David Simon on the Uniqueness of New York

Until recently, most of David Simon’s literary and television projects have been based in America’s less-gentrified cities. "Homicide: Life on the Streets" and "The Wire" took place in Baltimore, "Treme" in New Orleans and "Show Me a Hero" in the rarely celebrated town of Yonkers.

His newest, "The Deuce," about the legalization and popularization of pornography, takes place largely in Midtown Manhattan in the early 1970s. It is resplendent with wardrobe and hairstyles true to the period, and it is a portrait of a Times Square that is virtually unrecognizable next to the current one.

Simon doesn't necessarily subscribe to the nostalgia for a seedier New York that is hard to avoid in the city, but neither does he see any lessons in urbanism. "New York’s future is not indicative of a resolution to America’s urban problems," Simon tells CityLab, "[it] has metrics that other cities can’t replicate economically or culturally."

More than new police tactics or social programs, the mayors that presided over the city during its most transformative year—he names Ed Koch and Rudy Guiliani—"were able to money the city again," Simon said, referencing Baltimore’s attempt to adopt "broken windows" policing. 

Recognizing the cultural dilution that has come with a safer New York, Simon added, "Not that I’m rushing into Bubba Gump Shrimp in Times Square, but, hey, it’s tax base. I mean, I don’t mean to make fun. When stuff [like that] shows up in Baltimore, Maryland, I’m happy. I’ve watched my city lose 120,000 people. The idea that any business wants to come back in and start up—OK, welcome."