Bill Clinton: I remember when Times Square was filled with hookers... it was romantic

Bill Clinton: I remember when Times Square was filled with hookers... it was romantic

 

Former president Bill Clinton has recalled how New York’s Times Square was once a crime-ridden danger zone filled with prostitutes and crooks – but said it was ‘romantic and fascinating’.

The iconic square attracted hordes of hustlers, muggers and prostitutes – making it a no-go area for locals throughout the Sixties, Seventies and Eighties.

Women had used the square to ply their trade, either on the streets or in the proliferation of 'sex shops' in the area.

How it was: Prostitutes and hustlers made Times Square in New York a danger zone but Bill Clinton said it was 'romantic' and 'fascinating'

 

Times Square, 1980: The Pussycat, an X-rated movie theatre on 42nd Street. The marquee advertises porn actor Marilyn Chambers in director Stu Segall's film, 'Insatiable.'

Then during the late Nineties the square underwent a transformation into a tourist hot-spot filled with billboards and plush cafes.

But Mr Clinton said that as a teenager he had ‘vivid memories’ of the Times Square, which he described as ‘romantic’.

Dirty old town: The notorious nature of Times Square was immortalised in such films as 1976's Taxi Driver, with Jodie Foster as prostitute Iris

Mr Clinton told the New York Post: 'I saw a hooker approach a man in a grey flannel suit. Pretty heavy stuff for a guy from Arkansas. My view is it's way better now. You have to look at the overall numbers. Yes, look, I still have vivid memories of it. Romantic, fascinating.'

The scenes were depicted in the 1969 film Midnight Cowboy which showed prostitutes struggling to survive on the tough streets.

Clinton added: 'When I was 18 years in November of 1964, a freshman at Georgetown, I first went to Times Square. I bought a steak at Tad's Steakhouse. I heard a guy ream his mother out, poor working woman, because she'd given him a hi-fi instead of a stereo speaker. I remember everything about it.'

The former president was speaking at an event in New York on Wednesday, in which he discussed with New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg the improvement in the square's air quality.

He told Mr Bloomberg that Times Square used to be dangerous and unhealthy.

Mr Clinton said: 'I think you did the right thing and I think there is no question that New York is better and the tourists are better off. And I love it.'

Mr Clinton also announced the merger of his climate group, Climate Initiative, with Mr Bloomberg's, called C40.

Pollution from traffic dropped by around 50 per cent after a pedestrian plaza was built in the square in 2009.

Times Square 1975: A porn shop with cinema and live shows

...and how it is now: Hundreds of neon billboards overlook throngs of tourists flocking to the area from around the world

A number of al fresco dining areas are due to be built in the square this summer to create a 'crossroads of the world'.

It is understood that five vendors will take orders and serve food to people sitting at the 350 red chairs and 100 tables within the car-free area.

Mr Bloomberg said that pedestrian plazas had been put in place to 'straighten out the chokepoints' and ease traffic flow. He said that they had also intended to improve air quality in the region. 

Announcement: Former president Bill Clinton reminisced about the seedier side of New York's Times Square while announcing a merger of his climate group, Climate Initiative, with Mr Bloomberg's C40