John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie In Harlem (video)

John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie (pronounced /ɡɨˈlɛspi/; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please leave this field blank.By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: . You can revoke your…

Walter’s World: The Dance Gallery Festival

By Walter Rutledge One of the many obstacles an emerging artist faces is visibility. The philosophical riddle, “If a tree falls in the forest but nobody is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” addresses the differences of the observed and unobserved worlds. The Dance Gallery Festival provided visibility in a professional venue…

Michael’s World: Chevy Tahoe Hybrid

Tahoe’s reputation says big. And yet with a potent 320 horsepower engine featuring active fuel management on regular unleaded gasoline, seating for up to nine … Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please leave this field blank.By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: . You…

Ms. Drama, The Queen of Drama

The onetime intern sports reporter and almost weather reporter in Atlanta has transformed herself into one of the best gossip writers in the business. The Spellman, NYU graduate and inventor of the Ms. Drama, The Drama Queen brand talks on her hometown, Harlem, her spiritualism, Alicia Keys and memorable interviews. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up…

Michael’s World: Leading the Pack, Audi Q7 TDI

By Michael Andre Adams Hey Harlem, if the absence of style, performance and gas mileage have kept you from owning an SUV, your time has come, thanks to the new Audi Q7 TDI. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please leave this field blank.By submitting this form, you are consenting…

Harlem Jazz Museum Acquires Trove By Greats

For decades jazz cognoscenti have talked reverently of “the Savory Collection.” Recorded from radio broadcasts in the late 1930s by an audio engineer named William Savory, it was known to include extended live performances by some of the most honored names in jazz — but only a handful of people had ever heard even the…

Oscar Micheaux Stamp Unveiling in Harlem

The 33rd stamp in the Black Heritage series honors pio­neering filmmaker Oscar Micheaux (1884-1951) wrote, directed, produced, and distributed more than 40 movies during the first half of the 20th century. An ambitious, larger-than-life figure, Micheaux thrived at a time when African-American filmmakers were rare, venues for their work were scarce, and support from the…

Does This Bus Stop at 125h Street? #3 & #4

By Richard Daub This is part three and four in a six part series. Photo of the tour guide. I was also curious about what the outside perception of Harlem. Having grown up on Long Island in the 1980s, Harlem was simply a place that you did not go. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for…

Does This Bus Stop at 125th Street?

By Richard Daub This is part one in a six part series, the remaining five posts will follow every other week for the next two months. They pass by every half-hour right outside my apartment window. The double-decker buses loaded with tourists rolling down Broadway and past our building on West 133rd before swinging a…

Disney’s First Black Princess

  By: Dontré L. Conerly Belle. Ariel. Jasmine. Chances are, you know these names as just a few of Disney’s magical princesses from such classic tales as Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, and Aladdin. After 10 years, since it introduced Chinese warrior princess, Mulan, in 1998, the Disney royal court unveiled its first…

Obama To Create 3.5M New Jobs

Politics Facing growing criticism of his economic recovery plan, President-elect Barack Obama made public Saturday a detailed analysis by his economic advisers that estimates the $775 billion plan of tax cuts and new spending would create 3.5 million jobs over the next two years. With an eye on Obama having immediate access to bailout money…

Mount Morris Park

Mount Morris Park Historic District was designated a historic district by New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1971. It is a large 16-block area in west central Harlem. The boundaries are West 118th and West 124th Streets, Fifth Avenue, and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard (Seventh Avenue). “Doctor’s Row” comprises the nearby stretch of…