Times Square and
Madame Tussauds Wax Museum
Nov. 19 2009

During my second week in NY, I went to the City again, this time with my other daughter, Kathy. We went to the wax museum and walked around Times Square

Needless to say, Times Square is nothing like it was when I lived and worked in the city! (1967-70)

Kathy went into Starbucks for coffee while I continued to take pictures.

I actually found the crowds, traffic and signs flashing everywhere somewhat overwhelming after awhile! Talk about over stimulation of the senses from a picture-taker's viewpoint!

I wanted to buy a Yankees mug in this store but forgot to go back there after we went to the museum!

For some reason, there are clocks of all sizes all around Times Square. Wonder if that's related to New Years celebration in the Square?

Need directions? Ask a cop on a horse! Several of them ride around this area.

Kathy in Times Square

We grabbed some lunch in Mickey D's before the Museum

Beautiful old building here seems completely out of place down there now!

 Just above the white van - see the New York Police Dept sign?

See the "New Moon" advertisement?

I wonder how much they charge for a ride.

Street vendors are common

~*~
Madame Tussauds
Get up close and personal with your favorite celebrities at the 85,000 square-foot, five-story Madame Tussaud's New York, presenting New York's most famous and infamous personalities, as well as figures of international fame and acclaim. 

Marie Tussaud, born Anna Maria Grosholtz (1761–1850) was born in Strasbourg, France, two months after the death of her father in the Seven Years War. Her mother worked as a housekeeper for her uncle, Dr. Philippe Curtius, who was a physician skilled in wax modeling. Curtius taught Marie the art of wax modeling!

(Kathy)


During the French Revolution she modelled many prominent victims. In her memoirs she claims that she would search through corpses to find the decapitated heads of executed citizens, from which she would make death masks.

The first big room we walked into was a Celebrity Party with actors and actresses scattered around. 

Following the doctor’s death in 1794, she inherited his vast collection of wax models and spent the next 33 years travelling around Europe. Her marriage to Francois Tussaud in 1795 lent a new name to the show – Madame Tussauds.

Samuel Jackson pauses for a picture with me :)

Making a wax figure starts with a 4 hour sitting for measurements.
Then takes 6 weeks and 330 lbs of clay to sculpt a regular figure.

John Travolta in his younger days and Whoopie Goldberg

Beeswax is used for molding. The wax is heated to 170 degrees F. It takes two weeks to mold a head from the scuplted clay of the figure. 

Shootin' the breeze with Sharon and Ozzie!

In the 9th week, the figure is ready for finishing. There are roughly 100,000 hairs on the average human head. The average wax head takes 140 hours to insert with hair, including eyebrows.

Kathy visits her long lost twin :)

Oil paints are used to color the faces and give realistic skin tone to the figures.

Up on the second floor we found presidents, politicians and other "famous" people.

Total time frame for making a wax figure is 12 weeks. Sitting, 4 hrs; Sculpting, 6 weeks; Molding, 2 weeks; Finishing, 4 weeks.

There's the Clinton's with Hillary in a blue top. Billy Graham is standing next to them. It was hard to see them all because they were scattered all over the room and we walked around and among them.

Oh yeah....and I found MY long lost twin? :)
That's me with Einstein!

The three firemen who raised the flag on the pile of rubble from the fallen Twin Towers on 9/11/01

Chattin' with the President in his Oval Office

He let Kathy sit at his desk!

Kathy with new boyfriend, Johnny :)

Running interference with the Babe's swing.....

Kathy ready for a duet with Johnny Cash

♪♪ Those were the days, my friend - I thought they'd never end ♪

Andy Warhol - Marilyn Monroe and Jackie-O

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Who can ever forget The Beatles!? I was a senior in high school when we saw them for the first time on the Ed Sullivan Show!

 ♪ When I say that something, I hope you understand.... ♪♪

♪♪♪ ....I wanna hold your haaannd, I wanna hold your hand.... ♪

Me and Kathy with Paul Newman - what fun to get up close and pose with these figures!

The Spice Girls
 I have never seen a wax museum like this one! It's huge and you have access to all the exhibits! wild! 

Even Michael Jackson is here.

 

 Last figure was The Incredible Hulk! While he was busy grabbing this bad girl, we scooted past unnoticed!

Back out on the street after seeing the museum, Kathy pointed out the New Years ball that comes down on New Year's eve!

This is one of my sister's pictures. Shows how high from the ground the ball actually is! I did not recall it being so high or small looking from the ground.

The Empire State Building just a couple of blocks over.

Walking along 42nd Street. Bryant Park on the right and the Chrysler Building up ahead.

Subway entrance at the corner of Bryant Park

Bryant Park has vendor stands for the holidays.

More vendors and city buildings on the other side of the park.

There's an interesting History of Bryant Park (once called Reservoir Square) at http://www.bryantpark.org/history/reservoir-square.php


 
The park was lit up with these lights. You can see another one in the background. So pretty!

Stores and offices. Rush hour was starting and it was getting dark. The lights in the buildings looks neat.

 
The Chrysler Building - My daughter Kathy worked here for a few years and was in this building during the terrorist attacks of 9/11/2001.

Grand Central Station is just before the Chrysler Building. We took the subway to Hunter's Point from here and transferred to the Long Island Railroad.

Built by and named for the New York Central Railroad in the heyday of American long-distance passenger trains, it is the largest train station in the world by number of platforms: 44, with 67 tracks along them. They are on two levels, both below ground, with 41 tracks on the upper level and 26 on the lower, though the total number of tracks along platforms and in yards exceeds 100.

 
When the Long Island Rail Road's new station, below the existing levels, opens, Grand Central will offer a total of 75 tracks and 48 platforms. The terminal covers an area of 48 acres.

Although the terminal has been properly called "Grand Central Terminal" since 1913, many people continue to refer to it as "Grand Central Station". Technically, "Grand Central Station" is the name of the nearby post office, as well as the name of a previous rail station on the site, and is also used to refer to a New York City subway station at the same location.

 Main Concourse to Trains

Fantastic picture found at Wikipedia of the inside of Grand Central.  (OL pic - Original by Diliff & Janke)

One of my pictures inside Grand Central

Another pic of mine of the grand staircase. This is such a beautiful train terminal!

Kathy keeping busy txting while waiting for me to finish taking pictures!

Subway turnstile inside Grand Central. Coins are no longer used. You buy a subway card and swipe it to enter.

If we all stare down the track, the train will come sooner!

 The subway to Hunter's Point where we will get the Long Island Rail Road back to Northport

Kathy on the LIRR ready to go home

Me just prior to collapsing into the seat and pulling my sneaker laces loose to ease my aching feet!
~~~

It was another wonderful trip into the City! I thank both my daughters for taking the time to go into the city with me and showing me the way!

I now feel confident that my sister and I will be able to find our way into the city AND back out again when I go up to NY in the spring. New "Sister Adventures", here we come!
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Send comments & questions to MerryGoRnd@aol.com