The Four Hundred
According to Ward McAllister (1827-1895), in all of New York City, there are only 400 people who really matter. It was later claimed that this "400" was the number of people that Mrs.…
Big Apple of the Midwest (Columbus, Ohio nickname)
The Friendly Firehouse (Ladder Co. 159, Brooklyn)
Ladder Co. 159 on East 48th Street near Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn has been called the "Friendly Firehouse" since at least the late 1990s, when a yellow smiley face was painted on the…
The Fumble or Miracle at the Meadowlands (1978 Giants fumble)
The New York Giants were leading the Philadelphia Eagles, 17-12, and all Giants quarterback Joe Pisarcik had to do was down the ball one last time to end the game. He tried to hand the ball off to…
The Glamis Comedy (name used to avoid the “Macbeth” cruse)
William Shakespeare's play Macbeth includes witches, and theater tradition has it that the play is cursed. Saying the play's name or its lines (outside of an actual performance) is said…
The Great Mentioner
The media always comes up with a handful of familiar names as potential candidates for the Democratic and Republican presidential nominations. Who decides on this small group of names? Russell…
The Great Place (Fort Hood nickname)
The military base of Fort Hood, outside of Killeen, has been called "The Great Place" since at least 1987, when a book was published titled Fort Hood, Texas: the great place. A local sign…
The Great Saunter (32-mile walk around Manhattan)
"The Great Saunter" is the Shorewalkers name for its 32-mile walk around Manhattan's rim. The New York City Marathon, by comparison, is a mere 26.2 miles long. The Shorewalkers…
The Greatest City in the World
New York City has long been called by many "the greatest city in the world." The television show "The Late Show with David Letterman" broadcasts from the Ed Sullivan Theater, at…
The Greatest Little Town in Texas (Ballinger slogan)
The city of Ballinger, in Runnels County, has been called "The Greatest Little Town in Texas." Ballinger was called the "greatest little town in the world" by some residents in…
The House that Herring Built (Russ & Daughters nickname)
Russ & Daughters is an appetizing store located at 179 East Houston Street, on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, that opened in 1914. The Russ & Daughters nickname of "The House that…
The International Magazine of Events (TIME backronym)
Time magazine was founded in 1923 in New York City. It has sometimes been claimed (since at least 2007) that the name Time stands for "The International Magazine of Events." A search of…
The Jews’ Highway (Williamsburg Bridge)
The Williamsburg Bridge connects the Lower East Side of Manhattan with Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The bridge opened in December 1903; an article in the New York Tribune in April 1904 commented on the…
The Kid from the Big Apple (two films, 2015 and 2017)
The Kid from the Big Apple is a movie that won four awards at the 7th Macau International Movie Festival on December 13, 2015, and was released in Malaysia and Singapore on March 10, 2016. The plot…
The Kid from the Big Apple (two films, 2015 and 2017)
The Kid from the Big Apple is a movie that won four awards at the 7th Macau International Movie Festival on December 13, 2015, and was released in Malaysia and Singapore on March 10, 2016. The plot…
The Last Word (cocktail)
"The Last Word" is a classic cocktail, said by Ted Saucier's Bottoms Up (1951) to have originated in the 1920s by bartender Frank Fogarty, at the Detroit Athletic Club. The cocktail…
The Line That Time Forgot (Second Avenue Subway)
The Second Avenue Subway (under Manhattan's Second Avenue) has been proposed since the 1920, but has had many false starts. One nickname of the Second Avenue Subway has been "the greatest…
The Little Chapel That Could (St. Paul’s); The Little Church That Could (St. Nicholas)
St. Paul's was still standing after September 11, 2001, helping the victims in that tragedy. It quickly earned the nickname "Little Church That Could" or "Little Chapel That…
The Louvre of Lox (Russ & Daughters nickname)
Russ & Daughters is an appetizing store located at 179 East Houston Street, on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, that opened in 1914. The Sunday Times of London on December 22, 2002, dubbed…
The Mighty Wurlitzer (CIA “playing” the media)
Frank Wisner (1909-1965) the Central Intelligence Agency's deputy director, was responsible for Operation Mockingbird in the 1950s to spread propaganda through the media. He boasted that the…
The Most Jewish Place on Earth (Brooklyn)
New York City is home to over one million Jews, and most live in the borough of Brooklyn. "The New York borough of Brooklyn is the most Jewish place on Earth outside of Israel" was posted…