vintage mural ads & other signage by Frank H. Jump & friends
© Iman R. Abdulfattah
Previously posted on FAB:
An Avenue B Mainstay © Iman R. Abdulfattah
A fine interview, Making It, can be found at The Local East Village – September 19, 2012. Apparently opening its doors in 1976 on Avenue D, then moving to 208 Avenue B five years later, finally landing at 205 Avenue B, owner Petra Oliveiri tells a story of the gentrification of Loisada and the resilience of a Puerto Rican bodega.
© Iman R. Abdulfattah
History of Nom Wah
Nom Wah Tea Parlor first opened at 13-15 Doyers Street back in 1920 as a bakery and a tea parlor. For most of the 20th century, Nom Wah Tea Parlor served as a neighborhood staple offering fresh chinese pasteries, steamed buns, dim sum and tea. After it lost its lease at 15 Doyers in 1968, it moved into a brand new kitchen at 11 Doyers Street and has occupied 11-13 Doyers Street ever since. Nom Wah is most famous for its homemade lotus paste and red bean filling for moon cake during the Chinese autumn festival. It is also famous for its almond cookie. – For more see the Nom Wah Tea Parlor Website!
© Iman R. Abdulfattah
According to the website Found Ampersands, the Trowel & Square Ballroom “was operated by the Order of Eastern Star, the Female part of the Masons.” Looking to the right of the ballroom’s sign, you can see the Mason’s sign for Queen Esther, Grand Chapter.
Some searches also reveal that up until December 2012, some hip-hop events were advertised on Facebook that were hosted at the ballroom.
Google search
Also at Scouting NY, are some great interior shots of the ballroom, within what is now the Salvation Army thriftstore, which has apparently lost its lease.
One of the oddest things I found about the ballroom was a reference in an April 2011 online article about child adoption in UK’s The Spectator called Harlem Renaissance:
The first thing I see is a glimmer of Harlem’s happy past: a painted sign for the Trowel and Square Ballroom, a remnant from the days of Billie Holiday, Bojangles and 80 per cent employment.
Happy past? Count the assumptions in this quote.
© Iman R. Abdulfattah
….the Apollo probably exerted a greater influence upon popular culture than any other entertainment venue in the world. For blacks it was the most important cultural institution–not just the greatest black theatre, but a special place to come of age emotionally, professionally, socially, and politically. Ted Fox, “Showtime at the Apollo”
Hotel Theresa: the Waldorf of Harlem – Trivia-
Fidel Castro and his staff came to New York in 1960 when he was to address the United Nations. They first checked in to the Shelburne Hotel at Lexington Avenue and 37th Street but moved to the Hotel Theresa when the Shelburne demanded $10,000 for alleged damage that included cooking chickens in their rooms. The Theresa was the beneficiary of the worldwide publicity when Nikita Khrushchev, the premier of the Soviet Union; Jawaharlal Nehru, the prime minister of India; and Malcom X, all visited Castro there. Castro’s entourage rented eighty rooms for a total of $800 per day. – Famous Hotels dot org
© Iman R. Abdulfattah
This old dive in Harlem has been shuttered for about as long as it had been open. Yet Minton’s Playhouse will always be known as the cradle of bebop, where the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk and Charlie Parker jammed into the night….Efforts to revive Minton’s Playhouse, on West 118th Street in Harlem, have sputtered throughout the years. – from Hoping a Good Meal Revives a Harlem Jazz Spot By Kia Gregory for The New York Times, Published: January 6, 2013
Up At Minton’s (1980) taken by Iman R. Abdulfattah @ Flomenhaft Gallery
Romare Bearden (September 2, 1911 – March 12, 1988) was an African-American artist and writer. He worked in several media including cartoons, oils, collage. Born in Charlotte, North Carolina, Bearden moved to New York City at a very young age and went on to graduate from NYU in 1935. – Wikipedia
There is lilt
Tempo
Cadence
A language of darkness
Darkness known
Darkness sharpened at Minton’s
Darkness lightened at the Cotton Club
Sent flying from Abyssinian Baptist
To the Apollo.– Excerpt taken from Walter Dean Myer’s epic poem, Harlem (Caldecott Honor Book) 1997, beautifully illustrated by his son Christopher Myers.
- Harlem, Walter Dean Myers taken from LaGuardia Community College (CUNY) website
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