In thirty days is the centennial of American entry in World War I on April 6. To mark the occasion, beginning today I am going to post a daily countdown with a different sketch by Private C. LeRoy Baldridge. He was a sketch artist in the war and his work was widely distributed. I am going to post these images daily until April 6 on my Tumbler, Twitter, and Facebook Page. Here is a little Continue Reading →
Cypress Hills National Cemetery is a place that I’ve spent many hours visiting, researching, and giving walking tours. With the centennial of World War I coming up, I’m doing more at the landmark burial ground on the Brooklyn-Queens border. I had a lot of leftover material for my upcoming book World War I New York: A Guide to the City’s Enduring Ties to the Great War. I gave some of it to a blog devoted Continue Reading →
I am happy to announce that my latest book has been nominated for an Apple Award, presented by the Guides Association of New York City. This is a big honor for me and my book, The Governors Island Explorer’s Guide: Adventure and History in New York Harbor. This is the second consecutive year I have been nominated for an Apple Award; last year I was also up for the award for The Algonquin Round Table Continue Reading →
On Saturday I debuted my W.C. Fields History Walking Tour as part of Fields Fest, a 6-week celebration of the life of the great comedian. Dorothy Parker was a huge fan of Fields. In my book The Algonquin Round Table New York: A Historical Guide, I was really happy to be able to include a photo of Parker and Fields together. One of the parts of the tour I wanted to do, but didn’t for Continue Reading →
It was a huge relief to submit to my editor Amy Lyons the last photos and the map information for my upcoming book, World War I New York: A Guide to the City’s Enduring Ties to the Great War. It is due out March 1, 2017, from Globe Pequot Press. They published my last two guidebooks, The Governors Island Explorer’s Guide and The Algonquin Round Table New York: A Historical Guide. The new book is Continue Reading →
I am signing copies of my new book The Governors Island Explorer’s Guide (Globe Pequot Press) on Saturday and Sunday, May 28 and 29, from 11 AM to Noon both days. The location is a national historic landmark, a city landmark: Castle Williams on Governors Island. The fort is part of the Governors Island National Monument and is run by the National Park Service. The rangers have free tours of Castle Williams. I’ll be in Continue Reading →
All of my book research is starting to cross over, and I am reminded of this today because it is the ninty-eighth anniversary of the death of Goldwin Starrett, the young architect of the Algonquin Hotel, in 1918. It was only this month that I started really reading a lot more about the influenza pandemic of 1918-1919, a global disaster that killed 21.5 million worldwide, with 675,000 deaths in the United States. I’m currently writing Continue Reading →
Last night I was proud to have an intimate launch party for my new book The Governors Island Explorer’s Guide. It was held in Red Hook, Brooklyn, within sight of the Island itself. The venue was Kevin’s Red Hook, 277 Van Brunt Street. I picked the restaurant because this is who runs Little Eva’s on Governors Island Liggett Terrace, my favorite restaurant on the Island. All of my walking tours end here with cold ones Continue Reading →
My first public walking tour of 2016 will be on April 30 at Noon at the Algonquin Hotel. The Algonquin Round Table comes alive in the only New York walking tour devoted to the famed literary group. The 2-hour walk celebrates Dorothy Parker, Robert Benchley, George S. Kaufman, Harpo Marx, Edna Ferber, Franklin P. Adams, Heywood Broun, Harold Ross, Robert Sherwood, Marc Connelly and the rest of the Vicious Circle. Advance tickets on sale now. Continue Reading →
I’m happy to say that today my sixth book comes out, The Governors Island Explorer’s Guide. I started writing it in 2010, but put it aside because there were so many changes taking place on the Island. If it had come out a few years ago, it would already have been out of date. But thanks to my editor at Globe Pequot, Amy Lyons, we got the book completed in near-record time. I’m glad the Continue Reading →