A particular ad (or, rather, "advert") for Tropicana orange juice has been on the telly quite a bit since we arrived. Over a montage of iconic New York images (including one of a Hasidic man buying bagels...) it advertises Tropicana as "New York's favorite juice."
In the States, I doubt Tropicana would make any such claims. If any geographical association is pushed, it would probably be with Florida, land of sun and citrus. But I guess Brits just love the Big Apple (even when it comes to oranges). There's something there which draws them in, perhaps because it seems so different from the rest of the country? This also explains the UK popularity of such shows as "Friends" and "Sex and the City." (But not, curiously, "Seinfeld" -- is it TOO steeped in New York minutiae so as to be thoroughly incomprehensible?)
For a recently transplanted New Yorker such as myself, the ad has an almost Pavlovian effect, making me long for the glistening sophistication of the city I used to call home. A similar thing happened on the flight to Heathrow as I was watching "Fighting," an otherwise forgettable Channing Tatum/Terrence Howard movie about bare-knuckle boxing. The film is notable for its highly specific location shooting. I was practically flipping out to see scenes in recognizable New York locations like the Elk Hotel on 42nd St. or the Empire Diner in Chelsea. (If memory serves, the Elk was also featured in Jonathan Demme's remake of "The Manchurian Candidate.")
When you're far away, it's not the big things you miss, but rather the tiny details that you barely noticed...
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