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The 10 Most Dangerous Places In New York City


Though I always try to keep Scouting NY as positive as possible, I have to make an exception with this post. Yes, New York is safer than ever, but there are still a few dark byways and shady buildings that can get you into trouble – hell, these are the places I refuse to go. You can’t say you weren’t warned.

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1) The Bramford – 1 West 72nd Street – Upper West Side – Manhattan

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Seems like: old world New York at its finest

Actually is: the home of a Satanic cult

Considering the atrocities that have occurred at this building over the years, its nickname, the “Black Bramford,” is well-earned. Once home to the Trench sisters (two proper Victorian ladies who cooked and ate several young children, including a niece), later residents Pearl Ames and Keith Kennedy, with his obscene parties, continued to bring infamy to the place. In 1959, a dead infant was found wrapped in newspaper in the basement.

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A young couple on a tour of the Bramford’s courtyard

But it is Adrian Marcato who will forever be considered synonymous with the property. In the 1890s, Marcato claimed to have conjured up the living Satan within the walls of the Bramford. Whatever the truth, the residents believed him enough to attack and nearly kill him in the lobby. By the 1920s, the building was half-empty.

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Each unit features plenty of closet space

By World War II, a boom in housing filled the Bramford again, and today, it’s one of the most exclusive residences in the city. However, rumors abound that Marcato’s work continues within the Bramford’s shadowy corridors. Tannis root, the cultivation of which is banned in the city, has been found growing in the building’s courtyard, and residents speak of strange chanting heard through the walls. Something very evil is brewing at the Bramford, and if the co-op won’t approve your application, be glad.

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A tenant about to play with her newborn baby at the building’s nursery

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2) Manhattan Museum of Art, 1 Bowling Green, Manhattan

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The DEP recently reported a river of pink slime flowing underground to this spot

Seems like: a great place to spend a rainy day

Actually is: haunted by the spirit of a 16th-century genocidal tyrant

Though it may be considered one of city’s preeminent museums, with the famed Janosz Poha heading its restoration wing, I’d highly advise you to avoid the MMA due to a painting recently added to its Romantic exhibition:

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This painting escaped a brush with vandalism recently when parapsychologist Peter Venkman attempted to paint a kitten in the bottom corner.

Colorfully known as the sorrow of Moldovia and the scourge of Carpathia, Prince Vigo was born in 1505 and is said to have “sat on a throne of blood” in a “castle of pain” atop a “mountain of skulls.” A sorcerer and “genocidal madman,” his death at 105 years wasn’t due to just “hanging in there”: he was poisoned, stabbed, shot, hung, stretched, disemboweled, drawn and quartered.

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The painter employed the oft-used technique in which the subject’s eyes seem to follow you around the room (along with his head, body, arms, the occasional river of slime that appears behind him, etc.)

Due to Vigo’s repeated attempts at possessing children for his resurrection, the museum highly advises visitors not to bring babies under 18 months within a 10-foot radius of the painting (you should probably keep your distance too).

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3) “Mugger’s Lane” – Crosby Street btw. Prince & Spring, Soho, Manhattan

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Seems like: a cobblestoned Soho byway

Actually is: a good place to get shot and turn into a ghost

Though much of Soho may be a gentrified paradise for artistic wannabes, be sure to avoid the block known as “Mugger’s Lane” – Crosby Street, between Prince & Spring. On any given night, couples can be found ignorantly walking this seedy backstreet while “finally talking” about love and marriage, completely unaware of the criminal element lurking in the shadows, often waiting to silence those who have discovered their unlawful money laundering schemes.

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On the plus side, the recent spike in murders on Crosby Street has been a boon to the city’s psychic industry

The ghosts of those who have been murdered while protecting their loved ones are said to haunt Crosby Street, and one spectral figure in particular is often seen just after midnight, forever operating what appears to be a pottery wheel.

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4) 55 Central Park West – Upper West Side – Manhattan

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Seems like: an art-deco highrise

Actually is: a gateway to the dimension of Gozer

Designed by architect, noted doctor, and Gozer worshipper Ivo Shandor, 55 Central Park West is unusual for a number of reasons, in particular for its roof cap, which is exactly like the kind of telemetry tracker NASA uses to identify dead pulsars in deep space. It also features girders with cores of pure selenium, which frankly would only be used by a certified genius, or an aesthetic wacko.

Oh, and there’s an interdimensional temple on the roof.

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The corner penthouse of “Spook Central” has recently returned to the market at a reduced price

A check with the Department of Housing’s website shows a spate of recent complaints about the building, the most egregious being: eggs spontaneously cooking on kitchen counters; monstrous “terror dogs” appearing in refrigerators; building gargoyles coming to life; “a bear loose in his apartment”; and the faint smell of roasting marshmallows.

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A tenant horrified that her eggs are being cooked sunny-side-up when she ordered over-easy

Remember: if anyone in the building ever happens to ask if you are a god, you say yes. Trust me.

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5) The Dolphin Hotel – Room 1408 – Midtown, Manhattan

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Seems like: a fancy hotel

Actually is: a haunted fancy hotel

Since the Hotel Dolphin opened 95 years ago, room 1408 has had seven suicide jumpers, four overdoses, five hangings, three mutilations, and two stranglings, not to mention heart attacks, strokes, and a man who drowned in a bowl of chicken soup, for a grand total of 56 deaths.

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Haunting effects of 1408 are greatly exacerbated if you have a back story involving a dead child

It is said that no one has been able to last more than an hour inside, and even more remarkably, the hotel is reported to be 100% bed bug-free.

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Room 1408 offers the latest in live, in-room entertainment straight from the depths of Hell

Though you can stay in 1408 by citing an obscure New York City law allowing you to demand any room currently vacant in a hotel, trust manager Gerald Olin when he tells you: “It’s an evil fucking room.”

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6) 10 Montague Terrace, Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn

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Seems like: an ordinary townhouse.

Actually is: the gateway to hell.

It seems like the dream apartment: nestled at the end of the wonderful Remsen Street cul-de-sac, with amazing views of the city, and only $400 a month, how could you say no to 1o Montague Terrace? There’s just one thing that stands out as a bit unusual: the silhouetted figure keeping watch from the top window.

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Staring technique learned at the Norma Bates School For Window Watching

But be thankful for this person’s ever-vigilant gaze – he’s all that’s keeping Satan’s minions from pouring into our world. Because as it happens, 10 Montague Terrace was built directly on top of the gateway to hell (one can only imagine what that does to the property value).

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The problem with rent-controlled apartments is that the demons just won’t leave

Luckily, a guardian has been appointed to keep back the forces of evil, a blind priest known as the Sentinel, who prevents the devil’s army from crossing over. Good news: the rent is cheap. Bad news: if you live here, there’s a good chance you’ll be selected as the next Sentinel.

7) Milton, Chadwick, & Waters Law Firm, Penta Plaza, 180 Maiden Lane, Manhattan

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Seems like: a post-modern skyscraper near Wall Street

Actually is: Satan’s law firm.

With over 600 associates and 40 vested partners, Milton, Chadwick, & Waters is known throughout New York as the go-to firm for lawyers specializing in the defense of murderers, thieves, rapists, and pedophiles – especially when you’re actually guilty.

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Unfortunately, John Milton also happens to be Satan, which means a lot of long speeches on the irrationality of God, the possibility that he might rape and kill your loved ones, and a tendency to burst into flames when angry.

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Enraged flame gimmick costs extra

Stick to the South Street Seaport.

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8) Clamp Enterprises Building – 101 Park Avenue – Midtown, Manhattan

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Seems like: a typical midtown skyscraper

Actually is: infested with gremlins

101 Park Avenue, better known as the Clamp Enterprises building, is the headquarters of eccentric billionaire Donald Clamp. Unfortunately, a freak accident involving a mogwai and water in the Clamp Enterprises lab has resulted in an infestation of petulant gremlins, who delight in torturing anyone who crosses their path.

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Clamp Enterprises is an equal opportunity employer

Unfortunately, the threat extends beyond the building, as a genetically-engineered flying gremlin with a resistance to the sun has been recently spotted terrorizing tourists on Park Avenue.

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You can’t feed them after midnight…but when is it OK to start feeding them again?

Let’s hope it doesn’t rain.

9) 11 Washington Square North – Greenwich Village, Manhattan

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Seems like: a quaint brick row house on Washington Square Park

Actually is: a zombie shelter

As you probably recall, back in September, a genetically-engineered variant of the measles virus was accidentally released from a lab, killing 90% of the world’s population and turning the rest into zombie-like monsters. These so-called darkseekers now tend to congregate around Washington Square Park, most likely because the last man in New York City is hiding out at #11 Washington Square North.

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Be extra vigilant as you travel through this neighborhood, not only because of the darkseekers, but also for Lieutenant Colonel Robert Neville’s extensive network of hidden explosives (and his flagrant disregard for New York’s architectural history).

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Lieutenant Colonel Robert Neville does not respect the Landmarks Preservation Commission

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10) 500 Main Street – Roosevelt Island

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Seems like: one of Roosevelt Island’s warm and homey brutalist-style buildings

Actually is: haunted, with some serious plumbing issues

500 Main Street on Roosevelt Island has everything you could want from a New York highrise: great location, cheap rent, modern facilities, reasonably close to your ex-husband Kyle’s place in Jersey City…There’s just the issue of a minor plumbing problem in which dark water spontaneously spews out of faucets, ceilings, walls, and mirrors, and occasionally tries to kill its tenants.

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Building management is not responsible for drownings due to spiritual entities

You see, 500 Main Street is haunted by the spirit of a girl who thought this water tower was the building’s rooftop pool. It’s also haunted by the dreariest weather in New York City, which frankly is a much more compelling reason to avoid it.

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The skyline view you wake up each morning for

Seriously, I was depressed just digging up pictures for this.

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BONUS: American Gardens Building – 55 West 81st Street – Manhattan

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Originally, I was going to leave this one off the list, since the building has done everything possible to hide their infamous past, including altering the building facade and changing the street number. But they were pretty rude to me last time I tried to scout the penthouse for a movie, so screw ’em. You know 55 West 81st Street as the home to New York’s most notorious serial killer…

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While Pierce & Pierce mergers and acquisitions VP Patrick Bateman often takes his killing sprees out onto the streets of New York, he’s also perfectly happy to conduct them within the comfort of his own apartment, often while extolling on the philosophical underpinnings of the latest pop music.

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Paul Allen recently met his untimely end in Bateman’s apartment, along with several prositutes and…Huh…wait a minute…It doesn’t make sense, actually…

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See, I had dinner with Paul Allen at Dorsia just last week.

Be careful out there. Halloween may be a few weeks away, but New York in October always feels like the most haunting month of the year to me, and I hate to see it go by quickly.

-SCOUT

PS – Confused? See: 1) Rosemary’s Baby 2) Ghostbusters 2 3) Ghost 4) Ghostbusters 5) 1408 6) The Sentinel 7) The Devil’s Advocate 8) Gremlins II 9) I Am Legend 10) Dark Water 11) American Psycho


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44 Comments

  1. One quick correction – the building you list as 101 Park Ave South is actually 101 Park Ave. Park Ave South is below 32 St.

    Great post!

  2. LOL Okay it took me finally getting to the pics of Rosemary’s Baby to go “OHHHHH”. Well played man!! Great freeken article!

  3. Me and my sister grew up in the Eastwood building (the Dark Water apts!) 510 Main st. Some of the movie was filmed inside the actual units and we went crazy seeing those interiors for the first time in 25 years. And the burned out elevator buttons! That is exactly how they were in the 80’s. Great article! Love R.I. for all its weirdness…

  4. Oh! Ha ha! I thought you were about to expose some places around the city and get yourself into so much trouble with your fellow New Yorkers! I was prepared to be indignant, but feel sorry for you too. Great trick and a sweet treat! Wonderful article, you did a good job, you did good.

  5. Love this. I was particularly amused by “his flagrant disregard for New York’s architectural history”. 😀

  6. #1,1 West 72nd Street, what you call the Bramford, is actually the Dakota… which might make this list, but for a different reason than what you have described. Is there really even a Bramford building in the city?

    1. Please be kind. Scout’s facts are correct; in the movie Rosemary’s Baby, the Dakota is named the Bramford.

    2. Did you read through the entire post? You’re missing something and might want to give it a try…

    3. You obviously missed the point of the article. Read it again. And then consider the footnotes, and you might get the joke.

  7. i’ve been wanting to go on a citywide movie location tour and this is it! I’m gonna hit up the firehouse and the weeping angels fountain as well ! happy halloween!

  8. Fabulous post! Reading through the comments from others, I had just reach Beth Dixon’s “Great post for the Halloween month. ” when a large black bug walked diagonally across the screen. Initially, I smiled and wondered how you had scheduled the timing on this, Scout. Guess the escapee from tonight’s storms was “scouting” out your post : – ).

  9. The Sentinel! Dammit, got me on that one. We should all ask for Patrick Bateman every time we walk by 55. You know, for entertainment purposes. Tell them his brother Sean is calling up.

  10. Another honourable mention could’ve been the Chrysler Building, due to it’s winged tenant.

    A few corrections though:

    In Gremlins II it was Daniel Clamp, rather than Donald.
    The Darkseekers in I Am Legend are effectively vampires, not zombies.

  11. LOVED This!!! You got me for a bit on the first one as I’ve never seen that flick. Thanks 😀

  12. I work in the building known as 101 Park Avenue (a.k.a., the Kalikow Building) and have noticed over the years how many times it has been used in film and television. I think there are a few reasons: It is a tall, sleek, black building which was built on a 45 degree angle to the street grid. This provides a fairly large plaza for that area. In addition, steps away are dramatic visual counterpoints to the building’s modernity. The Park Avenue viaduct leading traffic uptown, and the priceless Beaux Arts façade of Grand Central Terminal just one block away. Sometimes, an establishing shot of the exterior of 101 Park is used or simply a few moments of a character walking into the building. In addition to Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990), other credits include Arbitrage (2012); The Avengers (2012); Made in Jersey (2012); Damages (2011); I Am Legend (2007); Seinfeld (1997), Offices of Kruger Industrial Smoothing (“The Human Fund”; The Fisher King (1991); and a scene of Howard Stern walking into the building which was edited out of Private Parts (1997).

  13. Great scouting job. Who knew there was so much carnage in NYC? You may want to rethink the Mia picture, who’s your daddy now? And Peter Venkman has always been one of my favorite Noo Yawkers. For me one of the most dangerous places in the city was the sidewalk outside Spark’s Steak House but i guess i am showing my age. Maybe you could do a Washington D.C. follow up about the dia de los cerebro muertos.

  14. Don’t forget about Vector Gallery the Satan worship space on Clinton street. The Lower East Side keeps finding ways to make itself more conspicuously unique than we know what to do with.

  15. “The problem with rent-controlled apartments is that the demons just won’t leave.” hilarious — great post, scout!

  16. Just came back from a trip to the city, and thought I was in for an informative article. I smiled as soon as I saw the first picture. Love it!

    1. The Ansonia was also the location of (at least) two films: The Sunshine Boys (1975) and Single White Female (1992). More than likely, such a great building has been involved in other film and television projects. In other entertainment areas, the basement of The Ansonia was once the Continental Baths — a gay bathhouse where Bette Midler and Barry Manilow entertained the troops. And that same spot eventually became a well-known swingers club called Plato’s Retreat.

  17. Since I wasn’t sure what it was I Googled ‘Tannis Root’ only to find out it’s a FICTIONAL thing. After that, I couldn’t take this post seriously.

  18. Those addresses are all ones i ain’t never seen on any Monolopy board I played or owned: get out of gaol free
    Mayfair
    Park Lane
    Bond Street
    Oxford Street
    Regent Street
    Piccadilly
    Coventry Street
    Leicester Square
    Trafalgar Square
    Fleet Street
    Strand
    Vine Street
    Marlborough Street
    Bow Street
    Northhumberland Avenue
    Whitehall
    Pall Mall
    Pentonville Road
    Euston Road
    The Angel, Islington
    Whitechapel Road
    Old Kent Road
    Utilities: Electric Company and Water Works
    Railroads: Marylebone Station, Kings Cross Station, Liverpool Street Station, and Fenchurch Street Station
    and pay your super taxes now…

  19. Isn’t the Bramford the Dakota? (or at least that’s what the building in the photo is.) My uncle lives in the building next door….Yoko Ono lives there & John Lennon was shot right outside

  20. What about the old Elks Lodge building at 110 west 43rd.
    Houdini had his Elks and Masonic funeral lodge of sorrow.
    Before 2000 people in the huge Elks Lodge Room in NYC
    the magician group Harry studied with did a ritual
    that deals with breaking Houdini’s wand over his body in an open
    casket.
    How about that for weird!
    Then the Elks from what I was told used 2 coffins
    and switch coffins with Houdini and used the coffin to deliver
    the Elks initiates to the lodge room for their initiation .
    Great stuff , I would go through that initiation in the Elks in NYC!
    Hell Ya that awesome archaic rituals.
    The Elks the Masons and the Magicians group of Houdini!
    What a group to party with. I’m down with dat.

  21. Don’t forget the Chrysler Building! The iconic rounded top is actually a nest for the feared Quetzacotl, “the winged serpent”, known to his friends as “Q.”

  22. Oh man, it took me to the third one to start thinking, wait…what? I was seriously interested and surprised that the portrait from Ghostbusters II was based on a real painting! You got me

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