I didn’t? Yes, I did! Didn’t I? Where’s that god damn thread? Didn’t I post something after “Cool beans! I’m looking forward to reading it! Way to go!”
Well, it was a fine piece of research and writing…a piece of history about which I knew nothing before reading it, enjoyed immensely while reading it, and provided much food for thought after reading it. And I’d say the same thing even if I never knew ya.
“Local news media went nuts with the story” ? Y’know, I kept waiting for someone to say something about those signs in the papers, and no one ever did. Manhattan cited the Journal, which I never read, but 14 years ago I was going though at least the Times, the Daily News, and the Voice. I don’t recall seeing anything in those puppies.
Thanks for the compliments about my bridge piece, Uke.
As for your signs, the more I think about it, the more I must disagree with Manny’s timing. I seem to recall they went up around the summer of 1992, give or take a year. If so, I wouldn’t be surprised if they came down when the Giuliani administration took over from Dinkins’ boys the following year.
And yes, they got a lot of play in the media. I know they made all the local TV news shows and at least the tabloids – maybe even the Post’s cover, IIRC.
I’ll dig around a bit to see what I find.
to speak of. I did fly into Kennedy once and ride out to Westbury, Long Island, for a week of training on some Brinkmann products.
But I ramble.
The description in the OP immediately made me think “guerilla art.” And I was reminded of a more recent example of it that I heard about. For this project, the artist tampered with the displays on “Walk/Don’t Walk” signals, tailoring them to their locations. For instance, a signal at the corner where an independent bookstore was located spent several hours flashing “To Be/Not To Be,” and outside a cathedral, pedestrians were urged to “Sin/Repent.”
Anyway, I’m kinda sad that the real answers were posted before I got here and could prove that I had sharp intuitive skills.