02x06 - My New York

Episode transcripts for the TV show "Ride with Norman Reedus". Aired: June 2016 to present.*
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"Ride with Norman Reedus" follows The Walking Dead star and motorcycle enthusiast where he and a guest of the week travel across a different destination on a motorcycle while exploring the city's biker culture and checking out various locales.
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02x06 - My New York

Post by bunniefuu »

Look,

Look, look,

Look, look, look.

Look, look, look. It's.

Look, look, look. It's showtime!

You ever seek, look.
That movie "Saw"? Time!

We've literally
scoured the globe

to find the strangest,
most exciting,

most exotic acts we could find
and bring 'em here for you.

This is the greatest
New York slice available.

It may be
the world's playground,

but to me,
New York City is home.

The most m*rder than
any other street in America.

And I'm back, ready to catch up
with family and friends...

That's Mingus. That's my kid.

Even if just for a minute.

How the hell did
I end up right here?

When I was a kid, my mom
took me to my first concert.

It was Laurie Anderson,
and she came out

in this big glowinthedark outfit

with a fluorescent violin

and a projection of her head
rising above her.

I'd never seen anything like it.

I mean, I was years old,

so I hadn't seen
much of anything.

But this was magical.

It opened me up
to a whole new world.

It's people like Laurie
that drew me to New York.

She's been part of this city's
avantgarde art scene

since the ' s.

When I saw her up there
in front of me,

daring and fresh and real,

I knew this is where I belong.

New York's been my home
for nearly years,

but these days, I'm away a lot.

I'm back here for a charity
event in a few days,

and before I hit the road again,
I'm gonna go out

and see the people and places

I've been missing
since I've been gone.

- Hey!
- Hey.

The hardest part
about being away

is missing my son, Mingus,

so any chance I get
to see him, I take it.

Hey, are you close?

We're meeting up here
in Washington Square Park...

Okay, bye.

A place we've been
coming to together for years.

Hey, man. How 'bout a game?

All right. What's up?
I'm Norman.

- Cornbread, man. Please.
- Nice to meet you, man.

You're second
Cornbread I've met.

You play chess with him?

No, but he gave me a tattoo.

Well, this time,
I'm gonna give you a whuppin'.

- God. All right.
- You might win.

No, I doubt it.

Do you wanna play
white or black?

I'll go black. That's cool.
All right. Boom.

This park is famous for chess.

Back in the ' s and ' s,

the world's best
players came here.

It's a tradition that's lived
on throughout the years.

And every day,
the hustlers are here,

workin' on their next move.

- Check.
- Dang.

You're killin' me right now.

- Check.
- Come on!

Dang. Wait a minute.
You're good.

Let's try one more.
Let's try one more.

All right, all right.

Remember envision to win.

Ho!

Checkmate.

- Not bad.
- Boom!

People see that?

No, ain't nobody see that.
Nobody see that.

I got my kid comin' somewhere.

I want him to play you.
When he was little,

he used to come here
in this park and play chess.

Did he ever play Cornbread?

I don't think so.
His name is Mingus.

I don't think he ever
played you before.

- I'mma b*at him then.
- There he is.

This is Mingus right here, yeah.

Hey, man. Nice to meet you.

Come on. Come on.

I'll be honest with you, man.

I never, ever got
beaten by a kid.

No. It's a lot of pressure.

I taught Mingus
when he was young.

Well, you know
how your father won?

How? He actually
envisioned the win.

I see my win.

It's coming up.

We'd come here,
play game after game.

You got it, Mingus. Get him!

And I'd watch him
b*at people in minutes,

and I'd think, "That's my kid."

- Is that mate?
- That was.

Told ya!

- Thank you.
- Bye, Cornbread.

Thanks, brother.
Take care, guys.

Cornbread.

I was tellin' him that you used
to play here when you were a kid.

- Yeah.
- Hustle the hustlers, you know.

- I still come here.
- You still play out here?

Yeah. I bring
my dog to the park,

and then I sit and play chess.

Nice!

Seeing Mingus in his element,

I'm reminded of how great it
is that he's grown up here.

So where do you take Kumo,
over here?

He's got that armor you find
in every real New Yorker.

We'll head this way.

The biggest misconception
about New York

is that New Yorkers are rude.

It may come off like
we hate everybody,

but it's because we live
in this city

and have everything at our...

At our whim.

Because of
the intense environments

that we we endure
to survive here,

we're probably gonna be
the first ones

to help you and not...

Not blink twice about it.

Like all uncool dads,

I love showin' off
my kid to my friends.

All right.
We're crossin' right here.

So we're headed
to meet Mario Batali

before Mingus heads home,

and I go on
a culinary adventure.

Boom. He's coming on his Vespa.

- Yeah. His Mario Kart, actually.
- Mario Kart?

You know, I'm really
good at Mario Kart.

I don't know if you know that.

But I'm, like,
really good at Mario Kart.

- I'm kind of amazing.
- I doubt you can b*at me.

- What?
- I doubt you can b*at me.

Are you kidding?

I hear a scooter.

Yeah.

- What's happenin'?
- Haha! How are you, brother?

Your bike looks so much
bigger than my bike.

How long have you been riding
a scooter in New York for?

- Twelve years.
- Wow.

It's so good to see you.
Good to see you.

Yeah, Mario. How are you?
Do you remember Mingus?

Well, not as tall as this.
You look fantastic.

- Good to see you again.
- How are you?

- Good.
- Everybody grows up.

- We're gettin' old.
- All right.

I love you.
I'll see you back at the house.

- All right.
- Bye!

- Have fun.
- Bye!

How you been, man?
I haven't seen you in so long.

I know. We've been close
to getting together.

- Yeah. That's true.
- And now we're back together.

It's about time.
Where are we going?

We're going
to Artichoke Basille.

It's my favorite nonmine slice.

- Really?
- Yes. Fantastic.

Mario might be a titan
of the culinary world,

but to me,
he's a friend who's always

dragging me
to his favorite spots.

We're off to indulge
in one my favorite things,

pizza for breakfast.

You're so iconic in... in this.

- Yeah.
- Everybody knows you.

They say, "I can tell it
was you by your shoes."

I'm like, "Really?"

It's the shoes
that gave me away?"

We're in the heart
of Greenwich Village,

a place that's long
been the center

of New York's
countercultural movements.

This is where the ' s happened.

It's where people question
what's going on in the world

and then try to change it.

That energy is contagious,

and I feel it every time
I go through there.

I always love this area.

See the word "pizza"? That's us.

Perfect. I'm starvin'.

Last summer,

all the hot comedians
were comin' through.

You would see Jerry Seinfeld
do a minute set

on a Friday night unannounced,

Amy Schumer, unannounced set.

- What... where is it?
- These three places, Cafe Wha?

And then around the corner
and then the one downstairs.

Wow. Very cool.

I got two large comin' out.

Five dollars, please.

- Mario.
- How are you, my brother?

- Good. How are you?
- Meet my friend, Norman.

- What's up, man?
- Nice to meet you.

We're gonna sit over here
and have a couple slices.

Absolutely, I got a nice
hot meatball pie

just came out.

- This place is awesome.
- This is, in my opinion,

the greatest New York
slice available.

You're only sayin'
that because it's true.

Exactly, exactly.

Meatball slice. All right?

Yeah, this is perfect.

Cheers.

This... this pizza's amazing.
Thank you very much.

- You guys are genius.
- Thank you.

Did you guys go to
all the comedy shows

and stuff
he was tellin' me about?

Sal likes to get up there, do
some improv work once in a while.

- I'm not that good.
- Really?

Couple of glasses
of Tito's, he loosens up.

He gets right in there.

So, Mario,
this is your hood right here?

Greenwich Village, my brother,

it's where I've always
lived in New York.

I've been here almost years.

Give me a cutter.
I made that for you.

Go all over Naples,
you won't find pizza like this.

Only in New York City.
Well, you know what it is.

You see how they got
the nice char

on those, special pans?

- That's the story.
- Yup.

So how do you get
the char on the pan?

You don't wash 'em.

- Don't wash 'em?
- They're washed.

They're just not
scraped off fine and clean.

Careful. That is hot as balls.
Hot as balls.

You're gonna have to let
those balls rest, young man.

I know we're in
the West Village,

but those balls have to rest.

Have to rest.

Can we get two more of those,
Randall, please?

What's it like running
restaurants in New York?

Do you have certain areas

where certain restaurant
types go, or...

Although we have Babbo,
Lupa and OTTO

all within fourblock range,

they're each different niches.

They're different experiences.
It's not the same menu.

OTTO used to be where they had

the Saturday Night Live
after-party.

Wow. It was called One
Fifth at that time.

And every Sunday,
Andy Warhol had brunch in there.

What?

So you could only
imagine the intermingling

and magnificence of the DNA
in my walls at that restaurant.

Dude. Did you ever
meet John Belushi?

- Yeah, of course.
- Really?

Yeah. Dude, what's
what's he like?

Well, he was a wild man
at that point.

It's hard to imagine
the less than zero,

bright lights, big city time
being beaten.

I agree. I'm with you.

It might... I was drivin'
my kid to school.

And... and his friend goes,
"Yeah, you know,".

One Direction is kind of like

"the Led Zeppelin
of our generation."

- No, please don't say that.
- And I slammed on the brakes,

and I made them walk the rest
of the way to school. Exactly.

I think New York
is still a great place, though.

Still, there's no tight pants
and bell bottoms.

And John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd
runnin' around town Right?

Doin' blow on the pizza lag.
Yeah.

Those were the days.
Those were the days.

Let me get one more bite.

Try a bite of that Sicilian.
It's cooled down enough.

- That's delicious.
- Yeah. Thanks, guys.

- Thank you. Take care.
- Thanks for comin'.

- That was awesome.
- Let's hang more.

- Dude, let's have a weekend.
- Let's have a silly dinner.

Let's have one of our old weekends
together. Yes, yes, exactly.

I love the stories
that live in these walls.

No matter how long I'm here,

there's always more to discover.

Yeah, baby.

Norman Reedus, any last words?

It's fun to squeeze
and play with.

Let's go poke a bear.

Please welcome Susan Sarandon
and Norman Reedus!

["Big.

["Big Bad.

["Big Bad Travelin'

["Big Bad Travelin' Man".

These days when people think
Brooklyn, they think hipsters.

But not too long ago,
it was all warehouses

and hard edges,
and there are still pockets

where you can see
the past peeking through.

Those are the best places
for a bike shop.

So I'm on my way
to Vax Moto in Gowanus.

What's up, man? How's it goin'?

Are you Dustin? Hey.
Norman. Nice to see you, man.

- All is well?
- Everything's good.

Yeah. A little nippy.
But it's good.

This place is awesome.
Yeah. Thank you.

You've got a ton of bikes in here.
Ton of bikes.

There's about plus bikes
in here right now.

Do you work on
people's bikes here,

or let them work on their own?

We do. It's a hour kind

of communitybased garage.

Well, how'd you get into this?

I... I grew up with motorcycles
out on Long Island.

And, like
the best things in life,

you know, they're not
kind of planned.

They just sort of happen.
Yeah, yeah.

And here we are.

Which one's yours?

Mine are scattered
throughout the entire place.

Somebody donated this to me,
' Beamer.

- This is my shovel.
- What's Vax?

My two sons, Van and Jax.

- Cool.
- Yeah.

It's very important
for these guys

to feel like they're
kind of part of it.

I bartended for
a very long time,

and every time, you would
walk through the door,

I would know your name,
so I try to do that here.

- It's great.
- That's how it should be.

I might store somethin' here
sometime if that's cool. Sure.

Yeah, sure.

Wanna eat?

Yeah!

Hi. Nice to meet you.

How did you guys meet?

Everything's sort of
bikerelated. Mutual friend.

I have a pretty substantial
background in food, Yeah.

And it just sort of developed
into a food cart.

- We're married now.
- Bosom buddies, right?

Ebony and Ivory.
Right. I love it.

- Exactly.
- I bet this place is, like,

poppin' in the summer.
There must be people...

This will be the first summer, you know.
Really? Right on.

So, look into the camera
and tell everyone to come here.

This place will be popping
in the summer. Come here.

What a cool spot this is.
It is, you know.

It's a weird thing
taking something

that you're passionate about
and turning it into

a working scenario, you know.

Good for you, man. Right on.

Thanks. Bikes, simple.

Bikes and tacos, dude.

Damn! This is awesome.

Nice. Glad you like it. Yeah.

Do you spend a lot
of time in New York?

Yeah, man. I have
a place in Chinatown.

Nice. We have a ' Airstream

that we keep up in Rhinebeck.

- Right on.
- So this world alone

is a little bit
overwhelming sometimes.

Even the smallest little sliver

of something
with trees and grass,

it makes a huge difference.

Well, we should go
for a ride and...

And work it off somewhere. Yeah?

This couldn't be a better day.

Yeah.

Justin and I are riding
the Belt Parkway

to the end of Brooklyn,
Coney Island.

It's not exactly
trees and grass,

but it's a place
with cool ocean air

and a touch of the bizarre.

I don't get to do
this very often.

It's amazing, you know,
when you live somewhere,

like, when's the last time

you were on
the Empire State Building?

First time I ever
did it was last year.

When was the last time
you were out here?

Ten years ago or somethin'.

It's definitely changed
a little bit.

Coney Island was once

the country's biggest
amusement park,

beach, rides, boardwalk.

New York's off to good old fun,

anything to b*at the heat.

It was a wonderful world
only a short ride away.

It's gone through
its up and downs,

but seeing the rides
come into view,

I can't help
but feel transported.

The Cyclone's violent.

It's a lot of bumps and bruises.

Yeah. I love it.

Wow. It's a ghost town.

They are trying down here. Yeah.

They've retained a lot
of what it was

and freshened up what needed
to not be here anymore.

What is this orange thing?

That used to be, like,
a parachute ride.

I love this... the smiley face
right here. It's awesome.

This is the greatest
branding in the world.

- It's so psycho.
- It's got to be terrifying

for a little small kid
though, no?

Right?

Should we get our photos
made on a tshirt?

- Absolutely.
- Right.

What's the border?
Any one you like.

"Homies forever."

Homies forever.

Let's do homies forever.
Yeah. Here, I got it.

I'm just gonna sit in your lap.

And then just hold me around
the waist like...

Really? Good lord.

Perfect.

That's awesome.

Thanks, guys.

These are awesome right here.

Let's take a look.

Wow.

Look, look, look!
It's showtime, Coney Island!

Join us on the inside
of the worldfamous.

Coney Island circus sideshow.

We literally scoured the globe
to find the strangest,

most exciting,
most exotic acts we can find

and bring 'em here for you.

And it's right
inside these doors.

My God, dude. Shut up.

Wow. Thank you, thank you.

Now, a lot of people
think sword swallowing is fake,

but if you look closely,
you can see what we in the biz

like to call stomach boogers.
That's the bile.

Now, Norman, come on up here.

I'm gonna bend forward to you.
I'm gonna give you a signal.

You grab the handle of the saw

and just pull it
straight out of my body.

What?

All right, Norman.
Are you ready?

Yeah.

- Dude.
- There you have it.

That's for the home video.

You know what was nuts is I
could feel the guhguhguhguhguh.

You can feel the ridges kind of
in the sides of my throat. Yeah.

- Dude, that's crazy.
- Now, since you're up here,

the Coney Island t*rture chair.

We are the last fulltime

inone sideshow in the world.

You're gonna have ,
or so volts of electricity

coursing through your system.

The thing I really love about it

is everything
in the sideshow is real.

Unlike magic,
there is no illusion.

Norman Reedus, any last words?

Someone take care of my cat.

Before, a lot of people
wouldn't come to the freak show.

There was this stigma
that it was gonna be creepy.

But no. These people
are talented.

A one, a two, and a...

Whoa.

- That was awesome.
- Very nice.

That was so cool.
Does that burn your tongue?

If you do it wrong.

How did you get into all this?

After high school,
I got into magic,

and then I just
segued into sideshow.

But when I came out here, I met
a different type of individual

than I had ever met before,

naturalborn freaks
as they're referred to,

like, you know, the Lobster Boys
and that sort of thing. Wow.

It just changes the way you look
at humanity in general, I think.

Nice. Who does the artwork
up here? It's really cool.

They're all painted
by our artist in residence,

Marie Roberts.

Marie, are you home?
I'm home. Hi, Ray.

- Hi.
- Norman.

- Nice to meet you.
- Nice to meet you.

You let me if they give you
any trouble, okay?

I know. You have machetes.

- They've seen what I can do.
- Pleasure.

Thank you so much.
Take care, man.

Wow. What a cool studio
you have.

- Thank you.
- How did you get into this?

- I ran away from the sideshow.
- Really?

My Uncle Lester was the talker

at the Dreamland Circus Sideshow
in the s.

So I grew up thinking people

without arms
and legs were normal.

And when I heard
that painting was a career,

I thought, "Wow,
let's can the freak show"

and go become an artist."

And then, years ago,
I met d*ck Zigun,

who started Coney Island,

and I brought down
all my Uncle Lester's

sideshow pictures
and memorabilia.

They're photos
of all the freak show,

The Dreamland Freak Show,

eating at Stauch's Restaurant.

And d*ck said,

"It's nice to see that
Lionel the Lionfaced Man

can put on a paper hat
and have fun like anybody else."

And I thought,
"Wow, this organization

is a little bit different,"

except I think this is all normal.
Yeah.

And what's out there isn't.

Does that make sense?
Absolutely.

I always think I can't
be amazed any more.

- Thank you so much for coming up.
- Absolutely.

And then I see places
like these,

and I'm reminded of a magic

that's waiting
behind each new door.

Sideshows have allowed
audiences to confront

and embrace some
of society's taboos.

Dude, thank you. What a cool guy, dude. Really
appreciate it. It was great to meet you.

And for me, any art
that can entertain

and open minds,

well, that's what
it's all about.

New York City! Yeah!

The sun's setting on a long day.

Home wouldn't be home
without old friends,

and I'm looking forward
to catching up

with some tomorrow.

Doyers Street is,
in the history books,

the street that has
the most m*rder

on it in America.

[Thunder.

For hundreds of years,

New Yorkers have faced
their challenges headon

and persevered.

You got to have muscle
in your hustle

to really make it in New York,

or it will spit you out.

It will stomp you out.

The city is constantly
throwing challenges at people,

and if you are resourceful,

you... you'll be able
to survive it.

It kicks you in the nuts,

and it gets you down
or just evolve from that.

Stay alive and don't
leave New York City, you know.

That's it.

Good morning.

I'm heading to one
of my favorite spots

in Little Italy,

a neighborhood
in the center of it all

that's never lost
its Old World charm.

Hey, good morning. Good morning.

This is my favorite coffee shop
in all of New York.

It's got such a good ambiance,
the old tin ceilings.

My grandfather started
the, place,

been a pastry shop since .

- Wow.
- Over the years,

we've added a few things like
WiFi and stuff like that.

But, the back bar
is the original back bar

from when the bar was here before
the building was built. Wow.

We must be doin' something right
if we're out here that long.

Buddy, you're k*lling it.

Yeah, Tony!

How are you, dude?

Nice to see you.

My dear friend, Tony Shafrazi,

he's a gallery owner, art dealer
and a longtime New Yorker.

Have you been here before?

Yeah, before you were born.

Really?

I've known him for years,

and seeing him always makes me
feel like I'm back home.

Well, I remember you and Saul,
like, on Green Street.

You were, like, about...
How old were you?

You were about years old,
goodlooking guy and...

was a goodlooking guy?

Remember Michael Stipe
had that glam party,

and I put on a...
A seethrough slip,

and I was at the party,
like, in a dress.

And then I had to go sh**t
the cover of Vanity Fair

- the next morning.
- Right.

And I literally ran
into the door

in a dress, like, hung over.

The Shafrazi Gallery,

was that your one and only
gallery, The Shafrazi Gallery?

No, no. I had an apartment

on Lexington Ave
and th Street,

and I decided,
"I'll turn this into a gallery."

Wow. It was a great
thing at that time.

- Now, you got me going.
- Keep goin'.

- I love these stories.
- The thing about New York City,

which is we go through periods
of societal changes

and time warps and generations

of boys and girls
from all around.

They get together with music

and culture,
whatever's goin' on.

They're inspired
to something starts,

you know, jumpstart,
like seeing you

when you're and like that.

Keith Haring, by the way,
came at that time.

And then, because of that,
JeanMichel Basquiat,

- everybody came.
- Wow. Wow.

It's crazy how much
everybody tries

to relive those days.

I mean, like,
we had a little gallery

called Collective Hardware
down there.

You know Ronnie Cutrone?

Pfft. Do I know Ronnie Cutrone?

Ronnie used to paint
up in there. Yeah.

He was best friends
with Lou Reed.

That's one of my favorite things
about New York is,

like, II can meet
people like you

and Ronnie Cutrone
and all these...

And look you at you, man.

All these awesome
mother. It's great.

Reminiscing with Tony,
it reminds me of how this city

has cultivated groundbreaking
creative minds.

Yeah.

- You're getting wet on this now.
- I don't care.

This is one of those
plastic jackets.

I can get it wet.

Tony introduced me
to that world.

He helped me find my place here.

- New York City.
- Yeah, man. I love Chinatown.

It's, like,
one of my favorite areas.

I love you, Tony.
Thank you, man.

I wanna go there to have
a drink with you, okay?

- All right. For sure.
- Bye.

- I'll talk to you.
- God bless.

What's up? How's it goin'? Hey!

This is my friend right here
who does all this graffiti.

Just a few blocks south
of Little Italy in Chinatown

is Nom Wha Tea Parlor.

It's a neighborhood staple

with some of the best dim
sum around...

and where I'm popping in
for a quick bite.

- Hey, Norm!
- How's it goin', man?


- What's up, man?
- How are you? Good to see you.

- Welcome.
- This is a popular spot.

Here. Let's warm you up a little
bit with some tea. Yes, please.

Just pour it in my pants.

How long have you
had this place?

It's been in my family
for over years.

Um, my Uncle Wally
started as a dishwasher

and just worked his way up
into owning the place.

- Where were you born and raised?
- I was born in New York.

You know, I grew up
in Chinatown.

- I live around the corner.
- You do, really?

Yeah. I have a son who is
and goes to school here.

- Really?
- You have kids?

- Yeah, two kids.
- How old are they?

- Five and .
- Nice.

You got to start applying
for high school now.

You got to apply
for a school, like,

as you're having
sex in the city.

I love all this. This
is like... Yeah.

It has such a home
feel to it, as well.

I was really lucky
that when, um,

I inherited the place, like,
all this stuff was intact.

You know, this... this artisanal
familyrun business

is slowly dying off.

- Chicken pot pie dumplings.
- Wow. This looks delicious.

- Steamed pork bun. Enjoy.
- Wow. Thank you.

Man, those egg rolls
are gigantic.

Yeah. cr*ck it up in the middle.

My god. This is awesome.

It's really light.

This is our steamed pork bun.

Here. Take half of it.

Yeah. It's fun to squeeze
and play with.

Yeah.

Yeah.

You must know everybody
within a block radius.

I know everyone on this block.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Doyers Street is,
in the history books,

the street that has
the most m*rder on it

than any other street
in America.

No way.

So back in the late s

when the Chinese first
settled here,

there were a lot of rival gangs.

And just how the street is,

like, it's kinda, like, curved.

Yeah. One would come
up one corner like...

see another g*ng would come down
the street from the other end.

And when they met, they would
throw hatchets at each other.

Wow.

And then there was
a series of tunnels

all along Doyers Street.

They would use those
as escape routes.

Really?

New York
is such a special place,

and I feel like it's my duty
for a place like this

to kind of keep it like this
as long as I can.

Dude, thank you
for having me, man.

- Yeah, it's my pleasure.
- This place is awesome.

Thanks for coming in.
Appreciate it, yeah.

- Yeah, you're cool. You're cool.
- Well, thank you.

It's oldschool,
familyrun places like these...

that make this city so dynamic,

a delicious reminder
that New York

is the ultimate melting pot.

Bye. Thank you so much.

I can't believe I was sitting

in New York City traffic
this morning.

Yeah!

We.

We could.

We could lay.

We could lay you.

We could lay you on.

We could lay you on a.

We could lay you on a bed.

We could lay you on a bed of.

Yeah. This is real.

- Let's try it.
- Let's do it.

How the hell did
I end up right here?

Yeah. All right. Like this?

Very slowly lower yourself
onto the bed.

This is nice, actually.

It's not so bad, is it, Norman?

This feels pretty good.

Now, if you're into it,

while you lay on
the bed of nails,

I could take a cinder block,

place it on your chest,

and then I will
smash that cinder block

to bits with
a pound sledgehammer.

Let's do the electric chair.

The SoHo neighborhood
of Manhattan

was once the epicenter
of the art world...

Haring, Basquiat,
and so many others.

It was the kind of community
I dreamed of.

There was like artists, musicians,
skateboarders, graffiti writers,

that was the dream, you know,
and it was all here.

I felt honestly like this city
is our playground.

We see a scaffolding,
and we do pullups.

We see a hill. We sprint it.

Like, certain things you look at
with that explorer mentality,

that's where the
creative comes from.

In the ' s,
SoHo is where I came

and where I met a ton

of incredible artists
like Sante D'Orazio.

- Hello!
- What's up, man?

How are you, dude?
Good to see ya.

I haven't been here in forever.

Sante's a photographer
and a painter

who made a name for himself

in the ' s
and ' s fashion era.

I'm stopping by for a glimpse

at some new pieces
he's been working on.

Come look at my last paintings.

Yes, please.

These are covers.

These are great.
"Fiery Doom to Death."

This paint I used,
it's very toxic.

But look at...
Look at what it does.

- You know?
- This... I'm blown away by that.

- That's amazing.
- Yeah. Yeah.

We've been all over today.
I was with Tony Shafrazi.

All his stories
are just mesmerizing.

Tony's famous story

is about Picasso's big
painting, "Guernica." Wow.

"Guernica" was at
the Museum of Modern Art.

Tony wanted to write
something against the w*r.

And so he went in there
with spray paint

and spraypainted the "Guernica."

He spraypainted on the painting?

- On the painting, man.
- My God!

Yeah. He wasn't allowed.

I don't know
if he's still allowed

in the Museum of Modern Art.

Remember Tony?

Yeah, that Tony.

When I did my first big jobs
for Italian Vogue,

the photographer was always
thought of as the auteur.

- Right.
- It was pages.

I handed in pictures... Wow.

Which was totally unheard
of years later.

Yeah. It's the same with films.

I mean, when I started
doing movies,

producers were there
to give the directors

- whatever they needed.
- Right.

And then it turned
slightly different.

It didn't seem
like the directors

had all the power anymore,
and it wasn't their vision.

It was a series of nos... Right.

Until you ended up
with the product,

- you know...
- Right. Right.

Which is crazy to me. Yeah.

Norman, I just remember us sitting
on the curb one day, Yeah.

Both of us feeling
really down and out.

And the thing that I love

is that your success
makes me really happy.

- Aw. Cheers to that.
- Cheers.

Sante was around
when I first got here,

and he's been a friend
of mine ever since.

And hanging out,
laughing at the early days,

there's nothin' like it.

It's true this city
never sleeps.

- You tell 'em.
- You tell 'em.

Go, go, go, go, go,
go, go, go, go, go, go.

But that means that
every hour is rush hour.

- Want to get in front of me?
- d*ck.

Comin' through. Sorry.

Puppies.

All this traffic's got me
missing country roads.

I've got a charity event later,

but I'm making the most out
of my last day of freedom

and meeting up
with a group of friends

that's all about getting a quick
taste of the open road.

- What's up? Hi.
- Hi.

Norman. Nice to meet you.
What's up, everybody? Hi.

- Hey. Chris.
- Nice to meet you, Chris.

- Hey, man. How you doin'? David.
- What's up, dude?

I heard you guys
do a ride every week,

poke the bear
or something like that.

We do, yeah. We get up to
Bear Mountain, get out of town.

So you guys just go up there
and poke the bear

and turn around
and come right back?

Well, it's just an excuse
to get out of town.

Everybody goes their own way.

Some people go back
into the park.

Some people go,
like, to the diner.

Some people come right home.
Very cool. Yeah. Yeah.

Did you guys
know each other before this?

Yeah. Everyone kind
of knows each other

through motorcycles, I guess.

When I started riding, I never,
ever saw any girls riding,

so I saw her riding.
I was like, "Hey stop."

Like, "I ride, too.
Like, be my friend."

And, like, same with her.
I was like, "Hi," like...

There's like a gazillion badass
girls that ride together now.

Like, I've met so many.

So cool. Can I ride
with guys on this thing?

- Yeah, let's go.
- Yeah, sure. -Is that cool?

Let's go poke
a bear or whatever.

There's a lot of
potholes you can get air from.

- It's pretty awesome.
- Yup.

- Not a bad view.
- Yeah, right?

Sitting just north of the city

are epic river views
and the Hudson Highlands,

mountains that stretch along
the Hudson River.

And one of the bestknown
peaks is Bear Mountain.

It's funny how quick you can
get out into the sticks. Yeah.

The Palisades
is my favorite road

to ride in New York City.

Yeah, this is beautiful up here.

It's really nice to have
the urban environment,

but to get on the highway

and just bang through
some of those S curves,

the sun shining on your back,

there's... there's no other...

There's no other
feeling like it.

I can't believe I was sitting

in New York City traffic
this morning.

- I know.
- And now I'm here.

Yeah!

This area is the location

of one of music's
many mysteries.

Back in the ' s

as Bob Dylan
reached a new level of fame,

he crashed his motorcycle
while riding around here.

Afterwards, he disappeared
from public life

to recover, or did he?

There's no record of that crash,

and rumors have swirled that it
never even happened,

that it was a way for Dylan
to get out of the spotlight

and take a breath.

Listen, whatever did
or didn't happen,

I understand the desire
to get away sometimes,

and this area is
the perfect place to do it,

even if just for a few hours.

There's snow still up here.

All these creeks and stuff
are so pretty here.

I think I've finally
found a weekend antidote

to the packed
streets of the city.

Would you like to play a game?

Whoa! Hot!

Norman,

Norman, this

Norman, this has

Norman, this has been

Norman, this has been so

Norman, this has been so much

Norman, this has been
so much fun.

It's a pleasure. This has been
Nice to meet you. Fun.

Riding up here is just
what I needed to clear my head.

Thanks, guys. Bye.

Yo, ride safe.

But there's a hot sauna
waiting for me in the city,

so I'm turning around
and going back the way I came.

I like coming back to New York
from being somewhere else.

Um, it's kind of
my favorite journey.

When you leave
and you're not surrounded

by all that energy,
you kind of have withdrawals,

so when you get back to the
city, you're sort of relieved.

It's time for some
OldWorld rejuvenation...

- What's up, buddy?
- What's up, homie?

All in the comfort
of the East Village,

at the Russian & Turkish Baths.

Let's do this.

How are you guys?
Nice to see you.

- Nice to see you.
- Put your valuables here.

This may take a little while.

If anyone knows the gems
hiding in plain sight,

it's my friend, Nur.

When are you gonna open
a jewelry store here?

He's the guy behind some
of the city's best nightclubs

like Wax, Sway, and Rose Bar.

How long has this
place been here?

- More than years.
- Wow.

And this is truly part
of New York's sordid history.

- We're going old school here.
- Yeah, right?

Housed in a former tenement,

rumor has it that these baths

were once a hangout
for gangsters.

This place is awesome.

You've never been in
Russian place, right?

No. I've been to Russia,

but I've never been here.
You're gonna enjoy it.

We have a lot of celebrities
here, as well.

- Yeah?
- Colin Farrell, Jennifer Lopez,

Uma Thurman...

- Danny DeVito.
- Danny DeVito.

Give me the Uma ThurThurman.

She was strong, actually.

Was she?
Then I'll do the DeVito.

- Let's go.
- All right.

You guys gave me two
right shoes, by the way.

This is his Russian room.
The hottest room is here.

I like this one.

This is like
the surface of the sun.

This is the cold pool.

It's not actually just cold.
It's freezing. It's degrees.

You're crazy.
I'm never going in that.

It is. You try. You'll see.

Now, this is fresh oak leaves.

Wow. Fresh oaken.

And this is oliveoil soap.

All right, guys. Are you ready?

In here?

You ever see that movie "Saw"?

It kind of has
that vibe in there.

Would you like to play a game?

You guys play, like,

relaxing mountain music
or anything?

And lay down. Are you okay?

I think so.

Whoa! Hot!

I feel like that one sock
that gets lost

in the washing machine.

Now you go straight
into the pool.

No, no, no, no, no, no.

Listen. Quick.
In and out, just like that.

- In and out.
- Come on.

Let's go.

Whoa! Whoahoho!

Your turn.

All the way down, in and out.

You got a little...
A little smudge.

- Thank you so much, guys.
- Thank you.

- It was awesome.
- My pleasure. -So much.

- That happened.
- That was good.

I feel like... a new man. Right?

You've been one
of my best friends

for as long as I can remember.

years, I think.
You're the next big thing.

Ridiculous. Right, right.

You've had several
different nightclubs.

When we first met,
it was Wax and Sway.

That's when we were hangin'.

- Yeah.
- The generation right now,

if they saw the that we did,

they'd have a heart att*ck.

- They'd freak out.
- Yeah. %.

Is it like an emotional
roller coaster,

or do you, like, do you,
like, have days

where you're like...
No, you know what?

I've done martial arts
all my life, a lot of jiujitsu.

- Really?
- It's like that's my meditation,

like, what keeps me sane,
especially in my job.

Wow, dude. Wow.
Dude, I love you.

I got to go do
a Madison Square Garden thing.

- Do it.
- Thank you for doin' this.

- Love you.
- Yeah, brother. Cheers.

Growing up, the only New York
I knew was from the movies...

"Midnight Cowboy,"
"Taxi Driver."

The city was a mythical place.

That New York was dark
and punishing

with bumps and bruises,

but it was also
beautiful and poetic.

And when I got here, it was
everything I dreamt about.

I've lived in a lot
of different places,

but I always love coming
back here, for sure.

New York has a way
of making you feel anonymous,

and it's important for me
to go incognito for a few days.

But soon, reality pokes
through...

Let's party.

Gets me back in fancy clothes

and in front of some lights.

Please welcome Susan Sarandon
and, yes, wait for it,

Norman Reedus!

All of this can get
a little chaotic,

but it's part of being able
to do what I love...

Thank you.

Just being on my bike
with life happening around me.

This city with all its good
and its bad helps shape me,

and now I get to watch
it shape Mingus.

It's part of our family.

And like all
the best relationships,

it doesn't sugarcoat anything.

And every day when I wake up
and I look around,

that's what I remember,

and that's why
I'm never gonna leave.
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