This past Christmas the Clifton Waters Variety Group in Bairnsdale Victoria presented an Old Tyme Music Hall entertainment which deliberately eschewed the tedious glut of Christmas choons and went more for the Knees Up Daisy stuff. One nod to the season was a semi dramatised reading of the O.Henry story, "The Gift of the Magi". I (tt) adapted it and, with the spirit of the author's permission, moved the locale to Melbourne. I was knocked out this week to pass the oldest working tavern in New York - the very place where Mr O. wrote that story.
It was freezing coming back from The Players and the place glowed with copper and glass and gold lettering slightly chipped with age and buffing.
And not only Mr O was inspired but Ludwig Bemelmans wrote the famous childrens' book "Madeline" here as well in 1939. What were they putting in the absinthe??
We have decided to go back to eat.
It looks cosy and maybe we'll knock out a novel before dessert.
Lovely -- thanks for sharing gorgeous history of New York--so rich with hidden jewels. I jammed with Jason Robards' son back in the day-cool cat (like me ; ).
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