Forgotten New York

23RD AVENUE SIGNS

AFTER concluding my Crescent Street walk in late September 2024 I decided to head east on 23rd Avenue toward the Astoria el to get the N train back to Queensboro Plaza. I ever know quite what to call this part of Queens. I can call it Astoria, I can call it Long Island City. But the northernmost area can also be called Ditmars, after the main shopping and restaurant row Ditmars Boulevard, which sits in place of 22nd Avenue (just as Bay Parkway sits in place of Brooklyn’s 22nd Avenue).

I noticed a few interesting signs along those few blocks…

Astoria has long been known as a Greek neighborhood and the influence is especially noticed in Ditmars. At 26th Street is Gregory’s Corner Taverna. Greek cuisine, with its emphasis on greens and protein-laden meats, is considered among the world’s healthiest. Across 23rd Avenue is the Amorgos Foundation, dealing with immigrants from the Greek island in the Aegean Sea, a prime vacationing site. Other Greek islands, Donoussa, Schinoussa, Irakleia and Koufonisia are also listed on the awning. You can learn Greek geography from reading sidewalk signs. Hippocrates is regarded as the father of ethical medical practices during the Greek classical era, but at this remove, his involvement has come under some skepticism.

From Reddit:

Kambri Crews of Q.E.D. announced that she’s selling QED to Hannah Lieberman, who is a comedian who produces shows there. She is staying on to serve as a consultant/mentor – it looks like there won’t be too many differences, and that Hannah will take the reins in March.

“Q.E.D. is the only independent, woman-owned and operated venue for the arts in Queens, NYC. As a small community-driven space by & for creatives, we provide an affordable and accessible space for artists & performers of all types. At Q.E.D. you’ll find stand-up comedy, workshops, artistic meet ups, screenings, readings, lectures, watch parties & more. Our affordable classes and shows are as diverse as Queens itself.”

I myself have done a couple of  Forgotten New York presentations and have been beaten in six spelling bees at Q.E.D.

QED is an abbreviation for the Latin phrase quod erat demonstrandum, which means “that which was to be demonstrated”. It is used to indicate that the argument or proof that comes before it is complete. 

Read Kambri’s engaging memoir, “Burn Down The Ground”

I have never played Connect Four though I have seen it played in an insane asylum on “Lost.” Maybe I can learn at Compton’s, a sandwich chain with several locales around town; Astoria is the flagship. I liked the white, no nonsense signage. I will visit at 23rd Avenue and 28th Street to see if it can compare with Blimpie or Jersey Mike’s.

Back in 2016 I was enthusiastically noting Bartunek Hardware’s ancient sign at its #28-07 23 Avenue location, nearby the Ditmars Boulevard N train station. The store has been in business since 1925, making it Queens’ oldest hardware store. It can be seen in this 1940 tax photo in the Municipal Archives. Until just a couple of years ago, it boasted a gorgeous plastic-lettered sign, dominated by white and red, but also green, orange, blue and purple. In 2021, I decried its loss and the placement of a new black and yellow awning sign. But all is not lost. The old sign still lurks beneath the awning!

A punny name for a cigar store, but I question emphasizing that too much cigar smoking does cause coughing and worse…

The Bonnie, at 29-12 23rd Avenue, displays a new trend in sidewalk signs: the return of the painted ad. These tend to fade over time so high quality paint that stands up to sunshine has to be used.

Even this lawyers’ office sign is interesting to me because it uses Helvetica Bold Condensed, a font employed when you have a lot of words that have to fit in a small space.

I put on weight by osmosis just by passing Compton’s and this bakery, with the title in Times Roman.


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12/24/24

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