Times Square's Porn Heyday Returns In HBO's 'The Deuce'

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — Long before Desnudas shocked the tourists that pack Times Square, the Crossroads of the World was the epicenter of a billion dollar porn industry – and those sleazy days are being recreated.

HBO's new drama "The Deuce" will take viewers back to when Midtown Manhattan was "ground zero" for America's sex industry.

"The Deuce," co-created by David Simon of "The Wire" and starring James Franco and Maggie Gyllenhaal, will debut on HBO Sept. 10. The first episode is already available to subscribers to HBO streaming services such as HBO NOW, HBO GO and HBO On Demand – it was posted on Friday, Aug. 25.

The drama is set in the seedy world of 1970s New York City, specifically Midtown Manhattan. "The Deuce" – 42nd street's old nickname – follows a cast of characters who hope to strike it rich in the United States' budding pornography industry.

(For more news about your NYC neighborhood, subscribe to Patch to get a daily newsletter and breaking news alerts.)

"Beginning in 1971, the show follows a cast of barkeeps, prostitutes, pimps, police and nightlife denizens as they swirl through a world of sex, crime, high times and violence and the porn business begins its climb from Mafia-backed massage parlors and film labs to legitimacy and cultural permanence," HBO says.

"The Deuce" follows a fictional narrative but is based on research done by producer Marc Henry Johnson, who chronicled the rise and fall of New York City's sex industry, according to HBO. The show was created by Simon and George Pelecanos. Simon and Pelecanos used Johnson's research and expanded on it by interviewing people involved in Times Square's porn heyday, who consulted on the shows scripts.

"Times Square in the 1970s is now chiefly remembered as the ground zero of decadence and depravity, but what’s often left out of the picture is that, for many, it was a hotbed of experimentation, adventure and sexual liberation," Pelecanos said in a statement.

"The music, the outlandish outfits, the beautiful cars made in Detroit and particularly the decade’s time-capsule, shot-in-New York films ("Mean Streets," "The French Connection," "Black Caesar") were a great inspiration for us when we were designing the look and feel of our debut season of The Deuce."

Joining Simon and Pelecanos on the writing staff are screenwriters Richard Price, Megan Abbott and Lisa Lutz.

James Franco plays the show's two main protagonists — identical twin brothers Vincent and Frankie Martino. The plot focuses on Vincent Martino's dealings with Gambino family captain Rudy Pipilo, played by Michael Rispoli.

The Martino brothers eventually find themselves in the middle of New York's sex industry, surrounded by characters such as independent prostitute Candy (Maggie Gyllenhal), NYU dropout Abby Parker (Margarita Levieva), intimidating pimp Larry Brown (Gbenga Akinnagbe) and disgruntled police officer Chris Alston (Lawrence Gilliard, Jr.)

"The Deuce" debuts Sunday, Sept. 10 at 9 p.m. and will run eight episodes.

The days of "The Deuce" are all but over in Midtown Manhattan these days. The last remaining pornography stores and strip clubs in the heart of Times Square are on the brink of extinction after the New York Court of Appeals voted to uphold a 2001 zoning regulation barring the sale or performance of "sexually explicit materials or activities" in Midtown.

Photos by Paul Schiraldi courtesy HBO