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before 9th Avenue gentrified, how did it compare to 8th Avenue in the same spot, between the PABT and about 50th street? if there were hookers, where did they ply their trade since there were no XXX places, cheap bars or hotels on 9th Avenue?
When was back in the day exactly? I lived around there between '93 and '97 and it was pretty rare to see prostitutes. I did see a car break in once (I stopped at a payphone to call the cops) and got verbally harassed several times on my way home through times square by men probably there to visit the 'establishments'. It wasn't terrible though. Still lots of nice restaurants, Restaurant Row seemed just as nice.
Back in 19-ought-22, I had just landed in NYC from our home back in East Luxembourg; a province of old Austroslavia back then. Me and the missus had just sold everything we had to seek a better life in the New World. 5 years, 3 months, and 12 days of rowing from the inner ports of East Luxembourg to what was then Mannahatta, before the President could afford to rearrange the spelling to what you whippersnappers now call Manhattan. Back then Coke was only a penny, and it had real Ecstasy in it. Boy, howdy, you could light up a hooker's face over on Ninth Avenue in a Charleston Minute (which is what we called a New York Minute back then; technically .0012 slower than a NY Minute now, but you get the point).
Were there hookers on what is now Ninth Avenue? You betcha. Why, we used to go over to just watch drunk Japanese tourists wander up and down the street, talking to all the male hookers; gigolos we called them back then (because of the way they resembled the famous French male hooker character from the silent films, Philippe Gigolo). What fun we had, screaming silly phrases at the Japanese tourists and their male prostitutes. TWENTY EIGHT RICHARD! or MARCUS EATS A LOON! or IONA MATES WITH BONOBO CHIMPS! Yes, sir, back in the day we knew what fun was. Men were men, women were women, and children were put to work at the age of 3. Mostly in caves or closets where their small hands would be useful.
Back in the day, NYC was the place to be. No zoning laws back then, as if we were in Ireland! Why, you could get an ice cream cone, walk next store to hire your Ninth Avenue prostitutes, walk next door to eat some Jamaican food sold by a Chinese man, walk next door and file for divorce. You believe that? Well, it's true. Ish.
Not a day goes by I don't pine for NYC back in the day. We had 17 professional sports teams; this was before the Orioles, Dodgers, Mariners, Brewers, Seahawks, and Rams all moved out of the city. Why, you could just walk down the street and accidentally find yourself in the middle of a professional sporting event. "Get out of the effing way, you stupid Luxembourger!" they'd scream at me and I'd just smile. "EAST Luxembourg" I'd remind them. And the game would continue (Rams won 3-2).
Back in the day, you could marry any animal with a pulse and fewer than 3 working stomachs. This, of course, was to keep the wily immigrants from marrying their cows to get tax breaks. Hard working New Yorkers could still marry up to six fowl wives back in the day. Until the filthy Republicrats took it away from us, trying to "clean up the city."
Back in the day, the sun shone on NYC for 22 hours a day on a mandate from the Titans of Industry. As the law said you could only work when the sun was up, plutocrats and aristocrats alike petitioned the state government for more daylight hours. Back in the day, you could sunbathe at 4am, assuming you could get a break from work long enough.
But your question was about where the prostitutes on Ninth Avenue plied their trade. Well, I tells you. In the only place they knew they wouldn't get caught - the police station. Day and night, night and day. You wanted to hire a fine young lady or manfriend to discuss Russian literature or possibly the politics of the time, you just marched down to the cop station with your twopence and hired yourself a pro back in the day.
The intersection of 42nd street was still a little sleazy, a by-product of 42nd. If I recall there were dive/hot sheet hotels on both north corners with sporadic activity. I believe they were spots where some hookers lived.
A few blocks above 42nd things were fairly normal. Typical working class NYC neighborhood, Hell's Kitchen. Ninth Avenue was a 'spice' district with many wholesale shopes selling spices from around the world. It was a true NYC place. A time when NYC had many many districts specialing in all sorts of goods. Rather than buying the typical 'McCormick's crap, you could get REAL imported spices.
Also, there were severl Greek pastry/food specialty shops. At the very first Ninth Ave festival, all the shops set up tables. Originally, it was a 'food' festival. I tasted Baklava (sp?) For the first time.
That is my recollection of the early 80s, when I first discovered that area of the avenue. It is a tradgedy, that such NYC inherent-nence is lost everywhere in the city.
More space for Transplants is NOT a good trade. The city s/h done more to preserve the nature of this city. A nature which developed and lasted for 100 years and more.
All of the above is due and subject to my recollection of almost 30 years ago.
since you're here and you remember 8th avenue well, do you recall the old Biltmore property on the E side of 8th that was right by the fire station?
that block was a row of boarded up buildings but i noticed the doors were always open and there were always people who looked down and out sitting in front of them
was this some kind of shelter?
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hey coltrane
