The Chinatown Fair, 1944. It’s official.
One Last Time: My final visit to Chinatown Fair
“It stinks in here”
Those were the first words said by Henry Cen, long time CF manager and fighting game ass-kicker, as he entered the doors of 8 Mott Street for one final visit. It was just about 6 months ago that CF closed its doors for good, but for one day, they were opened again to a lucky few for some amazing shooting and exquisite garbage rummaging.
I am not going to lie; when the gate was first opened I cringed. These unattended months had not been kind to the arcade, and between the doors and the gate were about a thirty cubic pounds of garbage, consisting of flyers, phone books, and Yu-Gi-Oh cards. It was like going to visit a relative’s grave only to find some drunken frat-boys had passed out on top of it. Inside was just as double-take inducing. Quiet, dark, and empty are adjectives I never would have used to described CF. The place was always alive with chatter and video game noise, which was almost always drowned out by the booming techno of the dance games, and while it may have been dimly lit at times, you were always engulfed in the light of CRT’s. And even midday at its least crowded, there was never enough room to swing a cat in that place. This was really the most harrowing of the three, the place was just so empty and it looked so wrong.
But that feeling only lasted for a few seconds. It was still CF, so it was still home. All around were cabinet parts and posters and old brackets that needed to be explored. It is really hard to explain what it was like, but imagine being a kid in an abandoned toy factory; I felt an obligation to look through everything that had been left behind, because the place was littered with things that still had meaning to me. I swear on Dan Hibiki I will keep a Chinatown Fair token until the day I die.
We got some truly amazing footage, but the real treat was having Henry Cen come by for a final visit, and give us the full tour of the place. He told us awesome stories of letting the chicken loose, building Sam’s office, and showed us how to properly throw someone out. And while I felt sadly nostalgic for CF, Henry seemed genuinely happy not to be working under the unwinnable odds that forced its closure. I could tell that he really cared about the place, but at the same time was determined to make Next Level even better.
I always regretted not being able to visit Chinatown Fair on its last day, and I don’t think I’ll ever be able to explain how thankful I am for being able to go back to the place that meant so much to so many, for one last time.
-Reed
Anthony Cali, the traveller
I saw one of my favorite documentary filmmakers speak once. An audience member asked if he had ever become friends with subjects in his films. His reply, in short, was that he was not there to make friends. He was there to make movies. I get what he was saying, yet my experience thus far has been so different. Not necessarily by choice. It’s just a product of who I am. You can’t prevent forming friendships when a real connection between two people is made. And why would you want to?
I met Anthony Cali Jr. while I was filming at the arcade. Right away we hit it off and next thing I knew he began to help Irene and I with the movie. Anthony grew up in the Lower East Side and was a longtime CF regular. His pops, Anthony Sr., first took him there as a 7 year old. His roots run deep under Manhattan. Anthony’s photographs of the arcade can be seen on our Kickstarter page. He is a big camera nerd, and I have yet to hang with him, without hearing about some new lens or obscure Japanese digital SLR model. Anthony is a real wise guy. It’s in his blood.
Anthony left NYC this week to visit Japan.
Two nights before his flight to Japan, Anthony told me that when he saw me with my camera at Chinatown Fair he could tell right away I wasn’t from NYC, but instead of passing judgement he decided to see what I was about. He saw in my eyes that I was genuine and truly excited to be filming at CF. So he introduced himself. I remember the exact moment we met. I was filming the crew playing 3rd Strike. I was drawn to the 3rd Strike cabinet. There was lots of trash talking, beer drinking, and a real sense of camaraderie. Moments after meeting I began filming Anthony. That’s when I captured the clip of Anthony that’s in the trailer. He says, “This place should be a landmark if anything, its so fucked up. You got so many different types of people coming here. This is the only place you can really be yourself in.” Anthony is about as eloquent and introspective as they come. His musings have already had a big effect on the direction of the documentary.
I knew he would become an integral part of the movie after that night. What I didn’t realize was that he would become a friend.
Anthony has a blog documenting his NYC adventures, The New York Blues, and he is going to keep it going with a new site documenting his adventure across the sea. I’ll post the new blog up when I got the URL.
Kickstarter sends out a weekly email showcasing projects they love. I have been receiving the email ever since my friend Paul Vogeler launched a successful Kickstarter to fund his journey to show his art in Berlin (btw, Paul is still on that journey and producing some incredible art!). I was surprised to see our project included in this weeks’s email!! Kickstarter has some incredible writers on staff, because the way the described the film is incredible! Read Below:
“As video game culture made the move from bustling arcades to private living rooms, Chinatown Fair remained an institution of New York’s gaming community. After over 50 years of continuous operation, the arcade has finally been forced to shutter its doors. Filmmaker Kurt Vincentcaptures its last moments, chronicling the lives of those who grew up in this beloved community spot as they make way for a new era.”
Wow, spot on!!! We are receiving an overwhelming amount of support since the email was sent out! This movie is happening!
-Kurt
Scouting NY has an amazing set of photos of the arcade.
These were taken a month before the closing. And a really great blog featuring all sorts of cool places in NYC.
Clams Casino, Gabe Schray, John Carpenter, and Kickstarter
I received an email today from Clams Casino. He gave me permission to use one of his songs in the trailer for Arcade. The song is incredible! Clams Casino is a producer from New Jersey and is composing some incredible beats. Lil B and Soulja Boy have recently rapped on some of his songs. You can download his latest instrumental mixtape here. And read an interview with Clams on Pitchfork here.
“I hope you like John Carpenter,” Gabe Schray responded to my inquiry regarding the song he was composing for the Arcade trailer. This is perfect considering my goal is for Arcade to be a mix of Frederick Wiseman, John Carpenter and Street Fighter 3: 3rd Strike. I have no doubt that Gabe is about to nail it.
Earlier today I submitted an application to launch a Kickstarter project. I will keep you all posted on the status. Thinking of throwing a launch party when it is time.
SCREEN GRAB #3
Anthony Cali aka Helgen X shooting photograph of me shooting film of him.
I am about to meet up with Anthony at a Japanese spot in the East Village to discuss the direction of the movie. Good things are happening. I have realized the movie will not end with the closing of Chinatown Fair. It goes way beyond that. I have a feeling the movie is going to follow the community to wherever it may go - the next CF, Babycastles, Next Level, basements, apartments, etc.
The story of ARCADE is about Chinatown Fair, but that means it is about the community itself and the community lives on beyond the walls of 8 Mott Street.
Old Dirty Bastard visited Chinatown Fair back in the 1990’s.
