Mazie Gordon-Phillips | |
|---|---|
| Born | Mazie Phillips March 3, 1896 Boston, MA |
| Died | June 8, 1964 |
| Other names | Queen of The Bowery |
| Occupation | Movie Theater Owner |
| Known for | Homeless Advocacy |
Mazie Gordon-Phillips (10 March 1896 – 8 June 1964)[1] also known as "Queen of The Bowery" and "Saint Mazie", was a movie theater owner and advocate for people experiencing homelessness on the Bowery, New York City.[2][3]
Biography
Gordon-Phillips grew up in Boston, Massachusetts and moved to New York City at the age of 10 to live with her sister Rosie.[4] Gordon-Phillips and her sisters Rosie and Jeanie owned the Venice Theater on Park Row from the 1920s to the 1940s;[5] Gordon-Phillips was the manager.[6] After the theater closed each night, she visited homeless men on the streets, distributing money and toiletries and assisting them to find a place to sleep in homeless shelters.[6]
In 1940, a New Yorker journalist Joseph Mitchell wrote a profile of Gordon-Phillips and coined the name "Saint Mazie".[7]
References
- ↑ ,Attenberg, Jami (2015). Saint Mazie. Grand Central Publishing. ISBN 9781455599899.
- ↑ Lakso, Jessica (June 5, 2015). "A Caged Bird Sings". The Wall Street Journal.
- ↑ "BOWERY MOURNS MAZIE PHILLIPS; Faithful Friend of Derelicts Dies—She Was 'Over 21'". The New York Times. June 11, 1964. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
- ↑ Cheuse, Alan (June 11, 2015). "'Mazie' Pays Homage To A Real-Life Saint Of The Streets". NPR. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
- ↑ Mitchell, Joseph (December 14, 1940). "Mazie, Queen of the Bowery". The New Yorker. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
- 1 2 Attenberg, Jami (June 13, 2015). "My hero: Mazie Gordon-Phillips by Jami Attenberg". The Guardian. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
- ↑ Preston, Caroline (June 25, 2015). "'Queen of the Bowery' embraced roles of sinner and saint". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2015-06-30. Retrieved December 2, 2019.