In a place where nobody stands still for long, John Galanopoulos has no desire to move.
For 40 years, he has stood on 46th and Broadway, selling hot dogs to the tourists and workers who cross the Crossroads of the World every day.
"I'm here and I'm gonna try to stay here as much as I can," Galanopoulos said.
His parents first operated the cart here. Galanopoulos began joining them 40 years ago, when he was 14. He had only been in the U.S. a few years after emigrating from Greece. He barely spoke English.
"It was kind of hard to catch up with the other kids and I was feeling a little weird," Galanopoulos explained.
Soon, he was working full-time in the not-so-friendly Times Square of the early 1980s. Several times, he said, he had to stay overnight to prevent a rival vendor from taking his spot.
"I had to be here all night," Galanopoulos recalled. "I said, 'guys, this is my corner. I'm staying here so you guys got to find a different location.'"
As he stuck it out, he saw his location become more valuable, as Times Square transformed into an urban Disney World.
"Now I think it's better, business-wise because more tourism, more people come to town," Galanopoulos said.
Galanopoulos' day starts before most people can even think about eating a hot dog.
After commuting from New Jersey, he gets his cart from 39th Street and 11th Avenue at around 8 in the morning and pushes it to Times Square, now with the help of a little engine.
"I used to push for 20, 25 years," Galanopoulos said. "See, I'm kind of built up doing exercise, but lately I decided to put the motor because I'm getting old."
He's entitled to the location under an honor system adopted by all the vendors. He says he sells about $300 worth of food a day, everything from pretzels to sodas.
As for his dogs, they're flavored using a secret recipe he's perfected over the years.
"A little lemon, a little vinegar, i cannot tell you everything," he said. "Hey, some customers say 'I’m addicted to it. I got to have it every day.'"
Some of those of customers are now his friends.
"He came to my kid's bar mitzvah. I went to his daughter's wedding," long-time customer Kevin Zavian said.
Galanopoulos said his son and son-in-law will eventually take over the cart. Just not yet.
"I feel like it's my house," he said as he looked around Times Square. "Everything has changed around me. There used to be a Howard Johnson's here. Knock it down. New building. I guess I'm still here."