Bleecker Street is an east–west street inLower Manhattan,New York City. It is most famous today as aGreenwich Villagenightclub district. The street connects a neighborhood popular today for music venues andcomedy as well as an importantcenter ofLGBT history andculture andbohemian tradition. The street is named after the family name ofAnthony Lispenard Bleecker, a banker, the father ofAnthony Bleecker, a 19th-century writer, through whose family farm the street once ran.

Bleecker Street connectsAbingdon Square (the intersection ofEighth Avenue andHudson Street) in theWest Village, to theBowery in theEast Village andNoHo.

Bleecker Street was named by and after theBleecker family because the street ran through the family's farm.^[1] In 1808,Anthony Lispenard Bleecker and his wife deeded to the city a major portion of the land on which Bleecker Street sits.^[2]

Originally Bleecker Street extended from Bowery to Broadway, along the north side of the Bleecker farm, later as far west asSixth Avenue. In 1829 it was joined with Herring Street, extending Bleecker Street north-northwest to Abingdon Square.

LeRoy Place is the former name of a block of Bleecker Street between Mercer and Greene Streets. This was where the first palatial "winged residences" were built. The effect was accomplished by making the central houses taller and closer to the street, while the other houses on the side were set back. The central buildings also had bigger, raised entrances and lantern-like roof projections. The houses were built by Isaac A. Pearson, on both sides of Bleecker Street. To set his project apart from the rest of the area, Pearson convinced the city to rename this block of the street after the prominent international trader Jacob LeRoy.^[3][4][5][6]

Bleecker Street is served by the4, ​6, <6>​, B, ​D, ​F, <F>, and ​M trains atBleecker Street/Broadway–Lafayette Street station. The1 and ​2 trains serve theChristopher Street–Sheridan Square station one block north of Bleecker Street.

No bus route runs on Bleecker Street. The following routes intersect with it:

• M20 at Hudson Street/8th Avenue uptown and 7th Avenue South downtown.
• M8 at West 10th Street eastbound and Christopher Street westbound.
• M55 at 6th Avenue uptown and Broadway downtown.
• Full-routeM1 trips at Lafayette Street uptown and Broadway downtown.
• M103 at Bowery.

Traffic on the street is one-way, going southeast. In early December 2007, abicycle lane was marked on the street.

• Bayard–Condict Building
• Bleecker Sitting Area^[7] contains a sculpture byChaim Gross and won aVillage Award.^[8]
• Bleecker Street Cinema, closed in 1991
• Lynn Redgrave Theater, formerly known as Bleecker Street Theater
• The Little Red Schoolhouse, one of the nation's first progressive schools, on the corner of 6th Avenue and Bleecker Street
• Our Lady of Pompeii Church, Carmine Street
• Overthrow, aboxing club, is located at 9 Bleecker Street, in the former home of theYouth International Party (Yippie)^[9][10]
• Mills House No. 1 at 160 Bleecker Street was planned to be designated as an official landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1967, but the owner's lawyer objected.^[11]
• The Silver Towers at 100 Bleecker Street are home toNew York University faculty housing.

In addition, there are severalFederal architecture-style row houses at 7 to 13 and 21 to 25 Bleecker Street on easternmost block of Bleecker Street, inNoHo between Lafayette Street and the Bowery.^[12] 21 and 29 Bleecker Street were also once the home of theNational Florence Crittenton Mission, providing a home for "fallen women". 21 Bleecker Street's entrance now bears the lettering "Florence Night Mission", described byThe New York Times in 1883 as "a row of houses of the lowest character".^[13][14] TheNational Florence Crittenton Mission was an organization established in 1883 byCharles N. Crittenton. It attempted to reform prostitutes and unwed pregnant women through the creation of establishments where they were to live and learn skills.

The building at 58 Bleecker Street (formerly 64 Bleecker Street) was built in 1823 forJames Roosevelt, great-grandfather of presidentFranklin Delano Roosevelt. It was there thatElizabeth Blackwell, America's first female physician, established a clinic with her sister Emily.^[15]

Across the street from the former home of theNational Florence Crittenton Mission is both the headquarters ofPlanned Parenthood, and the Catholic Sheen Center, immediately adjacent to it. Bleecker Street now features theMargaret Sanger Square, at the intersection withMott Street. Bleecker Street was the original home of Sanger's Birth Control Clinical Research Bureau, operated from another building from 1930 to 1973. The street features in the 2020drama filmNever Rarely Sometimes Always, written and directed byEliza Hittman.

• The Bitter End at 147 Bleecker Street
• Cafe Au Go Go was in the basement of theNew Andy Warhol Garrick Theatre (in the 1960s) at 152 Bleecker Street
• (Le) Poisson Rouge at 158 Bleecker Street
• The Village Gate was at 160 Bleecker Street

• John's of Bleecker Street, famouspizzeria established in 1929
• Kesté, highly ratedNeapolitan-style pizzeria established in 2009
• Quartino Bottega Organica, or "Quartino" for short, at 11 Bleecker Street, closed in 2021 to be converted into a single-family home. It was one of the favorite restaurants ofDavid Bowie, who lived on Mulberry Street.

• TheCBGB club, which closed in 2006, was located at the east end of Bleecker Street, onBowery
• Bleecker Bob's record shop started at 149 Bleecker street

• James Agee lived at 172 Bleecker Street, above Cafe Espanol (1941–1951)
• John Belushi lived at 376 Bleecker Street (1975)
• Mykel Board
• Peter Cunningham (photographer) and artist Ara Fitzgerald at 21 Bleecker Street^[16]
• Robert De Niro grew up on Bleecker Street
• PhotographerRobert Frank and artistJune Leaf at 7 Bleecker Street
• Glen Hansard lived at 21 Bleecker Street^[17]
• Mariska Hargitay
• Lorraine Hansberry (1953–1960)^[18]
• Alicia Keys
• Dua Lipa at 21 Bleecker Street (2019–2020)
• Herman Melville lived at 33 Bleecker Street as a boy.^[19]
• Cookie Mueller lived at 285 Bleecker Street, above Ottomanelli's (1976–1989)^[20]
• Thomas Paine (1737–1809) lived at 293 Bleecker briefly in 1808–1809 (Conway, Life of Thomas Paine, vol. 2, p. 408
• Jeweler and Sculptor Jill Platner lives and works at 58 Bleecker^[21]
• Craig Rodwell lived at 350 Bleecker Street (1968–1993), from which he organized New York's firstgay pride parade.^[22]
• James Roosevelt (1760–1847) at 58 Bleecker Street^[23]
• Edward Thebaud
• Mark Van Doren
• Jean-Claude van Itallie lived at 21 Bleecker Street
• Gernot Wagner^[24]
• Dave Winer

• Valenti Angelo's 1949 novelThe Bells of Bleecker Street is set in the Italian American community in that neighborhood.
• Nobel laureateDerek Walcott wrote a poem about Bleecker Street entitled "Bleecker Street, Summer".
• InMarvel Comics, 177A Bleecker Street is the location ofDoctor Strange'sSanctum Sanctorum.
• "The Repairer of Reputations"—the first short story inRobert W. Chambers 1895 collectionThe King in Yellow—includes a storyline featuring anarmourer on Bleecker Street.

• TheKate & Allie television show from the 1980s depicted two single mothers living on Bleecker in a basement apartment.
• In the originalTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie from 1990, the corner of 11th and Bleecker is whereApril O'Neil lives and runs her father's old antique store known as The Second Time Around.
• Much of the filmNo Reservations (2007), starringCatherine Zeta-Jones andAaron Eckhart, is set in a restaurant on the corner of Bleecker and Charles Streets. The name of their fictitious restaurant is 22 Bleecker.
• InThe WB seriesWhat I Like About You, Holly and Valerie live in an apartment on Bleecker Street.
• The Matthews family inGirl Meets World live near Bleecker Street and frequent the Bleecker subway station.
• New Andy Warhol Garrick Theatre (in the 1960s) at 152 Bleecker Street.
• Akin to the comics, theNew York Sanctum is located on 177A Bleecker Street in theMarvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). It appeared in the filmsDoctor Strange (2016),Thor: Ragnarok (2017),Avengers: Infinity War (2018),Avengers: Endgame (2019),Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), andDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022); as well as theDisney+ seriesLoki (2021).
• In the 2002 filmGangs of New York, there is a scene where a man mentions Bleecker Street whilst singing the sea shantyNew York Girls.
• Bleecker Street, a film distribution company, is named after the street.^[25]
• The corner of Bleecker and Mott Streets, site ofPlanned Parenthood features in the 2020 drama filmNever Rarely Sometimes Always, written and directed byEliza Hittman.

• Gian-Carlo Menotti wrote an operaThe Saint of Bleecker Street
• Simon & Garfunkel wrote the song "Bleecker Street", released on their albumWednesday Morning, 3 A.M..
• Japanese pop starAyumi Hamasaki visited Bleecker Street during recording of her(Miss)understood album. The pictures were later published in Hamasaki's famous "Deji Deji Diary" that is published in each issue ofViVi Magazine.^[26]
• Iggy Pop discusses dying on Bleecker Street in his song "Punk Rocker".
• "Growing Old on Bleecker Street" is a song featured on American pop trioAJR's debut album,Living Room.
• "Downtown Bleecker" is a modern instrumental jazz piece for saxophone which appears on the digital EPMidnight Sun, produced by independent artist Simon Edward.
• "Country Boy and Bleecker Street" is a song which appears on the 1967 albumH.P. Lovecraft, by the folk-rock bandH.P. Lovecraft.
• Fred Neil has mentioned Bleecker Street in multiple works in his carrier, most notably in two of his album covers.
• Peter Paul and Mary mentioned Bleecker Street in their song "Freight Train" on the albumIn the Wind
• Joni Mitchell mentioned Bleecker Street in her song "Tin Angel" on her 1969 albumClouds, and later in "Song for Sharon" on the albumHejira.
• Lloyd Cole mentioned Bleecker Street in his song "What Do You Know About Love?" on his 1990 albumLloyd Cole
• "77 Bleeker Street" is a song byJill Jones, written, composed and produced byPrince. It was a b-side to the single "Mia Bocca" from the albumJill Jones.
• Paolo Nutini mentioned Bleecker Street in his song "Better Man" on his 2014 albumCaustic Love.
• Marcy Playground's 1997 song "The Vampires of New York" alludes to the more sordid aspects of the street's history.
• Connor Oberst ofBright Eyes mentions Bleeker Street in their 2024 single "Bells and Whistles"
• The New Pornographers mention Bleecker Street (and Broadway) in their song "Myriad Harbour"

• A bar named "Bleecker Street Lounge" is open in theDisney Hotel New York – The Art of Marvel atDisneyland Paris since its themed reopening of June 21, 2021.^[27]
• There is a character fromDimension 20'sThe Unsleeping City, The GreatDragon of Bleecker Street, that is named after this street.^[28]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toBleecker Street.

• Forgotten New York
• New York Songlines: Bleecker Street
• Downtown Bleecker : Instrumental Jazz

• Bleecker family
• East Village, Manhattan
• Entertainment districts in New York (state)
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