Photo courtesy of Kate Kaminsky
Food, Fast
The New York City grocery delivery service
1520, which promises deliveries in 20 minutes
or less, announced it has expanded its reach
to Astoria.
In addition to Astoria, 1520 delivers
groceries to Queens residents in Long
Island City, Sunnyside, Steinway and parts
of Woodside.
The company was founded in January
of 2021 on the Upper East Side. Oleg
Shevlyagin, the founder of 1520, said he and
his team started their own company after
they worked on expanding instant delivery
services in Europe.
“We decided to leverage our experience
to create 1520 together,” Shevlyagin said.
“Because New York is one of the most
populated cities in the world, and people tend
to be too busy to grocery shop, it made sense
to begin our launch here to meet the needs of
the sophisticated NYC consumer.”
1520 guarantees delivery in 20 minutes or
less for free or your money back. The company
is able to complete deliveries so quickly by
having non-commercial stores around the city
where they hold all the products they offer.
Their team is able to hand-pick items and
deliver them to the customers via bike.
“In comparison, other grocery delivery
services typically have someone ‘shop’ your
order in an existing supermarket, which takes
longer,” Shevlyagin said.
The company’s average delivery time is
11 minutes. 1520 also just launched a new
ready-to-eat category offering artisan wraps,
sandwiches, soups and more.
Shevlyagin wanted to expand into
Astoria because of its fast-growing, wellpopulated
area.
“We continue to grow rapidly and are
looking to further expand the areas where
our service is available,” Shevlyagin said.
“We are excited to expand our services to
additional parts of NYC, as well as other
cities across the U.S.”
22 SEPTEMBER 2 0 2 1
EXPLORE YOUR BORO
Legends of LIC
Marching Down 34th Avenue
IBY GREATER ASTORIA HISTORICAL SOCIETY n 1942, the U.S. Army began production
at the Astoria Studios,
renamed the Signal Corp Photographic
Center and later the Army
Pictorial Center. In the months after
Pearl Harbor, the studio filled a
major need for expanded production
capability required to speed the training
of millions of soldiers and those
engaged in wartime industries. It was
the home to filmmakers and still photographers
who covered the war and
who produced countless training films.
It was also the training facility for
a generation who would command
the entertainment industry during the
dawn of television over the following
decades.
The Army remained at the facility until
1970 when it was returned to civilian
use, starting a decade-long process
toward the creation of today’s special
Kaufman Arts District. National Archives
and Records Administration holds all of
the films from Kaufman Astoria Studios
during this period.
Sidney J. Pollack (not the film director
Sydney I. Pollack), who served as an
enlisted man at the facility from August
1943 to February 1946, called the historical
society about 15 years ago to see
if we could arrange for a tour of the former
Pictorial Center. We placed a call to
the Kaufman Astoria Studios president,
Hal Rosenbluth, who graciously invited
Pollack and me for a behind-the-scenes
tour of the modern facility.
During the guided tour, Pollack, who
had worked at a number of positions as
script clerk, assistant director, assistant
cameraman, assistant film editor and
assistant to the executive producer, still
knew his way around the studio. For
example, he pointed out the anechoic
chamber, a room designed to completely
absorb reflections and mask the
slightest sound from the outside. It was
interesting to see his reactions upon
stepping through the older stages, as
well as the recent space.
A special part of the experience was
that Pollack shared stories with me and
the guide.
Pollack said that several times a week,
they were required to do PT (exercise)
drills. They would assemble on 34th
Avenue to march in unison down to the
East River, then do an about face, and
immediately march up 34th Avenue
back to the studios. During this exercise
on one occasion, the students at
P.S. 166, who were on break, suddenly
lined up like troops for inspection, saluting
the real soldiers as they marched
past the students. He said the guys at
the Army Pictorial Center loved it. Rumor
had it that a writer at the studio,
Mel Brooks, had bribed the kids to
stand at attention when the real soldiers
marched by.
On another occasion, when they were
recording a film on dental hygiene, the
Army dentist randomly selected one of
the grips to sit in the chair as a patient.
Following the instructions of the officer
to open his mouth like a real examination,
the Army dentist exclaimed, “You
have cavities! I can fill them now while
they shoot the film” — which he promptly
did!
Sidney Pollock discharged with the
rank of Technician Third Grade, was
subsequently commissioned as a First
Lieutenant, put into a reserve unit, recalled
to active duty in 1951, and became
management officer of the Yokohama
Signal Depot. He was discharged
with the rank of Captain in 1962.
Sidney asked if we could keep in
touch once a year so he could stay up
to date on the studios. The calls were
always a treat with his endless stories
of his days at the studios and in service
to our country. A few years ago, when
I called, his wife shared the news that
he passed. I assured her that her late
husband’s service to our country will be
remembered.
BY JULIA MORO
Greater Astoria Historical Society
44-02 23RD ST. #219
LONG ISLAND CITY, NY 11101
INFO@ASTORIALIC.ORG / WWW.ASTORIALIC.ORG
718-278-0700
Photo courtesy of Greater Astoria Historical Society
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/WWW.ASTORIALIC.ORG
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