Times Square Was Just as Horrible 25 Years Ago
Times Square has always been one of the worst parts of town. Now it's crammed with badly dressed tourists waddling along the sidewalk trying to find M&M World. Back in 1986, it was just as bad.
Not that much has changed since 1983-1986, when these clips of Times Square were shot. (The footage is from the same guy who brought us the video of the subway back in the day.) You still see the flashing billboards, traffic, and all those people crowding into Broadway shows. Sure, you won't see any more ads for Fuji film or marquees for A Chorus Line. Those crazy retro double-decker buses aren't there. Well, and the porn stores are gone. OK, so maybe it is different, but you can hardly tell by looking at it.