New York Facts

If Manhattan had the same population density as Alaska, only about 30 people would live there.

There are more than 10 million bricks in the Empire State Building!

If NYC were its own country, and the NYPD was its army, it would be the twentieth-best-funded army in the world, just behind Greece and just ahead of North Korea.

When he was 7, Vin Diesel and some friends broke into a New York theater with intentions to vandalize it. Instead of calling the police, the theater’s artistic director handed them scripts and offered them parts in the upcoming show. This became Diesel’s first acting role.

There's a man named Raffi Stepanian who mines diamonds and gold from New York City sidewalks, making over $600 in one week.

Carlos Vasquez, a dry cleaner in New York, has a sign outside his shop that reads: If you are unemployed and need an outfit clean for an interview, we will clean it for free.

New York City has approximately 27,000 restaurants. If you visited a different one every single day, it would take you nearly 74 years to try them all—and that's assuming none of them closed or opened while you were eating your way through.

Instead of McDonald's tearing down a ~230-year-old Georgian mansion, citizens of a small NY town forced them to renovate it instead, resulting in a uniquely historic franchise location.

During the 2022 Buffalo blizzard, Jay Withey knocked on 10 doors begging for shelter. All 10 said no. He smashed a window at Pine Hill School and guided 24 stranded strangers inside. He found cereal in the cafeteria and gym mats for beds. Before leaving, he left a note: "I'm terribly sorry about the window. I had to save everyone. Merry Christmas, Jay." Police put out a call to find him. Not to arrest him. To thank him.

Muhammad has been the most popular baby boy's name in England for two years running.

When the towers fell on September 11, the Coast Guard put out one call on marine radio: all available boats. Ferry captains turned mid-route. Tugboat operators dropped everything. Fishing boats, private yachts, dinner cruises - hundreds showed up. In nine hours, they evacuated nearly 500,000 people by water. The largest maritime evacuation in history. Larger than Dunkirk, which took nine days.

Five train cars passed over Wesley Autrey while he shielded a stranger on the subway tracks. His two daughters, ages 4 and 6, watched from the platform. From under the train he shouted: "Let my daughters know their father's okay."