Old Mr. Flood — Joseph Mitchell

Originally published in the mid-1940s, 'Old Mr. Flood' is Joseph Mitchell's story of retired house wrecker Hugh G. Flood, a New Yorker determined to live to the age of 115 on a diet of fresh seafood, harbor air, and good Scotch. Mitchell created an unforgettable character in these stories of fish-eating, whiskey, death, and rebirth by combining aspects of several men who worked at or frequented Manhattan's famed Fulton Fish Market along the East River.