Comments for Patell and Waterman’s History of New York

Comment on Downtown Scenes redux: Ginsberg vs Warhol? by Bryan

Bryan — Tue, 22 May 2012 12:46:05 +0000

Interesting choice — certainly someone who defines (or abandons) scenes rather than being defined by them. Do you think he defines the age in particular ways? Or stands for forces that do? I think the appeal of the ‘age of Warhol’ construct is that Warhol simultaneously exploited and helped define the engines of art/culture/media while at the same time insisting he had no personality. In a way he defines the age so well precisely b/c it’s hard to separate him from the forces that produced him & that he, in turn, amplified. It’s hard to grapple w/ Warhol without feeling that we still live in a world he helped create.

Comment on Downtown Scenes redux: Ginsberg vs Warhol? by Sunny Stalter-Pace

Sunny Stalter-Pace — Tue, 22 May 2012 12:26:55 +0000

What about someone like Amiri Baraka? He starts off as part of Beat poetry, hangs out with Frank O’Hara, is sponsored by Edward Albee, becomes central to Off-Broadway theater with plays like Dutchman, interacts with Black Arts and jazz scenes.

Comment on Networked NY Q&A: Josh Glick by Grant

Grant — Thu, 03 May 2012 01:27:24 +0000

L.A.– Coney is a fascinating axis of comparison. I wonder if old New Orleans or somewhere else could triangulate the real America. Amusement culture sites appear to act as petri dish, talisman, or muse for all kinds of artists.

Comment on Networked New York: Blevin on the Conference Theme by Out Walking the Dog

Out Walking the Dog — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 15:31:32 +0000

What great research. Puts the hullabaloo over libraries offering coffee to draw new clients into a different perspective, given their origins. Am I right in thinking that the NY Public Library didn’t come on the scene until mid-19th century? Anyway, fascinating!

Comment on Networked New York: Annie on the Conference Theme by Reminder: Networked New York Conference Tomorrow | nyuarchiveworkshop

Reminder: Networked New York Conference Tomorrow | nyuarchiveworkshop — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 14:55:55 +0000

[...] taste of all this day has to offer, read more about the conference themes from eloquent organizers Annie Abrams and Blevin Shelnutt. For annotated information about our keynote speaker and panelists, visit [...]

Comment on Networked New York, Annotated Program, Part 3 by Patell and Waterman’s History of New York · Networked New York: Annotated Program, Part 7

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 19:43:12 +0000

[...] fiction, social commentary, and art generated by patrons of Charles Pfaff’s beer cellar (which Karen Karbiener will discuss at Networked New York as a “living archive” of Walt Whitman’s experience in the [...]

Comment on Networked New York: Annotated Program, Part 1 by Join Us: Networked New York Conference March 9 at NYU | nyuarchiveworkshop

Join Us: Networked New York Conference March 9 at NYU | nyuarchiveworkshop — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 22:31:53 +0000

[...] 10:00 – 11:15, Panel 1 – Institution and Enterprise [...]

Comment on How to Be a New Yorker by Bryan

Bryan — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 00:54:22 +0000

Actually, the SATC version, crying over bedbugs, roaches, and high rents doesn’t describe the student I’m talking about (or the general type of student I’m thinking of w/r/t our WNY course). I think she saw some of her aspirations & desire to let the city reshape her in Jen’s narrative, esp the conclusion. But I’m just guessing.

Comment on How to Be a New Yorker by esquared

esquared — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 17:33:23 +0000

*they’re ( i meant to say their idea of being a New Yorker is misguided — stream of consciousness [sure ee])

i think that’s the problem with the new arrivals — they have pre-dispose idea of what NYC would be like, whether living the SATC, Gossip Girl, whatever lifestyle they’ve seen in tv or movies. back then, people who moved to NYC were just trying to get away where they’re from, and most moved here to be accepted and not be marginalized from their hometown or to create art, music, i.e. to be creative, but not to be fabulous.

one would cry over that article since now they are finding the the real truth about what it’s like to live in NYC or be a New Yorker and can relate and find they are not alone in their SATC polluted idea of living in NYC and that being a New Yorker does not mean living a fabulous lifestyle with fabulous jobs. that article basically burst their SATC bubble and have waken them in the reality that they are living in a closet space on 5 floor walk-up sleeping on air mattress in a closet space room on a five floor walk-up thus a not so fabulous lifestyle. and the article basically just said to them — hey, that’s ok, that’s what NYC or being a New Yorker is all about, you’re not alone.

Comment on How to Be a New Yorker by Bryan

Bryan — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 16:56:09 +0000

Hey, Cire — Thanks for the comment. Yeah, you get where my suspicions come from.

I think crying over the article is a fair response, especially if you’re young and have just arrived. I think it’s consistent with Jen’s own narrative & with a long tradition of “coming to the city” narratives. We all arrive (unless we were born here) with a head full of stories and expectations & emotions attached to them.

more soon — bw