Viewing NYC Articles Categorized Under Old New York

[VIDEO] Before Gentrification in New York: Clayton Patterson’s Lower East Side

2026-03-13T12:00:00-04:00

Get a raw look at a bygone era with photographer Clayton Patterson, who documented the untamed streets of the Lower East Side before it was transformed by gentrification. In this candid reflection, Patterson discusses how crime and the mafia once inadvertently acted as a chaotic form of neighborhood protection, keeping outsiders at bay until the area was sanitized for real estate development. He argues that while leaders like Giuliani cleaned up the streets, they failed to address corruption at higher levels, merely shifting the drug trade rather than eliminating it. Additionally, Patterson touches on his attempts at American-made manufacturing and shares his perspective on the impact of the prison industrial complex on local communities.

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[WATCH] 12 Things From 1960s New York That No Longer Exist

2025-11-20T12:00:00-05:00

You could grab a hot meal from a wall, ride a train above Manhattan, and lose hours flipping through records in Times Square — all before lunch. That New York? It's gone. In this video, we explore 12 forgotten pieces of NYC you’ll never see again. From the neon chaos of St. Marks to the silence of a newspaper strike, these moments didn’t just vanish — they were ripped from the city’s soul.

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[WATCH] What Living in 1970s New York City Was Really Like

2025-11-08T12:00:00-05:00

New York City in the 1970s was filthy, dangerous, and completely unpredictable. 🚇💥 Crime ruled the streets, Times Square was a neon-lit jungle of vice, and the subway? A graffiti-covered nightmare where getting mugged was just part of the ride. The city was on the verge of collapse—bankrupt, lawless, and abandoned by the government.

But despite the chaos, NYC had an energy that today’s polished city could never replicate. Punk rock was screaming from CBGB, disco was taking over Studio 54, and hip-hop was being born in the Bronx. It was a city of extremes—both terrifying and electrifying.

What was it really like to live in this version of New York? Let’s take a trip back to the gritty, dangerous, and unforgettable streets of 1970s NYC. 🌆💀

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[WATCH] The Building of a Community: a Modern Documentary on Lower East Side Culture, Activism and Community

2025-01-16T12:00:00-05:00

The Building of a Community is a documentary produced by Colectivo Piloto and the Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space about activist history and community in the Lower East Side.

With its long and continuing history as a haven for immigrants, artists, musicians, poets, and political activists, the Lower East Side has been a cultural incubator since its earliest days. Ideas, movements, trends and customs that derive from either old or new world cultures, or both, emerged and radiated from here.

Check out the project page for more info on The Building of a Community.

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[VIDEO] Clean Streets, a Touching Animated Short About 2 Long-Time Sanitation Worker Partners in the West Village

2023-08-12T12:00:00-04:00

StoryCorps is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in Brooklyn that aims to instruct and inspire people to record each others' stories in sound.

Many of their recorded stories end up becoming animated, like this one entitled Clean Streets, in which two long-time partners recount fondly on their time together working as garbage collectors for the Department of Sanitation in the West Village.

Sanitation workers Angelo Bruno and Eddie Nieves worked together for nearly ten years on the same garbage route in Manhattan's West Village and became fixtures in the community. After 31 years on the job, Angelo retired. At StoryCorps, he talked with Eddie about the unexpected lessons he learned along the way and what he still misses about the job.

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[VIDEO] Check Out This Collection of Vintage NYC Video Clips from the 1970s

2023-05-01T12:01:00-04:00

Footage of NYC, 1970's - Clips from The Kino Library.

The music in the video is Kool & the Gang, Street Corner Symphony (1974)

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[WATCH] Here Is How Much Central Park Has Recovered From Its Gritty Past

2022-12-14T12:00:00-05:00

It's no secret that 1980's New York City was not a very nice place to be. The streets were filled with trash and graffiti, crime was rampant, public areas were underfunded and neglected. One of these neglected areas was Central Park, though you would not know it today. For almost 4 decades, the Central Park Conservancy has overseen the recovery, restoration, and conservation of our City's crown-jewel greenspace. In this short video from the New York Post, take a look at just how much the conservancy has turned the park around.

Central Park has come a long way, baby. Stunning pics released by the Central Park Conservancy show New York’s iconic, 840-acre plot during the bleak ‘80s era.

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[WATCH] Restored Camcorder Footage Shows 1986 Times Square

2022-04-06T12:00:00-04:00

USA NIGHT EXT Times Square, New York. Pull Back From Neon Advertising Sign To Reveal New York Times Square With Traffic Etc. 43rd street, '42nd street' musical at theatre, broadway. 43Rd Street Night Showing Neons Of Theatre Signs Including 42Nd St. Panning To Traffic And Cabs Etc. Various shots, Times Square at night, neon signs, 'Panasonic', 'Canon', 'JVC'. 1970s New York street at night, skyscrapers in silhouette, Empire State Building, L/A Traffic Passing With Skyscrapers Lit Up In Background. (New York City Centre) - Night. 1986 Times Square At Night Neons Signs And Traffic Etc.

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[VIDEO] Willy Spiller's Vintage Photos Show a Dangerous New York City Subway in 1970s and 1980s

2022-02-20T12:00:00-05:00

During the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, New York City’s subway system was one of the most dangerous places a person could be. Lucky for those of us who never had the chance to see it, Swiss photographer Willy Spiller was there, and the dark and atmospheric series of photos he took has now come to be known as Hell On Wheels.

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[WATCH] Dead Ringer: New Yorker Short Film Paying Homage To New York City's Forgotten Pay Phones

2022-01-31T16:00:00-05:00

Dead Ringer is a short film from directors Alex Kliment, Dana O'Keefe and Michael Tucker which debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival to much fanfare a few years back.

There are only four outdoor phone booths left in all of New York City—this is a late night conversation with one of them.

Check out the short film's accompanying article in the New Yorker for more.

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