The Cock
93 2nd Avenue | East Village | built 1845
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The city photographed every building for its tax records around 1940 and again in the 1980s. NYC Municipal Archives.
Written with AI from the source each entry cites, then fact-checked.
- 1886
William Staufer adds a fifth story and a neo-Grec facade to an older row house
This row house stood four stories tall until 1886. That year architect William Staufer's alteration, filed under permit ALT 335-1886, raised it to five stories and gave it a new neo-Grec style front. The landmarks commission records the work in its East Village / Lower East Side Historic District report, drawing on the city's Department of Buildings files.
“The building was raised in height from four to five stories in 1886 and a new Neo-Grec style facade was installed (ALT 335-1886; architect: William Staufer).”
- 2002
Erik Foss and David Schwartz open Lit Lounge, a two-floor indie-rock club with an art gallery
Lit Lounge opened on February 22, 2002, run by Erik Foss and David Schwartz, veterans of East Village and Bowery bars. Its Fuse Gallery followed on March 16 with an exhibition of H.R. Giger's work. The club became a hub of the indie rock and electroclash scene, drawing regulars such as Chloe Sevigny and The Strokes and performers including Karen O and James Iha.
“Lit opened on February 22, 2002, while Fuse Gallery opened on March 16, 2002, with an exhibition of works by H.R. Giger.”
Source: Wikipedia
- 2002
Fuse Gallery opens behind Lit Lounge with an exhibition of H.R. Giger's work
Three weeks after Lit Lounge opened on February 22, 2002, its art space, Fuse Gallery, held its first show on March 16, with works by H.R. Giger. Those who performed or exhibited there over the years included filmmaker Spike Jonze, photographers Mick Rock and Ryan McGinley, actors Leo Fitzpatrick and Mike Myers, and musicians such as Karen O and James Iha.
“Fuse Gallery opened on March 16, 2002, with an exhibition of works by H.R. Giger.”
Source: Wikipedia
- 2010
Neighbors object to Lit Lounge's license transfer at a community board hearing
On March 15, 2010, Lit Lounge's owners asked for a license transfer at a Community Board 3 hearing, to launch a new venture in the space at 93 Second Avenue. Residents brought signs and complained about sidewalk crowds and weekend music running past 4 a.m.; one called the owners a lawless group. The owners withdrew the request, and co-owner David Schwartz later listed steps that included soundproofing, an extra outdoor crowd-control hire and a mandatory 4 a.m. music cutoff.
Source: evgrieve.com
- 2013
Fuse Gallery announces its closing after eleven years with a show of rock portraits
On August 6, 2013, owner and curator Erik Foss announced that Fuse Gallery, the small space behind Lit Lounge, would close. Its last show, Aliya Naumoff's portraits of Iggy Pop, Marilyn Manson and Karen O, opened the next day and ran to September 11. Foss said the gallery could no longer afford to give the space to artists.
Source: bedfordandbowery.com
- 2015
Lit Lounge shuts abruptly after a scandal, citing rising rents and a changing neighborhood
On July 8, 2015, the owners announced Lit would close within two months, blaming rising rents and a nightlife crowd that had moved to Brooklyn. It shut abruptly on July 30, after a teacher at a Manhattan prep school was accused of a sexual encounter with a 16-year-old student in the bar's bathroom. The owners later reopened a successor venue in East Williamsburg.
“Lit Lounge abruptly closed on July 30, 2015, following an incident in which a 34-year-old teacher at Léman Manhattan Preparatory School was alleged to have had sex with a 16-year-old student…”
Source: Wikipedia
- 2015
The Cock moves into the former Lit Lounge space despite a "Block the Cock" campaign
The gay bar The Cock, which opened in 1998 and had already moved once, relocated to this address in 2015. Neighbors organized a "Block the Cock" campaign, and the East Fifth Street Block Association and Community Board 3 tried to stop its liquor license. Owner Allan Mannarelli had been rebuffed a year earlier when he sought an Avenue B site.
“This move was met with resistance by the East Fifth Street Block Association, and the community board, which attempted to block the bar's liquor license.”
Source: Wikipedia
- 2020
Police issue summonses to go-go dancers after a slashing outside the door
In January 2020 a slashing was reported outside the entrance, and officers who responded went inside and wrote summonses for sexual exposure by the bar's go-go dancers. The next month owner Allan Mannarelli asked to convert the license to one for a club offering live music and dancing. The State Liquor Authority refused, although Community Board 3 had approved it, and it warned the board it would answer for future problems.
“In January 2020, there was a reported slashing outside The Cock's entrance. Police responding to the incident entered the premises, and they issued summonses for sexual exposure…”
Source: Wikipedia
- 2020
The state refuses The Cock a nightclub license even though the community board backs it
In February 2020 the owner, Allan Mannarelli, asked the state to reclassify the bar's liquor license as a nightclub offering live music and dancing. Community Board 3 approved the request, but the State Liquor Authority denied it. The authority then admonished the board and warned it would answer for any later trouble at The Cock.
Source: Wikipedia
- 2021
The bar reopens after the pandemic with a room planned to honor Nashom Wooden
Nashom Wooden, a nightlife fixture who performed in drag as Mona Foot, managed The Cock through the 2010s and also bartended there. After Wooden died in March 2020 of a suspected case of COVID-19, owner Allan Mannarelli reopened the bar during Pride week 2021, requiring proof of vaccination. He planned to convert an unused space inside into a Celebration Room named for Wooden.
“Mannarelli resolved to reopen the 93 Second Avenue location during New York City's 2021 Pride week, at which time it was announced that the bar would require proof of vaccination…”
Source: Wikipedia
Further reading
- The CockWikipedia
- 93 Second AvenueVillage Preservation: East Village Building Blocks
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