Big Appler (inhabitant of the Big Apple)

“Big Appler” is the name of an inhabitant of New York City—“the Big Apple.” The name “Big Appler” has been cited in print since at least 1976. In 1937-38, “Big Appler” referred to a participant in the then-popular Big Apple dance.
 
An inhabitant of the Big Apple has also been called a “Big Appleite” (cited in print since at least 1977).
 
 
Google News Archive
12 September 1937, Charleston (SC) News and Courier, pg. 7B, col. 5 ad:
“BIG APPLE” CONTEST and a “BIG APPLE” Exhibition
By 3 Selected Teams of Colored “BIG APPLERS”
 
10 November 1937, Kingsport (TN) Times, pg. 2:
MAYOR IS BIG APPLER.—
WHITESBURG, Ky., Nov. 10. (AP)—Mayor-elect William (Bill) Collins is not only 21 years old, but also—admittedly—a devotee of the terpsichorean razzle-dazzle known as the “big apple.”
 
“Can’t beat it for relaxation,” he says.
 
7 January 1938, Trenton (NJ) Evening Times, “New York: Day and Night,” pg. 12, col. 4:
The “Big Apple” craze recently received some heavy promotion from Arthur Murray, local dance teacher.
(...)
The professionals set up a terrific howl, and Murray—who has been collecting commissions on about 200 “big applers” says he’ll discontinue the supply.
 
15 August 1938, Riverside (CA) Daily Press, “Title Bout May Yet Keep Out of Red,” pg. 11, col. 3:
Yet the mental big applers of the New York state athletic commission have ruled that Henry’s welter title is not at stake.
       
26 March 1976, Chicago (IL) Tribune, “Settled Mets’ centerfield problem” by David Condon, pg. C3:
With the Mets he immediately hit .294, a lifetime high, plus giving the Big Applers their “most reliable center field patrol in history.
 
grist
Big Applers breathe easy
by Maywa Montenegro
23 May 2007 1:31 PM
Starting in 2008, every new yellow taxi purchased by the city of New York will be a hybrid vehicle, according to an announcement yesterday by Mayor Bloomberg. By 2012, the entire fleet—some 13,000 cabs—will have been replaced with a mixture of Toyota Priuses, Highlander Hybrids, Lexus RX 400h’s, and Ford Escapes.
 
myNewOrleans.com
This Weekend in New Orleans: What Year? When?
Dec. 30, 2011-Jan. 2, 2012
Alex Gecan
A NOLA’s New Year’s Eve
This ain’t Times Square, baby. Beginning at 9 p.m. in Jackson Square, we show those Big Applers how the Big Easy does a New Year celebration.