Photo of the day: RED WHITE AND BLUE, REMEMBERING TYRONE MAY
May 17, 2014 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 9/11 memorial, 911 memorial in rain, Hans Von Rittern, Manhattan, May 14 2104 trade center museum opens, New York City, New York photo, Photo of the day, photography, red white blue roses at 911 memorial, remembering lost ones at World Trade Center, roses in rain at 911 memorial, Tyrone May, World Trade Center | Leave a comment
Photo of the day: MAY 14, 2014 THE WORLD TRADE CENTER MUSEUM FINALLY OPENS
Photo of the day: MAY 14, 2014 THE WORLD TRADE CENTER MUSEUM FINALLY OPENS
May 16, 2014 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: architecture, Hans Von Rittern, Hurricane Sandy, little girl gets her first look at World Trade memorial, Manhattan, May 14 2014 Trade Center museum opens, New York City, New York photo, Photo of the day, photography, World Trade Center | Leave a comment
Photo of the day: THE DIVINE AUDACITY ~ CATHEDRAL IN NEW YORK CITY TO START CHARGING ADMISSION
Photo of the day: THE DIVINE AUDACITY ~ CATHEDRAL IN NEW YORK CITY TO START CHARGING ADMISSION – Over the weekend New York City’s gothic treasure, St. John the Divine had the ‘divine’ audacity/necessity to send a memorandum out to the tour guide industry advising us that as of February 1st of this year tour groups will be charged admission. Brace yourselves – $5.00 (4€ euros) – to enter a church! The 9/11 memorial charges a cover charge of $2.00.
For the many, many of you that I have taken there on my tours, you well know it is one of the mostly undiscovered treasures of the city. They are fascinated to see the unfinished towers and dome. They love the story of the center doors only opening three times a year for Easter, the blessing of the bicycles and the blessing of the animals. To see the World Trade Center Towers on the columns in front begins to fascinate the wonderful mixing of old and new history inside.
Inside there is always a sense of awe. I advise my guests to take a brochure and put a donation in the donation box at the entrance. You then pass wonderful hand carved 15th century German wooden choir stalls and enter this magnificent world of surprises. The fireman’s memorial, the American history stained glass window that has the prototype of the first television of 1926 in it as well as movie stars Jack Benny and Mary Livingston. Another stained glass window shows the sinking of the Titanic. I tell the touching story of how the cathedral cared for the AIDS patients of NYC when no one else dared to as we look at the AIDS memorial. I show them the plaque dedicated to the horrible bookstore fire that damaged the church in 2001, ruining the organ’s pipes for 10 years. I show them the ‘zipper’ of the church marking the finished and unfinished part of the cathedral. I show them such wonderful worldwide gifts as the 17th century Barberini tapestries, the golden chests donated by the King of Siam, the urns given by the emperor of Japan, the Keith Haring graffiti triptych in the Asian chapel donated by John Lennon’s wife Yoko Ono. I lead them through the 7 chapels dedicated to the main 7 languages spoken in NYC in 1892. I take them up near the altar for one of the most breathtaking views of the front stained glass window containing 10,000 pieces of glass, 40 feet in diameter. I show them menorahs on the altar as well, explaining the church welcomes all faiths.
Well – they welcome all faiths, but they now do not welcome groups unless you pay to get into the house of god. Never at no time in New York has there been a house of god that has had the need to charge admission into what I thought is the house of the people. St. John the Divine is desperate for money, last year having sold off precious adjacent land to the church and allowing god awful high rise apartments to be built, therefore obstructing the rays of sunlight into the north side of the church. Now they are obstructing the tourists of New York.
As a fellow tour guide Tom said: “What they really, really, need is help to grow their endowment. Presumably they have an endowment, like Universities and Museums. With a massive old building that must have massive maintenance costs, there is no longer a massive congregation as in the old days to keep up the place. That’s where smart and competent money-managers take hold of the finances of the institution and go on a major campaign to grow a big endowment, sufficient for maintenance. This is how Carnegie Hall was saved. The famed Koch Brothers have contributed literally hundreds of millions of dollars: $100,000,000 EACH to The Metropolitan Museum of Art, to Lincoln Center and The American Museum of Natural History, total $300,000,000. So, who’s in charge of this program at The Cathedral?”
They are nickel and diming, almost literally, a huge problem. It will have the most unfortunate and unintended consequence of keeping some likely visitors O-U-T. The sudden sticker shock of $5.00 will leave many at the door. I can understand starting at $2.00 – but $5.00?! A full bus of 55 guests would cost $275!! The biggest losers here are the young visitors to New York, the student tour groups. My student tour groups from Virginia, Tennessee, the Carolinas and all along the coast. They are already on a tight budget, eating at McDonalds to save money on the big trip from their home town. They enter St. John the Divine starry-eyed and filled with wonderment at this magnificent gothic structure, the likes of which most will not get to see unless they are privileged enough to go to Europe. Sadly, it is simply adding itself to the list of those famous cathedrals of Europe all forced to do the same out of necessity. Notre Dame in Paris charges €3/$4.10 to see the treasury of riches. The Basilica in Rome charges 12€ euros/$16.00. The Cologne/Köln Dom in Germany charges 4€ Euros/$5.00. Seville cathedral in Spain charges 8€ euros/$10 dollars. St. Paul’s cathedral in London charges 16€ euros/$21.85. The wonderful art-filled little adobe churches in poor Tucson, Arizona do not charge at all. St. Patrick’s cathedral on the wealthy Fifth Avenue here in NYC does not need to charge. St. John the Divine in New York now wants to be added to the world wide list of those charging admission.
Perhaps St. John the Divine got the idea from the very recent surprising November 2013 decision of the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. to charge $10/7 € euros admission and perhaps I should feel I am getting a bargain. (In comparison, The Museum of Natural History’s full price adult admission charge is $22/16€ euros). But is this the beginning of a possible disturbing and disheartening trend in the famed churches New York City? Where the declining parish necessitates charging at the door? Most of the churches in Harlem are only surviving on the Sunday gospel tour dollars. It is no longer ‘the fashion’ to go to church in most large cities, therefore the declining membership results in declining donations. These grand cathedrals were built for the masses – church going masses who today – are tourists. A sad trend.
I am only a New York City tour guide and have no idea how this cathedral functions. But, what is needed at St. John the Divine is a professional, knowledgeable, experienced, committed, well paid, position of fundraiser to grow a serious endowment. Considering their list of well connected parishioners, their current plan seems like nothing more than a high school-level accounting class solution…if that.
Here is the memo:
To: Professional Guides, Tour Operators, and Guest Lecturers
From: The Cathedral of St. John the Divine
Department of Public Education and Visitor Services
Please note the following updates in the Cathedral of St. John the Divine’s visiting group policy, effective February 1, 2014.
• Self-guided groups are encouraged to schedule their visit at least two weeks in advance. Groups are defined as ten or more visitors. Scheduling requests can be made through a web site request form, or through the Public Education Office by phone or email below. The group will receive confirmation of a one-hour time period to visit the Cathedral.
• Group arrivals are permitted between 9am and 5pm daily.
• Groups should enter through the Cathedral’s southern door at Amsterdam Avenue. The group leader or guide must check in at the Visitor Center upon arrival.
• Payment of the discounted group admission of $5 per person must be made upon arrival. One group leader or guide receives complimentary admission.
• Groups that do not pay group admission may only enter the Cathedral as individual visitors.
• The Cathedral accepts cash, checks, and Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express. Checks should be made payable to The Cathedral of St. John the Divine.
• Tour companies are encouraged to join the Cathedral’s voucher program to obviate admission payment on arrival in exchange for discounts and quarterly billing. To join the voucher program or receive more information please contact the Public Education Office.
• Scheduled groups will be given access to the entire Cathedral, including restrooms, as well as brochures for their participants. Confirmed groups will be alerted of changes to access as soon as possible. Groups that schedule to arrive during times of limited access will be notified in their confirmation.
• Late or early group arrivals will be accommodated as best as possible, however we do not
guarantee access to all parts of the Cathedral.
January 14, 2014 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 9/11 memorial $2 admission fee, AIDS, architecture, arts, Barberini tapestries, blessing of the bicycles, Carnegie Hall, chapels of the 7 tongues, churches desperate for money, churches need to raise money, declining church goers, Department of Public Education and Visitor Services, endowment program needed, endowments and conributions to churches, Guest Lecturers, Hans Von Rittern, Harlem, Harlem gospel tours, Jack Benny and Mary Livingston, John Lennon's wife Yoko Ono, Keith Haring graffiti art, Koch Brothers contributions, Lincoln Center, little adobe churches in Tucson Arizona, Manhattan, massive maintenance costs, National Cathedral in Washington D.C., New York City, New York photo, Notre Dame in Paris, Photo of the day, photography, politics, Professional Guides, Seville cathedral in Spain, St. John Divine new $5. admission fee, St. John the Divine, St. John the Divine architecture, St. John the Divine blessing of the animals, St. John the Divine is desperate for money, St. John the Divine new admission policy, St. Patrick's cathedral, St. Paul's cathedral in London, student tourism in New York, The American Museum of Natural History, The Cologne/Köln Dom in Germany, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the sinking of the Titanic, Tour Operators, tourism in New York, World Trade Center | 5 Comments
Photo of the day: HANS CRUISES NEW YORK
December 4, 2013 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: Christmas, Circle Line Cruises, Circle Line Sightseeing, Empire State Building, five days in New York, German tourists explore New York, Hans Von Rittern, Harlem, Liberty sunset, Manhattan, New York City, New York photo, Photo of the day, photography, Statue of Liberty, touring New York City, transportation, World Trade Center | Leave a comment
Mondays on Memory Lane: DINING AT STOUFFER’S “TOP OF THE SIX’S”
Mondays on Memory Lane: STOUFFERS ‘TOP OF THE SIX’S’ RESTAURANT – As a child, “Top of The Six’s” meant a special occasion. You had done well in school or it was prom night or you were in love and wanted to impress with the sweeping view of the Empire State Building. The rooftop restaurant was located at the epicenter of the posh section of Fifth Avenue, between 52nd/53rd Streets, with a lobby fountain wall designed by Isamu Noguchi and easy subway access downstairs. Today it is but a postcard memory.
It all started in 1922 the Stouffer family opened a lunch counter on East Ninth St. in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. They sold sandwiches, dairy products and Lena Stouffer’s soon-to-be-famous deep-dish Dutch apple pie. By 1935 they expanded to six restaurants in the Cleveland area and in 1937 they opened the first Stouffer restaurant in New York City.
In 1946 Stouffer’s opened on Shaker Square and at the Westgate shopping center in the Cleveland suburbs. It was at the Shaker Square location that patrons began requesting takeout orders of items on the menu and the Stouffer foray in to frozen food began by 1954. By this time Stouffer’s had restaurants in Florida, Philadelphia, Atlanta and Detroit.
1958 – Opens restaurants at the stainless steel deco-like #666 Tishman Building (built 1957) located at 666 5th Avenue in New York City one on the 1st & below-street levels, the other on the 39th floor, at the time the highest public restaurant in N.Y. They went there, by the millions. In July 1973, about 15 years after it opened, the restaurant announced that it was about to serve its 10 millionth meal. Ominously, a review that month found the cuisine anything but haute.
They continued to expand, building a frozen food processing plant in Solon, Ohio in 1968 and they ventured into specialty casual dining eateries with names like Rusty Scupper, Cheese Cellar and the Grog Shop. In 1969 NASA chose Stouffer’s products for Apollo 11, 12 and 14 for astronauts to dine on.
But it was the Stouffer’s “Top of the…” restaurants that became the special occasion places to go. “Top of The Hub” in Boston, “Top of the Rock” in downtown Chicago, “Top of the Sixes” in New York City, “Top of the Flame” in Detroit and “Top of the Town” in Cleveland.
The view was terrific from 40 stories up, especially in those days long before the World Trade Center, when a restaurant on top of a skyscraper was a novelty. Prices were reasonable. Children liked the view, and so did young couples on dates. Men proposed to their wives there,” it was a time when going to ”the city” meant journeying from Queens to Manhattan. You didn’t necessarily go there for the food, it was that wonderful atmosphere.
On September 18, 1996, The New York Times announced the closing of this beloved rooftop gem. The new tenant would be the Grand Havana Room, a cigar temple that will bear as much resemblance to a smoke-filled parlor as, say, the Oak Room at the Plaza Hotel. Right now I’d give anything for a mid-west cooked Stouffer’s meal atop of the Six’s. The best I can do, is to go to my rooftop, spread a tablecloth and open my microwaved Stouffers dinner – it’s just not the same.
What are your memories of “Top of the Six’s”?
October 21, 2013 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 666 Fifth Avenue, architecture, “Top of the Flame” in Detroit, “Top of The Hub” in Boston, “Top of the Rock” in downtown Chicago, “Top of the Sixes” in New York City, “Top of the Town” in Cleveland, Empire State Building, Hans Von Rittern, Isamu Noguchi, Lobby fountain wall designed by Isamu Noguchi, Manhattan, Mondays on Mmemory Lane, NASA space program food, New York City, New York photo, Photo of the day, Queens, rooftop dining, Stouffer's frozen foods, Stouffer's Restaurants, subway, The Tishman Building, Tishman Building, vintage New York nightlife, vintage New York postcard, vintage NYC postcard, World Trade Center | 11 Comments
Photo of the day: REMEMBERING, 9/11 NEVER GETS EASIER
September 13, 2013 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 2998 people lost, 9/11 memorial, 9/11 waterfalls, day of rememberance, Hans Von Rittern, loved ones touch names, Manhattan, memorial wall of names, New York City, New York photo, Photo of the day, Sept. 12 2013, World Trade Center | Leave a comment
Photo of the day: 9/11/2013 SO MANY LOSES / SO MANY GAINS
The mighty Quinn: For the past twelve years, Quinn and Bloomberg have systematically destroyed New York City as the city has become a city of the über rich and the very poor, 45+% now live near or at the poverty level. We have lost over 12 hospitals during their term in office, glass luxury apartments replace them. Quinn ruled the city and controlled the zoning laws with her slush funds making the city open season for the greedy real estate developers as zoning law changes have become the norm. South Street Seaport’s Pier 17 is being torn down, neighborhoods like Harlem, Greenwich Village and Soho are loosing their soul. Her tearing down of St. Vincent’s Hospital, it’s church and the 9/11 memorial is the most egregious. As the years passed, she became the most powerful politician only second to Bloomberg, a power that was had by vitriolic temper outbursts and control of the city funds.
September 11, 2013 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 2011, 9/11, 9/11/2013, Allie Feldman, animal cruelty, animal lovers, animal rights activists, ANYBODY BUT QUINN ABQ, architecture, arrogant politicians, Arthur Cheliotes, Bill DeBlasio, boss tweed, Boss Tweed in 1853, Brian Gari, City Sights tours, Councilwoman Christine Quinn, crazy cat lady fights city hall, Defeat Christine Quinn, dog lovers fight city hall, Donny Moss, Gail Brewer, gay activists, Gray Line tour guides, Greenwich Village, Gregg Mocker, Hans Von Rittern, Harlem, headset bill, horse lovers, job loses, KARMA IS A BITCH, Manhattan, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Mustang Sally's, NBC, New York City, New York is not for Sale, New York pet shop sprinkler law, New York photo, pet lovers fight city hall, Photo of the day, politics, September 11 2013, South Street Seaport, St. Vincent's Hospital, The New York Times, Twin America, Ursula Von Rittern, Wendy Kelman Neu, World Trade Center, WPIX11 news | Leave a comment
Photo of the day: THE DESTRUCTION OF SOUTH STREET SEAPORT, SEPT. 9 FINAL DAY
September 5, 2013 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 8 Spruce Street, ANYBODY BUT QUINN ABQ, Beekman Tower, Christine Quinn, Councilwoman Christine Quinn, destruction of South Street Seaport, Hans Von Rittern, Manhattan, Manhattan skyline, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, mayoral 2013 campaign, New York by Gehry, New York City, New York photo, old sailing ships, Photo of the day, political greed, South Street Seaport, The Peking, Woolworth Building, World Trade Center | Leave a comment
Mondays on Memory Lane – MY DAILY WALK OVER THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE
Mondays on Memory Lane – MY DAILY WALK OVER THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE IN 1980 – In the spring of 1980 I moved into the newly rennovated Brooklyn Eagle Warehouse at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge. I was 24 years old and shared the 1,200 square foot apartment for a mere $700 a month, $350 each…yes $350! The Brooklyn Waterfront was still undeveloped and actually dangerous at night.
DUMBO didn’t exist, what did exist was a dumping ground for unwanted animals, dead animals and an occasional dead human being. In 1983, I got a job at Dancker, Sellew & Douglas Design Firm on the 102nd floor of the World Trade Center. Each morning, to save to cost of the .75¢ subway fare, I headed out over then 100 year old Brooklyn Bridge by foot towards Manhattan, across the steps of City Hall (there was no security in those days), through unrenovated downtown Manhattan, to the Trade Center South Tower elevators which carried me up to my desk on the 102nd floor in the clouds. How much more of a quintessential New York daily routine could one have?! It was a wonderful time.
August 26, 2013 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 1980, Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn Bridge 1980, brooklyn eagle, Brooklyn waterfront, Dancker, downtown manhattan, DUMBO, Eagle Warehouse, Eagle Warehouse and Storage Company, Fulton Ferry Landing, Hans Von Rittern, Manhattan, Manhattan City Hall, New York City, New York photo, Photo of the day, quintessential New York daily routine, Sellew & Douglas, subway fare, World Trade Center | Leave a comment
Photo of the day: TWIN TOWERS 2013
July 28, 2013 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 9/11, building construction, flora and fauna, Great or Common Mullein, Hans Von Rittern, High Line views, High rise construction, Manhattan, New York City, New York photo, Photo of the day, The High Line, Twin Towers, undeveloped high line, unfinished high line, Verbascum Thapsus, wild overgrown High Line, World Trade Center | Leave a comment
Mondays on Memory Lane: MY VIEWS FROM THE 102nd FLOOR OF WORLD TRADE CENTER SOUTH TOWER
Mondays on Memory Lane: MY OFFICE VIEWS FROM THE 102nd FLOOR OF WORLD TRADE CENTER SOUTH TOWER – With the advent of the spire topping off and finishing the new World Trade Center Tower, I will tell you what it was like to work in the original towers. In 1983 I got a job on the 102nd floor of the World Trade Center, the south tower. I was senior project manager of a commercial design firm named Dancker, Sellew & Douglas. I worked there with my dear friend Helene Bernicoff. My desk was right near the tall floor to celing windows. It was incredible.
May 13, 2013 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 102nd floor of World Trade Center, 1983, 9/11 memorial, building swaying in wind, Central Park, Chrysler building, Dancker, Empire State Building, express elevator, Hans Von Rittern, Helene Bernicoff, Manhattan, Manhattan views from atop WTC, New Jersey, New York City, Sellew & Douglas, tall floor to celing windows, The Empire State Building, weather pattern, Woolworth Building, World Trade Center, WTC south tower, WTC toilets | 2 Comments
Photo of the day: DISTURBING AIRPLANE PHOTO OF FINISHED WORLD TRADE CENTER
May 11, 2013 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 1776, 9/11, airplane photo, construction cranes, Hans Von Rittern, Jet plane near World Trade Center, Manhattan, May 10 2103, New spire, new tower, new world trade center, New York City, New York photo, observation deck World Trade Center, Plane hitting World Trade Center, spire, St. Paul's Church, Twin Towers, World Trade Center, WTC construction site | Leave a comment
Photo of the day: MEET 59 OF MY NEWEST FRIENDS FROM INDIA!
April 12, 2013 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 9/11 memorial, Ajay Bansal, Broadway, culture differences, Empire State Building, foreign student groups, Hans Von Rittern, impressions of America, India, Indian students, Indian students see New York, Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum, Manhattan, Museum of Natural History, New York City, South Street Seaport, Statue of Liberty, student groups, tour groups, World Trade Center | Leave a comment
Photo of the day: JESUS IS KING AT THE WORLD TRADE CENTER
November 20, 2012 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: architecture, construction site, construction workers, graffiti, Hans Von Rittern, Jesus is King, Manhattan, New York City, religious message, spray paint, Trade Center #3, World Trade Center, WTC construction site | Leave a comment
Story of the day: A 9/11 HERO
This is the story of how an African King, a Greenwich Village hero, a former World Trade Center worker, a ceramics enthusiast and people who care came together.
Dusty Berke is a 9/11 hero. No she didn’t rush into the burning buildings to save people, nor did she ever work at the site, but she is an impassioned community activist.
Tiles For America was started shortly after the attack. It is an empty lot owned by the MTA (M.ass T.ransit A.authority) with a simple chain link fence around it. It is right across the street from what used to be 150 year old St. Vincent’s Hospital. (I say ‘used to be’, because greedy politicians such as Mayor Bloomberg and councilwoman Christine Quinn saw to it that after the hospital went bankrupt in 2010 – it was quickly turned into a giant condominium complex, leaving all of Greenwich Village and lower west side Manhattan without a hospital.) St. Vincent’s handled the cholera epidemic of 1849, took in the only survivors of The Titanic. It was at the center of the AIDS epidemic and took in the first survivors of the World Trade Center 9/11 attack and in 2009 cared for the passengers of ‘the miracle on the Hudson‘ – the landing of Airways flight 1549 by Capt. Chesley B. Sullenberger III. The poet Edna St. Vincent Millay got her middle name from the hospital.
Just hours after the attack, loved ones rushed to the hospital clutching quickly made flyers looking for their loved ones. The hope was, their loved ones would yet be found under the rubble, perhaps were passed out inside the hospital or were wandering around the city in a daze. They gathered outside the hospital and across the street at the empty lot waiting and waiting….and waiting. Volunteers came from the community with clothing, blankets, food and offers to donate blood for 2,998 victims that were never to arrive at the hospital. The anxious hours that passed turned into days which turned into weeks. The gathering place for survivors was along side this empty lot.
Local resident Lorrie Veasy who was the owner of a paint your own pottery shop called ’Our Name Is Mud’ came to the hospital with her husband to donate blood the day of the attack. Wanting to do more and to reach out and comfort those who waited and to comfort a community, she created 500 ceramic angel and flag tiles and attached them to the fence. Customers came to the shop to make tiles of their own. ‘Texas loves you!‘, ‘We will never forget’, ‘God bless the USA’, ‘In loving memory of…‘. Videos of the tiles made it onto the internet and soon school children and people of all ages from around the world started to send their own hand painted tiles to the store to be put onto the fence. Germany, Spain, England, Israel. From Maine to Alaska tiles arrived and created a place of hope and comfort. For eleven years the tiles became a tourist destination. A place of pride in the community. A place to remember and never forget.
‘Our Name Is Mud’ sadly went out of business, but right around the corner, lives Dusty Berke, a long time Greenwich Village resident who was and is determined to preserve the tiles memorial. ‘The Tiles For America Preservation Society’ was founded by her. In 2011, the ten year anniversary of 9/11, hurricane Irene threatened to devastate lower Manhattan and possibly the tiles. Dusty quickly gathered a group of scrappy volunteers who within hours took down all the tiles and brought them to safety. When all was clear they were lovingly re-hung on the fence.
In the meantime . . . in 2010, the MTA was planning to construct an air shaft on the lot and that plan came to reality early this year. The tiles? They were to be ‘put in storage’ in Albany. The community’s faith in that idea was nonexistent, especially to Dusty Berke. Along with local residents Paul McClure, Andretti Mullens and friends, a call went out on the street and the internet.
As a local tour guide, I pass by this lot every week and could not believe my eyes, nor contain my anger when I saw posted signs pleading to help save New York’s first 9/11 memorial. You see, in 1983 I got a job at The World Trade Center as a space planner at the design firm Dancker & Sellew. We worked in the clouds on the 102nd floor. At the time I lived in Brooklyn Heights and would walk across the Brooklyn Bridge every morning towards the two shimmering towers. The view from the top was breathtaking. In stormy weather the building swayed to and fro. We would hang magic markers from the ceiling and watch them make the same pattern on the paper on our desks over and over again. It was surreal. Wonderfully surreal and I was so, so proud to work there. To my luck, our lease was up several years later and the company relocated elsewhere downtown. The thought of these tiles also coming down was incomprehensible to me. On a rainy August 14th I joined Dusty and her friends and we gathered on the sidewalk and determinedly asked anyone who passed by to sign a petition to save the tiles. The mood was optimistic. But eventually the word was out the demolition crews were coming and September 11, 2012 was to be the last day of the tiles thanks to the callousness of our politicians. As a born and raised New Yorker and as a photographer, I made it a mission to photograph all of the tiles. A memorial concert was held on September 11th. The next morning we waited and waited and waited. When were the bulldozers due?
Dusty and Andretti were busy buying packing materials to rescue the tiles. The fence may belong to the city, but the tiles – belong to the citizens of the world. Every day I contacted Dusty, ‘call me when you’re taking down the tiles!’. Wednesday September 12th passed, I took some more pictures. Thursday September 13th I showed up, no one was there. Word was the demolition was to take place Monday, September 17th. On September 14th, I assist mom in taking our dog to the vet. I received a phone call.
It was ‘Ladi’, His Royal Highness James Burehmo, to be exact . . . King James Oladipo Aroko-Ola Burehmo the Oba of Idera in Nigeria. A true African king. He leaves his village as king, and comes to New York every summer as a Gray Line tour bus driver to earn money for his people. When I worked for Gray Line as a tour guide, Ladi and I became fast buddies and dear friends. Ladi, a gentle giant, always has a smile on his face. His voice instantly elicits joy and confidence. We have stayed in touch ever since. ‘Hans, I just passed by the tiles and they are boxing them up!’. My mother saw the look on my face, and she simply said ‘go’.
As I arrived, the last of the tiles were being taken down. Word had come a short time earlier that councilwoman Christine Quinn’s office had said they were taking ownership of the tiles, possibly threatening arrests. There was no time for Dusty or Andretti to do a phone or email blast. They rushed to the site, with many sets of pliers and boxes and hurriedly took down as many as they possibly could and asked any passerby to help. As the last of the tiles were coming down I arrived. Eleven years later and the fence was almost bare, the visual history temporarily erased for now. I looked up at the shell of what was St. Vincent’s Hospital and teared up as I saw the tiles being wrapped up. I photographed the moment as quickly as I could, upset I couldn’t be there right away, but time was of the essence. Passers by stopped in their tracks as what had become a routine sight, was now gone.
The tiles will live on, in respect to the 2,998 victims, the survivors, the community and those loving hearts and hands that painted the heartfelt messages on little square pieces of ceramic. The goal is to open a museum in an empty storefront across the street. It will be nice if the city and or construction workers will give us the rusty fence they are going to trash anyway. We hope to line the wall of the museum with that rusty chain link fence and hang the tiles once more. A memorial of survival, of determination and of love. As the sun set the last heart-shaped tile was packed up, the boxes closed in hopes of opening one day soon at the planning of the museum. The tiles are safe now, we are determined.
This is how an African King, a Greenwich Village hero, a former World Trade Center worker, a ceramics enthusiast and people who care came together, to save a piece of American history.
September 15, 2012 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 9/11 memorial, community, Dusty Berke, Greenwich Village, Hans Von Rittern, Manhattan, Michael Bloomberg. Christine Quinn, New York City, St. Vincent's Hospital, Tiles For America, World Trade Center | 3 Comments
From the gallery: REMEMBERING
September 11, 2012 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 9/11 memorial, Hans Von Rittern, Manhattan, New York City, World Trade Center | Leave a comment
Photo of the day: NEVER FORGET
September 11, 2012 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 9/11, Hans Von Rittern, Manhattan, New York City, St. Paul's Church, The little chapel that stood, World Trade Center | Leave a comment
From the gallery: LOUIS
September 10, 2012 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 9/11 memorial, Hans Von Rittern, Manhattan, New York City, waterfalls, World Trade Center | 2 Comments
Photo of the day: TILES FOR AMERICA
HELP SAVE TILES FOR AMERICA:
After the tragic events of September 11, 2001, ceramic studios around the world joined together to offer a creative outlet to the people of our nation. Thousands of tiles, reflecting patriotism, heroes, courage, unity, poetry, and other positive themes arrived in NYC. The “artists” are represented worldwide and have been families, children, schools, churches, scouts, and senior groups. Each tile reflects the artists’ thoughts of sadness and hope in the face of this American tragedy and once again, shows that the American people will pull together in times of national disaster. New York’s first memorial is located on a chain link fence at the corner of 7th Avenue and 11th Street.
Now the city want to tear it down. On 9/12/12, all of this will disappear, to make way for an MTA air vent for the Subway. To honor this amazing corner of our world, A.rtists W.ho C.are, is seeking volunteers, now, during, after, this event:
THE PEOPLE’S MEMORIAL CONCERT A COMMUNITY GET-TOGETHER, FOR FAMILIES AND FRIENDS YOUNG AND OLD CONCERT, FOOD, DRINK, AND DANCING UNDER THE STARS
TO PAY TRIBUTE to THE TILES FOR AMERICA AND THE LOVE BENCH SEPTEMBER 11TH, 2012 5 PM-9 PM PS 41’S BACK SCHOOL YARD CORNER OF GREENWICH AND 10TH STREET THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE BEFORE THE CITY TAKES THE TILES DOWN, AND THE LOVE BENCH GOES AWAY
Beloved musician and New Yawker CYNDI LAUPER will be our guest!
September 10, 2012 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 9/11 memorial, Greenwich Village, Hans Von Rittern, New York City, Tiles For America, World Trade Center | Leave a comment
From the gallery: WORLD TRADE CENTER 1973
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Sec28KvZM8
September 9, 2012 | Categories: DAILY PHOTOS WITH STORIES OF NEW YORK CITY | Tags: 1973, New Jersey, New York City, World Trade Center | 10 Comments