Riverside Drive, New York City, Blizzard of 2006

Riverside Drive is a scenic north–south thoroughfare in the New York City

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

. The road runs on the

Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper West ...

of Manhattan, generally paralleling the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...

and Riverside Park between 72nd Street and the vicinity of the George Washington Bridge at 181st Street. North of 96th Street, Riverside Drive is a wide divided boulevard. At several locations, a serpentine local street diverges from the main road, providing access to the residential buildings. Some of the city's most coveted addresses are located along its route.

History

Development

The of land in the original park between 72nd to 125th Streets were originally inhabited by the Lenape people, but by the 18th century were used for farms by the descendants of European colonists. In 1846, the

Hudson River Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Mid ...

(later the

West Side Line The West Side Line, also called the West Side Freight Line, is a railroad line on the west side of the New York City borough of Manhattan. North of Penn Station, from 34th Street, the line is used by Amtrak passenger service heading north via ...

and Hudson Line) was built along the waterfront, connecting New York City to Albany. In 1865,

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...

commissioner William R. Martin put forth the first proposal for a riverside park along the

. An act providing for such was presented to the Legislature by commissioner Andrew Haswell Green in 1866 and approved the same year. The first segment of Riverside Park was acquired through condemnation in 1872.Park history
riversideparknyc.org. Retrieved August 26, 2014. The park also included the construction of Riverside Drive (then known as Riverside Avenue), a tree-lined drive curving around the valleys and rock outcroppings, overlooking the future park and the waterfront. The avenue was laid out in 1868 and was wide for its entire length. The plans for Riverside Park and Avenue brought the attention of William M. Tweed, who bought several lots adjacent to the park in anticipation of its construction. A selection process for the designers of Riverside Park followed, and in 1873 the commissioners selected

Frederick Law Olmsted Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the USA. Olmsted was famous for co- ...

, a park commissioner who had also designed Central Park. Initially, Riverside Avenue had been planned to run in a straight line, which would have required a retaining wall and extensive fill. By then, the difficult topography of the area had come to the attention of the Manhattan park commissioners, and in 1873 Olmsted was given the authorization to redesign the grade of Riverside Avenue. To accommodate this, Olmsted devised a new plan that would create a main road extending from 72nd to 123rd Streets, with overpasses at 79th and 96th Streets, as well as "carriage roads" to serve the nearby neighborhood. The grade of the road was not to exceed 1:27. Riverside Avenue's main road would contain two roadways, one for each direction, separated by a median. A pedestrian path and a horse path would run alongside the avenue, and trees would provide shade along the route. Over the following years, work proceeded on Riverside Avenue, with various ramps and stairs to the park as well as a bridle path between 104th and 120th Streets. In 1876 Olmsted was asked to create plans for the design of the avenue as a country drive, but ultimately it was paved. In late 1876, bids were accepted for paving of Riverside Avenue. Olmsted was ousted as parks superintendent in December 1877. From 1875 to 1910, architects and horticulturalists such as Calvert Vaux and

Samuel Parsons Samuel Bowne Parsons Jr. (8 February 1844 – 3 February 1923), was an American landscape architect. He is remembered as being a founder of the American Society of Landscape Architects, helping to establish the profession. Early years Parsons wa ...

laid out the stretch of park/road between 72nd and 125th Streets according to the English gardening ideal, creating the appearance that the park was an extension of the Hudson River Valley. The avenue was opened in 1880 and was well-used by walkers, bikers, and drivers. The viaduct across 96th Street remained incomplete until 1902. In 1908, the avenue was renamed Riverside Drive.

Expansion of Riverside Park

In the 1930s,

New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Midw ...

's rail track north of 72nd Street was covered in a

Robert Moses Robert Moses (December 18, 1888 – July 29, 1981) was an American urban planner and public official who worked in the New York metropolitan area during the early to mid 20th century. Despite never being elected to any office, Moses is regarded ...

project called the '' West Side Improvement''. Moses' biographer

Robert Caro Robert Allan Caro (born October 30, 1935) is an American journalist and author known for his biographies of United States political figures Robert Moses and Lyndon B. Johnson. After working for many years as a reporter, Caro wrote ''The Power Br ...

described Moses surveying the area prior to his project, and seeing: The Moses project, which was bigger than the

Hoover Dam Hoover Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River, on the border between the U.S. states of Nevada and Arizona. It was constructed between 1931 and 1936 during the Great Depression and was dedicated on Se ...

project, created the

Henry Hudson Parkway The Henry Hudson Parkway is a parkway in New York City. The southern terminus is in Manhattan at 72nd Street, where the parkway continues south as the West Side Highway. It is often erroneously referred to as the West Side Highway throughout it ...

, buried the West Side Line in the

Freedom Tunnel The Freedom Tunnel is the name given to the railroad tunnel on the West Side Line under Riverside Park in Manhattan, New York City. Used by Amtrak trains to and from Pennsylvania Station, it got its name because the graffiti artist Chris "Fre ...

, and greatly expanded Riverside Park. It was so skillfully done that many believe the park and road are set on a natural slope. Riverside Park, part of the

Manhattan Waterfront Greenway The Manhattan Waterfront Greenway is a waterfront greenway for walking or cycling, long, around the island of Manhattan, in New York City. The largest portions are operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. It is separate ...

, is now a scenic waterfront public park on the narrow strip of land between the Hudson River and Riverside Drive. It is approximately .

Riverside South

In the 1980s

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

, then owner of the of land just south of Riverside Park that had been the

Penn Central The Penn Central Transportation Company, commonly abbreviated to Penn Central, was an American Railroad classes, class I railroad that operated from 1968 to 1976. Penn Central combined three traditional corporate rivals (the Pennsylvania Railroad ...

freight rail yard, proposed a very large real estate development project. However, hampered by his weakened financial condition and opposed by six civic groups (

Municipal Art Society The Municipal Art Society of New York (MAS) is a non-profit membership organization for preservation in New York City, which aims to encourage thoughtful planning and urban design and inclusive neighborhoods across the city. The organization was ...

, Natural Resources Defense Council
TNew Yorkers for Parks

Regional Plan Association The Regional Plan Association is an independent, not-for-profit regional planning organization, founded in 1922, that focuses on recommendations to improve the quality of life and economic competitiveness of a 31-county New York–New Jersey– ...

, Riverside Park Fund, and Westpride), Trump agreed in 1990 to their plan, which was designed to mimic Riverside Park and Drive further north. Though scaled down, the project is still the second biggest private real estate venture under construction in New York City. The agreed-upon plan would expand Riverside Park by and extend Riverside Drive to the south as ''Riverside Boulevard.''. The new ''Riverside Park South,'' stretching between 72nd and 59th streets, is the central element of the development. Portions of the former rail yard, such as the

New York Central Railroad 69th Street Transfer Bridge The 69th Street Transfer Bridge, part of the West Side Line of the New York Central Railroad, was a dock for car floats which allowed the transfer of railroad cars from the rail line to car floats which crossed the Hudson River to the Weehawken ...

, are incorporated into the new park.

Route

Starting at 72nd Street, Riverside Drive passes through the Manhattan neighborhoods of the

Morningside Heights Morningside Heights is a neighborhood on the West Side of Upper Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Morningside Drive to the east, 125th Street to the north, 110th Street to the south, and Riverside Drive to the west. Morningside ...

, over

Manhattanville Manhattanville (also known as West Harlem or West Central Harlem) is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan bordered on the north by 135th Street; on the south by 122nd and 125th Streets; on the west by Hudson River; and on t ...

in West

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

by way of the

Riverside Drive Viaduct Riverside Drive is a scenic north–south thoroughfare in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The road runs on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, generally paralleling the Hudson River and Riverside Park between 72nd Street and the vicin ...

and through Washington Heights. Below 72nd Street, Riverside Drive continues as Riverside Boulevard which stretches through Riverside South to 59th Street where it merges into the West Side Highway. Only a few stretches of Riverside Drive were built along an older road; due to the hilly terrain, Riverside Drive crosses a natural cleft in the bedrock at 87th Street on an iron

viaduct A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide v ...

and passes over 96th Street, Tiemann Place and 135th Street, and 158th Street on further viaducts. At Tiemann Place and 135th Street, and at 158th Street, an old alignment is present, also named Riverside Drive, while the viaduct portion or main route is officially named and signed "Riverside Drive West". The

between Tiemann Place and 135th Street is called the "Riverside Drive Viaduct", as it is the most notable of the Riverside Drive viaducts. At its north end, Riverside Drive merges with the northbound lanes of the

; this came about because the northbound lanes of the Henry Hudson used the roadway of Riverside Drive when it construrcted. In 2005, the retaining wall of

Castle Village __NOTOC__ Castle Village is a five-building cooperative apartment complex located on Cabrini Boulevard between West 181st and 186th Streets in the Hudson Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It was built in 1938–1939 by re ...

collapsed onto both Riverside Drive and the northbound lanes of the Henry Hudson Parkway. The wall was repaired and the roadway reopened in March 2008. Riverside Drive terminated at

Grant's Tomb Grant's Tomb, officially the General Grant National Memorial, is the final resting place of Ulysses S. Grant, 18th president of the United States, and his wife, Julia Grant. It is a classical domed mausoleum in the Morningside Heights neighborho ...

in a

cul-de-sac A dead end, also known as a cul-de-sac (, from French for 'bag-bottom'), no through road or no exit road, is a street with only one inlet or outlet. The term "dead end" is understood in all varieties of English, but the official terminology ...

, prior to the construction of the Manhattan Valley viaduct, spanning 125th Street, completed in 1900. North of 158th Street the right of way which currently carries the name Riverside Drive was known as Boulevard Lafayette, which led to

Plaza Lafayette Plaza Lafayette is a small, park and surrounding streets in the Hudson Heights neighborhood of Washington Heights, Manhattan, New York City. Named after the Marquis de Lafayette, the French hero of the American Revolution, the park is roughly ...

in Hudson Heights. The section exiting the parkway at the Dyckman Street exit and ending at Broadway is still known as Riverside Drive. The New York City Bus route serves Riverside Drive from 72nd to 135th Streets. The and terminate at Riverside Drive and 158th Street.

Riverside Drive Viaduct

The elevated steel highway of the Riverside Drive Viaduct, built in 1901, runs between Tiemann Place and 135th Street above Twelfth Avenue. It is shouldered by masonry approaches, though the span proper was made of open hearth medium steel, comprising twenty-six spans, or bays. The south and north approaches are of rock-faced

Mohawk Valley The Mohawk Valley region of the U.S. state of New York is the area surrounding the Mohawk River, sandwiched between the Adirondack Mountains and Catskill Mountains, northwest of the Capital District. As of the 2010 United States Census, th ...

limestone with

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

granite trimmings, the face work being of coursed ashlar. The girders over Manhattan Street (now 125th Street) were the largest ever built at the time. The broad plaza effect of the south approach was designed to impart deliberate grandeur to the natural terminus of much of Riverside Drive's traffic as well as to give full advantage to the vista overlooking the Hudson River and New Jersey Palisades to the west. File:RSD Viaduct GT jeh.JPG, 125th Street Viaduct File:RSDViaductc1900.jpg, Under construction File:Riverside Drive viaduct.jpg, Below, facing north File:Harlem viaduct.jpg, Below, facing south F. Stuart Williamson was the chief engineer for the viaduct, which constituted a feat of engineering technology. Despite the viaduct's important utilitarian role as a highway, the structure was also a strong symbol of civic pride, inspired by America's late 19th-century City Beautiful movement. The viaduct's original roadway, wide pedestrian walks and overall design were sumptuously ornamented, creating a prime example of public works that married form and function. An issue of ''

Scientific American ''Scientific American'', informally abbreviated ''SciAm'' or sometimes ''SA'', is an American popular science magazine. Many famous scientists, including Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla, have contributed articles to it. In print since 1845, it i ...

'' magazine in 1900 remarked that the Riverside Drive Viaduct's completion afforded New Yorkers "a continuous drive of ten miles along the picturesque banks of the

Hudson Hudson may refer to: People * Hudson (given name) * Hudson (surname) * Henry Hudson, English explorer * Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back * Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudso ...

and Harlem Rivers." The viaduct underwent a two-year-long reconstruction in 1961 and another in 1987.

Buildings and monuments

Residential buildings

The eastern side of Riverside Drive was once a series of luxuriously finished rowhouses interspersed with free-standing nineteenth century

mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word '' manse'' originally defined a property l ...

s set in large lawns. Today, it is lined with apartment buildings such as the Normandy and the

Master Apartments The Master Apartments, officially known as the Master Building, is a 27-story Art Deco skyscraper at 310 Riverside Drive, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, New York City. It sits on the northeast corner of Riverside Drive and West 103rd Stre ...

, as well as some remaining town houses from 72nd to 118th Streets. The brick-faced Schwab House occupies the site of "

Riverside Riverside may refer to: Places Australia * Riverside, Tasmania, a suburb of Launceston, Tasmania Canada * Riverside (electoral district), in the Yukon * Riverside, Calgary, a neighbourhood in Alberta * Riverside, Manitoba, a former rural m ...

", built for steel magnate

Charles M. Schwab Charles Michael Schwab (February 18, 1862 – September 18, 1939) was an American steel magnate. Under his leadership, Bethlehem Steel became the second-largest steel maker in the United States, and one of the most important heavy manufacturer ...

, formerly the grandest and most ambitious house ever built on Manhattan Island. Among the more eye-catching apartment houses are the curved facades of The Colosseum and The Paterno and the Cliff-Dwellers Apartments at 96th Street, with mountain lions and buffalo skulls on its friezes. The

Henry Codman Potter Henry Codman Potter (May 25, 1834 – July 21, 1908) was a bishop of the Episcopal Church of the United States. He was the seventh bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New York. Potter was "more praised and appreciated, perhaps, than any public man ...

house at 89th Street is one of the few remaining mansions on Riverside Drive; it houses

Yeshiva Chofetz Chaim Yeshiva Chofetz Chaim (also known as the Rabbinical Seminary of America) is an Orthodox Yeshiva in the United States, based in Kew Gardens Hills, Queens, New York. It is primarily an American, Lithuanian-style Talmudic Yeshiva. The Yeshiva is l ...

. The Master Apartments at 310 Riverside Drive, a landmarked 24-story

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

skyscraper, is near

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

and the

370 Riverside Drive 370 Riverside Drive is a building on Riverside Drive and the north side of West 109th Street on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, New York City. A number of notable people have lived here, including Hannah Arendt, Grace Zia Chu (culinary figure), ...

building, which was erected in 1922–23 for approximately $800,000 by Simon Schwartz and Arthur Gross. International House is at 500 Riverside Drive, the next building north of

Riverside Church Riverside Church is an interdenominational church in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, on the block bounded by Riverside Drive, Claremont Avenue, 120th Street and 122nd Street near Columbia University's Mornings ...

, facing

, with a back entrance on

Claremont Avenue Claremont Avenue is a short avenue in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It begins at 116th Street and runs north for a length of eleven blocks until it ends at Tiemann Place (the western segment of 127th Street) ...

Other structures

The

Nicholas Roerich Museum The Nicholas Roerich Museum in New York City is dedicated to the works of Nicholas Roerich, a Russian-born artist whose work focused on nature scenes from the Himalayas. The museum is located in a brownstone at 319 West 107th Street on Manhattan's ...

is on 107th Street and Riverside Drive. The Interchurch Center and

are located at 120th Street and Riverside Drive, while Sakura Park is located two blocks north. Other attractions on Riverside Drive include

Riverbank State Park Riverbank State Park is a state park built on top of a sewage treatment facility on the Hudson River, in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It was opened in 1993. On September 5, 2017, it was renamed Denny Farrell Riverbank State Park, afte ...

, Trinity Church Cemetery, Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center, and

Fort Washington Park Fort Washington, located near the community of Fort Washington, Maryland, was for many decades the only defensive fort protecting Washington D.C. The original fort, overlooking the Potomac River, was completed in 1809, and was begun as Fort War ...

. Among the monuments along its route are the

Eleanor Roosevelt Monument The Eleanor Roosevelt Monument is a memorial located in New York City's Riverside Park, whose centerpiece is a statue of Eleanor Roosevelt, said to be the first monument dedicated to an American president's wife. Hillary Clinton (First Lady at the ...

at 72nd Street, the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument at 89th Street, Anna Hyatt Huntington's ''Joan of Arc'' at 93rd Street, a monument to

John Merven Carrère John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

Thomas Hastings Thomas Hastings may refer to: *Thomas Hastings (colonist) (1605–1685), English immigrant to New England *Thomas Hastings (composer) (1784–1872), American composer, primarily of hymn tunes *Thomas Hastings (cricketer) (1865–1938), Australian cr ...

at 99th Street,

Attilio Piccirilli Attilio Piccirilli (May 16, 1866 – October 8, 1945) was an American sculptor. Born in Massa, Italy, he was educated at the Accademia di San Luca of Rome. Life and career Piccirilli came to the United States in 1888 and worked for his fa ...

's Fireman's Memorial at 100th Street, and

Notable residents

Marian Anderson Marian Anderson (February 27, 1897April 8, 1993) was an American contralto. She performed a wide range of music, from opera to Spiritual (music), spirituals. Anderson performed with renowned orchestras in major concert and recital venues throu ...

(1897-1993),

contralto A contralto () is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range is the lowest female voice type. The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare; similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to that of a countertenor, typically b ...

and one of the most celebrated singers of the twentieth century; lived at 730 Riverside Drive.Beaumont Apartments

New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and cu ...

. Accessed May 24, 2016. "The Beaumont housed a number of famous tenants over the years, including U.S. Representative Jacob K. Javits; architect Alfred Fellheimer; legendary African-American contralto Marian Anderson; and African-American writer Ralph W. Ellison, author of ''Invisible Man'' (1952), who lived in the building forfour decades until his death in 1994." *

Hannah Arendt Hannah Arendt (, , ; 14 October 1906 – 4 December 1975) was a political philosopher, author, and Holocaust survivor. She is widely considered to be one of the most influential political theorists of the 20th century. Arendt was born ...

(1906-1975), political theorist, lived at 370 Riverside Drive from 1959 until her death in 1975. * Saul Bellow (1915-2005), author, lived at 333 Riverside Drive in the 1950s *

Rafael Díez de la Cortina y Olaeta Rafael may refer to: * Rafael (given name) or Raphael, a name of Hebrew origin * Rafael, California * Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, Israeli manufacturer of weapons and military technology * Hurricane Rafael, a 2012 hurricane Fiction * ''R ...

(1859-1939), linguist, resident of 431 Riverside Drive *

Ralph Ellison Ralph Waldo Ellison (March 1, 1913 – April 16, 1994) was an American writer, literary critic, and scholar best known for his novel ''Invisible Man'', which won the National Book Award in 1953. He also wrote ''Shadow and Act'' (1964), a collecti ...

(1913-1994), writer, longtime resident of 730 Riverside Drive.Riverside Park - Invisible Man: A Memorial to Ralph Ellison

New York City Department of Parks and Recreation The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, also called the Parks Department or NYC Parks, is the department of the government of New York City responsible for maintaining the city's parks system, preserving and maintaining the ecolog ...

. Accessed May 24, 2016. "Ellison lived near this part of Riverside Park at 730 Riverside Drive, also known as the Beaumont, a distinguished residence that was also home to United States Senator Jacob Javits and singer Marian Anderson." *

Alfred T. Fellheimer Alfred T. Fellheimer (March 9, 1875 – 1959) was an American architect. He began his career with Reed & Stem, where he was lead architect for Grand Central Terminal. Beginning in 1928, his firm Fellheimer & Wagner designed Cincinnati Union ...

(1875-1959), lead architect for

Grand Central Terminal Grand Central Terminal (GCT; also referred to as Grand Central Station or simply as Grand Central) is a commuter rail terminal located at 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Grand Central is the southern terminus ...

and Cincinnati Union Terminal; lived at 730 Riverside Drive. *

George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned popular, jazz and classical genres. Among his best-known works are the orchestral compositions ' ...

(1898-1937), composer and pianist; occupied a penthouse at 33 Riverside Drive.Kell, Jennifer Gould
"Ira Gershwin’s famed UWS penthouse available for a song"
''

New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com. It was established ...

'', October 14, 2015. Accessed May 24, 2016. "They enjoyed each other's company so much, in fact, that they lived in the same apartment building, occupying adjoining penthouses at 33 Riverside Drive." *

Ira Gershwin Ira Gershwin (born Israel Gershovitz; December 6, 1896 – August 17, 1983) was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs in the English language of the 2 ...

(1896-1983), lyricist; occupied a penthouse at 33 Riverside Drive, adjoining his brother's apartment. *

Katie Halper Katherine Rose Halper (born July 11, 1980/1981) is an American comedian, writer, filmmaker, podcaster, and political commentator. She is the host of the podcast ''The Katie Halper Show'' and co-host of the podcast ''Useful Idiots'' with Matt Tai ...

, American comedian, writer, journalist, filmmaker, podcaster, political commentator, and teacher. *

William Randolph Hearst William Randolph Hearst Sr. (; April 29, 1863 – August 14, 1951) was an American businessman, newspaper publisher, and politician known for developing the nation's largest newspaper chain and media company, Hearst Communications. His flamboya ...

(1863-1951), newspaper publisher; owned a five-story penthouse in the Clarendon at 137 Riverside Drive *

Jacob K. Javits Jacob Koppel Javits ( ; May 18, 1904 – March 7, 1986) was an American lawyer and politician. During his time in politics, he represented the state of New York in both houses of the United States Congress. A member of the Republican Party, he a ...

(1904-1986), United States Senator from New York from 1957 to 1981; lived at 730 Riverside Drive. * Uwe Johnson, German author, lived with his family from 1966 until 1968 at 243 Riverside Drive, today ''The Cliff Dwelling'' apartments *

Paul Krugman Paul Robin Krugman ( ; born February 28, 1953) is an American economist, who is Distinguished Professor of Economics at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, and a columnist for ''The New York Times''. In 2008, Krugman was th ...

bought an apartment on Riverside Drive with his

Nobel Prize in economics The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, officially the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel ( sv, Sveriges riksbanks pris i ekonomisk vetenskap till Alfred Nobels minne), is an economics award administered ...

money * J. Robert Oppenheimer and his family lived at 155 Riverside Drive on 88th Street. *

Sergei Rachmaninoff Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one o ...

owned a townhouse at 33 Riverside Drive, the predecessor to the present apartment block. * Grantland Rice, American sportswriter * Jim Rogers, investor and financial commentator *

Damon Runyon Alfred Damon Runyon (October 4, 1880 – December 10, 1946) was an American newspaperman and short-story writer. He was best known for his short stories celebrating the world of Broadway in New York City that grew out of the Prohibition era. To ...

, American newspaper man and author *

Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...

, lived at 173 Riverside Drive, then moved to 110 Riverside Drive from 1942 until his death in 1948Kell, Jennifer Gould and C.J. Sullivan
"You can own Babe Ruth’s two-bedroom UWS apartment for $1.6M"
''

'', August 31, 2015. Accessed June 25, 2018." * Serge Sabarsky, art dealer and art expert, lived at 110 Riverside Drive * Thomas Sowell, American economist and social theorist, lived on the ground floor of a building on 152nd Street and Riverside Drive in the early 1950s. s

In popular culture

Film * Robert's apartment building in '' Enchanted'' (2007) is 440 Riverside Drive * Kate's apartment building in ''

Baby Mama A baby mama (also baby mother, or hyphenated baby-mama) is a slang term for a mother who is not marriage, married to her child's father, although the term often carries other connotations as well. This term is associated with African Americans or ...

'' (2008) is 210 Riverside Drive * The living room of

Oscar Madison ''The Odd Couple'' is a play by Neil Simon. Following its premiere on Broadway in 1965, the characters were revived in a successful 1968 film and 1970s television series, as well as several other derivative works and spin-offs. The plot concer ...

's "large eight-room affair on Riverside Drive in the upper eighties" is the setting of the Neil Simon comedy, ''

The Odd Couple Odd Couple may refer to: Neil Simon play and its adaptations * ''The Odd Couple'' (play), a 1965 stage play by Neil Simon ** ''The Odd Couple'' (film), a 1968 film based on the play *** ''The Odd Couple'' (1970 TV series), a 1970–1975 televisi ...

'' (1965). * In the movie ''

Death Wish Death Wish or Deathwish may refer to: Common meanings *Suicidal ideation, term for thoughts about killing oneself *Death drive, term in Freudian psychiatry Arts and entertainment Radio *"Death Wish", a 1957 episode of the radio series ''X Minus ...

'' (1974), architect Paul Kersey (

Charles Bronson Charles Bronson (born Charles Dennis Buchinsky; November 3, 1921 – August 30, 2003) was an American actor. Known for his "granite features and brawny physique," he gained international fame for his starring roles in action, Western, and war ...

) lives at 33 Riverside Drive. * In the movie ''

You've Got Mail ''You've Got Mail'' is a 1998 American romantic comedy film directed by Nora Ephron and starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. Inspired by the 1937 Hungarian play '' Parfumerie'' by Miklós László (which had earlier been adapted in 1940 as ''The Shop ...

'' (1998), Joe Fox lives at 152 Riverside Drive using the screen name NY152. * The part of the drive over its eponymous viaduct has been seen in the movie ''

The Amazing Spider-Man ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' is an ongoing American comic book series featuring the Marvel Comics superhero Spider-Man as its main protagonist. Being in the Earth 616, mainstream continuity of the franchise, it began publication in 1963 as a bim ...

'' (2012). * In the movie ''

Vanilla Sky ''Vanilla Sky'' is a 2001 American science fiction thriller film directed, written, and co-produced by Cameron Crowe. It is an English-language remake of Alejandro Amenábar's 1997 Spanish film '' Open Your Eyes'', which was written by Amenábar ...

'' (2001), A deranged ex-girlfriend Julianna Gianni (played by

Cameron Diaz Cameron Michelle Diaz (born August 30, 1972) is an American actress. With a variety of works in film, she is widely recognised for her work in romantic comedies and animation. Diaz has received various accolades, including nominations for ...

) drives the lead character David Aames (

Tom Cruise Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Gol ...

) off the road at 96th Street and Riverside Drive; The Cliff Dwelling at 243 Riverside Drive can be seen prominently in the background as the car breaks the bridge barrier, soars through the air and then off the bridge, severely injuring both characters and leaving Aames with a severe facial disfiguration. * Scenes from Woody Allen's ''

'' (1979) were filmed at 265 Riverside Drive. * Parts of the Walter Hill movie '' The Warriors'' (1979) were filmed at locations around Riverside Park. * Gloria's apartment and key scenes from the John Cassavetes film, ''

Gloria Gloria may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Christian liturgy and music * Gloria in excelsis Deo, the Greater Doxology, a hymn of praise * Gloria Patri, the Lesser Doxology, a short hymn of praise ** Gloria (Handel) ** Gloria (Jenkins) ...

'' (1980) were filmed inside apartments at 800 Riverside Drive, The Grinnell. The iconic shootout was filmed alongside 790 Riverside Drive, The Riviera. Music * Riverside Drive on the viaduct is also seen during the climax of

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

's music video for " Marry the Night" (2011). * In the concert film '' Liza with a Z'' (1972),

Liza Minnelli Liza May Minnelli ( ; born March 12, 1946) is an American actress, singer, dancer, and choreographer. Known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice, Minnelli is among a rare group of performers awarded an Emmy, Grammy ...

performs the number "Ring The Bells" about a woman who meets her dream man while traveling in Europe despite the fact that, initially unbeknownst to them, they'd been living next door to each other at 5 Riverside Drive. * The hard rock band Tora Tora have a song called "Riverside Drive" on their debut album ''

Surprise Attack Military deception (MILDEC) is an attempt by a military unit to gain an advantage during warfare by misleading adversary decision makers into taking action or inaction that creates favorable conditions for the deceiving force. This is usually ac ...

'' (1992). Literature *In P. G. Wodehouse's ''Piccadilly Jim'', published in 1917, Riverside Drive is mentioned in the opening lines as a "breezy and expensive boulevard" with one of its "leading eyesores" being the home of Financier Peter Pett and his crime novelist wife Nesta Ford. * In the novel '' Illuminatus'' (1975), the character Joe Malik lives in a

brownstone Brownstone is a brown Triassic–Jurassic sandstone that was historically a popular building material. The term is also used in the United States and Canada to refer to a townhouse clad in this or any other aesthetically similar material. Type ...

on Riverside Drive. * In F. Scott Fitzgerald's first novel, ''

This Side of Paradise ''This Side of Paradise'' is the debut novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald, published in 1920. It examines the lives and morality of carefree American youth at the dawn of the Jazz Age. Its protagonist, Amory Blaine, is an attractive ...

'', Amory visits Mrs. Lawrence on Riverside Drive and reflects that the open space feels more pleasant than the more crowded parts of the city. * In the novels by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child featuring Special Agent Pendergast, the main protagonist,

Aloysius Pendergast Aloysius Xingu Leng Pendergast is a fictional character appearing in novels by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. He first appeared as a supporting character in their first novel, ''Relic'' (1995), and in its 1997 sequel ''Reliquary'', before ...

, lives in his great-uncle's mansion at 891 Riverside Drive. * In the novel ''Jahrestage'' (''Anniversaries'') by German author Uwe Johnson, the main character Gesine Cresspahl and her daughter Marie live at 243 Riverside Drive. Television * In the sitcom ''

30 Rock ''30 Rock'' is an American satirical sitcom television series created by Tina Fey that originally aired on NBC from October 11, 2006, to January 31, 2013. The series, based on Fey's experiences as head writer for ''Saturday Night Live'', takes ...

'',

Liz Lemon Elizabeth Miervaldis Lemon is a fictional character and the protagonist of the American television series ''30 Rock''. She created and writes for the fictional comedy-sketch show ''The Girlie Show'' and later ''TGS with Tracy Jordan''. She is po ...

(

Tina Fey Elizabeth Stamatina "Tina" Fey (; born May 18, 1970) is an American actress, comedian, writer, producer, and playwright. She is best known for her work on the NBC sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' (1997–2006) and for creating the ...

) lives at 168 Riverside Drive. * In the TV show '' Mad Men'', copywriter

Freddy Rumsen This is a list of fictional characters in the television series ''Mad Men'', all of whom have appeared in multiple episodes. Overview ;Cast notes: * Maxwell Huckabee and Aaron Hart have split the role of Bobby Draper in the first season, whil ...

lives at 152 Riverside Drive.Mad Men, Season 2, Episode 9, Six Month Leave * In the

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

'' Will & Grace'',

Will Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...

lives at 155 Riverside Drive, as do Grace and Jack (Sean Hayes) at times throughout the series. * In the

USA Network USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madison ...

series ''

White Collar White collar may refer to: * White-collar worker, a salaried professional or an educated worker who performs semi-professional office, administrative, and sales-coordination tasks, as opposed to a blue-collar worker, whose job requires manual labor ...

'', Neal Caffrey ( Matt Bomer) lives in the 4th floor studio of a mansion owned by elderly widow June (

Diahann Carroll Diahann Carroll (; born Carol Diann Johnson; July 17, 1935 – October 4, 2019) was an American actress, singer, model, and activist. She rose to prominence in some of the earliest major studio films to feature black casts, including ''Car ...

), located 351 Riverside Drive (the

Schinasi Mansion The Schinasi House is a , 35-room marble mansion located at 351 Riverside Drive on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. It was built in 1907 for Sephardic Jewish tobacco baron Morris Schinasi. The mansion was designed by Carnegi ...

). * In the Amazon Studios series '' The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel'', Midge ( Rachel Brosnahan) and Joel ( Michael Zegen) live in Apt 9C, located at 404 Riverside Drive (The Strathmore). Theater * Bob Randall's play ''

6 Rms Riv Vu ''6 Rms Riv Vu'' is a play by Bob Randall, who also wrote the book for ''The Magic Show''. Play ''6 Rms Riv Vu'' derives its title from shorthand used by real estate agents in classified advertising. In this case, a six-room apartment with a v ...

'' (1972) tells the story of a married advertising copywriter and a discontented housewife who both end up looking at the same Riverside Drive apartment. The door is locked accidentally, trapping them inside, and a connection slowly develops as they begin to share the details of their respective lives. * ''

Between Riverside and Crazy ''Between Riverside and Crazy'' is a 2014 play by playwright, screenwriter, director, and actor Stephen Adly Guirgis. The play won the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, the 2015 New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Play, the 2015 Lucille Lo ...

'' is a 2014 play by Stephen Adley Guirgis.

Gallery

File:Columbia U Med Ctr RSD jeh.JPG, Near 165th Street File:RSD_158_jeh.JPG, At 158th Street File:Riverside_Drive_and_W_145th_St_intersection,_Manhattan.jpg, At 145th Street File:W125 stn from RSD viaduct jeh.jpg, The 125th Street station on the IRT Seventh Avenue Line, seen from Riverside Drive's upper level File:116th-Street-and-Riverside-Drive.jpg, Curved facades of The Colosseum and The Paterno at 116th Street File:96_under_RSD_jeh.JPG, At 96th Street, which passes under Riverside Drive File:Riverside Drive at 72nd Street.jpg, Riverside Drive's southern end at 72nd Street, looking north from th
Eleanor Roosevelt Memorial Plaza

References

Notes Bibliography * Stern, Robert A. M.; Gilmartin, Gregory; Mellins, Thomas (2009) ''New York 1930''. New York: Rizzoli.

External links

* Carter Horsley
"Riverside Drive,"
The City Review. * {{Manhattan streets, state=collapsed Hamilton Heights, Manhattan Harlem Inwood, Manhattan Streets in Manhattan Upper West Side Washington Heights, Manhattan Morningside Heights, Manhattan