How Many Shots Are There in a "Tootsie" Shot?

I didn't realize that it had a name but it does: that shot ... that shot when a person or a couple of people are walking the crowded streets of NYC, a long-lense camera focusing on them as we follow their journey -- both literal and existential -- is called "the Tootsie shot." 

That's because, in the 1982 classic Tootsie, we follow the crossdressing hero played by Dustin Hoffman as he/she walks the crowded Manhattan streets as they try to restart their acting career as a woman. 

I just listened to an entire podcast episode about this particular shot, and how variations of it appear in different ways in many NYC movies. But what this shot contains, what all the version of it contains, is the same visual meaning -- that of a person, alone in NYC, is starting a new journey that will change his or her life. 

And here's the thing: "the Tootsie shot" is much older than Tootsie itself. In the 1969 classic Midnight Cowboy -- more than a decade before Tootsie -- Hoffman himself walks on the streets in a crowd, bellowing his classic line, "I'm walkin' here! I'm walkin' here!" 

There are many examples of this famous shot from different NYC movies over the decade -- including two with John Travolta playing the Brooklyn dancer Tony Menero. 

Here are some great examples of "the Tootsie shot" in some classic NYC movies:

Midnight Cowboy (1969)

Shaft (1971)

Saturday Night Fever (1977)

Times Square (1980)

Tootsie (1982)

Staying Alive (1983)

The Secrets of My Success (1987)

Working Girl (1988)

Sea of Love (1989)

The Prince of Tides (1991)

Elf (2003)

NYC: Days of Future Past

Last night's NYC primaries made history -- two members of Congress were defeated as were several members of the state legislature, and the Democratic Socialists of America saw several of its candidates win (including the Brooklyn Borough President who was running for Congress losing).

Even though Tammny Hall is long gone, it's spirit remained in NYC politics for decades -- static, perenially status quo, incumbents getting reelected over and over and over again. Rarely, very rarely, did incumbents lose -- until the last few years. That's now accelerated, and incumbents are starting to drop like flies.

Only time will tell but it appears that NYC's political future will be much more dynamic.

And while NYC's political future is being forged, its past is being memoralized -- although somewhere far from NYC: a new presidential library for Theodore Roosevelt, only one of two presidents born in the city, is opening ... in North Dakota. It might seem like an odd place but TR spent a lot of time in the state during his youth and had many formative experiences. Also, city-boy that he was, TR founded the national parks, preserving so much of the nation's wilderness. So it's appropriate his library would be out there -- cementing his legacy in the place where he forged it.

When it comes to NYC politics, these days we're truly living in the past and future at the same time. 

In the Shadow of Greatness

I was pondering something lately and, as a ponder, it was an admittedly silly ponder but ponder about this silly matter I nonetheless did ponder. 

The ponder was about Anthony Bourdain, the late writer/broadcaster about food and travel who died by his own hand in 2018. He went from being a line chef to a celebrity due to his brilliant writings and TV shows that observed the world around us and what we eat. He became acclaimed and famous for making us look at and understand our world better -- and making it more delicious.

Oh, yes, and he was my neighbor -- something I've blogged about more than a few times before. 

Bourdain is still remembered and celebrated almost a decade after his death -- now with a movie about his life set to debut this this year -- which is something few us will ever get. 

He achieved, in a word, greatness -- and yours truly lived in the shadow of his greatness. 

This blog has always been my attempt to understand NYC better and to share my observations about it to the world. But I never will achieve the greatness that Bourdain did although I think I've also contributed something of value to the culture too.

And as once-neighbor, in a way, we share a certain past -- although he went on to greatness and I have spent my time laboring in the shadows.

In 'udder words, if Anthony Bourdain was ...

... Bob Dylan, I'm Llewyn Davis. If

... Mozart, I'm Salieri.

... Jesus, I'm Brian.

But greatness is not, should not, be the purpose of life. Greatness finds people -- like it did Anthony Bourdain. However, we should all try to contribute what we can, when we can, where and how we can. And I've done that! Maybe my contributions are in the shadows but they're not totally in the dark. 

The Papal Primaries of NYC

Tomorrow is Primary Day in New York, and the fate of many political careers for State and Federal elected officials will be decided.

The big ones are the Democratic Congressional Primaries between Congressman Dan Goldman and former NYC Comptroller Brad Lander, and multiple candidates (including Jack Schlossberg, the grandson of the late President Kennedy) who are running to replace retiring Congressman Jerry Nadler.

In heavily Democratic NYC these primaries are usually more important than general elections. And for decades incumbents almost always won -- there have been a few exceptions, including AOC's big 2018 victory, but VERY few -- which meant that winning a primary was almost like a Papal election (if you won a primary or survived a primary challenger, you could serve for decades). For example, I remember 20 years ago there was a nasty primary in Brooklyn to replace the retirning Congressman Major Owens; then-City Councilwoman Yvette Clark won and she's been in office ever since.

There 'ya go.

But in the last few years incumbents have been less-and-less bullet-proof in primaries: Queens/Bronx Congressman Joe Crowley lost to AOC in 2018, then Bronx Congressman Eliot Engel lost to Jamaal Bowman in 2020 and then Bowman lost in 2024 to now-Congressman George Latimer. Lots of state elected have also lost their seats in primaries in recent years. And it's expected than Goldman will proabably lose to Lander and that Congressman Espaillat might lose to a strong challanger. This article talks about the shifting sands of primary politics in NYC -- even if you get elected to Congress, your own party might throw you out in a few short years.

To quote former British Prime Minister John Major, "Politics is a rough old trade."

"La Dolce Musto" Forever

In the very first year of this blog, back in 2007, I had the honor of interviewing legendary Village Voice gossip columnist Michael Musto. He gave me a funny, quirky interview, and I was very grateful for his time. The name of his long-running column was "La Dolce Musto."

Now, if you'd like, you can go back and read about Michael's memory of his first 1984 "La Dolce Musto" column in the Village Voice. 

Michael is an Only in NYC type, the kind whose likes we might never see again. 

New York Knicks NBA Championship Parade & Ceremony @ City Hall

When I was a kid I remember the now-legendary 1986 Mets World Series victory. There was something special, timeless and singular, about it, more than just another run-of-the-mill World Series, and it's fondly remember 40 years later.

I think it's fair to say that the 2026 Knicks NBA Championship will also go down in the history of NYC as a special, timeless and singular moment. This wasn't just a big victory by the city's basketball team: this was a moment where the city's spirit decided to sing -- and sing loudly.

The New York Knicks -- 2026 NBA Champions!

This is the first time that the NY Knicks have won the NBA championship title since 1973 -- 53 freakin' years ago. 

A singular moment for the city, and a memory for all New Yorkers to cherish.

Here's how the game evolved and ended ...

... and here's how the city is celebrating the Knick's first championship in over half-a-century:

Knicks Pull Off Historic Game 4 NBA Finals Victory

Knicks didn't win Game 3 but a sleazy guy from Queens who noboby wanted there got loudly booed -- so it was kind of was a victory of a different kind.

Robin Byrd Bangs Again!

Damn, never though I'd see this: there's an upcoming HBO documentary about naughty NYC late-night cable TV host Robin Byrd who ran her stripper/adult star-filled show from the late 1970s to the late 1990s.

And it's called, haha, Bang My Box.

Robin was an "Only in New York" type, a former adult star who appeared in Debbie Does Dallas and who, along with Al Goldstein, brought "the sexy" and scandalous to NYC week-after-week in those pre-Internet/social media days. I remember watching Robin regularly during my high school years (and then in repeats for years afterwards) and she was truly a, uh, needed night cap.

I've blogged about Robin over the years, including back in 2009! And I interviewed former Robin Byrd guest, former adult star Hyapatia Lee, back in 2019. And now ... mainstream culture has caught up with Mr NYC, giving us this documentary about this NYC icon (believe it or not, it's produced by Sarah Jessica Parker), and proving, yet again, that Mr NYC is Ahead of His Time.

I'm looking forward to seeing this doc and also feel, quite smugly, that I recognized Robin's cultural significance much earlier than anyone else! 

Postscript: Robin's show ended in April, 1999, just weeks before I graduated from college and two years before 9/11. It felt like, feels like, the end of old NYC and my childhood. Le sigh. 

Scott Pelley on the Fate of "60 Minutes"