Film
David Kramer Presents Jimi Hendrix – The Documentary/ The Review
by John Muller ( Blue Notes and Conversations)
“There’s so much misinformation out there in movies, documentaries and the internet, it’s as if there’s a deliberate campaign of disinformation to mislead in an attempt to rewrite history” says David Kramer. “The Hendrix-story has taken on urban myth-like proportions – stories abound that many people believe to be true but largely are not.”
I had the good fortune of seeing Emmy-Award winner David Kramer’s truly remarkable “Jimi Hendrix – The Documentary” at the Nyack International Film Festival. Hard for me to believe that the sensational 2-hour film that we were able to view is part of a much larger, even more extensive 12-plus hour, multi-part series covering the life and times of Jimi Hendrix. This is unauthorized, and that point was made by David at the screening on Saturday night, the Hendrix Estate legally trying to suppress the entire series, so far, thankfully unsuccessfully. It is a truly incredible slice of history, an amazing look into the life of Jimi Hendrix, without the hype and the canonization, without the beatification, leaving the legend behind so we get a deeper and closer look at the man himself. No bullshit – just the truth from those who knew him, performed with him, and were close to him.
Kramer has spent the last 30 years, with a small team, pulling together, unearthing, discovering hours of unseen Jimi Hendrix footage, well over 400 on-camera interviews, music clips and celebrating Jimi Hendrix – his joy, his humor, the tragedy, the mystery and all that surrounded Jim’s life and music.
I was fascinated by the segments presented on the screen, details many of which were unknown to me, a Jimi fan for decades. From the days when the Isley brothers auditioned an up and coming guitar player in the early 1960’s he already had quite a reputation for his unorthodox style of guitar work – left handed and upside down – onto the times Jimi spent living with the Isley Family in Teaneck, New Jersey; his performance at the Paterson Armory that had fellow musicians thunderstruck and amazed and the fans crazed with delight; his early days performing, including a date with the Isley’s in West Nyack, New York at a battle-of-the-bands held outside on a flatbed truck. Those acid-dripping and alcohol-fueled performances at the legendary nightclub: The Scene, located in the basement of 301 West 46th Street where bands like The Animals, the Who, Young Rascals, Fleetwood Mac, Jeff Beck, Traffic, Muddy Waters, The Lovin’ Spoonful, and Led Zeppelin, all performed nightly where jam sessions always followed. Jimi regularly jamming into the wee hours of the morning with folks like Janis Joplin, Stephen Stills, Jim Morrison. On one particularly wild night Morrison was deep into drugs and alcohol, his performance with Jimi incoherent as Morrison screamed into the mic, going so far as to try to sexually seduce Jimi on stage with bouncers dragging him out of the club, as Morrison continuing to howl like a banshee on the mic as he was dragged outside.
Hendrix jamming with anyone, Johhny Winter among so many others mentioned in the film, and everyone who was lucky enough to make it inside the cramped and packed basement club on any given night of the week. Seemed like everyone wanted to outperform Jimi up on that dimly lit stage – and both the interview with, and video of Larry Coryell and Hendrix really illuminates the rivalry that many felt. The interviews with musicians who were there, those who performed with Hendrix, managers, friends and musicians, give a real keen insight into the real-life Jimi Hendrix, tossing aside the myths and the halo. He was a quiet, unassuming guy, who loved to perform, thrilled to play his guitar and have fun on that small basement stage, drinking his red wine, blending into the crazy scene of hangers-ons, groupies, friends, musicians, managers, cultural icons and lovers.
Sitting there watching the documentary I was transfixed by the interviews, by the footage and details from the “Isle of Wight” concert, the mysterious gentlemen who surrounded Jimi just before he was found dead in London, the reminiscences that were carefully compiled, interviews that came straight from the heart from so many who knew Jimi, performed with him, hung out with him, slept with him, and deeply cared about him – and many who were very worried about so many strange events that were part of Jimi’s life towards the end of his life. The details about “The Monkees Party ” where Jimi was rescued by John Sebastian, a good friend, the infamous opening night party held at Electric Lady Studios where Japanese food was served spiked with acid unbeknownst to many, an event few remember, but those who do, say it was quite a trip!
As I sat there watching the film I could hear yells and cheers, cries from the audience as folks like Ginger Baker, Todd Rundgren, Jorma Kaukonen and Stephen Stills, to name but a few and many regional musicians from the New York area who were interviewed known to the audience as some were in attendance on Saturday night.
David Kramer Presents: Jimi Hendrix-The Documentary is a fascinating film, a project filled with enormous amounts of love and respect, dedication and perseverance. We get to see another side of Hendrix, stripping away the facade, hacking apart the legend, breaking down the walls of historical inaccuracies and legendary misinformation.
Jimi was a performer, a musician with other-worldly talent, who enjoyed playing the guitar, hanging out with friends, loved his women and up to a certain point in his life, was really enjoying himself as a regular person. We are welcomed into a world of intrigue, mistrust, free love, psychedelic-drug fueled jam sessions, explosive stage performances, explosive tirades, mafia influences, complete meltdowns, unbelievable guitar pyrotechnics and electrifying stage theatrics from a guy named James Marshal “Jimi” Hendrix.
A must-see for music fans worldwide. Seek this movie out immediately! I was captivated, mesmerized, and thoroughly entranced by the 2-hours that passed by as magically as the notes from “Purple Haze.” Outstanding achievement!
Rock guitarist, singer, composer, bandleader Jimi was gone by September 18, 1970 at the young age of 27. He certainly lived a remarkable life. Thanks so much David Kramer for giving us a chance to know Jimi a little bit better as a person, as a gifted and somewhat troubled human being, seeing him warts and all for the first time, a journey that was certainly worth the wait. What a trip!
G.H. Harding
KIMMEL IN BROOKLYN — After a wildly, odd interview with Howard Stern this week, where he put down both ABC and Disney, he looked terribly fatigued.
I’ve been a fierce advocate for Stern for years, but I did detect just a touch of wanting to take-a-step-back.
He conquered radio and now I expect him to do the same with HBO/MAX.
Interesting for sure.
Ray Caviano
CAVIANO PASSES — You might not recognize the name Ray Caviano, but he passed this week. Ray had the distinction of being one of the youngest-ever record company presidents in the music business and really unparalleled success back in the 80s. He was the one constant voice behind the disco-explosion back then. The Village People; Br. Buzzard’s Original Savannah Band; Voyage; and Peter Brown … all his.
Ray negotiated this success into a tremendous deal with Warner Brothers commanding a staggering $6 million dollars a year and his own label and staff. His PR-team at the time, which included veteran-PR-meister Howard Bloom, termed him the six-million-dollar man, and it was a great rags-to-riches story. From Madeline Kahn, to George Benson, the B52s, Grace Jones, The Doobie Brothers, Prince to Chaka Kahn, Rod Stewart and Ashford and Simpson, Caviano just scored a staggering degree of success.
From what I remember, all the other-labels modeled what they did after Ray and his christened label, RFC Records; which introduced Venus Dodson; Gino Soccio; The Mighty Pope; and Change, which featured Luther Vandross. He hit the top, no question, but then personal problems got in the way and he was essentially blacklisted.
I never met him, but constantly hear some of his successes and they were indeed cataclysmic as his music lives today. RIP.
SHORT TAKES — Edna Gudnersen, from USA Today fame, wrote a terrific article for AARP on who should be in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. No big surprises, but once again she’s hit the nail right on the head. One interesting post simply said: the voters can change it. Take a read: https://www.aarp.org/entertainment/music/rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-snubs/?fbclid=IwY2xjawUrIH1leHRuA2FlbQIxMABwZG9mBWJyaWQRMU9mVTJENHlUU21yQm8wbHdzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeCMUfSZdob2E0b7OqMN0tqZbMXfnFz1ib0PrxztT-BeCdBi54rZKmIAL-s50_aem_-r3LegoVNsCszZW3QsX1hQ …
Slow Horses
Wednesday night meant a new Slow Horses and Ted Lasso on Apple+. Surprise. Both shows have been staggeringly lackluster this season so far. U.K.’s The Guardian even termed Horses whiny! The fellow who created Horses, Will Smith, left and it’s become still good, but terribly ordinary and a lot less of Gary Oldman. Sad …
This week the long-expected merger between Paramount and Warner Brothers took place and guess who was installed as boss? The CEO of Mattel. People in Hollywood are sending are their resumes right now …
Ringo Starr
Still more buzz on that Far Out/Todd Rundgren interview. In a further missive, after dissing Taylor Swift, Rundgren now claims that Ringo best-survived The Beatles. Fascinating. Take a read: https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/todd-rundgren-ringo-starr-only-one-survived-beatles/?fbclid=IwY2xjawUqT4hleHRuA2FlbQIxMABwZG9mBWJyaWQRMWlGYWlyRW14Z24wNHIwUEJzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeH9wqOi0plYRGr801XxzuKtasXnT8D_3b9Dfn_FPCaUOrH88qlWOw_CkfdCA_aem_Hap2wxG63VvIwa5wC0KzGw … And, Chuck Darrow had a great piece on Micky Dolenz for his weekend show at The Borgata in AC. Take a read: https://shorelocalnews.com/when-being-an-architect-was-micky-dolenzs-career-blueprint/
NAMES IN THE NEWS — Anthony Pomes; Fred Goodman; Allen Klein; Paul Bartels; JIm Yukich; Tracy Lords; Bryce Grakal; Ken Sharp; Chuck Darrow; Melissa Davis; Magda Katz; Cori Gardner; Donnie Kehr; Bill McCuddy; Deb Caponetta; Jeff Vogel; Steve Leeds; Ed Steinberg; John Sykes; Tom & Lisa Cuddy; and SADIE!
Images on this page have been licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
The vista that opens “A Long Winter” is sublime, deep, and rugged as Mikey walks toward the top of the mountain, carrying a weight in his gaze that we can somehow see from far away. The enormity of the environment and the heaviness that hangs in the air are evident and almost overpowering. We feel his isolation, but maybe we don’t understand his connection to the terrain that surrounds him. It might be a big city boy projection, but soon after, the family sits down for one of the quietest dinners imaginable. It’s a tight, wounded moment that registers layers upon layers of what this family is coping with. But there is something there that stays hidden for a long while after.
Fred Hechinger and Ebon Moss-Bachrach in Andrew Haigh’s “A Long Winter“.
As the two brothers engage before turning out the light in their bedroom, the younger brother Tommy, portrayed beautifully and almost unrecognizably by Kit Connor of “Heartstopper” fame, asks the recently returned, older brother, “What did you miss?” And here is where my mistaken projection steps in. Mikey, we are somewhat surprised to hear, is glad to be back home after exploring the world and getting a glimpse of what it has to offer him. Still, there is something in his eyes that suggests a need he cannot quite grasp. And it is in that heaviness that Andrew Haigh’s moody 1950s drama settles into that vast sky. There is a deep uncertainty inside Mikey, and with extraordinary patience, we begin to get a glimpse of what exists inside this young man, back home on a remote Colorado mountain where love, loneliness, grief and desire exist in the same small space.
Adapted by Haigh and Colm Tóibín from Tóibín’s 2006 short story, “A Long Winter” follows Mikey as his world alters unexpectedly after his mother Louise is lost to the first brutal blizzard of the season. Caitríona Balfe gives Louise an extraordinary presence, even as an absent figure whose disappearance becomes the centre of everything that follows. We see a woman who has quietly indulged in her secrets, a woman whose husband knows her deeply while also understanding the loneliness and despair surrounding the life she has been living. There is intense love in this family, but there is also the ache of a life that has not unfolded in the way Louise wanted. Mikey and his brother share this ache, although the ways they carry it are not immediately apparent. But before the snow arrives, dancing and alcohol briefly fill the house with the feeling that everything might be all right. “Things are moving in the world,” we are told, and for a moment the music makes that mountain-top existence feel almost cosy and content. Then the spirits are poured away as winter approaches, and Louise is left looking out the window at that same view but with a much more complicated understanding of what waits ahead.
Caitríona Balfe and Ebon Moss-Bachrach in Andrew Haigh’s “A Long Winter“.
After Louise disappears, Lester and Mikey are left on that mountaintop under the weight of tremendous guilt and anger. They must deal with the quiet, destructive pang of grief and the practical demands of survival. Ebon Moss-Bachrach delivers a tense and beautifully controlled performance as Lester, a man whose emotions are rarely expressed directly but seem to exist in every movement and pause. The relationship between Lester and Mikey is one of the film’s great strengths, particularly in the way father and son speak to one another. Their conversations feel deeply lived in, revealing affection, frustration, dependence, hostility, and a bond that neither quite knows its name. Fred Hechinger delivers a quietly extraordinary lead performance, bringing a fragile sensitivity to Mikey. The film allows us to watch a young man begin to understand himself while the world around him is being buried under snow, silence, and his own set of secrets. Yet there is a strength in Mikey, and an endurance that can climb cliffs and traverse snow-filled valleys. He wants to be there on that remote mountain, protected from the larger world, yet his fantasies and sexual impulses are never far away. His attraction to men quietly becomes part of the story, particularly in his fascination with the young policeman played handsomely by Anthony Timpano. And even though we may expect that dimension of Mikey’s story to become more prominent, it doesn’t overwhelm the film’s larger examination of loneliness, grief, and a family trying to understand what has happened to them.
Connor is wonderfully grounded as Tommy, the younger brother preparing to leave the mountain and discover the world that Mikey has already experienced. Connor gives Tommy a youthful energy that sits naturally within the family dynamic, and his presence helps sharpen Mikey’s own complicated relationship with the outside world. D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai is exceptional as the young helper Lester brings in from town to take on some of the chores usually handled by Louise. There is something quietly affecting in the way this new presence enters the boys’ bedroom and begins to occupy a space that had belonged to Mikey’s brother, creating a different connection for them both at a time when Mikey’s world has become increasingly isolated. Martin Freeman also appears as Louise’s brother, bringing a wonderfully nuanced layer to the family and to the complicated history surrounding her disappearance.
Fred Hechinger in Andrew Haigh’s “A Long Winter“.
The arrival of winter gives Haigh an extraordinary physical language for everything happening inside this family. When the snow comes, it really comes, blanketing the mountain in a crisp white glow that is breathtaking and deadly when it is not respected. Set in the Colorado Rockies but filmed in Alberta, Canada, André Turpin’s cinematography, shot on 35mm film, captures the depth and rugged beauty of the landscape while maintaining the sense that these characters are surrounded by something far beyond their control. The town, with its closed storefronts and cinema, carries a different kind of loneliness, with its ruddy light providing a small human warmth against the cold outside. Inside the cabin, Emmanuel Fréchette’s production design, shaped with art direction from Amanda Nicholson, creates an authenticity that makes every bedroom, table, and corner feel inhabited, while Carol Case’s costumes quietly root these people in the period and their circumstances. Paul Haslinger’s score works within the same restrained physical world, allowing the music to support the landscape and the silences rather than overwhelm them. The loneliness and discontent seem to hang in the air, particularly when the family gathers together, and there is so much they cannot say.
Haigh’s greatest strength here may be his restraint. There isn’t the immediate, devastating emotional wallop of Haigh’s previous film, “All of Us Strangers“. “A Long Winter” works as a slow-burn meditation on loss, family friction, and self-discovery. He allows long pauses, environmental sounds, and small gestures to carry scenes that could easily have been pushed toward larger dramatic explosions. The film sits quietly with grief while also exploring Mikey’s emerging sexuality, his fantasies, and his understanding of what he wants from the world beyond the mountain. Each of these things becomes part of the same uncertain awakening, as Mikey tries to understand himself while the world around him becomes increasingly difficult to navigate. Desire never feels like an isolated plot device. It exists alongside everything else, alongside the family’s secrets, the mother’s disappearance, the father’s grief, and the uncertainty of what adulthood will bring. “A Long Winter” occasionally teeters on the edge of being too emotionally distant or slow, holding the audience at arm’s length, yet Haigh manages to hold onto our hearts carefully enough that the distance becomes part of the experience. We are asked to sit with these people, to listen to their silences, and to watch the landscape close in around them.
What makes the film so affecting is the way Mikey’s journey remains tied to that enormous mountain world. He is a young man who has seen something beyond the horizon and still finds himself drawn back to the place he calls home. He wants the security and safety of the mountain while trying to understand desires that cannot remain buried in the snow forever. Lester is trying to survive the disappearance of the woman he loved as Louise’s absence fills every room even when nobody speaks her name. The snow keeps falling, the world outside keeps revolving, and Mikey is left standing somewhere between the life he knows and the life he is beginning to imagine. Haigh gives that emotional uncertainty room to breathe, and by the time the winter has finally begun to thaw around the family, the mountain no longer feels like simply a setting. It has become the place where Mikey must finally look at himself and begin to understand the person waiting beneath all that silence.
G.H. Harding
MADONNA AT THE VMAs — 42 years ago Lady M first appeared on the VMAs and her opening appearance Sunday night was definitely something to see, but I have to admit, it felt to me very, very dated. Almost like I had seen it before. Also, the song they performed, “Bring Your Love,” sounded liked a bastard version of maybe her biggest hit “Vogue.” The segment which seemed to morph into a washroom seem out of place too. Was it a winner?
Then with Charlie XCX and Sabrina Carpenter joining her, the song tuned to “Dancetreia Afterhours.” Again, somewhat dated.
Fox News called that opening number a showstopper. Really?
Per Deadline: The MTV Video Music Awards may not have the same meaning as it did in the 1990s but it’s clear that this year’s event had more juice than in a number of years. Per Nielsen’s fast nationals, the ceremony hit an 11-year high and was up over 50% over the numbers from last year.
For a spirited take on the show, check out this from Hollywood Reporter andVariety
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/music/music-news/2026-mtv-vmas-best-moments-1236713378/
BEAT STREET RETURNS — Beat Street was a film from 1984; Harry Belafonte was involved an mega-producer Arthur Baker did the music. Poised to return to Broadway, the original film was produced by Belafonte and David V. Picker, with music by Belafonte and Baker, story by Steven Hager, screenplay by Andrew Davis, David Gilbert & Paul Golding, and directed by Stan Lathan,
Beat Street starred Rae Dawn Chong, Gus Davis, and Jon Chardiet.
The film was a culmination of early-rap music, from Afrika Bambaataa to The Soul Sonic Force. Indie labels such as Tommy Boy; Prelude; Profile; Next Plateau; West End; Emergency; and Buddah had broken through like never before.
The film was a so-so hit; more historical than anything else. A fresh take may be the answer. Read via Deadline:
https://deadline.com/2026/09/beat-street-broadway-nas-creative-team-1237116101/
SHORT TAKES — Micky Dolenz, whose new EP Timeless is a critical hit, speaks to Ken Sharp for Rock Cellar Magazine this week …
Tiffany and Bobby Shaw (Facebook)
SIGHTING: NY-promo man Bobby Shaw at Tiffany’s last Spandex performance in NYC …
As expected, Tom Cruise’s Digger -opening this week- has scored reviews from positive to negative. I loved Birdman,but director Alejandro G. Inarritu, is one not to ever second guess. Right now, it’s a dead even 50% split. The always-scintillating Pete Hammond from Deadline had one great review, check it out here: https://deadline.com/2026/09/digger-review-tom-cruise-movie-1237115519/…
Charlie Sheen
Charlie Sheen and his father Martin Sheen are back playing father and son for the first time in over a decade. The duo is headlining Happy Jack, a comedy series for AMC. The half-hour family comedy has been greenlit for six episodes and will start production at Warner Bros. Studios, in the studio where Friends was filmed, for a 2027 launch. The pair have portrayed on screen father and son in a number of movies and series, most recently on Anger Management, the sitcom that premiered on FX in 2012, and most famously in Wall Street … In the new trailer for Netflix, The One About Matthew Perry, the late Friends star reflects on his TV success and the toll it took. In a voiceover early in the clip, Perry says, “I said God, you can do anything you want to me just please make me famous.” When fame arrived, Perry reflected, “God did not forget the other part.” take a look: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iM1AOFxoDI … Happy Bday Elizabeth Neff and Chuck Taylor!
NAMES IN THE NEWS — Rusty Cutchin; Phil DiMauro; Mike Sigman; Tom & Lisa Cuddy; Race Taylor; Ross Zappin; David Adelson; Lee Jeske; Pete Townshend; Vince Aletti; Bob Siegal; Michael Musto; Don Wardell; Arthur Bell; Roger Friedman; Denny O’Connor; Phil Goldstein; Marty Ostrow; Lorylace; Kevin Mazur; Chuck Pulin; Bob Gruen; Ebet Roberts; Andy Greene; Abby Rose; and ZIGGY!
Images on this page have been licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
G.H. Harding
ONE MORE PHIL? — I am and always have been a fan of Phil Collins. His run of seemingly endless hits in the 80s was unprecedented and you know what, most of those songs were just sensational. Give his 1984 smash “Take A Look At Me Now” from Taylor Hackford’s Against All Odds another listen:
It was when their Seconds Out album was out and I got to witness first-hand at least a dozen Genesis shows. Work? No, great fun and stunning shows.
Taylor Swift/ Showgirl
I just read the first-ever negative review of Taylor Swift’s from her newly remixed Showgirl opus. Has the backlash begun? Take a read:
Star Trek: Brave New Worlds
… Star Trek’s Brave New Worlds ended their Season 4 with an episode titled “Tomorrow’s Enterprise” that involved time-travel episode and foretold what becomes of the crew in the future There’s a five-show Season 5 coming, but this episode was full of much hard-to-follow intel, plus the resolution of a space-baby (yes, i did say that). There were 2 different Uhura’s and much complicated information to follow. The show’s Season 4 was good, but despite the puppet-episode and a trip back in time, not all that special. One pundit commented that this episode could easily have been a show-finale and they’re definitely right. As I’ve said before, Anson Mount’s role of Captain Christopher Pike has been severely trimmed down, which has been a shame. On a scale of 1-10, I’d give this Season a 6 …
U2
there’s a new U2 single (“Silencio”) for the band celebrating 50 years with all the original members still present. Impressive. And their first full album in 9 years is coming. And, in the video I see Bono has his cowboy hat back. Take a look: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mCN-RDh0-0&list=RD1mCN-RDh0-0&start_radio=1
Race Taylor
Race Taylor has left CBS-FM. I’ve known Race since his days at the much-missed WPLJ. One of the best voices in NYC without a doubt Check this out:https://onthedial.net/2026/09/race-taylor-says-goodbye-to-wcbs-fm-and-new-york-loses-another-voice-that-actually-belonged-here/?fbclid=IwY2xjawUlWHNleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBwZG9mBWJyaWQRMTJJTTNlYlJXY3hpdkZDN0pzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEemO37XL_cGO6A_pNHhJXKwm-QSBD65jgCZ_s9nxKfPmLHrlfggCHfZHj6AMg_aem_ZxBl5VhQSn7B8cJlLbNsCw
October may be New York’s most theatrical month, and not merely because Halloween gets the finale. The city moves from Icelandic food and music to Comic Con cosplay, from architectural treasures normally hidden behind locked doors to four days of serious eating at the Seaport. Add film, culture, Diwali, pumpkins and one gloriously eccentric parade up Sixth Avenue, and October gives New Yorkers something increasingly rare: an excuse to stop rushing from one place to another and actually enjoy the city.
Until 10/12: The 64th New York Film Festival October begins with one of New York’s essential cultural events already in full swing. The 64th New York Film Festival, presented by Film at Lincoln Center in partnership with Rolex, runs through October 12 with 34 films in its Main Slate alone, representing 31 countries. Among this year’s major premieres are Ava DuVernay’s 14th, Luca Guadagnino’s Artificial, Tony Gilroy’s Behemoth! and Mani Haghighi’s I Deserve a Lover Whose Every Rise Sets Fiery Dooms Raging Across the Skies. The festival also expands beyond Lincoln Center October 2–9 with screenings at BAM, the Museum of the Moving Image, Alamo Drafthouse Staten Island and AMC Bay Plaza in the Bronx.
10/1–10/3: Taste of Iceland Iceland lands in New York for three days of food, music, film, literature, wellness and some wonderfully unexpected programming. Taste of Iceland opens October 1 with an Icelandic Feast at Platform by the James Beard Foundation at Pier 57 and a free Iceland Airwaves concert downtown. October 2 brings everything from a discussion about Iceland’s communal bathing culture to cocktails and music, while October 3 includes photography, film, a Northern Lights experience and Icelandic comedy. Most events are free, although reservations are required for many programs.
10/2–10/4: We Belong Here: Central Park Electronic music takes over Wollman Rink when We Belong Here returns to Central Park for three days. Friday brings MEDUZA³ and LP Giobbi; Saturday features Ben Böhmer and Stephan Bodzin live; and Sunday closes with Steve Angello, Bob Moses and Tripolism. The setting is half the point: electronic music, sunset and the Manhattan skyline wrapped around Wollman Rink.
Throughout October: Boo at the Zoo Boo at the Zoo transforms weekends at the Bronx Zoo through November 1, with an additional Monday celebration on October 12. Unlike New York’s increasingly adult Halloween universe, this one is deliberately daytime and family-friendly, combining costumes and seasonal activities with the rather unbeatable advantage of having an actual zoo as the backdrop. Activities are included with zoo admission.
10/3: The Little Red Lighthouse Festival One of Manhattan’s sweetest oddities gets its own celebration when the Little Red Lighthouse Festival returns to Fort Washington Park from noon to 4 p.m. Manhattan’s only remaining lighthouse takes center stage for a free afternoon organized with NYC Parks and the Urban Park Rangers. If you’ve spent years living in New York without ever making the pilgrimage underneath the George Washington Bridge, this is a charming excuse.
10/3–10/4: CultureCon 2026 The creative world heads to Brooklyn Navy Yard’s Duggal Greenhouse for CultureCon, a two-day gathering built around Black creativity, entrepreneurship and culture. More than 10,000 attendees are expected for workshops, speakers, networking, career development and immersive activations, with 2026 built around the theme “Museum of Us.” This is considerably more than another industry conference—it has become a gathering place for the next generation of people shaping media, fashion, entertainment, advertising and culture.
10/4: Randall’s Island Harvest Festival For something decidedly more old-fashioned, Randall’s Island turns autumnal from noon to 3 p.m. with a pumpkin patch, seasonal cooking demonstrations, live performances, face painting and nature activities. It is free, family-friendly and one of those events that makes it possible to pretend, briefly, that Manhattan isn’t sitting immediately across the water.
Comic Con
10/8–10/11: New York Comic Con New York Comic Con celebrates its 20th anniversary at the Javits Center, and by now it is less a convention than an annual pop-culture invasion. Comics remain at its heart, but television, movies, anime, gaming, collectibles, celebrity appearances and extraordinary cosplay have turned NYCC into one of the city’s great people-watching weekends. The 2026 lineup includes Nicolas Cage, Marvel Television and Animation, DC’s Jim Lee, ONE PIECE, Blumhouse and the Crown Championships of Cosplay. Friday, Saturday, four-day and VIP passes are already sold out, with limited Thursday and Sunday tickets remaining as of September 26.
10/10 – 10/31: Oktoberfest NYC No passport to Munich required. Oktoberfest continues throughout October at Watermark at Pier 15, with German beer, giant pretzels, brats, live music and East River skyline views. The waterfront celebration actually began September 10 and continues through Halloween, making this less a single event than an autumn-long excuse to raise a stein beneath the Brooklyn Bridge.
10/9–10/10: Law & Order “Dun Dun Diner” Dun dun. NBC’s wonderfully silly—and wonderfully New York—*Law & Order* “Dun Dun Diner” returns to Rockefeller Center for two days, taking over Bill’s Bar & Burger from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Expect themed dishes from Ess-a-Bagel, Katz’s Delicatessen, Magnolia Bakery and Serendipity3, along with merchandise and photo opportunities inspired by the seemingly immortal television franchise.
10/10 & 10/24: Operation Slumber at the Intrepid Museum Here’s one for people who have ever wondered what happens aboard the Intrepid after everybody goes home. Operation Slumber lets children ages 5–17 and their families or groups spend the night aboard the legendary aircraft carrier, with nighttime access to the ship and Space Shuttle Pavilion, a flashlight tour of the Flight Deck and other activities before sleeping among the aircraft. October has two overnights—October 10 and a special Halloween-themed edition October 24.
10/12: Columbus Day Parade Fifth Avenue once again becomes the center of New York’s Italian-American community for the annual Columbus Day Parade. The October 12 holiday also closes NYC public schools and suspends alternate-side parking. Whatever one’s view of the historical debate surrounding Columbus—and that debate certainly isn’t disappearing—the parade itself remains one of the city’s longstanding celebrations of Italian-American heritage.
10/15–10/18: New York City Wine & Food Festival Come hungry. The Food Network New York City Wine & Food Festival returns for its 19th year with more than 50 events and hundreds of chefs, culinary personalities, winemakers and mixologists. The Seaport is again its home base, but the Rooftop at Pier 17 becomes an even bigger part of the party this year. Rachael Ray and Bert Kreischer host the Burger Bash; Bryan and Michael Voltaggio take on Steak & Whiskey; Kwame Onwuachi hosts New York After Dark; Andrew Zimmern presides over Oyster Bash; and The Cookout brings together JJ Johnson, Angela Yee, Whoopi Goldberg and Method Man. There are also intimate dinners, brunches, tastings, demonstrations and FoodieCon.
10/15: Open House New York Launch Party Before New Yorkers start opening locked doors all over town, Open House New York throws its official launch party at one of the most deliciously New York locations imaginable: the Woolworth Building. From 6 to 9 p.m., guests head to the 26th floor for skyline views and an up-close encounter with the landmark’s famously elaborate terra-cotta façade—including its gargoyles. Proceeds support the weekend’s public programming.
10/16–10/18: Open House New York Weekend This remains one of the smartest events New York produces. For three days, Open House New York Weekend unlocks more than 300 locations across all five boroughs, allowing the public inside buildings, infrastructure, workshops, collections and spaces we ordinarily walk past without ever seeing. Skyscrapers, manufacturing sites, cultural spaces, parks and pieces of the machinery that actually make New York function are all part of it. Many locations are free and drop-in; others require advance tickets. For anyone genuinely curious about this city, put this one on the calendar.
10/24: Diwali at Times Square Times Square becomes considerably more colorful when Diwali at Times Square returns October 24. The Festival of Lights celebration takes over Broadway between 46th and 48th Streets, bringing Indian culture into the center of Midtown with music, dance, food and celebration. What began as a cultural event has grown into one of the most visible public Diwali celebrations in the United States.
10/28: BID 2026: Peace, Love & City Harvest This is the glamorous one. City Harvest’s BID 2026: Peace, Love & City Harvest takes over The Glasshouse at 660 12th Avenue for a mod-inspired evening channeling the glamour and groove of the 1960s. Nearly 50 New York chefs, restaurants and mixologists join live entertainment and live and silent auctions, with City Harvest hoping the evening will raise enough to help feed four million New Yorkers. Premium tasting begins at 6 p.m.; general admission begins at 7s.
10/31: The Village Halloween Parade Then New York completely loses its mind—in the best possible way. New York City’s Village Halloween Paradecelebrates its 53rd year on Saturday, October 31 at 7 p.m., marching up Sixth Avenue from Canal Street to 15th Street. The 2026 theme is “Body & Soul,” and the parade promises hundreds of giant puppets, more than 50 bands, dancers, artists and thousands of New Yorkers who have spent far too much time constructing costumes—and God bless them for it. Watching is free; anyone who wants to march must be in costume, with lineup beginning at 6:30 p.m. This is not simply a Halloween attraction. It is one of the last great pieces of participatory New York street theatre.
October begins with Iceland, ends with several thousand costumed New Yorkers marching through Greenwich Village, and somehow manages to squeeze food, architecture, superheroes, culture, pumpkins and the Festival of Lights in between. In other words, it is New York behaving exactly as New York should.
Ken Fallin’s Broadway: Matthew Morrison Is Just in Time for Another Broadway Encore
When The Met Meets Madison Avenue: Bobbi Brown Turns Masterpieces Into Makeup
Russell Moss Brings A Night of Cool Back to The Triad
Prince Mario-Max Schaumburg-Lippe: WHY WORLD ANIMAL DAY MEANS EVERYTHING TO US!
The AI Boom Has a New Problem: Proving the Money Is Coming Back
School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play: Being Made to Feel Ashamed of Your Skin Color
Thread Count: Akea Brionne Stitches Memory Into Gold at Arlo SoHo
Alice + Olivia Thinks Pink as Stacey Bendet Kicks Off Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Ken Fallin’s Broadway: Matthew Morrison Is Just in Time for Another Broadway Encore
When The Met Meets Madison Avenue: Bobbi Brown Turns Masterpieces Into Makeup
Russell Moss Brings A Night of Cool Back to The Triad
Prince Mario-Max Schaumburg-Lippe: WHY WORLD ANIMAL DAY MEANS EVERYTHING TO US!
The AI Boom Has a New Problem: Proving the Money Is Coming Back
School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play: Being Made to Feel Ashamed of Your Skin Color
Thread Count: Akea Brionne Stitches Memory Into Gold at Arlo SoHo
Alice + Olivia Thinks Pink as Stacey Bendet Kicks Off Breast Cancer Awareness Month
-
Business3 days agoMeta Brings AI Agents to Small Businesses — and the AI Assistant Is Becoming an Operator
-
Cabaret4 days agoJeff Harnar Brings Sondheim Back to Birdland in a Loving Tribute to Sondra Lee
-
Celebrity4 days agoThe Glorious Corner
-
Entertainment4 days agoPrince Mario Max Schaumburg Lippe: Counting Days Until The Rockettes Christmas Spectacular Is Back At Radio City Music Hall NYC
-
Broadway4 days agoBroadway and Theatre News: Damn Yankees Returns, Stars Head Back to the Stage and the Flea Defies the Storm
-
Book Reviews3 days agoLive From The Hotel Edison Times Square Chronicles Presents Tony-Nominated Lyricist and Book writer Bill Russell Still, Bill
-
Business4 days agoMcDonald’s Is Using AI to Decide What Your Big Mac Should Cost
-
Broadway1 day agoSchool Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play: Being Made to Feel Ashamed of Your Skin Color