I’ve been in two minds about putting this one up due to the explicit homophobia (and implicit racism) of the quote. It’s from ‘New York Confidential’ the 1940s true crime ‘expose’ that was basically a travel guide for criminals. I’ve posted loads of quotes from the book before so figured for full transparency I’d post up some of the more odious content, hopefully it shows how ludicrous some of the authors’ statements were and are.

At the time this quote was made, 52nd Street was the home of bebop, where you could catch a set from Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis and Thelonious Monk, among others. Funny to think this was how some contemporaries characterised a musical revolution.

The photo is from the ever incredible Andreas Feininger.

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