A Snowstorm In Brooklyn
So New York’s latest snowstorm (that’s five so far!) is in full force. I ran out a few minutes ago […]
So New York’s latest snowstorm (that’s five so far!) is in full force. I ran out a few minutes ago […]
Part 2 of the Rockland State Psychiatric Hospital tour will be up on Monday, and there’s a lot of cool
I gotta admit, when I see a pair of worn iron gates… …what looks like an abandoned property in the
If you’re ever up at Riverside Park around Grant’s Tomb, be sure to take a moment and visit a slightly
So how is the abandoned pit bull that everyone helped to rescue doing in her new home? Er, resting comfortably!
Let me speak on behalf of the little dog who was left to die in a snowstorm two nights ago:
SHE FOUND A NEW HOME!! CLICK HERE!! This morning, as a buddy of mine drove to work via the Williamsburg
To find one of my all time favorite signs in Times Square, you have to go a few blocks from
It’s your first time on a movie set. You’re nervous, excited. You watch impressed as more than a hundred crew
“Hi scoutingny! I don’t know if this would interest to you, but it is definitely unique, and should experienced at
The 8th Avenue Post Office is extremely film friendly – shoot me an email for details at nycscout@gmail.com! On October
On my way out of the city for Christmas, I had to take the Shuttle train to Times Square, and
Wishing everyone a merry Christmas weekend, and watch out for that mistletoe – you never know where it’ll pop up!
Cypress Hills Street might as well be called the Graveyard Highway. A wide, four-lane thruway located in Glendale, Queens, it
Driving into work this morning, I heard on the news that today marks the 50th anniversary of one of the
This is 126 Sterling Place in Park Slope. Most likely, you’ve never paid much attention to it… …and if you
I’ve been scouting around the Westchester area recently, and every day, I pass the exit on I-95 for Rye Playland,
Bonus points if you can guess the hotel without looking at a map! Paid for by the same studio that
A great day is getting to scout an empty 19th century mansion… …and coming across a secret wall panel! A
The other day, while scouting a rooftop, my guide took me through an old elevator room and showed me the
For the past few weeks, I’ve been scouting north of the city in the White Plains/Harrison area. The other day,
…I’m pretty sure this van would be the optimal choice for transportation. Canoe? Check. Extra gallon of gas? Check. Antlers
During the Thanksgiving break this year, I took some time to visit the Lynn Woods in Lynn Massachusetts, a beautiful
Update 9/11/2013 – Been meaning to update for a while. 5 Beekman is NO LONGER AVAILABLE FOR FILMING, EVENTS, OR
The Brooklyn Queens Expressway, or BQE, is one of New York’s more miserable driving experiences. For some reason, the BQE
You know, all this time, I secretly believed the Coney Island Bank building would somehow be saved. Sure, it’d take
Though it borders the East River, no one really thinks of Williamsburg as a beachside community. But go behind some
This is Greenpoint’s beautiful St. Elias Church, located on shady Kent Street. And yes, that’s a FOR RENT sign on
One of my favorite bits of unusual New York City history is located on the sidewalk in front of West
Note: This is no longer there. I was walking by the small, triangle-shaped Macri Park in Williamsburg near the Lorimer
While searching the NY Times archives recently, I stumbled on a bunch of amusing articles about New York City hauntings
At the corner of Richmond Ave and Amsterdam Place on Staten Island… …is a decaying graveyard known as New Springville
Down among the industrial warehouses in Gowanus… …bordering on the canal… …is an old vacuum cleaner bag factory. Today, there’s
Spotted next to the Queensboro Bridge: Boring building… …Rock star door handles: Sort of makes up for it. -SCOUT
I swear I’ve gone by the Yakuel cab stand on 12th Street and the Queensboro Bridge a million times without
From the ground, you’d never know there was anything special about the building at 409 East 60th Street… …but, as
After watching the premiere of Boardwalk Empire last night, I was really excited to check out the Atlantic City set
Over the past few months, I’ve been getting letters from readers about an abandoned school in Garden City, Long Island,
Continuing my search for a usable elevator in Greenpoint, my boss had given me a few addresses to check out,
On July 9th, 2010, my girlfriend and I set out from New York City on a cross-country roadtrip. Our plan
From Tennessee, we continued driving into North Carolina, passing through the Great Smoky Mountains – and man were they smokin’
We left New Orleans following the Great River Road north, which winds along the south side of the Mississippi. While
We’d been hoping to explore San Antonio for the first half of the day, but the speeding ticket we got
It’s pretty amazing to be driving along seeing this out the window… …then taking a slight detour and finding yourself
I had a lot of plans for Tucson, but unfortunately, pretty much all of them fell through due to lack
We spent the night in Kingman, Arizona (contracting a thankfully brief bout of food poisoning at the local Crack Barrel),
Las Vegas wasn’t a stop on the roadtrip either of us were desperate to visit, but we really had no
I had three initial impressions after driving around downtown Salt Lake City: 1) it was very clean, 2) it was
After leaving Blanding, Utah, we didn’t even have to travel to a national park to see our first arch of
Having reached the south-west corner of Colorado, we’d already noticed the landscape change dramatically, from mountains and pines to desert
After shooing away the ants that had gathered on our belongings during our stay at the El Colorado motel, we
We spent the night in Dodge City, Kansas, and ate breakfast at a local donut place, Daylight Donut. Coming from
Continuing west on US-56, we drove through Scranton (population: 724). Not much was going on… One building of note: a
I’ll come clean: I’m really embarrassed to admit that, prior to arriving this morning, I thought Kansas City was in
We cruised into St. Louis in the late morning. At this point, US-50 has merged with the Interstate. We only
For most of the journey from Salem, Illinois, to St. Louis, this was the view out the window: Literally, endless,
After swinging through Aurora, we decided to take a detour from US-50 and follow Rt-56, which winds along the Ohio
After the seven hour Interstate drive the previous day, I woke up Saturday dreading the thought of hitting the bland
Our 2010 roadtrip began where all the great expeditions of history have set out: White Plains, NY. You’re not going
Over the past three days, we’ve taken a look at the grounds of Hempstead House, the opulence of its first
We’ve taken a look at the exterior of Hempstead House, as well as the beautifully restored rooms of the first
This is Hempstead House today: In comparison, the below picture was taken in 1940, shortly after Hempstead became a home
When you own an enormous castle like the one pictured below, and it’s only used to house your servants and
This is the third-floor hallway of an abandoned orphanage. Opened in 1940 to house English children orphaned because of World
The Jericho Turnpike, cutting east-west through Long Island, is pretty much a wasteland of strip malls, corporate office parks, and
Two of my favorite ruins in Manhattan can be found partially submerged in the Hudson River, overshadowed by the nearby
On two different movies I’ve scouted for recently, I was asked to find a genuine “occult store.” Of course, by
I think this is quite possibly my favorite road sign in New York: You can find this decaying sign on
I’m always on the lookout for the remnants of old storefronts. You can pretty much find them in any residential
If you believe Hollywood, every single college lecture hall in New York City looks like the one below: Rows of
I saw the coolest thing as I was driving over the Williamsburg Bridge the other day… Above this building at
I love stumbling on New York’s ghost signs – essentially, signs or advertisements for businesses long since deceased. I wrote
I was walking past this art deco apartment building on East 67th Street yesterday… …when I noticed a series of
If you’ve ever been annoyed at the fact that most of Fifth Avenue’s mansions probably don’t want you knocking at
I have to admit, when I saw the incredible two-story mansard roof of 881 Broadway (at 19th Street) illuminated from
Not sure how long this graffiti has been up on White street east of Broadway, but it always makes my
Some time ago, I had the opportunity to scout the defunct Grumman airplane factory in Bethpage, Long Island. Once the
You’ve probably passed 225 Lafayette Street at the corner of Spring Street in Soho a zillion times in your travels
This past Christmas, my aunt gave me a really neat gift she found in storage. Apparently, my grandmother took a
Note: Most of this has since been torn down. When I heard the rumors that Satan’s real estate division, Thor
There’s a strange little building at the corner of Lafayette and Howard Street, and for years, I’ve wondered what the
I was walking down West 58th Street when I saw it: exactly half a brownstone (12.5 feet), gloriously smooshed between
I was scouting around the West 50’s recently when I noticed a really interesting building on West 59th I’d never
Have you ever seen those I Spy children’s books? Each page features a large picture of a whimsical location filled
As far as I’m concerned, Cortlandt Alley between Walker and White Streets is the most beautiful of Manhattan’s few remaining
Nothing beats days when you’re asked to scout something as unusual as a crypt. Though you’d expect location scouting would
Every Friday, I try to put together a post of random tidbits from my week in scouting. Enjoy! While scouting
No joke: this is one of the new spring window displays at Bergdorf Goodman. Yep, aliens have landed at Bergdorf
You probably know 570 Lexington as the skyscraper behind St. Bart’s Church: a towering 50-story behemoth of salmon brick, clearly
I was walking down West 46th Street in Hell’s Kitchen recently when I noticed a break in the buildings… Most
Whenever I see a sign like the one below hanging outside of an abandoned property, I immediately feel an intense
When it was completed in 1909, the original Met-Life headquarters at 5 Madison Ave was the tallest building in the
Quick announcement – I’m going to be a guest on the Leonard Lopate show on NPR! I should be on
Note: This exhibition is now over. There’s a really great new art installation in and around Madison Square Park… …which
I took this picture of Herald Square (6th Ave btw. 34th & 35th) this morning at about 6:45. A second
Pell Street is one of those iconic Chinatown blocks that filmmakers love to shoot on. Short and narrow, lined with