Thursday, September 29, 2016

Lanza's Restaurant was established in 1904 by Michele Lanza

Lanza's is reported to have been a favorite #Italian ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡น restaurant of the Genovese, Bonanno and Gambino crime families. ๐Ÿ In 1993, Woody Allen used the restaurant to film a scene for his movie "Manhattan Murder Mystery. We live its #vintage stained glass windows and #sign. Sadly, the restaurant has been closed for a while and it's status is uncertain. Photo and full interview with 4th generation family member appears in our book "Store Front II-A History a Preserved."


Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Stella Maris Fishing Station ๐ŸŽฃ has been in business for over 65 years.

We love this Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn #bait and tackle shop's Coca-Cola privilege #sign and the glass bricks in its #storefront. ๐ŸŸ๐Ÿก Photo from 2009 appears in our book "Store Front II-A History Preserved".


Monday, September 26, 2016

Storefront: A Historic East Village Food Tour with James & Karla Murray

http://untappedcities.com/storefront-a-historic-east-village-food-tour-with-james-karla-murray/  


On Sunday October 9th at 12pm, join James and Karla Murray, authors and photographers of the critically acclaimed books, Store Front: The Disappearing Face of New York, New York Nights and Store Front II-A History Preserved on this walking and tasting tour of some of their favorite East Village food establishments. Discover the food, history and diverse culture of the East Village while tasting delicious specialties from at least 6 different tasting stops.

Many family-run businesses started out as traditional mom-and-pop stores passed down from generation to generation, and defined their neighborhoods. Not only are these modest small businesses falling away in the face of modernization, gentrification, and conformity, the once unique appearance and character of New York City’s colorful streets suffers in the process.  On this tour you will learn about the diverse German, Italian, Jewish and Ukranian history of the East Village and try some fresh homemade Italian mozzarella, drink an authentic New York City egg cream or have a freshly roasted cup of coffee, taste a hot Ukranian potato pierogi with toppings, sample a freshly baked Jewish sugar cookie, enjoy an authentic New York hot dog and tropical drink and taste a freshly baked Italian cannoli.

Enough food will be sampled so that for most people lunch afterwards is not needed.

Sunday, September 25, 2016

Earlier today, Yonah Schimmel Knish Bakery.

We led a walking tour of the Storefronts of the East Village/L.E.S. today for a the Municipal Art Society of New York and stopped in Yonah Schimmel Knishery, which has been in business since 1910. Everyone on the tour learned the history of the knish which is baked fresh every day in the basement bakery of the storefront. Seen in this photo is Julie, one of the tour attendees, who also purchased Yonah's homemade yogurt, which is still made using the same yogurt culture that was brought over from Romania by Rabbi Yonah Schimmel in the late 1800s.


Bruckner Bar & Grill is located in the Mott Haven section of the South #Bronx.

The #bar and grill is housed in a former elevator repair factory and is one of the pioneering small businesses taking part in the revitalization of the South Bronx or "SoBro" which began in the late 1990s. We love it's oversize #neonsign with the martini glass ๐Ÿธwhich is animated. Photo from 2010 and full text appears in our book "New York Nights".


Saturday, September 24, 2016

Hornstein's Stationery Store in Harlem

This one-stop shop for toys, cards, office supplies ๐Ÿ““ ✂️, sporting goods ⚽️๐Ÿˆ ๐Ÿ€, gifts, games, bicycles ๐Ÿšฒ, and stationery has a great #vintage #handpainted sign. We are not sure how they fit all those items into this small #store but the window displays were jam packed. Photo from 2004 appears in our book "Store Front: The Disappearing Face of New York."


Monday, September 19, 2016

Spotlight on Gem Spa, a stop on our upcoming Storefront: A Historic East Village Food Tour for Untapped Cities

Please join us on Sunday, October 9th at 12pm as we lead a Storefront: A Historic East Village Food Tour for Untapped Cities @untappedcities. On this walking and tasting tour of some of our favorite East Village food establishments, you can discover the food, history, and diverse culture of our neighborhood while tasting delicious specialties from at least 6 different tasting stops.

On this tour you will learn about the diverse German, Italian, Jewish and Ukrainian history of the East Village and try some fresh homemade mozzarella, drink an authentic New York City egg cream or have a freshly roasted cup of ‪coffee‬, taste a hot Ukrainian potato pierogi with toppings, sample a freshly baked Jewish sugar cookie, enjoy an authentic New York hot dog and tropical drink and taste a freshly baked cannoli. Enough food will be sampled so that for most people lunch afterwards is not needed.

Tickets for this tour are $40 (food included) and can be purchased at: http://untappedcities.com/storefront-a-historic-east-village-food-tour-with-james-karla-murray/  



(Photo above of Gem Spa (2001) from our book Store Front: The Disappearing Face of New York)

One of the many small businesses we will stop and sample a drink from is the newsstand/candy store Gem Spa, located on Second Avenue at the corner of St. Mark's Place. Gem Spa was originally called “Gems Spa” and was founded in 1957 by Ruby Silverstein and his partner Harold Shepard. In an interview in 1969 with New York Magazine, Ruby explained that the name “Gems” comes from a combination of the initial letters of Gladys, Etta, Miriam, and Silverstein-Shepard. The three ladies used in deriving the name were his wife, his partner’s ex-wife, and his partner’s current wife. The “Spa” is a word that he says was picked up when he was overseas in the service.






(Photo above from NY Times 1969)

Ruby kept Gems Spa open 24 hours a day/ 7 days a week and estimated that “someone comes into the store every 30 seconds, averaged out over 24 hours. Notice that I did not say ‘purchase’ –but someone walks in every 30 seconds”.   Gems Spa is where Jack Kerouac and other beat poets got their egg creams in the 1950s and it also became a hangout for many musicians in the 1960s and 1970s, who performed at the Fillmore East and the Electric Circus, which were located on either side of the store. Patti Smith was a long-time customer and the New York Dolls shot their 1973 debut album, New York Dolls back cover in front of Gem Spa.

(New York Dolls album back cover)


Poets Allen Ginsberg and Ted Berrigan both mentioned Gem Spa in their work and Gem Spa is also the name of one of the major works painted by Jean-Michel Basquiat in 1982.

(Photo of Ted Berrigan at Gem Spa by Gerard Malanga 1971)




(Photo of Basquiat painting "Gem Spa" 1982)




Before Ruby took over the lease for the space, it had operated as a candy store by another name since 1920 and was run by the Goldfeather family. The current owner, Ray Patel bought the business in 1986, but has only slightly changed the storefront and expanded its outside vending area, selling hats, socks, sunglasses, scarves, gloves and wigs.

Gem Spa is still famous for its egg creams, a quintessential New York beverage originally served in candy stores throughout the Lower East Side beginning in the 1920s. The egg cream, is said to have been invented at this candy store. Contrary to its name, the egg cream does not contain eggs or cream but is a mixture of very cold milk, seltzer, and flavored syrup. It is believed that the name “egg cream” came from the egg-white-like foam that rose to the top of the glass. Another theory about its unusual name is that the words echt keem, Yiddish for “pure sweetness” were used to describe the drink and the Anglicized form of the words led to “egg cream”.  The Gem Spa owners have always kept their milk on ice because one of the keys to making a great egg cream is to use extremely cold milk.





(Detail of Gem Spa interior soda fountain/egg cream prep area)

It’s also “all in the way you stir it,” Ray Patel told us when interviewing him for our book, Store Front: The Disappearing Face of New York.  Because most of the original soda fountain locations have closed, true egg creams are rapidly disappearing.  To this day, Gem Spa continues to make their egg creams using the same recipe and original soda fountain machine from the 1940s.  The countermen learned to make egg creams from the previous owner who learned from the previous owner before him.  The chocolate, vanilla, and coffee-flavored syrups were once made in the basement by the store’s original owner but Gem Spa now uses the famous Brooklyn-made Fox’s U-Bet flavored syrups. On a typical weekend night, Gem Spa sells about 70 egg creams.


In Lou Reed’s 1996 song “Egg Cream” he sang that, “When I was a young man, no bigger than this / A chocolate egg cream was not to be missed / Some U-Bet’s chocolate syrup, seltzer water mixed with milk / You stir it up into a heady fro, tasted just like silk.”  

The corner where Gem Spa is located has always been one of the busiest intersections in the East Village and to us it is the “Times Square” of the Village.


Manhattan, NYC


Empire Diner in Chelsea is set to reopen again with chef John DeLucie serving classic all-American ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ #diner fare.

๐Ÿณ ๐Ÿ”  Empire Diner is one of the last free-standing diners left in Manhattan and is located inside a 1946 Fodero Dining Car. It closed in 2015, after a second failed attempt to revive it. This photo was taken in 2009 before the #miniature stainless steel stylized #Empire State Building @empirestatebldg replica was removed from its roof. Photo and full interview with former owner Carolyn Benitez appear in our book "New York Nights".


Thursday, September 15, 2016

STORE FRONT II book discussion and signing last evening at MOSCOT gallery space.

This book event was a way of bringing together small business owners with the community and helping bring awareness to the amazing "'mom-and-pop' stores that make each neighborhood of the city a unique and wonderful place.

We want to thank MOSCOT, a fifth-generation owned optical business for hosting the event in their iconic Orchard Street store and thank second-generation owned Chinatown favorite, Nom Wah Tea Parlor for generously providing the excellent dim sum served at the reception.

We also want to thank everyone who attended and help make this book event a huge success.



Wednesday, September 14, 2016

STORE FRONT II event at MOSCOT: PIX11 "Book event celebrates NYC's iconic storefronts"

Slideshow:  http://pix11.com/2016/09/13/book-event-celebrates-nycs-iconic-storefronts/ 

Thank you PIX11!

Please join us TONIGHT Wednesday, September 14th from 7-9pm to celebrate the release of our newest book, Store Front II, at The MOSCOT Gallery & Music Space. ๐Ÿ‘“
The MOSCOT Gallery & Music Space 108 Orchard Street (at the corner of Delancey). NY, NY
Wednesday, September 14, 2016
7:00 - 9:00 pm
FREE
For more information, call (212) 477-3796  

The evening will feature Store Front II photography, with a focus on the Lower East Side, and a Q&A session, followed by a book signing and reception. FREE WINE ๐Ÿท Light bites and dim sum generously provided by Nom Wah Tea Parlor ๐Ÿข@nomwahteaparlor

About Store Front II: The Murrays have been capturing impeccable photographs from the streets of New York City since the 1990s. Store Front II chronicles their continued efforts to document a little-known but vitally important cross-section of New York's "Mom and Pop" economy. From MOSCOT @moscotnyc to Sammy's Roumanian Steak House, and Economy Candy to Parisi Bakery, the Murrays reveal how New York's long-standing mom and pop businesses stand in sharp contrast to the city's rapidly evolving corporate facade. The photo above of Nom Wah Tea Parlor appears in our book "New York Nights".


Tuesday, September 13, 2016

Nom Wah Tea Parlor @nomwahteaparlor on tiny crooked Doyers Street is the oldest dim sum restaurant in #Chinatown.

Nom Wah Tea Parlor was founded in 1920 and is now being run by 2nd generation owner, Wilson Tang. To sample some of their great food please join us this Wednesday, September 14th from 7-9pm to celebrate the release of our newest book, Store Front II, at The MOSCOT Gallery & Music Space. ๐Ÿ‘“๐Ÿ•ถ The MOSCOT Gallery & Music Space 108 Orchard Street (at the corner of Delancey). NY, NY 10002
Wednesday, September 14, 2016
7:00 - 9:00 pm
FREE
For more information, call (212) 477-3796

The evening will feature Store Front II photography, with a focus on the Lower East Side, and a Q&A session, followed by a book signing and reception.  FREE WINE ๐Ÿท Light bites and dim sum generously provided by Nom Wah Tea Parlor ๐Ÿข@nomwahteaparlor

About Store Front II: The Murrays have been capturing impeccable photographs from the streets of New York City since the 1990s. Store Front II chronicles their continued efforts to document a little-known but vitally important cross-section of New York's "Mom and Pop" economy. From MOSCOT @moscotnyc to Sammy's Roumanian Steak House, and Economy Candy to Parisi Bakery, the Murrays reveal how New York's long-standing mom and pop businesses stand in sharp contrast to the city's rapidly evolving corporate facade. The photo above of Nom Wah Tea Parlor appears in our book "New York Nights".


Monday, September 12, 2016

FREE! Store Front II slideshow, dim sum generously provided by Nom Wah Tea Parlor, and wine at The MOSCOT Gallery & Music Space this Wednesday September 14, 2016 7:00 - 9:00 pm!

The MOSCOT Gallery & Music Space 108 Orchard Street New York, NY 10002
Wednesday September 14, 2016 7:00 - 9:00 pm
For more information, call (212) 477-3796

The evening will feature Store Front II photography, with a focus on the Lower East Side, and a Q&A session, followed by a book signing and reception.

MOSCOT is one of the many LES businesses featured in STORE FRONT II: A History Preserved. Nom Wah Tea Parlor is featured in our books STORE FRONT: The Disappearing Face of New York & NEW YORK NIGHTS.


22nd Wedding Anniversary. Yesterday.

Nom Wah Tea Parlor take-out in the park with Hudson...


Sunday, September 11, 2016

14th Street September 11th 2016 East Village, NYC earlier...

Remembering Manny DelValle Jr. from Engine 5 On Tuesday, September 11, 2001 Manny had just finished an overnight at Engine 5 in the East Village when the call came in around 8:47 am that a plane had hit the North Tower of the World Trade Center. Engine Company 5 was assigned to team up with another company to walk up 80 floors and stretch the hose line. Manny Delvalle Jr. was carrying the rollup lines of hose and an oxygen tank. The last time Manny was seen, he had stopped on the 10th floor to give a woman oxygen. His unit had made it to the 15th floor when they were called back when the building began to rumble. They looked for Manny but could not find him and after the North Tower fell at 10:28 am, he was reported missing. Manny was 32 years old and had joined the #FDNY in 1994. We remember Manny, who often stood outside the firehouse when the doors were open. The firemen always gave biscuits to our pit rescues Tabasco and Java. Our thoughts and prayers go out to everyone affected by this senseless tragedy.




Saturday, September 10, 2016

1959 Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner

The Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner, with a retractable hardtop, was produced by Ford in the United States for the model years 1957, 1958 and 1959. The Skyliner had a complex mechanism which folded the front of the roof and retracted it under the rear decklid. No hydraulic mechanisms were used as in regular convertibles of the era. The Skyliner top has five electric motors , down from seven for the previous models, four lift jacks, a series of relays, ten solenoids, four locking mechanisms for the roof, and a total of 610 ft (185.9 m) of wiring. The large top took up vast amounts of trunk space, limiting the car's sales.

During the 1959 model year the Galaxie series was added to Ford’s full-size range and the Skyliner model was absorbed into that series. Although the 1959 Galaxie was designated as a separate series, Galaxies carried both “Fairlane 500” and “Galaxie” badging, on the rear and sides respectively. It came with the standard 2-barrel 200 hp V8. At the time of its introduction, the Skyliner was the only true hardtop convertible in the world. Today, it is a collectible car.


Friday, September 9, 2016

Candles Galore and Music Land in #Brooklyn

We love the #handpainted #signage this two stores in one has! Both have "the best prices in town"! A one stop shop for #reggaeton ๐ŸŽค and #salsa music as well as #candles, botanicals and religious articles. #storefront #disappearingfaceofnewyork


Thursday, September 8, 2016

Our photos from both our books, Store Front: The Disappearing Face of New York and Store Front II- A History Preserved are featured in the new Spring issue of the North Journal (Issue 11)

The North Journal is an Australian story telling publication that aims to bring together a conversation of like-minded people on both a local and global scale. Our photos appear in their "Thousand Words Gallery".
http://www.thenorth.co/



Billy's Package Store in Hartford, CT.

The current owner told us that this #neon #sign was installed in the 1950s by Billy, the founder of this #liquor๐Ÿธ๐Ÿบ store. Sadly the owner told us that the #neonsign no longer lights up at night although it only needs minor repairs as all of the tubes are in place.


Wednesday, September 7, 2016

Yoken's Restaurant in Portsmouth, NH has an amazing #neonsign that was originally manufactured by C.I. Brink of Boston, MA in 1949.

Although the restaurant closed in 2004, the #neon #sign was saved and later refurbished at a cost of $50,000 and reinstalled by the Portsmouth Sign Co. Of Newington, NH in May 2015. Although we took of a photo of this beauty during the day, it does light up in 4 different colors and is animated with the ๐Ÿณwhales' tail and fins moving and even it's spout spewing water ๐Ÿ’ฆ! We love to hear when beautiful #signage like this is saved!


Our Museum of Neon Art (MONA) prints have found a new home up north with Hudson!

These three prints were part of the #signgeeks exhibit at MONA in Glendale, CA.