Arthur Avenue is a street in the Belmont neighborhood of

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, which serves as the center of the Bronx's "

Little Italy Little Italy is a general name for an ethnic enclave populated primarily by Italians or people of Italian ancestry, usually in an urban neighborhood. The concept of "Little Italy" holds many different aspects of the Italian culture. There are ...

". Although the historical and commercial center of Little Italy is Arthur Avenue itself, the area stretches across East 187th Street from Arthur Avenue to Beaumont Avenue, and is similarly lined with delis, bakeries, cafes and various Italian merchants. The Bronx's Little Italy has an Italian immigrant heritage that dates back to the 1850s. Arthur Avenue and Morris Park are viewed as the Bronx's primary Italian American communities. Other Italian-American communities in the Bronx are the working class and middle class neighborhoods of

Schuylerville Schuylerville () is a village in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The village is located in the northeastern part of the Town of Saratoga, east of Saratoga Springs. The Village of Victory is adjacent to Schuylerville to the southwes ...

Country Club A country club is a privately owned club, often with a membership quota and admittance by invitation or sponsorship, that generally offers both a variety of recreational sports and facilities for dining and entertaining. Typical athletic offe ...

, Pelham Bay, and sections of Fordham. The avenue itself is named for former U.S. president

Chester A. Arthur Chester Alan Arthur (October 5, 1829 – November 18, 1886) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 21st president of the United States from 1881 to 1885. He previously served as the 20th vice president under President James ...

In popular culture

Robert De Niro's directing debut '' A Bronx Tale'' takes place in the vicinity of Belmont. However, it was largely filmed in

Astoria, Queens Astoria is a neighborhood in the western portion of the New York City borough of Queens. Astoria is bounded by the East River and is adjacent to three other Queens neighborhoods: Long Island City to the southwest, Sunnyside to the southeast ...

. The series ''

Third Watch ''Third Watch'' is an American crime drama television series created by John Wells and Edward Allen Bernero that aired on NBC from September 26, 1999, to May 6, 2005, with a total of 132 episodes spanning over six seasons. It was produced ...

'' was based on Arthur Avenue initially, with the first episode referring to the firehouse as "Camelot," based on its location at the intersection of King Street and Arthur Avenue. The 1973 film "

The Seven-Ups ''The Seven-Ups'' is a 1973 American neo-noir mystery action film produced and directed by Philip D'Antoni. It stars Roy Scheider as a crusading policeman who is the leader of the Seven-Ups, a squad of plainclothes officers who use dirty, unorth ...

" starring

Roy Scheider Roy Richard Scheider (; November 10, 1932 – February 10, 2008) was an American actor and amateur boxer. Described by AllMovie as "one of the most unique and distinguished of all Hollywood actors", he gained fame for his leading and supporting ...

was filmed on Arthur Avenue and Hoffman Street. In 2003, a scene from the HBO hit series ''

The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American crime drama television series created by David Chase. The story revolves around Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster, portraying his difficulties as he tries to balance ...

'' was shot in Mario's Restaurant. Leonard of

James Frey James Frey (born September 12, 1969) is an American writer and businessman. His first two books, ''A Million Little Pieces'' (2003) and '' My Friend Leonard'' (2005), were bestsellers marketed as memoirs. Large parts of the stories were later f ...

's ''

A Million Little Pieces ''A Million Little Pieces'' is a book by James Frey, originally sold as a memoir and later marketed as a semi-fictional novel following accusations of literary forgery. It tells the story of a 23-year-old alcoholic and abuser of other drugs and ...

'' grew up in this area. Much of the novel ''Underworld'' takes place near Arthur Avenue. The author himself,

Don DeLillo Donald Richard DeLillo (born November 20, 1936) is an American novelist, short story writer, playwright, screenwriter and essayist. His works have covered subjects as diverse as television, nuclear war, sports, the complexities of language, perf ...

, grew up there. The opening scene of the 1955 film, '' Marty'' shows Arthur Avenue. The film's main character, Marty Piletti, works at a meat market on Arthur Avenue, and in the movie he considers buying it from its owner. Early scenes in the mid-1960s film, '' The Incident'' take place on 183rd Street and Third Avenue and in the Third Avenue El station (once the primary El station for Arthur Avenue). The scenes, featuring Martin Sheen and Tony Musante, involve the mugging of a pedestrian. The Belmont station filled in for one on the Jerome Avenue El line, which is the line that forms the film's narrative. The 1950s doo-wop music group called Dion and the Belmonts originated in this area, named after Belmont Avenue. Italian rock band

Elio e le Storie Tese Elio e le Storie Tese (; literally "Elio and the Troubled Stories"), often abbreviated EelST, was an Italian comedy rock band from Milan, formed in 1980. Its leader was Stefano Belisari, better known as Elio. They announced their split on 17 Oc ...

at the end of their song "Gargaroz" in studio album '' Studentessi'' featured a mock advertising of a food shop in Arthur Avenue, in Italian language with some strange Americanisms. A reality TV show called ''Mama's Boys of the Bronx'' was about grown men living on and around Arthur Avenue in the Bronx with their mothers.

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 " Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)" takes place in and around Arthur Avenue/Little Italy. In 2016, Arthur Avenue was named one of "America's Greatest Streets" by the American Planning Association. The 2019 movie '' Bottom of the 9th'', which stars

Joe Manganiello Joseph Michael Manganiello ( ; , ; born December 28, 1976) is an American actor. His professional film career began when he played Flash Thompson in Sam Raimi's ''Spider-Man''. His breakout role was as werewolf Alcide Herveaux in five seasons of ...

and

Sofia Vergara Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and has ...

, was filmed throughout the neighborhood, specifically featuring Arthur Avenue. The screenplay for the film was written by Robert Bruzio, who grew up on Arthur Avenue.

References

External links

The Real Little Italy and Best Restaurants Are in the BronxArthur Avenue Website Official Site BronxLittleItaly.com
{{Bronx streets Belmont, Bronx Italian-American culture in New York City Italian-American culture in the Bronx Little Italys in the United States Streets in the Bronx Italian-American history