Touring the ‘Hell’ that Was Avenue C in 1992 [VIDEO]
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This nine-minute clip is a candid glimpse into the warzone of Alphabet City, circa 1992. It shows a leisurely stroll across East 8th Street between Avenues C and D. Back when those letters stood for “C, you’re crazy,” and “D, you’re dead.”
Michael Perhaes describes his life growing up around these parts in the 1960s with his friend Eric Beckman. He regales us with stories about witnessing his first “gunshot wound victim” and how his window was completely “bricked in” with cinderblocks. The tour, as it were, continues into his childhood tenement home; the then-current tenant let him in.
Highlights – the urban etiquette note directed to junkies shooting up on the roof (5:51), and the mail parcels returned to sender due to illegal contraband (6:10).
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Description of the video from Perhaes:
Here’s a little video that Eric Beckman and I made back in 1992. We strolled down New York City’s East 8th Street between Avenues C & D, and then had a guided tour of the building our families called home in the mid 1960’s. Most shocking to see, other than hair I apparently borrowed from Ben Affleck, is the utter urban decay along a street littered end to end with debris. Those were the days.
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