Ghostbusters Firehouse Being Put Out Of Business

Author: Josh Tyler
From http://www.cinemablend.com/

When someone says the word “firehouse” the image that pops up in my head isn’t of the one-story structure about two blocks from my house with the big, red fire engine parted out front. The picture indelibly burned into my brain is of the firehouse from Ghostbusters, complete with fire pole and ghost fighting gear stacked up somewhere in the corner.

The iconic firehouse used in the Ghostbusters films is actually a real, working, New York City firehouse. Or at least it has been. New York Mayor Bloomberg is pushing a plan to shut it down.

According to the NYPost the Ghostbusters station is one among 20 different firehouses which the city is considering closing due to budget cuts. It’s home to Ladder 8 and while you’d hate to see them out of a job, if they do shut it down maybe someone in New York should have the good sense to turn it into a tourist destination to help that sagging city budget.

Judging from the picture including with the Post story, the place is in good repair, even 20 years later. Look:


And here’s what it looked like in the film:





The ironic thing here is, of course, that in the 1984 film Bill Murray, Dan Akyroyd, and their ghost busting team were only able to move in to the firehouse because the city had closed it down. If you’re planning to start your own ghost busting business, the ideal location for your headquarters may soon show up on the real estate market.

The Coolest Locksmith Shop in New York City

Posted by Scout

From http://www.scoutingny.com/

 

Chances are, you’ve noticed Greenwich Locksmiths in your travels through the West Village. It occupies a small storefront just south of Commerce Street on one of the stranger parcels of land in Manhattan…

And though it’s been in business since 1968, it really hasn’t changed all that much. Compare the recent picture above to one taken in the 1980′s…

Then, last week, I received a letter from attentive reader Jonathan Burr, urging me to take a closer look at the building, as something had changed. I went by today – and was absolutely blown away.

From a distance, it looks like a bunch of golden squiggles and spirals have been added, snaking whimsically across the facade. But get a little closer and you’ll find the real magic…

The new design is made up entirely of keys:

Literally thousands…

…and thousands…

…and thousands of keys, twisting into wonderful assortment of swoops and twirls.

The key facade was designed and installed entirely by owner Phil Mortillaro back in October, and I can’t tell you how beautiful it is up close.

It almost feels like the locksmith version of a Pollock painting – tens of thousands of keys seemingly strewn about haphazardly, yet in the mess, patterns emerge.

More spirals by the awning:

In the top corner:

Even the inside of the door got the key treatment…

I love the spiral below, almost like a bronze-colored licorice wheel -

…around the mailbox…

One enormous key overhead…

…and more on the side:

Feeling tired? Have a seat on Mortillaro’s hand-made chair out front…

…which has gotta be one of the coolest chairs in New York (if not necessarily the most comfortable!):

The seat:

Mortillaro has apparently been looking to make his building more distinct for quite some time. On the Greenwich Locksmiths website, I came across a NY Times article revealing that, in 1991, Mortillaro reached out to an architect to redesign the facade. “What can I do with this place? It looks like any building on Queens Boulevard, I’m proud to be an American, I’d like you to make this a real American building.”

The architect came up with this:

Holy…crap. The Landmarks Preservation Commission gave its unanimous approval, and according to the article, Mortillaro was set to begin construction in 1992…but ultimately, he decided against it. “It would have been more Disney World,” he said in an interview.

I for one would have loved to see that transformation, but I’m just as happy with Mr. Mortillaro’s gorgeous key art. I urge you to check it out next time you’re in the West Village.

And while there, why not get a key made? Now more than 40 years at it, Mr. Mortillaro is a Village institution, and is said to be one of the best in the business. Apparently, a sunglasses store offered to buy the building to “help him retire,” but he declined. “This is retirement to me…When I die, this will go too.”

Special thanks again to reader Jonathan Burr for pointing this out. Be sure to check out his writings on beer for TheDailyMeal.com.

-SCOUT

The Twenty Hilarious Historic Photos of New York City

by: Raju
from: http://smashingusa.com/


The New York City is one of the most popular city in United States, officially named the City of New York, and the most densely populated major city in North America. The city is at the center of international finance, politics, entertainment, and culture, and is one of the world’s major global cities with a virtually unrivaled collection of museums, galleries, media outlets, international corporations, and stock exchanges. In 1524 the first European explorer enters New York Harbor.

An old woman carrying a heavy load on Lafayette St. February 1912.


Camel cigarette advertisement. Times Square, Feb 1943.

Chorus girls arriving in New York City, from England, in 1926. George Grantham Bain.

View from 27th floor. December 1931.

Clam seller in Mulberry Bend. Around 1900.

Gramercy Park, Manhattan. Check out the decorative ironwork. Photographed by Berenice Abbott. November 27, 1935.

Grand Central Terminal. October 1941.

Italian Festa.

A girl carrying kimonos. Thompson St, February 1912.

Suffragettes on way to Boston. George Grantham Bain Collection.

A row of hanging oppossums.

Produce market on Washington Street. 1952.

52nd St. and E. River. December 1931.

School children around May poles in Central Park.

S.S. Coamo leaving New York. December 1941.

Rear view of tenement, 134 1/2 Thompson Street. Lewis Wickes Hine. February 1912.

The Mall, Central Park. Around 1905.

View from Empire State Building to Chrysler Building and Queensboro Bridge. January 1932.

Washington Market, 1917.

Huts made of salvaged materials. Notice the baby carriage. Photographed by Berenice Abbott. October 25, 1935.

source

Estates and Cribs: The $150 Million Home and More

Even if you can't afford these celebrity digs, you can check 'em out here.

Click here for a look at this Real Estate Porn

New York's 'skinniest' house on sale for a fat $2.7 million

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By The Associated Press

NEW YORK - It's 9.5 feet wide and 42 feet long (2.9 metres wide by 12.8 metres long) and is billed as the narrowest house in New York City. But there's nothing small about its asking price: $2.7 million.

Located in Greenwich Village, the red brick building was built in 1873 and sandwiched between two larger structures.

It's famous for other reasons, too. Corcoran real estate broker Alex Nicholas says anthropologist Margaret Mead and poet Edna St. Vincent Millay once called it home.

The three-story structure boasts plenty of light with large windows in the front and back, and a skylight.

The current owner bought it in 2000 for $1.6 million.

Nicholas says it's a place for someone who wants a little history.

The Canadian Press Photo: A pedestrian takes a picture of the narrowest house in New York City, located at...