Guido and others report that Barry has passed away. We called and found out that Barry died suddenly last spring of a heart attack in his sleep, but his business partners are keeping the store open. "It was a shock to all of us," they say.
Reader tips us off to General Nitemare: "For those of you who've never been to General Nitemare, it's basically a storefront warehouse stuffed (literally) from ceiling to floor with old furniture that the owner, a quirky guy named Barry Jetter, refurbishes and refinishes. He's got some really nice stuff-- I think that I might go back there next week and buy a coffee table" (SH).
A little sleuthing around came up with these additional words: "Ask for just about anything, and the remarkable Jetter will fish it out of the crowded pile and personally refinish it for you. Among other items, I bought an affordable Heywood-Wakefield '40s vanity with a center glass slab, which he delivered to my place for free in his beat-up van. Plus, he threw in an antique eggbeater!" HC
The Village Voice: "Best Junk Shop 2004"
NY Daily News: Honorable mention for "Oldies but Goodies" shops in NYC 2004
ummm.... Barry passed away in the late spring.
I don't know what happened to his store, but it seemed to be a one man band kind of a place.
There was a terrific obit in the NYT that told about his parent's business, which was called General Nightware. They sold pajamas. The guy had a sense of humor....R.I.P.
Yeah, I was surprised to find the notice in the Times, it was an excellent piece. He'll be missed. But is the store actually still open? Maybe this should be checked out...it's off the beaten path so I wouldn't recommend sending people hiking down to Red Hook to gaze at a vacant storefront.
the store IS still open. barry partnered with some folks back in April and they have "rennovated" the store (ie, cleared the debris).
no telling yet whether it will be anything like the same General Nitemare, but there were a few good things there yesterday
Hi,
My namew is Angelo Castellano, owner of General Nitemare Antiques. Along with Barry and my other two partners, Rocco Castellano, and Ed Orr we began to transform General Nitemare to show off the treasures that were hidden. As you know, Barry was not with us long enough to enjoy this transformation, since he passed away June 2005. We, the remaining partners are committed to keeping Barry' s spirit and General Nitemare alive and in RED HOOK!!!! In any event please stop in when you are in the neighborhood and you can see some great and fun antiques and dont be surprised if you see some neighborhood regulars having coffee and you are welcome to join us.
Thanks again
Angelo Castellano