by Bill Millard BY NOW, EVERYONE from the Lower East Side to Lower Slobbovia has heard that CBGB’s is in trouble. The renowned birthplace of punk rock won a key court decision over disputed back rent but still lost its lease at the end of August; the leadership of the homeless organization that owns its… Read more »
If you’ve never visited New York City but its skylines and streetscapes still seem familiar, you’re not hallucinating. You’ve just been watching a lot of movies and tube. NYC is the site of constant film and TV production. Being invaded by a cinema crew throws some towns into an uproar, but lighting rigs and dressing-room… Read more »
New Yorkers know all about clutter. We ought to. Space is at a premium here (see The Real NY? Fuhgeddaboudit!, in this issue). After all, not everyone in this town is lucky enough to live in a sprawling pre-war apartment. And most people don’t own those duplexes you see in the movies. In fact, one-bedroom… Read more »
Maybe you’ve noticed. New Yorkers have a way of communicating that’s a little different from people in other places. We have words, expressions and pronunciations (some might even say mispronunciations) that are unusual, if not entirely unique. But even we don’t all speak alike, thank God. Our education, culture, background, creativity, social situation, status and… Read more »
Overdone and overlooked, NYC’s visual chaos. There’s a reason why so many New Yorkers don’t own a car. Cars spell trouble here because there are just so many parking spaces to go around. And every one of them is subject to regulations that impose stiff fines, and worse, as punishment for the unwary… Read more »
By Bill Millard AS AN OLD mathematicians’ joke goes, there are two kinds of people in the world: those who believe there are two kinds of people in the world, and those who don’t. Then there are all the subsets of that first group, like the ones who view everybody as either a Dog Person… Read more »
“Get out of New York in February, Jena,” I was told last year, “it’s essential for surviving the winter.” This year I took these words to heart and accepted an invitation from a girlfriend to go to the Big Island in Hawaii for a week’s getaway. As the plane began its descent at my destination,… Read more »
by Bill Millard Some people shop recreationally. Others, if they had to choose between an afternoon in a department store and a root-canal procedure without anesthesia, would probably have to flip a coin. But in New York City, commerce is everywhere, and despite the crowds (ever been in Macy’s a week before Christmas?), the transportation… Read more »
Get the picture? “There are 8 million stories in the naked city”. Will you capture any as your souvenirs from your visit to NY? Before arriving, do some planning and you’ll be good to go! “Planning” being the operative word when it comes to tripods. Sweet-talking cops just doesn’t work post 9-11, and I was… Read more »
Hot Spots in NYC Years ago if you asked about HOT SPOTS in NYC, people would rattle off names of the hippest clubs they could think of , perhaps mixing in a few classic Manhattan night spots. These days, the same question would require a rather more technical answer. Enter IT Consultant Michael Ben-Yishai founder… Read more »
