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The Bowery Boys: New York City History

#117 Mark Twain's New York

The Bowery Boys: New York City History

Tom Meyers

Society & Culture, History, Documentary, Places & Travel

4.83.6K Ratings

🗓️ 3 December 2010

⏱️ 25 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

You hear the name Mark Twain and think of his classic characters Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, his locales along the Mississippi River and his folksy wit. But he was equal parts New York as well, and the city helped shape his sharp, flamboyant character. Follow his course, from his first visit as an opinionated young man in 1853, to his later years in 1906 as a Fifth Avenue tenant, decked out with a cigar and signature white suit. His tale offers a glimpse into the glamorous life of turn-of-the-century New York, from the smoke-filled billiard room at the Players Club to late nights at New York's dining palace Delmonico's. Tune in and find out which parts of Mark Twain's city are still around and which of his old homes you can still visit today. With co-stars Ulysses S. Grant, Helen Keller, Artemus Ward, and the frog that helped make Samuel Clemens famous. www.boweryboyspodcast.com A slight correction: I mentioned in the show that Mark Twain only worked on one play in his lifetime, called 'Is He Dead?'. That might have been his only solo attempt, but he did try many years earlier to pen one in collaboration with Bret Harte. The play, called "Ah Sin: The Heathen Chinee", opened and closed in 1877. It was an unmitigated flop and a total creative failure. He worked on another collaborative play called "Cap'n Wheeler" the next year. Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/boweryboys

Transcript

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0:00.0

The Bowry Boys Episode 117, The New York Adventures of Mark Twain.

0:05.3

Hey, it's The Bowry Boys.

0:06.8

Hey.

0:07.9

The Bowry Boys is brought to you by EuroChipo.com.

0:11.8

EuroChipo editors personally visit and review the best budget hotels in Europe.

0:16.6

Now with hotels in New York City, on the web at EuroChipo.com.

0:21.2

Hi there, welcome to The Bowry Boys.

0:23.0

This is Greg Young with a special solo show for you this week.

0:26.7

I know I would say this special, but this one is very special.

0:30.4

I began with a quote.

0:32.3

Returning to New York after an absence of nine years,

0:35.6

I find much improvement to it, a great moral improvement.

0:40.2

Something it is because I have been away,

0:42.9

but the more intelligent thing that it is because I have come back.

0:47.3

That was the beginning of a toast by Mark Twain to a roomful of distinguished gentleman

0:51.4

that had gathered a demonico's restaurant on December 6, 1900, 110 years ago.

0:57.8

Mark Twain was America's greatest man of letters in the 19th century,

1:01.6

producing some of the most beloved books ever written.

1:04.4

And of course this year his name has been in the news and on the bestseller charts

1:08.4

with the release of his complete unedited, uncensored autobiography,

1:13.3

much of it written during his stay here in New York.

1:15.9

We immediately associate Mark Twain with the Mississippi River,

...

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