#442 Urban Legends of New York City

The Bowery Boys: New York City History

New York City has its fair share of famous 'urban legends' -- persistent rumors, too good to be true, often macabre and dark.

No, we're not talking about just about ghost stories. (Those arrive next episode.) We mean far fetched, reality defying fantasies sometimes rooted in science fiction and horror – with just enough bearing to the real world that many people believe them to be true.

Tom and Greg go deep into their favorite New York urban legends. breaking down their origins and revealing the hidden truths that live beneath the legends. This episode answers the questions:

-- Are there alligators in the sewer? Believe it or not, there are. Or at least, there were. Kinda. New York's most famous urban legend has a fun and twisted origin.

-- Does the Cropsey Maniac stalk the corridors of a New York ruin? Campfire tales collide with genuine institutional breakdowns and real-life horrors in this somber story set in Staten Island.

-- Did somebody really sell the Brooklyn Bridge? The truth is even more surprising!

-- Have UFO's landed in New York City? Sounds preposterous, but one incident in 1989 ignited a decade of conspiracies, entangling both the New York Post and the United Nations. You'll never look at Pier 17 the same way again....