
Bless the people who bring sunshine into our lives
42 PUB CRAWL
PETS
Why monks have all the best beer. The W42ST alternative St Patrick’s Day pub crawl. Gird your loins.
REAL ESTATE 44 GOING DOWN
A behind-the-scenes view of a church mid-demolition.
50 HIGH-RISE NEIGHBOR
63 DOG WALKER
The one that got away ... with Dina’s pants!
64 WAGGING TALES
Our favorite, most photogenic pups in Hell’s Kitchen. Get involved by emailing waggingtales@w42st.com with your dog’s vital stats.
Air rights – and why a little Croatian church is now in the shadows.
W42ST+
52 SIMPLE SHADES
THE GUIDE
Creating the illusion of space with a neutral palette.
57 PAYBACK
Get the best deal when you sell your apartment.
58 GREEN SCENE
A little emerald inspiration for your home.
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Do not adjust your sets. W42ST has a whole new section. W42ST+ is a guide and directory to the very best of Hell’s Kitchen. You’ll find everything from bars and restaurants, to nail salons, dog walkers, personal trainers and more. Plus a fabulous illustrated map. Want to be included? Contact bob@w42st.com.
COVER This month’s cover is by stained glass artist Joseph Cavalieri, whose International Year of De-Light exhibition at The Out Hotel was featured in W42ST issue 10. Joseph works in an ancient technique, but updates it using contemporary imagery: Pope Francis, Jackie O ... and, as in our Saints & Sinners cover, Simpsons characters. His pieces even featured in Morgan Spurlock’s Simpsons 20th anniversary special, which aired on Fox in 2010. “Two excellent events have happened since
64 filming,” says Joseph. “Morgan Spurlock bought one of my panels, and a current Simpsons writer, from LA, bought a panel as well. Il Momento Della Morte [featuring Bart and Lisa on a cross] now lives the offices where the Simpsons are written.” He adds: “When I start explaining my glass process to clients, I see their eyes glaze over. I then cut to the chase saying, ‘My technique is the same used for windows in Medieval churches, but I change the subject from Jesus, to Bart and Lisa Simpson dying on the cross, and a storm cloud of Agnes Moorhead.” Joseph is no stranger to capturing attention. Working as an art director at GQ, Good Housekeeping and People magazines, one of his jobs is helping choose the ‘Sexiest Man’ and Best/ Worst Dressed celebrities. www.cavaglass.com
IMAGE: ZACK GARLITOS
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APPETIZERS
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DIGITAL EDITION
JACI STEPHEN
STEP ASIDE, ST PATRICK Jacqueline has arrived to bestow goodwill on one and all
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he Irish are freeways ahead of the Welsh when it comes to patron saints. While March 1 sees my fellow countrymen in Wales celebrate St David’s Day by dressing in traditional costume (ugly bonnets, skirts and aprons that make us look like salt and pepper pots), St Patrick’s Day on March 17 is all but a national holiday not only in Ireland but also in New York. The best most of us can muster in Wales is wearing a daffodil and having an extra glass of wine. Or maybe two. Yes, two. Let’s really push the boat out. Last year, at least I managed a festive brunch, albeit in a tiny Welsh-themed outfit in the freezing snow. I know the history of Irish migration to New York lends the celebrations an extra sparkle, not to mention a surge in Guinness profits. But while the Irish down the black stuff by the gallon, to most of us it’s what a Brussels sprout is to Christmas – we wouldn’t dream of touching it the other 364 days of the year. Being away from Wales, and not being Irish, I’ll be feeling a little left out on two festive days, so have come up with a solution: I’m going to have my own patron saint day: St Jacqueline. While I write by the name of Jaci, St Jaci just doesn’t have the same ring to it. St Jaci doesn’t sound like someone who could help travelers (St Christopher), slay dragons (St George), or drown in a vat of Guinness (followers of St Patrick; the man himself seems to have been a bit of a bore). St Jaci sounds like a bit of a slut, to be honest; St Jacqueline, however, has a certain kudos to it. I’m picking March 25 as my day, because it’s my father’s birthday. Although he died 26 years ago, I think of him so much and still miss him, and on this day especially. So, St Jacqueline, being a good, kind-hearted soul, is giving everyone permission to take the day off work. I insist on people having fun, and not just the drunken sort. Everyone must talk to
public at all. So there. It’s my day, so I’ll make the rules. I have chosen the tulip as my national flower and peach martini as my national drink. The one thing St Jacqueline knows she has no chance of achieving whatsoever is asking Macy’s not to have a one-day sale. Some things in life are just unachievable. So happy St David’s Day, happy St Patrick’s Day, but, most of all, happy St Jacqueline’s Day. Put the date in your diary. March 25. And, yes, feel free to buy me a drink. Just don’t tell me you’re funny. You’re not.
NO BULL
Above: Flying the flag for her native Wales whatever the New York weather throws at her.
“St Jaci sounds like a bit of a slut, to be honest; St Jacqueline, however, has a certain kudos to it.” strangers and be entertaining – and I don’t want any of that Irish “You’re gonna laugh at this” stuff (why do they say that? I’ll decide if it’s funny, mate, and, I can guarantee if that’s your opener, it won’t be). St Jacqueline is banning all children from cafes, bars and restaurants for the day. While I love children, I long for just one day when I am not subjected to their tantrums. Actually, St Jacqueline has decided to ban them from appearing in
DIGITAL EDITION
I’ve become slightly addicted to darts, which I play in the newly refurbished bar now called Walter’s Cottage (43rd St - 10th Ave). I’ve discovered the sport is a bit hit and miss. Literally. Most of my darts land in a place not unadjacent to the beer pumps several feet away. But, sometimes, the gods of dart-throwing smile kindly upon me. For once, I’m not talking bull, but scoring it.
LA STAR-SPOTTING
Escaping the New York blizzard, I fled to LA for a bit of celebrity spotting. Here’s Lisa Vanderpump (The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Vanderpump Rules), and Joe Mantegna (Criminal Minds).
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MY HELL’S KITCHEN
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DIGITAL EDITION
MY HELL’S KITCHEN
Know someone cool who’d make a great subject for My Hell’s Kitchen? Put us in touch, we’ll do the rest. Email news@w42st.com
Changing MAN
From the might of the mob, through drug violence, modernization, and gentrification, Mickey Spillane has survived it all Words Ruth Walker
IMAGE: PHIL O’BRIEN
How long has your family lived in Hell’s Kitchen? I’m the sixth generation to be born on 49th Street; my son’s the seventh. I grew up in the neighborhood until I was about eight years old – my dad owned a bar on 45th Street called the White House – then we moved to Woodside for a few years. When Dad died we moved back. On the McManus side, my great great uncle Thomas got elected assemblyman out of Hell’s Kitchen in 1892. Shortly after, he became district leader. When somebody had a problem – if they needed a job, if there was a death in the family, if they couldn’t afford to pay the rent – they went to the district leader. And ever since then, a member of the McManus family has held district leadership in Hell’s Kitchen. I remember my grandmother owned a liquor store on 52nd Street and 9th Avenue. All the people who got public assistance would cash their cheques and give them to my grandmother. She’d have a little bank and only give it out to them periodically, so they wouldn’t drink it. They’d get their one bottle of booze, then they had money for the rest of the month. When the blackout of 1977 happened, the whole city went down, there was rioting in the streets, looting … the only store that didn’t get broken into on 9th Avenue was my grandmother’s little liquor store. And that’s because they all had their money in there. They were actually guarding it! So I always say I’ve got ten blocks I’m famous in. I can’t go anywhere else! What’s a day in the life of a district leader? Well, I’m about to head downtown to get one of our club members’ sons out of jail. His father’s a great voter, and his son’s run a different path. So I’m going down to post bail for the young man, then I’m going to
“I always say I’ve got ten blocks I’m famous in. I can’t go anywhere else!” meet with him and see if we can get him on the straight and narrow. Another club member has a drug and alcohol problem. So I spent last night making flight reservations to get him out to Minneapolis so that he could go to a detox treatment center. Today he showed up at the airport drunk, so they wouldn’t let him on the plane! What are your favorite memories of the neighborhood? When I was growing up, it was a really difficult neighborhood, and we were tough kids. We were always fighting. There was a lot of drinking, obviously. But I didn’t have to be a guy who broke legs. People just knew, at the end of the day, that was a possibility. What was your father like? My dad was a serious man. Back when he was in business, he worked with a lot of labour unions and they controlled most of the docks. Then the Italian branch of the mob tried to dominate everything. And if it wasn’t for men like my dad, there would be no Irish unions. Now they say: “What does that matter?” But if there weren’t the Irish unions, the people in Hell’s Kitchen weren’t going to work – it would have been the guys from Little Italy. This was a matter of who was going to work and who wasn’t going to work, and it was men like my dad who were willing to put their life on the line and say: “No, this is ours, and
DIGITAL EDITION
if you want it, you’re going to have to go through me.” What was he like at home? He loved poetry, he used to recite it. He was really a smart individual, he read a lot. He couldn’t sing but he enjoyed it. He liked to exercise. He didn’t drink, but he gambled. My brother and I never crossed him – he never had to tell us twice about anything. I wasn’t about to negotiate with my dad! We knew where his boundaries were and he was well respected. How did things change after he died? Obviously it was a big change. It was a scary time. When my dad ran things, they were more organized. The late 1970s exploded with drugs, and the neighborhood became more violent. It became very dangerous. At one point, in Hell’s Kitchen, if you were under 25 you had the highest chance of being killed in the country. But I was a pretty ambitious kid. I realized that way of life was a dead end, so I did pretty well in high school, got accepted to a good college – got a scholarship because I didn’t have any money – then went to law school. What does it mean to be Irish now in HK? The Irish were here first. That’s when the McManuses came here. Then the Germans moved in. We even had some Lutherans. Then the Polish, the Puerto Ricans. And the Irish people adapted. There was conflict back in the 1960s, but generally we get along with everyone. Now we have gentrification, there’s a very large gay community, and we’re the ones who get along with everybody. Be respectful, work hard, and the Irish are going to give you a chance. Maybe it’s only one chance, but you’re going to get the chance!
BIO
Son of the “gentleman gangster” of the same name, Mickey Spillane was just 13 when his father was killed. His mother, Maureen McManus, was a much-loved Hell’s Kitchen matriarch and part of the local political dynasty. Mickey is the latest in a long line of McManuses to hold the role of district leader, he’s a practicing attorney, and owns four bars in the neighborhood, Mickey Spillane’s, Mr Biggs, DBL, Bottoms Up/ 0Vodka Soda.
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XXXXXXXXXX This page: Aidan Connolly enjoys the view from the best seat in the house.
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DIGITAL EDITION
COMMUNITY
Somewhere
THAT’S GREEN Ireland’s cultural hub in New York is about to get a new place to call home Words Ruth Walker Photograph Christian Miles
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here’s a rumor none of us is in a hurry to dispute that, back in the 1970s, John Lennon and Yoko Ono took part in one of the very earliest fundraisers for the Irish Arts Center. “There was this real deep embedding with the New York hippie progressive culture at the time,” says the center’s executive director, Aidan Connolly, “a sense of openness; the idea that the best way to preserve Irish culture is to share it with everybody.” Potential bed-ins notwithstanding, Aidan (Irish credentials: father from county Galway, mother from Dublin) presides over the center in perhaps its most exciting period yet. In 2016 – Ireland’s centenary, the 100th anniversary of the Easter rising – the first major steps will be taken to establish a shiny new center for Irish culture, moving from its current home in a W51st Street tenement to a $54 million purpose-built home just around the corner on 11th Avenue. “We’ve raised almost 80 per cent of what we need,” says Aidan, “but we’re not the Met. We’re not sitting on a gigantic bankroll. And we’re not going to go until we’re ready to.” The center was started in 1972 on a shoestring, and continues to operate on a shoestring. But it is also still fortunate enough to attract its fair share of high-profile supporters. Both Gabriel Byrne and Liam Neeson are honorary cochairs, and Byrne can be credited with the idea of a new center. “Gabriel is our visionary,” says Aidan. And Hell’s Kitchen is their home. “Why would you want to be anywhere else? It wouldn’t occur to us to be anywhere else.”
DIGITAL EDITION
Left: Eoin Colfer entertains at Ri Ra Children’s Festival of Literature.
Gabriel Byrne can be credited with the idea of a new center. “Gabriel is our visionary,” says Aidan. For more than 40 years, it has delivered a diverse program of music, theater, dance, literature, film, and education, from both its intimate W51st Street venue and through partnerships with other spaces throughout the city. But a quick glance at that program for 2016 fails to clarify exactly what could be defined as singularly Irish.
continued over
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“It’s kind of like pornography: I’ll know it when I see it. But we take a distinctly non-parochial view of what Irishness is.”
HAPPY ST PATRICK’S DAY! From everyone at Scallywags Come and join us for a pint
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“It’s kind of like pornography,” says Aidan. “I’ll know it when I see it. But we take a distinctly non-parochial view of what Irishness is. It includes traditional Irish musicians – but when we do traditional music we try to put it in the context of a global culture. We don’t want it to just sit in a museum or a cultural ghetto, we want it to live in a New York City, 21st century context. “It also includes people like Cassandra Wilson, who’s an African American jazz singer, who turns out to have traced her DNA back to Ireland. Without even knowing that, years prior, she performed on a Van Morrison tribute album. So that’s part of our culture too.” It’s all done from what Aidan admits is a “not really great venue” for some art forms – particularly dance. It’s “supercosy”, but it has its restrictions. And the bar’s pretty small.
Fully-catered private parties available
508 9th Ave, (Bet. 38th & 39th Street) (646) 490 4803 Scallywagsnyc.com facebook.com/scallywags.com DIGITAL EDITION
Below: Camille O’Sullivan’s residency was so successful, she’s back again this season
COMMUNITY COMING SOON: AIDAN’S HIGHLIGHTS CELTIC APPALACHIAN CELEBRATION
March 12 “It’s about how the music of the Ulster Scots came through the American South and merged with African banjo traditions that’s really provided the underpinning for American bluegrass.”
PHOTOGRAPHS: ERIN BAIANO; RICHARD VELASCO; VITALIY PILTSER
ST PATRICK’S DAY
“The thing we love is when we can program really beautiful, emotionally transporting, surprising, and original cultural experiences in that intimate setting, so that audiences come into this crappy looking tenement, then we blow their minds. They can’t believe they got to experience something that solid, that strong, that exciting, that original, in such a small space. That’s our goal.” All of that is not only good for the audience, he says, but good for the artist too. “Paul Brady, who could fill stadiums in Ireland, comes here and does a 100-seat gig here and will remember it for ever.” However, the new hub will not only enable them to program more ambitiously (while, they insist, maintaining the intimate nature of the space they currently inhabit), they’ll also be able to extend the one Irish stereotype they’re proud of: that of hospitality. So there will be a cafeteria space at street level built into the plans, where people can linger before or after a performance. “Part of Irish culture is conversation. So we want to have enough space within the venue for people to extend the experience. What do people want to do after they’ve seen a show? They want to talk about it.”
March 17 “We just throw open the doors for a free day of programming. It’s also our book day. We have thousands of books, donated by publishers from all over the world, and we go out into all five boroughs and distribute them for free.”
WILD SKY
March 29-April 2 Written by one of Ireland’s most exciting playwrights, Deirdre Kinahan to mark the Easter rising. “It leans heavily towards how communities were impacted by the rising, particularly on the women.”
CAMILLE O’SULLIVAN
Above: Darrah Carr Dance in rehearsal with Tara O’Grady and her Black Velvet Band; entranced by the Ri Ra Children’s Festival of Literature.
The bottom line, though, remains that accessibility to all, not just those who consider themselves Irish. “Irish culture operates at the highest levels,” says Aidan. “If you think of Irish culture, you’re thinking of some of the greatest writers in the history of the world, incredible theater makers, amazing musicians. So our job is to put that in a contemporary context and share it with as many people as possible of as many different backgrounds as possible.” www.irishartscenter.org
DIGITAL EDITION
April 6-16 “She did a residency with us and the Time Out New York critic came out of the show and immediately tweeted, ‘One of the five best shows I’ve seen all year.’ So we said, ‘She’s coming back!’”
A GIRL IS A HALF FORMED THING
April 20-30 A show adapted from the novel by Eimear McBride which sold out both the Dublin Theatre Festival and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
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MY HELL’S KITCHEN
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DIGITAL EDITION
COMMUNITY
Last of the
TOUGH GUYS
Irish families have lived in Hell’s Kitchen for four generations or more. The Noonans were among the first to arrive and make their mark Photograph Phil O’Brien
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here was a time the name Noonan inspired a mixture of fear and respect in Hell’s Kitchen. Mainly fear. Brothers Bobby and Ronnie were on the fringes of the infamous Westies gang, which ruled the Irish working class from the late 1960s until the mid-1980s, and whose members have now either scattered, are dead, or serving life sentences for murder. These days, though, Bobby’s son (also Bobby) can walk an entire block without seeing anyone he knows. It’s a shame, he says. Another sign of the neighborhood changing. But, in Rudy’s bar at least, the old name still means something. “In here, I’m nine years old,” he says, “because that third booth is where my uncle always brought me when I was a kid. And at nine years old I was smart. I said, “What is a child doing in a bar?’ He’d be like, ‘Shut up and drink your soda.’” They’d also take him to a place called Irish Eyes West. “The nickname for that place was Bucket of Blood, because every single night somebody bled.” But the tales of gang warfare? Bodies thrown out of windows and heads rolled down bars like balls at a bowling alley? “People have written books about the gangs,” says Bobby. “I don’t believe those people. Where they get their information is from rats and police reports.” The Noonans came to Manhattan from Ireland as laborers, and every generation since has done just that. “The family moved right into Hell’s Kitchen when it was shady shack town,” he says. His father had three brothers. “One uncle passed away about 12 years ago. He was known for his hands – he never picked up a gun or a knife or nothing. If you disrespected him or the people around him, he’d be the first to step up. He
Left: The red booths of Rudy’s take Bobby right back to his childhood.
“The nickname for that place was Bucket of Blood, because every single night somebody bled.” got his butt kicked quite a few times. I’m surprised he never got shot!” But life wasn’t defined by hard graft and violence. The Noonans were also part of a doo-wop group, The Dedications. “My uncle was four feet tall and he looked like one of the Mousketeers,” smiles Bobby. “He was a little pretty boy. And everybody says my father had a Robert de Niro look.” Both men have talked in the past of seeing Marlon Brando sleeping on 10th Avenue while he was studying at the Actors Studio, and a drunken James Stewart dancing on a roof during a party. “A lot of celebrities came down to Hell’s Kitchen,” says Bobby now. “It was like the Village was in my generation. You wanted to come here to have a good time, but you knew at the same time you could get an ass-kicking. People heard the stories.” Once the Westies era ended, however, a new one emerged; one ruled by drugs. “Hell’s Kitchen took a very big turn for the worse. Into the 1980s, this neighborhood went so far downhill. “People got pick-pocketed, people got robbed, people got killed. I used to see pimps beat up prostitutes, the johns beat up prostitutes, I’ve seen prostitutes just 12 years old. The movie Taxi Driver – that’s exactly the way I remember this neighborhood. “My grandmother Catherine (everyone called her Catty) lived on 10th Avenue.
DIGITAL EDITION
I remember sitting on the doorstep with her at 2am, watching pimps and prostitutes go by. She was sad about that. She’d say, ’What’s going to happen to the neighborhood?’” So, a year after Catty passed away, 15-year-old Bobby became a Guardian Angel on Restaurant Row. “One of our group was heading home one night on 42nd Street – he was by himself – they split his head open and he was in a coma for four months. He came out of that coma and came right back to being an Angel. “And I had a gun put to my face, coming home one night, heading home on 48th and 9th Avenue.” But he was no angel himself. “I was a handful. A very big handful,” he admits. “I had a little crew – five, six guys. We’d hang out together, drink beers, smoke cigarettes, throw eggs on Halloween – stuff like that. But they did wrong things. And they’re not here. A lot of kids I grew up with liked to fight, and that I didn’t like. “I got a taste of work at an early age and that’s what I wanted. My father didn’t want his children to be laborers. He wanted his son to do better. A lot of people said I should have become a lawyer, but I didn’t follow authority too well. I went to work when I was 14, made my first paycheck, and said, ‘I quit school – you can forget about me going back.’” Bobby’s now the last of the line. Aged 42, he won’t have any children (“I’m too much of a kid myself”); nor will his halfbrothers. It’s the end of the Noonan name in Hell’s Kitchen. “I had a young kid tell me the other day that my generation was the last of the tough guys in Hell’s Kitchen. That’s why I feel this is the end for us. I’m fourth generation and there’s not going to be a fifth. It’s time for the family name to go.”
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what’s going on in
MARCH
Every day’s a play day with our guide to the month’s events in and around Hell’s Kitchen.
March 2-3 VOLTA NY Pier 90
The art fair for solo projects from emerging international artists returns, a fitting complement to The Armory Show at Piers 94/92. www.ny.voltashow.com
Ends March 13 Noises Off March 3 Adam Lambert Terminal 5
Jazz at Lincoln Center
www.terminal5nyc.com
www.jazz.org
March 5 Afternoon Art Party
From March 9 That Physics Show
The American Idol runner-up has acted as Queen frontman since 2011. Now he’s touring his solo work, supported by Alex Newell.
Celebrating the legendary Benny Goodman in a piece written by Emmy-winner Geoffrey Ward, narrated live by Wendell Pierce.
Irish Arts Center
The Elektra Theatre
www.irishartscenter.org
www.ThatPhysicsShow.com
Children work in groups to learn to craft their own music and design the song’s art, based on traditional Irish music.
IMAGES: MATT MURPHY; JOAN MARCUS; DONNELL CULVER; JENNIFER WALKOWIAK; CAROL ROSEGG
March 4-5 Moonglow
What damage can a ping-pong ball do at 700 mph through a vacuum tube? Find out at David Maiullo’s evening of “scientific magic.”
Ends March 13 Angel Reapers
Ends March 13 Julius Caesar
Signature Theatre
Davenport Theatre
Choreographed by Martha Clarke, this show features traditional Shaker songs and dance to tell the story of the sect. www.signaturetheatre.org
A bloody new production of Shakespeare’s telling of the most famous assassination in the ancient world.
www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2507921
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DIGITAL EDITION
American Airlines Theatre Roundabout Theatre’s comedy play-within-a-play has been extended for one-week only. Set on the opening night performance of the farce Nothing On, the cast stumbles through their final dress rehearsal and things couldn’t be going any worse. Can the cast pull their act together on stage even if they can’t behind the scenes? www.roundabouttheatre.org
Ends March 10 Body of an American
March 11 Katie Rose Clarke
Cherry Lane Theatre
54 Below
www.PrimaryStages.org
www.54below.com
Not Tuesdays The Woodsman
From March 15 Shuffle Along
HK-based Primary Stages travels downtown with this true story about a war photojournalist and a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright.
The leading lady from Wicked and Allegiance performs standards, contemporary favorites, and originals.
New World Stages
Music Box Theatre
www.thewoodsmanplay.com
www.ShuffleAlongBroadway.com
The story of the Tin Woodsman, the woman he loved, and the witch that kept them apart, told through lifesize puppetry and original music.
The 1921 Broadway premiere of this show launched the career of Josephine Baker. Now it’s back, starring Billy Porter.
March 17-20 Architectural Digest Design Show
Not Mondays Hughie
From March 15 Cagney Westside Theatre
Booth Theatre
www.hughiebroadway.com
Furniture, accessories, lighting, and art to kitchen, bath, and building projects, all in one place.
An open-ended run follows the life of James Cagney from vaudeville song-and-dance man to Hollywood’s original tough guy.
www.addesignshow.com
www.cagneythemusical.com
Fridays Write-in
Until March 20 Mabel Madness
Gotham Writers
Urban Stages
www.writingclasses.com
www.urbanstages.org
Piers 92 & 94
The teacher promps, everyone writes, they take a break, drink wine, chat, then write some more. It’s a sociable slice of writer’s heaven.
Forest Whitaker stars in the tale of a small-time gambler and big-time drinker chasing the American Dream.
From March 21 Broadway Backwards
The world premiere telling the life of cabaret chanteuse Mabel Mercer, written and performed by Tony winner Trezana Beverley.
Until March 19 The Wildness Ars Nova
Indie-pop band Sky-Pony invites us into a world of prophecies and temptations, exploring faith, doubt and everything between. www.arsnovanyc.com
March 25-April 3 International Auto Show
Al Hirschfeld Theatre
Javits
www.broadwaycares.org
www.autoshowny.com
The annual celebration where the LGBT community’s stories are told through the songs of musical theatre.
The annual auto extravaganza returns to Javits – prepare for the neighborhood to fill with the sound of the world’s most exciting cars.
March 26 Writing workshop
Until March 27 Familiar
Columbus Library
Playwrights Horizons
www.nypl.org
www.PHnyc.org
Think you have a book inside you? Many of us do. In this workshop, the teaching is designed to get it out!
Based in Minnesota, and centered on a Zimbabwean family preparing for a wedding, this play examines family customs … and their secrets.
March 22 - August 21 Studio Job MAD Museum The first US solo exhibition by Job Smeets and Nynke Tynagel, whose work is characterized by pattern, ornamentation, and humor. The pair travel Europe studying art, and their craftsmanship reflects a passion for the revival of traditional practices, but with a contemporary approach. www.madmuseum.org
March 30 Next W42ST out All around Hell’s Kitchen
It’s Earth Month next month, so we’re all about everything green and eco-friendly. If you’d like to be featured in the magazine, contact us on news@w42st.com.
Not Sundays Phantom of the Opera The Majestic Theatre
To celebrate 28 years on Broadway, the venerable musical has launched its first online lottery. To bid for a $28 ticket, submit your entry on the day. www.PhantomBroadwayLottery.com
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PREVIEWS
Somewhere,
SOME DAY... It’s an all-star month of song, dance, and theater. Michael Portantiere gets the low-down DISASTER! ON BROADWAY
SITE-SPECIFIC WEST SIDE STORY
Nederlander Theatre Opening March 8 The disaster films of the 1970s boasted major stars, big budgets, and great special effects. There was only one way in which they were lacking: they weren’t musicals. This flaw has been redressed in Disaster!, a new show that crams some of the biggest song hits of the era into a plot that crazily mashes together elements of The Poseidon Adventure, The Towering Inferno, Earthquake, etc. And talk about stars – the cast includes such notables as Adam Pascal (Rent), Kerry Butler (Hairspray), Roger Bart (The Producers), and Faith Prince (Guys and Dolls). www.disastermusical.com
Knockdown Center, Maspeth, Queens March 4-6 The action of West Side Story is set in Hell’s Kitchen in the late 1950s, but the neighborhood has changed so completely over the decades that site-specific performances of the show just wouldn’t work here amidst all the upscale Thai restaurants and Duane Reades. So head over to the Knockdown Center, a restored factory in Maspeth, Queens, where Skylar Astin as Tony, Morgan Hernandez as Maria, and Bianca Marroquin as Anita star in a unique production of the beloved musical. Presented by Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute, it’s the culmination of The Somewhere Project, a citywide exploration of West Side Story. Show dates and times are Friday and Saturday, March 4 and 5 at 8pm; Sunday, March 6 at 3pm. www.carnegiehall.org
BOY OFF-BROADWAY
The Clurman Theatre at Theatre Row Opens March 10 Bobby Steggert, a Tony Award nominee for Ragtime and also well known to audience for his performances in Mothers and Sons, Big Fish, 110 in the Shade, and Yank, plays the central role in the Keen Company’s world premiere production of Anna Ziegler’s Boy. Based on the true story of a male infant who was raised as a female after a terrible accident, the play covers the tricky terrain of finding love amidst the confusion of sexual identity. www.keencompany.org
SHE LOVES ME AT STUDIO 54
Roundabout Theatre Company Opens March 17 In the Roundabout Theatre Company’s second Broadway revival of the musical She Loves Me, Laura Benanti and Zachary Levi play bickering co-workers who don’t
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MUSICALS TONIGHT! AT THEATRE ROW
Clockwise from top: Bobby Steggert in Boy; Skylar Astin stars in the site-specific West Side Story; Laura Benanti in Roundabout’s She Loves Me.
realize they’re meanwhile falling for each other as anonymous lonely-heartsletter correspondents. The show is loosely based on the same source material as three popular movies: The Shop Around the Corner (1940), In the Good Old Summertime (1949), and You’ve Got Mail (1998). Scott Ellis directs a cast that also includes Jake Krakowski, Gavin Creel, Michael McGrath, and Byron Jennings. www.roundabouttheatre.org
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Babes in Arms (March 8-20) Do Re Mi (March 22-April 3) One of the best entertainment deals in the ‘hood (see p26-27 this month), Musicals Tonight! begins its spring season with Rodgers and Hart’s Babes in Arms, the “let’s put on a show, kids!” charmer that yielded such standards as My Funny Valentine and The Lady is a Tramp. Next up is the lesser-known Jule Styne/Comden & Green show Do Re Mi, whence came the beautiful song Make Someone Happy. This one is about a minor-league con man who tries to enter the juke box business, only to find he’s up against big-league con men. www.musicalstonight.org
REVIEWS
Review FUN HOME CIRCLE IN THE SQUARE Fun Home won big at the Tonys in 2015, and has been receiving positive reviews since. But what’s all the hype about? Set in the 1970s in a funeral parlor, the lead character is a young woman coming to terms with her sexuality and the journey that follows her coming out. Alison (Beth Malone) is working in New York and reminiscing about her early life. She revisits her coming-out at college and her connection with her father. Bruce (Michael Cerveris) is a gay man who decided to get married and raise a family in an era when homosexuality was still seen as taboo. This is not your average musical. Directed by Sam Gold, it’s one original show and still feels as fresh as the day it opened. You may even shed a tear or two. The story is told through three separate stages: Alison as a child, Alison as a college student, and Alison as an adult. It works beautifully. Young Alison, played by Gabriella Pizzolo, is energetic, funny, and enjoyable to watch on stage. Older Alison (Emily Skeggs) is my favorite version: innocent, honest, and very genuine in her performance. It’s an endearing portrayal. Adult Alison (played by Beth Malone) is lovely, and there was something about her that reminded me of a shy friend. Loosely based on actual events, it’s humorous and clever, with song and dance numbers set in a funeral home run by an obviously gay father. Did it live up to the expectations? Absolutely. @MATTDSILVA
Review SCHOOL OF ROCK WINTER GARDEN THEATRE Can a movie be adapted successfully to a musical production? It has been done time and again: look at Kinky Boots, Priscilla Queen of the Desert, and Dirty Dancing. So can a comedy that starred Jack Black and had very little, if no, musical numbers be as well received? That all depends on what you’re after. There are no strong messages or moments of tear-jerking tragedy as in Les Miserables. But if you want something that is a lot of fun, suitable for the whole family, and will have you laughing in your seats, School of Rock hits the spot. Dewey (Alex Brightman) has just been fired from his band. He’s overdue with his rent and his best bud and flatmate, Ned (Spencer Moss), demands he starts paying his way. Luck is on his side, however, as he “accidentally” accepts a teaching job at a private school, even though he has absolutely no experience. Directed by Laurence Connor, this is a family show, set in a school with numerous rock references and sing-along opportunities. Scenic and costume design are by Anna Louizos – she needs a special mention as the sets are spectacular. Brightman has managed to achieve the impossible, making the role made famous by Jack Black his own. But stand out for me were the children and parents of Dewey’s class. Their performances are what sets this musical out of the ordinary. @MATTDSILVA
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A recording by the original London cast of American Psycho is released March 25, coinciding with the show’s opening on Broadway, at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theater. www.american psychothe musical.com
THAT’S WICKED With its 5,124th performance last month, Wicked became the 10th longest running musical in Broadway history, surpassing Rent. Since it opened in 2003, it has been performed in over 100 cities in 14 countries around the world. www.WickedThe Musical.com
GO GIRLS! The Lupita Nyong’o passion project Eclipsed, opening at the Golden Theater this month, has launched a campaign to give 10,000 young girls the opportunity to experience the empowering show. Find out more at the website. www.ten thousandgirls.com
IMAGE: JMONIQUE CARBONI
IMAGE: JOAN MARCUS
IMAGE: MATTHEW MURPHY
PSYCHO SOUNDS
Review BURIED CHILD PERSHING SQUARE SIGNATURE CENTER When someone said Ed Harris was going to be in a play, I jumped at getting tickets. How often do you get to see this amazing actor on stage? Turning up to the preview, you know it’s going to be a strong performance when Ethan Hawke is also in attendance. Buried Child is not a walk in the park. Sam Shepard is a great writer who makes people think outside their own normality. Dodge (Ed Harris) is a sick man, house bound and surviving on a cocktail of tablets. Living with Dodge is his son Tilden (Paul Sparks), a unique man who enjoys collecting random vegetables from the neighbors’ yard. Halie (Amy Madigan) is Dodge’s caring but controlling wife. They all share a secret they don’t want to revisit … until grandson Vince visits. Directed by Scott Elliott, believe it or not this production is quite humorous, despite the dark theme. The cast work effortlessly to present what can only be described as a challenging but intriguing story. Amy Madigan is perfect as the controlling wife. And you can’t help but laugh at Paul Sparks’ antics on stage, while feeling sorry for him as there is a secret he is dying to tell but nobody wants to listen. I’d admired Ed Harris from many of his on screen performances, and he’s ideal in a role that seems written for him. Buried Child is not for everyone: it’s edgy, funny, but a little disturbing. But it’s worth venturing out just to catch a glimpse of Ed Harris on stage. You won’t be disappointed. @MATTDSILVA
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ARTS
IN THE PINK Molly Ringwald reflects on teen stardom, role model status, and her first love
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Words Antonia Donato Left: After 30 years, Molly’s still standing out from the crowd.
ew York City (and especially Hell’s Kitchen) is known for its killer arts scene. On 46th Street’s Restaurant Row alone, you can come across piano bars, speakeasies, and improv comedy clubs in the span of a city block. I’ve worked with a lot of artists, but it’s not every day you come across the quintessential quadruple treat – an incredibly talented jazz singer, actress, dancer, and published author. Ranked #1 on VH1’s Greatest Teen Stars, America’s eternal teen queen Molly Ringwald spoke with W42ST about her life as an evolving artist, how to prioritize her busy life as a mom of three, riding the changing waves of creativity, and about her upcoming performance at Birdland.
“I really think that I had a idea when I was younger that you choose one thing and then that’s it. When I turned 40 that all changed. I’m constantly evolving.” While her claim to fame was her iconic roles in the legendary 1980s classics Pretty in Pink (which celebrated its 30th anniversary last month with special screenings), The Breakfast Club, and Sixteen Candles, she’s had no desire to slow down – and hasn’t really stopped since.
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IMAGES: PHOTOS PROVIDED COURTESY OF KMP ARTISTS AND COPYRIGHT OF MOLLY RINGWALD, INC
ARTS She’s busier than ever, yet doesn’t pretend to know how to do it all. As she breaks down the daily routine of someone with multiple passions, she does so with a humble admission that, at the end of the day, sometimes all it comes down to is doing just one thing right. “It’s truly a daily negotiation,” she admits with a laugh. “I’m interested in a lot of things and I try to be as good as I can. Every day I wake up and try to do at least one thing and if I don’t manage to get that done it really doesn’t feel good.” When asked about whether or not switching between different forms of art can be challenging, she gave me an answer any true creative person would. “It’s not that I’m bi-polar,” she laughs; “I just feel like I can cycle through periodic episodes of creativity. “I realized that the more I do and the more stimulated I am, the more creative I can be. And when it [creativity] comes, it feels really exciting.” As for hitting plateaus and artistic walls, she admits that she tries to keep the focus off herself as much as possible and feed off other people’s work instead. “I try to go out and really love when I appreciate other people’s art,” she says. “I visit museums, listen to things that inspire me, I read a ton. “And I listen to a LOT of podcasts,” she adds. Currently working on her third novel, she also recently finished a position as an advice columnist for The Guardian. I wonder how she feels about fans seeing her as a role model, especially to young women and other actresses. “I don’t necessarily LOVE giving advice,” she admits thoughtfully. “When it comes to the idea of being a role model, I definitely felt a little bit of pressure and was a little reluctant because I felt I hadn’t matured enough and it’s not like I had a [psychology] degree.” As it turns out, she didn’t need a degree; she had something even better to offer: endless curiosity. She spoke about the power of listening to people’s stories, and how you don’t necessarily need to be a therapist to give good advice – you just have to want to give in general. “I’m interested in other people’s stories as a writer,” she says. “What people struggle with, what moves them, what hurts them. In a way, I was almost doing it for me, so I could get inside of their stories. “I always gave the best advice I could. I
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Above: As a teenage star, she was the face of the 1980s. Right: Jazz is her first love.
signed on for a year and I felt like that was enough,” she laughs. As an artist who continues to explore numerous creative routes, she seems to be the queen of reinvention. She went from being Hollywood’s #1 teen sensation, to Broadway and cabaret singer, to advice columnist. She embodies the definition of change and has the courage to try new things. When asked what continues to inspire her to reinvent, she has a better idea in mind. “I don’t want to call it reinvention as much as it feels like evolving,” she says. “I really think that I had a idea when I was younger that you choose one thing and then that’s it. We used to live in a society where that’s all you did. As I got older, I realized exactly how limiting that mindset was. And when I turned 40 that all changed. I’m constantly evolving.” She also stresses the importance of finding the right people who can guide you – people in your field of interest and have done well. “It’s not necessarily about finding mentors as much as it is going to where you’re interested in (whether it’s art or film or dance) and then being open and helpful to other people as much as possible. It always comes back to you.”
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When she’s not acting or writing, she turns to what she calls her “comfort food,” jazz. “I’m constantly going back between singing and acting, but jazz is the first thing I did,” she says. “It brings me back to childhood somewhat – I just liked it. I don’t know why people prefer one art to another, but I’ve always found that jazz really fuels me. I love the way it sounds and I love the history of it.” Hell’s Kitchen is certainly going to get a taste of that passion when Molly comes to the stage in March. “I’ve performed at other jazz venues but I really am thrilled about Birdland,” she says. “I also feel like this performance is being made more accessible to a younger audience. I’ve performed at some beautiful places but I definitely felt like the price point was a little too high,” she laughs. “Birdland is an incredible room – such amazing history and so many amazing singers. I feel really excited to get a chance to perform there.” When asked what she plans on performing she simply replies: “You can certainly expect new material. And there’s going to be a live recording as well.” An Evening with Molly Ringwald, March 1-5 (www.birdlandjazz.com)
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ARTS
The musicals
THAT TIME FORGOT Come with us on a journey, as Musicals Tonight breathes new life into often unheard-of theatrical gems Interview and photographs Michael Portantiere
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bscurity is in the eye of the beholder,” says Mel Miller, “but I guess the most obscure musical we ever did was a show called That’s the Ticket.” I’m talking with the impresario of Musicals Tonight! Now in the midst of its 18th season, the troupe has become an invaluable part of the New York theater landscape for its lowpriced, vest-pocket, staged concert performances of shows that aren’t exactly household names and tend to hew closer to the “never heard of it” end of the popularity scale. So … That’s the Ticket? “There’s a book called The Musicals No One Came to See, by a guy named Rick Simas, who’s an associate professor out at San Diego State. I’m going through it, and I find this show. Music and lyrics by Harold Rome. Libretto by Philip and Julius Epstein, who wrote the screenplay for Casablanca. Directed by Jerome Robbins. The cast: Leif Erickson, Jack Carter, Kaye Ballard, George S. Irving. It played one week in Philadelphia, and then it was gone.” Over the years, Musicals Tonight! has revived and, in some cases, reconstructed many rarities, along with a few titles that are more familiar – such as Babes in Arms and Wonderful Town, both due this spring. “We’re never going to do Oklahoma! or Kiss Me, Kate,” says Mel, “but there are so many shows that don’t get done or haven’t been done in a while, and they deserve to be seen again.” The company’s current home is the Lion Theatre at Theatre Row, a facility on West 42nd Street that houses six performance spaces of various
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“Directed by Jerome Robbins. The cast: Leif Erickson, Jack Carter, Kaye Ballard, George S. Irving. It played one week in Philadelphia, and then it was gone.”
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Above: Nicolas Dromard and company. Right: Dromard and Elizabeth Broadhurst, both in Oh, Kay!
ARTS sizes. (The single-building complex was named for the literal row of OffBroadway theaters that occupied the block between 9th and 10 Avenues years ago, pre-gentrification.) As Mel details, this is the latest of several venues where Musicals Tonight! has presented shows since its birth in 1998. “Our very first show was Let it Ride, at the Lambs Theatre, and it was so life affirming for me that we kept on. Next was So Long, 174th Street, in a cabaret space at what was then the American Place Theater. It was a wonderful show but a horrible space, so we moved back to the Lambs for By the Beautiful Sea. Around that time, I realized that if I wanted to be serious about the company, we had to have a full season. So we found a space in the YMHA on 14th Street, between 1st and 2nd Avenues. We were there for about five or six years, and it was a bit of an armpit. “After that, we moved to 45th Street. That theater had its drawbacks, but it was more legitimate – actual seats, not folding chairs, and the seats were raked. Then we moved to 76th Street and Broadway, subletting from a children’s theater company that in turn was subletting from Second Stage. And now we’re at Theatre Row. It’s 200% professional, and clean as a whistle. Everything is wheelchair accessible, and there’s a lounge on the second floor. It’s all very convivial.” Some months ago, Mel had announced that this season would be the company’s last, but he has since had a change of heart. “Attendance was declining, and I felt it was time to pack it in. But when our audience realized that we would go away if they didn’t subscribe and contribute, they subscribed and contributed.” Also, a new slate of directors for the five shows in the 2015-2016 season has brought new talent and fresh ideas to the company. “In the first two shows we did this season, Oh, Kay! and Out of This World, 27 of the 32 people in those casts were new to us. We’ve always had the piano upstage center for our shows, but for Oh, Kay! we moved it stage right, and it worked beautifully. You know, you can get into a routine, and sometimes it’s good to change things up.” I addition to providing excellent
From top: Jarid Faubel and company in Out of This World; Mel Miller and friends.
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opportunities for up-and-comers, Musicals Tonight! has occasionally showcased established veterans such as Richard White, Mary Stout, and the venerable George S. Irving. “George did six shows for us, including That’s the Ticket, but he never did two shows back to back, because we didn’t want to abuse the privilege. The first time we had him, for So Long, 174th Street, he was already 76. Every cast member adored him, and they were honored to occupy a dressing room with him.” Now that the company will continue indefinitely, Mel is full of plans for the future. “We’ve done 85 shows, with no repeats. I certainly wouldn’t repeat all 85, but some shows really are darling and should be seen again. “I do this for the actors, for the audience, and for the memory of the people who created these minimasterpieces. It gives me great joy to see the actors embrace a show that I have foisted upon them. It’s quite special when they realize that their trust was not misplaced.” www.musicalstonight.org
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INTERVIEW
Feeding the
DRAGON
Growing up in a library, Sharon Washington’s life was like a fairy tale … until she realized the hero had feet of clay Words Ruth Walker Portrait Dustin Cohen
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andering through the library at night, all lights turned off bar one or two dim bulbs, Sharon Washington would pick her way through the bookshelves, peering into pages she knew would be barred from her lively, inquisitive eyes during daylight hours. This was her childhood, lost in fairy tales, enchanted forests, and fantasy worlds while, far downstairs, the dragon slept. Now living in Hell’s Kitchen and working as a successful actress – she plays Molly Mathis in the series Gotham, and recently wrapped filming opposite Danny DeVito in the indie feature Wiener Dog – as a child, she lived, loved, and learned from an apartment above the St Agnes Library on the Upper West Side, exploring her literal and literary surroundings every day after school. “I’ve always loved books,” she says. “My grandmother would read to me all the time, no matter what. She’d read from a newspaper, from a magazine, whatever we had. But being in the library fed that. And being able to read anything whatever I wanted.” However, while no book was out of bounds, she loved fairy tales most of all. Snow White and Rose Red. The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. Books that transported her to someplace magical and otherworldly. “I’m an only child, so I already had quite an imagination, and this put it over the edge,” she laughs. “These were early signs of me being an actor.”
“I’d watch my dad shovel coal into the furnace – it always looked like a dragon. So that’s what I always saw my father as: he was a tall man who would feed the dragon.”
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Her father, George King Washington, worked as the library’s custodian. His job: to make sure that dragon in the basement – the furnace that powered the building – never went out. “New York was all about coal in those days, and stoking the fires, and that’s why there were custodial apartments in the libraries, because there were these coal furnaces and someone had to tend them. Someone had to be there 24/7 to ensure the furnace didn’t go out. “I’d watch my dad shovel coal into the furnace – it always looked like a dragon. So that’s what I always saw my father as: he was a tall man who would feed the dragon. “I was never afraid,” she adds. “I would go down – this was a big, old, five-story library – after hours, and my father would always leave on a couple of night lights, so it never occurred to me to be afraid.” It was a strange and wonderful life for the little girl; one that forms the backdrop to the children’s book she’s now writingy. But life, like so many of those fairy tales, had a dark side too. “The Upper West Side was a neighborhood where people would watch you and care for you – that was my world. But outside of that there were assassinations, there were garbage strikes, there was all this turmoil going on in the city, so I write about that, as well as the conflict in my own family.” Her father had a drinking problem. Sometimes it got so bad, she and her
Opposite page: Writing the book has been a long and sometimes difficult process for Sharon. This page: With her father.
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mom had to go downstairs and shovel the coal themselves, keeping the dragon breathing and George in a job. “That’s also what I deal with in the story, when your idol suddenly has feet of clay and you realize, wow, this is not such a fairy tale. “After that discovery of him drinking and what that did to us … that was the first time the library got scary.” The family lived in three libraries in total, until the work became too hard for her father. Sharon went on to college, then to drama school at Yale. The last live-in library custodian eventually retired in 2006, and those old apartments now lie empty or are used by NYPL for administrative offices or meeting rooms. So when she first moved into Hell’s Kitchen, it was quite a culture shock. “I remember walking to rehearsals in Chelsea from here. I grew up on the Upper West Side and was never around Hell’s Kitchen so it was pretty different. I’d never have thought they’d be building luxury high rises on 12th Avenue!” While waiting for the phone to ring, she found refuge at Mud, Sweat and Tears, the local pottery studio. “That’s a neighborhood gem. It’s fantastic. I started doing it because I was so anxious about auditions. This was something that, when I was with the clay, I wasn’t thinking about anything else.” One of her favorite things to do in the neighborhood is that walk down W42nd Street to the water, to breathe in the air, to sketch, to write. When she thinks of her father now, she hears his doubtful voice: “Why would anyone want to read about us? Why are you writing about us?” Her answer? “I think it’s an interesting story, but also because I really want people to know that life existed, that there were custodians in a library, there was a family in all the Carnegie libraries. It’s a part of New York history that is dying.” She stopped writing for a while because it was becoming so difficult going back to that place. “As an actor, I’m used to accessing all that emotion and everything for somebody else,” she says. “That’s why I ended up writing a play version of the book as well. As a narrator, I could step out then step in as a character.”
IMAGE: DUSTIN COHEN
INTERVIEW
Clockwise from above: Sharon in Hell’s Kitchen; in Gotham, and starring opposite Denzel Washington in Richard III at The Delacorte.
“I really want people to know that life existed, that there was a family in all the Carnegie libraries. It’s a part of New York history that is dying.”
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She’s currently in negotiations to workshop the play in the Momentum festival at the City Theatre, Pittsburgh, this summer, before a full production in their 2016-17 season “which is very exciting.” “It’s still hard,” she adds, “and I’m still trying to figure out, I guess, how to share with an audience the experience so that it’s not me, me, me, me. It’s not psychotherapy – that’s not interesting!” www.sharonwashington.com
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EATING & DRINKING
CHEF, HEAL THYSELF This man will make you reevaluate your relationship with food Words Ruth Walker Photographs Nacho Guevara
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oday Seamus Mullen might wake up with a little pain in his shoulder; possibly a twinge in his thigh. It’s what he calls “good pain”; the result of everyday exercise which reminds him that, not so very long ago, each day was marked by agony. He was so ill at one point, he feared it was only a matter of time before his body quit for good. A passionate cyclist, any kind of sport would have been impossible. “I think I had about six or seven years of lows, where I was constantly trying to get myself out of the gutter,” he says. “I’d have these thoughts of ‘woe is me’, ‘why is this happening to me?’ ‘what did I do to deserve this?’ “I’d wake up every morning with swollen hands and in pain, and it’s really hard to just soldier through it and put on a smile and pretend everything’s OK. I won’t say I was ever dark enough to feel suicidal, but I went through really severe depression. You get to a point where you think there’s no path out of where you are. I’d forgotten what it felt like to not be in pain.” These days the chef could hardly look fitter, his freckles, twinkly eyes and Celtic coloring the inheritance, one presumes, of the Irish grandfather who died before Seamus was born. Head of a culinary empire – the tapas and wine bar El Colmado in Gotham West Market, Tertulia in the West Village, and now Sea Containers, at the Mondrian London – he’s also a regular on the Food Network. But in his twenties he was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis so crippling it
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“Once you get a taste for waking up every morning not feeling like crap, you never want to wake up feeling like crap again.”
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threatened to stop him in his tracks. A subsequent combination of poor diet and a punishing lifestyle (crazy chef hours, a nasty motorbike crash on the Brooklyn Bridge, and a particularly vile-sounding parasitic infection) all contributed to a very sick Seamus indeed. The turning point came when he decided to stop thinking like a victim and start using his chef superpowers to make himself well again. “I was really at the bottom looking
This page: Ensalada remolachas (beets and arugula salad). Opposite: Seamus at work in El Colmado.
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COMMUNITY
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up and my choices were either stay in this situation, and who knows how long it’s going to last before something really catastrophic happens to me, or I can start now, and I’m starting from zero, and this journey begins here.” He did his research, read a ton of books, and studied the connection between food and inflammatory diseases – not just arthritis, but also heart disease, diabetes, and even cancer. Growing up on an organic farm in Vermont, he’d learned instinctively about good food from his earliest days playing in the wild with his brother. Both grandmothers were also accomplished cooks. On his mother’s side, there was English heritage, combined with schooling during the 1930s at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. She’d cook classic French dishes like coq au vin and beouf bourgignon for her young grandson, as well as English stalwarts like Yorkshire pudding and toad in the hole. On his father’s side, his grandmother had been heavily involved in the Californian cuisine scene of the 1960s
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“My choices were stay in this situation, or I can start now, and I’m starting from zero, and this journey begins here.” and 1970s. “So we had a lot of the early heirloom tomatoes, and she was the first person who showed me what a truffle tasted like.” He also fell in love with Japanese food as a boy, thanks to his grandfather’s best friend – a Japanese fisherman. Torn between a career as a professional athlete and a chef (“I realized that no matter how hard I push myself, I was never going to be able to compete at the elite level. That’s when I made the decision to focus less on cycling and started cooking more”) he’d made his mark on the Manhattan restaurant scene when he opened
Above: Bread on the menu, even though Chef won’t be eating it. Opposite: Pulpo a la plancha.
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EATING & DRINKING Boqueri, in 2006. So food was his life. And it held the key to his health. “The first thing I looked at was how I was eating, and the fact that I wasn’t really eating meals. I’d have a little of this, a little of that, and by the end of the day I’d probably eaten as many calories – or more – as I’d have eaten if I’d taken care of myself, but the make-up of those meals was almost entirely carbohydrates, because that’s the easiest thing to grab. “I’m a firm believer that it’s not about the quantity of the calories you’re eating, it’s the quality. And if you’re eating really high-quality ingredients, nutrient-dense food, your body knows when to say, ‘I’ve had enough’. When you’re eating poor-quality, nutrientdeficient food, your body keeps eating more. How many of us have eaten a whole bag of potato chips in our life?” So, for Seamus Mullen Mark II, processed, starchy carbohydrates were out, replaced by nuts and vegetables – “primarily those that are low in sugar, which meant not so much beets, carrots, parsnips, potatoes; more focusing on crusiferous vegetables, brassicas, leafy greens, mushrooms, squash.” And his portions started to include equal amounts protein and vegetables. “I also made sure I got plenty of good fat from avocado, eggs, cutting way back on dairy and completely cutting out processed foods, sugars, and gluten.” It was hard at first. Like, seriously, no more pizza? But health, it turns out, is just as contagious as illness. “And once I started to feel better I just wanted to feel even better. Once you get a taste for waking up every morning not feeling like crap, you never want to wake up feeling like crap again. “Now it’s been almost four years and I don’t miss it. And if it’s the height of the summer and it’s beautiful out, and I want to have a scoop of really good ice-cream, I’ll have it. I don’t chastise myself for doing it. But that doesn’t turn into a part of my regular way of eating.” He’s also reexamined his life/work balance, tried to delegate much more, and stopped working nights where possible. And while his restaurants echo the good food policy, there’s a little more good time flexibility in the mix: “I don’t
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This page: Tosta matrimonio (anchovy toast with eggplant jam).
“I believe in what Gandhi said were the three essentials of life: eat, move, sleep. A healthy lifestyle encompasses all of those things. It’s not rocket science.”
eat gluten and we have bread on the menu,” says Seamus. “But it’s highquality bread from a local bakery that uses non GMO flour. I happen not to eat it, but I know it’s great stuff. “I don’t really eat legumes very much, but we have legumes on the menu. Same with dairy. But there’s nothing I wouldn’t stand behind. We cook with whole foods. All our produce is responsibly sourced. We’ve tried to make the menus more and more flexible so that people who are health-conscious can still eat a really delicious meal.” He now exercises daily, and took part in a three-day mountain bike race across Costa Rica last year. He’s doing yoga – something he never believed he’d be flexible enough to do – a little parkour, gymnastics … “I believe in what Gandhi said were the three essentials of life: eat, move, sleep. A healthy lifestyle encompasses all of those things. It’s not rocket science. “Learn to quieten your mind and know when to switch off so that you have your own time for your body to heal and rest. “Eat foods as close to their source as possible, minimally changed from their original state. Make sure they’re delicious, because if they’re delicious you’ll enjoy eating them, and try to eat them with other people so that you’re engaged in conversation and talking about things rather than just looking at a device or a computer screen or driving a car. “Then make sure you use your body. Use it or lose it.” www.seamusmullen.com
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FINE ITALIAN DINING AND WOOD-FIRED PIZZA
LA VELA DINING & BAR 558 11TH AVENUE (BETWEEN 42 AND 43 STREET) NEW YORK, NY 10036 (212) 695-2112 WWW.VELADININGNY.COM
STAFF SURVEY
Know anyone who works in Hell’s Kitchen who’d be great for the Staff Survey? Don’t keep them a secret, share the love with news@w42st.com
IT’S A SMALL WORLD
Dublin-born bartender Karen Hayes talks St Patrick’s Day fare, her Hollywood crush, and whether that accent is for real Photograph Nacho Guevara Where in Ireland are you originally from? Dublin, Ireland.
Tell us something surprising about yourself? I was a social care worker for 12 years. I’m on a career break, but who knew – bartending isn’t that different! I’ve a keen interest in autism and the understanding of it. But my first job was in car sales.
When did you arrive in NY? 2 years ago, on February 7. What’s the best thing about being Irish in Manhattan? We’re a very accepted culture here and everyone I’ve met is very connected to their Irish roots and proud of them. Which makes me proud to be Irish living in such a great city.
If you could serve anyone, who would it be? Robert Downey Junior – I have a major crush. What I wouldn’t do to that man! What’s the secret to getting great service from your bartender? Manners, patience (when busy) … and a tip is always nice
How long have you worked at Scallywag’s? Two years in March. The owner, Mike Doyle, happens to be my neighbor from home. We didn’t realize until I got the job. It’s a small world.
Where else do you hang out in Hell’s Kitchen? As bartenders you get to know other bartenders and hang out at some of their bars (all Irish, of course).
What’s an average shift like? I open the bar three days a week, so setting it up and getting it ready for the day and night is one of my favorite parts, due to being a bit of a clean freak! Seeing the regulars come in and catching up with them is always great. We get a lot of tourists too, so most average shifts you get to meet nice people from all over the world. How does that shift change when it’s St Patrick’s Day? St Patrick’s Day shift is always lots of fun. We play Irish music all day, and have traditional Irish food: cabbage and bacon, fish and chips. You can’t get enough of it. It feels just like home. What do you do on your nights off? I hang out with friends, go to the cinema, and have nights out in friend’s bars. I’m also partial to having a chill out night at home with a good movie and a take out.
Do you have a hidden gem in the hood? I love Cupcake Café on 9th Avenue between 40th and 41st Street. They have the best coffee and their cupcakes are my guilty pleasure. I love its vintage vibe and, well, they’re local, which I like to support.
“I was a social care worker for 12 years, but who knew – bartending isn’t that different!”
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Above: Karen’s St Patrick’s Day highlight: the food and the music – it’s just like home.
What would you be doing if you weren’t serving behind the bar at Scallywag’s? Sitting on the other side of the bar being served, most likely! Or learning a new language – it’s on my 2016 to do list. What’s the question you’re most asked by customers? OMG are you Irish? Is that accent real?
SCALLYWAG’S (646) 490-4803 www.scallywagsnyc.com 508 9TH AVE - 38TH/39TH ST
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EATING & DRINKING
Saints,
AND SINNERS
Why is St Patrick’s Day marked by drinking? And who is the patron saint of wine? Jeremy Kaplan to the rescue
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t Patrick’s Day is, rightly or wrongly, inherently linked with the consumption of large quantities of Guinness. But the saints also have a connection – albeit a tenuous one – with the world of wine. Both Judaism and Christianity embrace wine as part of ceremony and worship – and both cite God’s role in helping man create wine for pleasure and prayer. In both religions, it is used to celebrate life and, in Christianity specifically, it represents Christ’s blood. Throughout history, there have also been religious figures who have played some prominence in wine history. Vincent of Saragossa was a Spanish deacon in the third century, apprehended during a persecution of the governor of Spain and tortured to near death. He’s considered the patron saint of wine-makers because, like Vincent, wine-makers suffer through their work. Some also point to his first name – shortened to vin – which happens to be the word for wine in French. From there, the pickings become pretty slim. The most famous “religious” character with an association with wine is Dom Perignon, a monk born in the Champagne region of what was then called the Kingdom of France. Perignon is commonly credited with the invention of Champagne and his name has been adopted for what many consider one of the best wines in the world. Only bottled in select vintages, Dom Perignon Champagne is sought after around the world. The only problem? In an ironic twist, Dom Perignon was actually commissioned to stop the wine in the cellars from making those damn bubbles. Wine would go through a secondary fermentation in the bottle that would create gas, and the pressure would, at
Above: The perfect accompaniment to corned beef and cabbage? We’ll give you three guesses ...
best, push out the cork. At worst, the bottle would explode like a bomb and cause a chain-reaction of exploding bottles, sometimes destroying an entire cellar. To top it off, “Come quickly, I am drinking the stars!” was not uttered by Perignon in the cellar, but was part of an ad campaign in the early 20th century. And what about the man of the month himself, the legendary St Patrick? A fifth century Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland, like many priests of the time, his mission was to convert the pagan Irish to Christianity. He died on March 17 and was buried at Downpatrick. Over the following centuries, many legends grew up around Patrick and he became Ireland’s foremost saint. But what did he have to do with drink? Nothing. St Patrick’s Day, not unlike Valentine’s
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Day, is a saints day that has been embraced by commerce and developed as an occasion to celebrate everything Irish. And that, of course, means drinking – sometimes to excess. Wine can certainly play a role in your celebration, and to accompany the many classics of a St Patrick’s Day feast. As with most holidays where eating a lot of food is the norm, I recommend lighter styled wines which will allow you to enjoy a lot of food and not weigh you down. Shepherd’s pie – that classic combination of ground lamb (not beef) and mashed potatoes, sometimes with a fluffy crust – goes well with gamay or beaujolais. Lighter bodied, and fruit forward, these wines will keep your appetite up. Irish cheeses are wonderful – strong and distinct. I recommend a chenin blanc from Loire, if possible with a touch of bottle age, to accompany them. Chenin has a unique weight and a touch of sweetness that enhances the natural saltiness and funkiness of cheese. And to pair with the king of St Patrick’s Day dishes – corned beef and cabbage with a side of steaming parsley potatoes – keep it light. The greasy, briny, salty character of this dish is best washed down with sparkling wine. And why not Champagne? And if you must indulge some of the mother’s milk – Guinness stout – you can enjoy your wine too in perhaps the best wine cocktail out there, the black velvet: one part sparkling wine, one part stout. Creamy, sparkling, savory, and absolutely delicious. Sláinte! Jeremy Kaplan, Veritas Wine Studios (www.facebook.com/veritaswinestudios)
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BEER
Monky BUSINESS
Those jolly old Trappist monks know what they’re doing when it comes to brewing. Ciera Coyan bows in respect.
IMAGE: ADRIEN POTIER
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’ve never been to Belgium, but I have the feeling that Belgians are holed up in their little country secretly laughing at the rest of the world. They’re in their picturesque, storybook towns with the world’s best French fries, waffles, chocolate, and, arguably, beer. Belgium is home to six of the world’s 11 Trappist breweries. Trappist monks have been brewing beer for their own purposes and selling it in small amounts for as long as they’ve been around. In 1997, eight abbeys came together to form the International Trappist Association. They prevent any non-Trappist abbeys or businesses from selling any products (beer, wine, cheese, etc) under the label “Trappist.” I like to imagine a coalition of monks decked out in their monk robes, all red-cheeked, a little bit buzzed and rowdy, in an American-style courtroom demanding legal rights to the term “Trappist.” That probably isn’t how the whole thing went down, but a girl can dream. Trappist breweries can be confusing to our capitalistic brains. They have this amazing, world-renowned product that they make only in small enough batches to keep their abbeys running. The best example of this is the Westvleteran Brewery in the Abbey of St Sixtus in Vleteran, Belgium. Affectionately referred to as Westy, this brewery makes only three beers: Westvleteran Blonde, Westvleteran 8, and Westvleteran 12. Westy 12 is a Belgian Quad that consistently pops up at or near the top of best beer lists. It’s extremely coveted by beer nerds. In 2012 the Abbey of Saint Sixtus released packages of six bottles of Westy 12 and two chalices for $85 a pop.
Right: The beers she’ll take; the chastity and poverty, not so much.
That in itself is a pricey bottle, but way under what the abbey could charge if they were so inclined. Soon after the release, the packages began showing up on Ebay for $300-$450 with one Buy It Now option set at $1,000. Clearly the abbey could be selling this beer for astronomical amounts, but one of the tenets of the ITA states that the breweries cannot be intended to make a profit. The abbeys should brew and sell enough to cover their needs, nothing more. Ironically, these rules that keep production small make the beers harder to get, thus driving up the price on the “black market” and increasing their desirability. Go figure. America recently got a Trappist brewery of our own. As of 2013 we now have the distinction of being the only nonEuropean country with an official Trappist brewery. St Joseph’s is located in Spencer, Massachusetts, and their brewery and beer are both named Spencer, appropriately enough. The abbey is committed to staying small and sustainable, using all sorts of energysaving techniques and with plans to construct a solar energy farm. Their table beer is unpasteurized and unfiltered and, according to their website, “is a full-bodied, golden-hued ale with fruity accents, a dry finish and light hop bitterness.” I’m trying my best to get my hands on one. The chastity, humility, and vows of poverty, however, the monks can keep.
“Soon after the release, the packages began showing up on Ebay for $300-$450 with one Buy It Now option set at $1,000.”
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EATING & DRINKING
DRINKY, DRINK, DRINK, DRINK... Or how to do St Patrick’s Day on the down low Illustration Joseph Cavalieri
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e all know the day is about national Irish pride, a parade, and the celebration of St Patrick and his many miracles. But as dyed-in-the-wool New Yorkers, some of us like to draw our curtains and blinds, put our collective devices on travel mode and celebrate in our own way. So here are our top staff choices, and a few suggestions for those who would rather not join the marauding masses dressed in green, staggering through our fair metropolis, in search of a four-leaf clover or Blarney bliss.
ALTERNATIVE BAR CRAWL
Swim against the green tide, and find your own pot of gold. Bar Centrale 324 W46th St - 8th/9th Ave (212) 581-3130 Like taking a step back in time, when a well-crafted cocktail in the right setting ruled, as a staple of nightlife. Fairytail Lounge 500 W48th St - 10th/11th Ave (646) 684-3897 A touch of old Times Square sprinkled with a dash of unicorn glitter, and a pastiche of go-go boy madness. Perdition 692 10th Ave - 48th-49th St (212) 582-5660 Yummy eclectic cocktail program, craft and draft beer go round spot, with a hip vintage modern vibe. Betti Bar 373 W46th St - 8th/9th Ave (212) 265-2060 Tucked away atop the legendary Hourglass Tavern, you will find a oldschool neighborhood bar with friendly locals and curious tourists.
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CLOSE THE BLINDS ...
and treat yourself to some good old (and new) Celtic culture. Bloody Sunday Cram in your Irish history with this movie about the 1972 shootings in Derry. The Commitments A W42ST favorite, featuring a group of working-class Dubliners who start an R&B band. Written by Roddy Doyle, directed by Alan Parker, and starring Broadway favorite Glen Hansard. The Crying Game Forest Whitaker, Stephen Rea, and Miranda Richardson star in the crime/drama/ romance about a reluctant IRA fighter and a mysterious nightclub singer. My Left Foot Arguably the movie that made Daniel DayLewis a star, he tells the true story of Irish author and artist Christy Brown, who has cerebral palsy but learns to write and paint. Philomena Another movie based on a true story. This time, Judi Dench plays a woman forced to give up her child, scandalously born “out of wedlock”. Years later, a reporter (Steve Coogan) helps hunt down her child in the US. Father Ted Three priests, one housekeeper, living in the fictitious parish of Craggy Island. The British comedy is now more than 20 years old but remains as fresh as ever. Watch it … go on, go on. The Secret of Kells An Oscar-nominated animation set in the 8th century and centering on a boy whose uncle (voiced by Brendan Gleeson) protects a remote medieval outpost from Viking invaders. Magical forest spirits,
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pagan deities and marauding invaders feature heavily. In Bruges Darkly funny crime drama starring Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson as hit men ordered by their boss (Ralph Feinnes) to lie low in Bruges following a botched job. Delightful. Amber This TV series was hailed as the future of contemporary Irish television, and tells the story of the disappearance of a teenage girl. It ended (inconclusively) after just four parts, but is still worth watching. Love/Hate Acclaimed crime drama on the gritty side that surrounds the drug addiction and violence of organized crime in a post-boom Ireland.
AT HOME, IN THE DARK
OK, so worst case scenario, you avoid the whole circus and toast St Patrick from your couch. But first, you’ll be needing some liquor … 9th Avenue Vintner 669 9th Ave - 46th/47th St (212) 664-9463 Grand Cru Wine & Spirits 570 11th Ave - 42nd/43rd St (646) 682-9278 Manhattan Plaza Winery 589 9th Ave - 42nd/43rd St (212) 695-8170 Odyssey Wine & Spirits 490 10th Ave - 37th/38th St (212) 600-4811 Ray & Frank Liquor Store 706 9th Ave - 48th/49th St (212) 489-2029
Opposite: Ménage à Trois, a work by this month’s cover artist, Joseph Cavalieri
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TAKE ME TO CHURCH
The demolition of a former place of worship on 36th Street led a photographer on a voyage of discovery Photographs and research: Lilia Pino Blouin
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ell’s Kitchen is no stranger to construction sites. But photographer Lilia Pino Blouin was granted a rare glimpse behind the familiar fencing, boarded-up windows and orange sheeting. “I was walking down 36th Street, between 8th and 9th Avenue, when all of a sudden a construction site which is usually closed was wide open,” she says. “I peeped inside – it was a church. They were tearing down an entire church! I just had to dig deeper (no pun intended).” Her research revealed the identity of the building – Christ Church Memorial. Built in 1905 as a Presbyterian place of worship and five-story community center, it included a parish house, and a mens’ club complete with bowling alley in the basement. Upstairs were a library, a Sunday School Hall that seated 1,000 people, six Bible-class rooms, and two large galleries that seated 200 children each. A girls’ club was on the fourth floor, as were children’s or kindergarten rooms, a two-story gymnasium with lockers and baths, and quarters for workers who lived in the building. “For most of the 20th century, until 1970, this was a significant community center, providing not only a place of worship, but also food, shelter, education and treatment for the poor, immigrant community living in Hell’s Kitchen at the time,” she says.
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Later, during World War 1, men made bandages for the Red Cross there, and chefs from top NY hotels made soup for injured troops returning from war. In the 1930s, women who worked in the Garment District started unions and fought for decent working conditions there. In the 1950s, a theatre group took up residence, and the gymnasium was converted into a playhouse. In 1970, it became the Space for Innovative Development — a nonprofit performing arts center. Then, in 1975, it was taken over by the Postgraduate Center for Mental Health, a facility offering clinical services, with social workers and psychologists. It was bought by Sam Chang’s McSam Hotel Group for $50.75m in 2014 and is set to become a 20-story, 406-room hotel. “Luckily, I’m told that at least the facade will be preserved, and incorporated into the final hotel design,” says Lilia. “I met a young construction worker there, part of the team who is working on the demolition. I love the tiles behind him, which must date back to the time the site was a mental health institution. “To finish off this series, I saved the best for last. This was the crew working on the demolition the day I visited. Aren’t they wonderful?” www.lpphoto.com
Left: The interior of the church still features the old pillars.
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It was a church. They were tearing down an entire church! I just had to dig deeper."
Clockwise from top: Tiles probably originate from when the building was used as a mental health institution; one of the young construction workers in the building; shoring up the interior walls. Opposite: The church roof has been removed.
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Opposite: Walls come tumbling down. This page (clockwise from left): Water towers visible through the roof; pigeons come home to roost in the rafters; the construction team takes a break.
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THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF
THE CHURCH AND ITS NEIGHBOR
How an obscure but beautiful church “bought” its survival thanks to the complex laws of air rights. Isaac Halpern gets to the bottom of the mystery
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n August of 2012, Extell paid $16 million to acquire the air rights of a somewhat obscure Croatian church on 41st Street between 10th and 11th Avenues. Those air rights enabled a soonto-be completed 52-story luxury rental to rise on 555 10th Avenue, towering above its ecclesiastical neighbor. So how did a Croatian parish – the oddly named Church of Sts Cyril & Methodius and St Raphael – end up next to an ugly Lincoln Tunnel entrance ramp? And what’s the deal with air rights anyway? Let’s start with the church. It was built between 1901 and 1903 as the Church of St Raphael. Designed in the French gothic style by New York architect George H Streeton, it was built not for Croatians, but rather the Irish immigrants living in the working-class neighborhood known then and now as Hell’s Kitchen. St Raphael continued as a Catholic church in various iterations over the years. But, as the immediate neighborhood became blighted with the building of the Lincoln Tunnel in the 1930s, and the Irish immigrants’ children moved to the outer boroughs, suburbs and beyond, the church began a long and slow decline until it was eventually reborn as a Croatian place of worship. By 1910, Croatian immigrants in Manhattan were scattered mostly on the far west side of the city in the west 30s, 40s, and 50s. It’s not surprising they chose this neighborhood, as jobs were available at the docks, rail yards, and factories nearby. And the Irish, who were already in Hell’s Kitchen, were almost entirely
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IMAGE: PHIL O’BRIEN
This page: The Croatian church’s spires (bottom left) are overshadowed by glass and steel.
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REAL ESTATE Catholic and so the Croatians, who are also almost entirely Catholic, felt a bond. Three years later, the Croatian community got together and raised enough money to build a new church at 552 W50th Street, and named it the Church of Sts Cyril & Methodius. Now, in case you’re wondering, Cyril and Methodius were brothers born in ninth century Greece. They became known for their missionary work bringing Christianity to the Slavs. (And, yes, Croatians are considered Slavic, “south Slavs” to be exact.) But I digress... With their own church, the mass could now be recited in their native language, bringing even many more Croats to the neighborhood. At the end of World War II, a new wave of immigrants fleeing Communist Yugoslavia descended on Hell’s Kitchen. Soon, the W50th Street church was overflowing and the Croatians needed more space. In 1971, the parish bought a rundown hall behind St Raphael on W40th Street and opened a Croatian cultural center. And in 1974, they were given permission to take over St Raphael, changing the name to the very longwinded Church of Sts Cyril & Methodius and St Raphael that we have today. That same year, the former Croatian church on 50th Street became a Bulgarian orthodox church, where it exists today as Sts Kyril & Metodi Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Diocesan Cathedral (but that’s another story!) Like many so-called “mainline” Protestant churches and traditional Catholic and Orthodox churches, the Croatian church started to lose active membership as the children of the immigrants moved, became less religious, or embraced the more lively evangelical congregations. So if it weren’t for the ability to sell its air rights, it may not have been able to stick around. Increasing expenses would have likely forced the parish to sell the building to a buyer, who would have surely taken the landmarked church in another direction. So what are air rights? Simply put, if a building next to a construction site is lower than neighborhood zoning laws allow, the developer can buy the building’s unused air space, add it to his or her project and build a taller building. Since the upper floors of a building fetch higher prices, developers consider height to be a prime asset. New Yorkers of a certain age (and younger history buffs like myself) may
“If a building next to a construction site is lower than neighborhood zoning laws allow, the developer can buy the building’s unused air space.”
Above and right: Renderings of the finished building at 555 10th Ave,
remember when selling “air rights” first descended on New York City en masse. It was the 1960s, and civic leaders saw a need to expand the city’s business needs by creating a second Central Business District in addition to Wall Street – a new CBD that was mixed use, with both residential buildings and office towers. “Mixed use” seems like an obvious goal now, but it was a novel concept then. Midtown East was the clear choice. It was walking distance to some of the most desirable New York neighborhoods, and it was easy to reach by commuters from the trains and subways. Also, there are many town houses, small residential buildings, churches, synagogues, theaters, schools,
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and other buildings that were “underbuilt.” That is, they didn’t contain as much square footage (aka bulk) as the current zoning allowed. Civic leaders figured out that by allowing those buildings to sell their unused bulk to developers on contiguous lots in the form of air rights, the small buildings would get a windfall of money and be saved from the wrecking ball, and developers would be able to build massive towers next door to help the city’s business needs and get rich in the process. Which brings us full circle to how a developer was able to buy the air rights of a little church and thus build a giant residential building next door. It also happened to allow for the preservation of the glorious, though not well-known, church with its gorgeous gothic splendor and active language school. This is just one example of the cacophony of Hell’s Kitchen, and it’s what makes these blocks so damn interesting.
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PROPERTY
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Air
RIGHTS
Create the illusion of space in the precious square feet you call home using stripes, mirrors, and sharp drapes
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pace. The one thing our New York apartments are short on. Views? The lucky ones among us have some of the best on the planet. Amenities? What do you want? Gym, tennis courts, landscaped garden, 24-hour doorman … you name it, you can have it. But room to really make a statement? That can be a challenge. Dallas Benjamin, the senior colorist at Salon SCK, just off Columbus Circle, was moving out of his old place into a shiny new one-bed apartment on W45th Street and wanted more than anything to maintain that feeling of air. “Dallas was moving in with no furniture so we had a blank slate to work with,” says Will Saks, the interior designer. “His old apartment was on the darker side and much smaller, so with this new space he knew he wanted to keep it light and airy. He wanted to bring in pieces that were sleek and modern. “We really focused on the lines of everything coming in – clean, simple lines – as well as a very neutral, monochromatic palette to help us achieve this.” Will works through Homepolish, a database of designers across the country who operate at prices that won’t make you weep – from a single-day service ($349) to the full bells and whistles package ($130 per hour, with a minimum of 10 hours.) “It”s always my intention to create the illusion of space, no matter how large or small a space is,” he says. “In the living room, the rug really helps us to do this. The lines and pattern help to both lengthen and widen the space, drawing the eye to the walls.
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“We used men’s suiting fabrics for the drapes, which helps to soften the space and is a subtle playful nod to the bachelor pad design.” “Another thing we did was hang the drapery close to the ceiling. This helps make the windows feel larger and the ceilings taller.” And though the foyer isn’t the largest, they wanted to make it feel like a proper entry. So a red and brass console table provides a place to put mail and keys, while the mirror above gives the illusion of yet more space. “From there, you are in the kitchen and living room. We opted for a taller table in the kitchen, which helps to create some separation from the living room. “In the living room, we wanted to create an open space for entertaining. What I love most about this room is the monochromatic palette we chose to work with. I wanted the materials in the space to speak: walnut, marble, brass, velvet. All of these seem to pop in the space and create a sophisticated design. To me, it’s a fantastic spot to enjoy a cocktail.” The only color in that room (apart from
Opposite page: A striped rug and a monochrome palette keep things simple and draw the eye to the walls.
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REAL ESTATE the large plant) is navy blue, which is worked in through the curtain and throw pillows. Dominating the wall is a monochromatic Elvis portrait. “Dallas had that prior to the redesign and it really worked in the finished space – perfect for above the sofa. “I’m not sure if he’s a fan, but when it comes to Elvis, aren’t we all?” In the bedroom, the intention was to create a tranquil, cozy space. “Soft textures and a gray palette help to warm the space,” says Will. “My favorite thing in this room is the drapery. We used men’s suiting fabrics for the drapes, which helps to soften the space and is a subtle, playful nod to the bachelor pad design.” There’s a fun black and white piece of art above the bed, a baby doll lying on its side, reaching out, smiling … “The artwork is by a very good friend of the client,” explains Will. “It’s a very
“We used men’s suiting fabrics for the drapes, which is a subtle, playful nod to the bachelor pad design.” sentimental piece to him. With it’s placement in the bedroom, it feels playful to me. Something about it reminds me of Todd Haynes’s Superstar.” The bedroom on the whole has a softer feel, with fluffy pillows and a more subtle color scheme. “That’s completely deliberate,” says Will. “To me, bedrooms should feel serene, and one of the best ways to do this is through soft textures: linen, faux fur, the wool drapes … all of these things help to soften the space and create a tranquil palette for relaxing.” While Dallas brought no furniture to his new pad, he did bring some small pieces that mean a lot to him: a little Thai statue, for example, and travel books. “The client does quite a bit of traveling,” says Will. “Whenever I have clients that are travelers, I always tell them to bring things back – textiles, objects, artwork. Not only can they serve as mementos from your travels, but they are a unique way to personalize your space and help it feel curated.” For his part, Will likes to source items of
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Above: Walnut, marble, and brass pop in the main living area; a console table creates a foyer space in the entrance. Opposite: Textures, travel, and playful art in the bedroom.
furniture from all over, rather than just one store. “You never want to feel like you are living in a catalog,” he says. “I pull pieces and ideas from all different places. It’s also very important to balance high and low. Know what and where to spend your money on. “For example, we splurged on the couch (Room and Board) and armchairs (ABC Home), but decided to pull back on the brass side table (Urban Outfitters, believe it or not) and the TV credenza (unbelievably, JC Penney!).” www.homepolish.com
DIGITAL EDITION
PROPERTY
DIGITAL EDITION
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RIOS & MCGARRIGLE, LLC CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS & MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS
Dolly Rios, CPA and Ray McGarrigle, CPA Whether you’re starting a business, organization, an individual tax client, a church or charter school — or growing a successful one — we’re your trusted partner in all things financial. We have decades of experience, and are not just number crunchers or the consultant you never see. When we work with a client, we become like extended staff. When you call our office, you get someone on staff.
www.riosandmcgarrigle.com Contact Dolly: rios@riosandmcgarrigle.com 917-626-5942 Contact Ray: mcgarrigle@riosandmcgarrigle.com 347-515-4789
100 Park Avenue, Suite 1600 New York, NY 10017
REAL ESTATE
IT’S PAYBACK TIME But how do you make that apartment repay your investment, asks Ian TD Smith
M
ost of my articles so far have focused on either the buyer or the renter, but this month I’d like to change things up by focusing on the all-important sellers in the neighborhood. It took a lot of courage (and a hefty down payment) to invest your money in Manhattan real estate, and those who bought in HK before 2008 showed some real faith in our neighborhood as it was transitioning. Clinton or Midtown West, as our new neighbors like to call it, has some real cache and if you’re now considering selling your home, now might be a good time to do it. Most sellers’ first choice in this process is the agent who helped them purchase it in the first place. But for those of us who expect a little more than an annual Christmas card or a random group email, here are some things to look for when choosing the agent to sell your apartment.
IMAGE: NACHO GUEVARA
LOOK FOR A NEIGHBOR Agents specialize just like any other profession, so when interviewing an agent, find out where they live. If they live just a few blocks away, they’ll inherently know more about the things that matter to you, sell those features to prospective buyers, and more easily show your apartment more often because it’s so close to their own place. ACHIEVEMENT NOT BRAND I worked for the largest residential firm in the city, and what I found were some incredibly gifted professionals but also that there was really not much of a difference between what the big firms can do and the smaller ones. A shiny name can open a door but working with a big brand agent or firm does not guarantee you the best service. HIRE THE AGENT, NOT THEIR ASSISTANT Often times a successful seller’s agent
“It took a lot of courage (and a hefty down payment) to invest your money in Manhattan real estate.” is responsible for “collecting” exclusives and that is the bulk of their job. They typically send their assistants to show open houses, take late client showings and do pretty much all the work needed until there are at least two or three interested buyers. If you’re a seller with multiple properties, this might not be important. But most single property-owning sellers have a perceived value in their home and hiring
DIGITAL EDITION
Above: Ian suggests you don’t trust the sale of your precious home to just anyone.
someone who shares that will earn you a partner and not just an agent. ASK THE TOUGH QUESTIONS When you’re choosing your agent, remember they’ll face tough questions from buyers and their agents during the negotiation so don’t be afraid to grill them. Some of these questions could include: What is a realistic price for this apartment? Is there a reason I’m going to get less or more than my neighbor did? How are you going to market this property in a different way from another agent? Why are you the agent I should hire? Think creatively, you’ve spent years making this your home, don’t trust it to just anyone. Ian TD Smith is a licensed real estate broker. Contact him at ian@adomee.com
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REAL ESTATE
e n e c s n Gree not just St Patrick’s Day e, lif r fo e ar es hu d al Emer
SEEING GREEN
Bring a touch of Celtic color to your home with the Green Arrows throw. It’s 100% cotton, and reversible, should the mood change. $85, www. craneand canopy.com
THERE ONCE WAS A BOY FROM HELL’S KITCHEN …
Even if the closest you’ve ever made it to the Emerald Isle is McQuaid’s bar on St Patrick’s Day, this monochrome printed map of the city of Limerick will tell visitors where your heart really lies. $10.95, www.etsy.com
SHAKEN, NOT STIRRED
The “Worlds Away Ireland” bar cart makes every cocktail hour an adventure. Set on casters, with silver leaf sides to prevent bottles sliding around … make ours a Manhattan. $1,020, www. polkadotpeacock.com
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DIGITAL EDITION
GARDEN IN A BOTTLE
Test your green fingers with this moss terrarium, bringing the calm of a garden into your inside space (all within a recycled wine bottle). $38, www.uncommongoods.com
REAL ESTATE SUITE SURRENDER
The New York Suite sofa combines lush velvet cushions with retro chrome legs. This beauty is made for elegant reclining – don’t spill your Guinness! $5,212, www.deringhall.com
THE DEFINITION OF DRUNK
This set of six glass coasters will guide you through the evening, from stone cold sober to the morning after, complete with their definitions (in case you needed them). $21.95, www. delphiniumhome.com
BURN, BABY, BURN
You can never grow tired of the soft (flattering) glow of candlelight. This nickel-plated steel hurricane lamp keeps things looking sleek and contemporary. $89, www.domusnewyork.com
SHORT AND STOUT
NOW I LAY ME DOWN TO SLEEP …
Brew your own Irish stout at home. This kit contains everything you’ll need to create a jet-black nectar, with toasty aromas, a medium mouthfeel, and notes of coffee, chocolate and toffee. $29.99, www.surlatable.com
Linen is both durable and elegant, an ancient fabric used over the centuries and sought after for its softness and strength. This collection is garment dyed over the course of a full day, softening the fibers even further, to make a bed you can’t wait to curl up in. From $268, www.anthropologie.com
ATOMIC POWER
The Dawson table lamp makes a nod to to Atomic Age design with its splayed tripod base and slim, tapered drum shade. Made from solid brass, it’s finished by hand in either antique brass or polished nickel. From $550, www.williams-sonoma.com
DIGITAL EDITION
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GALLERY
#W42ST Hashtag your Instagram pics and they could star in the mag!
We’ve seen snow. Lots of the stuff. We’ve seen sunshine. We’ve even seen fireworks (for the lunar New Year, in case some of you are still wondering what all those bangs were about). Thank you to all our Instagram followers for making our world more colorful. Remember, anyone can get involved -- just tag your pics #W42ST and you might be the one who ends up in the next issue.
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DIGITAL EDITION
GALLERY
DIGITAL EDITION
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LIFESTYLE
Holy Hell’s Kitchen!
Everyday saints are all around us. Christopher Shelley picks out those blessed souls that brighten his day with a smile
ILLUSTRATION: ALISA KRUTOVSKY
W
hen Ruth Walker, the editor of W42ST, asked me to write an article about Saints, I panicked, because I don’t know anybody who plays for the New Orleans Saints. Then, because she herself is a saint, she clarified that the topic was actually “good people”. Saints are all around us. One definition is that they are people who have an extra degree of holiness and/or a likeness to God. Pretty high honors. But I believe every individual has their own definition of what a saint is and what a saint ain’t. It doesn’t need to mean all-around purity or goodness – and really, who actually has that, other than Malala Yousafzai? A person can be a saint for the goodness they contribute to the world. They just do what they do because they are good people. When I think of the ways my saints help me, I feel the sort of teary-eyed swell of emotions that cause people to donate clothing to Housing Works. My saints: at the corner of 52nd Street and 8th Avenue, right next to Starbucks, a lovely Greek couple named Stephanie and Tom run a breakfast truck, Monday through Friday. Their truck is decorated in the style of Greek travel brochures: images of white houses under blue skies link relaxing thoughts to rows of bagels and donuts. But the real cloudparting comes from the loving smiles of Stephanie and Tom. Stephanie grills the egg-n-cheese sandwiches, Tom pours the coffee, and love keeps them warm. Even when they’re tired, the twinkle in their eyes in undeniable. The phrase “good morning”, one of the simplest phrases in our language, takes on healing colors when you hear them say it. No matter the weather, no matter how busy they are, they engage customers in easy conversation, reminding them that conversing is a gift. No cure for depression works for everyone, but a few moments talking to Tom and
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Stephanie can re-frame how you affect others all day. Rafi, the owner of Ariana Afghan Kebab, on 9th Avenue and 52nd Street, always remembers my wife and my preferred orders, and as a result, we haven’t opened a menu there in years. He refers to everyone as his “cousin”, and the warmth in his eyes summons a cosmic philosophy that we all on this earth are, in fact, family. And the aushak is heavenly. At Beyond Beauty, on 9th Avenue between 52nd and 53rd Street, Tanzina and Yolanda, depending who’s working when I wander in, cut my greying hair. After years spent seeking a hair expert with whom I could feel comfortable, these saints won over my follicles instantly. Their chief saintliness is in their exquisite normal-ness. They cut, snip, buzz, and
DIGITAL EDITION
Above: Look closely – there are saints all around us, ready with a smile.
comb with delicate precision that leaves my scalp and my faith in humanity tingling. I meant it earlier when I said Ruth Walker is a saint. I mean, look at this brilliant magazine she edits for us every month. W42ST’s sassy, brassy sleekness is a gift to us all. If you’ve never met Ruth, you’re missing out on a saintly experience: the voice, the flashy orange hair, the curiosity – each time I see her I’m galvanized anew. In the end, my definition of saint is someone who makes you feel good to be a human. Shine a light on those people who improve your day, however small that improvement may be. All it takes sometimes is a heartfelt “good morning”. Christopher Shelley is a wedding celebrant, comedy writer, and massage therapist. Read all about his glamorous life at www.IlluminatingCeremonies.com.
PETS
Dina the
r e k l a w dog
The panty-ripping exploits of Petey the pit bull mix
ILLUSTRATION AND WORDS: CORY CANNATARO
NAMES HAVE BEEN CHANGED TO PROTECT THE INNOCENT
T
his month has been absolutely crazy. Good crazy. Lots of referrals crazy. Don’t forget, though, that with each new dog comes a brand new personality. So let’s get right to it. Petey the pitbull/we THINK boxer, mutt of a mix, is quite the sprinter. He is very strong, quickly receiving the nickname Petey the Puller. This is literally my most panty dropping story so far (or panty ripping if we’re being technical). No, you did not pick up the wrong magazine, it really was my pants that dropped, and not in any attractive or entertaining way. So, my friend Jake works at doggy day care and is always suggesting new gadgets and toys to try. I’m a “don’t knock it until you try it” type person so I try them ALL. My closet is stocked with more dog supplies than clothes. To help with Petey, he suggested this very strong magnetic clip-on leash and harness that securely attaches to the waist of your pants to prevent the dog from lunging off. It sounded like the perfect solution. I picked Petey up around 11am. His owner, and the cause of half his pulling problems, answered the door. Rich is a lawyer who gets up every morning at 5am to go on a two-hour run with Petey, so no wonder the little mutt is always ready to run a marathon! I geared Petey up in his new body leash and we were off. The walk started great. I’m not sure if it was the leash working, or if Petey was just distracted by the new outfit he was rocking. I had an hour until we had to get the next pup, and decided to take him over by the river. We were waiting to
Above: The lights changed and Petey the Puller did what Petey does best ...
“I was running around Pier 84 screaming “Petey!” with a tank top on, the New York Times wrapped around my waist and my boots tied tight.” cross the West Side Highway, the walk sign lit up, and Petey booked it. Not only did he get away, but that extra-strong magnet ripped the flimsy chambray capris right off me! Even worse, I had on a pair of
DIGITAL EDITION
underwear my brother had gotten me for Christmas that read: “Yes, I have Pooped” on the back. I immediately grabbed the newspaper from the man standing next to me to cover up, and started to run after Petey. I don’t think the man minded – I’m pretty sure he was so lost for words, the newspaper was the last thing on his mind. So there I was, running around Pier 84 screaming “Petey!” with a tank top on, the New York Times wrapped around my waist and my boots tied tight. I’m seriously surprised I wasn’t tackled by a cop and put in a padded room with a straightjacket. Luckily, Petey was hard to miss. People were giving me some disturbing looks and pointing in the direction they saw him go. At this point I didn’t care how crazy I looked or that my underwear let everyone in Hell’s Kitchen know that I take poops. I needed to find Petey. As I was directed toward the end of the pier, I saw Petey take a running jump and leap right into the Hudson. I had no choice: I dropped the newspaper and dove right in after him. It felt like I was in an ice bath! Thank God Petey couldn’t swim as fast as he could run. By the time I got to him, kid you not, hundreds of people were staring off the pier, a helicopter was hovering overhead, and there were police cars and an ambulance waiting for us. This turned from the most embarrassing moment of my life to the proudest, when I received applause from the Hell’s Kitchen patrons and was being cheered as a hero. They did a quick interview and took a picture of me and Petey. The next day I wasn’t wearing the the New York Times, I was in it!
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PETS
Wagging Bunny
Bear Human’s name: Ruthie. Breed: Shorkie. Age: Two years. What makes me bark? The Swiffer. Three words that describe me best: Serious, lovable, but grumpy. Confession: I like to go to the dog park and lay under the bench watching the other dogs play. Please don’t bother me while I’m there, I’ll just growl at you. Instadog: @bearshorkie
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Human’s name: Liz. Breed: Italian Volpino. Age: Four. What makes me bark? When people are in a rush/leaving, kids running, and the Swiffer duster. But when the windshield wipers come on in the car, or I see the horses pulling carriages around Central Park, I go absolutely NUTS and do what my therapist calls rage-barking. Three words that describe me best: Sweet, flirty, elegant ballerina. Confession: I love raiding the hamper for dirty underwear and smelly socks when my mom has company over, listening to gangster rap, and darting my tongue up human nostrils on the sly. Instadog: @bunnyfriedland
DIGITAL EDITION
Opie Winston Human’s name: Joey. Breed: French bulldog. Age: One year old. What makes me bark: I’m really not a barker unless I’m playing with my humans. Three words that describe me best: I am very playful, energetic, and love to cuddle. Confession: I enjoy playfully tugging on my cat friend’s ear, even when my human says no.
tales
PETS These camera-happy canines took a time out from the morning stroll for a quick Q&A with W42ST
Take a
bow-wow
S Royce Human’s name: Jaime. Breed: French bulldog. Age: Two years old (I had my birthday on 12/28/15). What makes me bark? PIGEONS! They don’t stand a chance perching on our window sills. Three words that describe me best: Sassy, strong, and squishy Confession: Me? Naughty? Noooo … wellll I’m my human’s official office pup, and one day I decided to run into the CEO’s office and use my ninja moves to make his lunch disappear. Instadog: @roycethefrenchie Photograph: StylePup, Emmy Park
Sinatra Human’s name: Eneida. Breed: Collie/Staffy mix. Age: 10 months. What makes me bark? Squirrels make me bark … wait, more like howl! Three words that describe me best: Attentive, handsome, loving. Confession: I steal my mom’s underwear. Instadog: I don’t have one, but my mom does have a hashtag for me: #sinatracolliestaffy.
DIGITAL EDITION
o many of you have contacted us, asking how your own happy hound can be included in Wagging Tales. Well, we’ve heard your pleas, duly considered them, and thought, hey, what the heck, why not? (We must have been barking mad not to have thought of it sooner!) This all means, of course, that you can now send us the finest photograph you can find of your furry best friend, answer the questions below, then cross your paws you’ll be included in our monthly column of local canine celebrities. Your name: Dog’s name: Breed: How old? What makes your dog bark? Three words that describe them best: Naughty confessions (dish the dirt – not literally, of course!): And are you an Instadog? Send it to waggingtales@w42st.com and we’ll do the rest.
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LAST WORD
PHOTO FINISH 516 10th Avenue, 1932
IMAGE: CHARLES VON URBAN/MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK
F
or nine months in 1932, Charles Von Urban scoured the island of Manhattan in an effort to document its few remaining wood-frame buildings. Because of devastating fires, the city had already outlawed wood-frame construction in its denser sections. This photograph shows the rear of 516 10th Avenue (the south-east corner with W39th Street), which was demolished to make way for the Lincoln Tunnel in 1937. The site is synonymous with the neighborhood, as over the road was the eponymous rookery dubbed “Hell’s Kitchen.” W39th Street was also known as Abattoir Place, and the bawling of cattle being herded to the bludgeons and knives of the butchers, not to mention the particularly pungent aroma of the stockyards, filled the air. Right next door were the soap factories and fat-boiling plants. One health inspector reported: “He spotted 46 slaughter houses, which drained blood and offal into the gutters instead of sewers. Children by the droves splashed in these same gutters.” This child was lucky to be sitting with the laundry. It was on these streets that ten-yearold Owney “The Killer” Madden landed in June 1902, after leaving Liverpool to join his Irish-born mother, Frances, in New York. Donald L. Miller describes the scene that would have greeted him in the book Supreme City: “Dead cats and bloated brown rats lay rotting in the gutters; the streets were littered with garbage and steaming piles of horse manure.” By the age of 16, Madden had joined the infamous Gophers gang and was a terrifying local figure. His weapons of choice were a lead pipe wrapped in a newspaper or a .38 Smith & Wesson. He came to control the area at the age of 18. Madden was a leading underworld figure in Manhattan (he was recently featured in HBO’s Boardwalk Empire), most notable for his involvement in organized crime during Prohibition. He also ran the famous Cotton Club and was a leading boxing promoter in the 1930s
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He left his marks on Hell’s Kitchen in more ways than violence and terror: even the demolition of the housing couldn’t stop one element of his life remaining. Madden and his fellow gang members raised homing pigeons, caring for them in lofts above the 10th Avenue tenements. Miller again reports: “Madden liked to watch his birds soar
DIGITAL EDITION
over there rooftops of the West Side, bank in tight formation to avoid the towering brick chimney of slaughter mills, and disappear into the gray haze over the Hudson.” So, when you see those pigeons rising from behind Port Authority bus station, remember they’re the legacy of the Madden Gang.
w42 st + TCHEN • I K S HE ’ L L LL E H
NEW YORK
K
N
EN • HEL H C L T I ’S K
HELL’ K I T EN • C H CH E IT
’S
MARCH 2016 FREE
K ELL’S ITCHEN •H •
Fold-out illustrated map; guide to all the best bars, restaurants, sights, and shopping; PLUS local business and services directory
And now ...
THE BACK BIT
Our ever-evolving directory and guide returns, bolder, better, with even more to keep you connected to the neighborhood
W
e hope you managed to see a copy of our new directory and guide last month. Turning the magazine on its head, we introduced a new section centered on Jeanine Henderson’s beautiful illustrated map. We’re adding new businesses all the time, to keep residents and visitors informed about what’s happening in the neighborhood, from places to go for dinner, or buy a last-minute gift, to the best spots for a great cup of coffee. There are landmarks too – key buildings in Hell’s Kitchen that are an unmistakeable part of our everchanging skyline It’s all there on the map, numbered and color-coded to make it really simple to navigate. In the following section, you’ll find listings of local businesses, from personal trainers to pet services, beauty salons to bike repair shops, to real estate brokers. If you’re in the market for a chiropractor, a portrait photographer, or hair salon, you’re in the right place. Not only that, but, due to popular demand, we’ve also included all the places that stock W42ST – so now you never have to miss an issue. Just look out for the big black W in a yellow circle next to the listings, and you can’t go wrong. We’re not done yet – this section will be adapting every issue, introducing new elements as the months go on. So we’d love your feedback. What would you like to see in the guide? Do you want to know where to drink unlimited mimosas at brunch? Or find out where all the no-broker fee rentals are on the Westside? Perhaps you’d just like to know where to get a great craft beer? We won’t know any of this unless you tell us, so please share. Email me, phil@w42st.com, or contact us via social media. We’d love to hear from you.
Phil O’Brien, Publisher To advertise in this section, email bob@w42st.com or call him on (929) 428-0767
“Due to popular demand, we’ve also included all the places that stock W42ST.”
© JEANINE HENDERSON/W42ST
EATING & DRINKING
w42 st +
GUIDE LISTINGS
Where to eat brunch, buy the best cookies, pick up a coffee, see a show or go shopping – it’s all on our cool new map. Go explore!
SIGHTS
EATING & DRINKING 1 42nd Street Pizza
W42nd St - 11th/12th Ave Original brownstone “mom & pop” restaurant with a menu of pizza & more. (212) 594-4312
W43rd St - 9th/10th Ave
8
12 13 14
W W
Bourbon Street Bar W46th St - 8th/9th Ave
Bricco Ristorante
W56th St - 8th/9th Ave
Brickyard Gastropub 9th Ave - 52nd/53rd St
5
10th Ave - 37th/38th St
19 20
W
Frisson Espresso
8th Ave - 52nd/53rd St 9th Ave - 40th/41st St
574 9th Ave -41st/42nd St Authentic, 40-year-old Irish dive bar, steps away from Times Square. (917) 475-1473
W
El Azteca 9th Ave - 52nd/53rd St
11th Ave - 44th/45th St
29
Chez Josephine
W47th St - 8th/9th Ave
27 Genuine Roadside
W52nd St - 10th/11th Ave
Ardesia Wine Bar
15
26
10th Ave - 35th/36th
Cupcake Cafe
28
W51st St - 9th/10th Ave
Friedman’s
Cosmic Diner
9th Ave - 46th/47th St
6 Azuri Cafe
W
21 Dave’s Tavern
22
Amy’s Bread
W W
25
SHOPPING
623 11th Ave 46th St
W W
Clyde Frazier’s
8th Ave - 54th/55th St
3 Daisy May’s BBQ
4
18
Barcelona Bar
ENTERTAINMENT
2 Adella
W W
Gotham West Market 11th Ave - 44th/45th St
Green Nature Coffee
W42nd St - 10th/11th St
W42nd St - 9th/10th Ave
French food & piano music blend in
LIFESTYLE
a tribute to Josephine Baker.
(212) 594-1925
16 Fresh From Hell
7
Bar Bacon
23
W
Esca W43rd St - 9th Ave
W47th St - 8th/9th Ave Fresh, delicious food and juices, prepared in a friendly, neighborly way. (212) 956-4355
30
W
H Bake Shop W57th St - 11th Ave
9th Ave - 54th/55th St
9 Beer Authority
W40th St - 8th/9th Ave
10 11
W W
Better Being 940
24 Flaming Saddles Saloon
9th Ave - 39th/40th St
Blue Bottle Coffee
11th Ave - 44th/45th St
17
City Kitchen at Row NYC 8th Ave - 44th/45th St
9th Ave - 52nd/53rd St
31 Hakkasan
W43rd St - 8th/9th Ave
TO SEE YOUR YOUR BUSINESS LISTED IN THIS SECTION, EMAIL BOB@W42ST.COM
3
32 Hell’s Chicken
10th Ave - 45th/46th St
33 34
Houndstooth Pub
63 Restaurant Row
8th Ave - 36th/37th St
W
Hourglass Tavern
W46th St - 8th/9th Ave
W46th St - 8th/9th Ave
35 House of Brews
65 Route 66 Cafe
W51st St - 8th/9th Ave
36 37 38
W W Ivy
8th Ave - 44th/45th St 8th Ave - 44th/45th St
Jonny Panini NYC
40
Juniper Bar
9th Ave - 33rd/34th St
W35th St - 7th/8th Ave
53
9th Ave - 51st/52nd St
54
41 Kahve
44 45
W W W W
Kava Cafe
W
W W W
New York Beer Company W44th St - 8th/9th Ave
Noodies
9th Ave - 54th/55th St
Oovina
W42nd St - 9th/10th Ave
55
10th Ave - 45th/46th St
56 Pio Pio
Kiabacca
La Vela Dining & Bar
Nano Ecuadorian Kitchen
10th Ave - 47th/48th St Ecuadorable! Family-run eatery serving traditional dishes with modern flair. www.nanobarnyc.com
8th Ave - 55th/56th St
W
43
52
Iron Bar
39
42
9th Ave - 55th/56th St
Il Forno
9th Ave - 37th/38th St
10th Ave - 43rd/44th St
11th Ave - 42nd/43rd St
Lansdowne Road
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Rudy’s Bar & Grill
67
W W W W W
68 69 70 71
Rustic Table
W42nd St - 10th/11th Ave
Sangria 46
Scallywag’s Irish Pub
W
W48th St - 9th/10th Ave It may be little, but this wine bar packs a powerful punch. www.pocketbarnyc.com
11th Ave -46th St
58
47
48
W
W
W
9th Ave - 35th/36th St
90 Tulcingo Del Valle
Sergimmo Salumeria
49 McGee’s Pub
W55th St - 7th/8th Ave
50 Molloy’s Irish Pub
9th Ave - 49th/50th St
51 Mr. Biggs Bar & Grill
10th Ave - 43rd/44th St
W39th St - 8th/9th Ave
Skylight Diner
W34th St - 9th/10th Ave
91 Uncle Vanya Cafe
W54th St - 8th/9th Ave
92 Underwest Donuts
12th Ave - 46th/47th St
Urbo
93
W36th St - 8th/9th Ave
94
W37th St - 7th/8th Ave
95 Vintner Wine Market
W47th St - 10th/11th Ave
96 West End Bar & Grill
Staghorn Steakhouse
Taboon
78
W
79
Tartina
10th Ave - 52nd/53rd St
9th Ave - 45th/46th St
80 Tehuitzingo Deli
W W
W42nd St - 8th Ave
Valhalla
9th Ave - 53rd/54th St
9th Ave - 46th/47th St 8th Ave - 48th/49th St
97
W
White Oak
10th Ave - 54th/55th St
98 Zoob Zib
9th Ave - 35th/36th St
10th Ave - 47th/48th St
81
W
The Cafe Grind
10th Ave - 36th/37th St
Poseidon Greek Bakery 9th Ave - 44th/45th St
59 Press Lounge
11th Ave - 47th/48th St
PRINT Restaurant
60
W
62
Rattle ‘N Hum
11th Ave - 47th/48th Ave
W39th St - 8th/9th Ave
W
W42nd St - 11th/12th Ave
Tir Na Nog
8th Ave - 48th/49th St
82
64
W W
10th Ave - 46th/47th St
74 Social Bar, Grill & Lounge
W43rd St - 9th/10th
W52nd St - 8th/9th Ave
Think Coffee
89
Little Pie Company
Lucky’s Famous Burgers
10th Ave - 45th St
W45th St - 9th Ave
77 Sullivan Street Bakery
57 Pocket Bar NYC
The Pony Bar
88
76 Stitch Bar & Lounge
46 Landmark Tavern
W
9th Ave - 38th/39th St
Schmackary’s
10th Ave - 45th/46th St
73
85
W46th St - 8th/9th Ave
72 Siri Thai
75
10th Ave - 43rd/44th St
9th Ave - 44th/45th Ave
REX Coffee
10th Ave - 56th/57th St
W
The Jolly Goat W47th St - 10th/11th
83 The Jolly Monk
9th Ave - 48th/49th St
84 The Marshal
10th Ave - 44th/45th Ave
86 87
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The Waylon
10th Ave - 50th/51st St
Theatre Row Diner
W42nd St - 9th/10th Ave
99 Tick Tock Diner 8th Ave - 34th St
W PICK UP YOUR
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ENTERTAINMENT
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2 3
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SHOPPING
Jazz at Lincoln Center 10 Columbus Circle
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Mud Sweat & Tears 10th Ave - 46th St
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Delphinium Home
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Domus
W47th St - 9th Ave
2
Ars Nova Theater
12 Sean Kelly Gallery
W54th St - 10th/11th Ave
W44th St - 9th Ave
10th Ave - 37th/38th St
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Birdland
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Orchestra of St. Luke’s
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Space Ibiza
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W37th St - 9th/10th Ave
Circle Line W42nd St - 12th Ave
2 Columbus Circle 3
Hudson River Park
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Intrepid Museum
12th Ave - 34th/59th St W46th St - 12th Ave
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Javits Center W34th St - 11th Ave
6 NY Waterway Ferry
W50th St - 11th/12th Ave
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Fine And Dandy
W49th St - 9th/10th Ave Ties, handkerchiefs, suspenders, socks, hats, jewelry, flasks, cards, books, gifts & more. www.fineanddandyshop.com
W42nd St - 9th Ave
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Signature Theatre
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420 9th Ave - 34th St
8th Ave - 59th St
Baryshnikov Arts Center W37th St - 9th/10th Ave
B&H Cameras
SIGHTS
Alvin Ailey Theater W55th St - 9th/10th
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The New Group
12th Ave - 39th/40th St
7 The Daily Show
W42nd St - 9th/10th Ave
W44th St - 8th/9th Ave
11th Ave - 51st/52nd St
8 Tom Otterness Playground
Davenport Theater
W42st - 11th/12th Ave
W45th St - 8th/9th Ave
Ensemble Studio Theatre
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W52nd St - 10th/11th Ave
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Hell’s Kitchen Flea Market
W39th St - 9th/10th Ave
9 VIA 57WEST
W57th St - 11th/12th Ave
10 Worldwide Plaza
W 50th St - 8th/9th Ave
An authentic, one of a kind NYC experience & one of Manhattan’s
16 Frames
oldest flea markets. Year round, every
9th Ave - 40th St
8 10
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weekend. Antiques, vintage clothing, collectibles & more!
Lucky Strike W42nd St - 12th Ave
New Dramatists W44th St - 9th/10th Ave
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info@hellskitchenfleamarket.com www.annexmarkets.com
PICK UP YOUR
W42ST
IN THESE PLACES
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Universal Gear
11 NY Water Taxi
Pier 79 - W39th St
9th Ave - 48th/49th St
TO SEE YOUR YOUR BUSINESS LISTED IN THIS SECTION, EMAIL BOB@W42ST.COM
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w42 st +
BUSINESS DIRECTORY
AUTO SERVICES
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54th Street Auto Center
726 11th Ave - 51st/52nd St
450 9th Ave - 35th/36th Ave
Westside Highway Car Wash 638 W47th St - 11th/12th Ave
Al’s Cycle Solutions
693 10th Ave - 47th/48th St
Enoch’s Bike Shop
480 10th Ave - 36th/37th Ave
Liberty Bicycles
846 9th Ave - 55th/56th St
Metro Bicycles - Hell’s Kitchen
Albano Salon
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Best Barber
694 10th Ave - 48th/49th St
David Ryan Salon
429 W46th St - 9th/10th Ave
Dramatics NYC
J Cohen Chiropractic
352 W57th St - 8th/9th Ave
333 W52nd St - 8th/9th Ave
Erik’s Barbershop
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590 W45th St - 10th/11th Ave
positioning, cryotherapy – even exercise.
891 9th Ave - 57th/58th St
www.jcohenchiropractic.com (646) 657-0032
Jeunesse Hair Salon
525 W42nd St - 10th/11th Ave
National brand provider of professional
FLORISTS
Fresh Cut Flowers 444 W43rd St - 9th/10th Ave
Prudence Design & Events 347 W36th St - 8th/9th Ave
GROCERIES
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Brooklyn Fare
431 W37th St - 9th/10th Ave
massage and Murad facial services.
(212) 473-3689
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Pura Dermatology 446 W38th St - 9th/10th Ave
West Vibe Hair Salon
451 W46th St - 9th/10th Ave
HEALTH & FITNESS
Empire Coffee & Tea Company 568 9th Ave - 41st/42nd St
Garden City Deli
607 9th Ave - 43rd/44th St
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543 9th Ave - 40th/41st St
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Stiles Farmers Market 352 W52nd St - 8th/9th Ave
SUNAC Natural Market
600 W42nd St - 11th/12th Ave
The MKT @ Mercedes House 550 W54th St - 10th/11th Ave
Westerly Natural Market 911 8th Ave - 54th/55th St
CrossFit Hell’s Kitchen NYC
Alisa Krutovsky Graphic Design
315 W36th St - 8th/9th Ave
Manhattan Plaza Health Club
www.alisakrutovsky.com Graphic Design, Web Design, Print &
450 W43rd St - 9th/10th Ave
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Editorial, Illustration, Informational Design
Mark Fisher Fitness
lisusha@yahoo.com
411 W39th St - 9th/10th Ave
MedRite Urgent Care
330 W42nd St - 8th/9th Ave
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Mercedes Club
550 W54th St - 10th/11th Ave
Mid City Gym
345 W42nd St - 8th/9th Ave
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Rolates Pilates
939 8th Ave - 55th/56th St
Ryan/Chelsea-Clinton Community Health Center
Bob Cooley, Photographer 30 years of superior corporate,
LIQUOR & WINE
International Grocery
541 9th Ave - 40th/41st St
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www.bobcooleyphoto.com
907 8th Ave - 53rd/54th St
Sea Breeze Fish Market
527 W45th St - 10th/11th Ave
PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
645 10th Ave - 45th/46th Ave
Gristedes
706 9th Ave - 48th/49th St
Veritas Studio Wines
massage, careful stretching and re-
410 W56th St - 9th/10th Ave
Massage Envy
490 10th Ave - 37th/38th St
Ray & Frank Liquor Store
beyond adjustments, incorporating
Hell’s Kitchen Barbers
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Odyssey Wine & Spirits
Jonathan Cohen’s treatment plan goes
660 10th Ave - 46th/47th St
653 10th Ave - 46th/47th St
NYC VELO
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9th Avenue Barbershop 495 9th Ave - 37th/38th St
CYCLING SERVICES
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HAIR & BEAUTY
415 W54th St - 9th/10th Ave
Cybert Tire and Car Care
Find the services you need, from animal care to fitness coaches. Plus, where to find W42ST every month.
Blocker Yoga www.blockeryoga.com Get your zen on with private or group yoga classes led by certified instructor, Brooke Blocker. Also offering worldwide yoga + wellness retreats.
(912) 313-9911 blockeryoga@gmail.com
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editorial, documentary, and
34th Street Wine & Spirits
performance photography services.
(212) 202-0688 info@bobcooleyphoto.com
460 W34 St - 9th/10th Ave
42nd Street Wine Loft
507 W42nd St - 10th/11th Ave
Grand Cru Wine & Spirits
570 11th Ave - 42nd/43rd St
Manhattan Plaza Winery 589 9th Ave - 42nd/43rd St
Ninth Avenue Vintner
669 9th Ave - 46th/47th St
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Gotham Mini Storage 501 10th Ave - 38th/39th St
Interface.NYC
140 W30th St - 6th/7th Ave
Jadite Custom Picture Framing 662 10th Ave - 46th/47th St
TO SEE YOUR YOUR BUSINESS LISTED IN THIS SECTION, EMAIL BOB@W42ST.COM
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Ogilvy 636 11th Ave - 46th/47th St
Elodie Saracco Photographic www.bitly.com/elodiesaracco Elodie Saracco’s authentic lifestyle photography captures the colorful
Nacho Guevara Photography
and energetic moments of the natural
www.nachoguevara.com
beauty she finds in all her subjects.
I’m a professional portrait and
elodie.saracco@gmail.com
fashion photographer committed to producing highly creative pictures with a unique look.
Keep Your Home Clean
iguedur@gmail.com (773) 441-9455
353 W48th St - 8th/9th Ave
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Food & Finance High School 525 W50th St - 10th/11th Ave
Hartley House
413 W46th St - 9th/10th Ave
493 9th Ave - 37th/38th St
630 9th Ave - 44th/45th St
Ortal Mizrahi Photography ortalmzrhi@gmail.com www.bitly.com/ortalmizrahi (347) 592-7107
in New York. She shoots editorial portraits, photojournalist weddings and relaxed modern family portraiture.
(917) 566-6900 ilona@ilonalieberman.com
M2 Organic Cleaners 826 9th Ave - 54th/55th St
Stockwell Photography www.stockwellphotography.com Specializing in actors’ headshot, fitness models, events and weddings.
(212) 465-0942 rickstockwell22@gmail.com
Mo Lynch Photography molynchphoto@gmail.com Environmental portraits, editorial, features. Specialty: events at Madison Square Garden, Javits Center, Piers 92 & 94. Favorite subjects-: dogs and children.
www.behance.net/MauraLynch
EDUCATION & NON-PROFIT
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43rd Street Kids Pre-School 484 W43rd St - 9th/10th Ave
American Red Cross
520 W49th St - 10th/11th Ave
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Epstein’s Paint Center 562 W52nd St - 10th/11th Ave
PS 51 - The Elias Howe School
F & D Pawnbrokers
525 W44th St - 10th/11th Ave
359 W54th St - 8th/9th Ave
456 W52nd St - 9th/10th Ave
365 W36th St - 9th/10th Ave
780 8th Ave - 47th/48th St
412 W43rd St - 9th/10th Ave
Sacred Heart of Jesus School Star America Preschool
Coco and Toto
730 11th Ave - 52nd/53rd St
The Spot Experience
600 W42nd St - 11th/12th Ave
Westside Animal Hospital 453 W46th St - 9th/10th Ave
760 10th Ave - 51st/52nd St
Ilona Lieberman Photography is based
852 9th Ave - 55th/56th St
841 10th Ave - 58th/59th St
Ninth Avenue Association
Adam 99 Cents & Up
www.ilonalieberman.com
590 9th Ave - 42nd/43rd St
Columbus Hardware
Crystal Art & Craft Design
RETAIL
Ilona Lieberman Photography
American Home Hardware
John Jay College
PET SERVICES
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Lanyon36
Morning Star News
Popular Carpet Distributors 432 W38th St - 9th/10th Ave
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Simply Natural
482 W43rd St - 9th/10th Ave
The ReGallery
362 W36th St - 8th/9th Ave
Thrift & New Shop
602 9th Ave - 43rd/44th St
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Two in One Shop
362 W52nd St - 8th/9th Ave
PICK UP YOUR W42ST HERE
TO GET YOUR BUSINESS IN OUR LISTINGS, TAKE OUT AN ADVERT, OR SPONSOR ANY OF THE PAGES IN W42ST+, WE HAVE A PACKAGE TO SUIT YOUR BUSINESS PROFILE AND BUDGET. Email bob@w42st.com or t: (929) 428-0767
TO SEE YOUR YOUR BUSINESS LISTED IN THIS SECTION, EMAIL BOB@W42ST.COM
7
w42 st +
REAL ESTATE DIRECTORY
REAL ESTATE
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360 W43rd St
360 W43rd St - 8th/9th Ave
420 W42nd St
420 W42nd St - 9th/10th Ave
432W52
Brokers, residences, and hotels
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Parc Vendome W56th/57th St - 8th/9th Ave
Riverbank West
560 W43rd St - 10th/11th Ave
Silver Towers
620 W42nd St - 11th/12th Ave
432 W52nd St - 9th/10th Ave
Addison Hall
457 W57th St - 9th/10th Ave
Crystal Green
330 W39th St - 8th/9th Ave
Emerald Green
320 W38th St - 8th/9th Ave
Gotham West
550 W45th St - 10th/11th Ave
Helux
Ian TD Smith
520 W43rd St - 10th/11th Ave
Instrata at Mercedes House
TD Realty Corp
554 W54th St - 10th/11th Ave
As a native and long time resident of Hell’s Kitchen Ian provides extensive real estate services to his neighbors in and out of The Kitchen.
(917) 216 2771 ian@pocketbroker.co
Isaac Halpern Halstead Property I live in Hell’s Kitchen and specialize in sales and rentals in the neighborhood. Contact me to find the perfect home for you.
(646) 641-0145 ihalpern@halstead.com
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Manhattan Plaza 400 43rd St - 9th/10th Ave
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Mercedes House
550 W54th St - 10th/11th Ave
Midwest Court
410 W53rd St - 9th/10th Ave
One MiMa Tower
460 W42nd St - 9th/10th Ave
One River Place
650 W42nd St - 11th/12th Ave
The Armory 529 W42nd St - 10th/11th Ave
The Helena
601 W57th St - 11th/12th Ave
The Link
310 W52nd St - 8th/9th Ave
The Orion Condominium
350 W42nd St - 8th/9th Ave
The Westport
500 W56th St - 10th/11th Ave
The Whitby
Belvedere Hotel 319 W48th St - 8th/9th Ave
Candlewood Suites
339 W39th St - 8th/9th Ave
Cassa Times Square Hotel 515 9th Ave - 38th/39th St
Comfort Inn and Suites
305 W39th St - 8th/9th Ave
Comfort Inn Midtown West 548 W48th St - 10th/11th Ave
Comfort Inn Times Sq West 343 W44th St - 8th/9th Ave
Courtyard Marriott
307 W37th St - 8th/9th Ave
DoubleTree by Hilton
341 W36th St - 8th/9th Ave
Econo Lodge Times Square 302 W47th St - 8th/9th Ave
Element Times Square West 311 W39th St - 8th/9th Ave
Four Points by Sheraton 326 W40th St - 8th/9th St
Hampton Inn - Times Sq North 851 8th Ave - 51st/52nd St
Hampton Inn - Times Sq South 337 W39th St - 8th/9th Ave
Hilton Garden Inn Times Sq 790 8th Ave - 48th/49th Ave
Hilton Times Square
234 W42nd St - 7th/8th Ave
Holiday Inn - Times Sq South 585 8th Ave - 38th/39th St
Holiday Inn Express Midtown West
538 W48th St - 10th/11th Ave
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Holiday Inn Express Times Sq
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Homewood Suites New York 312 W37th St - 8th/9th Ave
Ink 48, a Kimpton Hotel
653 11th Ave - 47th/48th Ave
Marriott Fairfield Inn & Suites 330 W40th St - 8th/9th Ave
New York Marriott Marquis 1535 Broadway - 45th/46th St
Night Theater District
132 W45th St - 6th/7th Ave
Quality Inn Convention Center 442 W36th St - 9th/10th Ave
Residence Inn New York
1033 6th Ave - 38th/39th St
Row NYC
700 8th Ave - 44th/45th St
Skyline Hotel
725 10th Ave - 49th/50th St
Staybridge Suites
340 W40th St - 8th/9th Ave
French Quarters Apartments 346 W46th St - 8th/9th Ave
The Knickerbocker W42nd St/Broadway
The OUT NYC
510 W42nd St - 10th/11th Ave
The Park Clinton
535 W52nd St - 10th/11th Ave
The Time Hotel
224 W49th St - 7th/8th Ave
Travel Inn
515 W42nd St - 10th/11th Ave
Washington Jefferson Hotel 318 W51st St - 8th/9th Ave
Wyndham New Yorker
481 8th Ave - 34th/35th St
343 W39th St - 8th/9th Ave
325 W45th St - 8th/9th Ave
Two Worldwide Plaza
350 W50th St - 8th/9th Ave
HOTELS
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414 Hotel 414 W46th St - 9th/10th Ave
6 Columbus A SIXTY Hotel 308 W58th St - 8th/9th Ave
BUILDING MANAGERS AND CONCIERGES Would you like your residents to get copies of W42ST Magazine every month? Contact Bob Bruno bob@w42st.com or (929) 428-0767 and we’ll deliver!
W
Pick up your copy of W42ST at these residences and hotels.
TO SEE YOUR YOUR BUSINESS LISTED IN THIS SECTION, EMAIL BOB@W42ST.COM
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