About Times Square

When I was younger than I am now, I used to go to or through Times Square a lot. It was on my way to the Harlem Children's Theater Company when I was a member there, it was where I could see bad movies cheap (double features like "Warriors of the Wasteland" and Sword of the Barbarians" for three bucks, or rarities like "Laserblast" paired with "Warriors of the Lost World"), it was where I could get a cheap pizza or gyro sandwich, where I had a choice of movie theaters to see first-run features at, where locally owned business sold a variety of merchandise, from souvenirs to martial arts supplies, and where one could really get a sense of glorious seediness of New York City. It was also where I could get adult entertainment products before I was legally an adult.

That has all changed now. All the porn shops have been closed, most of the movie theaters torn down or converted to stage theaters or something else, national chains and multi-national corporations have taken over the district, and brand new towers have turned what used to be a shallow bowl into a narrow canyon. As if this was something that needed to happen.

All I have to say about that is...

I'm glad there's a Hershey's store. I never knew where I would get a Hershey Bar in this town.

I'm glad there's an M&M's store. I never knew where I would get any M&M's in this town.

I'm glad there's a Red Lobster. I never knew where I would get seafood in this town.

I'm glad there's an Olive Garden. I never knew where I would get Italian food in this town.

I'm glad there's the AMC Empire and the Regal E-Walk. I never knew where I would see a movie in this town before them.

Just a thought.