Thunder! Lightening! Oh my!

Lonely NYC

As big and populous as NYC is, it can be very lonely town -- especially in the first year of COVID, when we all had to stay at home all the time. 

What's it like to be lonely in NYC, particularly now? Here are some stories.

Staying at home all the time in a dynamic town like this is not easy -- but if you have $33 million, this place might not be a bad place to crash.

Corner of 48th Street & Fifth Avenue -- April 27, 2022, 1:45 PM

 

Review: "Cimino: The Deer Hunter, Heaven's Gate, and the Price of a Vision" by Charles Elton

Over the years I've blogged about one of the most mercurial movie directors of all time -- Michael Cimino -- who had one of the most spectacular rises and falls in all of Hollywood history.

Originally from New York, Cimino directed brilliant TV commercials in the 1960s (the Mad Men era) before going out to Hollywood in the 1970s. He achieved major success in the movies, directing the 1974 Clint Eastwood hit Thunderbolt and Lightfoot followed by The Deer Hunter in 1978 -- a big hit that won Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director for Cimino.

Then it all came crashing down. 

His 1980 movie Heaven's Gate was one of the biggest flops ever -- and it triggered the sale of its studio, United Artists, effectively ending the company's existence. Until 1996, Cimino only directed four more movies -- including the great NYC crime thriller The Year of the Dragon in 1985 -- and then nothing at all until his death in 2016.

Cimino's life and career has always fascinating me. How could someone so talented, who had such major success, let it all slip away? How could he make a movie as great as The Deer Hunter followed by one as disastrous as Heaven's Gate? And what happened to him in those last twenty years of his life?

These questions about this unique cinematic figure also fascinated British author Charles Elton whose new book about Cimino is the first real biography of the director. Elton attempts -- and does -- answer some of these questions while leaving others frustratingly (for him and us) open.

One problem with writing about Cimino is that he lied -- a lot -- about himself: he embroidered his birthdate, his education, his family life, even his supposed military service to people. It's not clear if all this dishonesty was pathological or some kind of game he enjoyed playing with the press and public. And in a business of exhibitionists he was mostly reclusive, not courting publicity or attention. The people around him also mostly practiced this omerta, with few speaking publicly about him.

When Cimino died in 2016, the tributes and retrospectives of his life and career were few and far between -- this Oscar winning director seemed mostly forgotten except for a few like yours truly. So this new biography is a much appreciated -- and much needed -- evaluation of the life and career of a singular, controversial and important cinematic icon. I strongly recommend it. 

The IRA in NYC: April, 1922

About a year ago, I blogged about the forgotten wars of NYC, literal battles that have been fought on the streets of this city but that few, if anyone, remember.

The most memorable wars that have come to the five boroughs were separated by roughly 200 years -- the American Revolutionary War and the September 11, 2001/War on Terror. But other wars, like a pre-Revolutionary slave war or the 19th century Chinatown Tong Wars, have been mostly lost to history -- they were ugly, shameful, utterly lacking in the nobility of fighting for freedom and democracy. These wars weren't against a foreign enemy or terrorist group -- they were citizens fighting other citizens over money and turf.

But 100 years ago this month, another battle came to NYC and it had nothing to do with Americans or New Yorkers at all -- it was the continuation of a fight that had originated in Ireland as part of the rebellion against British rule there. Calling what happened "a battle" is really inaccurate -- it was a hit, a failed hit as it turned out, but nonetheless was part of a larger war raging between the Irish Republican Army and the British Empire ("The Troubles") that lasted in various forms until 1998. 

You must read this fascinating story about what happened on a lovely Spring night on the Upper West Side when an Irishmen out for a smoke nearly got, well, smoked himself. Although this incident involved the IRA and its fight with the British, it was actually due to the victim in this case being an informer, an IRA member who gave secret info to their Imperial oppressors, and was hiding out in NYC -- until he got caught. 

It's a fascinating story, a story about how the wars of the Old World always come to the New World -- and how NYC seems to be right in the middle of them.

Central Park Zoo - April 20th, 2022, 1:03 PM

"Zack Hample vs. The World"

In the first few months of this blog, one of my first interviews was with Zack Hample, probably the most famous baseball fan in America. He has turned baseball fandom into an artform, a skill, a practical raison d'etre. 

You know when you watch a game and player hits a homerun? When the ball flies into the bleachers, there's a good chance that Zack will be on the other end, ready to catch it. He has caught literally thousands of balls at stadiums across the country over the decades, and he shows no signs of stopping -- now or ever.  

Zack has even written books about being a professional baseball fan -- and sometimes it comes with controversy. But he goes on, keeping the flame, the spirit and love for America's favorite pastime, burning bright,

And now Zack is the subject of a brand new documentary called Zack Hample vs. The World. It's the story of his unique, sui generis career, and how being a fan of baseball, or anything, takes on identity of its own.

If you want to see the documentary, go here to find your preferred streaming site. 

Classic Mr NYC

Remember that great ad for the Milford Plaza, the now defunct Times Square hotel?

I do -- and I did, in 2007. 

Read on.

City of Treasures

If you ever saw the movie Love, Actually, then you may remember the key line: "Love, actually, is all around us."

What's so great about living in NYC, and any city for that matter, is that we are surrounded by treasures -- on every block, on every street, everywhere. And yet these treasures aren't always obvious.

A sentimentalist might argue that a city's greatest treasure is its people -- and that's true. But we have a massive host of secondary treasures -- buildings, stores, theaters, parks, etc. etc. etc. -- you name it. We are replete with treasures.

Here are two examples from this city of treasures, from the specific to the vast:

First, the story of a New Yorker who deals in treasures -- antiques, specifically -- a big, varied, and sometimes celebrity clientele (including Andy Warhol). His treasures are not just the antiques and trickets he sold over the decades, but the experiences and memories he gained from his trade that he is now sharing with the younger generations. A treasure with treasures, you might say.

Second, the architecture of Queens. Yes, that's right -- the entire borough of Queens has a distinct and interesting architectural look that is different from the other four boroughs. In fact, there's a photographer who's dedicated himself to capturing this "unique housing stock." That's not to say that the architecture of Queens is beautiful -- it's not, really -- but it stands out on its own. It has an almost European feeling, much like the borough itself. Queens is the most diverse county in the entire country, a special and unique place -- and this architecture houses these people, these treasures of NYC. 

So, much like love, the treasures of NYC are all around us. 

Rough Day