Wfuv's Cityscape

New York City is home to thousands of restaurants and grocery stores, catering to every style of eater from the tame to the adventurous. With so many different cultural options to choose from, it’s no wonder New Yorkers have such a varied palette. On this episode of Cityscape, we’re talking to three New Yorkers who think outside the box when it comes to food: a historic gastronomist who samples the eats of the pioneers, an urban forager who sees the park as a produce section, and the author of Urban Appetites: Food and Culture in 19th Century New York.

Summertime is synonymous with many things, the beach, barbeques, baseball, and something that doesn’t start with a B – movies.  Hollywood is known for releasing some of its biggest and most expensive films of the year during the summer.  On this episode of Cityscape, we’re rollingwith a movies theme, including a look at a top 20 list of the best New York City films of all time. On this episode, Professor Jeffrey Wisotsky gives a list of the "Greatest films that feature New York City": The Godfather, directed by Francis Ford Coppola The French Connection, directed by William Friedkin Midnight Cowboy, directed by John Schlesinger The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, directed by Joseph Sargent Serpico, directed by Sidney Lumet Marty, directed by Delbert Mann The Wanderers, directed by Philip Kaufman A Bronx Tale, directed by Robert De Niro Taxi Driver, directed by Martin Scorsese  Mean Streets, directed by Martin Scorsese Goodfellas, directed by Martin Scorsese Manhattan, directed by Woody Allen Annie Hall, dire

If New York City streets could talk they probably would never shut up.  They would go on and on about tales of the people who came before us.  A new book explores the stories of many iconic New Yorkers dating back hundreds of years.  It’s calledFootprints in New York: Tracing the Lives of Four Centuries of New Yorkers.  The authors, James and Michelle Nevius, a husband and wife tour guide team, are our guests on this week's Cityscape.   

New York is a city obsessed with real estate.  When it comes to celebrities, we’re intrigued to find out who lives where, and marvel at the high prices they paid for their apartments.  We love to catch a glimpse inside the windows of historic townhouses or high priced co-ops on 5th Avenue.  We want to know how much rent our friends or colleagues are shelling out for that one bedroom in Willamsburg, and perhaps more importantly how’d they manage to snag such a sweet apartment.

New York is often referred to as the concrete jungle. The paved and developed landscape offers plenty of advantages to its residents. But, there’s a lot to be said for having access to green spaces as well. Not only are trees, flowers, and other plantlife easy on the eyes, they’re important components of a healthy and balanced ecosystem.   As part of our Strike a Chord campaign, WFUV’s been featuring public service announcements, news stories, and programming, highlighting the efforts of community gardeners and others working to green the Metropolitan region. In this one hour special, we'll hear from:    Steve Frillman of the Green Guerillas Deborah Martin is the Executive Director of the New York Restoration Project Shalini Beath is the deputy director of Million Trees NYC Ursula Chance, Director of Bronx Green-up, the New York Botanical Garden's community outreach program Jason Alosio, a PhD candidate of biology, and urban ecologist. He's the founder of St. Rose's Garden at Fordham Lisa Fabish of Pleasant

When you think of a monk, you might picture a quiet man tucked away in the isolated wilderness, shrouded in mystery.  But on this week's Cityscape, we’re bringing you the "Urban Monk," whose monastery on Manhattan's Lower East Side is anything but secluded.  Gadadhara Pandit Dasa joins us to talk about his new book Urban Monk: Exploring Karma, Consciousness and the Divine.

It’s a scene we’ve seen countless times in the movies and on television.  A woman is walking down the street and is catcalled by a group of men working on a nearby construction site.  It’s typically portrayed as a laughing matter, but that kind of behavior is rooted in a much more serious issue.  On this week's Cityscape, we’re taking a close look at the issue of street harassment. Our panelists include: Debjani Roy, Deputy Director of Hollaback Brittany Braithwaite, Community Organizer of Girls For Gender Equity Joe Samalin, blogger for Stop Street Harassment  

Scammers come at us from all angles.  They target us on the street, on the internet, and pretty much everywhere in between.  On this week’s Cityscape, we’re exploring scams in New York City, from a Craigslist rental scam to a psychic reading rip-off.

If you live or work in New York City, you’ve definitely passed them on the street. Maybe you’ve even hung around to listen to them, or pitched a dollar into one of their instrument cases. Whether underground, in the park, or on the sidewalk, buskers are a way of New York City life.  On this week's Cityscape, we're delving into the world of buskers in New York City, from a 12-year-old cellist to a woman who plays the saw.

Tomorrow is Mother’s Day -- a time to honor the women in our lives who’ve loved and nurtured us through the years. A lot of us will do that with a greeting card -- perhaps one with a pretty picture of a flower on the cover and a poignant saying inside. But, what if moms had the chance to write their own greetings? In honor of Mother’s Day, we asked some moms to write and share their personal essays about motherhood.

In a big city like New York, it’s easy to fall through the cracks.  On this week's Cityscape we have stories of things lost and found, from lip balm to pets.  We’ll also visit New York City Transit's lost property unit, and a Brooklyn beach that's a treasure trove of interesting items.

Every week WFUV's Cityscape brings you stories about the people, places, and spirit of New York. It's our own weekly love letter to this great city.  In conjunction with WFUV's Spring membership drive, we’ve prepared some of our favorite segments about the fascinating places we’ve explored and interesting characters we’ve met along the way, from the woman who runs a troll museum on Manhattan's Lower East Side to the volunteers who ring the bells in the tower of Trinity Church in Lower Manhattan.

A mask is a barrier between ourselves and the world. It conceals our identity and can free us in some way from our societal restrictions.  Think about how liberated people sometimes feel on Halloween.  On this week's Cityscape, we’re talking about masks, and our fascination with them.  We'll look at how masks are created and used in performance, as well as why some people wear metaphorical masks every day to protect themselves.

False accusations cover a wide spectrum. Maybe someone has mistaken you for a celebrity, or maybe someone spread a rumor about you. But some false accusations have long and lasting consequences.  On this week's Cityscape, we’re exploring the most extreme types of false accusations -- those that result in wrongful imprisonment.

A lot of research has been conducted over the years on the risks and benefits of being on either side of the height spectrum.  For example, studies have shown that taller people score slightly higher on IQ tests than shorter people, and are more likely to be bitten by bugs than their vertically-challenged counterparts.  On the other hand, research shows short people are more likely to outlive their taller peers, but are still at a greater risk of developing heart disease.  On this week's Cityscape, we’re exploring what it’s like to be tall and short in New York City.  Our guests include the president of the Tall Club of New York City and Peter Manning, the founder of a Brooklyn-based clothing line for men 5'8" and under.  We'll also talk with Joshua Fischer with Snap Interactive, maker of the on-line dating site AYI.com about a survey that shows short men in New York City have trouble finding dates. And we'll hear from Olivier Rabbath, an artist and shoemaker from Brooklyn, who makes shoes for super large fe

Catherine “Kitty” Genovese is known most commonly for the circumstances surrounding her death. She was brutally attacked and killed in the courtyard of her building in Kew Gardens, Queens one March night 50 years ago.  Her murder crystallized a new psychological concept known as the bystander effect.  Thirty-eight people reportedly witnessed the attack and did nothing to help. But is that really how things played out on March 13th, 1964?  Kevin Cook says not exactly.  He's the author of a new book called Kitty Genovese: The Murder, the Bystanders, the Crime that Changed America.  Cook is our guest on this week's Cityscape.

On Monday February 17th we celebrate the birthdays of two of the most famous US Presidents. George Washington turns 282 this month, and honest Abe turns 205. You might not know it, but both presidents have historical roots right here in New York City. On this week's Cityscape, we’re celebrating Presidents Day by exploring moments of presidential history that took place in our own backyard.

New York is home to a lot of survivors; big and small. So it’s no surprise that a super weather resistant cockroach has found its way to the Big Apple. The non-native species was recently discovered on the elevated park in Lower Manhattan known as the High Line. That finding got us thinking about other survivors that live among us. On this week's Cityscape, we're talking with folks who’ve endured extreme circumstances and lived to tell about them.

Handmade products are held in high esteem New York City, even in the midst of a society obsessed with efficiency and technology. An object made by hand is the result of countless hours of practice and experimentation, it is the fruit of someone’s labor and it comes from the heart of its creator. On this week's Cityscape, we’re getting our hands dirty, talking to local artisans and craftspeople who dedicate themselves to creating with their bare hands.

New York City is known for being a loud, bustling city. You can walk down any street and hear sirens, car horns, music and people talking about pretty much anything. But, coming up on this edition of Cityscape, we’re turning down the volume, by focusing on events in New York City where silence is key, including a silent dining experience in Brooklyn.