“The House That Ruth Built” (Yankee Stadium)
George Herman ("Babe") Ruth (1895-1948) played for the New York Yankees from 1920-1934. Some consider him the greatest baseball player ever. Yankee Stadium opened in 1923. "The House…
Investigating the origins of American words, names, quotations and phrases.
George Herman ("Babe") Ruth (1895-1948) played for the New York Yankees from 1920-1934. Some consider him the greatest baseball player ever. Yankee Stadium opened in 1923. "The House…
Greek historian Herodotus (484 BCE - 430 BCE) is often said to have written in Histories, Book 8, Chapter, 98: "Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night stays these couriers from…
The "express" subway trains skip stops; the "local" trains usually make all stops. The difference is a few minutes. But what to do with those minutes? That has long been the…
"A nickel a shtickel." New York delis used to feature these signs. It meant that they were selling the ends of a salami for five cents. It was a good rhyme and a good business. New York…
"Steak Row" used to be East 45th Street, from Lexington to First Avenue. The defunct Pen and Pencil Restaurant helped to give it that name. However, it is not correct to say that…
Does "carry/hold a torch for someone" come from the Statue of Liberty? All we know for certain is the the phrase was used in Vanity Fair (NY) in 1927. Singers of smoldering music were…
Al Hirschfeld (1903-2003), the Broadway caricaturist, was probably Broadway's longest-running success story. His first theater doodle was in 1926 for the New York Herald Tribune. He soon…
Macy's ("The World's Largest Store," at Herald Square) has held a Thanksgiving Day Parade since 1924, with a suspension during the war years of 1942-1944. In 1986, Macy's…
"Her name was Lola. She was a showgirl." So begins Barry Manilow's 1978 Grammy-winning song, "Copacabana (At the Copa)." The lyrics are by Bruce Sussman and Jack Feldman.…
The America's Cup yacht race used to be located in New York City. In 1851, British yachtsmen challenged the New York Yacht Club to a race. It was won by a New York yacht called…
"Ladies' Day" was the day after New Year's (January 2nd). It was somewhat popular in the 19th century. It appear to have been the only day when women were invited to men's…
The New York Coliseum opened in 1956. It almost immediately became a "white elephant" and was torn down in the 1990s. The Time Warner Center has occupied the Columbus Circle site since…
"A knife and a fork, a bottle and a cork; that's the way to spell New York" is a popular New York City rhyme that dates back to at least 1910. The children's rhyme was used in…
The New York World helped to invent the "cross word puzzle." The New York Times helped to popularize it. American Crossword Puzzle TournamentCrossword puzzles are said to be the most…
Citymeals-on-Wheels and City Harvest are two programs that delivary food to poor, hugnry New Yorkers. I contributed the 1926 "meals on wheels" citations to the Oxford Englaish Dictionary.…
The "bread line" was one of New York's first and most famous of charities. (Oxford English Dictionary)bread-line (orig. U.S.), (a) a queue of poor people waiting to receive bread or…
"I won't go to Macy's any more, more, more" is a New York City "jump rope jingle" that involves Macy's department store. It has been cited in print since at least…
"Butter-and-egg man" has long thought to have been coined by nightclub queen Texas Guinan in 1924. She certainly did popularize it. In 1925, The Butter and Egg Man was the title of a…
McGurk's (or McGuirk's) Suicide Hall at 295 Bowery was torn down in 2005. It used to be a saloon and whorehouse. Several women committed suicide while working there in the 1890s, giving…
"The Citi never sleeps" is a famous Citibank slogan, borrowing on the New York City nickname, "The City That Never Sleeps." Citibank trademarked its slogan in 1978. 1 June 1978,…