Lenox Avenue

History

Originally a part of Sixth Avenue, the segment north of Central Park was renamed in late 1887 for philanthropist James Lenox. In 1987, it was co-named Malcolm X Boulevard, in honor of the slain civil rights leader.

The avenue was the heart of Harlem during the Harlem Renaissance in the 1930s. The street brought together African Americans, Latinos, British West Indians, and Spaniards who developed relationships over common interests such as jazz and food. In 1932, Harlem was so firmly established as the world capital of jazz and African-American culture in general that "black cinema" films like Harlem Is Heaven were playing on the nation's big screens. Jazz flourished and grew like it could have in no other time and place. "You might have had 15 great clubs on one block, all going at once," said the trombonist and bandleader Wycliffe Gordon. "Imagine going into a joint to check out Willie 'The Lion' Smith, and sitting next to you are Duke Ellington and James P. Johnson." Lenox Avenue is thought by some to be one of the most important streets in the world for African American culture.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XP48QWTmjyUC|title=Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance

The Savoy Ballroom was located between 140th and 141st Streets on Lenox Avenue. Other historical venues of Lenox Avenue are Sylvia's Restaurant, located between 126th and 127th; and the Lenox Lounge, located between 124th and 125th.

Transportation

The IRT Lenox Avenue Line runs under the entire length of the street, serving the New York City Subway's . The serve Lenox north of West 116th Street, respectively coming from west and east, and the joins in north of West 139th Street. All three run to West 147th Street (Harlem) or from West 146th Street (opposite terminals).

In popular culture

• The corner of Lenox Avenue and 125th Street is mentioned in the song "When the Revolution Comes" by The Last Poets on their self-titled album (1970).
• Small Talk at 125th and Lenox (1970) is an album by Gil Scott-Heron.
• Lenox Avenue Breakdown is an album by jazz alto saxophonist Arthur Blythe. Columbia Records released the album in 1979.
• In The Fire Next Time, James Baldwin refers to Lenox Avenue simply as "The Avenue".
• The main characters of the 1992 novel Jazz by Toni Morrison live on Lenox Avenue.
• The video for Madonna's 1994 single "Secret" was shot on Lenox Avenue.
• "Lenox Avenue: Midnight", a well-known poem by Langston Hughes, is set on Lenox Avenue, as is his "The Weary Blues". The avenue is mentioned in his "Juke Box Love Song" and "Consider Me".
• The avenue is featured in the first verse of the original Irving Berlin lyrics of "Puttin' On the Ritz". The song refers to the then-popular fad of poor but flashily dressed black Harlemites parading up and down Lenox Avenue, "Spending ev'ry dime / For a wonderful time".
• In the title track of his debut record Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous, Big L raps about 139th Street and Lenox Avenue.
• The street signs are heavily featured in the opening titles of the 2016 Netflix series Luke Cage, which takes place and was filmed in Harlem.
• Part of Teyana Taylor's 2018 music video for the remix of "Gonna Love Me" was shot on Lenox Avenue, near a mural of Big L.
• The last line of the "Strut Miss Lizzie" patter has "...get set for Lenox Avenue."
• In the 1995 movie Die Hard with a Vengeance, Simon Peter Gruber initially requires Lieutenant John McClane to get to the corner of Amsterdan Avenue and the 138th Street but later we see him in Lenox Avenue and the same street, where he is quickly meeting with buddy Zeus (played by Samuel L. Jackson), although the scene was actually shot in Audubon Avenue, close to West 175th Street (Washington Heights, Manhattan)

Gallery

File:Malcolm Shabazz Mosque.jpg|Mosque No. 7 at 116th Street File:Ebenezer Gospel Tabernacle Lenox Av jeh.jpg|The Ebenezer Gospel Tabernacle at 121st Street, formerly the Lenox Avenue Unitarian Church (1889)|alt=The Ebenezer Gospel Tabernacle at 121st Street, formerly the Lenox Avenue Unitarian Church (1889): 59 File:2nd Ref Church Harlem sunny jeh.jpg|Ephesus Seventh-Day Adventist Church at 123rd Street, formerly the Second Collegiate Church of Harlem (1887)|alt=Ephesus Seventh-Day Adventist Church at 123rd Street, formerly the Second Collegiate Church of Harlem (1887): 64 File:Harlem Hospital 5BBT jeh.JPG|Harlem Hospital at 135th Street File:Savoy West 555 Lenox Ave 138 St jeh.jpg|The Savoy West at 138th Street File:Rainbow over Malcolm X Boulevard.jpg|Rainbow over Malcolm X Boulevard, in a view looking northward from Central Park North

References

References

1. "Lenox Avenue / Malcolm X Boulevard".
2. (April 6, 2000). "Governor Announces $11 Million to Enhance NYC Communities (Bronx, Brooklyn, Kings, New York & Queens Counties)". [[New York State Department of Transportation]].
3. {{cite nycland, p.205
4. (October 5, 1887). "Honoring the Lenox Family". [[The New York Times]].
5. Gray, Christopher. (June 15, 2003). "Streetscapes/200-218 Malcolm X Boulevard, From 120th to 121st Street; A Once-Noble Row of Houses Hopes for Renewal". [[The New York Times]].
6. "Malcolm X Boulevard". [[New York City Department of City Planning]].
7. Lee, Jennifer 8.. (2009-11-09). "Two Harlem Streets Named for Civil Rights Leaders".
8. Friedwald, Will. (May 9, 2011). "Follow the Sound Uptown". [[The Wall Street Journal]].
9. (2000). "Jazz: A History of America's Music". Alfred A. Knopf.
10. Horne, Aaron. (1996). "Brass Music of Black Composers: A Bibliography". Greenwood Publishing Group.
11. "The Last Poets - When The Revolution Comes".
12. O'Brien, Lucy. (2008). "Madonna: Like an Icon". [[Bantam Press]].
13. {{cite fromatoz, p.59