New York TV Shows

The residents of the Big Apple claim that it's the most filmed city in the world. Certainly, it's a familiar place on our television screens and the list of New York TV shows is long. It's not surprising that program makers flock here. It's a city of iconic buildings and there is a tempting choice of locations.

Sometimes, actual stores and businesses are used to represent a regular haunt for the show's characters. There are frequent shots of Tom's Restaurant at West 112th Street and Broadway in the hit sitcom, Seinfeld. The name is changed to Monk's Caf for the show. Seinfeld ran from 1989 - 1998 and followed the daily trials and tribulations of four main characters in the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Comedian Jerry Seinfeld played a version of himself and his buddies were George (Jason Alexander), Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and Kramer (Michael Richards). Most of the scenes are set in Jerry's Manhattan apartment or Monk's Caf, where the friends hang out. If there really is a 'New York kind of humor', the Seinfeld show is a great example.

Friends ran for ten seasons from 1994, becoming an international success. The show made household names of its ensemble cast. This New York TV show also had a regular meeting place for the characters. The Central Perk coffee house is set in Greenwich Village and took its name from Central Park. Rachel, Phoebe, Monica, Ross, Chandler and Joey gather there to discuss their love lives and career problems. There are frequent shots of the apartment block where most of the characters live. Central Perk became a coffee shop franchise in real life and is registered in 32 countries. The familiar orange sofa, counters and neon signage are all replicated. They also contain paintings of the characters and TVs show episodes from the series.

It was often said that New York was another character in Sex and the City. This New York TV show ran from 1998 - 2004 and spawned a successful movie. The scripts are based on columns written in the New York Observer by Candace Bushnell. The four friends, Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Samantha (Kim Cattrall), Charlotte (Kristin Davis) and Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) go clubbing and shopping at the top spots. Many scenes were shot in the Manhattan area and there is a popular tour, which takes visitors around different locations that were used. Stops include the Jimmy Choo store on 5th Avenue, where Carrie spends most of her money, the Magnolia Bakery on Bleeker Street in the West Village where Miranda buys her cupcakes, and the Louis K. Meisel Gallery, which was used for the gallery where Charlotte works. O'Neal's Speakeasy on Grand Street doubles for the Scout Bar, co-owned by Aiden and Steve. All the actual businesses benefit from the interest shown in the New York TV show.