Checks Cashed is an old-school Amsterdam Avenue standby. Its name and purpose couldn’t be clearer, and its signage bares a treasure trove of defunct or now quaint corporate names that were once in common parlance.

For instance, at Checks Cashed, you can pay your New York Telephone bill, the sign tells you. (In the years since, New York Telephone has become NYNEX, Bell Atlantic, and now, for more than a decade, Verizon.)

What’s more, you can also settle your Paragon Cable bill here. (Time Warner anyone?) And even take care of your AT&T payment. Of course, AT&T really was Ma Bell back when this sign was crafted, and you were paying up the nose for long-distance calls. We’re not talking about AT&T the cell-phone company here.

Checks Cashed also offers a “Fax Service,” and you can play Keno, the “numbers,” and New York Lotto. Indeed, its facade and windows are adorned with a mix of New York Lottery logos.

Exterior wood paneling completes the retro look.

Find Checks Cashed on Amsterdam Avenue between West 82nd and 83rd streets.

Text and photos: Rolando Pujol

Follow @RolandoPujol

Note: This post was part of my “Hidden City” series on WNBC’s New York Nonstop. If you like New York history, check out some of the segments HERE.