The Death of Brooklyn

What does it mean? Brooklyn died a long time ago?

F.I.B spends some time at the Bay Parkway subway station a couple times a week. For those that don't know it overlooks Washington cemetery. The cemetery is densely packed with the tombstones on land divided in half by the subway/Bay Parkway and bordered by a sanitation station, housing and ironically a "Wholesale Liquidators". This particular tombstone is a mystery to me. Most of the people buried here are jewish, going back to the early 1900's. The newer stones have photographic images on them, mostly Russian Jews.
Reserve your spot now!

R.I.P - Astroland.

I guess as Lawrence Ferlinghetti wrote there is a part of Cony Island that is of the mind and I feel that is a major part of it's mystique. Hopefully that spirit will not be overtaken by Niketown although it wouldn't suprise me if some corporation would co-opt the beat poem into their ad campaign eventually.

Parked on Hoyt Street

Vampira 1921-2008

I'm going extremely off topic here but I'm a little sad to hear that Vampira born Maila Nurmi in Finland went to the otherside recently.

I've always had a fascination for her. I dug her Charles Adamsy beatniky vibe. This years Coney Island Film Festival screened a fantastic documentary on the golden age of television horror hosts called American Scary which I saw on opening night. I mentioned in my blog post that I hounded the producer, Sandy Clark, for more info on Vampira. I actually entertained this little fantasy (and my friends can attest to it), that I was going to go to L.A and meet her. She had ended up somewhat destitute and was apparantly easy to approach despite being an american icon. There is not one book written on her life and I wanted to write it. Well I missed the boat on that one, but you know, it probrably would have remained a movie in my head anyway. I read in her obit that her friends and fans are trying to raise money to bury her in "Hollywood Forever" cemetery. I hope Tim Burton steps in and takes care of it, he OWES her BIG TIME!

Her death wasn't really big news to the world so I just thought I'd say something.

Sweet Dreams Vampira!

Motorcycles, Tattoos, Bars and Beatniks

I went out to Coney Island today and checked out the "Motorcycle and Tattoo Show" and I have to say it was pretty tame. I went a few years ago and it was a much bigger and wilder scene. I guess all the bikers were riding around in the Catskills this weekend as the weather has been stunning.

More interesting was that I was in Ruby's having a cocktail with a friend and struck a conversation with Elly Simmons who is in NYC on vacation and happens to be the daughter of Richard Simmons who owns Specs' Bar in San Francisco. F.I.B did two years in San Francisco to see what it was like outside the tri-state area in the early 1990's, so I'm familiar with this historic bohemian/beat bar in North Beach located in an alley across from Lawrence Ferlinghetti's famous City Lights bookstore. Being a fan of all things beatnik, I was thrilled to make her aquaintance. Elly is in the process of making a documentary on her father and his historic watering hole, which, at the age of 78 he still manages, so watch out for it!

You have to love a bar that has cards for the ladies that say "SIR, THE LADY DOES NOT WELCOME YOUR ATTENTION." These cards are at Specs' not at Ruby's!