A Land Of Lost Movies In Midtown Manhattan

There was a surprising and somewhat disturbing story in the TIMES arts section today about DuArt film labs collection of "lost movies". The lab, once a mainstay in the NY indie film world, worked with many filmmakers back in the days when one actually made films--on celluloid, with sprockets, chemical baths, and all that 20th century photochemical jazz.

However, after they stopped processing film a few years ao, they realized they still had something of a film problem in that there were thousands of unclaimed negatives in their possession that filmmakers or the companies that made these indie films in the 70s, 80s, 90s left behind.The good news is that the lab's founders have hung onto these materials because they just can't bear to throw them away knowing they are someone's artistic work. The bad news is many filmmakers don't even know that they have film in their storage facility.

So to try and get these films to their proper owners or to a proper place for archiving (like the Library of Congress of the Academy in LA), they have started working with IndieCollect, a archiving clearinghouse started by a former producer who is trying to get these films out of limbo. I encourage other filmmakers to seek out DuArt's collection as I went through this process myself last year, tracking down my first feature I THINK I DO to a Technicolor vault out in the Valley and getting it to the UCLA Film/TV Archive in Los Angeles, via Outfest's Legacy project. The negative for my short POOL DAYS was a bit easier to track down--it was under my bed! But still it got sent off to L.A. as well where it was properly archived.

The Return Of A Missing Child Mystery To My Neighborhood

Yesterday on my way home from the subway, I was surprised to see all these police cars and FBI vans parked on Prince Street with barricades blocking the road. Just a few blocks from my apartment, a missing child mystery more than 3 decades old was back in the news as the search was on for remains in a building that is now a fashionable Lucky jeans store.

The NY Times has an interesting article today which talks not so much about this missing case but the neighborhood itself and how it has been radically transformed in the 33 years since Etan Patz disappeared in his way to the bus. They describe how it was quiet area, filled with artists and machinists and not high end tourists. At night, it was apparently so empty that couples would have sex in darkened doorways. My favorite quote from an old timer in the hood: "It wasn't seedy. The docs were sleazy. [Soho] was gritty." Okay!

As investigators dig into the basement at 127B Prince, they are (as they article points out) digging into the neighborhood's quiet and almost small-town past.  In my play WTC VIEW, one character reminisces about playing football on Broadway in the '70s...a speech that was based on a recollection of someone who grew up here back when it was, well, a neighborhood.  Even when I got here, 20 some years ago, it had that feel, especially on my block which was filled with old Italians and Portuguese families.  Anyway, I find it interesting to see how much has changed and how the reopening of this tragic case is bringing all of that into relief.

What's In A Subway Sign? A New Font

In a break from their 45-year old master plan, the New York City subway system has introduced a new font to their signage.  At stations in and around the World Trade Center site, they have used Gotham instead of Helevetica to direct passengers to the entrance of the 9/11 Memorial.  The reason is that Gotham is the font of the memorial's trademarked design.

It is rather surprising change given how Helvetica has become a trademark of the system itself.  But the TIMES City Blog reports the MTA says this is actually just a temporary move.  The signs to the memorial are there because it currently has one controlled entrance (due to continuing construction at the site) and this is to guide thousands of visitors to that area in a clear, visually arresting way.

The Old Atlantic Avenue Tunnel Closed By City

A few years ago, I took a tour of the old Atlantic Avenue tunnel.  The tunnel, dating from the mid-1800s, was discovered in the 1970s by a young Brooklyn train enthusiast named Bob Diamond. Since then, he has been running semi-regular tours of the tunnel and had plans to turn it into an active tourist attraction in downtown Brooklyn or perhaps an actual tunnel again, providing connecting service for a long-planned Brooklyn waterfront light rail network.

Recently, though, the city has shut him out of the tunnel.  Even though he'd been guiding tours in it for years, the fire department banned entry citing it was "unsafe". There was an article about all this in the TIMES yesterday, explaining the unfortunate situation.  Granted, Diamond has never had the best relationship with the city since he discovered the tunnel after being told by the city many times it didn't exist.  But it does seem like there is more going on here than simply fire code regulations.

Anyway, it's sad to see access to the tunnel has been closed. It was one of my favorite urban adventures in recent years, as you enter through a manhole in the middle of Atlantic and come upon this large, old musty tunnel that runs nearly 300 feet underground. It's truly a lost treasure of the city and one that should be open to the public.

The Blizzard of 2010 In 38 Seconds

New York was hit by a massive blizzard the day after Christmas with nearly two feet blanketing the city in less than 24 hours.  Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, I missed all the excitement as I've been down in Maryland where we got barely a dusting from the storm.  But I've been reading all about it on the web.

There have been some great photos in the TIMES of the storm and it's aftereffects, the one above taken on a Sackett Street in Park Slope.  And there was a great time lapse video of the storm posted to Vimeo yesterday which, so far has gotten more than a million hits.  It's a fun and funny look at the blizzard, as the videomaker keeps trying to keep his clock above the rapidly accumulating snow.


December 2010 Blizzard Timelapse from Michael Black on Vimeo.

The Original Calvin Klein Underwear Model

In 1982, Tom Hintaus went from being a moderately successful pole vaulter to a worldwide sensation as the first Calvin Klein underwear model.  Until that iconic image appeared in Times Square, underwear ads had, oddly enough, never been innately sexual.  


They were usually straight shots of very average looking guys wearing briefs over what looked like two other pairs of briefs so they resembled anatomically correct Ken dolls. The closest they came to selling a little sex was maybe Jim Palmer in his underwear for Jockey back in the late 70's. But he was smiling and friendly.....the guy next door in his underwear by chance.  Tom is more like the Greek god of sex.  In fact, the image was shot on an island in Greece by photographer Bruce Weber. 


I remember seeing this poster in Times Square on a high school field trip in 1983.  I was so hypnotized that I nearly got run over.  It made such an impression on me that I put a little homage to it in my film "Pool Days" when the main character sees a different Calvin Klein image in a department store and can't turn away. 


Anyway, all this is on my mind today after reading an article in today's TIMES which serves as a retrospective of Calvin Klein underwear models.  Fashion writer Eric Wilson takes note of the fact that three models have gone on to star in Janet Jackson videos and two have been nominated for Academy Awards.  Current model Kellan Lutz is causing a stir with his roles on 90210 and the "Twilight" series.  And what's Mr. Hintnaus up to these days?  He's 52 now, works as contractor in Hawaii, but says he would not be averse to coming out of underwear model retirement for a line of briefs for Boomer men.  

California Burning

There are some serious wildfires roaring through the Valley out in LA. My friend Yuri sent me this apocalyptic photo of the view from the ocean. The top pic, which looks like a surrealist painting, is from the TIMES roundup of the wildfires. Finally, there's also this video which is a time lapse of the fire set to the music of Grizzly Bear.

Time Lapse Test: Station Fire from Eric Spiegelman on Vimeo.

On The Rocks With A Twist

There was an article in yesterday's NY TIMES dining section about not cocktails but ice. That's right, ice is the new black when it comes to fancy drinking. The main focus of the article is a Japanese mix-master Kazuo Uyeda (pictured) who has created his own particular style of mixing called the "Hard Shake". It sounds exciting, right...but does it make a better cocktail? The article calls in some scientific experts to meausure the temperature of drinks hard shaken or stirred and the results are surprising. That's science for you!

Earlier in the week, I went out for fancy birthday cocktails at Pegu Club on Houston. They were doing some hard shaking there and the results were intense...as was the price at $13 per drink. I recommend the Old Fashioned, which was as billed. There was a lovely mint julepy thing too that smelled like a fresh cut lawn in Atlanta. Overall, this place was a nice treat and lovely to go on any night other than Friday or Saturday where reseverations are necesssary.

From The Earth To The Moon Via Bethpage

In case you've missed out on the nostalgia-fest, today is the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. The airwaves and the Internets are filled with the famous clips, the iconic sound bites and the now elderly astronauts reminiscing about their heyday. I didn't think there was too much to add to this hubub until I read an article in today's TIMES about how NASA built all the lunar modules on Long Island, at a Grumman plant in Bethpage.

In fact, LI has a long history of being at the forefront of aerospace research and design, going back to Lindy's trans-Atlantic flight that left from Roosevelt Field (now Roosevelt Mall) back in 1927. Today, Long Island is known more for it's traffic jams and the Hamptons than for anything actually being built there. But it's interesting to note the major role it played in today's historic anniversary.

The High Line Cabaret

As much as everyone tries to gentrify and clean up New York, this city is and will always remain full of characters. Case in point: a woman who is a former punk rock photographer and amateur chanteuse (only in NY kids!) has taken to serenading strollers on the newly open High Line Park which happens to run right next to her fire escape. Todays' TIMES has all the details along with a beautiful audio slideshow of her singing. This gal not only has chutzpah...she's got pipes!

Anderson Cooper's Mom Is Kind Of A Perv

Anderson Cooper's 85 year old mom, who used to be known as Gloria Vanderbilt, has just come out with an erotic novel entitled "Obession: An Erotic Tale". There's an article in today's TIMES that profiles her and includes some extremely weird and semi-racy excerpts from her debut novel, which is about a woman who is obsessed (duh) with her dead husband's erotic letters from a maybe-mistress. Check it out:

There are scenes involving dildos, whips, silken cords and golden nipple clamps, not to mention an ebony, smooth-backed Mason Pearson hairbrush purchased at Harrods. As the book explains, spanking with a Mason-Pearson is a “serious matter,” not the kind of thing that is rewarded with the “luscious afterglow of warm cocoa butter.” Mint, cayenne pepper and a fresh garden carrot are deployed in the book in ways never envisioned by “The Joy of Cooking.”

This sounds like it could be riotous out-loud beach reading, but actually erotic? Doubting it. One of the funnier things in the TIMES profile was the fact that a couple of her upper class friends advised her against writing this book, saying it would "ruin her reputation". Unfortunately, I think that happened back in 1980 when Ms. Vanderbilt (at a sprightly 54) was featured in TV ads sporting a pair of extremely tight jeans, a look which was then considered borderline slutty (see "Foxes"). As for Anderson's feelings about his mom's new, uhm, interests there is this direct quote:

“The six most surprising words a mother can say to her son are: ‘Honey, I’m writing an erotic novel.'"

A Portrait of The President By...Everyone

The popularity of President Obama is visible across the culture; on t-shirts, signs in windows, bumper stickers and even portraiture. Additionally, our President has also become a very popular subject for artists and this weekend's TIMES had an article about this growing phenomenon. In fact, there are so many people painting Obama's portrait that, of course, there have been some pretty bad works of art created too. So many that there is a website specifically for these rightfully named badpaintingsofbarackobama.com. I have featured one of these paintings here but many more await your viewing pleasure on the website...notably the one with the Mexican flag flying over the White House as scantily clad men and women cavort around him on the South Lawn as he holds of pair of someone's underwear in his right hand. I am not making this up. Really.

I Always Feel Like Somebody's Watching Me

The Google-Car is in New York City this month, updating the "street view" pictures on Google Maps. I had always imagined the camera that took these shots to be somewhat more discrete, like in a van with tinted windows or something. But it's really quite obvious, as the picture above shows. Despite this, Google is apparently very secretive about the car's operation as an article in the TIMES explained this weekend. Earlier this year, the Google-Car got some unwanted publicity when it ran over a deer and the images were captured and were actually on Google maps for a while. There is even a website which compiles some of the stranger/funnier images the Google-car has caught as it wanders the world's streets....it's streetviewfun.com.

Signs Of The Times in the TIMES

I've noticed that the NY TIMES has been getting pretty adventurous in the ways that it covers news. With its "grey lady" days long behind, the TIMES has recently taken to commissioning artists and illustrators for soft news and feature stories.

The TIMES recently put up a slide show of drawings by artist Jane Chiverton which grabbed my attention. It consisted of illustrations of store fronts in the city reflecting these brutal economic times. What I really liked about Chiverton's work is that it honestly documents what I have noticed walking around town in recent weeks; family businesses closing after decades (like this butcher in Chelsea), abrupt restaurant disappearances (like the Two Boots on Ave A and the famous Vesuvio's Bakery), and an ever growing number of "for sale/rent" signs in shop-happy hoods like SoHo and the West Village.

There is no doubt we are deep into this Great Recession. And, as Chiverton's drawings illustrate so vividly, the signs are literally everywhere.