NYC Neighborhoods

Zisn Pesach!  In honor of Passover we are pleased to offer the following film on May 3, 2011 at 6:30 p.m. This FREE monthly series held at Seward Park Branch Library will offer documentary and feature films that were shot on location in lower Manhattan on both 16mm and DVD formats.

8th part in the series:

The Biggest Jewish City in the World
(1975, 58 min., 16mm)

"New York, New York, a helluva town. The Bronx is up but the Battery's down." —On the Town

With at least three "Hell" based place names within its boundaries—Hell Gate, Hell's Kitchen, and Hell's Hundred Acres—New York City is indeed a helluva town. But in spite of name and reputation, these places are now far from infernal.

"I hope you are not here because you like to read." It was the opening salvo for my interview with the admissions director at the University of Maryland's Graduate School of Library & Information Services. I don't remember what, or if, I countered. It was 1967.

This post offers information about affordable, subsidized and supportive housing programs in New York City.

The various federal, state and local rules and departments governing non-market housing in New York City can be a difficult maze to navigate: there are some support and advocacy organizations at the bottom of the page that may be able to help you chart your path through the NYC housing universe. Remember you can also visit the information desk at your local library branch for help looking for housing information or applications.

The Kingsbridge Library will soon be moving to a new building and as we start to plan for our move, I can't help but reflect on the long and rich history the Kingsbridge Branch has had through the years.

Showing films on the first Tuesday of every month.  This FREE series at Seward Park Library will offer documentary and feature films that were shot on location in lower Manhattan on both 16mm and DVD formats.

The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, which took place 100 years ago today, was a tragic incident in New York City's history but also a turning point in the early labor movement.

One hundred and forty-six workers died, mostly young women from immigrant families. The fire was deadly because of the height of the building, the amount of fabric and flammable material inside, the lack of proper fire escapes, and exits that were locked to prevent workers from taking breaks. Many fell or jumped to their deaths. The tragedy brought greater awareness to sweatshop conditions, which led to widespread changes in labor practices and the movement towards legal protection of workers' 

Centered on Washington Square Park, Greenwich Village is a neighborhood made legendary by the world famous artists, musicians, and writers that have flourished and created within steps of its arch.  However, what lies beneath that splendid, recently re-landscaped and renovated outdoor sanctuary is a bit more morbid.  

Dr. Jeffrey B. Perry will discuss his book, Hubert Harrison: The Voice of Harlem Radicalism, 1883-1918, Saturday March 5th 2pm @ Hamilton Fish Park Library.

Genealogy is back on prime time with the resumption of the show Who Do You Think You Are?, now beginning its second season on NBC-TV on Friday, February 4th.  Genealogy is my hobby too, so I'm always excited when I can combine it with my professional activities in the Music Division.

The dust has finally settled over New York City, there are no more time outs left to use, the clock has unfortunately hit zero, and the final score was 24-19. The season is over and with it the dream of a city is placed on hold for yet another season. The National Football League's New York Jets nearly pulled off what they as an organization have not been able to do since the 1969-1969 season with Broadway Joe Namath. They came close to beating three of the NFL's best quarterbacks and their teams, as they nearly made it to one of the biggest sporting events in the United States, the Super Bowl. This year's New York Jets caught the attention and imagination of not only the New York 

"I am a woman who came from the cotton fields of the South. From there I was promoted to the washtub. From there I was promoted to the cook kitchen. And from there I promoted myself into the business of Manufacturing hair goods and preparations. I have built my own factory on my own ground. Madam Walker National Negro Business League Convention, July 1912." Bundles, A'Lelia. Madam C.J. Walker, 2009.

Almost every school child has heard of Madam C. J. Walker. Many idolize her. She is the stuff of legend and an icon of the American "rags-to-riches" mythos. Madam Walker was of course an incredibly successful business person, beauty 

On January 24 at 6pm, the Jefferson Market Libray will hold its third presentation in the Indie Film Series.  Billy Sternberg will be on hand to show his documentary film work on one of the most notorious New York City mysteries, the disappearance in 1930 of Judge Joseph Crater.  Here's our interview with Mr. Sternberg:

Each week for many years, Christopher Gray has written the Streetscapes column for the Sunday edition of the New York Times, focusing on out-of-the-way stories of curiosity, beauty, endangered and rescued architectural examples in New York.  His writings prompt one to stop, look, and reflect on the details of craftsmanship that have been put into the city and elsewhere.

Did anyone else notice that the Bronx was hardly ever mentioned during our recent snowstorm?  We heard about streets not being plowed in Queens and Brooklyn, but I only heard the Bronx mentioned once. Sometimes it seems that we are the forgotten part of New York City. However, the humble Bronx has been the setting of many books, fiction and non-fiction alike, and it has been called home by such luminaries as Colin Powell, Chief Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Regis Philbin and author Mary Higgins Clark.  Pictured above are library patrons waiting on line at the Westchester Square Library bookmobile in the Bronx.  The picture is from NYPL's digital gallery 

On Sunday, December 5, the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building was the site of the 2010 Holiday Open House, the Library's annual thank-you celebration for donors at the Friends level ($40) or above. Besides enjoying building-wide party fun, attendees were offered a rare opportunity to glimpse a part of the Library that is normally hidden from public view: the building's central stacks that lie beneath the Rose Main Reading Room. As a "tour guide" on one of the 18 enormously popular stack tours, I thought it would be fun to share my "patter" with a wider audience.

For millennia, worship has been coupled with music. This bond often has been an uneasy one, and nowhere has that uneasiness been so openly displayed as in the churches of New York City. Beginning in the Colonial era, when a handful of musicians stubbornly tried to practice their craft in the face of indifference and puritanical sneers, New York's liturgical music slowly gained in artistry until it reached dizzying heights in the Gilded Age of the 19th century. By that time, many of the city's churches had become famous for services that featured moving and polished choral music. However, the making of that music had metamorphosed into its own strange branch of show business, complete 

New York in the 1970s, without cellphones, the internet, globalization, etc., was a very different place and arguably more vibrant (though I'm glad Central Park isn't like it used to be.)  Photographer extraordinaire Peter Moore tirelessly went about the City capturing just about everyone and everything, and became particularly known for his thorough photojournalism of the avant-garde scene, which included such influential groups as Fluxus and the Judson Dance Theater.  Tuesday will feature one facet of this multi-talented man's enormous body of work—The Avant Garde Festivals of Charlotte Moorman.

He is arguably the most recognized musician in New York City. The slight smile, patient and reassuring, that greets you every morning as you wait in line at the corner bodega for your coffee and bagel.

Regardless of socioeconomic class or race, from Bed-Stuy to The Bronx, from East Village to the Upper East Side, all New Yorkers know: Dan Smith will teach you guitar.