33: Son of Sam Begins and a Plane Hits the Empire State Building

A Great Big City — New York City News, History, and Events

• Hudson Yards may be New York's newest neighborhood, but it has already risen to the #2 spot on PropertyShark's list of the city's most expensive neighborhoods

• Way back in Episode 7, we talked about the proposal for a public beach in Manhattan, and this week, the Hudson River Park Trust revealed some renderings of what the park and beach may look like

• 231 years ago on July 26, 1788 — New York becomes the 11th state to join the United States of America

• This week, the city Department of Health detected mosquitoes infected with West Nile virus within the NYC area. July begins the active season for West Nile infections, which are spread via mosquito bites, and no human cases of West Nile have been detected yet, so now is the time to be prepared and protect yourself from mosquitoes if you will be outside. Wear clothing that covers your skin, use a mosquito repellent containing the chemical repellents DEET or Picaridin, or use a natural repellent containing oil of lemon eucalyptus. Be sure to seal around your window air conditioners so that mosquitoes won't have an easy entrance into your home, and use window screens if you'll be leaving windows open. If you'll be traveling overseas, take special precaution to avoid mosquito bites, and consider a vaccination against diseases that are common in the areas where you will be traveling. If you're staying in the city, you can even do your part by calling 311 to report standing water, defined as a place on public or private property where water gathers and remains for more than five days, creating a habitat where mosquitoes may breed.

• 102 years ago on July 28, 1917 — 10,000 people march in the Silent Parade down Fifth Avenue to protest recent violence and riots aimed at Blacks in the South — Learn more about the Silent Parade from the Bowery Boys.

• 3 years ago on August 2, 2016 — Karina Vetrano is attacked and murdered while jogging in Spring Creek Park in Howard Beach, Queens

• 74 years ago on July 28, 1945 — A U.S. Army B-25 bomber hits the Empire State Building, killing the three crew members and 11 people in the building

• 43 years ago on July 29, 1976 — David Berkowitz shoots two young women in the Bronx, beginning the Son of Sam murders that would keep NYC on edge for the next year

• 103 years ago on July 30, 1916 — The Black Tom explosion near Jersey City levels buildings, kills four, and injures hundreds — Read more from the FBI's history of the explosion

• 48 years ago on August 1, 1971 — George Harrison and Ravi Shankar organize the Concert for Bangladesh at Madison Square Garden

• The Straphangers Campaign and TransitCenter had some distinguished awards to hand out to two of the city's bus lines this week: In Manhattan, the M14A, which runs from the Lower East Side to Chelsea along 14th Street, received the award for slowest bus line, achieving an average speed of just 4.3mph. When it comes to reliability, Brooklyn's B15 comes in last place, leaving bus riders wondering when or if the next bus would arrive. The slowest buses in Queens and Staten Island are leaving the other boroughs in the dust, racing down city streets at 6.4 and 7.8 mph respectively.

• Looking back through AGBC history:

• 1 year ago — Revel Brings Electric Moped Rentals to Brooklyn — The pilot program must have been a success, because by May of 2019 they announced that they would be adding 1,000 more electric mopeds to their fleet and expanding their service area.

• 2 years ago — De Blasio Takes a Hit in Latest Polling Numbers; Homelessness a Major Issue — Back in 2017, voters surveyed only gave de Blasio a 50% approval rating and he was hammered on the issue of homelessness, with 63% disapproval on his handling of poverty and homelessness and with 73% of respondents ranking homelessness as a very serious problem. Unfortunately those job approval numbers have only gotten worse, sinking down with each survey until he reached a 42% approval when Quinnipiac last asked the question in an April 2019 poll.

---

A Great Big City has been running a 24-hour newsfeed since 2010, but the AGBC News podcast is just getting started, and we need your support. A Great Big City is built on a dedication to explaining what is happening and how it fits into the larger history of New York, which means thoroughly researching every topic and avoiding clickbait headlines to provide a straightforward, honest, and factual explanation of the news. Individuals can make a monthly or one-time contribution at agreatbigcity.com/support and local businesses can have a lasting impact by supporting local news while promoting products or services directly to interested customers listening to this podcast. Visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more.

AGBC is more than just a news website: It also automatically checks MTA data before morning rush hour and sends out notifications if there are delays on any subway lines, LIRR or MetroNorth trains, and bridges and tunnels. Follow @agreatbigcity on social media to receive the alerts.

---

Park of the day

• Arcilla Playground — 991 TELLER AVENUE, the Bronx — This playground, which is jointly operated by Parks and the Board of Education, has had several names since it was first opened in 1962: JHS 145 Playground, Arturo Toscanini Playground, Clay Playground, and now Arcilla Playground, the Spanish word for "clay"!

Parks Events

• 41st Annual Thunderbird American Indian Powwow

Concert Calendar

• Kirk Franklin with Koryn Hawthorne is playing Beacon Theatre on the Upper West Side on Sunday, July 28th at 8pm.
• Limbo, Pixel Grip, Rare DM @ Baby's All Right, Rare Dm, Limbo, and PIXEL GRIP are playing Baby's All Right on Monday, July 29th.
• Rob Thomas with Abby Anderson are playing Beacon Theatre on the Upper West Side on Monday, July 29th at 8pm.
• Barry Manilow is playing Lunt-Fontanne Theatre in Midtown on Tuesday, July 30th at 7pm.
• Rob Thomas with Abby Anderson are playing Beacon Theatre on the Upper West Side on Tuesday, July 30th at 8pm.
• Snail Mail and Duster are playing Brooklyn Steel on Wednesday, July 31st.
• This Is Not This Heat and This Heat are playing Elsewhere on Wednesday, July 31st.
• Barry Manilow is playing Lunt-Fontanne Theatre in Midtown on Wednesday, July 31st at 7pm.
• Khalid with Clairo is playing Madison Square Garden in Midtown West / Chelsea / Hudson Yards on Wednesday, July 31st at 7pm.
• Lights is playing Bowery Ballroom on the Lower East Side on Wednesday, July 31st at 9pm.
• The Rolling Stones and The Wombats are playing MetLife Stadium on Thursday, August 1st.
• The Summer Slaughter Tour, Cattle Decapitation, Brand of Sacrifice, Carnifex, Lorna Shore, Nekrogoblikon, Rivers of Nihil, and The Faceless are playing (le) poisson rouge on Thursday, August 1st.
• Ben Folds and Violent Femmes are playing The Rooftop at Pier 17 on Thursday, August 1st.
• Duster, Snail Mail, Duster, Sasami, and Snail Mail are playing Webster Hall on Thursday, August 1st.
• Blood Orange and Kelsey Lu, Blood Orange, and Kelsey Lu are playing Lincoln Center on Thursday, August 1st.
• Jonny Couch "Mystery Man" Album Release Show, Jonny Couch, Giggly Boys, Horny, and Shining Mirrors are playing Berlin on Thursday, August 1st.
• The Chemical Brothers with Charlotte de Witte is playing Forest Hills Stadium in Forest Hills on Thursday, August 1st at 6pm.
• The Rolling Stones with The Wombats (Rescheduled from 6/13) is playing MetLife Stadium on Thursday, August 1st at 7pm.
• Khalid with Clairo is playing Madison Square Garden in Midtown West / Chelsea / Hudson Yards on Thursday, August 1st at 7pm.
• Herbie Hancock is playing Beacon Theatre on the Upper West Side on Thursday, August 1st at 7pm.
• Bad Religion and The Explosion are playing Webster Hall on Friday, August 2nd.
• Cayetana, Bacchae, and Katie Ellen are playing Music Hall of Williamsburg on Friday, August 2nd.
• Sarah McLachlan with The New York Pops is playing Forest Hills Stadium in Forest Hills on Friday, August 2nd at 7pm.
• Barry Manilow is playing Lunt-Fontanne Theatre in Midtown on Friday, August 2nd at 8pm.
• Barbra Streisand is playing Madison Square Garden on Saturday, August 3rd.
• Rebelution is playing The Rooftop at Pier 17 on Saturday, August 3rd.
• Soccer Cousins and Hurry are playing Trans-Pecos on Saturday, August 3rd.
• Steve Gunn and Hand Habits are playing Industry City Courtyard on Saturday, August 3rd.
• MONSTA X WORLD TOUR 'WE ARE HERE' and MONSTA X are playing Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, August 3rd.
• Bad Religion and The Explosion are playing Brooklyn Steel on Saturday, August 3rd.
• Jenny Kern at Rockwood Music Hall and Jenny Kern are playing Rockwood Music Hall on Saturday, August 3rd.
• Bad Religion with The Explosion is playing Brooklyn Steel in Greenpoint on Saturday, August 3rd at 12pm.
• Barbra Streisand is playing Madison Square Garden in Midtown West / Chelsea / Hudson Yards on Saturday, August 3rd at 8pm.

Find more fun things to do at agreatbigcity.com/events.

---

Today's fact about New York

Here's something you may not have known about New York:

• Those silver Water Sampling boxes along the sidewalk are used to monitor the quality of NYC's water — There are 965 sampling stations citywide and more than 1,300 samples are collected each month

• The West Eighth Street–New York Aquarium F and Q Train station in Coney Island is the southernmost station in the subway system

Weather

The extreme highs and lows for this week in weather history:
Record High: 102°F on July 31, 1933
Record Low: 55°F on July 27, 1920

Weather for the week ahead:
Possible drizzle on Wednesday and Thursday, with high temperatures falling to 84°F next Saturday.

Intro and outro music: 'Start the Day' by Lee Rosevere — Concert Calendar music from Jukedeck.com