Cork
"Corks" were the transit cops, who work underground and pop to the surface. There used to be transit police and housing police and the police, but Mayor Rudy Giuliani merged all three…
“86” (not from Chumley’s or Empire State Building)
"Eighty six," in restaurant lingo, means to be out of an item. It is sometimes claimed that it comes from Chumley's, at 86 Bedford Street, or that it comes from the Empire State…
Garbagia Land
"Garbagia" (or "Garbagia Land") is the Harlem River Waterfront Park in the Bronx. The name - from "garbage" - is, of course, not official.…
Yuppie
"Yuppie" (young urban professional) is still used in New York. The term became a sensation in 1984. However, it appears that "yuppie" did not originate in New York.…
Taxes (Take the commercial rent tax, please!)
You want taxes? We've got a tax just for you! Here are the business taxes: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dof/html/business/business_tax_types.shtmlTax Types & DescriptionsBanking Corporation Tax…
Dirty Image (and illegal postering)
16 June 2005, New York Daily News, "City Washes Its Hands of '2nd Dirtiest' Ranking" by Jose Martinez, pg. 4:WE'VE WIPED AWAY the crime, but not the grime. A new survey in…
Forgotten Borough (Staten Island)
Staten Island is often called "the forgotten borough." It's isolated and doesn't have the population numbers of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens or the Bronx. The term…
Designers’ Row
Several streets claim to be "Designers' Row." All three can be justified. The block on East 58th Street (also East 59th Street), between Third and Second Avenues, has an official…
“I’d demand a recount” (William F. Buckley, Jr., Conservative, if elected mayor in 1965)
William F. Buckley, Jr. ran in 1965 for mayor of New York City. As a Conservative. He did get about 13% of he vote. He was asked what he would do if he won the race. Buckley issued his classic…
Broadway Brownie
"Broadway brownie" has been trademarked by Whole Foods, but other establishments have sold it. It's just a name. Is it different than any other brownie? (Google)Southern…
Taste of Chinatown
The "Taste of Chinatown" is a recent event. It was held in 2004 and 2005 and appears that it will be held annually. It features mostly Chinese food, of course.…
Lindy Hop
The "Lindy Hop" is said to have started at the Savoy Ballroom, on Lenox Avenue in Harlem. The term "Lindy Hop" came into almost immediate use after Charles Lindbergh's…
FIRE (Finance, Insurance, Real Estate) & ICE (Intellectual, Cultural, Educational)
"FIRE" stands for "Finance, Insurance, and Real Estate." It's New York City's largest industry. It's not known who first coined the "FIRE" acronym…
“Bubbles are for bathtubs” (housing bubble)
Housing bubble? What housing bubble? Do you mean that the space of a closet doesn't normally cost half a million dollars? "Bubbles" are for bathtubs" is a slogan that is making…
Flip Tax
The "flip tax" is also called the "transfer tax." It started in the 1970s, with the co-op apartment boom. People who sold or "flipped" their co-ops would have to pay a…
New York City Biathlon, Triathlon
New York CIty has a "biathlon" and a "triathlon." The "triathlon" was organized by Daniel Doctoroff, the man also behind New York's 2012 Olympic bid.…
SoBro (South Bronx)
"SoBro" is the "South Bronx." The nickname "SoBro" had been in various uses since at least the 1970s and 1980s, but became a trendy nickname in 2005. SoBROAbout…
Rucker basketball tournament (“each one teach one”)
The Rucker basketball tournament in Harlem was conceived in the 1940s and 1950s by Holcombe Rucker, a parks department worker who died of cancer in 1965 at age 38. His motto was "each one…
Reggae Carifest
The annual "Reggae Carifest" has been held in Forest Hills, Queens and Randall's Island and Coney Island. It's been an annual event since 1998.…
Shakespeare in the Park (New York Shakespeare Festival)
Joseph Papp (1921-1991) founded the New York Shakespeare Festival and "Shakespeare in the Park" in the 1950s. Free Shakespeare in the summer in Central Park is now a ritual, but Papp…