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Everything you need to know about Olde Tyme Barbers is in its name. Barbering midtown gents since 1945, this spot in the back of the Chanin Building—an Art Deco masterpiece cattycorner from the Chrysler Building—is outfitted with a quintet of century-old chairs in red leather and filigreed steel (a style currently in hot demand for wealthy bachelor lofts). The shop is in its third generation of scissoring by a family that received a superhero name change at Ellis Island. Says current boss Joe Magnetico, "This is a place for men to be men. We don't do frou-frou. We got Playboy and Penthouse on the magazine rack." It's also the place for signature precision cuts, like a straight-edge shave or "a haircut that don't look like a haircut, not that wet-behind-the-ears, Bazooka-chewin' look." The clientele of "three-quarters regulars" ranges from Grand Central execs, emulating underlings, and walk-ins who might introduce themselves as, "Mike from Brooklyn. Big Ralphie sent me." According to Magnetico, the shop's Lemon Massage—a citrus-scented pore-opening facial—is another favorite of "the big guys." — Karen Tina Harrison

Olde Tyme Barbers' round, black-rimmed wall clock is an ancient General Electric model that keeps excellent time despite a second hand that runs backwards. This clock once lorded it over the barbers in the Carlyle Hotel, where a private elevator behind the shop took client Joseph Kennedy, Sr. up to the suite of his mistress, Gloria Swanson.