Maria Sullivan, a recent acquaintance of mine, sent me this image of her mother Jeanne Kottner taken around 1945 in the West Farms section of the Bronx. Maria’s uncle (Jeanne’s brother) was “Taxi Ray Kottner,” a New York City personality who gave cab rides for free and “annoyed the hell out of the TLC” according to Maria.
He knew everything there was to know about New York and people just tipped him as a thank you for his impromptu tours.
This story originally aired May 12, 2006. Since Steve Hartman first met “Taxi Ray,” the cab driver says his life has changed. With all the attention he got from being on TV, he says, his 15 minutes of fame is now up to a full 16 minutes. –
By JOHN KREISER CBSMay 12, 2006, 4:50 PM
Crabby Cabbie: A New York Original
Ray Kottner died in 2008.
