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Brooks Brothers in the Tropics
by Thomas Beller 05/31/2006Neighborhood: Midtown
One of the first things a new visitor to Phnom Penh, Cambodia, is likely to notice is how well dressed most of the men are. Monsoon rains may turn the streets into shallow lakes, the electricity may be erratic, but the men are fairly consistent in their outfit–a pair of slacks and a neat button [...]
The Quintessential
by Dino Gerard D'Agata 05/31/2006Neighborhood: Midtown
The strange twinge that often comes when I leave work and head west on 56th Street is, oddly, much like the same thing that hit the center of my gut when, at 13, I rode a bike to a movie theater in South Jersey and, with my school buddies, went to see my first R-rated [...]
The Lost Collar
by Michelle Zaffino 03/16/2006Neighborhood: Midtown
The world of magazine publishing in New York is extremely competitive. No matter how talented one is an editor or a writer, one must have contacts in the industry to obtain that first, entry-level job. Mrs. Carpati, my landlady, happened to work at Cosmopolitan in ad sales, and she was glad to introduce me to [...]
The Midtown Report: Metrosexual Occupational Forces Have Taken Over Downtown
by J. Paul Ghetto 03/10/2006Neighborhood: Letter From Abroad
At the beginning of February, the city was overrun by rabid sports fans. I went downtown about 9 days before the big foosball game. Streets were barricaded and blocked off. Downtown Detroit had a different type of buzz. Metro Detroiters were excited because so many people would be in town. Here in the Midwest, we [...]
Shrugging off the Strike at Columbia
by Patrick W. Gallagher 02/22/2006Neighborhood: Morningside Heights
Alma Mater, the massive, laurel wreath-sporting statue-woman who sits at the heart of the Columbia campus in Morningside Heights, strikes an ambiguous pose: her forearms raised, her palms open to the sky, her face blank. This gesture can be interpreted in all kinds of ways, but, on days like Tuesday, it was a shrug. Many [...]
Mop Her Up: Homeless at the Vertical Club
by Mickey Z. 09/29/2005Neighborhood: Midtown
For six years I worked as a trainer and gym floor manager at the Vertical Club. What Studio 54 was to 1970s New York, the Vertical Club (VC) was to 1980s New York. A warehouse-sized health club, complete with neon lights and blaring dance music, it was where the Big Apple’s social elite came to [...]
Should Have Worn Boots
by Alicia Sanzica 08/07/2005Neighborhood: Uncategorized
I pull on my brand new Calvin Klein white cashmere coat, wrap a cozy hand-knitted scarf around my neck, and then pull the matching mittens over my hands. I glance outside into the snowy night and curse because my hair will frizz in the snow. I scurry out the door of my apartment building and [...]
Exercise Astronauts!
by Naomi Semeniuk 05/10/2005Neighborhood: Upper East Side
On a cold icy Thursday in a duplex on the Upper East Side with high windows: well cared-for plants and a spiral staircase lead to a mirrored room. There stands an erect youthful female figure, reminiscent of Audrey Hepburn, with a dancer’s sillhouette. Her name is Anita Koffler. She awaits her devoted exercise participants and [...]
Fashion Week Frustration
by Matthew Roberts 02/25/2005Neighborhood: Manhattan
This essay appears in the just released book, "Lost and Found: Stories From New York." 1. Rage Reacclimation: Waiting in line for a press credential At the southwest corner of "The Big Tent" in Bryant Park, a snaking, huddled mass of photographers gathers in the cold, waiting for access to the warm, partitioned press cell [...]
The Joseph LaRose Shoe Collection
by Betsy Berne 06/29/2004Neighborhood: West Village
If you are a female who loves shoes (or a male,come to think of it, more specifically of the queenly persuasion), you have not really lived until you’ve seen the Joseph LaRose shoe collection. The collection is showcased at Cherry, a vintage store in the West Village, known for its Fashion Meets Twilight Zone window [...]
Straight Talk on Hair Village
by Rachel Sherman 06/21/2004Neighborhood: Outer Boroughs, Queens
Check out Rachel Sherman’s new book! ** No one who does Japanese hair straightening at Hair Village is Japanese. You can’t have highlights if you want your hair straightened. You can’t touch your hair – even put it behind your ears – for three days afterwards. You can’t wash your hair for three days either. [...]
The Hummer Files
by a variety of people 11/14/2003Neighborhood: All Over
We don’t like them, and they don’t like us. What follows are brief reports on encounters between civilians and Hummers (and their owners) in an urban environment. ANY urban environment. If you want to add your own, please go to the “Tell Mr. Beller A Story” button and send one in. (The most recent additions [...]
