Flickr photo by sdspl

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NY Observer photo

Photographer Simon Watson’s townhouse at 13 Cranberry Street is on the market and the New York Observer reports that the price has been reduced to $6.5 million from its original ask of $8 million. The paper provides some lovely photos of the interior and if you’re up for it maybe we can take up a collection to buy it and turn it into the BHB clubhouse.  Historical note: The home was built in 1828 by sea captain Richard Mortimer.

Joan Goldberg at Brown Harris Stevens is the broker.

BHB pal/Gotham SideWalks honcho Rich Garr has two new tours of the nabe one focusing on the writers of the North Heights and the other focusing on “sailors and scholars” of the South Heights.

Also check out Homer Fink’s Hidden Brooklyn Heights Walking Tour

BHB Reader Cynthia Lawson posted Facebook photos of yesterday’s SUV fire on the Brooklyn Bridge.  The blaze shut down the Manhattan bound side of the span as FDNY responded.  No injuries were reported.

She reports:

On Sunday, March 14 around 3:45pm I was on the ramp on the Brooklyn side of the Brooklyn bridge and noticed a car on fire in the distance.

I, along with most cars around me, stopped and even backed up a bit. Ten minutes later, the police arrived, followed by firemen who extinguished the fire.

These are some images from the whole sequence of events. All were shot on an iPhone and I cropped into the scene, which is why the quality is not great.

The progression to big flames was slow so I am hopeful that whomever was in the car stepped out before they were engulfed…

YouTube user narunass caught the fire on video from the Manhattan Bridge:

Flickr photo by justinhooch

Real Estalker reports that  Brooklyn Heights resident Paul Giamatti has closed on a new $1.3 million coop in the neighborhood.  It’s not too far from his current celebrity crib.  Which is good news as it’s always exciting to see Paul walking around the Heights contemplating his next big role.

Giamatti currently holds the “title” of  Most Famous Man in Brooklyn Heights and is reportedly a member of the secret society Skull & Bones.  He’s been spotted in the Heights recently sporting a shaved head which may or may not have to do with his next role as a down and out laywer.  Shooting starts on that next film,  Win Win, here in NYC soon.

Real Estalker: Anyhoo, according to listing information, the condo that Mister Giamatti and his wife Elizabeth recently scooped up is located in a lovely pre-war building in the upscale Brooklyn Heights neighborhood and measures around 1,400 square feet with 3 bedrooms and 2 poopers. Despite the inelegant situation of the front door opening directly into the kitchen–an undesirable set up that allows the nosy bizzy-body in 4-A who’s always knocking on doors complaining about noise to see deep into your private quarters–it is non-the-less a decently considered and architect designed apartment well suited to a couple or small family.

From the front door one walks through the kitchen, past the secondary pooper and hangs right into a long gallery from which most rooms orbit. There are two archways from the gallery–which is really just an extra wide hallway–into the living/dining room that stretches an impressive 29-feet with eight windows on two walls including a gracefully bowed window in the living room.

The kitchen, not large, but still fitted with a breakfast bar, sits in the literal heart of the condo and besides seeming a bit enclosed does have light and air coming in from two windows, satisfactory grade stainless steel appliances and white Carrara marble counter tops.

Each of the three bedrooms are well situated and separated for maximum privacy from each other if not maximum privacy from the neighbors. The smallest bedroom, located behind the kitchen and just to the right of the front door would make a perfect home office. The room’s only window opens into an air shaft. As anyone who has ever has a New York City apartment that opens to an air shaft knows, this room lack a kind of privacy one might want in a bedroom. The second bedroom measures a generous 17 feet long and has another bowed window that looks out into the tree tops on the street side of the building.

The master boo-dwar, it can hardly be called a master “suite”, consists of a smallish bedroom, a windowed hallway, a walk-in closet and a small pooper. We’d say that the only saving grace of the master pooper is the double windows that provide for light and ventilation, but from the looks of things, those windows look directly into the apartment across the light well which means that the apartment opposite can look directly across the light well into Mister and Missus Giamatti’s pooper. This situation will ensure that those windows not only get frosted and/or covered up but will seldom if ever be open lest the neighbors be within earshot of some pretty intimate Giamatti family moments.

Photo by PD Hyman

A car fire shut down all Manhattan bound traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge around 4pm Sunday afternoon.   Writer Peter Hyman snapped a few photos and published this report:

PD Hyman: Today at 4:20 p.m. my wife looked out our window and said, “Oh, gosh, there’s a car on fire on the bridge.” This isn’t the kind of thing she says often, so, naturally, I grabbed my camera.

But by the time I finished fishing around for the right lens, the bright orange flames had been extinguished (thanks NYFD!). However, a thick steam of white smoke continued to pour out of the hapless vehicle, which was on the Brooklyn side of the bridge, heading for Manhattan.

Needless to say all Manhattan-bound traffic was halted. Eventually those who’d been waiting made u-turns and drove the wrong way, back toward Brooklyn.

Based on what I saw all passengers in the vehicle had been safely removed. No word as whether or not the fire had anything to do with setting the clocks ahead an hour…

[via Brownstoner]

The Huffington Post’s Mark Coker interviews the younger Mailer about the story he originally wrote for Playboy Magazine:

Huffington Post: I first went to New Orleans when I was eighteen years old. It was my first road trip with a buddy and we set out from New York at midnight, drove through the night, and found ourselves in New Orleans by 10pm. It might as well have been 6:30. The streets were alive with music and drink and incredible food. The whole city seemed like a walking party to our eighteen year old sensibilities. It did not take me more than a couple of days to realize that New Orleans held for me the best of original American culture. After Katrina, as I like so many others watched the devastation and disastrous recovery efforts by the government, I felt a responsibility to do something that would bring awareness to what the city needed. As we are now seeing with Haiti, the media and the public’s attention do not stay on a tragedy for longer than will keep eyeballs glued to the screen. I have a good relationship with Playboy and appreciated the freedom they give a writer to explore a piece the way they want to. For obvious reasons, a sexual angle is always best for Playboy, but as someone who has worked in the service industry as a busboy, waiter, and bartender, I knew that those are the people who could give me the most accurate assessment of how the city is doing and what it needs to get back to where it was before the storm. In a town like New Orleans, the strippers are as much a part of the service industry as the bartenders and doormen. It is one big family on the strip and they were more than enthusiastic about telling me their story.

It’s not everyday that you come across a book featuring an Afro-Latina time traveler who lands in Brooklyn Heights circa 1863.  In author Zetta Elliot’s A Wish After Midnight, Crown Heights teen Genna is transported back in time to her neighborhood in the Civil War era, a wish granted after tossing a coin into the fountain at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.  Believed to be a runaway slave, she is befriended by a white doctor who lives in Brooklyn Heights.  The Young Adult novel touches upon many of the issues of the day - the differences between abolitionists, the New York Draft Riots and more.

Elliot, who is Canadian and now a resident of Brooklyn, discussed the book with WNYC’s Brian Lehrer.

There’s still time, so add your voice. As the BHA begins its second hundred years, we’re reaching out to the community to help us chart our course. We want to know what you think! Whether you’re a BHA member or not, whether you live in the neighborhood or are an occasional visitor, we want to hear from you on a range of topics: What are the most important issues facing Brooklyn Heights? How do you get your information about local issues? What could the BHA do to be more effective in the community? How can the BHA be of more service to you?

The survey takes just a few minutes to complete online. So add your voice by clicking here. Thank you!

After you take the survey, discuss the topics raised here.

Now can you look into the knuckle head who drove our cab Wednesday night around 11pm and who didn’t know where the Brooklyn Bridge or the FDR were located much less Brooklyn Heights.  It was a laugh riot of a ride, especially when he pulled out the GPS and asked me to enter in my address. Really. Call us for the medallion number.

Tickets for Homer Fink’s Hidden Brooklyn Heights Walking Tour on 3/27 are on sale now!

NY Daily News: We both have chills. Almost anticlimactic until you understand its sheer beauty, Cranberry St. can boast the location of four major films — Woody Allen’s “Manhattan,” Cher’s “Moonstruck” (she kicks the can), Robert Redford and Faye Dunaway’s “Three Days of the Condor” and Charles Bronson’s “Valachi Papers.” An old carriage house is across the street from two funny-shaped birch trees that always seem to make it in the shots, according to Hedges.
Almost done, Hedges walks to 70 Willow St., where Truman Capote penned “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” and “In Cold Blood.” It’s a yellow house with a garden apartment where Capote lived and wrote. Next month, Hedges will curate a reading series where writers or residents will read the work of the author who once lived at the home. He’s putting it together for the Brooklyn Heights Association.

Remember Me starring Twilight’s Robert Pattinson was shot here and around Brooklyn last year causing mobs of fans to crowd each location to catch of glimpse of the actor.  However it’s twist ending is probably not the sort of surprise that many Brooklyn Heights residents would enjoy.

The movie opens today and reviews aren’t so good as well.  What’s more [SPOILER ALERT] is that the movie culminates in Pattinson’s character dying in the attacks of September 11, 2001. So if you’re looking for a light, date night movie and you’re from Brooklyn Heights this probably isn’t the right choice.

Homer’s pal/ rock journalist Jon Wiederhorn will be discussing writing and interviewing at a St. Francis College roundtable event on March 22. Wiederhorn lives in Bay Ridge and currently writes for Revolver Magazine as well as MTV Music’s really super-fantastic new blog (okay, it’s Homer’s project at his “real” job… are you happy now with the full disclosure?).And here’s the press release:

The St. Francis College Department of English welcomes rock music journalist Jon Wiederhorn to talk about his career interviewing and writing about the top rock musicians of the past 20 years on Monday, March 22 at 12:20pm in Room 6403 of the College.

Wiederhorn is currently a senior writer for Revolver magazine, the talent coordinator for AOL Noisecreep’s weekly podcast “Creep Show,” and a regular contributor to Guitar World, Inked and the MTV Music Blog. He is also working on his first book, Louder Than Hell: An Unflinching Oral History of Metal.

The roundtable discussion will focus on Wiederhorn’s years working for major magazines, newspapers and Web sites. He has interviewed numerous icons of the industry, including David Bowie, Justin Timberlake, Kiss, The Cure, Metallica, Jay-Z, Pink and Alice Cooper.

Over the years, Wiederhorn, who lives in Bay Ridge, has worked as an associate editor at Rolling Stone, executive editor at Guitar Magazine and MusicPlayer.com, and editor in chief at Guitar.com and HeadbangersBlog.com. He has also freelanced for TV Guide, Spin, Entertainment Weekly, Cosmo, and Teen People.

Our Karl Junkersfeld gets to the bottom of the Cadman Plaza turf issue after a BHB commenter said it looked like it was showing wear after our snowy winter.

photo by David Ly

FDNY has responded to a fire at the laundromat at 78 Montague Street. BHB tipster David Ly sent in this photo.  DEVELOPING.

Read  BHB’s reports on the park’s progress so far.

Assemblywoman Joan Millman released this statement today:

The City and State announced a Modified General Project Plan (MGPP) that will help to expedite the completion of Brooklyn Bridge Park. The proposed modifications include a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the City and the State to create a not-for-profit entity to manage the development and operation of the park. As part of this agreement, the City will provide an additional $55 million in city capital funds for park construction, bringing the 85-acre world-class waterfront park closer to completion, as well as provide a guarantee to complete the park according to the vision laid out in the MGPP.
The proposed not-for-profit organization, known as the Brooklyn Bridge Park Operating Entity (BBPOE), would be responsible for the planning, construction, maintenance and operation of the park. The new entity would have a 17-member board representing the community, state and city appointees.
“As we approach the long-awaited opening of Piers 1 and 6, I am pleased that the City is taking the lead to develop the rest of this much anticipated and much needed park”, said Assemblywoman Millman. She added, “I applaud the City for its commitment to provide the funding for the park and its willingness to listen to the community’s call for year-round recreational opportunities, such as the skating rink, an indoor recreational facility at Pier 5 and the floating pool. I fully support a public process to discover alternatives to housing as a means to fund park operations.”
“I also want to thank my colleagues in state and city government, especially Governor Paterson, Mayor Bloomberg and State Senator Squadron, for sharing in my commitment to building this world-class park,” said Millman.

The Yale Women’s Slavic Chorus will give a one-hour performance of traditional folk songs from Bulgaria, Croatia, Georgia, Macedonia and more, song a cappella.

Friday, March 12th at 7:30pm, at Congregation Mt. Sinai, 250 Cadman Plaza West, Brooklyn (Take the 2 or 3 train from Wall Street to Clark Street, first stop in Bklyn. Walk east on Clark Street 1 block to Cadman Plaza West. Right turn. CMS will be on your right.)

Facebook users can RSVP at this page.

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=328548564021

For more on the Slavs, see their home page at http://www.yale.edu/ysc/

Today Brownstoner reports:

Another update for the stretch of Atlantic between Henry and Clinton: La Pizzetta, which opened in the fall of ‘08, is out and Casa Tua is in. We spotted the owners posting the new signage last week, and the brick oven pizza spot was scheduled to open yesterday.

Flickr photo by luminerefl

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Brooklyn Paper: However tired the plot, the laughs keep coming in surprisingly quick succession. The Heights Players weren’t necessarily born for their roles, but they’re great at stand-up comedy.

Indeed, if this show is worth seeing at all, it’s because of Healy and his troupe, not because of anything writer Ludwig brought to the table.

The Heights Players are auditioning tonight for their upcoming production of Fiorello. (Not for nuthin’ but BHB contributor Marc Hermann would make a great LaGuardia!)

Also, they were recently featured on Brooklyn Independent Television:

At last month’s BHA annual meeting, architect Michael Van Valkenburgh took attendees on a “virtual” tour of Brooklyn Bridge Park.  The BHA’s snazzy new website has the full tour posted now.

The BHA.org: Michael Van Valkenburgh is a principal of the design firm bearing his name, which has been involved in designing Brooklyn Bridge Park for 12 years. Valkenburgh was the featured speaker at the Brooklyn Heights Association’s Annual Meeting on Feb. 23, 2010. In his presentation, Van Valkenburgh describes the design of a park as “the most extraordinary manifestation of a group of people collectively trying to shape the world they live in.” He then establishes the context for Brooklyn Bridge Park, reviewing how “incredibly dynamic and transitory the water edge of Brooklyn has been for hundreds of years.”

The New Tenants trailer from Det Danske Filminstitut on Vimeo.

Congratulations to Brooklyn Heights resident and P.S. 8 parent Joachim Back who won an Academy Award Sunday night for his short film The New Tenants.

Fellow Brooklynite Vincent D’Onofrio starred in the film.  He told the New York Times that it was a “circle of friends thing.”  He added that “The only thing that that film getting nominated will do is get Joachim a feature, which is really important because I think he’s a really unique guy. He’s not like just another director. He’s going to be a fantastic feature director someday.”

This photo from a tipster shows the spoils of another crazy Saturday night near the St. George dorms at Henry and Clark Streets.  On Friday night, neighbors were “treated” to a wee hours brawl on Pineapple Street.

So if we’re headed back to the bad old days of the 70s on Clark and Henry, why not pull out this classic nugget from ‘73 by Garland Jeffreys:

There was a fight Friday night under the sidewalk shed on Pineapple Street just east of Hicks Street between students from the Pace University dorm on Henry in the old St George about 2am. This started with 2 people, grew to three, then more joined in. Actual argument changed into a fight with people running out into the street, girls and boys joined in together, about 7-8 participants. I called 911 several times, but it was about 20 minutes until a police car showed up.

I left my name and phone number with 911. Action stopped when I opened my window and screamed out “We called 911!” Participants mostly headed off toward Henry Street.

Back in the day, regular brawls and altercations were part of everyday life in and around the St. George.  Now that rowdy students seem to be moving in regularly (Guder and Rex were dormers), is it time for the “dorm experiment” to end?

Gossip Girl will be shooting around Remsen Street on Monday. Mind the signs and move your car! [via grrrlgenius]

Brownstoner reports that home decor and tchotke store Abitare [309 Henry Street] is going out of business.   Did you ever buy anything there?  What do you think this latest closing and that of Nova Zembla on Atlantic mean?

So sad but thought I’d pass it along– long time Atlantic Avenue mexican place Mezcal’s (between henry and clinton, next to pete’s) is gone!  I remember going there when I was a kid for nachos, it must have been in that spot for at least 20 years!

New York Times: A seafood gumbo comes thick with lobster and crab, but not with roux; it’s comfort food lite, and totally inoffensive unless you care about such things ($19). Chicken wings owe nothing to Buffalo, but they’re meaty and firm, with sauce more sticky than flavorful ($9). Baked taleggio with croutons and lingonberry jam nods at the place’s European roots; it’s good ($5).

The fried chicken, though, wan and chewy, rather than crusted and rich, raises ire ($18). Served with roasted corn that tastes as if it’s been out in the silo since August, fair mashed potatoes and brown gravy the flavor of salt, it has barely a lead on what you’d find at a steam-table salad bar somewhere along Second Avenue late one winter night on your way home from work.

So this is a taste of the new economy: first-apartment food in a bedroom community one stop from Wall Street, comforting only in name. It’s depressing. You’d think rillettes and moules frites would have been more resilient.

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