The Lively Morgue Posts Vintage Photo of New Yorkers Ignoring an Elephant on the Sidewalk in 1980

March 1980: “Please keep walking and react to the elephant,” instructed the man with the megaphone who trailed the creature; apparently, it was for a film. But if this picture is any indication, it seems the window mannequins were more reactive than your average New Yorker, right, who just wanted to get where he was going.“
March 1980: “Please keep walking and react to the elephant,” instructed the man with the megaphone who trailed the creature; apparently, it was for a film. But if this picture is any indication, it seems the window mannequins were more reactive than your average New Yorker, right, who just wanted to get where he was going.“
(photo back)
(photo back)

The Lively Morgue is a daily photo blog from the New York Times in which an original photo from the newspaper's archives is reposted along with tidbits of information gleaned from the historical article it accompanied. Along with a rescan of the original photograph, the backs of each photo are also scanned, giving a behind-the-scenes look at the editorial process of one of the world's best newspapers.

Today's post shows a photograph of a baby elephant hanging out on the sidewalk, while rushed New Yorkers pass by and couldn't care less.

March 1980: “Please keep walking and react to the elephant,” instructed the man with the megaphone who trailed the creature; apparently, it was for a film. But if this picture is any indication, it seems the window mannequins were more reactive than your average New Yorker, right, who just wanted to get where he was going.“

The original article from 1980 has more.

Matt Coneybeare

Matt Coneybeare

Editor in Chief

Matt enjoys exploring the City's with his partner and son. He is an avid marathon runner, and spends most of his time eating, running, and working on cool stuff.

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