Many
New Yorkers would prefer to forgo “staple” New York experiences like
visiting Lady Liberty or the Empire State Building in favor of being
mugged. However, on a recent Saturday, a few friends and I signed up to
meet one another for the first time and take a stroll through Times
Square’s little sister, Soho. And to our surprise, the outing led us to
discover one or two gems that no self-respecting NYC resident should
miss. Our first stop was the Animazing Gallery (461 Broome St.). This
place is to 20th-century illustration what the Met is to archeology;
there are pieces of work in this space that will give you goose bumps.
It houses everything from original Disney cels from Alice in Wonderland
and Looney Tunes art to original works by Shel Silverstein and Charles
Addams. Watercolor surrealist Daniel Merriam’s work graces many of
Animazing’s walls and was second only to their collection of Peanuts
material. Even if you weren’t a Peanuts lover (it’s absurd, but such
people exist) you’d need an icy, black heart to not be shaken by the
original. The best part of Animazing is the enthusiasm of its
caretakers. These people live and breathe their collection and seem
only too happy to impart knowledge on interested visitors. The gallery
director happened to be there on our Saturday, and while I’m certain he
is always a gentleman, I attribute his extreme generosity (letting us
peek at Calvin and Hobbes and Winnie the Pooh originals) to the
matchless charm and beauty of our group.
After a quick bite at
Lucky Strike (59 Grand St.), we made our way to the basement of the
Soho Playhouse (15 Vandam St.) to what they call the Huron Club. It was
here that we met a man who is banned from every casino on the planet.
The Englishman, con-man, magician and prankster, Simon Lovell, was
performing his one-man show, Unusual Hobbies, for a small and
fairly unresponsive crowd, teaching us how to acquire goods and
services without the hassle of paying for them. I asked Lovell for
further advice, like what happens when a bet is made and the other
party won’t pay up? “That doesn’t happen,” he said. “Never make the bet
until the money is on the table.”
When asked if he’d ever run into unappreciative gamblers (or victims), he simply pointed to a few scars on his face.
“I’ve had my share of rumbles.”
As
impressive as the show was (the man can deal a perfect poker hand from
a shuffled deck by feel alone), it is certainly not for people with a
sense of decency.
It was for these reasons that a few sickos
in this party (myself included) loved it, but much of the audience
wasn’t laughing. Between mind-bending feats of invisible dexterity,
Lovell would target audience members in natural British fashion,
pointing out characteristics both physical and otherwise that
politeness stops many of us from mentioning. If your skin is thick and
you want to see what cards can do when a god is touching them, check it
out. The exploration ended with an unplanned trip to the Fat Cat (183
W. 10th St.). My crew serendipitously bumped into another CityDusk
group in the middle of a game of ping-pong. Several beers later— BAM!—I
had eight new Facebook friends.
It was not long ago that if a
person were to tell me that I could find something other than Chanel or
frustration down in Soho, I would have mistaken this person for an
idiot.That’ll teach me. If you’d like to be a part of the dizzying
array of upcoming adventures with Michael and Allison or other writers
go to CityDusk.com. — by Michael Bottomley
