One of my classic frozen NYC moments was taken in 1989 at the crossroads of the worlds at the corner of 42nd St. and Broadway in Manhattan. I worked in my friend’s store called Caravan Cameras and Gifts and there I stayed outside all day pulling in customers and taking pictures. I got to know all the characters and hoodlums in the area. In this photo, I captured two guys eyeing two girls who are taking a photo. The thing about these two fellas was that they were professional pickpockets and muggers also selling drugs. I can’t count how many robberies, muggings and picked pocketings I have seen.
Nobody really liked anyone like me taking photos outside. But I’m one of those New Jersey Italian guys and I’ve got balls. In this photo, I stood my ground as I watched these two hoodlums who were were humming on these two tourists like lions eying two lost gazelles in the Serengeti as they waited for them to break away from the herd and go down a side street. This would happen all the time.
