In the basement of Hill Country, a barbecue joint in the Flatiron district in Manhattan, Lester Holt, the NBC News anchor, struggled to recall the name of a musician popular in his youth. His face crumpled into a frown of concentration as he sang to himself: “Day-o, a day-o.” He shook his head softly and said, “I’ve totally run a blank here.”

Mr. Holt tried again: “Tally man, tally me banana.” He failed again. “I can’t think of his name,” he added, before returning to the chorus, “Day-o, day-o.” Suddenly his features relaxed as the name came to him. “Harry Belafonte,” he said, and took another stab at his mac ’n’ cheese.

It was late afternoon on the last Sunday in June, and all of New York City was consumed by Pride celebrations. Outside, the streets were jammed with overheated cops and underdressed revelers.