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NEWSSTAND Newsstand, variant
image This typical newsstand carried eight daily newspapers and 200 magazines, almost all published in New York. According to the stand's owner, James Stratakos, detective stories and mystery magazines were the best sellers, closely followed by movie magazines and Westerns. The stand also sold sodas, candy, cigars, and cigarettes. When serving customers inside, Stratakos left the stand unattended. "People are generally honest," he reported, "except at night when a few copies of the News might be snatched." He built the newsstand in 1932 "out of almost nothing" and earned $25 to $30 a week. For no apparent reason, Abbott photographed the newsstand from the same position on two different days. A variant shows a different selection of magazines with boxes of fruit in front of the cases of sodas. Abbott later commented that what people read was "pretty sad...all escape." (McQuaid, 375). Although similar makeshift newsstands can be found throughout the city, a large apartment building now rises from the site of Stratakos's stand. Return to the Middle East Side |
