Lola Does Manhattan
New York City
On September 19th, 2015, the Sheen Center honored Dorothy Day with discussions and a screening of my film. Among those in attendance were Dorothy’s close friends Kathleen and Patrick Jordan (one of my interviewees), and Phil Runkel (Dorothy’s archivist at Marquette University, for whom this film could not have been made).
Lola and I flew in days earlier to explore the Lower East Side - Dorothy’s stomping grounds and Chinatown in particular. Our hotel faced the Manhattan Bridge where Chrystie and Canal streets meet. When Dorothy came to Manhattan at 19 to start her journalism career, she lived beneath this magnificent bridge on Cherry Street. Her House’s of Hospitality were on the LES - the current houses: St Joseph’s and Maryhouse, are just across Houston Street and off the Bowery. Jane Sammon, Maryhouse’s loyal guardian, gave Lola an impromptu serenade.
It’s safe to say, I felt Dorothy’s vibe. I, too, was drawn in by this neighborhood’s unique appeal - it attracted her in 1917 and it is where she remained till her death in 1980.
This trip felt like a wink from Dorothy... Manhattan had once been my home and I had not been back since the film’s Tribeca Festival debut 10 years ago...
Thank you, Dorothy
