Old Town Bar: Sign and No Sign

Some time ago, I complained about the Old Town Bar's classic neon sign, and how the tavern didn't take proper care of it, letting more of its letters go dim (see above). Perhaps they took my gripe to heart, because the sign is currently missing, sent to the shop for repairs. (Of course, I know they didn't pay any heed whatsoever to my bitching, which is just how they and I like it. The Old Town shouldn't care what anybody says about it.)



The saloon must get regular inquiries as to the whereabouts of the sign, which hung over E. 18th Street for all to see, because the owners have placed a notice in the window saying "Sign is in rehab! Be back soon. Better than ever." I asked the bartender if he knew when, exactly, it was due back. "It's due!" he replied. "When I don't know." (Whoever's repairing it better handle it with care.)

As if knowing that patrons might be missing the neon beacon, the owner has trotted out one of his occasional paper rants for the entertainment of passersby. In case you can't read the below photo, it says:

Please New York Times, stop glorifying the bums who call themselves the Abraham Lincoln Brigade (Lincoln would have sued for defamation). They were a bunch of Commies who couldn't fight their way out of a paper bag, the only action they saw was when three of four of them, after some opium pipes, would get up the nerve to jump and rape a nun.

I imagine this missive is in protest of the Times' recent article about the death of Moe Fishman, the Brigade veteran. Leave is to an reactionary old beer hall to resurrect arguments about the Spanish Civil War.