The Big Apple: “Happiness lies in our own backyard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass”

A plaque remaining from the Big Apple Night Club at West 135th Street and Seventh Avenue in Harlem.

Above, a 1934 plaque from the Big Apple Night Club at West 135th Street and Seventh Avenue in Harlem. Discarded as trash in 2006. Now a Popeyes fast food restaurant on Google Maps.

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Above, Big Apple Corner at 54th Street and Broadway in Manhattan. Google Maps.

Above, John J. Fitz Gerald, from the Aug. 15, 1931, Binghamton (NY) Press, pg. 14.

Listen to Robert Emmerich introduce "The Big Apple," a hit song from 1937. Music written by Bob and performed by Tommy Dorsey's Clambake Seven with Bob on piano. Lyrics written by Buddy Bernier and sung by Edythe Wright. Audio provided by Dorothy Emmerich.

Also listen to a 1937 "The Big Apple" song by Ozzie Nelson and his Orchestra. See a 1929 photo of John J. Fitz Gerald and a 1931 photo of John J. Fitz Gerald.

This site is edited by Barry Popik.

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Entry from March 18, 2015

“Happiness lies in our own backyard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass”

"Happiness lies in our own backyard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass” is a jocular quotation that has been printed on several posters. The quotation has been cited in print since at least 1981, when Reader’s Digest credited it to Dell Crossword Puzzles.

Google Books
The Reader’s Digest
Volume 119
1981
Pg. 120:
HAPPINESS lies in our own back yard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass.
-- Dell Crossword Puzzles

14 October 1981, Daily Sitka Sentinel (Sitka, AK), “Kryptogram from Katlian,” pg. 2, col. 1:
Happiness lies in our own back yard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass.
Dell Puzzles

Twitter
LoriMoreno
‏@LoriMoreno
“Happiness lies in our own backyard, but it is probably well hidden by crabgrass."Dell Crossword Puzzles #lorimoreno #quote
11:44 AM - 24 May 2009

Twitter
TheHappinessRetreat
‏@TheHappyRetreat
#Happiness lies in our own backyard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass - Anonymous http://ow.ly/i/41R8D
5:30 AM - 17 Dec 2013

Google Books
Seeds of Revolution:
A Collection of Axioms, Passages and Proverbs, Volume 2
By Iam A. Freeman
Bloomington, IN: iUniverse LLC
2014
Pg. 433:
Happiness lies in our own backyard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass. ~Anonymous

Jspace News
March 18, 2015
Parsha Vayikrah: Taking Nothing for Granted
By: Rabbi Mendy Wolf
(...)
There’s an old adage that goes “happiness lies in our own backyard, but it’s probably well hidden by crabgrass.” We’ve all been down that road before, and often it takes an outsider to point out to us the incredible things we possess. However, we don’t necessarily have to wait for that to happen; we can get there on our own.

Posted by Barry Popik
New York City • Buildings/Housing/Parks • Wednesday, March 18, 2015 • Permalink