Short story master (and convicted embezzler) William Sidney Porter, aka O. Henry, arrived in New York City in 1902 like so many other writers—to be near the publishing business and really make it big.
And like struggling writers still do, he spent time walking around, laying low in odd corners and quarters of the city.
“When I first came to New York I spent a great deal of time knocking around the streets,” he told The New York Times in 1909.
“I used to walk at all hours of the day and night along the river fronts, through Hell’s Kitchen, down the Bowery, dropping into all manner of places, and talking to anyone who would hold converse with me.”
And though he’s most closely associated with Pete’s Tavern, the 146-year-old bar on Irving Place down the street from his apartment at the time, he credits his “knocking around” with providing great story material:
“If you have the right kind of eye—the kind that can disregard high hats, cutaway coats, and trolley cars—you can see all the characters in Arabian Nights parading up and down Broadway at midday,” he said.
Yes, the awning on the side of Pete’s Tavern, above, really does say “The Tavern O. Henry Made Famous.”
Tags: " Gilded Age New York City, becoming a writer in New York City, Irving Place, New York at the turn of the century, O. Henry, old-time bars in New York City, Pete's Tavern, the Bowery, William Sidney Porter
Ephemeral New York 
February 7, 2013 at 1:18 pm |
[…] I first came to New York I spent a great deal of time knocking around the streets,” O. Henry (born William Sydney Porter) told The New York Times in 1909. In the The Voice of […]
March 21, 2013 at 12:49 am |
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