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Even though New York City has around 98 monikers, did you know that there is no official city nickname?
The Village Voice reports that one Queens Councilman, Hiram Monserrate, is ready for that to change. Monserrate wants us to officially stake claim on the "Gotham City" title, and is pushing the City Council to designate it as our chief nickname (preferably before The Dark Knight is released this summer). He says, “I see that as a marketing tool, ‘Come visit the real Gotham City,’ taking advantage of this movie which will be one of those gate-breaking, record-selling movies like it always is.”
While the Gotham we know from Batman is corrupt and gritty, Monserrate says, “When we talk about Gotham we talk about tremendous, tremendous nightlife, restaurants, lounges, clubs and cafes, frappuccinos...". Pretty sure Batman was never spotted sipping a Starbucks frappuccino (though perhaps Bruce Wayne could be imagined in such a scenario).
Barry Popik points out that Harlem's 1934 "Big Apple" night club's iconic sign was never landmarked, and instead destroyed in 2006 in order to put up a Popeye's fast food restaurant. Yet Monserrate says our Gotham City is all about "the rich architecture," something that Batman's Gotham was inspired by; hopefully there will be some left by the time we get the official title.
Pictured: Map of Gotham City that hangs behind Jim Gordon's desk in Batman: The Long Halloween #3 (Jan, 1997). Art by Tim Sale.
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Yes but the "real gotham" is in Chicago. So there's no point in visiting.
What I meant to say was that the entire movie was shot in Chicago and shows many Chicago landmarks which you probably wouldn't find in New York.
Uh- someone should check to see if DC/Warner Bros owns the "Gotham City" trademark first.
Calling NYC "Gotham" is public domain, Im sure, but is "Gotham City"?
Probably public as well, but you'd hope that people would check these things out before announcing it.
Heck, why not 'Metropolis'? ;-)
P.S. Bruce Wayne would never drink anything other than espresso. Frappucino? Ha!
I think we should just name it Poop City.
Technically:
Manhattan below 14th Street: Gotham
Manhattan above 14th Street : Metropolis
..or so claimed Siegel, Shuster and Kane.
What, are we officially over 'the city that never sleeps'?
Don't these Councilmen have other things to do?
"Heck, why not 'Metropolis'? ;-)"
WARNING! Comic book geek alert!
Metropolis is supposed to be the big city near Smallville, Kansas. In the Golden Age of comics, that meant Chicago and Gotham City was meant to be New York. The DC universe has now changed to include all four cities, two real and two imagined.
"Don't these Councilmen have other things to do?"
I'm guessing No.
How much did DC/Warner Brothers pay Monserrate to introduce the bill?
C'mon, where's the capitalist spirit? Surely the city can sell the nicknaming rights - with funds, of course, to be wisely used on our mass transportation system. Each year we can have a new moniker, courtesy of the highest bidder.
Disneytown, anyone?
I believe it was Frank Miller who claimed that Metropolis was NYC during the day and Gotham was NYC at night.
A lot of Batman Begins was filmed in Chicago but most of the city scenes were shot on a set. It's amazing how they built the set, if you can you really should check out the making of on the DVD.
What about "Hipsterville" "Anti-LA" "Four Boroughs and a Landfill" "Sharptonland"
Alright - let's not forget that NYC was named Gotham by Washington Irving wayyyyy before Batman was on the scene (1807?)...
Um..Big Apple anyone?
why not just "The City" a la The Tick?
Is it really in the city's best interest to pay a licensing fee to DC Comics to use Gotham City in print ads?
Metropolis is supposed to be the big city near Smallville, Kansas. In the Golden Age of comics, that meant Chicago and Gotham City was meant to be New York. The DC universe has now changed to include all four cities, two real and two imagined.
Excuse me while I go have sex with a woman to de-nerdify myself after reading that post.
We're the Big Apple. Why do we need to be named Gotham City? Gotham City sounds too nerdy and comic bookish. Besides, it's fun to say "I've got your Big Apple right here."
Originally--before Washington Irving--Gotham meant a city of fools. So nice of him to bestow NYC that nickname. But in fact the real story is that Gotham meant a city of people pretending to be fools. So I guess order is restored in the world.
The current City Council desperately needs something better to do.
Why does that map look like Washington DC or London? :-/
Sorry to break the news, but according to DC Comics, Gotham City is in NJ
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/2a/Gothamlicencesmall.jpg
Big Onion should be Walla Walla, Washington for obvious reasons.
"Excuse me while I go have sex with a woman to de-nerdify myself..."
Sometimes my girlfriend says the same thing. Weird.