Dolly Parton has died and I don't want to believe it but so it goes. Anyway, NYC is remembering the music legend by giving her the ultimate tribute -- illuminating the Empire State Building in her trademark pink.
And if you want to understand the true greatness of Dolly, a perfect example of her musical and performance genius, listen to her beautiful song "Butterfly" and watch her SNL monologue from 1989 -- part of it, uh ... doesn't really hold up but it shows you what a good sport Dolly was. 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!
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.
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.
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.
Rocky was an old-school DJ who worked all over the country, eventually coming to the late 95.5 WPLJ FM in NYC in the early 1990s. Rocky had two stints at WPLJ in the 1990s and 2000s, and also did time on 77 WABC AM radio. He was a good natured, sweet man with a great voice.
And I worked for him!
Well, not really -- in the summer of 1994 I was an intern at WPLJ (as I've blogged about before) and logged his show a few times. He was always very nice to me the few times we spoke and it was a good hang at his show.
In fact, when I was logging his show, I met Pat Morita from the Karate Kid movie series. He was visiting the show one day to promote The Next Karate Kid and he shook my hand by saying "Hi, I used to be a movie star." Rocky and Pat talked about how Pat's new co-star, a young lady named Hillary Swank, was really talented -- and a few years later she'd win two Academy Awards.
Another memory of working with Rocky Allen: the dude was funny, much funnier off the air than on. During commercial breaks and when songs were playing, he and the staff would tell wild, hilarious jokes and stories. I remember ...
... one of his producers telling us about going down to visit his girlfriend in Florida and found her banging another guy.
... Rocky's sidekick, Blaine Ensley, looking at a newspaper and, referencing the then-Paula Jones lawsuit against then-President Clinton, asking me, "Do you think Bill showed that chick his weenie?" I had no answer for that nor did I think he really wanted one, although it was obviously a foreshadowing of things to come.
... and from Rocky himself. He once hosted a short salon with me and the guys in the studio about whether or not not "fat chicks" gave "better blow jobs." Rocky did not believe that weight was necessarily proportional to skill (and Rocky himself was very fat so he could and should have advocated for this "position") but the other guys were convinced -- overweight ladies were more talented at this particular activity. So these days, whenever I see fat ladies, I think of Rocky and the gang and smile.
In the early 1990s, radio shock jock Howard Stern was becoming a cultural force. Based in NYC, he had been syndicated around the country and was becoming a national media figure -- dubbing himself "The King of All Media."
Even though he was the star of radio, he wanted to be on television. He had done his local NYC show on Channel 9 for two years (1990-1992) but he wanted to go national. So in 1992 Howard did an interview show on E! Entertainment cable television.
It was a weird show -- it was just Howard sitting on a couch in a room with warm lighting interviewing someoone. His radio crew (Gary, Robin, Fred, etc.) wasn't there, he wasn't taking phone calls or doing bits -- it was just a stripped down, one-to-one talk show, Howard Stern without "The Howard Stern Show."
And it was awkward to watch. Brilliant on the radio, Howard's broadcasting genius stumbled a bit on TV. He was clearly more comfortable behind a microphone and not in front of a camera. His outrageous morning radio NYC shtick didn't quite translate into this nation-wide televised mileau. It was soon cancelled and, in 1994, E! started to broadcast parts of his radio show -- and it was a big hit that lasted until 2005.
"The Howard Stern Interview" is largely forgotten in the long, incredible career of NYC's biggest radio talk show host ever. But this particular episode, where he's interviewing great NYC singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega, is a great example of what this show so odd and interesting. Enjoy!
In the summer of 1996 I spent six weeks as a student at the London School of Economics. It was a nice experience, got some college credits, and enjoyed living in a foreign city (albeit one where people spoke English) on my own for the first and last time in my life (so far).
My life in London during those weeks was relatively quiet -- I lived in a small room of a student residence and was either studying, writing papers, walking the streets, going to museums (falling in love with the paintings of Camille Pisaro), or reading books about Woody Allen and listening to the Velvet Underground. Also, I remember that this was the time and place where I learned that you could put oil and vinegar on turkey sandwiches (something I love to this day), that I could buy achohol legally at the age of 19, that the British smoke like crazy (every restaurant and bar and public space I went to was basically one big cloud), and that I might have been able to hook up with a really gorgeous Chilean lady but was too shy to do so.
Anyway, what I was not aware of, apparently, is that culturally 1996 was a big year in the UK -- as evidenced below by this interview with a journalist who calls 1996 the wildest year in the wildest decade. My experience in the UK in 1996 was far from wild but I wuz 'dere! at that time and it's weird to hear this guy give an in-depth historical perspective about a time and place that I remember well but wasn't involved in -- so close and yet so far.
What I do remember quite clearly as that 1996 was a notable year for British filme: Mike Leigh's Secrets & Lies won the Palme D'Or at the Cannes Film Festival that year and Trainspotting also came out giving the world Ewan McGregor and introducing the world to the Scottish heroin subculture.
And that's not the only sense of deja vu I had this week. I was just listening to an interview with the actor Jon Cryer -- Ducky from Pretty in Pink, the not-Charlie Sheen character from Two and a Half Men, Superman's nephew in Superman IV and lots of other stuff. Anyway, in this interview he briefly mentioned that, when he was really young, he was an usher at Equity Library Theater on 103rd Street and Riverside Drive when he was a kid. That was hilarious because ... drumroll ... I also worked at ELT as a kid! I wasn't an usher, I worked concessions, but it's so crazy that we both worked at low-level jobs at ELTs in the 1980s. I only did it for a few months in 1989, years after Jon, but still ... I wuz 'dere! Again, so close and yet so far.
Over the years I've blogged a lot about how 1970's and '80s NYC was Funky Town.
And Funky Town was a big, wild place!
Here are some more examples of that time, that seems so far away and yet is right around (literally) the corner:
Back in those days trade school commercials were all over NYC television, like these for the Albert Merrill School and Apex Tech (that lovely set of tools is yours to keep after you graduate).
Then there's movies. A lot of great movies were shot on the streets of NYC back then -- The Godfather, Taxi Driver, Annie Hall, and Saturday Night Fever, just to name a few. As you might imagine, shooting them on location could be a challenge. Recently I read about the making of the 1974 original movie The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3. You gotta love it -- it's an action movie that stars Walter Matthau and Jerry Stiller! It's a great NYC movie that mostly takes place on the subway movie but it was a tough movie to shoot in the fall of 1973 -- as this article points out.
Talking about NYC movies of the 1970s, recently I was on the East Side and walked by The Copinette restaurant that has a plaque outside, commenterating its appearance in the 1971 Oscar Best Picture winner The French Connection.
And of course, there's The Sexy.
Before AIDS closed them down, sex clubs were prominent around town. Here's previous Mr NYC interviewee and former adult film star Hyapatia Lee talking about her visits to Plato's Retreat and The Hellfire Club and the wild, sexy times she had in this town.
And talking about sexy clubs, one night in 1975 a young songwriter named Van McCoy went to the Apple's Apple nightclub and saw people dancing in an interesting way. He therefore decided to write a song called "The Hustle" and it became one of the most famous, beloved, and iconic disco songs of all time:
So there's just some more examples of Funky Town, a place long-gone but that will forever live in Mr NYC's heart.
In the wild heyday of the NYC adult film scene of the 1970s and '80s, no star shone brighter than that of Vanessa Del Rio's.
She was the Judy Garland, the Barbra Streisand, the Meryl Streep of that time and place -- quite simply, the best. She was famous and iconic in her time and remains so almost 40 years since she quit the business.
Born and raised in Harlem, Vanessa was the quintessential New Yorker -- and a striking contrast to most of the adult performers of her time and after. She was Latina, curvy, tough talking, odd-looking -- and a stunning, gorgeous ball of fire. From 1974 to 1986 she made roughly 80 movies, many of her as the star. And her various co-stars -- both male and female, and including some of the biggest names of the time -- were both the most fortunate of pepole as well as her helpless prey, so insatiable were her performances. She was amazing!
In the decades since she left the business, Vanessa has popped up here and there. She appeared on NYPD Blue and also had an entire Taschen book made about her. She's on social media and appreciates her fans. Now in her 70s, she lives quietly (I believe on Staten Island) and lives a fairly quiet life. But her legacy will never be quiet -- it will rage on forever.
Currently I'm really into looking at ads and newstories from 19070s NYC. I promise I won't post too many of these but I couldn't resist sharing some ads/news stories from back in the city's sleazy heyday. What a different time, what a different NYC it was! Some much more fun but also, let's face it, kinda gross. Enjoy! Or don't ...
Ronnie Elgridge has died at the age of 95. She was a staple of Manhattan politics for decades as an activist, adviser, government staffer, broadcaster, and NYC Councilwoman for a dozen years. She was smart, tireless, and deeply beloved. Her career spanned decades and she never stopped caring about, or working for, her city.
Oh, and Ronnie was married to the brilliant columnist Jimmy Breslin for 25 years, a New York City legend in his own right. They were easily my favorite, and NYC's cutest and most admirabe, power couple.
The thing about NYC is that it's a city with a fascinating past but that is always, relentlessly, looking into the future. And Mr NYC tries to be as future-oriented as possible, following the trajectory of the greatest city on earth.
But ... the past never fully vanishes. As F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote, we are always going against the current, "borne back ceaselessly into the past."
To put it another way, people will always be fascinated by NYC back in the day.
So here are some various examples.
Nostalgia for NYC back in the day is so huge that there's literally an entire Youtube Channel called ... NYC Nostalgia. It has numerous videos chronicling life in NYC in the last couple of decades and centuries, including about things you might not necessarily realize existed. For example, did you know there were motorcycle gangs all over NYC? Yes, there were, as this video shows:
Then there's the money. Yes, NYC was built by great wealth and generated great wealth. Heck, there's an entire show about it called The Guilded Age about the late-19th century when NYC's wealth changed the entire nation.
Sometimes this wealth produced great things and sometimes ... not so much.
This was true even before the Gilded Age, before families like the Vanderbilts and Rockefellers -- families that name many of our streets like the Astors, the Jeromes, the Schermerhorns, the Delanceys, and many others. Here's a great video about some of these families that used to rule NYC back in the day, the original city elite:
And then there's the darkness. Look at this photo taken in October 2001 at Ground Zero, a month after 9/11:
Ouch. You got then-Commissioner Bernard Kerik who ended up going to jail for corruption (and is now deceased). It includes then-Mayor Rudy Giuilani who later committed treason but trying to overturn the 2020 presidential election and wound up broke, indicted and disgraced. And then there's the now former Prince Andrew, who's been arrested for corruption and settled a mult-million dollar sexual abuse lawsuit. The photo above was taken only six or seven months after this infamous photo:
The then-prince was in NYC at that time to pay his respects to the families whose loved-ones has perished, to visit and thank the first responders for their work, and extend sympathy to a traumatized city.
It appears that, during this visit to NYC, in the aftermath of this horrific event, Prince Andrew came to town not only to provide comfort but also to do some partying with Russian broads. Watch this video about Andrew's 9/11 jaunt, it'll both fascinate and disgust you:
And to think that these dark people were the ones taking care of NYC at this dark time only makes the darkness even darker -- darkness on top of darkness. And today when we see images of the now former prince, this is what we see:
But let's end this look at NYC back in the day on a happier, funnier note.
In the early 1980s, as Saturday Night Live was transitioning out of its '70s heyday, the show went into a critical and ratings downturn -- and flirted with cancellation. But it was saved by a 19-year old kid who was still living with his parents in Brooklyn named Eddie Murphy. His comic brilliance was so blazing, so wild and fascinating, that he saved the show that has lasted for half-a-century. When SNL started back in the day it was a curiousity -- a quirky, funky 1970s late-night sketch show from NYC. But Eddie Murphy turned it into an institution that defines the city and its impact on American culture to this day.
By the way, you can watch one of Eddie Murphy's funniest "Mister Robinson's Neighborhood" sketches below and the entire archive for your enjoyment here.
