Welcome to the new season of The Untapped New York Podcast! On the 25th anniversary of 9/11, the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center Twin Towers in New York City, Michelle and Justin from Untapped New York share their memories of that day, the history of rebuilding the site, and the impact on the city since. Justin was a brand new elementary school teacher, four days into the job, when the attack unfolded through the windows of his school on the Lower East Side. 

Music in the episode by Kittens Ablaze. 

If you love to go behind the scenes and into NYC's' most hidden and secret places, jump onto some of our most exciting tours like the Gilded Age Mansions of Fifth Avenue, the Secrets of Grand Central, or our Underground Subway Tour or join our Insiders program for access to the most off limits places with curated behind-the-scenes events on a weekly basis. 20% off yearly membership at untappedcities.com/podcast20

Today we’re rereleasing a live conversation about Untapped New York founder Michelle Young's award-winning book, The Art Spy: The Extraordinary Untold Tale of WWII Resistance Hero Rose Valland, in honor of its paperback release this week. The Art Spy was named a Best Book of 2025 by the New York Public Library, Library Journal, and Hyperallergic, and named the 2026 Massachusetts Book Awards Nonfiction Honors Title.

Michelle and our Chief Experience Officer, Justin Rivers, delve into who Rose Valland was and the brave things she did, the story of Jewish art dealer Paul Rosenberg and his family, which allowed Michelle to write about her first love, New York City, and Rosenberg's clients including characters like Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse. There’s also a wild World’s Fair connection in the book. 

Listen to the original episode: "A WWII Resistance Spy and Her NYC Connections" to hear Michelle read the first chapter of the book. 

Music by Kittens Ablaze. 

If you love to go behind the scenes and into NYC's' most hidden and secret places, jump onto some of our most exciting tours like the Gilded Age Mansions of Fifth Avenue, the Secrets of Grand Central, or our Underground Subway Tour or join our Insiders program for access to the most off limits places with curated behind-the-scenes events on a weekly basis. 20% off yearly membership at untappedcities.com/podcast20

If you're following the heist at the Louvre, discover the heists that have occurred at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, including the infamous "Valentine's Day Heist" of 1979! Untapped New York founder Michelle Young talks with Nicole Saraniero, our editor and director of events who wrote the article, "10 Major Art Heists at the Met Museum."

If you love to go behind the scenes and into NYC's' most hidden and secret places, jump onto some of our most exciting tours like the Gilded Age Mansions of Fifth Avenue, the Secrets of Grand Central, or our Underground Subway Tour or join our Insiders program for access to the most off limits places with curated behind-the-scenes events on a weekly basis. 20% off yearly membership at untappedcities.com/podcast20

Maybe you saw our latest Instagram reel that's going viral, making NYC horological history cool again! On the podcast, in honor of fall back time this week, we deep dive into the Barthman clock, a historic clock beneath your feet in the Financial District. Michelle, Justin and Nicole talk about the history of the clock, share their experience going down into the secret room/basement underneath the clock, and more! 

If you love to go behind the scenes and into NYC's' most hidden and secret places, jump onto some of our most exciting tours like the Gilded Age Mansions of Fifth Avenue, the Secrets of Grand Central, or our Underground Subway Tour or join our Insiders program for access to the most off limits places with curated behind-the-scenes events on a weekly basis. 20% off yearly membership at untappedcities.com/podcast20

Did you know there's a mini version of Grand Central's ceiling mural inside the  terminal's wine shop, Central Cellars? And that it used to be part of a movie theater? We talk to the experts: the authors of a book about the artist who did the painting, the passionate and informed store manager and employees, and historian Justin Rivers, Untapped New York's Chief Experience Officer who perfected our Secrets of Grand Central tour. 

If you love to go behind the scenes and into NYC's' most hidden and secret places, jump onto some of our most exciting tours like the Gilded Age Mansions of Fifth Avenue, the Secrets of Grand Central, or our Underground Subway Tour or join our Insiders program for access to the most off limits places with curated behind-the-scenes events on a weekly basis. 20% off yearly membership at untappedcities.com/podcast20

Michelle Young and Justin Rivers of Untapped New York discuss the neighborhood of Morningside Heights. Michelle and Justin will discuss five hidden and unique spots including Columbia University's Alma Mater, the Guastavino Dome at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, Riverside Church’s Labyrinth, Ulysses S. Grant’s Tomb, and the meeting of 125th and 129th Streets. 

This podcast episode was originally produced in partnership with Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture Planning and Preservation (GSAPP), where Michelle Young is a Professor of Architecture and an alumni of the school with a master degree in Urban Planning. 

Music by Kittens Ablaze. 

If you love to go behind the scenes and into NYC's' most hidden and secret places, jump onto some of our most exciting tours like the Gilded Age Mansions of Fifth Avenue, the Secrets of Grand Central, or our Underground Subway Tour or join our Insiders program for access to the most off limits places with curated behind-the-scenes events on a weekly basis. 20% off yearly membership at untappedcities.com/podcast20

Sad news from Queens...After multiple patchwork repairs, a set of colorful mosaics depicting highlights from the 1939-40 and 1964-65 World's Fairs have been completely replaced with pavers. Michelle, Justin and Nicole discuss this piece of very sad news, broken by Untapped New York and the most read article this month so far. The Passarelle Plaza mosaics were installed in 1997 to commemorate the 1939-40 and 1964-65 World's Fairs. Now, they are another lost relic of World's Fair history. 

If you love to go behind the scenes and into NYC's' most hidden and secret places, jump onto some of our most exciting tours like the Gilded Age Mansions of Fifth Avenue, the Secrets of Grand Central, or our Underground Subway Tour or join our Insiders program for access to the most off limits places with curated behind-the-scenes events on a weekly basis. 20% off yearly membership at untappedcities.com/podcast20

In this episode, we’re talking about a very adorable secret: pandas in New York City! Who doesn’t love pandas? In fact, the story of how pandas came to America is deeply tied to New York City. We're joined by an expert on this story, Nathalia Holt, author of The Beast in the Clouds: The Roosevelt Brothers' Deadly Quest to Find the Mythical Giant Panda. Learn the New York City origin story behind the discovery of the panda, about Theodore Roosevelt and his sons in Prohibition Era New York, all the pandas who have graced the Big Apple with their presence over the years, the first American (a woman!) to bring back a panda cub from China, and the passionate attempts to bring pandas back in recent years by some very notable New Yorkers. 

Correction: When the podcast episode refers to Hyde Park, it should be Sagamore Hill. 

Music by Kittens Ablaze. 

If you love to go behind the scenes and into NYC's' most hidden and secret places, jump onto some of our most exciting tours like the Gilded Age Mansions of Fifth Avenue, the Secrets of Grand Central, or our Underground Subway Tour or join our Insiders program for access to the most off limits places with curated behind-the-scenes events on a weekly basis. 20% off yearly membership at untappedcities.com/podcast20

We delve into one of our favorite New York City secrets: the champagne and wine vaults inside the Brooklyn Bridge. If you haven't heard of this delicious tidbit, you're in for a ride through a bygone New York. If you do know about it, Michelle and Justin from Untapped New York are sharing additional insider secrets about this subject that are not publicly known, or have ever been written about. Cheers! 

(01:25) Brooklyn Bridge

Music by Kittens Ablaze. 

If you love to go behind the scenes and into NYC's' most hidden and secret places, jump onto some of our most exciting tours like the Gilded Age Mansions of Fifth Avenue, the Secrets of Grand Central, or our Underground Subway Tour or join our Insiders program for access to the most off limits places with curated behind-the-scenes events on a weekly basis. 20% off yearly membership at untappedcities.com/podcast20

A conversation between Michelle Young, Untapped New York's founder and Justin Rivers, our Chief Experience Officer, about Michelle's newest book, The Art Spy: The Extraordinary Untold Tale of WWII Resistance Hero Rose Valland. Michelle and Justin delve into who Rose Valland was and the brave things she did, the story of Jewish art dealer Paul Rosenberg and his family, which allowed Michelle to write about her first love, New York City, and Rosenberg's clients including characters like Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse. There’s also a wild World’s Fair connection in the book. 

Music by Kittens Ablaze. Additional music by Mykola Sosin from Pixabay.

If you love to go behind the scenes and into NYC's' most hidden and secret places, jump onto some of our most exciting tours like the Gilded Age Mansions of Fifth Avenue, the Secrets of Grand Central, or our Underground Subway Tour or join our Insiders program for access to the most off limits places with curated behind-the-scenes events on a weekly basis. 20% off yearly membership at untappedcities.com/podcast20