The Bowery Boys: New York City History

Tom Meyers, Greg Young

The tides of American history flow through the streets of New York City — from the huddled masses on Ellis Island to the sleazy theaters of 1970s Times Square. Greg and Tom explore more than 400 years of action-packed stories, featuring both classic and forgotten figures who have shaped the world.

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563 episodes
Updated Friday

Episodes563

Newest first

Feb 28, 2025 · 1 hr 11 min
#451 The New Yorker Magazine: Talk of the Town for 100 Years
The New Yorker was first published one hundred years ago. And even though the present-day magazine is often quite contemporary in content, the New Yorker's tone and style still recall its glamorous Jazz Age origins.
Feb 21, 2025 · 59 min
At The Movies with Meyers and Young (Side Streets)
In honor of the Academy Awards, the Bowery Boys hosts pay homage to the great Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert while looking at five award-worthy films with strong New York City connections.
Feb 14, 2025 · 1 hr 23 min
#450 Harlem in the Jazz Age: A Renaissance in New York
We’re looking at the glamour and mystery of Harlem during the 1920s, a decade when the predominantly black neighborhood, in the words of Langston Hughes, “was in vogue.”
Jan 31, 2025 · 1 hr 22 min
#449 Italian Harlem: New York's Forgotten Little Italy
One of America's first great Italian neighborhoods was once in East Harlem, an enclave almost entirely gone today except for a couple restaurants, a church and a long-standing religious festival.
Jan 17, 2025 · 51 min
The Return of the Waldorf Astoria (Rewind)
The Waldorf Astoria is reopening this year, so we thought we'd again raise a toast to one of the world's most famous hotels.
Jan 10, 2025 · 58 min
#448 Inside the Memory Palace with Nate DiMeo
Two podcast dinosaurs talk about history, memory and elephants -- Greg Young interviews Nate DiMeo from the Memory Palace
Jan 3, 2025 · 1 hr
The World of Tiffany Glass: Lighting the Gilded Age
The extraordinary story of Louis Comfort Tiffany and the world of Gilded Age glass design he and his artisans helped inspire.
Dec 20, 2024 · 1 hr 20 min
#447 Bob Dylan's Greenwich Village
The story of Greenwich Village, one of America's great music capitals, and one of its greatest stars -- Bob Dylan.
Dec 6, 2024 · 1 hr 10 min
#446 Mr. Morgan and His Magnificent Library
The former library of J.P. Morgan -- one of the most powerful Americans to ever live -- is open to the public as the Morgan Library and Museum, continuing to highlight the world's greatest examples of the printed word
Nov 29, 2024 · 52 min
The Radio City Rockettes: New York's Dancing Queens (Rewind)
The Rockettes are America’s best known dance troupe — and a staple of the holiday season — but you may not know the origin of this iconic New York City symbol. For one, they’re not even from the Big Apple!
Nov 22, 2024 · 1 hr 16 min
#445 The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade: A Century of Cheer
The history of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade -- from wild balloon chases in the sky to kitschy celebrity appearances
Nov 8, 2024 · 58 min
#444 New York's Classic Mom-and-Pop Shops (with New York Nico)
What is New York without its diners, its small book shops, its curious antique stores and its historic delis? New York Nico shares his favorite local businesses.
Oct 25, 2024 · 45 min
Whatever Happened to Dorothy Arnold? (Rewind)
The mysterious disappearance of a young woman becomes one of the most talked-about events in New York City history.
Oct 11, 2024 · 1 hr 24 min
#443 Ghost Stories of the Five Boroughs
Ghost stories from New York City's five boroughs -- from Staten Island's tombstone-toting ghost to the Hessian ghouls in a Flushing house of worship.
Sep 27, 2024 · 1 hr 14 min
#442 Urban Legends of New York City
Are there alligators in the sewers? Tom and Greg go deep into their favorite New York urban legends. breaking down their origins and revealing the hidden truths that live beneath the legends.
Sep 13, 2024 · 1 hr
#441 The Recluse of Herald Square: The Ida Wood Mystery
This is the story of Ida Wood, a Gilded Age belle turned recluse, who chose to withdraw from society while still living in the heart of Old New York.
Sep 6, 2024 · 52 min
The Ghosty Men: Inside the Collyer Mansion (Rewind)
New York City is filled with stories of people who just want to be left alone – recluses, hermits, cloistering themselves from the public eye, closing themselves off from scrutiny. None attempted to seal themselves off so completely in the way that Homer and Langley Collyer attempted in the 1930s and 1940s.
Aug 30, 2024 · 1 hr 4 min
#440 When Longacre Square Became Times Square
What was Times Square before the electric billboards and the Broadway theaters? What was Times Square before it was Times Square?
Aug 16, 2024 · 58 min
#439 The Ticker-Tape Parade: A Very New York Celebration
In 1886, during a miles-long parade celebrating the dedication of the Statue of Liberty, office workers in lower Manhattan began heaving ticker tape out the windows, creating a magical, blizzard-like landscape. That tradition stuck. Today that particular corridor of Broadway -- connecting Battery Park to City Hall -- is known as the "Canyon of Heroes" thanks to the popularity of the ticker-tape parade. While many cities with skyscrapers host ticker-tape parades today, New York was the place they originated in the late 19th century and for a very obvious reason -- the ticker-tape itself, a byproduct of the Financial District which revolutionized the way stocks were traded. New York has regularly honored athletes, politicians, pilots, kings and queens, astronauts and generals with ticker-tape parades for over 125 years. Today, they're best known as a way to celebrate New York sports teams, the winners of the World Series, the Super Bowl or the Stanley Cup. The story of the ticker-tape parade is also a story of modern American history in capsule form, celebrating technological achievements, victories in war, cultural milestones and international unity. Greg and Tom are back in the studio to give you a rundown of New York's greatest parades. And they also pay tribute to those other local heroes -- the Department of Sanitation who cleans up after these festive but messy celebrations. Visit the website for more information and other stories from the Bowery Boys Get your tickets for The Gilded Age Unplugged with Greg Young and Carl Raymond (Sept 5 at the Montauk Club) here. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Aug 2, 2024 · 1 hr 4 min
#438 The Ramones at CBGB: Revolution on the Bowery
In this episode we’re celebrating the 50th anniversary of The Ramones' first performances in downtown Manhattan. But this also a tribute to New York rock music of the 1970s and to the most famous rock-music club in America.

The Bowery Boys: New York City History

#451 The New Yorker Magazine: Talk of the Town for 100 Years

At The Movies with Meyers and Young (Side Streets)

#450 Harlem in the Jazz Age: A Renaissance in New York

#449 Italian Harlem: New York's Forgotten Little Italy

The Return of the Waldorf Astoria (Rewind)

#448 Inside the Memory Palace with Nate DiMeo

The World of Tiffany Glass: Lighting the Gilded Age

#447 Bob Dylan's Greenwich Village

#446 Mr. Morgan and His Magnificent Library

The Radio City Rockettes: New York's Dancing Queens (Rewind)

#445 The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade: A Century of Cheer

#444 New York's Classic Mom-and-Pop Shops (with New York Nico)

Whatever Happened to Dorothy Arnold? (Rewind)

#443 Ghost Stories of the Five Boroughs

#442 Urban Legends of New York City

#441 The Recluse of Herald Square: The Ida Wood Mystery

The Ghosty Men: Inside the Collyer Mansion (Rewind)

#440 When Longacre Square Became Times Square

#439 The Ticker-Tape Parade: A Very New York Celebration

#438 The Ramones at CBGB: Revolution on the Bowery