there was Jerus Jannick.

Just in time for the end of our run of The Wire, HBO has picked up Simon’s new series Treme to debut next spring. The series is about recovery in post-Katrina New Orleans, and stars Wendell Pierce (aka The Bunk!) as a jazz musician. Clarke Peters (Lester) is the other main Wire returnee.

And if you’ve not gotten enough of Simon on journalism this season, here’s a copy of his Congressional testimony from today.

Every legend has to come to an end…

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A real scoop – according to this post, somebody has posted some of the early Wire production docs to the web. So I repost them here (with the caveat that they might be totally fake, but I buy it):

A draft of the bible – bibles are outlines of television shows, with character bios, plot threads, etc. This one is early, with different names & personas for some of the characters. But quite interesting to see how the show developed from this 9-episode plan.

Draft of “The Target” (pilot) – again, some things changed, but you can get a clear sense of the core thread.

Shooting script of “Game Day” (season 1, ep. 9) – this seems to be an accurate script of what was shot, with some overruns.

Shooting script of “- 30 -“ (series finale) – obviously, huge spoiler warnings for anyone who hasn’t seen the whole series, but download for future reference…

Enjoy!

The Wire has started airing on the other side of the pond.  I’m anxious to see how the show is received over there, as it seems to be uniquely designed for an American audience.  So far, the reception has been overwhelming positive.  Here are a couple of articles about it – nothing groundbreaking in terms of analysis, but it’s a development certainly worth keeping an eye on over the next few weeks.

Telegraph UK’s article

Times Online

On our way back from Washington D.C., I managed to convince my friends to take a detour through the lovely city of Baltimore – all because of The Wire of course. We had lunch at Hooters, I saw the big “Dominos Sugar” sign and smelled the Baltimore air.

I also think there’s money in pioneering a “Wire tour” of Baltimore.

Team Teamwork just released a mixtape pitting ‘the street’ against Zelda. I’m not sure that there is anything more ironic than hearing Clipse rapping about cooking crack and keeping “chrome next to his bones” to Zelda’s-64 bit “Lost in the Woods” melody. Luckily, Link doesn’t have to worry about getting rolled out by “nacos.”

01 – Clipse – Virginia (Lost Woods)
02 – Dr. Dre + Snoop Dogg – Still D.R.E. (Getting Treasure)
03 – Jay-Z – No Hook (Meeting the Owl)
04 – Pimp C, Lil Keke + P.O.P. – Knockin’ Doorz Down (Hyrule Field)
05 – Common – I used to Love H.E.R. (Hyrule Market)
06 – Aesop Rock – No Jumpercables (Goron Village)
07 – Edan – Fumbling Over Words (Battle)
08 – MF Doom – Vomit (Horse Race at Lon Lon Ranch)
09 – Spank Rock – IMC (Zora’s Domain)
10 – Slim Thug + Mike Jones – Still Tippin’ (Great Fairy’s Fountain)

Track ten is glorious. It’s all in the game.

It seems that Vice magazine really wanted to drive a stake through my heart on Wednesday. The Wire Season Six

Vice not only tips its hat to The Wire but also raises an interesting point. Could the show accomplish what it has if it were set in the UK?

In a recent interview on NPR’s Fresh Air, Ta-Nehisi Coates, author of The Beautiful Struggle discusses life growing up in West Baltimore in the late 1970s and ’80s, as crack and guns burst into prominence in Baltimore.  The son of a Black Panther, and Afro-centric book publisher discusses his experiences in Baltimore, and his life since.  He has written for The Village Voice, Washington City Paper, Time, The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post, The Washington Monthly, and O. Coates currently is a contributing editor for The Atlantic, and also writes for its blog.  His bio on The Atlantic‘s website describes his environment as a youth as, “not quite The Wire, but sometimes ill all the same.”  In this interview he offers a brief commentary on his view of Baltimore through an alternative, very political perspective.

In the interview he comments on the state of parenthood in his environment growing up, and how he was an exception to have his father active in his life.  He also comments on the introduction of guns and drugs into Baltimore, and the influence that had on his community.  While not essential listening to appreciate the sociopolitical implications of The Wire, Coats gives valuable historical perspective, and personal anecdotes that can further inform the contextual understanding of the series.

And finally, we get the name of the series justified.

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