What TV has taught is about New York City.....

[Yong Fang]

Since a lot of TV shows take place in New York City, I think it is interesting how much people who have never been to NYC might know, or think they know about NYC. If you have never been to NYC, state something you know from watching television. Then if you are from NYC or that area, which perceptions are right or wrong.

1. The two New York City jails are Rikers Island and The Tombs. Is it spelled "Tombs"? That is a scary name.

2. Convenience stores are called bodegas for some reason, usually ran by an immigrant from some country no one can find on a map.

3. The mental hospital is called Bellevue, which I first learned from Barney Miller as a child. Funny thing is that the largest Baptist church in town with a locally famous minister who had a TV show on Sundays was called Bellevue. Mental patients being sent to Bellevue to get saved by Jesus. Actually, there is a fascinating documentary about the real Bellevue Hospital in NYC and the people who work there and patients. Not hard to find.

4. Taxi drivers must have a "hack" or "hat" license to drive a cab. Which is it, hack or hat? One must have a medallion.

5. Everyone in NYC take cabs, unless they are poor, then they take the bus or subway. No one drives because there is nowhere to park (like George Costanza fighting over that parking place) Think of all the New York City TV characters of means who never drove a car. Honestly, I think that is the case. The rich have a private car service, the upper middle class takes taxis and the owner middle class and poor take public transport.

6. The rich people live in Manhattan. The really rich people live on Park Avenue or off of Central Park, in tall apartment buildings with a doorman that wears a silly soldier suit who has been working there 30 years making enough money opening doors for rich people and carrying crap for oldsters and lazy rich people to send three kids through college.

7. Middle class people live in Queens or commute from Long Island. The Bronx is the worst, most desolate part of town. Brooklyn is where the Italians and the Blacks live, and you have to be tough to live there and they all talk like Vinnie Barbarino. Then there are other places like Alphabet City, Bensonhurst, Chelsea, Park Slope, Morningside Heights, Williamsburg, Harlem. Uptown, downtown, midtown.

8. 1970's New York City was a dangerous, dirty city. Times Square was full of junkies, hookers and weirdoes and most of the stores were prono joints or nudie bars. Actually many aspects of 70s NYC looked fun, discos, clubs, films seen in large theaters.

9. 1990's-Now. New York City is the greatest city in the World, Times Square is cleaned up like Disneyland.

10. Sort of with 8. And 9. New York is either a tough, hard, dirty city full of unfriendly denizens, or a wonderful city of opportunities where someone with a dollar and a dream can make all kinds of friends, live in a luxury apartment with two other people and work at the coffee shop part time. Not a big fan of 2 Broke Girls, but at least they are young, broke and struggling....unlike....Friends!

11. New Yorkers drink coffee from cups made by a Greek cup company. There is a name for this cup.

12. New York doesn't exist except in Woody Allen's mind, and if someone wants to learn about New York is watching his movies. His films are of the upper middle class, rich point of view of a New York of nice restaurants, taxicabs, high rise apartments and Diane Keaton.

13. The Hudson River is basically toxic.

14. Hot dog vendors on every corner.

So add on people from flyover America, what has TV taught you about "The Big Apple"?

[cleverfun3000]