I grew up in the Bronx in the 1970’s and 80’s. Today I am a West Coast University Professor holding a doctoral degree and three master degrees. I thank God for my amazing upbringing in the Bronx every day.
I spent a lot of precious time in the Bronx…I came from the New Jersey suburbs and spent time with my cousins who lived in a project under the El. I loved walking to the candy store to buy comic books,going to the playground, going to the mobile library,going to the Bronx Zoo, getting stuck in traffic on the Cross Bronx Expressway,hanging out with all the kids who made up my cousin’s entourage( one of whom became a world-renowned author) and generally having so much freedom. I am now 74, and I cherish those memories…
@@JeffreyBillington-q3d Same here, but not because I particularly liked it. It’s because of the attitude and the accent. My adult children still make fun of the way I TAWK.
I grew up in the Bronx River Houses, moved to Pelham Park South in the late 70s & moved out of New York in the late 80s. I have some wonderful memories, the Bronx Zoo, Botanical Gardens, Sal & Dom's for Italian pastries, etc. I'm glad I grew up there, I grew up in the best place. I left the Bronx, the Bronx never left me. ❤
I am from Europe. I visited New York many times and The Bronx is one of my favorite boroughs to visit. I went to Crotona Park, met Hip Hop heroes. People are warm.
love, love, love this video - I lived on City Island (Bronx) for years, it was and is my very favorite place I've ever lived, and I miss it everyday. It was like living in a little New England seaside village with easy access to the biggest, best most wonderful big city in the world, NYC.. Just watching this made me cry because I miss totally everything about living there. Born in NY, grew up/schooled there.... lived there almost my entire life except for the last 7 or so.... When you don't live where you love, you merely exist.
I was born and raised in the Bronx until we moved to Connecticut when I was 13. I went back for a visit last summer and was impressed with how clean the Grand Concourse was and how friendly most of the people were. In articles about the Bronx , including this piece, there is so little representation of pre 1960s history. Yes, Arthur Avenue is always mentioned as an ode to old Italian neighborhoods, but it seems as if Jewish and Irish Bronx history has been erased. When I was growing up in the 1950s-60s, all ethnic and religious groups lived in the same neighborhoods an all got along...99% of the time.
I think the neighborhoods have changed. My dad grew up on Sedgwick Ave. over near the reservoir. Mostly Irish back in the 30’s-70’s. Think it’s all Dominican now.
I love Susie Essman. When she says to that author, deadpan and fast, “we are not friends” that is sooo New York. I, a NYer outside NY, get in trouble for being that direct.
I was born in New York but live in L.A. these days and I carry those images of burned out buildings from the 1970's in my mind. Times Square and 42nd Street weren't so picturesque then either. But I've seen in the news how midtown has been beautified. This segment shows me how the Bronx has made a come back too.
You should do this type of segment showcasing various parts of the U.S. Too many people think the U.S. is only NYC and LA. There are a lot more great neighborhoods and communities out there.
I was raised in Highbridge for five years, raised and grew up in Soundview, went to Stevenson HS and graduated in 1984, living in Williams Bridge now. The Bronx is and always be my favorite borough.
I ran a telecommunications business off Pelham Parkway next to a bakery and an SUPERB Italian deli and no one walking by knew that this unassuming business with no sign, generated $200,000,000 Million (LEGAL) a year in audited revenues. NYC bankers would literally laugh at us when we went to borrow money or garner investment and not want to come out to see us. We did over $2 BILLION in revenues over the last 20 years; maybe spurned on by that City arrogance towards an ethnic business; but we had that Bronx resilience. The Bronx is a place of massive OPPORTUNITY that most people don't see or is under their radar; it is a diamond in the rough and when you run a business there it's a feeling like the old pioneers had going out West to make their fortunes. Hard, hard work, sweat and long hours. But like Fat Joe said, anyone can make it there if they hustle.
Someone from my hometown of Cleveland telling the story. WOW!!! I too left Cleveland for the Navy and 23 years of that, too explored the world. Great 👍🏿 story.
You forgot Colin Powell! Had to edit this……..The Bronx Zoo is one of the best in the country and has the beautiful Botanical gardens. It is a borough that has the most parks of any other. I attended Mother Butler near Orchard Beach and City Island way back in the day. Love Arthur Avenue still Italian to this day and forever! Edgar Allen Poe’s house is there near Fordham Road along with Fordham University. I can go on and on!
@fg842 No, let me! I'll add that The Bronx has three parks on the list of the Top 10 largest parks in the city: #1-Pelham Bay, #3-Van Courtlandt and #7-Bronx Park (where the river is in the video). The borough also has four golf courses (Van Courtlandt, Pelham Bay/Split Rock, Bally Links and Mosholu). Speaking of the borough's history as a 19th century country retreat for the rich, you can visit the Bartow-Pell Mansion, the last remaining grand country estate in the borough which is now a museum in Pelham Bay Park. Did you know that in 1783, Lewis Morris, signer of the Declaration of Independence, suggested in a letter to the Continental Congress that his own estate Morrisania (the same area we know as now) be the place for the new capital of the United States? As so many other commenters have offered omissions to the list of famous Bronxites, a future piece on the borough would do well to check out the sign posts on the Grand Concourse along the "The Bronx Walk of Fame", a 23-block corridor with street signs honoring people who have lived in the borough and had worthy accomplishments. And everyone talks about Coney Island but does anyone remember the "Freedomland" amusement park (aka the Disney World of the Bronx) that existed where Co-op City is today? I think Susie needs to do a follow-up piece and make a visit to the Bronx Historical Society on Bainbridge Avenue!
I was born in 1945 in the Bronx at Royal Hospital on the Grand Concourse and grew up on Mosholu Parkway I am reliving my whole youth on watching the travelogues and this clip Seeing the Bronx literally go up in flames during the 1970's I was completely turned off but now I can see a rebirth of that borough
Bronx [MottHaven] born & raised. I exited during my mid 20’s, but the BX never left me. You can take a kid out of the Bronx, but you can’t take the Bronx out of the kid. Even in my middle aged years, It is hardwired to my DNA and I am grateful for that. 6:46
Ha, that made me laugh. Only a NY’er would understand. GPs and cousins lived in the BX. I grew up in Queens. Left in ‘76 to the Midwest. Miss it still ❤
My mother me there was judge in the Bronx Court House would ask you what neighborhood you were from during jury selection. He would then proceed to give you the history of that neighborhood. He was one of a Kind.
Born and raised in the BX. Eff what ya heard. Best place that brought the culture to what it is now‼️ South BX young to the BEST life in Co-op City. Not all is bad like you hear. BX STRONG....NY STRONG....ALLL DAY 🤜💪🤛🫶🫶🫶
I remember growing up in the Bronx during the 70s and 80s , news crews from other countries , crews filming documentaries and movies , I always asked myself , why are they all here in the Bronx? , later on in my life I realized how famous for all types of reasons the Bronx was ....
Too bad for you. I led walking tours in the Bronx (and in Harlem) for more than 20 years before COVID shut me down. Had a Sunday plan at the Stadium since 1987 and would often walk to games.
Great video. Only gripe is when she said it’s the most diverse place in America. That belongs to Queens; no bias, just facts. There’s a reason why it’s called the world’s borough. Shoutout to the Bronx tho. Met a lot of great people from there.
The Bronx is a constantly evolving place. Lived there for 11 long years during my middle age. Not the Riverdale side of the Bronx. The hood so to speak. Very surprised to see that Vanessa Gibson is now the Bronx Boro President as she was a State Assembly member of the district I lived in and I had met her when she was first elected to that post. The Bronx is about the human spirit. There are a lot of struggling humans in the Bronx. It is not a fairy tale. But it is good to see that a strong perseverant woman can rise from near the bottom, to the top there. Also, the Bronx does not need any chearleading stories about it on tv. Nobody wants you moving there. The less attention it gets, the better. People living there don't want you moving there because it means the rents will go up and they might need to move to South Carolina to make ends meet.
Read the book after reading the article in The New Yorker. Always wanted to walk across the Bronx (like the author did) - when I lived there (1990s) it was not a good time to do that.
I've always enjoyed Ogden Nash's four-word poem about the Bronx: "The Bronx? No thonx!" I was born in the Bronx and lived there during my first ten years of life before my family moved east to the Isle of Long. The narrator says the The Bronx is "the most diverse place in America." I wonder about that because I have read in several sources that that distinction goes to Queens. As for the brief mention of the Cross Bronx Expressway, check out The Power Broker by Robert Caro, about Robert Moses and the way that he caused devastation when he forced that highway to be built through several neighborhoods. He had no compassion for the thousands of residents who were displaced.
I grew up in the Bronx in the 1970’s and 80’s. Today I am a West Coast University Professor holding a doctoral degree and three master degrees. I thank God for my amazing upbringing in the Bronx every day.
I spent a lot of precious time in the Bronx…I came from the New Jersey suburbs and spent time with my cousins who lived in a project under the El. I loved walking to the candy store to buy comic books,going to the playground, going to the mobile library,going to the Bronx Zoo, getting stuck in traffic on the Cross Bronx Expressway,hanging out with all the kids who made up my cousin’s entourage( one of whom became a world-renowned author) and generally having so much freedom. I am now 74, and I cherish those memories…
❤memories amazing ❤
And WE were always envious of the relatives who lived in Jersey or Long Island. If you had spent 24/7 in the Bronx, your memories wouldn’t be as good.
I was happy to get home, but no place on earth is perfect…
♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️
♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️
Job 33:25
Isaiah 65:21
Isaiah 45:18
No matter where I go I will always be a Bronx kid 😊
@@JeffreyBillington-q3d Same here, but not because I particularly liked it. It’s because of the attitude and the accent. My adult children still make fun of the way I TAWK.
Me too!
I am a Bronx native, Throgg's Neck . This is a fantastic segment! I'll make sure to share this with all my Bronx homies. .📺🩵
I grew up in the Bronx River Houses, moved to Pelham Park South in the late 70s & moved out of New York in the late 80s. I have some wonderful memories, the Bronx Zoo, Botanical Gardens, Sal & Dom's for Italian pastries, etc. I'm glad I grew up there, I grew up in the best place. I left the Bronx, the Bronx never left me. ❤
The Botanical Garden is fabulous!!!
Love the Christmas train layout 🚂
I am from Europe. I visited New York many times and The Bronx is one of my favorite boroughs to visit. I went to Crotona Park, met Hip Hop heroes. People are warm.
love, love, love this video - I lived on City Island (Bronx) for years, it was and is my very favorite place I've ever lived, and I miss it everyday. It was like living in a little New England seaside village with easy access to the biggest, best most wonderful big city in the world, NYC.. Just watching this made me cry because I miss totally everything about living there. Born in NY, grew up/schooled there.... lived there almost my entire life except for the last 7 or so.... When you don't live where you love, you merely exist.
Clamdigger.😊
I’m sorry. That sounded like a lovely place to live. Saw a PBS show on all the islands within NYC & that’s how they described City Island. 🏡
Brilliant. More Susie please!
Amazing and beautifully said. My hometown, The Bronx .
I was born and raised in the Bronx until we moved to Connecticut when I was 13. I went back for a visit last summer and was impressed with how clean the Grand Concourse was and how friendly most of the people were. In articles about the Bronx , including this piece, there is so little representation of pre 1960s history. Yes, Arthur Avenue is always mentioned as an ode to old Italian neighborhoods, but it seems as if Jewish and Irish Bronx history has been erased. When I was growing up in the 1950s-60s, all ethnic and religious groups lived in the same neighborhoods an all got along...99% of the time.
I think the neighborhoods have changed. My dad grew up on Sedgwick Ave. over near the reservoir. Mostly Irish back in the 30’s-70’s. Think it’s all Dominican now.
Riverdale.
The Bronx is now my daughter’s home. She’s a proud teacher in this borough.
Anne Maria Louisa Italiano known as Anne Bancroft was born in the Bronx. Best Actress Academy Award Winner for THE MIRACLE WORKER (1962). 😀
I had the pleasure of meeting her on the set of G.I. Jane, she was super sweet.
@@MaryBravado That's great! Wow!
But grew up on O’Dell Ave in Yonkers. When she was dating Mel Brooks we’d see him cutting the grass for her parents sometimes. 🏡
Colin Powell was a Bronx boy too!
Yes, but he unfortunately ate the yellow cake.
Proud Bronx Native here! Great coverage video thank you
Very enjoyable piece. Thanks!
I love Susie Essman. When she says to that author, deadpan and fast, “we are not friends” that is sooo New York. I, a NYer outside NY, get in trouble for being that direct.
I was born in New York but live in L.A. these days and I carry those images of burned out buildings from the 1970's in my mind. Times Square and 42nd Street weren't so picturesque then either. But I've seen in the news how midtown has been beautified. This segment shows me how the Bronx has made a come back too.
We love The Bronx...love City Island, Botanical Garden. ❤
Very well done. The Bronx is a special place.
I taught for 15 years in the South Bronx from about 1995 to 2010. I enjoyed the segment. I observed many improvements during my tenure.
Beautiful love letter to The Bronx. Happy for those from Riverdale to Port Morris, Eastchester to HighBridge.
You should do this type of segment showcasing various parts of the U.S. Too many people think the U.S. is only NYC and LA. There are a lot more great neighborhoods and communities out there.
I was raised in Highbridge for five years, raised and grew up in Soundview, went to Stevenson HS and graduated in 1984, living in Williams Bridge now. The Bronx is and always be my favorite borough.
Soundview! I lived on Seward Ave.
Fantastic video ! Makes you want to visit ❤!
It's a special place. I'm thankful to have grown up there. Great segment.
I ran a telecommunications business off Pelham Parkway next to a bakery and an SUPERB Italian deli and no one walking by knew that this unassuming business with no sign, generated $200,000,000 Million (LEGAL) a year in audited revenues. NYC bankers would literally laugh at us when we went to borrow money or garner investment and not want to come out to see us. We did over $2 BILLION in revenues over the last 20 years; maybe spurned on by that City arrogance towards an ethnic business; but we had that Bronx resilience. The Bronx is a place of massive OPPORTUNITY that most people don't see or is under their radar; it is a diamond in the rough and when you run a business there it's a feeling like the old pioneers had going out West to make their fortunes. Hard, hard work, sweat and long hours. But like Fat Joe said, anyone can make it there if they hustle.
Someone from my hometown of Cleveland telling the story. WOW!!! I too left Cleveland for the Navy and 23 years of that, too explored the world. Great 👍🏿 story.
Bronx Proud❤
The BRONX is the safest place in NYC right now ❤
Not the safest , you are wrong.
@@ciel222lived in the Bronx all my life, tell me where's the safe borough? 😮
@@ciel222 Safer than Brooklyn.
Great job Susie! More Susie I hope❤
Susie Essman becoming a Sunday Morning contributor was not on my 2025 bingo card but it is a welcome surprise. Love her!!
HELLO FROM THE BRONX!!
#upTheBronx
Bronx native- yes! 🙌🏼
You forgot Colin Powell! Had to edit this……..The Bronx Zoo is one of the best in the country and has the beautiful Botanical gardens. It is a borough that has the most parks of any other. I attended Mother Butler near Orchard Beach and City Island way back in the day. Love Arthur Avenue still Italian to this day and forever! Edgar Allen Poe’s house is there near Fordham Road along with Fordham University. I can go on and on!
@fg842 No, let me! I'll add that The Bronx has three parks on the list of the Top 10 largest parks in the city: #1-Pelham Bay, #3-Van Courtlandt and #7-Bronx Park (where the river is in the video). The borough also has four golf courses (Van Courtlandt, Pelham Bay/Split Rock, Bally Links and Mosholu).
Speaking of the borough's history as a 19th century country retreat for the rich, you can visit the Bartow-Pell Mansion, the last remaining grand country estate in the borough which is now a museum in Pelham Bay Park.
Did you know that in 1783, Lewis Morris, signer of the Declaration of Independence, suggested in a letter to the Continental Congress that his own estate Morrisania (the same area we know as now) be the place for the new capital of the United States?
As so many other commenters have offered omissions to the list of famous Bronxites, a future piece on the borough would do well to check out the sign posts on the Grand Concourse along the "The Bronx Walk of Fame", a 23-block corridor with street signs honoring people who have lived in the borough and had worthy accomplishments.
And everyone talks about Coney Island but does anyone remember the "Freedomland" amusement park (aka the Disney World of the Bronx) that existed where Co-op City is today?
I think Susie needs to do a follow-up piece and make a visit to the Bronx Historical Society on Bainbridge Avenue!
Shoutout to The Boogie Down Bronx, all the way from Houston, Tx
I was born in 1945 in the Bronx at Royal Hospital on the Grand Concourse and grew up on Mosholu Parkway I am reliving my whole youth on watching the travelogues and this clip
Seeing the Bronx literally go up in flames during the 1970's
I was completely turned off but now I can see a rebirth of that borough
They failed to mention it went up flames because landlords set the buildings on fire.
Born and raised in the Boogie Down. Left in 1991, only been back ones, but the BX is still in me.
The Bronx is a special place that’s truth, A lot of innovators come from there
Love my BRONX!!
Real Talk... The Boogie Down Bronx is so unique that during the summer, we have a Bronx Day Celebration in Atlanta.
Susie is a great correspondent..... Shout out to the BX!
Bronx [MottHaven] born & raised. I exited during my mid 20’s, but the BX never left me. You can take a kid out of the Bronx, but you can’t take the Bronx out of the kid. Even in my middle aged years, It is hardwired to my DNA and I am grateful for that. 6:46
This was fun. Such diversity!
Unsafe areas.
I had no idea. I just remember Fort Apache: The Bronx'. This was insightful. Well done piece.
Beautiful love story ❤️ of Bronx. Awesome history 👏🏾
The Bronx-the most diverse place in the world. Top that, Queens.
Ha, that made me laugh. Only a NY’er would understand. GPs and cousins lived in the BX. I grew up in Queens. Left in ‘76 to the Midwest. Miss it still ❤
Love Susie!
Love Riverdale. All the mansions on Fieldston. 🏡
Willie Mays had one there
@@williev9267 Really? Very cool
My mother me there was judge in the Bronx Court House would ask you what neighborhood you were from during jury selection. He would then proceed to give you the history of that neighborhood. He was one of a Kind.
Allerton ave all the way
Bronx baby !
First comes 60 minutes, next comes GENTRIFICATION lol!
Born and raised in the BX.
Eff what ya heard. Best place that brought the culture to what it is now‼️
South BX young to the BEST life in Co-op City.
Not all is bad like you hear.
BX STRONG....NY STRONG....ALLL DAY
🤜💪🤛🫶🫶🫶
I remember growing up in the Bronx during the 70s and 80s , news crews from other countries , crews filming documentaries and movies , I always asked myself , why are they all here in the Bronx? , later on in my life I realized how famous for all types of reasons the Bronx was ....
my uncle lou and aunt roz lived on the grand concourse
Fort apache corner of home st and fox st ... In the 50s ..Heaven my ball field was the gutter and I loved it
BX BABY!
I was born in Soundview and never knew Haagen Dazs was started in The Bronx. Now I know why it's my mom's favorite ice cream as well as mine.
I’m A Hip Hop Veteran From The Bronx
The boogie down where I keep my hoodie down! Bx love
You guys also forgot STANLEY KUBRICK was born and raised there! 🤔
And Calvin Klein. (And Ralph "Lauren" was little Ralphie Lifschitz.)
The last time that i felt safe in the Bronx was 1959
Too bad for you. I led walking tours in the Bronx (and in Harlem) for more than 20 years before COVID shut me down. Had a Sunday plan at the Stadium since 1987 and would often walk to games.
My hometown, as well, I grew up near the Northside of Pelham Parkway!
I didn't know that Haagen-Dazs was created in The Bronx. Cool !
Tracy Morgan is from Bed-Study Brooklyn
Went to Dewitt Clinton HS though
BX ALL DAY, BABY! 💪🏿
I love to tell people that "I grew up on Park Avenue...in the Bronx!"😅
didnt know haagen dazs was created in the Bronx. so cool!
Her father was my family doctor in THe Bronx!
Wonderful
Great video. Only gripe is when she said it’s the most diverse place in America. That belongs to Queens; no bias, just facts. There’s a reason why it’s called the world’s borough. Shoutout to the Bronx tho. Met a lot of great people from there.
Actually, most diverse might still be Jersey City or Newark. Depends on the last batch of Census data.
The Bronx is a constantly evolving place. Lived there for 11 long years during my middle age. Not the Riverdale side of the Bronx. The hood so to speak. Very surprised to see that Vanessa Gibson is now the Bronx Boro President as she was a State Assembly member of the district I lived in and I had met her when she was first elected to that post. The Bronx is about the human spirit. There are a lot of struggling humans in the Bronx. It is not a fairy tale. But it is good to see that a strong perseverant woman can rise from near the bottom, to the top there. Also, the Bronx does not need any chearleading stories about it on tv. Nobody wants you moving there. The less attention it gets, the better. People living there don't want you moving there because it means the rents will go up and they might need to move to South Carolina to make ends meet.
I grew up 6 blocks north of old Yankee Stadium.
Dr. Allan Lichtman is also from there. He's a very important American.
Big up Bronx every time
Healthy-sized Joe 😂
Awesome. !!! The Bx. 😊
Read the book after reading the article in The New Yorker. Always wanted to walk across the Bronx (like the author did) - when I lived there (1990s) it was not a good time to do that.
Cool I just moved the Catskills
They should have included comedian Robert Klein and the late Red Buttons as part of their list of names of people from the Bronx.
Great story
Boogie down Bronx Forever.
Decatur and Gunhill rd
The great filmmaker Stanley Kubrick was also a Bronx native.
❤❤❤❤❤
BX❤
You know it!!!!!!!!
❤❤❤, Thanks
Interesting diversity of characters in the Bronx, representative of the diversity there.
I've always enjoyed Ogden Nash's four-word poem about the Bronx: "The Bronx? No thonx!"
I was born in the Bronx and lived there during my first ten years of life before my family moved east to the Isle of Long. The narrator says the The Bronx is "the most diverse place in America." I wonder about that because I have read in several sources that that distinction goes to Queens.
As for the brief mention of the Cross Bronx Expressway, check out The Power Broker by Robert Caro, about Robert Moses and the way that he caused devastation when he forced that highway to be built through several neighborhoods. He had no compassion for the thousands of residents who were displaced.
The Bronx is dangerous. I was threatened the first night I came there. However, some of favorite people are there. 🗽
No it's not. What were you doing to get threatened?
Casa Grande,AZ in the house
Gift!
The only good neighborhoods left in the Bronx are Riverdale, Country Club and Throggs Neck….And yet still the poorest county in the nation!
You left out Morris Park, City Island, Pelham Bay, Woodlawn, and Pelham Gardens.
Agreed 👍💯 ! - still decent areas
My home
I wanna go, now! ❤
My childhood!
Castle Hill native
Da Bronx. There's no other 😊
Yes my Bronx raised in 167 near the yankee stadium.