Episode 16: Movie - You've Got Mail

In this episode, we cover You’ve Got Mail, a film from 1998 set in Manhattan, in New York City. The movie features Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan as the romantic leads, who, as in many a romantic comedy, loathe each other before realize they are in love. Supporting actors shine brightly and they include Jean Stapleton, Dabney Coleman, Parker Posey, Dave Chappelle, Greg Kinnear and Steve Zahn. Nice appearances also by Jane Adams, Veanne Cox, and Deborah Rush. 

 

In this episode, we explore the histories of two neighborhood parks, one small and one quite large, as well as a train station of the NYC subway. What we like about the use of these spaces in the movie and generally the employment of locations in the movie on the Upper West Side of Manhattan is that viewers are treated to a neighborhood feel and an affectionate view of what it’s like to live there.

Resources

 

Moment in Equity  

·      Jessica Dalley, What Would $50 In 1940 Rent A New Yorker Today?, Curbed New York (Nov. 21, 2013) – https://ny.curbed.com/2013/11/21/10172014/what-would-50-in-1940-rent-a-new-yorker-today 

·      Peggy Taylor, Lamenting the Loss of My Black Brothers and Sisters, West Side Rag (Feb. 3, 2023) – https://www.westsiderag.com/2023/02/03/lamenting-the-loss-of-my-black-brothers-and-sisters 

·      Andrew Woo, How Have Rents Changed Since 1960?, Apartment List (Jun. 14, 2016) – https://www.apartmentlist.com/research/rent-growth-since-1960 

 

Movie 

·      You’ve Got Mail (1998) – available on HBO Max 

 

West 72nd Street Station 

·      Michael Minn, 72nd Street Subway Station, Michael Minn (blog) (Sept. 1, 2001) – https://michaelminn.net/newyork/areas/upper-west-side/72nd-street-subway-station/index.html 

·      72nd Street station (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line), Wikipedia (Updated Apr. 25, 2023) – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/72nd_Street_station_(IRT_Broadway%E2%80%93Seventh_Avenue_Line)#:~:text=The%2072nd%20Street%20station%20opened,of%20the%20Upper%20West%20Side. 

 

Verdi Square

·      The musical history of 72nd Street’s Verdi Square, Ephemeral New York (Dec. 19, 2012) – https://ephemeralnewyork.wordpress.com/2012/12/19/the-musical-history-of-72nd-streets-verdi-square/ 

·      Verdi Square, NYC Parks (Undated) – https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/verdi-square/highlights/6534 

·      Verdi Square, Landmarks Preservation Commission (Jan. 28, 1975) (NYC landmark designation approved) – http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/0857.pdf 

 

Riverside Park

·      Lucie Levine, 10 things you might not know about Riverside Park, 6sqft (Feb. 12, 2019) – https://www.6sqft.com/10-things-you-might-not-know-about-riverside-park/

·      Riverside Drive (Manhattan), Wikipedia (Updated Feb. 7, 2023) – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riverside_Drive_(Manhattan) 

·      Jay Shockley, Riverside Drive-West 80th - 81st Street Historic District: Designation Report, Landmarks Preservation Commission (of the City of New York) (Mar. 26, 1985) – http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/1429.pdf 

·      Riverside Park History, Riverside Park Conservancy, Zippia (Updated Sept. 9, 2022) – https://www.zippia.com/riverside-park-careers-82270/history/ 

·      Riverside South (Manhattan), Wikipedia (Updated Mar. 16, 2023) – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riverside_South,_Manhattan 

·      Riverside Drive Scenic North-South Thoroughfare From Harlem And Beyond 1865-,