Downtown (1999 TV series)
Downtown is an American animated series and sitcom on MTV on urban life, based on interviews with real people. The show, created by Chris Prynoski, follows a diverse and multiracial cast who live in New York City, and presents their everyday lives.[1] In 2000, Downtown was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program for the episode "Before and After".[2]
| Downtown | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Created by | Chris Prynoski |
| Written by | Anne D. Bernstein George Krstic David Regal Rachelle Romberg Erica Rothschild Japhet Asher Peter Elwell Eric Friedman Peter Gaffney |
| Directed by | Ilya Skorupsk Eugene Salandra Tony Kluck Patrick Smith Kevin Lofton Chris Prynoski Jody Schaeffer |
| Starring | Gregory Gilmore Leyora Zuberman Marco H. Rodriguez Scot Rienecker Tammy Lang Hector Fontanez Aurora Lucia-Levey Phoebe Summersquash |
| Composer | Kimson Albert |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Abby Terkuhle |
| Producer | David McGrath |
| Editor | Matt Miller |
| Running time | 22 minutes |
| Production company | MTV Animation |
| Release | |
| Original network | MTV |
| Original release | August 3 – November 8, 1999 |
Downtown aired 13 episodes from August to November 1999.[3]
Cast
- Gregory Gilmore as Alex Henson, a nerdy 24-year-old virgin and Chaka's older brother. He harbors a crush on goth girl, Serena.
- Leyora Zuberman as Chaka Henson, Alex's rebellious 17-year-old younger sister
- Marco H. Rodriguez as Fruity, an Afro-Latino ladies' man who has a crush on Chaka.
- Scot Rienecker as Scott ("Goat"), Alex and Jen's stoner friend.
- Tammy Lang as Jen, Alex's chubby, sarcastic Asian-American best friend.
- Hector Fontanez as Matt, Fruity's artsy best friend.
- Aurora Lucia-Levey as Mecca, an African-American hopeless romantic and Chaka's best friend.
- Phoebe Summersquash as Serena, a resident goth girl, and Alex's love interest.
- Rosanna Plasencia as Leah, Jen's promiscuous roommate.
Episodes
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Sin Bin" | Tony Kluck | Anne D. Bernstein | August 3, 1999 | |
|
Alex moves into his own apartment, with the help of his friends Jen, Goat, Chaka and Mecca. Selling some of his old action figures, Alex meets his newest infatuation, goth girl Serena, at a comic book store called Starbase 12. Chaka and Mecca, tasked with watching the van, are distracted by boys and the moving van is stolen. | |||||
| 2 | "Train Pain" | Ilya Skorupsky | David Regal | August 10, 1999 | |
|
Chaka and Mecca challenge Fruity and Matt to a battle-of-the-sexes subway race to Coney Island, to determine which subway line goes there the fastest. Meanwhile, Alex and Jen play board games, leading to a big blowup. | |||||
| 3 | "Hot Spot" | Kevin Lofton | Rachelle Romberg | August 17, 1999 | |
|
The dive bar on the ground floor of Alex's building is replaced by "Flame", a trendy new club. Chaka and her friends, all underage, sneak into the club to party. The party continues in Alex's apartment, and Alex and Jen try to retaliate against the club. | |||||
| 4 | "Insomnia" | Eugene Salandra | Japhet Asher and Peter Gaffney | August 24, 1999 | |
|
Alex is set up on a date with Serena, and suffers insomnia from his pre-date anxiety. Wandering around the city streets late at night, he starts hallucinating from lack of sleep, leading to an unexpected encounter with Serena. | |||||
| 5 | "The Con" | Tony Kluck | Erica Rothschild | August 31, 1999 | |
|
Alex is concerned that his nerdy obsessions with toy collecting and comic book hoarding will drive his dream girl away. At a Horror Convention with his friends, Alex is torn between trying to impress Serena and acquiring a rare action figure to complete his "White Trash" fantasy collection. World Wrestling Federation (WWF) pro-wrestler, The Undertaker, makes a special guest appearance. | |||||
| 6 | "Graffiti" | Kevin Lofton | Erica Rothschild | September 7, 1999 | |
|
Matt goes out for a night of painting graffiti in the subway tunnels with Fruity and Chaka, and finds the city's underground Hall of Fame for graffiti artists. Meanwhile, Alex has a sexually-charged night with Leah, Jen's promiscuous roommate. | |||||
| 7 | "Hotel Bar" | Eugene Salandra | Eric Friedman | September 14, 1999 | |
|
Goat takes Alex out for a night of picking up girls, and encourages him to lower his standards, leading to a rough night for both of them. Meanwhile, Jen and Leah have an unfortunate night out as well, as Leah tries to pick up a rich guy. Rev Jen Miller provides the voice of Teeny. | |||||
| 8 | "Limo" | Tony Kluck | Anne D. Bernstein | September 28, 1999 | |
|
Worried that she hasn't had a date in a long time, Jen impulsively rents a stretch limo for the night, and takes Alex along for the ride. Fruity, Matt, Chaka and Mecca are accosted by a group of tough Catholic school girls in Chinatown. | |||||
| 9 | "Testing" | Pat Smith | Peter Elwell | October 5, 1999 | |
|
Alex, Chaka, Fruity and Goat take part in a research study about how much they remember their education. Alex tests well, and wonders if he should be more ambitious. Meanwhile, Goat is becoming increasingly unstable and paranoid, but is calmed down by a meeting with an old high school classmate. | |||||
| 10 | "Night Shift" | Eugene Salandra | George Krstic | October 18, 1999 | |
|
Jen is upset by Serena's effect on Alex and their other nerdy friends, and starts investigating her. Meanwhile, Alex has a hard time working at the copy shop. | |||||
| 11 | "Before and After" | Tony Kluck | Eric Friedman | October 25, 1999 | |
|
Chaka accuses Mecca of copying her style. Jen forces Alex to clean his house, and throw out his toy collection. | |||||
| 12 | "Cropsey Clanners" | Pat Smith | David Regal | November 1, 1999 | |
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Jen and Alex go collectible-hunting in the New Jersey suburbs, with Chaka and Mecca along for the ride. When the car breaks down, the four share urban legends about rural New Jersey, leading to a freak out. | |||||
| 13 | "Trip Or Treat" | Eugene Salandra | Rachelle Romberg | November 8, 1999 | |
| Alex finally gets the nerve to ask Serena out to a Halloween party. | |||||
Reception
Sarah Nechamkin of Interview, called Downtown “the best piece of discarded treasure to come out of the glorious trove of ’90s MTV”.[4] In a retrospective review for Vulture, Greta Rainbow called it a “feat of naturalistic dialogue”, describing the series as a “hyperspecific time capsule”.[5]
References
- Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 162–163. ISBN 978-1538103739.
- "Outstanding Short Format Animated Program Nominees / Winners 2000".
- Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. pp. 567–568. ISBN 978-1476665993.
- ""Downtown" Is For Stoop Kids Everywhere". Interview Magazine. August 4, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
- Rainbow, Greta (May 7, 2021). "MTV's Downtown Is a Hyperspecific Time Capsule". Vulture. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
- Greppi, Michele (August 3, 1999). "MTV Takes A Ride Downtown...Where It's S-o-o-o Unhip To Be Hip". MTV's Downtown. NY Post. Retrieved November 12, 2017.