Wednesday, May 16, 2012

A Random Aside from "The Avengers".

A funny coincidence (and very slight spoiler)related to the film "The Avengers".

In the movie, a "BIG BATTLE"™ occurs around Tony Starks fictional headquarters in midtown Manhattan, the "Stark Tower".

Said fictional "Stark Tower", is sited on the spot of the world famous MetLife building (originally, the world famous Pan-Am building), at 200 park avenue; which happens to butt up against Grand Central Station. It's also just across,and a block down Lexington Avenue, from the Chrysler Building (at 42nd and Lexington).

Coincidentally, for a few months on a contract, I happened to work kitty corner across 42nd street from the Chrysler building; at Pfizer world headquarters (42nd, between Lex and 3rd).

During that time, I lived in two different corporate apartments in Manhattan. The first place was on the upper east side, at 86th between 2nd and 3rd (just down the block from Papaya King, and a couple more blocks from the park) , that had me taking the subway down from the 86th st. station, to Grand Central, every morning (I even occasionally walked it. 40 blocks isn't a "long" walk in the rural sense - about two miles - , but in Manhattan terms it's like hiking from Philly to Pittsburgh). The second apartment, was at 39th and 2nd; just five blocks down, and two blocks out, from the notional "Stark Tower".

Suffice it to say, I'm very familiar with the neighborhood.

At one point during the movie, there's a throwaway line I'll paraphrase as "We should get schwarma. I heard there was a pretty good schwarma place a couple blocks from here".

As it happens, I recognized where "Stark Tower" was right away, and of course remembered the neighborhood very well... So when I heard that line, I literally laughed out loud...

... Because there actually is (or was in the mid 2000's anyway) a really great schwarma place about two blocks south, and two blocks east, of the MetLife building... and I know personally how good it was, because I ate lunch there probably three times a week the entire time I was on that contract (more, when it was almost on my walk home).

Anyway... I thought it was funny... but maybe it's just me.