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The Story of Mike The Butcher
By
Garth Johnston
Published Aug 13, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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By
Garth Johnston
Published Aug 13, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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After we included a throwaway link in yesterday's post about the once-a-week Egg Store we got an e-mail from a reader asking who exactly this Mike the Butcher was. A reasonable question, so in the same spirit of remembering Manhattan characters who've faded away we thought we'd share. Short answer: He was a butcher who used to have a shop on Third Street (right). Longer answer: He was "an artist" with "fingers as large as the sausages he stuffed on the spot." Mike the Butcher was a man who "cut oxtails like butter" and who was the "stuff that New York legends are made of" - here he is in 1985. In other words, he was our local neighborhood butcher, and we miss him.
In 2004 Mike the Butcher passed on and his estate sued a lawyer who had done pro bono work for him for the value of an uncashed check for $900+ bucks. Strangely that lawsuit managed to go to "The People's Court" of all places. Even stranger, the lawyer turnned it into an excuse to tell stories about Mike the Butcher and old neighborhood. Though we are biased [ED. full disclosure: The lawyer in question is Garth's father Neal Johnston, currently defending blognyc pro bono from Stephanie Adams] we think its actually a pretty interesting segment and a good story. And really, when was the last time you heard the word 'temerity' used on syndicated television?
If you're curious the rest of the case is here: Introduction, Prosecution and Verdict.
Tagged
court
history
lawsuit
manhattan
new york
people
stephanie adams
television
The People
Third Street
Garth Johnston
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