A small fire on East 10th Street this morning was sparked by an extension cord that melted after being wrapped around a radiator in a fifth floor apartment, the authorities said. “Luckily, the tenant was home,” said John Bley, the chief of Division 1, adding that the fire could have been much worse had the resident not been there to report it right away. No one was injured in the fire at 215 East 10th, which was reported at 8:46 this morning; the fire was declared under control at 9:17.—Timothy J. Stenovec
The Day | Nostalgia Takes A Bow
By THE LOCAL
Gloria ChungGood morning, East Village.
As we return from the long holiday weekend, the local blogosphere is filled with nostalgic takes on the neighborhood.
Emphemeral New York takes a closer look at the carvings on the facade of the old Italian Labor Center (now home to Beauty Bar) at 14th Street near Third Avenue.
Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York examines the history of the old Moskowitz and Lupowitz restaurant on Second Avenue and Second Street.
And Gothamist has a post about the Nostalgia Shoppers’ Special Train on the Sixth Avenue Line, which started this weekend and will continue each Sunday through Dec. 26
In other neighborhood news, EV Grieve has an interview with the new owner of the Polonia restaurant on First Avenue near East Seventh Street.
Bowery Boogie has an update on the new mural at Bowery and East Houston.
Seeking The Next Community Editor
And we at The Local are continuing to review applications for our next community editor. If you live in our coverage area – 14th Street to Houston, Broadway to the East River – have editing experience, are familiar with WordPress and are interested in the paid position please e-mail us.
On 7th St., A Martial Art And More
By MEREDITH HOFFMAN
Meredith Hoffman Students at the Nisei Goju International Headquarters prepare to spar. Below: Students practicing Nisei Goju, a combination of hard and soft fighting styles.
Meredith HoffmanBlack hair cascading down the back of his karate robe, Master Wilfredo Roldan exhaled an impassioned hiss in the Nisei Goju International Headquarters on Seventh Street and Avenue A.
For 41 years, Mr. Roldan has taught Nisei Goju – a martial art that borrows from karate and jiujitsu and emphasizes the importance of discipline, a lesson that his students already seem to have taken on board: at Mr. Roldan’s gesture, the entire class bows, kicks and springs into action.
There are just seven students in the class – and Mr. Roldan said that the small setting is by design.
“I say, ‘Joseph only had 12 brothers, Jesus had 12 disciples’ — there are very few people you can touch,” said Mr. Roldan, who is 59 and who does not use the religious analogy by accident – he says his work is a service, and compares Nisei Goju to a spiritual calling.
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In The Park, Still Searching For Sammy
By DAMON BERES
Courtesy of the Beck Family Sammy, a Pomeranian last seen in the East Village, has been missing since June.“Have you seen Sammy?” If you live in the East Village or Lower East Side, the answer is almost definitely yes – he’s plastered to poles, phone booths, and walls on what seems like every block.
Unfortunately, no one has really seen him since June 29. Sammy the shaved Pomeranian got loose from his leash outside of owner Henry Beck’s restaurant, Grill 21 in Gramercy, and ran out of sight, inspiring a massive puphunt that’s carried on for nearly seven entire months now.
Indeed, to say this shaved Pomeranian achieved local iconography in the latter days of summer might be something of an understatement. The Becks plastered flyers – in English, Spanish, and Chinese – on almost every block, and launched a “Help Find Sammy” Web site in no time.
“It’s very hard – he’s a member of the family,” said Mr. Beck. “You start the day with hope and go to sleep with the reality.”
The Becks have continued to comb the East Village, where Sammy was reportedly first spotted after he disappeared in June. Last week, the unlikely quest to bring Sammy home gained a fleeting bit of momentum when a dog matching his description was apparently spotted in the neighborhood.
“As of recently we have been getting calls about a loose Pomeranian around Tompkins Square Park,” Alana Beck, Mr. Beck’s daughter and leader of the search effort, wrote in an e-mail message this week. “If it really is him, then he really is an amazing representation of his owners. We are just as adamant about getting him home.”
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The Day | On Tweets And Firehouses
By THE LOCAL
Michelle RickGood morning, East Village.
Having nimbly avoided the crush of Black Friday shoppers, we begin this morning with a look at Thursday’s article in The Post, which described how the firefighters of Engine 28 and Ladder 11, on Second Street near Avenue B, had recently opened a Twitter account to alert neighborhood residents when the firehouse was unable to respond to emergency calls.
Over the past month, The Post reported, the firehouse was pulled out of service on 20 occasions because of a range of issues including mechanical trouble or training or to provide coverage for other firehouses when their units were pulled from service.
EV Grieve reports that sometime after The Post’s piece went up, the firehouse’s Twitter account was disabled.
In other neighborhood news, DNAinfo has a post on the recently opened Dorian Grey Gallery on East Ninth Street.
Seeking The Next Community Editor
And we at The Local would also like to remind you that we are continuing to review applications for our next community editor. The six-month term of Kim Davis – who has performed the job admirably – ends just after the New Year. If you live in our coverage area – 14th Street to Houston, Broadway to the East River – have editing experience, are familiar with WordPress and are interested in the paid position please e-mail us.
The Day | With Our Thanks
By RICHARD G. JONES
The students of “The Hyperlocal Newsroom.” Seated (from left): Stephanie Butnick, Sarah Tung, Elisa Lagos, Molly O’Toole, Clint Rainey, Meredith Hoffman, Rachel Morgan. Standing (from left): Tania Barnes, Maya Millett, Helen Zhang, Simon McCormack, Laura Kuhn, Jenn Pelly, Spencer Magloff, Suzanne Rozdeba, Robyn Baitcher, Sally Lauckner, Timothy J. Stenovec, Claire Glass, Sophie Hoeller, Carolyn Stanley, Alexa Tsoulis-Reay, Darla Murray, Andre Tartar, Amanda VanAllen.Good morning, East Village.
When The Local launched in September, we issued an open invitation to our neighbors to join us in this experiment in journalistic collaboration.
Today, we would like to express our gratitude to all of those who have traveled with us on the journey so far, sharing their ideas, energy and talent with the site to help cover the community that we all call home.
Our appreciation extends far and wide – to the students of “The Hyperlocal Newsroom,” an elective course at NYU Journalism through which students report for the site, to our able authors from across the community, to local photographers who have generously shared the vivid images that they have captured reflecting the richness and variety of neighborhood life.
To them all, we extend our thanks and our wish that the list that follows – and the spirit of cooperation that this site represents – will continue to grow in the weeks and months to come.
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By The Numbers | A Meal For 5,000 …
By HELEN ZHANG
Helen Zhang Curt Hencye, the head chef and a volunteer from Calvary Chapel in Sarasota, Fla., dashes between stations in the kitchen as the Bowery Mission prepares its annual Thanksgiving meal. Below: A volunteer peels yams.
Helen ZhangAs we scramble to figure out how much turkey and trimmings are needed to feed five or 10 people imagine planning for 5,000 Thanksgiving dinner spreads.
That’s exactly what the Bowery Mission has been doing for since 1879 for the city’s needy, and, as expected, the staff and volunteers have the preparations down to a routine.
A week in advance, thousands of pounds of donations begin rolling in from local residents and businesses like Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and City Harvest.
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… Or Making Dinner For Just A Few
By SIMON MCCORMACK
Simon McCormack Brydie Landreth holds the makings of her first attempt to prepare Thanksgiving dinner.When it comes to cooking her first Thanksgiving dinner, Brydie Landreth, a 20-year-old college student, has a guiding principle: “I’m cheap and lazy.”
We’ll leave to her family of four visiting from Mount Vernon, Wash to decide about “lazy,” but her “cheap” turns out to be average, at least in terms of a turkey day dinner. The American Farm Bureau Federation estimates that it will cost $43.47 to feed a family of ten with turkey and trimmings, including flour, eggs, stuffing, sweet potatoes, peas, cranberries, carrots, celery and pumpkin pie.
An informal shopping-cart survey of East Village shoppers found that most paid about the same as the national average cost but got fewer — and different — items than on the Farm Bureau list.
Basket #1: Brydie Landreth, 20, student, at Key Food Avenue, A and East Fourth Street.
Total: $44.95.
Simon McCormack Brydie Landreth’s Thanksgiving dinner shopping basket.Shady Brook Farms turkey: $20.06
Ocean Spray whole cranberry sauce: $2 for two cans
McCormick Turkey Gravy: $2 for two packets
Idaho Mashed Potato Granules: $2.99
Stove Top Turkey Stuffing: $1.33
Green Bite Green Beans: $10 for two bags
Keebler Ready Pie Crust: $3.58 for two crusts
Libby’s Pumpkin Pie Filling: $2.99
“I wanted to keep things as simple and painless as possible.”—Brydie Landreth
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A Look At Some Multinational Feasts
By SAMANTHA KUTired of the traditional turkey and stuffing? Try an East Village restaurant that celebrates a post-Pilgrim immigrant cuisine.
Samantha Ku Brick Lane Curry House, 306 East Sixth Street.Brick Lane Curry House
306 East Sixth Street
212-979-2900
Brick Lane Curry House on Curry Row will have all the elements of a traditional Thanksgiving meal, but with a twist. “What we’ve done is given it a little Indian kick, if you will,” said Vivek Deora, the general manager. “Robust flavors, robust spices.” Dishes include turkey seekh kabab, turkey biryani with cranberry chutney and raita and pumpkin halwa for dessert.
The Day | On Murals And Mr. West
By THE LOCAL
eastvillagedenizenGood morning, East Village.
DNAinfo has details on the newest – and, apparently, very temporary – mural at the space at Bowery and Houston Street. NYU Journalism’s Jenn Pelly
captured an image Tuesday night of the mural in progress.
DNA also reports that the owners of the wall space at Sixth Street and Avenue C – where the mural of President Obama was recently removed – are looking for an artist to re-paint the space.
And Antonio Garcia, the artist known as Chico who created the Obama mural, spoke with New York NearSay about its removal.
In other neighborhood news, Bowery Boogie has a full report on Kanye West’s not-so-surprise concert Tuesday at the Bowery Ballroom.
And Ephemeral New York posts an unidentified archival photo from 1903 that the site believes may be a relic of the time when the East Village was known as “Little Germany.”
Finding The Best Vintage Clothing Buys
By ALLISON HERTZBERGWith holiday parties approaching, the impulse to buy a new outfit is hard to resist. To help avoid sticker shock, check out these neighborhood vintage and consignment stores. ‘Tis the season to look beautiful on a budget.
Allison Hertzberg Cadillac’s Castle, 333 East Ninth Street.Cadillac’s Castle
333 East Ninth Street, 212-475-0406
Named for the owner’s dog that takes inventory in the small consignment shop; this store is not to be missed. Mostly in-season women’s consignment items are displayed alongside some new stock in this clean, bright shop. The owner and his staff carefully select each item and I’ve never seen anything in less than pristine condition. Mind if I namedrop? At any one time you’re likely to find fashions from Jason Wu, Prada, Diane Von Furstenberg, YSL, Mui Mui and Missoni. The high end designer pieces carry a weighty though heavily discounted price tag, but it’s easy to find a great party dress for under $75 dollars. Even the most budget conscience can score a
deal, just check out the constantly replenished $25 dollar rack that sits outside the store.
Read more…
On 12th St., Learning To Keep It Real
By CLAIRE GLASS
Claire Glass Robert Galinsky, founder of the New York Reality TV School, and Angelina Als, one of the school’s students. Mr. Galinsky’s mission is to teach people to sell their personalities to reality TV casting directors in 20 seconds or less.Two women linger hesitantly at the entrance to a restaurant on Avenue C. One looks as though she might lose her lunch from nerves as a man nudges her forward into the middle of the dining area. She immediately strikes a mannequin pose and after a brief pause, she glides across through the tightly-packed tables as if on a cat walk. She’s smack dab in the middle of a restaurant performing for patrons who came expecting sandwiches without a side of model.
On its face, the scene may seem unusual, but it’s all in the name of reality TV where these kinds of antics are the norm — so much the norm that students schlep to 12th Street and Avenue C from all over the city to the New York Reality TV School to learn how to be themselves, only better. It’s an education in how to make it in the “real” world we’ve all grown accustomed to on the small screen.
Robert Galinsky, the school’s founder, says that his mission is to teach people to sell their personalities to reality TV casting directors in 20 seconds or less.
“I do lots of things with my students that typical actors do to refine their skills before they ever get a script,” Mr. Galinsky says. He started teaching in 2008, and is the school’s sole instructor. “This is just like acting but you’re the character and there’s no script.”
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Local Legends | The Monkey Thief
By TIM MILK
Photo illustration by Tim MilkToday The Local begins a recurring feature in which East Village historian Tim Milk takes a look at some neighborhood legends.
The spate of apartment break-ins that has gripped the East Village lately prompts me, by dint of experience, to say what I know by instinct is true: that we have been lulled into a collective stupor, and have become dizzy with the misconception that New York is safe.
Now, wait, let’s look at the term and what we expect of it. Safe is what we always want to feel, outside of our homes as well as in – calm and assured that we dwell in a world free of danger. But let me make one thing clear: I know my history, and I’ve been around the block. New York has always had crime. Our homes are always at risk.
Take the case, for example, of the Master Monkey Thief of the East Village.
When I first came here in 1979, urban myth had it that the police were hopelessly baffled by a series of burglaries. Back in those days, most people had these steel window gates that retracted accordion-style in a diamond-shaped pattern. The protection they offered, compared to modern gates, was minimal. The space between diamonds was perhaps eight inches, big enough to allow some nefarious stranger’s arm to reach inside. Horrors! They were also easily twisted apart by strong guys with crowbars. But as long as those old rattling gates held fast, the evil was kept outside.
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The Day | Bus Lanes And Bike Lanes
By THE LOCAL
Michelle RickGood morning, East Village.
There’s been a lot of activity in recent days around the subject of transportation and pedestrian safety in the neighborhood and we begin this morning by taking a closer look at some of the recent coverage. DNAinfo has an informative post about five surveillance cameras that have been installed along the M15 bus route on First and Second Avenues.
The cameras will be used to help enforce a ban against vehicles riding in the lanes (exceptions are made for right turns and picking up or dropping off passengers) and drivers are subject to a fine between $115 and $150. Bowery Boogie posted a photo of a group cyclists towing rolling billboards to publicize the violations.
The benefits and drawbacks of bike lanes, a source of much debate in the neighborhood, is the subject of a piece in The Times. And over at City Room, they want to hear from readers – few New Yorkers are as well-versed in this issue as we are here in the neighborhood so go ahead and weigh in.
Viewfinder | ‘Crusty Punks’
By STEVEN HIRSCHFor the past six months, Steven Hirsch has used a combination of photography, video, and monologue to document the tribe of tattooed denizens who hang out on Crusty Row in Tompkins Square Park.
“There has been an evolutionary change in Crusty subculture. It’s a much darker scene now than it was even two or three years ago. Many of the kids today are heroin addicted. From my interviews, I realize most come from the suburbs or rural areas, leaving behind broken homes or parental abuse. That’s not necessarily a recent trend, obviously, but the level of despair seems to be higher than ever.”—Steven Hirsch
Read more…
Getting An Earful Of ‘Zombie Jazz’
By INAE OH and HANNAH THONETIt might be difficult for someone to take a band that describes itself as “zombie jazz” all too seriously, but Father Figures, a group composed of five friends who describe their music as just that, is a musical force with a serious and earnest mission – aiming to resurrect a dying breed of jazz musicians with its strong improvisational sounds, eclectic inspirations, and a distinct blend of fun.
“The music is a culmination of all of our influences,” explains Adam Schatz, tenor saxophonist for the group. “We all listen to a ton of different artists and styles, metal to punk to free jazz to soul to tropicalia, and all of it influences the way we compose and play in subtle ways, so that the outcome sounds completely personal, but is still drawn from our own personalities and the music we love.”
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East Village, With All the Trimmings
By SARAH SHANFIELD
Timothy KrauseThey say there is a chemical in turkey that makes you sleepy.
Now, it’s safe to say no scientific institution or study has actually proven this information. The truthiness of this bit of knowledge goes unquestioned because on every Thanksgiving day the fact is loudly announced by the obligatory young and obnoxious cousin/child of a neighbor/stranger’s nephew to a room full of people who are wiping gravy sweat from their brows. Often, it’s the last thing many people hear before drifting off into a tortured, caloric slumber.
It is for this reason alone that Thanksgiving shouldn’t be celebrated at home. Since our fair collection of loud and populated street corners means this city never sleeps, we certainly can’t be sleeping on Nov. 25 ; we have things to do. Funkmaster Flex and Swizz Beatz will be at Webster Hall, and after that it’s straight to Union Square to stand in the line at Best Buy. If we sleep, someone will steal our spot.
However, some East Village residents who actually admit to having a family – and maybe, god forbid, a life before their days of wearing a leather jacket – do get nostalgic for sweet potatoes and gizzards. Luckily, a few restaurants are providing prix fixe menus for gobblers of gravy and gratin. And, thank your holy fowls, it’s all the same delicious East Village food at the same reasonable prices.
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On Broadway, A Geeked-Out Storefront
By JENN PELLY
Jenn Pelly The new Wired store at Broadway and East Fourth Street offers a range of gifts for the geek in your life. Below: QR code artwork traces ancestry via DNA strands, a Wampa rug and a USB typewriter.
Jenn Pelly‘Tis the season to geek out hard — at 692 Broadway, at least. Currently home to Wired magazine’s sixth annual pop-up store, the space will be granting holiday wishes of hardcore technophiles and plugged-in teens alike through Dec. 26.
The three-story location, formerly Tower Records until 2006, is an 8,000-square-foot techie mecca, coined by Wired as an “experiential gallery.” Entering feels like stepping out of a time machine into year 2050. As The Local took a spin through on Friday, shoppers — namely thirtysomething males dressed in black with sleek haircuts — tested a dynamic array of cutting-edge gadgets, from Smartphones and flat-screen televisions to a futuristic tennis table. The Wired lifestyle’s glossy pages came to life, its pulse kept by a looming, minimal techno beat.
With over 200 Wired-curated products on display, this year’s holiday outpost is the magazine’s biggest and “most centrally located” to date, according to senior editor Jason Tanz. “It’s a sign of how much faith we have in tech culture,” Mr. Tanz told The Local on Friday. “We view it as a central part of life in New York. Downtown is clearly the cultural hub of New York, and technology is becoming a larger and larger part of that.” Previously in SoHo and the Meatpacking District, the shop’s in-store events will include “GeekDad” family days, wine tastings, and musical events: DJ Nomi Ruiz and Gordon Voidwell on Dec. 1, Ra Ra Riot on Dec. 8, and Tokyo Police Club on Dec. 15. (RSVP required.)
Mr. Tanz likes the store’s Antique USB Typewriter ($499-699), and the “Star Wars” Lego chess set — “People who have no interest in ‘Stars Wars’ have to admit it’s pretty cool,” he said — but topping his wishlist is a set of sleek, wooded Davone Ray speakers ($5,995).
Read more…
The Day | 4th St. Development Details
By THE LOCAL
Michelle Rick Good morning, East Village.
On Friday, we wrote about how – despite the efforts of preservationists – permits were issued that would allow for the re-development of two townhouses at 326 and 328 East Fourth Street. EV Grieve has more details about what changes are expected to occur at the properties, including a look at the work plans.
In other neighborhood news, we’d like to offer congratulations and commiserations to Marc Canora, chef at Hearth restaurant on the corner of East 12th and First Avenue, who made it to the finals of “Next Iron Chef” before finishing as runner-up to Tribeca-based chef Marc Forgione.
There are two interesting historical looks at the intersection of Broadway and East 10th Street. Ephemeral New York has a then-and-now post featuring photographs of the intersection in 1911 and today. And EV Transitions examines the growth of Grace Church and the origin of the bread line that used to stretch from the old Fleischmann’s bakery nearby.
And The Villager has an update on Ray’s Candy Store, including details on how it fared with the Health Department’s revised sanitary inspection grades for restaurants.
