Elvis NY pad
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Elvis NY pad
http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,36 ... 65,00.html
Thursday November 6, 2003
The Guardian
Stargazing
Elvis is in the building
Last week I was leaving my building when I saw Michael, my doorman carrying two black guitar cases through the lobby, followed by a man who looked very similar to Elvis Costello. I live in the West Village in Manhattan - so every man looks like Elvis Costello. But this time, it turns out, it was Elvis Costello - and he has moved into my apartment block.
But why would he be in my building? "There probably wasn't anything available at 59 West 12th," my friend Laura offers, as though stating the obvious. Fifty-nine West 12th is a Fifth Avenue-style prewar up the street. Isaac Mizrahi lives there. "Or maybe he just uses it for his equipment. You know - like a storage space."
My building is fine - very convenient - it has an affable doormen, a brilliant handyman and a great laundry room in the basement. It's just not the sort of place where you imagine a rock star would live. There are about 15 apartments per floor with dark green carpeted hallways that are vacuumed once a week. I'm known as 17Y. As in: "Seventeen-Y - you got dry cleaning!"
I've never thought of my building as a desirable address but, then again, I live in the dead zone. This is the back of the building that faces the back of the building next door. Sometimes, between two and three in the afternoon, if I open the window and tilt far to the left, I can tell it's a sunny day.
"There are some beautiful apartments in this building!" says Joe, the other doorman, somewhat defensively. "Why wouldn't he want to live here?"
I guess I couldn't believe that out of all the apartment buildings in New York, Costello (floor unknown), would move somewhere so un-hip. There are families with mezuzahs on the door. There are tenants from when the building was first built. There are three elevators, two of which are clogged with strollers and bicycles and rain-soaked Chinese food deliverymen. The third is permanently out of order. Shouldn't he be in a loft in Tribeca?
"Maybe he couldn't get approved anywhere else." Bill, 22B, suggests. New York co-op boards are notoriously picky. When I applied to get in to this building, my interview took place with Mrs Rosenblatt, 3F. I sat on her plastic-covered sofa and answered questions along the lines of: "Do you own - or ever intend to own - a dog that barks?" And when she discovered I was a writer her eyes widened. "What kind of writer?" She asked, suspiciously. "A quiet one," I replied. I can only imagine her tone when she interviewed Costello. "A musician? Really. What kind of musician?"
The other day I heard someone practicing scales on the piano. It went on for ages and I was going to call to say something but then I thought twice. What if it was him? The last thing I want is to be the person complaining about Elvis Costello making too much "noise" on the piano.
Ariel Leve
Thursday November 6, 2003
The Guardian
Stargazing
Elvis is in the building
Last week I was leaving my building when I saw Michael, my doorman carrying two black guitar cases through the lobby, followed by a man who looked very similar to Elvis Costello. I live in the West Village in Manhattan - so every man looks like Elvis Costello. But this time, it turns out, it was Elvis Costello - and he has moved into my apartment block.
But why would he be in my building? "There probably wasn't anything available at 59 West 12th," my friend Laura offers, as though stating the obvious. Fifty-nine West 12th is a Fifth Avenue-style prewar up the street. Isaac Mizrahi lives there. "Or maybe he just uses it for his equipment. You know - like a storage space."
My building is fine - very convenient - it has an affable doormen, a brilliant handyman and a great laundry room in the basement. It's just not the sort of place where you imagine a rock star would live. There are about 15 apartments per floor with dark green carpeted hallways that are vacuumed once a week. I'm known as 17Y. As in: "Seventeen-Y - you got dry cleaning!"
I've never thought of my building as a desirable address but, then again, I live in the dead zone. This is the back of the building that faces the back of the building next door. Sometimes, between two and three in the afternoon, if I open the window and tilt far to the left, I can tell it's a sunny day.
"There are some beautiful apartments in this building!" says Joe, the other doorman, somewhat defensively. "Why wouldn't he want to live here?"
I guess I couldn't believe that out of all the apartment buildings in New York, Costello (floor unknown), would move somewhere so un-hip. There are families with mezuzahs on the door. There are tenants from when the building was first built. There are three elevators, two of which are clogged with strollers and bicycles and rain-soaked Chinese food deliverymen. The third is permanently out of order. Shouldn't he be in a loft in Tribeca?
"Maybe he couldn't get approved anywhere else." Bill, 22B, suggests. New York co-op boards are notoriously picky. When I applied to get in to this building, my interview took place with Mrs Rosenblatt, 3F. I sat on her plastic-covered sofa and answered questions along the lines of: "Do you own - or ever intend to own - a dog that barks?" And when she discovered I was a writer her eyes widened. "What kind of writer?" She asked, suspiciously. "A quiet one," I replied. I can only imagine her tone when she interviewed Costello. "A musician? Really. What kind of musician?"
The other day I heard someone practicing scales on the piano. It went on for ages and I was going to call to say something but then I thought twice. What if it was him? The last thing I want is to be the person complaining about Elvis Costello making too much "noise" on the piano.
Ariel Leve
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The cartoon that accompanies this piece in the print edition is in the photos section of
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/L-ListCostello/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/L-ListCostello/
My guess is he's too cheap to spring for something more upscale. (I don't know why, but from reading all those journal entries on the old site I got teh impression that he's a pretty frugal guy). Though let's face it, ANYTHING in New York City is pricey these days. A decent sized 2 bedroom in a non-descript doorman building can easily top $800K.
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FIRE BETTY...I was on my way to NYC for New Years...but it got cancelled...I would have loved to meet you!!!!!! We could have stalked Elvis together....my New Year is ruined....
by the way, my depression just seems to be getting worse....not "Goodbye Cruel World" status yet...but getting there.
by the way, my depression just seems to be getting worse....not "Goodbye Cruel World" status yet...but getting there.
I'd never leave the house if I had a Gimp
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Cheers Martin. I think the article below it is FAR more interesting. Let's all go to http://www.grouphug.us
I couldn't resist (looking that is, not confessing...).
I couldn't resist (looking that is, not confessing...).
Who’s this kid with his mumbo jumbo?
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I'm not sure LC, I think that Elvis might want to live in a building with average people.It seems to me that there would be a lot of interesting character studies that might stir his creative impulses into interesting directions.Tom Waits once told an interesting story about taking the train from town to town on tour.When he arrived at the station, he would pick a random former presidents' last name and tell the cab driver to go to that street.He would stay at a hotel on that street, often times they were run- down dives but he would run into and over hear conversations that inspired many songs he said.Excluding ones' self from the ordinary activities and the common people can be the death of creativity.Likewise, I'm sure he has a posh residence for when he wants to hob knob with the upper crust.
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Could've warned me about the subject content, VB!!verbal gymnastics wrote:Cheers Martin. I think the article below it is FAR more interesting. Let's all go to http://www.grouphug.us
I couldn't resist (looking that is, not confessing...).
I AM at work, you know....
"Love can be stranger than fiction..."
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Thanks to John Everingham, here it is now.martinfoyle wrote:The cartoon that accompanies this piece in the print edition is in the photos section of
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/L-ListCostello/