Deadline Club and Fordham University present Drop Dead City
Fifty years ago, as New York City faced an imminent financial catastrophe, the President of the United States effectively declared – so what? The moment was captured in one of the most famous newspaper headlines in New York history – “Ford to City: Drop Dead.”
To look back — and forward — at that historic event, Fordham University and The Society of Professional Journalists’ Deadline Club partnered to offer a free screening of Drop Dead City, the acclaimed documentary explaining New York City’s 1975 fiscal crisis, on Wednesday, October 22 at Fordham University Lincoln Center’s McNally Amphitheater.
The screening, coming just days before the 50th anniversary of the Daily News headline from which the documentary takes its title, was followed by a panel discussion including the film’s producers, urban academics, and New York reporters from the era. Watch the full discussion below from the Deadline Club YouTube channel.
Panel Discussion
Drop Dead City has won critical plaudits and multiple awards, including the prestigious Lavine/Ken Burns Award from the Library of Congress. It also holds a rating of 91% on Rotten Tomatoes. It will receive a global release on Amazon Prime later this year.
“Every New Yorker – and especially every New York journalist – needs to see this film,” said Steve Dunlop, Deadline Club past president and panel moderator. “The city came literally within minutes of an unprecedented budgetary meltdown, and we now have generations of New Yorkers that are completely unaware of it. Drop Dead City is a reminder that no city, no matter how mighty, is immune from collapse.”
The Panelists
Michael Rohatyn and Peter Yost are co-producer-directors of Drop Dead City. Michael, a screenwriter and musician, is the son of the late banker Felix Rohatyn, whose leadership at the Municipal Assistance Corporation was pivotal to the fiscal crisis. As a boy, he witnessed many of the events and figures the film explores, and he later wrote the score for an HBO documentary on Arthur Miller that was nominated for an Emmy. Peter, a multiple-Emmy-nominated filmmaker, has directed Mysteries of Mental Illness, Inside North Korea, and Solitary Confinement, which spurred prison reforms.
George Arzt has been a defining voice in New York journalism and communications for more than 50 years. During the city’s fiscal crisis, he served as City Hall Bureau Chief and top political reporter for the New York Post, gaining recognition as a trusted authority on politics. He later became Press Secretary to Mayor Ed Koch before moving to Fox 5 (WNYW), where he oversaw editorial content for the 7 and 10 p.m. newscasts and advised Good Day New York. For the past 30 years, he has led George Arzt Communications, a prominent New York advisory firm.
Mike Eisgrau spent 24 years at WNEW Radio (1967–1991), serving as reporter, editor, and news director. In addition to the 1975 fiscal crisis, he covered historic events from Woodstock to the funerals of Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr., to presidential campaigns, earning a reputation for clarity, authority, and integrity. A trusted New York voice, Eisgrau also mentored young journalists and championed thoughtful, rigorous reporting.
Julianne Welby is a Senior Lecturer who teaches journalism at Fordham University. She spent more than 30 years in public radio newsrooms, most recently at New York’s WNYC, where she led reporting teams on policing, pandemic recovery, and politics. She got her start in journalism as a student at Fordham’s WFUV-FM.
Steve Dunlop (moderator) was a Fordham University student and the Assistant News Director of Fordham’s WFUV-FM during the fiscal crisis. He covered New York comptroller Abraham Beame, who was elected mayor in 1973. Dunlop went on to have a long career in journalism, including stints at WOR Radio, Channel 5’s Ten O’Clock News, WNBC-TV, and most recently, CBS News. He is a Deadline Club past president and a member of the Club’s Board of Governors.
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