R.I.P. Joe Ades
I came across a New York Times obituary in my RSS feeds today. It was for a man named Joe Ades. Ades was a salesman who demonstrated his wares on the streets of New York City. What did he sell? Potato peelers. You read that right. He sold potato peelers.
I had seen Ades selling his peelers in several locations throughout the city in my years working there. I remember seeing him regularly in the six months I managed to hold my first real job on 42nd street on the east side in the early 90s. He demonstrated his product thoroughly and wouldn’t stop talking. He would do things with this peeler that most people wouldn’t think of. He was as much a performer as he was a salesman.
Anyone who has spent any time in the city has at one time or another chanced upon Ades a time or two. He was as much part of the city as any landmark. He will be missed.
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