City of Islands

NYC Cigarette Commercials

Growing up in the 1980's and '90s I saw a lot of cigarette ads in magazines, on top of taxicabs, and various other places all over NYC. The most memorable one of which was this:

As old as I am, however, I grew up too late to see cigarette commercials on TV. But there used to be some interesting ones, includes some set in NYC. And even though cigarette commercials have been banned in the USA for over 50 years, that hasn't stopped foreign countries from using NYC for their TV cigarette commercials. 

Fascinating stuff.

But NYC was actually one of the leaders in anti-smoking commercials and, don't forget, this was the first big city in the world to ban public smoking. Now that's ... Kool.

Jean-Pierre Dorleac RIP

In the depths of COVID back in 2020 I had the luck of finding the Emmy-winning, Oscar-nominated costume designer Jean-Pierre Dorleac on social media. He was an funny, outrageous "shit poster", telling stories of his Hollywood past and his raw, unfiltered opinions of the various people he knew and worked with.

Most of all, Dorleac was the costume designer on the early-1990s show Quantum Leap which was, and remains, one of my favorite shows ever.

When I contacted Dorleac in those dark days to see if he would do an interview for Mr NYC, I was happily shocked when he agreed. And he gave a lively one for this little blog and for that I'm eternally grateful. Most of all, I was interested in how he costumed the Quantum Leap characters in different decades, especially bringing NYC to life in the 1950s, 60's and '70s.

Sadly Dorleac has passed away at the age of 83. He certainly had an interesting life and he made a great contribution to the culture. Heck, just the costumes he designed for Dean Stockwell on Quantum Leap were enough to burn him into legend! 

RIP.

NYC Crime Spot

I recently came across this YouTube channel called NYC Crime Spot that tells (or retells) the stories of the city's most infamous crimes and criminals. 

For example you can learn about the real Stacks from Goodfellas or about the Mafia Cops. Fascinating, old-school stuff.

Even though NYC is safer than ever with crime at record lows, it's always fascinating to learn more about the sometimes sordid underbelly of the worls' greatest city.

"Saturday Night Fever": Watch Da' Hair!

 

Mets, Movies, Cookies, the Japanese & Fireworks!

Last night I went to the Mets-Dodgers game and, yeah, the Mets lost. 

Still, it was one of the more interesting games I've gone to because there was a lot of "extra."

First, it was "Japansese Heritage Night" so there were lots of Japanese people there. And there were also a ton of Dodgers fans. I've never been to a New York home baseball game with that many fans from the other city's team. I didn't realize there were that many Angelinos in NYC but apparently there are. It was weird.

Second, they were shooting a movie at this game. This announcement greeted us as we made our way into Citi Field:

This movie, The Catch, stars Emma Stone and Chris Pine and is slated for release next year. I don't know if the double Oscar-winning and pretty boy were at the game but apparently they shot some of it at the stadium earlier that day. 

And we saw some movie camera guys shooting during the game:

Also, upon our arriving we were given this wristbands. Stay tuned to find out why!

Then we sat down to watch the game. It sucked. But I did manage to get a cookie bucket and record one of two Mets' homeruns.

And once the game was over, we were treated to a East Coast-West Coast Hip Hop fireworks show -- presumably in honor of the East Coast-West Coast baseball game we'd just witnessed. 

And the lights in our wristbands began to glow and yours truly got to be part of a massive rap fireworks lightshow. I managed to keep it real, get jiggy with it, and illuminate the NYC night sky. Yeah boyeeeeeee!

So I got to be part of Japanese heritage, appear in a movie, eat out of a bucket, and partake in a bad-ass fireworks show. Aww yeahhhhhh!

Mr NYC by Copilot AI

Mr NYC is a long-running personal Blogspot blog that describes itself as: “Blogging the soul of the world's greatest city. Part of the NYC underground.” 

Main Topics

Based on recent and historical posts, the blog focuses on:

• New York City culture and history 
• Local politics and current events 
• Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and other neighborhood stories
• Transportation, architecture, and landmarks
• Personal travel observations 
• Photos and videos from around NYC and beyond 

Notable Characteristics

• The blog appears to have been active for many years, with posts dating back well over a decade. 
• It presents itself as an independent voice covering both popular and lesser-known aspects of New York City life. [
• Recent posts include topics such as: Central Park horse carriages Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace National Historic Site Yankee Stadium history Little Neck Bay photography Travel writing about Kennebunkport, Maine.

Social Presence

The author also appears to maintain related social media accounts, including:

• A Bluesky account associated with the blog name and content. 
• A Facebook page describing the project as “Capturing the spirit and psyche of the world's greatest city.”

Overall Impression

The blog is best described as a local-interest NYC culture blog that mixes: 

• urban history,
• commentary,
• neighborhood observations,
• photography, and
• personal essays,

with a strong affection for New York City and its unique character.

Sgt. Angel Rampersad from Ozone Park RIP

Who Runs NYC?

These people, for now. City and State has published this exhaustive list of the people working in the Mamdani administration.

It's an impressive group of experienced public servants -- and it's a good reminder that the most important thing mayors and all good leaders do is to hire people to run an organization. All the greats also have great deputies -- Augustus had Agrippa, Henry VIII had Cromwell and Wolsey, Catherine the Great had Potemkin, Martin Scorsese has Thelma Schoonmaker, and Mayor Z has Dean Fuleihan. 

Just a reminder that A's hire A's, B's hire C's, C's hire D's, and so on (look at the Trump administration, an F president hiring F- people). Mayor Z is an A!

NYC's Weirdest Subway Station

World Cup Final Game @ MetLife Stadium

Visit a Manhattan Arcade in 1990

Remembering Billy the Kid: Killer. Old West Legend. New Yorker!

A kid named Henry, born on the Lower East Side of Manhattan in 1859, moved with his family to the West when he was three years old. He grew up to be the most famous killer and criminal of the Old West -- before he was gunned down by the Sheriff Pat Garrett in New Mexico in 1881.

Billy lived to be only 21 years old and yet his legend continues to this day. Movies, songs, books, etc. have practically cannonized this punk kid from NYC who wrote a short, dark chapter in the story of American Manifest Destiny.

Billy was born at 70 Allen Street, in what was then a super-crowded Irish immigrant community. As the Civil War raged, his family got out of town -- way out of town -- migrating to as far West as they could go, beyond what was then the United States and into "the Territory."

His time in NYC was obviously so short, and he was so young, that Billy probably had no memory of NYC. But obviously he inherited the city's grit and toughness -- and it made him a feared and legendary character in the Old West and to this day.

NYPD Job Standards Test

Remembering Jennie Jerome, Winston Churchill's Brooklyn Mama

Sir Winston Churchill is one of the most revered people who ever lived. The 20th century British statesman and Prime Minister was one of the Allied leaders who, in the Darkest Hour, defeated Nazi Germany in World War II and thereby saved Western Civilization.

And even though he was the quintessential Englishman, Winston Churchill was half-American -- specifically, he was half-Brooklyn.

Sir Winston's mother was from Cobble Hill, Brooklyn. Lady Jennie Jerome Churchill was born there in the then-City of Brooklyn in 1854 and, at the age of 20, married Lord Randolf Churchill (giving birth to Winston, her oldest son, in 1875).

Long-story short: one of history's greatest statesman was brought into the world via 21 year-old Brooklyn gal who was one of the first "dollar brides" -- i.e. a rich American given in marriage to the historical but broke British nobility. 

Although her famous son would overwhelm her memory, Jennie Jerome had a fascinating -- and scandalous -- life all of her. Many lovers (including a future King Edward VII), a younger second husband (only 16 days older than Winson!), major philanthropic initiatives, and she played a major role in Winston's early political career -- although her death in 1921 precluded her seeing her son's ultimate triumph.

You should read and watch (below) about her amazing life.

Even though Jennie Jerome lived almost her entire adult life in England, she hasn't been forgotten in her hometown. Up in the Bronx there's a playground named in her honor. And doubtless, without the NYC grit she gave her eldest son, the history of the world would be very different.

Dave Kendall RIP

Back in the 1980s and '90s, when MTV was actually a music channel, they had programs that showcased different kinds of music like Yo MTV Raps, the metal show Headbangers ball, and 120 Minutes that focused on "alternative" music and grunge.

120 Minutes was created by a guy named Dave Kendall who was actually a music journalist. The show as on late Sunday nights for, you guessed it, two hours, and Kendall hosted it for a few years. 

And on the night of September 29, 1991 -- just as I was starting my freshman year of high school -- Kendall hosted the premiere of a music video called "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by the band Nirvana. At that moment it might have seemed like a it was just another video and song by just another band but this moment would change music and cultural history forever. 

Dave Kendall has passed at the age of 68. RIP.

Wild Weather in NYC

So yesterday in NYC we recorded record high heat -- 100F degrees! -- plus a massive thunderstorm plus a massive dirty smoky orange haze that set over the city due to wildfires up in Canada. 

This city has experienced all kinds of wild weather -- massive blizzards, hurricaines, floods, even hazes before -- but to have this weird combination is rare. 

Helicopters over Little Neck Bay -- July 8th, 2026, 6:52 PM

Mr NYC in Kennebunkport, Maine

Recently I spent a night in Kennebunkport, Maine. It was my first time in the Pine Tree State and -- wow! -- it's beautiful.

Maine is much in the news these days for political reasons but most of the time it's a quiet, sleepy place up north.

In my mind it's The Place Beyond Boston, even more remote than Vermont and New Hampshire, basically a piece of Canada captured within the Lower 48. In Maine, the pace of life is slower, time is more important than money, and culturally it's actually more French-Canadian than American.

Several years ago the humorous write Drew Magary wrote a piece for GQ called "Maine: Do We Need It?" that dissects the vagaries of this odd place.

Unlike northern Maine -- where both its residents and geography have more common with the Wildings in the land beyond the Wall in Game of Thrones -- southern Maine is gorgeous tourist trap. Kennebunkport is its crown jewel, a beautiful seaside town with charming shops, great restaurants, and nice bed and breakfasts.

When we got there, we visited one of the beautiful private beaches (thanks to some family friends). Then we stayed at the Kings Point Inn which I highly recommend, is reasonably priced, gives you breakfast, and has a jacuzzi bathtub. The friendly guy at the front desk talked about how much he loves his town and state, and gave us a nice map -- even showing us directions to Walkers Point, summer home of the Bush family (don't worry, we didn't go). For dinner, we ate a place called Hurricaine -- while the service was slow and it was crowded, the food was amazing. After dinner we walked around the charming streets, getting ice cream, and enjoying the relaxed vibe of the place. I took lots of pictures which, you'll see here, and drank in its beauty.

A couple of interesting things: 1) Apparently the Bush family was in-residence on Walkers Point and good ol' George W. was there celebrating his 80th birthday. 2) Did you know that Maine used to be part of Massachusetts? It became independent in 1820 as part of the Missouri Compromise -- Maine joined as a free state, Missouri as a slave state. 3) There's actually two townd, Kennebunkport and Kennebunk that are divided/joined by a bridge and make us this area. 4) If you go to Maine, you better like seafood.  

The End of Central Park Horse Carriages?

There's a currently a bill circulating in the City Council to ban horse carriages in Central Park. While they are a nostalgic and beautiful part of the history and identity of the park and city, they really are outdated and dangerous. People and horses have died and, even when they don't, these poor horses are scared of the noise and traffic of the city as well as being baked or frozen in the summer and winter months.

This editorial gives a good oversight of this bill, and how it would buy-out the  horse-carriage industry so that the people working in it aren't left destitute. 

But I agree, it needs to end. Heck, I can remember seeing groups organizing against horse-carriages back when I was a kid so this isn't a new issue. And yet, as nostalgic as I am for the old days of NYC, this is a lot like public smoking -- something that some people might enjoy but that really has no place in a decent society. 

Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace National Historic Site

Recently I visited the birthplace of the only American president born in Manhattan -- the Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace on East 20th Street. It's actually part of the US National Parks so it was odd and fascinating to see people dressed as park rangers in the middle of the city.

Since it's a Federal site, admission is free. However, in order to see the whole house, you need to join one of the hourly tours. The house itself is a beautifully preserved example of a Knickerbocker 19th-century Manhattan architecture and interior decorating, with the museum to TR on the first floor. 

It's a popular destination. I went at the end of the day in scorching hot weather in the middle of the week and there were lots of people on the tour. It's certainly worth seeing this historic place, and remembering that once upon NYC produced a president worth being proud of.