The deceased — in life he was a doorman — was on a gurney in the basement. He was naked, as wrinkled as a rhino, and face up on a sheet. Around him in the clammy room were the tools of his embalmer: the trocar that had emptied out his stomach, the scalpel that had…

Puttin’ on the Ritz is a popular song written and published in 1929 by Irving Berlin and introduced by Harry Richman in the musical film Puttin’ on the Ritz (1930). The title derives from the slang expression “putting on the Ritz”, meaning to dress very fashionably. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant…