"Love Story" on FX/Hulu has piqued my nostalgia for the 90s—when I'd sometimes cross paths with JFK Jr 💅; Have I mentioned I'm putting on a show next Wednesday?? (OMG, it's less than a week away!)
When I lived in NYC, I once saw JKF Jr. running down Columbus Avenue, doing a sort of "run of shame." He was in the process of putting on his shirt, flinging it over his naked upper torso (be still my beating heart) and buttoning it up as he ran. When we passed on the sidewalk, he nodded at me and kept running. Total boss move.
I feel like I grew up with JFK, Jr. even if all I ever had were random sightings around the City (and a mutual friend in common through Brown or NYU Law). Loving the series. I’ve been watching with one of my daughters, who loves the clothes—especially the casual ones, as she just started a new job. She is peppering me with all kinds of questions about those times. Watching the show is making me feel like a voyeur but also nostalgic. And it’s calling me back to how sad I was when their lives were cut so short on the heels of Diana’s death.
Yes, I felt a little like that, too. Cool about your daughter’s new job—congrats. I feel a little like a voyeur, too, and the show is not at all kind to Darryl Hannah. But I can’t pull myself away from it!
I was in NYC at the same time. According to my journals, I was depressed, anxious, and sure that my life in the city was a house of cards that could collapse at any moment. I still consider it the best time of my life pre-spouse and kids. I just wish I could have lightened up a bit.
When I was an editor at Rolling Stone circa 1994 JFK Jr was launching George and came around the office, consulting with his friend Jann Wenner. Anyway John sat in on a couple of our meetings and I had a similar impression of him as you did, he exuded low-key charisma.
I had a few encounters with some of the Kennedy family members when I went to Boston university in the 60’s and early 70’s. I even travelled to New York to rally for John F. Kennedy!
I loved the movie Ryan Murphy created, I wanted more!
When I lived in NY,I found a Carrier pigeon on my lawn and had to return it to a wildlife retriever, so I called one and I spoke to Robert Kennedy, I knew the voice immediately and he gave me directions to his home, and I returned the pigeon to his house, but a maid took it in!
Now, as an older person, I have to go get a shot in my eye for macular degeneration!!!
I’m only watching Love Story because it transports me back to the 90’s. For me it makes me wistful for cheap rent, cheap food and a no internet life. And the soundtrack!!! Oh man, it made me start a new mixed tape of 90’s songs that immediately transport me!
I've always been amazed at how nostalgic I can be even for times that sucked. I guess that's how we humans are made!
A friend's sister used to play frisbee regularly with these nice people in Central Park named John-John and Daryl. For a long time, she had no idea who they were. 🤣
This: "But he would lock eyes with you, and make you feel like you were somebody" is definitely a type of charisma, intentional or not. That was a big part of Bill Clinton's charm, and I had a chance to hang around Tim Curry for a weekend and he was so *interested* in me (and anyone I saw him encounter, like he found all people fascinating) that I couldn't help falling in love with him, even though I was straight. I mean, who was I to be looked at like that?
Maybe even reflexively. I read they had to pull Bill Clinton away from shaking peoples' hands, to the point that his skin would be raw from it. He just wanted to touch people.
I had a similar experience with Bruce Campbell. I don't know that I even asked him one question, be he walked away knowing all about my job, hobbies, ideas on environmentalism, and who knows what else!
I was in my $1000/month, 200sq ft studio on 41st and 1st, glued to the television, sweeping my eyes over that massive expanse of water begging the god I did not believe in to find that plane and find them alive...I still can't believe they're gone.
Love Story is totally taking me back ti ‘90s NYC (the locations! John’s so ‘90s bachelor loft!) and Strawberry — what a throwback. (Your description of party reporting is so accurate it gave me ptsd to when I did it in the 2010s.) You’ll be happy to know there are 9 eps so lots more to come!
Sari, you had me at Strawberry. (And others in this thread too LOL!!) That was the Dr. Zizmor era!
You are not alone in your bittersweet nostalgia for that time, and for that ephemeral version of 90s NYC. I was a young line cook and server in downtown Manhattan during those years, and worked for Dean & DeLuca's short-lived catering operation. This was back when Dean & DeLuca was still operating as an independent, single-store business with the original owners, Giorgio and Joel. I can vividly remember one onsite event gig we were sent to: it was a loft party near D&D's Prince & Broadway location. As our team served appetizers and cleared empty glasses, I saw JFK Jr. and Carolyn chatting with other guests, looking happy and relaxed because there were no cameras around. If I remember correctly, the singer Nona Hendryx performed that night for guests too — it was a simple acoustic set, meant for a private audience. I was so impressed and starstruck in that way you are when you are 19 years old, and witnessing real adult glamor for the first time in your life.
If I had known how special 90s NYC was, I would have taken more photos and documented the details of everyday life back then. But of course, like most 19-year-olds, I totally took it for granted, and assumed things would stay that way forever.
Thank you, Min! And for sharing your story. I sometimes can’t believe how few photos I have of that time—and I took photography classes at ICP. But everything really changed on that front with smart phones. We started photographing everything. I wish I had more photos of my life from the 90s!
Around 1991-92, I was working as a production editor at Houghton Mifflin in downtown Boston. One summer afternoon after work, as I was walking the few blocks along Tremont St to the Park St Station, I saw a tall, stunning, shirtless man in Lycra biking shorts approaching on Rollerblades. I had to stop in my tracks. At first I just thought OMG this man is Adonis Incarnate. We made eye contact as he rolled past and then it hit me. Holy crap. Was that JFK, Jr.?? I could barely breathe. Waiting for the T (subway) shortly after, a bunch of people were buzzing, "Did you see JFK, Jr. just now?!" so I knew I hadn't hallucinated. He was always John-John to us Boomers. I love hearing about your experience at parties with him, Sari. I haven't watched the show but now I'm intrigued. (BTW, I recently saw a rerun of "The Contest" on Seinfeld, in which an off-screen JFK Jr. plays a key role. Classic!)
I'm a native of LA, but my most NY story was having lunch in Tribeca with my friend who dressed celebs for Prada, and JKF Jr. walked by, shouting at his dog, "Stop it, Friday!" Shirtless. I've never been more in New York than at that moment. I believe I was watching a "Real World/Road Rules" marathon on MTV when Kurt Loder interrupted. When Kurt came on, you knew it was a big deal. I thought for sure we'd find him in the ocean, doing the backstroke effortlessly while towing the sisters on a makeshift raft. There was no way anything bad could happen to him. And it was just so awful. xo
You found out in the most ‘90s way possible! (I used to write new scripts for Kurt and Tabitha Soren at MTV News, btw.) Yeah, I still can’t believe it, either. He seemed invincible.
Sari, every time I think you can’t get any cooler, you drop something like that. Please tell me Kurt and Tabitha were as smart and loveable as I hope them to be. In that hard, aloof 90s way, anyway. xo
Okay, now I'm going to have to watch this. For some reason I didn't want to go back there. Like Princess Diana's death, I remember where I was when they died. I couldn't believe it happened. It seemed so preventable. As I've commented before on your New York 90s posts Sari, I too romanticized the hell out of NY in the mid 90s, when in reality my wusband and I were so broke we furnished our apartment from trash day on the Upper East Side, and had to dig for lost subway tokens in the cushions of our couch to get to work. I discovered George Magazine on one of those magazine walks when I'd pick out my Vanity Fairs and Vogues from the stacks people left on their stoops. My wusband was a painter and had painted a gorgeous photo in varying greens of Jackie O in the style of Tamara De Lempicka. I had an idea to try to get it to John. I really thought he might love it. Awww. When we moved we sold all of the wusband's paintings in that East Village flea market on 11th, and I remember that painting going first! I guess I will always romanticize that time, the smoking, the drinking too much in cheap ladies nights bars and just feeling like the sky was the limit.
I think you’ll be instantly hooked, Robin. Thanks for sharing this. My apartment was filled with furniture I found on the street, a few pieces of which I still have. <3
I first wondered if that was a typo because I found the ex term very cheeky. But nope, you used it again and now, I'm going to install it into my vernacular!! :D
Enjoyed this post, especially your 90s eyebrows! My wife had those as well. Ironically, thanks to syndication the endless loops of "Friends" were watched by my teen daughters in the 2010s, which helped them understand our "old" pics of their mom. :)
90s Eyebrows. Lord. I just saw a still of myself from a mini-documentary about my 90s girl band, Big Panty, and my first thought was: my eyebrows are insane! I texted the photo to one of my former bandmates (we came out the other side of the breakup and are lifelong friends thank god) to ask—why were we doing that to our eyebrows? It's especially incomprehensible because as my eyebrows are thinning on their own and it's hard to find the crazy errant hairs while wearing readers strong enough to see them—which is to say, ahhhh aging—I feel such eye-rolling love for younger me who turned them into tiny parentheses. I posted a link to the doc-in-progress which has some good East Village 90s flashback footage. Thanks for this Substack, brings me joy.
My grandmother (who was a victim of another thin brow era in the 1930s) scare me to death about plucking my brows. "Don't touch them! Never touch them! You'll regret it!" Other than some minor plucking here and there, I made it out of the 90s mostly unscathed.
When I lived in NYC, I once saw JKF Jr. running down Columbus Avenue, doing a sort of "run of shame." He was in the process of putting on his shirt, flinging it over his naked upper torso (be still my beating heart) and buttoning it up as he ran. When we passed on the sidewalk, he nodded at me and kept running. Total boss move.
Wow. I love that. Possibly the sexiest man who ever lived.
I was pretty much delirious the whole day.
<3
I feel like I grew up with JFK, Jr. even if all I ever had were random sightings around the City (and a mutual friend in common through Brown or NYU Law). Loving the series. I’ve been watching with one of my daughters, who loves the clothes—especially the casual ones, as she just started a new job. She is peppering me with all kinds of questions about those times. Watching the show is making me feel like a voyeur but also nostalgic. And it’s calling me back to how sad I was when their lives were cut so short on the heels of Diana’s death.
Yes, I felt a little like that, too. Cool about your daughter’s new job—congrats. I feel a little like a voyeur, too, and the show is not at all kind to Darryl Hannah. But I can’t pull myself away from it!
Tell me about it
I was in NYC at the same time. According to my journals, I was depressed, anxious, and sure that my life in the city was a house of cards that could collapse at any moment. I still consider it the best time of my life pre-spouse and kids. I just wish I could have lightened up a bit.
Life and golf swings are best attempted with a gentle grip. Too bad we strain at it so much as young people.
Yup. That tracks. :)
When I was an editor at Rolling Stone circa 1994 JFK Jr was launching George and came around the office, consulting with his friend Jann Wenner. Anyway John sat in on a couple of our meetings and I had a similar impression of him as you did, he exuded low-key charisma.
Yes, low-key charisma. And uncommon realness for someone of his stature. I covered the launch of George, and he was of course lovely there, too.
I had a few encounters with some of the Kennedy family members when I went to Boston university in the 60’s and early 70’s. I even travelled to New York to rally for John F. Kennedy!
I loved the movie Ryan Murphy created, I wanted more!
When I lived in NY,I found a Carrier pigeon on my lawn and had to return it to a wildlife retriever, so I called one and I spoke to Robert Kennedy, I knew the voice immediately and he gave me directions to his home, and I returned the pigeon to his house, but a maid took it in!
Now, as an older person, I have to go get a shot in my eye for macular degeneration!!!
I’m only watching Love Story because it transports me back to the 90’s. For me it makes me wistful for cheap rent, cheap food and a no internet life. And the soundtrack!!! Oh man, it made me start a new mixed tape of 90’s songs that immediately transport me!
It really is a great time capsule in that way.
I've always been amazed at how nostalgic I can be even for times that sucked. I guess that's how we humans are made!
A friend's sister used to play frisbee regularly with these nice people in Central Park named John-John and Daryl. For a long time, she had no idea who they were. 🤣
Wow, imagine not knowing who they were!
She was really out of it!
This: "But he would lock eyes with you, and make you feel like you were somebody" is definitely a type of charisma, intentional or not. That was a big part of Bill Clinton's charm, and I had a chance to hang around Tim Curry for a weekend and he was so *interested* in me (and anyone I saw him encounter, like he found all people fascinating) that I couldn't help falling in love with him, even though I was straight. I mean, who was I to be looked at like that?
Yes, I think it’s something that charismatic people who want to be liked do, very intentionally!
Maybe even reflexively. I read they had to pull Bill Clinton away from shaking peoples' hands, to the point that his skin would be raw from it. He just wanted to touch people.
I had a similar experience with Bruce Campbell. I don't know that I even asked him one question, be he walked away knowing all about my job, hobbies, ideas on environmentalism, and who knows what else!
I was in my $1000/month, 200sq ft studio on 41st and 1st, glued to the television, sweeping my eyes over that massive expanse of water begging the god I did not believe in to find that plane and find them alive...I still can't believe they're gone.
Me, either. <3
Love Story is totally taking me back ti ‘90s NYC (the locations! John’s so ‘90s bachelor loft!) and Strawberry — what a throwback. (Your description of party reporting is so accurate it gave me ptsd to when I did it in the 2010s.) You’ll be happy to know there are 9 eps so lots more to come!
Oh! I thought there were only 5. I didn’t realize there were other episodes yet to be released. I’ll correct that. Glad the party reporting resonated!
Sari, you had me at Strawberry. (And others in this thread too LOL!!) That was the Dr. Zizmor era!
You are not alone in your bittersweet nostalgia for that time, and for that ephemeral version of 90s NYC. I was a young line cook and server in downtown Manhattan during those years, and worked for Dean & DeLuca's short-lived catering operation. This was back when Dean & DeLuca was still operating as an independent, single-store business with the original owners, Giorgio and Joel. I can vividly remember one onsite event gig we were sent to: it was a loft party near D&D's Prince & Broadway location. As our team served appetizers and cleared empty glasses, I saw JFK Jr. and Carolyn chatting with other guests, looking happy and relaxed because there were no cameras around. If I remember correctly, the singer Nona Hendryx performed that night for guests too — it was a simple acoustic set, meant for a private audience. I was so impressed and starstruck in that way you are when you are 19 years old, and witnessing real adult glamor for the first time in your life.
If I had known how special 90s NYC was, I would have taken more photos and documented the details of everyday life back then. But of course, like most 19-year-olds, I totally took it for granted, and assumed things would stay that way forever.
Thank you, Min! And for sharing your story. I sometimes can’t believe how few photos I have of that time—and I took photography classes at ICP. But everything really changed on that front with smart phones. We started photographing everything. I wish I had more photos of my life from the 90s!
Around 1991-92, I was working as a production editor at Houghton Mifflin in downtown Boston. One summer afternoon after work, as I was walking the few blocks along Tremont St to the Park St Station, I saw a tall, stunning, shirtless man in Lycra biking shorts approaching on Rollerblades. I had to stop in my tracks. At first I just thought OMG this man is Adonis Incarnate. We made eye contact as he rolled past and then it hit me. Holy crap. Was that JFK, Jr.?? I could barely breathe. Waiting for the T (subway) shortly after, a bunch of people were buzzing, "Did you see JFK, Jr. just now?!" so I knew I hadn't hallucinated. He was always John-John to us Boomers. I love hearing about your experience at parties with him, Sari. I haven't watched the show but now I'm intrigued. (BTW, I recently saw a rerun of "The Contest" on Seinfeld, in which an off-screen JFK Jr. plays a key role. Classic!)
I'm a native of LA, but my most NY story was having lunch in Tribeca with my friend who dressed celebs for Prada, and JKF Jr. walked by, shouting at his dog, "Stop it, Friday!" Shirtless. I've never been more in New York than at that moment. I believe I was watching a "Real World/Road Rules" marathon on MTV when Kurt Loder interrupted. When Kurt came on, you knew it was a big deal. I thought for sure we'd find him in the ocean, doing the backstroke effortlessly while towing the sisters on a makeshift raft. There was no way anything bad could happen to him. And it was just so awful. xo
You found out in the most ‘90s way possible! (I used to write new scripts for Kurt and Tabitha Soren at MTV News, btw.) Yeah, I still can’t believe it, either. He seemed invincible.
That's where I got my serious news in the 90s!
Sari, every time I think you can’t get any cooler, you drop something like that. Please tell me Kurt and Tabitha were as smart and loveable as I hope them to be. In that hard, aloof 90s way, anyway. xo
Mostly! Thank you. 💗
Okay, now I'm going to have to watch this. For some reason I didn't want to go back there. Like Princess Diana's death, I remember where I was when they died. I couldn't believe it happened. It seemed so preventable. As I've commented before on your New York 90s posts Sari, I too romanticized the hell out of NY in the mid 90s, when in reality my wusband and I were so broke we furnished our apartment from trash day on the Upper East Side, and had to dig for lost subway tokens in the cushions of our couch to get to work. I discovered George Magazine on one of those magazine walks when I'd pick out my Vanity Fairs and Vogues from the stacks people left on their stoops. My wusband was a painter and had painted a gorgeous photo in varying greens of Jackie O in the style of Tamara De Lempicka. I had an idea to try to get it to John. I really thought he might love it. Awww. When we moved we sold all of the wusband's paintings in that East Village flea market on 11th, and I remember that painting going first! I guess I will always romanticize that time, the smoking, the drinking too much in cheap ladies nights bars and just feeling like the sky was the limit.
I think you’ll be instantly hooked, Robin. Thanks for sharing this. My apartment was filled with furniture I found on the street, a few pieces of which I still have. <3
It was great shopping! We would carry that stuff for a mile or more lol
I first wondered if that was a typo because I found the ex term very cheeky. But nope, you used it again and now, I'm going to install it into my vernacular!! :D
Ha! yes. I learned this from a dear friend years ago!
Enjoyed this post, especially your 90s eyebrows! My wife had those as well. Ironically, thanks to syndication the endless loops of "Friends" were watched by my teen daughters in the 2010s, which helped them understand our "old" pics of their mom. :)
Ha! I almost left the photo out, but glad now that I left it in.
Hopes and dreams always trump reality. It is extraordinarily ironic that our President is named Trump.
It really is!
90s Eyebrows. Lord. I just saw a still of myself from a mini-documentary about my 90s girl band, Big Panty, and my first thought was: my eyebrows are insane! I texted the photo to one of my former bandmates (we came out the other side of the breakup and are lifelong friends thank god) to ask—why were we doing that to our eyebrows? It's especially incomprehensible because as my eyebrows are thinning on their own and it's hard to find the crazy errant hairs while wearing readers strong enough to see them—which is to say, ahhhh aging—I feel such eye-rolling love for younger me who turned them into tiny parentheses. I posted a link to the doc-in-progress which has some good East Village 90s flashback footage. Thanks for this Substack, brings me joy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPnSlP89ktw&t=236s
Just watched. That was great! And, yes, the eyebrows!
I totally destroyed my eyebrows! The left one especially. Some of the hair never grew back. I’ll check out the video! Glad you enjoy Oldster. <3
There are many ridiculous things I did in the '90s, but every day I'm thankful I was too lazy to pluck them thin.
😂
yea. My eyebrows also remained a bit fucked. sigh.
My grandmother (who was a victim of another thin brow era in the 1930s) scare me to death about plucking my brows. "Don't touch them! Never touch them! You'll regret it!" Other than some minor plucking here and there, I made it out of the 90s mostly unscathed.
The problem is, they don’t always grow back!!