Few things brighten a walk on Main Street as much as seeing Roy Eaton, 91, then chatting in the warmth of his smile. Roy is back, the pandemic fading, and so is his music.
By David Stone
Roy was excited. He had news.
He’d just attended, he said, his 75th high school reunion. “On Zoom,” he added with a laugh about an event that brought the alumni of the school of Music and Art, now LaGuardia High School..
How many other 91 year olds do Zoom socially? I wondered.
Considering his barrier smashing careers in advertising and music made this less of a surprise than it might’ve been.
Roy Eaton, 91, on the flip side of the pandemic
Although we were in touch a couple times, by email, over the last year, and I knew he’d been well, it was refreshing, seeing him out on the street. The coronavirus kept so many his age indoors for so long.
But seeing his sunny personality unchanged, his optimism bright, was the strongest signal that we — New York City, Roosevelt Island — were back.
Last time, I talked with Roy was when I recorded a video of him playing a Bach Prelude in Bryant Park. 89 then, he resumed his annual gig there in the lunchtime piano series, two years after a stroke threatened to end his time at the keys.
Before he let me go, yesterday, he had another surprise for me.
“Save the date,” he said. “September 13th.”
That’s right. Although restrictions have kept Bryant Park from posting the schedule, this remarkable man, Roy Eaton, 91, will take his place in the rotation, again, bringing is gift of music to Midtown Manhattan.
More from the Roosevelt Island Daily
- Tuesday’s PSD blotter: noise calls, a harassment reportRIOC’s Nov. 10 PSD blotter lists 15 incidents, all on Main Street, including four noise complaints, a harassment report and one hospital transport.
- Queens Public Library Ransomware Attack: Digital Services Still DisruptedThe Queens Public Library ransomware attack continues to disrupt public computers, digital books and online services, with no confirmed restoration date.
- A new RIOC appeals officer denied records on how its general counsel was hiredA different RIOC appeals officer denied records on how RIOC hired general counsel Lance Polivy. RIOC’s internal deliberations on the hire stay withheld.
- Monday’s PSD blotter: two hospital transports, two disputesRIOC’s Nov. 9 PSD blotter lists 14 incidents, including four aided calls with two hospital transports and a verbal dispute at 750 Main Street that drew FDNY.
- Flushing Spa Murder: Man Charged After Woman Found Stabbed to DeathFlushing spa murder investigation leads to a murder charge against a 54-year-old man after a woman was found fatally stabbed in a Queens storefront.
The WIRE: Two Futures, One Empty Chair
It is December 6, 2015, and David Stone is writing to Dr. Jack Resnick about a chair that will soon be empty. Dick Lutz is preparing to leave the Main Street WIRE, and Stone has been encouraged to ask whether he might replace him. Seven years of covering art, Cornell Tech and questionable practices inside Public Safety have taught Stone how the paper tells an Island story.
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Mr. Roy Eaton is a Roosevelt Island treasure. Maybe a slightly slower gait, but he can still “strut” and moreso, also put out that good music. Bryant Park is a special spot for him but I would suspect and want to believe that Roosevelt Island is his real paradise. The entire Island should really appreciate him, I certainly do!
With you on all that, Dave.
Thanks for your beautiful article.The high school that I celebratedmy 75threnion on zoom Sunday was then called Music and Art and is now LaGuardia High School.I graduated in 1946!!
Thanks. I’ll correct that.