London's New York
Episodes
The Big Shut-In – Day 35 (Saturday, April 18th)
In this episode of our sister podcast “The Big Shut-In”, Dan and David check in with each other from the depths of quarantine. You can hear more conversations like this at https://racecarradio.com/thebigshutin
LISTEN →Episode 8: Two Ugly Buildings
We can learn a lot from great architecture, but what can we learn from architecture that is, frankly, disastrous? In today’s episode, Dan and David visit two miserable attempts at majesty: the David M. Dinkins Manhattan Municipal Building and the Surrogate’s Courthouse, both on the corner of Centre and Chambers Streets, downtown, and in the process … Continued
LISTEN →Episode 7: Brownstone Manhattan
What says New York City more than a street of Brownstones? It turns out, though, that this most beloved of city housing designs wasn’t always so beloved, and they sit right on the front line of one of the most fundamental debates in urban architecture. Today’s episode brought to you by Audible.
LISTEN →Episode 6: Central Park
The most famous park in the world? Maybe. Inevitable stop on the Manhattan tourist trail? Absolutely. But Central Park is also an amazing laboratory for a 150-year-old experiment in urban planning and social identity, and the masterpiece of America’s first (and probably only) superstar landscape architect. Scenic vistas! Hot dogs! Gentrification! Paternalism! This place really … Continued
LISTEN →Episode 5: Zuccotti Park
Seven years ago this week, this innocuous-looking downtown courtyard was taken over by Occupy Wall Street, and what resulted was one of the most exciting, chaotic, and controversial public protests ever held in New York. Our own Dan London was there in the thick of it. In this episode Dan goes back to Zuccotti to remember … Continued
LISTEN →Episode 4: Sunnyside Gardens
Dan and David explore a largely unknown quasi-suburban corner of Queens – Sunnyside Gardens, a place so downright pleasant, it might be revolutionary.
LISTEN →Episode 3: Roosevelt Island
A strange and unique spit of land in the middle of the East River, where we talk about the history of charity and looking to the future of the past.
LISTEN →Episode 2: Lenny’s Grave
We trek to Green-Wood Cemetery to find the final resting place of one of the all-time most quintessential New Yorkers, and talk about the the power (and limitations) of his quest to use the performing arts as a force for social progress.
LISTEN →Episode 1: The Cathedral of St. John the Divine
Our very first episode takes us uptown to the Cathedral of St. John the Divine and the strange pleasures of buildings designed to make you feel unimportant.
LISTEN →Meet the Hosts
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Daniel London
Dan is a Ph.D. candidate in History at New York University. Jersey-born and Gotham-based, he has written about the class politics of bicycles, the political economy of post-war urban tourism, labor politics in the 1939 New York World’s Fair, notions of “public space” in the works of John Dewey, and the political effects of urban decentralization on Tammany Hall. He serves on the editorial board of the Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era, and leads tours New York City for Context Travel.
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David Hoffman
David is the founder and Creative Director of CitizenRacecar, and the Executive Producer of Racecar Radio.
He lives in Queens with his wife and two kids, where he enjoys reading, cooking, birdwatching, 60’s soul music, and BBC detective shows.
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Episodes
The Big Shut-In – Day 35 (Saturday, April 18th)
In this episode of our sister podcast “The Big Shut-In”, Dan and David check in with each other from the depths of quarantine. You can hear more conversations like this at https://racecarradio.com/thebigshutin
LISTEN →Episode 8: Two Ugly Buildings
We can learn a lot from great architecture, but what can we learn from architecture that is, frankly, disastrous? In today’s episode, Dan and David visit two miserable attempts at majesty: the David M. Dinkins Manhattan Municipal Building and the Surrogate’s Courthouse, both on the corner of Centre and Chambers Streets, downtown, and in the process … Continued
LISTEN →Episode 7: Brownstone Manhattan
What says New York City more than a street of Brownstones? It turns out, though, that this most beloved of city housing designs wasn’t always so beloved, and they sit right on the front line of one of the most fundamental debates in urban architecture. Today’s episode brought to you by Audible.
LISTEN →Episode 6: Central Park
The most famous park in the world? Maybe. Inevitable stop on the Manhattan tourist trail? Absolutely. But Central Park is also an amazing laboratory for a 150-year-old experiment in urban planning and social identity, and the masterpiece of America’s first (and probably only) superstar landscape architect. Scenic vistas! Hot dogs! Gentrification! Paternalism! This place really … Continued
LISTEN →Episode 5: Zuccotti Park
Seven years ago this week, this innocuous-looking downtown courtyard was taken over by Occupy Wall Street, and what resulted was one of the most exciting, chaotic, and controversial public protests ever held in New York. Our own Dan London was there in the thick of it. In this episode Dan goes back to Zuccotti to remember … Continued
LISTEN →Episode 4: Sunnyside Gardens
Dan and David explore a largely unknown quasi-suburban corner of Queens – Sunnyside Gardens, a place so downright pleasant, it might be revolutionary.
LISTEN →Episode 3: Roosevelt Island
A strange and unique spit of land in the middle of the East River, where we talk about the history of charity and looking to the future of the past.
LISTEN →Episode 2: Lenny’s Grave
We trek to Green-Wood Cemetery to find the final resting place of one of the all-time most quintessential New Yorkers, and talk about the the power (and limitations) of his quest to use the performing arts as a force for social progress.
LISTEN →Episode 1: The Cathedral of St. John the Divine
Our very first episode takes us uptown to the Cathedral of St. John the Divine and the strange pleasures of buildings designed to make you feel unimportant.
LISTEN →