Fats Waller composed a series of hit songs and was also widelyu known for his comic performances on stage and in film.

His innovations in his piano work led to the Harlem stride-style – a precursor to modern jazz piano. His best-known compositions, “Ain’t Misbehavin’” and “Honeysuckle Rose”, were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1984 and 1999. Waller copyrighted over 400 songs, many of them co-written with his closest collaborator, Andy Razaf. Razaf described his partner as:

“the soul of melody… a man who made the piano sing… both big in body and in mind… known for his generosity… a bubbling bundle of joy”.

In the photo below he is seen in Harlem with fellow stride-style pianist Willie ‘The Lion’ Smith:

Worst Landlords

The Public Advocate has a list of the worst landlords in NYC out for 2022. The map shows definitively that the worst landlords have the most violations in low-income communities, and are congregated in northern Manhattan, The Bronx, and Brooklyn.

https://www.landlordwatchlist.com/

Note that housing law protects your right as a tenant to meet with other tenants in a public space in the building. You should speak with other tenants who are facing similar problems and organize a meeting time in the building. The meeting can be advertised through fliers or posters placed in the building. At the first meeting, the representative of the association should be appointed by the group and a set of action items should be decided.