Cityscape: Remembering the Garment District's Heyday

by George Bodarky, Taylor Nulk | 01/07/2015 | 6:00am

Cityscape: Remembering the Garment District's Heyday

A Garment District veteran draws on his experiences for short stories.

Once upon a time New York’s garment district employed hundreds of thousands of workers, and produced most of the clothing made in the United States.  But, thanks to outsourcing and technological advances, the district is now just a shadow of what it once was.

Our guest on this edition of Cityscape has fond memories of the garment district’s heyday.  Leonard Bernstein’s family founded a children’s wear business in 1928.  He took over the company in 1953.  Bernstein’s children now run the business, but the Brooklyn native says he can still hear the hum of sewing machines in his head.  Bernstein is now a published author.  He’s written six books, including a collection of short stories in which he draws a lot from his experiences in the garment district.  The collection is called Death By Pastrami.
 

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