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Steve Brodie (December 25, 1861 – January 31, 1901) was an American from
Manhattan, New York City 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 ...
, who on July 23, 1886, claimed to have jumped off the
Brooklyn Bridge The Brooklyn Bridge is a hybrid cable-stayed/suspension bridge in New York City, spanning the East River between the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn. Opened on May 24, 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was the first fixed crossing of the East River ...
and survived. The supposed jump, of which the veracity was disputed, gave Brodie publicity, a thriving saloon and a career as a performer. Prior to this, he was penniless, having lost significant sums of money on betting and race tracks. Brodie's fame persisted long past his death, with Brodie portrayed in films and with the slang term "Brodie"—as in to "do a Brodie"—entering American vernacular, meaning to take a chance or a leap, specifically a suicidal one. During the 1890s, Brodie was compared to one of the best British champion divers and bridge jumpers of the era, Tommy Burns.


Early life

Brodie was born on the east side of
Bowery The Bowery () is a street and neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City. The street runs from Chatham Square at Park Row, Worth Street, and Mott Street in the south to Cooper Square at 4th Street in the north.Jackson, Kenneth L. "Bow ...
in New York City, just three days after his father was killed in a street brawl, and grew up locally, selling newspapers and blacking shoes around the city. In his youth, he was credited with many rescues from the water, such as of two young women who fell from an excursion barge. He is also known to have rescued actress Miss Jennie Rhett, who presented him with a gold locket for his bravery.


Career


Alleged bridge jump

The bridge, then known as the East River Bridge, had opened just three years before Brodie's claimed jump. A swimming instructor from
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...
named
Robert Emmet Odlum Robert Emmet Odlum (August 31, 1851 – May 19, 1885) was an American swimming instructor. Odlum was the first person to jump off the Brooklyn Bridge, and was killed doing so. Early life Robert Emmet Odlum was born in Ogdensburg, New York, on ...
, the brother of women's rights activist
Charlotte Odlum Smith Charlotte Odlum Smith (née Odlum; 18401917) was an American reformer, regarded as the foremost authority on women's working conditions. She was a formidable lobbyist for disadvantaged women, and was partly responsible for the mandatory listing of ...
, was killed while attempting the same stunt in May 1885. By July 1886, Brodie was penniless, having lost a fortune on race tracks and other betting games. With the consent of his wife, the jump supposedly made by Brodie on July 23, 1886, was from a height of , the same as a 14-story building. The contemporary '' New York Times'' account said the jump was from a height of about . The '' New York Times'' backed his account of the jump and said that Brodie practiced for the leap by making shorter jumps from other bridges and ships' masts, and that it was witnessed by two reporters. He leaped into the East River, feet first, and emerged uninjured, though with pain on his right side. He was jailed after the jump. ''The Times'' described Brodie as a "newsboy and long-distance pedestrian" who jumped from the bridge to win a $200 bet, equal to $ today. In other accounts he is described as a
bookmaker A bookmaker, bookie, or turf accountant is an organization or a person that accepts and pays off bets on sporting and other events at agreed-upon odds. History The first bookmaker, Ogden, stood at Newmarket in 1795. Range of events Bookma ...
and gambler. A Bowery storekeeper named Isaac Meyers claimed that he encouraged Brodie to jump off the Brooklyn bridge after Brodie said that he wanted to be famous. Another account holds that Moritz Herzber, a liquor dealer, offered to back a saloon for Brodie if he made the jump and lived. If true, he would have been the first person to have jumped off the bridge and survived, but his claim was disputed. It was subsequently claimed that a dummy was thrown from the bridge and that Brodie fell out of a row boat.


Controversy

Doubt whether Brodie actually made the claimed jump arose immediately and has lingered to this day. Brodie, who was unemployed and aware of the publicity generated by Odlum's fatal jump, bragged to his pals on the Bowery that he would take the jump. Wagers were made for and against, but Brodie never announced when he would make the attempt. The ''
Brooklyn Eagle :''This article covers both the historical newspaper (1841–1955, 1960–1963), as well as an unrelated new Brooklyn Daily Eagle starting 1996 published currently'' The ''Brooklyn Eagle'' (originally joint name ''The Brooklyn Eagle'' and ''King ...
'' reported in 1930 that a retired police sergeant and friend of Brodie, Thomas K. Hastings, said that Brodie had told him that he didn't make the leap and never said he did. In his book ''The Great Bridge'', historian David McCullough said that he probably did not make the jump. McCullough said that it was commonly believed by skeptics that a dummy was dropped from the bridge, and that Brodie merely swam out from shore and surfaced beside a passing barge. The NYPD said in 1986, the 100th anniversary of the supposed jump, that two or three people jump from the bridge every year and some live. Only one month after Brodie's jump, Larry Donovan jumped from an even higher point of the bridge, making him the first confirmed survivor of a Brooklyn Bridge leap.


Other jumps

On November 9, 1888, Brodie jumped from the
Poughkeepsie Railroad Bridge Poughkeepsie ( ), officially the City of Poughkeepsie, separate from the Town of Poughkeepsie around it) is a city in the U.S. state of New York. It is the county seat of Dutchess County, with a 2020 census population of 31,577. Poughkeepsie ...
at a height of 222 feet into the Hudson River. He earned $500 for the stunt, and contemporary reports differ on whether he escaped serious injury or was seriously injured in the stunt. Shortly afterwards, he was quoted as saying that he was "not disposed to try bridge-jumping again". In 1889, Brodie was arrested when he dived off
Horseshoe Falls Horseshoe Falls is the largest of the three waterfalls that collectively form Niagara Falls on the Niagara River along the Canada–United States border. Approximately 90% of the Niagara River, after diversions for hydropower generation, flow ...
. The magistrate in Canada said he would release him if Brodie denied making the jump. While Brodie unconvincingly denied this at first, he subsequently retracted this denial when told to swear to it, telling the magistrate, "No, I'd rather rot in jail than swear to a lie. I did go over the falls. Do with me as you please." His feat was questioned by some, which highly incensed him.


Competition

During the 1890s, Brodie was compared unfavourably to one of the best British champion divers and bridge jumpers of the era, Tommy Burns, with the ''Baltimore Express'' suggesting that Burns' dives put Brodie's and other bridge jumpers' efforts "in the shade", while the Evening Tribune suggested Burns was "greater than Steve Brodie of bridge jumping".


Acting

He became an actor capitalizing on his reputation, appearing in the vaudeville musicals ''Mad Money'' and ''On the Bowery'', and opened a saloon in
Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Southe ...
.


Personal life

After the jump, Brodie opened a saloon at 114
Bowery The Bowery () is a street and neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City. The street runs from Chatham Square at Park Row, Worth Street, and Mott Street in the south to Cooper Square at 4th Street in the north.Jackson, Kenneth L. "Bow ...
near Grand Street, which also became a museum for his bridge-jumping stunt. Among the decorations was an affidavit from the boat captain who claimed to have pulled him from the water. Brodie was known to give to charity, such as during the difficult period of the 1890s when he would give away food including bread and sausages, as well as coffee from his cafe to the needy and homeless. Thousands of people benefited from his generosity.


Death

Brodie died in San Antonio, Texas, on 31 January 1901 with his family members by his bedside. The cause of death has been variously described as diabetes and tuberculosis. He left $100,000 () in his will, with the bulk of his estate left to his eldest daughter, Irene Brodie in trust until his other two children came of age, at which point it was distributed equally. His estate comprised around $75,000 () in real estate and roughly $30,000 () in cash. He was survived by his wife, two daughters and a son.


In popular culture

Brodie became a popular symbol of the
Bowery The Bowery () is a street and neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City. The street runs from Chatham Square at Park Row, Worth Street, and Mott Street in the south to Cooper Square at 4th Street in the north.Jackson, Kenneth L. "Bow ...
and appeared personally in musical shows, and his character was used many times in film depictions of old New York. He starred in a three-act play titled ''On the Bowery'' by Robert Neilson Stephens, which opened in 1894. A facsimile of Brodie's saloon was the setting for the second act, and Brodie sang a song, "My Poil is a Bowery Goil". Valerie Bergere played Blanche Livingstone, the girl he rescues and then falls in love with. The play culminated with Brodie jumping off the bridge. George Raft portrayed Brodie in the 1933 movie ''
The Bowery (film) ''The Bowery'' is a 1933 American pre-Code action film set in the Lower East Side of Manhattan around the start of the 20th century directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Wallace Beery and George Raft. The supporting cast features Jackie Cooper, F ...
'' which presents a fictional account of Brodie's dive. Years later, an actor named John Stevenson used Brodie's name for his movie stage name.Soden, Garrett (2005). ''Defying Gravity: Land Divers, Roller Coasters, Gravity Bums, and the Human Obsession With Falling'', New York: W. W. Norton & Company; In the 1946 noir film ''
The Dark Corner ''The Dark Corner'' is a 1946 American crime film noir directed by Henry Hathaway and starring Lucille Ball, Clifton Webb, William Bendix and Mark Stevens.. The film was not a commercial success but has since been described as a "Grade A example ...
'' (starring Lucille Ball and Mark Stevens), a Taxi Driver, when asked about William Bendix's gangster character falling to his death, said he " ver saw anyone ever pull a Brodie and bounce." Brodie is also referenced in the 1947 Preston Sturges film, ''
The Sin of Harold Diddlebock ''The Sin of Harold Diddlebock'' is a 1947 comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, starring the silent film silent comedy, comic icon Harold Lloyd, and featuring a supporting cast including female protagonist Frances Ramsden, Jimmy Co ...
''. In 1949, Warner Brothers released the Merrie Melodies cartoon ''
Bowery Bugs ''Bowery Bugs'' is a 1949 Warner Bros. ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoon directed by Arthur Davis, and written by Lloyd Turner and Bill Scott. It was released on June 4, 1949, and features Bugs Bunny. The cartoon tells the story of Steve Brodie, who ...
'', in which
Bugs Bunny Bugs Bunny is an animated cartoon character created in the late 1930s by Leon Schlesinger Productions (later Warner Bros. Cartoons) and voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his starring roles in the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merr ...
tells an old man the story of the Steve Brodie jump (in typical '' Looney Tunes'' fashion, of course; in the episode Brodie's name is spelled "BRODY" on a plaque on the bridge in the spot where "Brody" supposedly jumped from). It's never mentioned in the cartoon whether or not Bugs was trying to sell the old man the
Brooklyn Bridge The Brooklyn Bridge is a hybrid cable-stayed/suspension bridge in New York City, spanning the East River between the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn. Opened on May 24, 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was the first fixed crossing of the East River ...
or simply the story of "Brody's" jump. At the end, Bugs says to the old man, "And that's why Steve Brody jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge. Anything more you want to know?" and the old man replies, "Nope. That's enough, son. I'll buy it". Bugs then breaks the
fourth wall The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ''wall'', the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th cen ...
with a wink as the old man starts counting money into Bugs's hand. The disastrous 1965 Broadway musical ''
Kelly (musical) ''Kelly'' is a musical with a book and lyrics by Eddie Lawrence and music by Moose Charlap. It was inspired by Steve Brodie, who in 1886 claimed to have jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge and survived. The story centers around Hop Kelly, a daredevil ...
'' was inspired by Brodie and climaxes with the lead character Hop Kelly completing the dive. The phrase "taken a Brody" is used in
Thomas Pynchon Thomas Ruggles Pynchon Jr. ( , ; born May 8, 1937) is an American novelist noted for his dense and complex novels. His fiction and non-fiction writings encompass a vast array of subject matter, genres and themes, including history, music, scie ...
's 1963 novel '' V.'': "And next day she would read in the paper where Esther Harvitz, twenty-two, honors graduate of CCNY, had taken a Brody off some bridge, overpass or high building." Pynchon also used in The Crying of Lot 49: "...my best guide to the Trystero has taken a Brody." It also appears in David Foster Wallace's 1996 novel '' Infinite Jest'': "McDade bitched at the meeting that if he had to watch ''Nightmare on Elm Street XXII: The Senescence'' one more time he was going to take a brody off the House's roof."


References


External links


Steve Brodie's Bar, Then and Now
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brodie, Steve 1861 births 1901 deaths Burials at Calvary Cemetery (Queens) History of New York City Vaudeville performers Saloonkeepers