22 July 2008

Whose Using Figaro's Chalkboard?


Passed by the recently deceased Le Figaro Cafe on the corner of Bleecker and Macdougal yesterday and paused in respect for the dead for a moment. The windows were all papered over. The letters if the Figaro sign had been removed, leaving only their shadows. And then my reverie was shattered by a blackboard nailed to the side of the storefront. It must have been used to advertise specials in the past. But now it read: "Comedy Corner. 3 Great Shows. 8:30 10:30 12:30." And then followed a detailed listing of the line-up.

I say, that's a little callous, isn't it? Using a businesses blackboard to advertise your business so soon after the cafe gave up the ghost? Comedy Corner is situated in the basement of the Cafe del Mare, right across the street. Ruthless business practices.

Not sure what's happening to the Le Figaro space, but it sure is happening fast. Past reports have a bank taking up residence in the back and a new restaurant up front. Work orders are pasted up everywhere. There's plenty of work going on in both sections. The place is gutted and new beams are being put in place. Wonder what happened to all that curious bric-a-brac that used to be in the Figaro.


4 comments:

Ken Mac said...

That's just the spirit of the new Village! "Outta my way, buddy, I gotta make and take a buck....all the better at your expense!" I wish these "comedy" clubs would burn.

potosi said...

Hey, that's not fair. Comedy clubs keep the spirit of the village alive. Where else can you find such a pure embodiment of free speech? And the people who were advertised on the black board were the people who were displaced by the closing of the Baggot Inn/ Boston Comedy Club. What's wrong with people writing on a blank slate? This is new york. I just hope they don't open a bank.

Anonymous said...

That is in incredibly, incredibly poor taste. Cafe Figaro was a village staple. All of the history of the Village is ripped down, and new yuppie bs emerges from the wreckage... Did I get to enjoy my first summer in the Village in Washington Square Park as many an 18 year old has before me? No. They are ripping that down too. I got to go to Cafe Figaro once (not in the best shape, but still to be respected), and I'm grateful that I spontaneously decided to do so, otherwise I would never have gotten the chance. What the hell is happening here??

Arikcarlo said...

Allen Ginsberg: "We have to apologize for foisting hyper-industrialization upon the world"

It applies to what happens her every day arising from hyper commercialism, hyper marketing, and hyper industry...rendering America uglier and uglier by the day.

Americans arise!