Ch-ch-ch-changes: New York in 1961 and 2009

Traffic is going both ways on 5th in the first pic. What's a "public shelter"? Fallout shelter?

Paul Sahner has way too much time on his hands.

Anyway, thanks.

BTW, there is a cell phone in that '61 photo on Fifth Ave.

Very creepy.

I am amazed at how filthy the facades of Rockefeller Center were in 1961.

Biggest difference I noticed, aside from styles, is that the streets in 1961 look less cluttered. Fewer traffic signs, advertisements, kiosks, etc. Plus, the streets generally don't seem to have bright lane markers, and the traffic lights are not hanging over the intersections, so they blend in more.

I have no opinion as to which way is better or worse, I just think it's worth noting.

i was just at 5th Avenue and 50th Street today and i think those construction barricades are still there.

ba-dump, bump.

People in their 20s used to look middle-aged.

And people back then did not hold objects up to their faces while smiling in blissful vapidity and ignoring their surroundings. Weird!

Yeah they did. They were called cigarettes.

Hark back to the sidewalks of a different New York; a New York where middle-aged people outnumbered people in their 20's...

yeah that's what is most noticeable to me

its been a change for the worse imo

Considering 1961 was the Space Age, I feel like the fur-clad people back then would be completely disappointed with how similar everything looks almost half a century later.

Obviously there have significant technological and social changes since then, but based on photos alone it looks like the only differences are fewer hats and different garbage cans.

First they'll desperately fumble for a Camel cigarette when they hear we have a Negro president. Then when they've chillaxed they'll be disappointed at the lack of flying cars and Moon bases.

Pic #7 is the saddest of them all. No more "bishop's crook" lampost, no pre-war building on the corner, and no more 71st Regiment Armory.

The funny thing is: In my nondescript section of Brooklyn they're replacing some of the "War of The Worlds" lampposts with "bishop's crook"s. (It also got carpet-bombed with bike racks, but that's another story.)

No doubt about it. The 60's were a lot more photogenic.

Ha ha ha! People used to wear clothing!

Men wore hats and ladies wore gloves. Why?...♪Traditioooon, tradition♪

Here's one I did of the now condemned Windermere apartment building on the corner of 9th Avenue at 57th Street: http://www.flickr.com/photos/edstern/49477881

I love projects like this.

Q

I see whities that need to be skinned of their fur.

If only there was a technology that allowed you to switch photos without reloading the page.....