Such a Fancy Building
You may remember it from the exterior shots in Single White Female, the 1990s thriller starring Jennifer Jason Leigh, but the Ansonia has been a landmark anchoring the Upper West Side at 74th and Broadway for more than 100 years. The Beaux-Arts style building was designed by Graves and Duboy for builder William Earle Dodge Stokes from 1899 to 1904 and is considered an Historical Treasure and is protected as such.Historically a musical building in its heyday the Ansonia served as home to Igor Stravinsky and members of the New York Philharmonic and Metropolitan Opera. During the gritty 1960s and 70s the Ansonia served as home to the Continental Baths where Bette Midler and Barry Manilow famously performed together and started their partnership.
The building is in the news once again, this time for a roach infestation of "Biblical proportions". A couple, Alan Arkin (not the actor) and Suzanne Bagert, who rent a one-bedroom apartment (far below market value) on the 14th floor are suing the building management over the infestation which they claim has "rendered their apartment completely unfit to live in." They have been forced to sleep with their lights on, as roaches have been known to cover the floor, walls, ceiling and draperies.
Ew. Only in New York.
Labels: History, New Yorkana, Only In New York
posted by Michael @ 8:14 AM
6 Comments:
Ew is right. Now I'm going to be thinking about that all day.
That is such a beautiful building. When I saw it I thought - Europe! (Sorry, not very up on NYC. I'm getting there.)
Anyway, double ew.
Yuck! I hate roaches almost as much as spiders!
Ohh, donnie ... you had to mention spiders? In the fall? When my porch light has been burned out all week because I refuse to stick my hand anywhere that there are large hungry spiders?
Great. Now I'm not going to sleep AT ALL. :)
oh my gosh, how utterly disgusting, and such a beautiful building too.
Such a gorgeous building, but as they say in the neighborhood, "Oy vey!"
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