He berated you personally? What gives, Sammy?

Did he disagree with your opinion of bacon vodka or take issue with your review of Taps?

Jay,

When they were still filming the show, I used to run Wire-related events in the Live section. One week, David Simon called and asked me to run a listing about a charity bartending event, and it got lost in the shuffle. He called me and laid into me. The conversation started like this:

Sam: Baltimore Sun, Sam Sessa.
David: Sam. It's David.
Sam: David?
David: SIMON.
Sam: Oh, right, that David ...

Our little chat it ended with Simon cussing me out and hanging up on me -- over a listing, no less. He later called my editor -- not me -- and told my editor to tell me he was "sorry for temporarily losing his mind." I still look up to him as a writer, just not as a person.

This makes sense. I've heard stories from people who know him personally and say his personality typically varies from brooding to ornery.

Thanks for the story.

David Simon is a BAD MAN :(

Like I said when the "Stuff White People Like" piece came out: You can find the people like the cast of “The Wire” in any major city. We just happen to have better writers.

No offense to the guy who wrote this piece or to the guy who corresponded with him in this post. I'm sure they are great guys but I just wanted to be the voice of the other side you know.

A-holes make great art. They may not end up being the nicest people but lets say David Simon doesn't end up a "BAD" man and he never plots with Ed Burns to make The Wire . He never sees his industry getting the shaft or rather he doesn't notices it and he goes about his job and never leaves the paper and doesn't write Homicide: Life on the Streets .

He buys into the "Marrimow" system of Pulitzer hunting and he writes good yet shallow pieces for the paper that never get to the root of the problem only reinforces generalizations and stereotypes. He gets his thirty and retires.

Now if his life goes that way then who and what fills that void in American TV and American Art?

The Sopranos and David Chase? Please. Great show, but its scope is limited to NY/NJ and Italian mobsters.


Who takes on the question of the state of modern America? The West Wing and Aaron Sorkin? Not Likely. Too many advertising and television execs to deal with every week.
How About Dexter? Yeah right. Its entertaining but not much else.

There are many who may not like Simon and his abrasive behavior but he is exactly what I want in a reporter. Someone with an unyielding search for the truth. Someone willing to go to great lengths to get the "story"

So occasionally that makes him a major a-hole, so be it.
Thanks for this outlet.
jdb

I also hate people automatically associating Baltimore with The Wire within the first second of them hearing I'm from Baltimore. I think The Wire was a fantastic show- one of the best shows in history- and it gave us Omar, one of best characters in American television EVER, but I also get sick of the automatic association. There is so much more to Baltimore than The Wire.

That being said, I was in the UK back in May and people there are absolutely wild about the show. When I was pubhopping in Cardiff, everyone I spoke to LOVED the fact that I was from Baltimore and pretty much everyone I told bought me a drink! For some reason, being from Baltimore gave me some sort of street cred (that I seriously DO NOT HAVE). I took advantage of it because, well, free alcohol! I spent maybe 5pounds that whole night.

I am white
I love Jackson Browne.... the finest man, singer songwriter of our times
I loved the Wire...Baltimore is the backdrop,the actors were remarkable,the story realistic and well told

So what?

There is so much more to Baltimore than The Wire.

---

Yeah, like Ace of Cakes!!!!@@@

At least, that's what I get asked about when I'm out of town. I wish somebody would ask me about The Wire for a change.