The Church of St. Paul the Apostle Church of St. Paul the Apostle 8-10 Columbus Avenue New York, NY 10019 * Google Maps street view Slimed Pay Phone Formerly on W. 59th Street, at corner with Columbus/9th Avenue * Google Maps street view pointed to 910 9th Avenue (apt in bg)

History - written by church staff
On January 4, 1876 the cornerstone for the Church of St. Paul the Apostle was laid, and so began the construction of the Mother Church of the Paulist Fathers. The church was the fulfillment of the ideals and hopes of Father Hecker, who dreamed of building a noble basilica that would combine the artistic ideals of the past, with the American genius of his day. After visiting and studying noted European churches, he communicated his ideas to the architect Jeremiah O'Rourke who drew up the plans for the present building. Father George Deshon, one of the original Paulists, and a West Point engineer, later took over as architect-in-charge and brought the church to completion in January 1885.

Inspired by the 4th & 5th century early Christian basilicas in Ravenna, Italy, the church is 284 feet long, 121 feet wide, and 114 feet to the highest point of the towers, which are 38 feet square. The grand exterior of the church reflects 13 th century Old Gothic. To decorate and beautify the interior of St. Paul's, Father Hecker engaged the eminent American artists John LaFarge, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Lumen Winter, Stanford White, and later, William Laurel Harris. Their combined majestic artwork can be seen throughout the church in its beautiful stained glass windows, murals, and sculptures...

The church also contains a world-class organ. This fine instrument, replacing an earlier Skinner organ, was constructed in 1965 by the M.P. Moller Company, and restored by the Peragallo Pipe Organ Company in 2000. It has 4 manuals, 82 ranks, 78 stops, and 4965 pipes. The Moller organ has attracted many famous organists eager to play this fine instrument.

Fun Facts

• For more information, check out my Shot On Site article.
• Three blocks down the road is Lincoln Center, and Columbus Circle is very close by.
• The pay phone used to be on W. 59th St, a little bit in from the corner with Columbus/9th Avenue, with the back of the phone towards the street (59th) and the front of the phone towards the now-Starbucks.
• 59th Street is where 9th Avenue becomes Columbus and vice versa.
• The apartments in the background of the slimed phone shot are the Coliseum Park Apartments (the 910 9th Avenue side is seen in the movie). Built in 1957, along with the now-demolished New York Coliseum, this 14-story, two-winged red-brick complex has more than 500 apartments. (source: NY Songlines)

Outside Links

• Official Church of St. Paul the Apostle Website
• Fordham Observer: A Tour of The Church of St. Paul the Apostle (March 25, 2015)
• Yelp's Church Photo Gallery
• City Reality: Coliseum Park Apartments