Over the weekend, Oprah Tweeted: "To me Whitney was THE VOICE. We got to hear a part of God every time she sang." Sadly, that voice became muddled in the last years of Whitney Houston's life, but let's take a look back to her earlier years. All of the below videos are 100% guaranteed to give you goose bumps, from a 1976 recording of her singing at her Newark church, to the best "Star Spangled Banner" the country will ever hear: more ›

We just stumbled upon this sweet vintage video on a trip down the Youtube rabbit hole, showing a Manhattan couple trying to make their tiny apartment into a livable space. People from the 1950s: they're just like us! more ›

The October issue of Playboy will hit the shelves with a vintage look and pricetag. Just like Boardwalk Empire brought the old 1920s subway back to the rails, NBC's new series The Playboy Club will air in conjunction with a 1961-themed issue of the magazine, selling for just 60 cents. (Technically, this is just 40 cents less than each issue costs if you have a subscription, according to their $1 an issue offer. But their newstand price is $5.99.) more ›

This priceless piece of vintage video footage has resurfaced on YouTube, wherein the narrator aims to liberate the listener, declaring: "Garbage, you don't have to put up with it anymore!" As shown in the video, the best way to not put up with it anymore is to surround any litterbug you encounter on the subway and give him or her The Stinkeye. (Try to get your fellow straphangers to join you! See if one of them has a pocket knife in case things don't go your way!) Below, see this very effective method of putting the fear into someone. more ›

Want to take a journey back in time to when Greenwich Village was just like Greenwich, Connecticut meets a modern bohemian Casbah? Then watch this vintage video, where the narrator explains that the neighborhood "is the postmark for many countrified cosmopolitans, people who prefer small town casualness to rigid metropolitan dress... Village life is cosmopolitan, yet relaxed, care-free. Pleasure is found in just being alive. Suburban living, on an urban landscape." Also: sidewalk cafes, free from conservatives! We don't want to give any spoilers, but be sure to stick around for (drum roll, please) the paradoxes and contradictions that nightfall brings. more ›

Richard Sclafani, co-inventor of the numeral glasses seen everywhere on New Year's Eve, just contacted us to let us know he has put up a whole slew of vintage frames up for sale on eBay. Glow-in-the-Dark! Rare! Mint Condition! How much will this nostalgia-buy set you back? The auction is 2 days in with a starting bid of $500. more ›

This neat city map blog, called NY City Map, just updated with some vintage aerial photos from 1951. Did you know New York had its share of drive-in movie theaters? There was The Whitestone Drive-In in the Bronx, The Fabian on Staten Island and The Bayshore Sunrise Drive-In (out on Long Island). more ›

Egads, behold these infernal hip-sters clogging Bedford Avenue with their fixed-gear "safety bicycles." And good heavens, there is a slatternly dressed female cyclist pedaling among them, a sight that's certain to scandalize the local Hasidim (someday)! This photograph—probably taken during one of their incessant political demonstrations demanding fanciful traffic regulations—clearly shows these ped-HELL-ers' wanton disregard for pedestrians and locomotives alike. Reached for comment, one Wiley Ignatius Norvel, who represents a criminal anarchist group in favor of bicycle proliferation, stridently asked, "How many bicyclists must be injured after slipping in manure before the Brooklyn carriage industry equips their horses with absorbent diapers?" more ›

Santacon wasn't this weekend's only crazy costume event. Dozens of New Yorkers donned turn-of-the-century garb for the second-ever "Vintage Tea Party" which took place yesterday on an antique V train. Participants sipped tea, nibbled on dainty cookies, and did just about everything else you'd expect at an old-timey gathering as they traveled from Lower Manhattan to Long Island City and back. Though the "Vintage Tea Party" is over, locals looking for antique entertainment can still ride in classic subway cars on the "Nostalgia Train" — which will run on the V line on Dec. 20 and Dec. 27 between 10 am and 5 pm. more ›

Yesterday the Improv Everywhere gang took 2,000 dogs for a walk in the Cobble Hill area of Brooklyn. Invisible dogs, that is. You remember those old invisible dog toys, right? Turns out the circa-1970s toy was manufactured in a Brooklyn factory, which now contains the Invisible Dog art space! The space loaned the pranksters the vintage dog leashes for their afternoon of good clean fun; and if you want one yourself they still seem to be for sale online. More photos from Katie Sokoler, here. more ›

If you rode the V line on Sunday, you may have lucked out with a seat on one of the old 1930s-era subway cars deployed as part of the MTA's holiday train revival. But there's nostalgia rolling above ground too! Buses from the '60s and '70s are now operating during morning and evening rush hours on the M8, M14, M20, M23, M34, M42, M57 and M79 lines, and the Q32 in Queens, through January 2nd. A spokesman for New York City Transit tells the Post that while the older buses have less window space and weaker engines, they actually get better gas mileage than some modern buses: three miles per gallon of diesel, as opposed to two miles per gallon today. (Hybrids get about four miles per gallon.) Of course, the fare isn't vintage; a city bus cost 20 cents per ride until 1969, but these old timers have been retrofitted to take you $2 via MetroCard. more ›

Say goodbye to the maddening ear-poison of Kool Man’s “Pop Goes the Weasel,” and harken back to the more civilized jingle of a bygone era: the gently ringing bell of the retro Good Humor ice cream truck. On Sunday Adam Kuban got the scoop of the week when he happened upon this atavistic enabler of sweet teeth outside the Museum of Modern Art. more ›

Yesterday Jonathan Butler unleashed the Brooklyn Flea upon the borough, and even Marty Markowitz showed up (perhaps to find replacement placemats for his wife?). Butler tells us that "While we could have asked for better weather, we couldn't have asked for a better turnout or better vibes from all the visitors and vendors." more ›

New York has lost another vintage factory built diner: The Cheyenne, a popular all night eatery near Penn Station, will close its doors on Sunday after 68 years of operation. And the owner of a rival diner – the bigger Skylight Diner nearby – is to blame. Skylight owner George Papas also owns the narrow 20-by-100 foot site the Cheyenne currently occupies and he plans to build a nine-story apartment building on the property. Forgotten-NY’s Kevin Walsh tells us the days of the one-story, stand-alone diner are almost over:

Unfortunately the reality is that Manhattan’s becoming so pricey that you just can’t sustain these diners no matter how good business is. I was in the Cheyenne a couple weeks ago at lunchtime and it was packed, but the owner of the property feels he can make a lot more money on that spot by building a multi-story building and having a lot of tenants. I’ve been to the Skylight around the corner a couple times and it’s an inferior diner to the Cheyenne; the food is not as good nor is the atmosphere as good as the Cheyenne.

Christie's is finally getting on the overpriced vintage concert t-shirt bandwagon. Today they bring 30 rock tees to the block as part of their Rock and Pop Memorabilia auction, and all are expected to sell for up to $4,500 each. Remember when Stella McCartney was creating overpriced rock tees for Chloe? We sort of blame her for this."The fact that these T-shirts exist in such pristine condition is remarkable because most people didn't keep these... more ›