DROP DEAD CITY: NEW YORK ON THE BRINK IN 1975 Preview Event

The Better Angels Society and the New-York Historical Society are pleased to share an exclusive inside look at a new documentary film, DROP DEAD CITY: NEW YORK ON THE BRINK IN 1975, by Michael Rohatyn and Peter Yost, winner of the 2023 Library of Congress Lavine/Ken Burns Prize for Film.

In addition to the filmmakers, special guests include:
Ken Burns, acclaimed documentarian
Dr. Kenneth T. Jackson, Emeritus Professor of History, Columbia University; Trustee & former President, New-York Historical (2001-04)
Peter Goldmark, Jr., NY Budget Director (1975-77); President of the Rockefeller Foundation (1988-97)
Rebecca Miller, Director of Arthur Miller: Writer, and other films

DROP DEAD CITY documents the New York City fiscal crisis of 1975, an extraordinary, overlooked episode in urban American history that saw an already-crumbling city of 8 million people brought to the edge of bankruptcy and social chaos by a perfect storm of debt, greed, ambitious social policy, and poor governance. Even if finance isn’t your “thing,” the film is jam-packed with rare archival footage that makes it a time capsule of a bygone era in The Big Apple. In The NY Times feature on the film, Ken Burns said it best: “[The filmmakers] made the accounting sexy.”

The Better Angels Society and the New-York Historical Society are honored to host this event in support of fundraising for the film through The Gotham Film and Media Institute, which celebrates and nurtures independent film and media creators.