On the Bowery Trivia Quiz

Answer: Golden Globe Award as Best Documentary

The Golden Globes does not have a documentary category. Otherwise, we can add the British Academy Award and the The Robert Flaherty Award named for the pioneer of documentary films.

Answer: Financial investment

Rogosin was from a wealthy family but chose not to enter the family business. Instead he wanted to pursue social issues and inequalities in society. Although he lived in Greenwich Village, he became fascinated with the so-called skid row of New York City in a region called the Bowery.

There he met Gorman Hendricks, described as a 'smart operator', who shows him the ins and outs of Bowery life, probably in exchange for the price of a drink. Rogosin begins filming with a hidden camera but is not satisfied with the results. Among his circle of friends he finds several people looking for an artistic endeavor and they are recruited to help develop the film.

The script writer was able to create a central focus for the film while the film editor had make sense of the tremendous amount of film. The camera man found more appropriate cameras to capture the sordidness of the men in the Bowery and their environment. The most appropriate footage had to be edited.

Answer: Aligns with prostitute

Ray Salyer arrives at the Bowery after a time of working on the railroad as a laborer. Feeling flush with money, he decides to 'unwind' by drinking on the Bowery. In order to make contacts, he buys drinks for all but when his money is low, the 'friends' leave him high and dry. The one person who sticks with him is Gorman. In order to raise money for more drinking, Gorman takes him to a street corner where he sells a pair of pants. Gorman and Ray drink until Ray passes out on the sidewalk.

In one scene in the film we see a prostitute clinging to Ray but he brutally shoves her to the sidewalk and leaves her.

In the scenes where Ray is buying drinks, all of the men are wearing what appear to be clean white shirts. Contrast that to the candid shots on the street where they are dirty and disheveled. Obviously, it was a scripted scene but the dialogue appears to be ad lib.

Answer: Steals Ray's suitcase

While seemingly a new found friend, Gorman uses the suitcase as security to gain a few nights at a flophouse.

A flophouse or a flop is a sleeping place for the homeless in the Bowery. They may have a fancy name but mostly cater to one-nighters desperate for a bed. There is no room service and the toilet is down the hall. You pay in advance.

Answer: Physician

Although he is referred to as 'Doc', there is room for doubt. The only specific jobs he mentions are jobs either as a reporter or stringer. He does not mention any university he attended. He acted as technical adviser on the film and also played one of the main characters. The film is dedicated to him. He died two weeks before the release of the "On the Bowery".

Answer: Day labor

Ray is seen waiting with a group of men for a car or truck to come by to offer a job for a day. Ray is seen lifting heavy boxes and assisting in backing up a truck for unloading. The men on the Bowery really don't want regular jobs that would entail being on time and sober. Ray earns enough for alcohol, perhaps some food, and maybe a flop for the night. Then the cycle starts again.

Although we do not see Ray steal during the film, he is accosted by several men who rob him although he has little money on him. A hazard of Bowery life.

Answer: Jellied alcohol

Sterno was designed with a wick so that the jellied alcohol could be used to keep foods warm at a buffet table. In "On the Bowery" we see three desperate men preparing Sterno to drink. The Sterno is placed in a cloth and squeezed into a cup. Each takes a turn in sipping the result. It is referred to on the street as 'squeeze' and is the drink of last resort. Sterno is poisonous. In Philadelphia in 1963 31 people died in a month's time from ingesting Sterno squeezings.

Although beer is cheap, it is not the drink of choice. Beer is 3.5% to 5% alcohol and at that concentration needs a large volume to achieve the desired effect. Men are seen drinking four ounce servings.

By far the most popular beverage is muscatel wine. Fortified muscatel became popular at the end of prohibition. In order to meet the large demand for wine, poor strains of muscat grapes mixed with sugar and cheap brandy were used to produce it. Contrasted to other wines, muscatel produces a quick and cheap inebriation.

In this 1956 film there are no scenes involving hard liquor nor drugs.

Answer: Uses a push cart to collect junk

When we first meet Joey he emerges from cardboard under his pushcart and reaches for his wine bottle. He will then begin to collect more cardboard and whatever salable junk he can find on the streets and alleys of the Bowery.

Later we see him at a bar. He as been arrested many times, mostly for public drunkenness or vagrancy. He pontificates on the qualities of the jails and those 'who try to treat you decent' and those that don't. He also has strong opinions of the quality of the food in various lockups.

Joey's dream is to retire in the South Seas or Guatemala. Gorman Hendricks tells him that he taking over a big kitchen downtown and wants Joey to work for him but Joey feels he will stick with his push cart.

Answer: A Bowery mission

Ray tells Gorman that at the mission they will give him a place to clean up, a meal, and a bed and the support he needs to straighten out his life.

We next see him in a long line of stereotyped Bowery residents entering the mission. First he subjected to a sermon by a preacher who claims to have recovered from alcoholism through the mission. The faces of the men are blank and staring. When the sermon ends they are fed a meal that appears to be a bowl of potato soup, a baloney sandwich on white bread, and a cup of coffee. A man gives the rules of the mission: You must be clean, your clothes must be fumigated, and there is zero tolerance for alcohol in any form. You must stay all night and leaving before six am will disqualify for the program. Maximum stay is one week. There are no beds for the overflow of men. Ray is given a batch of newspapers to spread out on the floor. In the darkness Ray sits and finally walks out.

Answer: Clean up, clean clothes, find steady work

Gorman does not tell him that this was money from property he stole from him. He said he 'put the bite' on someone who owed him money and wanted to share it with Ray as people on the Bowery do. At one time Ray stated that he wanted to go to Chicago to look for work but this time his goals are more local. Later Gorman shares that he helped Ray but his friends think that Ray will be back.

In the closing scene Ray is seen drunk holding on to lamp post.

Interestingly, Ray Salyer, based on his performance in "On the Bowery", was offered a Hollywood contract. His Clark Gable good looks and easy manner might have made him a star. Salyer, however, declined the opportunity. Salyer died in 1963 on the Bowery.