Yesterday, the odd news about the NYPD's arrest of three men involved with an egg-shaped submarine near the Queen Mary 2, off the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, revealed that a Brooklyn artist was behind the whole benign operation. Police Commissioner called artist Duke Riley's stunt "marine mischief," adding that the "creative craft of three adventuresome individuals" did "not pose any terrorist threat."
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Results tagged “randykennedy”
New Trend: Building Your Own Turtle Submarine!
New Signs at Coney Island
There's a super feature on Coney Island's news signs in the NY Times today. Artist Steve Powers offered to paint new signs for various Coney Island businesses for free, and then last year, he and Creative Time formed The Dreamland Artist Club, which connect artists with business owners for Coney Island signage betterment. Times reporter Randy Kennedy finds business owners to be generally happy with the project:
One veteran arcade owner, who spoke only on the condition that his name not be used, said that he was suspicious of the project at first, but had watched as the signs had brought customers back to Jones Walk.more ›
Revs, Slightly Revealed
Just two weeks after Gothamist was wondering about graffiti artist Revs' steel sculptures, the NY Times has a great story that sheds a little more light on Revs and his attitude about art. Randy Kennedy's article gives more detail about the elusive Revs, such as how Revs has shunned the "worlds of conventional art and commerce" by not becoming a graphic designer or youth brand marketing consultant and what Revs was doing with his subway missives after returning from a stay in Alaska (which was after partner in crime Cost was arrested in 1994), without revealing too much of who he is ("windburned eyes and blackened fingernails of an ironworker, along with the vaguely feral intensity of someone on the lam").
The NYC Subway Is 100 Today
After a year of build up, the NYC Subway system officially turns 100 today. We love how the NY Times' Randy Kennedy starts his feature about the subway's 100th year (which has some nice interactive features as well):
For a New Yorker just one day shy of turning 100 years old, the subway kept crazy hours yesterday. In other words, there were no hours it did not keep. As its neighbors around the world locked up their stations and turned out their lights, the subway started a new day, just as it has more than 36,000 times since Oct. 27, 1904.Of course, Gothamist is worried that the subway will no longer be the 24 hour party animal with looming budget problems, but we're going to try to stay focused on the wonders the subway does bring us. Today, Mayor Bloomberg, Governor Pataki, MTA Chairman Peter Kalikow, Ms. Subways, and other dignitaries will take a nostalgia train from City Hall Station, to reenact the first subway ride 100 years ago to the day by Mayor McLellan. They will be riding in this train, the Lo-V train, to 42nd Street. And City Hall station was recently reopened for the event, though it's just a temporary opening; here's a gallery of City Hall station, which is a truly dazzling station (chandeliers!) and makes Gothamist wish it could be open permanently. And the Straphangers are offering a slice of Junior's cheesecake to the first 100 people to sign a birthday card to the subway at the Municipal Arts Society's Urban Gallery (457 Madison Avenue at 51st Street) starting at 1:30PM in Midtown, according to Newsday.
Color Coded Subway Entrances
Do the green/white/red lamps on the outside of the subway entrances really mean anything?
Fear Factor in New York
"The fear factors there?" he asked. "Basically you got the heat, the maggots and the juice that comes out of the trash bags. That's the three."
Mr. Lopez added, almost casually: "You find a body every once in a while. Sure. People chop them up. You never know."
Of the contestants, he said: "They wouldn't last. We do 14 tons a day."Oh, barf, garbage juice...there's a garbage juice incident in Gothamist's past that stank up the communal hall in the apartment building for way too long. Anyway, we suppose the helicopter stunt will be something like this one from another Fear Factor episode (below).
Mr. Lopez added, almost casually: "You find a body every once in a while. Sure. People chop them up. You never know."
Of the contestants, he said: "They wouldn't last. We do 14 tons a day."Oh, barf, garbage juice...there's a garbage juice incident in Gothamist's past that stank up the communal hall in the apartment building for way too long. Anyway, we suppose the helicopter stunt will be something like this one from another Fear Factor episode (below).
Our suggestions for a NY-centric Fear Factor: Any good sample sale Century 21 on the weekends. Getting a table at a restaurant that the Times has just given a great review. The Upper East Side and Murray Hill on St. Patrick's Day evening. Lower Broadway during a ticker tape parade. Walking on a SoHo sidewalk on a weekend. And since the eating stunt is tonight at Times Square (when, we don't know), give us a shout if you happen to see any of it.
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There's a Train For Us
I am so glad finally to have someone to ask about this! A couple of years ago, when the new 2/3 trains started running, I noticed a peculiar phenomenon: when their brakes release, the trio of squeaks that sounds forms the opening notes of "Somewhere" from "West Side Story" (you'll hear it if you sing "There's a place..."). I'm certain that I'm not imagining this, because when I was standing on a subway platform on the Upper West Side a friend made the same observation. Has anyone else noticed this? Is it an intentional homage on the part of the MTA?
NY Times on the Subway at 100
- Various monumental moments in subway history (like when the Warriors comes out)
Happy 100th, New York City Subway!
Bluejake visited the MTA Transit Museum. Two great subway sites: NYCSubway.org and our favorite subway watchdogs, the Straphangers.
Subway & Bus Fares Stay at $2
The appeals courts unanimously allowed the MTA's various fare and toll hikes to stand, overturning two lower courts' decisions. The main points, from NY1:
Tokenism
New Yorkers always thinks they are the most clever, and the people who, upon hearing that the subway fare would be increased, thought they'd get the best of the MTA by buying tons of tokens at $1.50 and using them when the fare was $2.00. Little did they realize that tokens would no longer be accepted period. The Daily News examines these people and the problem of redeeming the tokens for cash.
Subway Fare Limbo
The Times' Randy Kennedy on the decision to roll back the subway fare hike. However, the celebration doesn't begin yet because the MTA may still have the opportunity to re-up fares. The judge did find the public hearings held by the MTA to be based on false information, though.
Please move in
Randy Kennedy has been writing a new column in the Times called "Tunnel Vision," kind of a slice-of-slice look at the subways. Today's column is abouthow conductors try to get people to move into the cars. As a rush hour commuter who goes through both Times Square and Grand Central, people are insane, myself included. Even if it's only two inches of space left, I'll try to cram myself in, shoving people further in. But I'm not the dictator, who tells people from five feet outside the car to move in. I found an Observer piece a while back about the phenomena male and female voices on the new subways' PA system interesting too. And the Straphangers weigh in with subway car cleanliness. I hope Randy will write about the kids who sells candy on the subway cars next. For great photos of New York City subway cars, take a look at New York City Subway. For maps, go to the MTA. This picture is of the interior of one of the new subway cars, designed by those the amazing Masamichi and Sigi at Antenna Design.
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