Bedpan Alley (Hospital Row or Hospital Land)
The East Side and the West Side of Manhattan have rows of hospital buildings. They are called "Bedpan Alley" (similar-sounding to "Tin Pan Alley") or "Hospital Row" or…
“(I Love to Play Piano) Let Me Bang Your Box” (1954)
"(I Love to Play Piano) Let Me Bang Your Box" is a 1954 novelty song by The Toppers. Robin Byrd (www.robinbyrd.com) plays the song at the end of her Manhattan cable tv sex show, "The…
“I seen my opportunities and I took ‘em” & “Honest graft” (George Washington Plunkitt)
George Washington Plunkitt, a corrupt politician of Tammany Hall days, is known today for the term "honest graft" and the saying "I seen my opportunities and I took 'em."…
“Welcome to New York. Now get out/Now go home” & “New York. It Ain’t Kansas”
T-shirts have helped spread New York slogans. "Welcome to New York. Now go home" appeared on T-shirts in the 1980s. "Welcome to New York. Now get out" was popularized in the…
“If you’re not at the New Yorker, you’re not in New York” (New Yorker hotel)
"If you're not at the New Yorker, you're not in New York" is the recent slogan of the old New Yorker hotel at 34th Street and Eighth Avenue. The New Yorker hotel is now owned by…
“Uptown, not uptight and decidedly New York” (Le Parker Meridien)
Le Parker Meredien hotel at 118 West 57th Street has served New York City with a French touch since 1981. Slogans have included "Traditionally French, decidedly New York" and…
Poetry in Motion
The MTA's "Poetry in Motion" program began in 1992. Poems were placed in the buses and subways, just as ads would be. The poems are either short or cut down to just a few lines. Some…
Amen Corner
The "Amen Corner" was a place in the old Fifth Avenue Hotel, at Madison Square, where people would meet, agree on issues and all say "Amen." It was named in 1897 in honor of…
Unbought and Unbossed
"Unbought and Unbossed" was the title of the late Shirley Chisholm's 1970 autobiography. Chisholm was the first black woman to become a member of Congress. However, former New York…
Sixth Borough (Yonkers, Scarsdale, Fort Lee, Jersey City, Hoboken, Nassau County, Rockland County)
New York City has five boroughs. The consolidation into the borough system took effect on January 1, 1898. Yonkers (in Westchester County) was soon proposed to be New York's sixth borough.…
Yappian Way (Broadway)
"O. Henry" called Broadway the "Yappian Way." It's a pun on Rome's "Appian Way" for the New Yorkers who "yap" (talk excessively). The term has…
Skyscraper
"Skyscraper" was the name of a horse in the late 1700s. "Skyscraper" also meant a large, triangular sky-sail in the late 1700s. In the 1880s, in both Chicago and New York, the…
Cantors’ Carnegie Hall (First Roumanian-American Congregation)
The First Roumanian-American Congregation (Shaarey Shamoyim) at 89 Rivington Street has been called the "Cantors' Carnegie Hall" because of its many famous congregants (mostly in…
“An Intimate Place to Learn, in the Heart of a Great City” (York Prep)
"An Intimate Place to Learn, in the Heart of a Great City" is the slogan of York Prep on West 68th Street. http://www.yorkprep.org/admissions/about/Default.asp?bhcp=1York Preparatory…
Lamb (stock market gullible investor)
The stock market's "bulls" and "bears" originally come from England. However, the stock market "lamb" (gullible investor) comes from New York. The term is not…
The Bronx (Da Bronx)
"The Bronx" has an article, like "the Hague." The area used to be referenced as the towns located on "the Bronx River." The Bronx name (with the article) came up…
Money Train
The 1995 film Money Train showed the little-known car that collects money. Reportedly, it's reached the end of the line. http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/61628.htmBy JEREMY OLSHAN…
New York Guitar Festival
The New York Guitar Festival was started in 1999. It features lots of guitar music, of course. http://www.newyorkguitarfestival.org/January 14 - February 8, 2006Three weeks of spectacular guitar…
Goon
The "goon" started in New England college slang, but it quickly spread to New York City by 1911. (Oxford English Dictionary)goon[Perhaps a shortened form of dial. gooney (GONY 1) 'a…
Idiotarod (with shopping carts!)
The "Iditarod" is the famous dog sled race in Alaska. The "Idiotarod" is a shopping cart race that's been held in New York since 2004.…