With an iconic location comes a significant duty.
In Queens, a homeowner discovered that he had unintentionally acquired the legendary home of “Spider-Man” and Aunt May. Embracing his new role, he has become a guardian of this famed address and finds joy in receiving heartfelt letters from young fans of the superhero.
Three years ago, Jack Shi purchased the residence at 20 Ingram St. in Forest Hills without realizing its notable history. This was the fictional homestead of Peter Parker and Aunt May, a detail cherished by Spider-Man enthusiasts worldwide. Nestled in the picturesque Forest Hills, this multimillion-dollar property had long captured the attention of fans, even before the blockbuster “Brand New Day” hit cinemas.
“Visitors from Ireland, England, and Italy often come here, always eager to snap photos,” Shi shared with The Post. “Many Americans, too, recognize this as Spider-Man’s home.”
“Spider-Man encapsulates the spirit of America,” Shi reflected. “He stands as a symbol of heroism and inspiration.”
The 64-year-old Chinese native takes his part in the fanfare seriously since he bought the home three years ago at the height of the Tom Holland film franchise.
“I feel mild responsibility because Spider-Man, this is the American spirit. If I am living here, I should do as Spider-Man,” the dad of two added. “If someone wants to take a picture, I say yes.”
Shi added that kids from around the world write letters and draw pictures addressed to the Web Head that wind up at his home, which is labeled as “Spider-Man’s home” on Google Maps.
“Spider-Man, how do you do the things that you do like saving the world?” Julius from South Dakota penned in April.
“Can you come over to my house to play? We can watch TV together,” another letter a child named Cooper wrote not just to Spidey, but Deadpool as well.
The family of little Kannon in Nebraska even invited Spider-Man to the tyke’s 5th birthday party.
“This is where I wanted to live. It is an exciting place,” Shi said.
“[My neighbors], they are good people,” he added of the area by Union Turnpike and Metropolitan Avenue.
Nearby at Frank Torres’ residence, he’s also used to being asked “if my house was a Spider House” — even though the Holland films are set closer to the East River around Astoria and Long Island City.
“I’d say it happens a few times every time a movie comes out,” said Torres, a 76-year-old who’s called Ingram Street home for three decades.
He has been local for long enough to know that not only the address made it into Marvel lore, but the real residents as well.
“The people who lived here were Parkers,” added Torres, a retired detective. “The Parkers told me about it, and then they told me that, and it was very easy to figure out, that whoever wrote the story had to know the people.”
It wasn’t only the good guys who lived on Ingram Street.
Across the block, neighbor Terry Osborne’s surname is now synonymous with the evil Green Goblin, aka Norman Osborn, according to Torres.
Terry and his family, however, were anything but supervillains, the former cop said.
“They were extremely gracious and wonderful, and even his son would dress up as Santa Claus and would give gifts to the kids in the neighborhood,” added Torres.
“It was [a] comic book. So nobody really got mad at it.”