Brooklyn Public Library
















  in  
Text Size
Home > Explore a Topic: Brighton Beach
Explore a Topic: Brighton Beach
Introduction

The Brooklyn Collection presents a selection of resources on Brighton Beach, developed in the 1870s. The land was originally a part of the town of Gravesend.

Internet Links
Brighton Beach
Sponsored by the Brighton Neighborhood Association, this website presents stories, photos and essays on life in Brighton Beach.
Brooklyn Home Page
Click on Neighborhoods and then Brighton Beach to see photographs of the area and the Brighton Beach Hotel.
Brooklyn Home Page. 1010 President Street
The Brighton Beach Line Postcard of the line plus a short history of what was then called the Brooklyn Flatbush and Coney Island Line
Brooklyn’s Brighton Line
This is part of the greater website www.nycsubway.org which features the development of the subway, the stations, subway cars, etc. It gives the history of the BMT Brighton Line which began service on July 2, 1878 as the Brooklyn, Flatbush, and Coney Island Railroad, between Prospect Park and the Brighton Beach Hotel as a surface steam railroad. The Brighton Beach Hotel was owned by the railway.
Congressman Anthony Weiner
Congressman Weiner represents areas of Queens and Brooklyn, including Brighton Beach
The Big Map
This site features a map of Brooklyn where you can click on the various neighborhoods, including Brighton Beach, for a selection of recent photographs. The URL below brings you directly to Brighton Beach.
The Brooklyn Board Photo Gallery
Three photos of Brighton Beach, plus other interesting photos of the borough.
The Village Voice – New York City Life
Article written May, 2005 describing aspects of life at Brighton Beach

Articles & Databases
Brooklyn Daily Eagle September 12 1878
Brooklyn Daily Eagle July 17 1902
Brooklyn Daily Eagle March 19 1879
Brooklyn Daily Eagle July 23, 1879
Brooklyn Daily Eagle July 5 1879
Brooklyn Daily Eagle September 1 1889
Brooklyn Daily Eagle April 3 1888
Brooklyn Daily Eagle April 28 1879
Brooklyn Daily Eagle September 15 1889
Brooklyn Daily Eagle September 17 1878

Print Resources
Biloxi Blues
Neil Simon
The sequel to Brighton Beach Memoirs follows Eugene and his fellow recruits through basic training at an army base in Biloxi, Mississippi in 1943.
Brighton Beach Memoirs
Neil Simon
A semi-autobiographical play, set in Brighton Beach in 1937, about the life of young Eugene Jerome.
Broadway Bound
Neil Simon
Third volume of author's autobiographical trilogy of plays finds Eugene trying to break into television as a comedy writer as he watches his parent's deteriorating marriage.
Gravesend, The Home of Coney Island
Eric J. Ierardi
A journey through the history of Gravesend, from its founding by Lady Deborah Moody in the 1640s to the present. It includes information the resort areas of Coney Island, Manhattan Beach and Brighton Beach.
Little Odessa
Joseph Koenig
This 1994 novel tells the story of Joshua, a professional killer, who returns home to his Brighton Beach family, for a "job." As he encounters the pain of his dysfunctional family, his emotional defenses are torn away and he is left to face that what he loves is gone from him forever.
The Neighborhoods of Brooklyn c.2004
Kenneth Jackson and John Manbeck
An invaluable introduction to Brooklyn’s many neighborhoods, with an illustrated chapter on each, including Brighton Beach. Includes a map, a neighborhood profile and neighborhood facts.

FAQs

More Information
Neil Simon
A semi-autobiographical play, set in Brighton Beach in 1937, about the growing pains of Eugene Jerome.
Neil Simon
A video recording of the third volume of author's autobiographical trilogy of plays, following Brighton Beach memoirs and Biloxi blues.
MGM
The film,adapted by Terrence McNally from his own play "Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune" and filmed at Brighton Beach, stars Al Pacino and Michele Pfeiffer. Johnny has just been released from prison, and gets a job in a cafe beside waitress Frankie. Frankie is a bit of a loner, but Johnny is determined their romance will blossom.
Robert Tanenbaum
Tanenbaum's explosive legal thriller involving politics and criminal justice has been recorded for audio.
Warner Bros film, 1991
A cop,angry that his old neighborhood has been turned into a war zone by a boyhood adversary, sets out on a quest for justice. Stars Steven Seagal, William Forsythe and Jerry Orbach. Rated "R"