The Farewell Shot

The words of the prophets aren’t always written on the subway walls and tenement walls.

Sometimes they’re right at our feet.

I learned this lesson on Saturday while standing at the express bus stop on 23rd Street and Fith Avenue. I was waiting to get the X27 back to Brooklyn when I looked down and saw a sentence written on the sidewalk.

“What opportunities have you provided for your child”

The line—I’m assuming it’s a question—was written in neat white lettering and it appears the author had taken his or her time, which is interesting as this is a rather busy intersection.

I was wrapping up an afternoon in the city that began with a visit to Rennert’s Gallery on W. 17th Street where I saw a fabulous collection of vintage posters for “Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.”

This was a bit of compromise since my conscience was telling me to attend a Meetup event in Queens where I could see something new and enjoy some human company.

But I also wanted to visit the gallery.

I love vintage posters and it always seems that I’ll make plans to see an exhibit at a museum or art gallery and the next thing I know, I’ve missed it.

'They Weren't Meant for Us'

In additon, my auntie, whom I had not seen since I returned from Ireland, lives a few blocks away from the gallery.

So, I skipped Queens and chose something that I really wanted to do. It was definitely a comfort zone call, but at least I was getting out of the damn house.

I’ve had this fascination with vintage posters for years.

I wrote a story about them for TheStreet.com in 2006 and one of the people I interviewed said “these posters all have a history.”

“They were printed in a certain moment in time and were just meant to be used in that moment,” he said. “They weren't meant for us.”

The artists who created these beautiful images knew their work would be torn down, defaced, or covered over soon after they were posted. And they still did their best.

William Frederick Cody, also known as “Buffalo Bill”, was a soldier, bison hunter and showman who’s touring show, “Buffalo Bill’s Wild West” traveled around the U.S., continental Europe and Great Britain, which, included a command performance for Queen Victoria.

“It is not a circus, nor indeed is it acting at all, in a theatrical sense, but an exact reproduction of daily scenes in frontier life as experienced by the very people who now form the Wild West Company,” according to an 1887 article in The Illustrated London News. “It comprises Indian life, cowboy life, Indian fighting, lassoing and breaking in wild horses, shooting, and feats of strength.”

The posters feature images of cowboys, Native Americans, Turks, gauchos, and Arabs. Historical figures such as Sitting Bull and Annie Oakley, also appeared in the show.

One poster depicted a charging bison with Cody’s image superimposed over the animal’s hide and the title “I Am Coming.” Another, “The Farewell Shot”, announced “the last appearance of Buffalo Bill (in the saddle.)”

And then there was the massive poster that took up an entire wall that a biblical tone to it with Buffalo Bill leading settlers as a kind of American Moses. It’s an incredible piece of work.

I had a nice chat with the owners of the gallery and then it was up Madison Square Park to meet with my auntie.

'A Certain Moment in Time'

It was a lovely day, so we grabbed a bench and talked for a while about movies, politics and idiots who smoke in the park, and I gave her a box of shortbread cookies I had gotten for her in Ireland.

And then it was time go home. I walked over to the bus stop and when I saw the line about providing for your child, I had to take a picture of it.

“That’s a great saying,” a young man waiting at the bus stop said to me. “My parents got divorced when I was young, and my dad took care of me and my sister.”

This fellow told me how he cared for his father, how they had gone to a ball game for his dad’s birthday.

He made no mention of his mother, and I didn’t want to pry. I was somewhat surprised, but quite pleased that a total stranger was sharing his story with me.

It was good to connect with person, even if for just a brief conversation. Usually in New York it’s the pan handlers and religious loons who are looking to invade your space.

My father’s been gone 12 years now and my relationship with him was somewhat…difficult, shall we say? But whatever I can say about him, the man survived the Depression, fought in World War II and had a family—three things I’ve never done.

I was happy for this young man and his relationship with dad. I hope it lasts.

Like the Buffalo Bill poster, that bit of graffiti was written in a certain moment in time and was just meant to be used in that moment.

It will be eventually scrubbed away, but we should keep asking the question because right now we ain't providing much.

I didn’t want to overstay my welcome, so I gently moved away from this fellow and got on the line for the bus.

When the X27 arrived, I made sure to give him a wave as I got onboard and I got one in return.