Only in New York (Web PDF) von Sam Roberts

Foreword by Pete Hamill xi

Preface to the Fordham University Press Edition xv

Introduction 1

Only in New York

The Biggest Apple 7

The (How) Big Apple? 9

A Streetlight Named Desire 11

Fighting Words 14

Go Figure 17

Park No Cars 19

Where the Boys Are 22

To the Wind 25

Birds of a Feather 28

Where America Begins 31

A Nose for News 33

Fat City 36

Alfred E. Newsman 39

Angels in America 42

Black Like Me 44

Who Counts Most? 47

Baseball’s Greatest Hit 50

Scoop 52

What’s That Sound? 55

Sit Tight 57

Knowledge of Wealth 60

North by Northwest 63

Christmas in New York 65

What Has Four Wheels . . . ? 67

An Open- and- Shut Case 70

Eat Your Heart Out 73

New Yorkers

A Place to Die For 79

The Best Policy 82

Survivor 85

Being There 88

No More Bull 91

Pay as You Go 94

Crimes of the Century 97

Articles of Faith 100

American Gangster 103

A Satisfying Life 106

Court of Public Opinion 109

The Mayor’s Man 112

New York’s Wild West Side 115

Dynasty 118

Hymie, We Hardly Knew Ye 121

Nowhere to Go But Up 124

History Lessons

Lost and Founded 129

The Summer of Sam 131

The Little Steamboat That Could 134

Work Is a Four-Letter Word 136

What Drives Us 139

Election Lore 142

Evacuation Day 145

The First Thanksgiving 148

Don’t Settle for Less 151

9/11 153

Dutch Treats 156

Washington Squared 159

Turnstile Justice 162

The Green Book 165

Thanks for the Lift 168

The Latest Poop 171

Let Them Eat Their Words 174

Four- Star Finale 177

Home, Sweet Home 179

Just the Other Day . . . 182

Tusk, Tusk 185

For the Record 188

The Blizzard of ’06 191

The Melting Metaphor 193

My New York

Hail Tilden High 199

Making It 202

The Apartment 205

The Other Summer of Sam 207

The Final Confession 210

Taking the Boy Out of Brooklyn 213

Something to Crow About 215

Please Don’t Stop the Presses 218

An Affair of the Heart 221

Next 224

Seen on the Subway 227

Brownsville 230

Obama’s New York 233

Acknowledgments 237