Yankee Stadium Ticket Booth/Kiosk

[Ronnoco]

I don't think I've ever had anything good enough to post, but I think I've finally made the cut.

There were reportedly only three Yankee Stadium ticket booths saved from the scrap heap in 1973. All three were red. One went to the Smithsonian, one went to Cooperstown, and a third was sold to a private collector for $500.

I'm reasonably sure I found the third one.

It's in rough condition, but the vast majority of it is here. The original copper-covered dome has survived as well. The grates for the ticket windows, I'm told, are not here because fans removed them in September 1973, after the last home game. I found a photograph of someone chiseling them out from one ot the booths.

I'm going to restore it, but I also want to keep some of the Bronx charm spray-painted and marked on the exterior panels opposite the ticket windows. The one in Cooperstown is almost unrecognizeable due to its restoration (http://waswatching.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Yankee-Stadium-Ticket-Booth-Used-Thru-1973.jpg), while the one in the Smithsonian looks more like it did when it was removed (http://newsdesk.si.edu/snapshot/yankee-stadium-ticket-booth). I would like to display the copper-covered dome hidden beneath the many layers of paint. In any event, here's a couple of photos.

[FourStrikes]

Nice!

+1000 on the graffiti "Bronx charm" - if only you can photo-match it for eternity (NOT implying it ain't otherwise legit) - but that would be some tremendous provenance!

IMHO, I vote for non-restored.

[Kawika]

Don't recall the ticket booths ever being red. I wonder when they changed the color from the familiar drab green. Picture is a screen cap from some home movies from 1958 (kid in the middle wearing the Yankees cap is me).
http://photos.imageevent.com/kawika_o_ka_pakipika/family/familymoviescreencaps/Snapshot%202009-07-24%2000-32-21.jpg

[Lordstan]

Great photo David,
Looks like the BB HOF's restoration is correct, but perhaps older.

[mattjc1983]

Wow, amazing find.


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[David Atkatz]

Wow is right! That's the coolest old Yankee Stadium artifact I've ever seen!

[khkco4bls]

Remember the turnstiles were also red back then.

[ooo-ribay]

That is a fantastic piece! Was the copper dome bare copper at any point? I see it's painted in both restorations.

[frank461]

This is an amazing and historic find. can you share the story on how you were able to acquire it?

[Sophiedog]

https://images.search.yahoo.com/yhs/search;_ylt=A0LEVvuhL65XtqkAda0nnIlQ?p=old+yankee+ stadium+ticket+booth&fr=yhs-mozilla-002&fr2=piv-web&hspart=mozilla&hsimp=yhs-002#id=1&iurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.e-torch.org%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2013%2F04%2FYankee-stadium-ticket-booth.jpg&action=click

[7nohitter]

This is very cool! Would love to follow this to completion!

[icollectDCsports]

Fantastic! Congratulations. I remember seeing the one owned by the Smithsonian displayed in the National Museum of American History some years back.

[WillowGrove]

Congratulations Kevin! I'm a Mets guy here in NYC but that is just about the coolest piece of Yankee Stadium memorabilia I have ever seen.

Keep the grafiti! Minimal Restoration!

Congrats again.

[Huysmans]

Please, whatever you do... Do not restore it!
Its gorgeous with tons of character as is....
Plus, the graffiti hits pictured are some very early 70's examples when writing in New York was in it's infancy. The majority of "tags" from that era have all been eradicated aside from a few examples underground and in abandoned lines and stations. This early graffiti is so culturally important to the city's history, and should be saved by all means necessary.
Again... Amazing find!! ....please keep it as is. ☺
Just my two cents...

Brent

[ooo-ribay]

Please, whatever you do... Do not restore it!
Its gorgeous with tons of character as is....
Plus, the graffiti hits pictured are some very early 70's examples when writing in New York was in it's infancy. The majority of "tags" from that era have all been eradicated aside from a few examples underground and in abandoned lines and stations. This early graffiti is so culturally important to the city's history, and should be saved by all means necessary.
Again... Amazing find!! ....please keep it as is. ☺
Just my two cents...

Brent

Agree. "Tagging in its infancy" is very cool.

[prestigecollectibles]

Here's one from a 2014 Goldin Auction
https://goldinauctions.com/lot-11162.aspx

[Vintage Yankee]

Wow is right! That's the coolest old Yankee Stadium artifact I've ever seen!

+++++1

[Bestdj777]

Very cool piece. I love the graffit as well. If you ever get a chance, read about R@y Ne.gron and it will give you a greater appreciate for graffiti in connection with Yankee stadium.

[David Atkatz]

Here's one from a 2014 Goldin Auction
https://goldinauctions.com/lot-11162.aspxNot one of the copper-roofed originals. All the originals were replaced in the '73-'75 renovation.

[Ronnoco]

I've been doing some research on the graffiti on the booth. There is incredible coverage of Bronx early-1970s graffiti and its artists. These are just a few things I've been able to find:

1) There is graffiti from this kiosk (pic 1) which appears on the Smithsonian kiosk as well (pic 2).

2) There is graffiti on this kiosk (pic 3) which still appears on the wall of Gate 4 in early 1974 (pic 4). "Salt 168" was a Bronx graffiti artist whose work was apparently well-known in the 1970s. He was from 168th Street.

3) Three of the names that appear in one area of the kiosk belong to members of the "56 Boys", apparently big-time Bronx graffiti artists who worked as a team in the early 1970s: FDT 56, HOY 56, and TINE 56 (final name appears twice). They were all from 156th Street, hence the name. The last photo (pic 6) shows their work on a subway train from the early 1970s.

I'm still working on these. There are more that also match graffiti on other booths and the stadium itself.

I'll post more photos of the booth in case anyone's interested.

Sure glad there are folks who feel the same way about graffiti as we do about baseball.

[gregr2]

Very cool find! Looking forward to seeing this project move forward.

[Ronnoco]

Sorry I forgot the photos
---------------------------------------------
I've been doing some research on the graffiti on the booth. There is incredible coverage of Bronx early-1970s graffiti and its artists. These are just a few things I've been able to find:

1) There is graffiti from this kiosk (pic 1) which appears on the Smithsonian kiosk as well (pic 2).

2) There is graffiti on this kiosk (pic 3) which still appears on the wall of Gate 4 in early 1974 (pic 4). "Salt 168" was a Bronx graffiti artist whose work was apparently well-known in the 1970s. He was from 168th Street.

3) Three of the names that appear in one area of the kiosk belong to members of the "56 Boys", apparently big-time Bronx graffiti artists who worked as a team in the early 1970s: FDT 56, HOY 56, and TINE 56 (final name appears twice). They were all from 156th Street, hence the name. The last photo (pic 6) shows their work on a subway train from the early 1970s.

I'm still working on these. There are more that also match graffiti on other booths and the stadium itself.

I'll post more photos of the booth in case anyone's interested.

Sure glad there are folks who feel the same way about graffiti as we do about baseball

[David Atkatz]

As a Bronx boy, born and bred, let me unequivocally state that those "tags" are nothing but vandalism, plain and simple. They sure ain't "art."
There's a good chance that that kiosk stood outside the Stadium since 1923. What a shame that some think its greatest historical significance lies in some spray paint.

[Ronnoco]

As a Bronx boy, born and bred, let me unequivocally state that those "tags" are nothing but vandalism, plain and simple. They sure ain't "art."
There's a good chance that that kiosk stood outside the Stadium since 1923. What a shame that some think its greatest historical significance lies in some spray paint.

Agreed, David. The graffiti helps with provenance, but I'm certainly not applauding it.

[RTK]

As a Bronx boy, born and bred, let me unequivocally state that those "tags" are nothing but vandalism, plain and simple. They sure ain't "art."
There's a good chance that that kiosk stood outside the Stadium since 1923. What a shame that some think its greatest historical significance lies in some spray paint.

I have to agree, I'd restore it.

[william_9]

Love it or hate it, the graffiti happened and it's part of the history. As a baseball artifact, sure, it would be better without it (or any of its non-original 1923 paint). As piece of New York City, the tags go with the territory. Again, love it hate it, it fits the time and place. I don't know anything about the taggers, but the marks are not very "artistic", which is a shame in a way. I don't think we're too far away from a major art museum adding a subway car, or box truck, or some other non-traditional item/structure to their permanent collection if it had the right graffiti on it. Perhaps it has already happened, I don't know. I for one would definitely attend a curated graffiti show at the MoMA. But I can understand how others would hate it, or even the idea of it. Actually, I think it would be pretty cool if your ticket booth were somehow worked into the (hypothetical) MoMA exhibit as a visual connection between graffiti and everyday life in NYC.

If it were mine, I'd restore it structurally and leave its outward appearance as it was when it was removed. If any of those guys are well known you could potentially be scrubbing major value off the booth. Cambell's Soup is worth .69 cents unless Warhol touched it. Not sure about added graffiti on a ticket booth - and the Warhol value comparison could easily be hyperbole, but you get the idea. Unlike collected art, graffiti was largely cleaned up, painted over, and scrapped. Genuine pieces from the era are greatly outnumbered by photos and memories of graffiti.

[FourStrikes]

reminds me of: http://www.stencilrevolution.com/profiles/jean-michel-basquiat/ - and the movie http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115632/ (vastly underrated movie, IMO, by the way) featuring BOWIE, WALKEN, OLDMAN, HOPPER, DEL TORO, etc....

not even remotely implying this kiosk features JMB's stuff, but...while I disagree - particularly in the past quarter century or so with taggers / graffiti artists that trash ANY kind of shit nowadays, early / vintage graffiti has a certain "charm" to it.....

again, wouldn't touch it (the kiosk) in it it's original condition.

I'd of course have to dig it out of my archives to scan / post it, but one item that's buried within my non-sports real photo postcard collection is an image of a few ladies, ca. 1910's-20's with early (some scrawling on a wall) examples of graffiti on a wall in the background, which led me to keep it, as it's otherwise a non-spectacular image, minus the graffiti.

DS

[steve B]

Grafitti may be vandalism, but at some point it also becomes history.

When that happens I suppose depends on the viewer.

When I went to England in 86, we visited Windsor castle. While waiting for the rest of the family to be done in the gift shop I stood in a sort of alcove around the door. Saw some carved stuff, and my first reaction was " such a nice place and some * had to go carving his name into it! " Then it sunk in that most of the carvings were from the late 1400's and 1500's. So probably carved by a bored guard. Which was pretty cool.

Steve B

[Ronnoco]

If I discover something that's been sitting in a crate for 43 years, it's not enough that it really, really, really looks like an old Yankee Stadium ticket booth. It has no other ephemeral trail apart from a few offhand remarks in books and newspapers. Nobody cared about holograms and letters of authenticity at a 1973 Bronx fire sale. Paired with photographic evidence, the graffiti helps make the case for provenance. The location of the booth at the time of its removal can be identified. There is numbering on the kiosk itself, but the graffiti is corroborating evidence backed by historic images. I would have loved to find it in its 1923 condition, but this was the only flavor available.

I think it's both vandalism and history. The attached image is from the bell tower of a cathedral that I worked on a few years back. We were able to trace it to one of the workers who hung the bells in 1861. It eventually led to our ability to correctly recast a cracked bell 155 years later. Romanes eunt domus

[ooo-ribay]

If you can pull off something like this, you're an artist. You also probably got someone's permission. :D

[ooo-ribay]

P.S. Great research on the graffiti, Kevin!

[Ronnoco]

Don't recall the ticket booths ever being red. I wonder when they changed the color from the familiar drab green. Picture is a screen cap from some home movies from 1958 (kid in the middle wearing the Yankees cap is me).
http://photos.imageevent.com/kawika_o_ka_pakipika/family/familymoviescreencaps/Snapshot%202009-07-24%2000-32-21.jpg

This is amazing, David! Do you have any other footage from outside the Stadium or inside the gate?

[ruth-gehrig]

I, like many have already said, would love to see this project to completion! Hopefully completion is minimal restoration :D

[Ronnoco]

Here are some additional photos of the kiosk, which is coming together slowly. Getting a better idea of the dome and booth color changes over time.

1) Multiples of $1.50 stenciled on the interior frames of both windows, just in case some wise guy ordered nine tickets. This is my favorite stuff.

2) The booth was the far right kiosk when facing the Stadium at Gate 4. It housed windows 18 and 19. The one in Cooperstown was to the far left at the same gate, windows 8 and 9. Still trying to determine the number of the Smithsonian booth.

3) The configuration of the counters when inside the booth. The red-ended pieces were the actual ticket counters. There's math all over these too. The tops of both were reinforced with heavy steel plate.

4) An area of the dome where the paint layers have peeled off, exposing the familiar "battleship gray", the copper covering, and what looks to be two shades of green. The green may just be tarnished copper.

5) One of the two rolling, illuminated banners. These were added in 1956, some time before the World Series

[whitehse]

This is like a piece of history, long lost, coming back to life! Excellent work so far.

[Ronnoco]

This is like a piece of history, long lost, coming back to life! Excellent work so far.

Thanks, Andrew

[MGHPro]

It's awesome ! Good luck with it

[Forever Young]

Don't recall the ticket booths ever being red. I wonder when they changed the color from the familiar drab green. Picture is a screen cap from some home movies from 1958 (kid in the middle wearing the Yankees cap is me).
http://photos.imageevent.com/kawika_o_ka_pakipika/family/familymoviescreencaps/Snapshot%202009-07-24%2000-32-21.jpg

This photo rules. More please. The ticket booth is simply incredible. Wow.

[Kawika]

This is amazing, David! Do you have any other footage from outside the Stadium or inside the gate?
Sorry for slow reply. Missed your question until I saw Ben's recent post. Unfortunately no other footage outside the gates save two or three seconds of us same kids goofing around.

[Ronnoco]

Sorry for slow reply. Missed your question until I saw Ben's recent post. Unfortunately no other footage outside the gates save two or three seconds of us same kids goofing around.

Thanks, David!

[DeafSports]

amazing post and booth.

Do you have mancave waiting for the booth to join?

Best of luck!

[Ronnoco]

I wish!

amazing post and booth.

Do you have mancave waiting for the booth to join?

Best of luck!

[daves_resale_shop]

Found this pic in a Yankees book dated April 19, 1923

[Ronnoco]

I'm very happy to say that the owner of the kiosk has followed through with the planned donation. VERY HAPPY! The booth will be on its way to the New York State Museum in Albany later this month.

The museum plans to stabilize the booth, but there won't be much more in the way of restoration. The graffiti will be retained. Not sure what will be done regarding the missing ticket window grates.

Thanks to everyone who helped with photographs and research for this. You guys are incredible.

[ksfarmboy]

Was just watching the movie from 1959 called the FBI story. They go to Yankee stadium and show the ticket booths. Also inside they show a stadium vendor selling pennants and stuff. Ronnoco might want to check it out.

[whitehse]

It seems I have seen the Yankee Stadium ticket booths in a number of places myself......and it might have been that movie! Every time I see the booths I wonder what happened with this one. Somehow I missed that it was being donated! Thats awesome!!