Shawn Ryan: Big Fists, Bigger Smile

NEW YORK, May 14, 2009 — When Shawn Ryan talks about boxing a small smirk kicks in.

He can’t smile too much. He’s supposed to be serious. And if his boss catches him talking to people about anything more than directions to Starbucks, he’s in for an exasperating conversation.

But standing in front of the Empire State Building for 10 hours a day watching crowds of people slide in-and-out through revolving doors is tiresome, and boxing is the one thing that keeps him sane.

“I like boxing,” he said. “As a teen, my uncle used to box, so I picked it up from him.”

Growing up he adored his uncle Steph – kept him off drugs, Ryan says.

But his childhood days of hunching over the bottom of the ring and sticking his head under the ropes to watch him box are long gone.

Each day Ryan, 35, shows up to greet people as they walk into the Empire State Building. Decked in a maroon suit and cap, he could easily be mistaken for a Buckingham Palace guard thanks to his professionally-trained straight face.

Like most doormen at the Empire State Building, he stands tall with his hands folded behind his body and his vision concentrated, staring into the distance.

But he’s much friendlier than a Buckingham guard. His smile gives him away. He’s more approachable, more personable.

A visitor approaches the revolving doors. Ryan turns his head to offer a slight nod and complimentary smile of approval.

Several groups stop to ask directions.

“The Strawberry store?” he asks three women to repeat, bending down to their level. “Yep, right over there.”

Then when they leave he hides his smile and snaps his straight face back on.

Until the next person comes to ask for directions.

“Excuse me, I’m looking for such-and-such a store?”

“Just around the corner to the right,” he says, stepping forward, leaning over and sticking his arm out to point the way.

And he always laughs at meaningless name-dropping jokes from people who know someone who knows someone who knows someone who works inside the Empire State Building.

He wants to make sure everyone feels welcome. That’s part of his job, and he takes pride in it.

But not everyone’s a pleasant customer. There are plenty of rolled eyes.

“All the time,” he says.

Sometimes he must ask people to move along and smoke somewhere else.

“They get pissed off,” Ryan says. “They don’t really say much, but they’re actions…”

It’s not all that bad, though.

“I’m used to it,” he says. “They don’t bother me.”

When he’s not dealing with angry locals and confused tourists, nothing makes his face light up like boxing, even if it’s just for a moment.

And if you can convince him to roll up his sleeve you’ll noticed a pair of boxing gloves engraved on his left shoulder.

Now, that tattoo is the only thing he has left to hold onto boxing.

“Never really played sports,” Ryan said. “Wasn’t ever good at basketball, baseball, those sports.”

But he was decent at boxing. He trained for three years earlier in his life, but eventually the pressures of school and work pulled him out of the ring permanently.

“I went for the Golden Gloves, but I chickened out,” he said. “I had too much going on.”

That’s where being a doorman at the Empire State Building comes in handy. It has its advantages. Special privileges, if you must, assuming he keeps it professional.

Ryan’s been able to greet all kinds of celebrities, like Michael Jordan, Hillary Duff and his favorite of all, Ukrainian boxer Wladimir Klitschko.

The best day of Ryan’s life might just have been when he greeted Klitschko as the hulky 6’6” boxer walked through the doors of the Empire State Building.

“He’s the champ,” Ryan says. “I never got to become a boxer, so to see the champ was cool…That’s the only boxer I met up front and got to shake his hand.”

Klitschko, known as Dr. Steel Hammer in the ring, won a gold medal at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta for taking first place in the super-heavyweight division. He also has an older brother, Vitali, known as Dr. Iron Fist, who is another accomplished boxer. Together they hold an 89-5 career record.

“I would love to go to a boxing match,” says Ryan, who has never been to a professional boxing match before. He plans to attend the next one at the Madison Square Garden.

Who knows if that will ever happen. But in Shawn’s area of town at the Empire State Building you can count on two things: He will be there to greet you every time you walk through the revolving doors and he’ll always crack a smile at the mention of boxing.