NYC vs. Philly: A tale of two cities
From the Mets-Phillies to the Giants-Eagles, New York and Philadelphia have their share of rivalries.
And while we're dissecting the Yankees-Phillies in the World Series, let's take a moment to have some fun of another kind.
Let's pit New York and Philadelphia against one another in an anything-but-baseball tale of the tape and see who wins.
FAMOUS GREASY FOOD
New York: Pizza
Philadelphia: Cheesesteak
The cheesesteak scores points for its high meat content and level of customization ("Wit Whiz or witout?" What a country!). But you can’t cover it in sausage, onions, garlic powder and red pepper, fold it up and carry it around Penn Station at 3:47 in the morning . . . not that we’d know anything about that.
Edge: New York
PATRIOTIC SYMBOL
New York: Statue of Liberty
Philadelphia: Liberty Bell
The Statue of Liberty was a gift from France, which is one downside. But look at it this way: The Statue of Liberty is a statue. It’s huge and has its own island. People can walk inside its head. The Liberty Bell is a bell. It sits in a room in a museum. It has a huge crack in it.
Edge: New York
FICTIONAL BOXER
New York: Terry Malloy in "On the Waterfront"
Philadelphia: Rocky Balboa in the "Rocky" movies
It's hard to go against Marlon Brando and his "I coulda been a contender," but Stallone wins this one by a landslide. Rocky defeated Apollo Creed, communism AND Mr. T.
Edge: Philadelphia
REAL-LIFE BOXER
New York: Mike Tyson
Philadelphia: Joe Frazier
No boxer ever tore through the heavyweight division with the speed and ferocity of Tyson. Frazier was more of a polished fighter.
Edge: Philadelphia (Shhh! Don't tell Tyson).
MUSEUMS
New York: Museum of Natural History, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art
Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art, Franklin Institute, Free Library of Philadelphia
We could have mentioned about 25 other cool museums and not scratched the surface in New York. Philadelphia, not so much.
Edge: New York
BORDERING RIVERS
New York: East and Hudson
Philadelphia: Delaware and Schuylkill
Size matters here. The Delaware and Schuylkill combined are 540 miles long. The Hudson and the East River are only 331 miles combined. If you’ve ever canoed the Delaware, you know that even the Hudson doesn’t match its beauty. Plus, you can swim the Philly rivers and live to tell about it.
Edge: Philadelphia
MASS TRANSIT
New York: MTA
Philadelphia: SEPTA
By virtue of its historic, vast subway system, we have to give the MTA the nod here. Any train system that gets you from Coney Island to Woodlawn for $2.25 deserves the edge.
Edge: New York
HALL & OATES
New York: John Oates
Philadelphia: Daryl Hall
Wow, this is a tough one. How do you choose between the two inventors of “rock and soul”? We’re going with Hall, but only because he actually sung the lyrics: “Watch out boy, she’ll chew you up!” Plus, he had great hair. Not to mention his lack of a mustache.
Edge: Philadelphia
PLAYGROUND HOOPS LEGENDS NAMED EARL
New York: Earl "The Goat" Manigault
Philadelphia: Earl "The Pearl" Monroe
The story of Manigault's life is a sad one, littered with drugs, jail time and a few "what ifs?" But that guy could ball! He's quite possibly the greatest legend at Rucker Park. With an HBO biopic about his life. Monroe achieved more fame at a higher level than Manigault, earning the nickname "The Pearl" and leading the Knicks to the 1973 NBA title. But back in Philly, he was known as "Black Jesus."
Edge: Philadelphia
JULIUS ERVING
New York: "Dr. J" is born, two ABA titles with Nets
Philadelphia: One NBA title with 76ers, slam dunks from foul line
Eriving grew up on Long Island and played his high school ball at Roosevelt, which is where the “Doctor” nickname originated. “Dr. J” won two ABA titles with the New York Nets, where he was the league’s lone attraction. Erving eventually was sent to the 76ers where he won another NBA title and dunked from the foul line. But his movie was called “The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh,” not Philadelphia. There's a reason for that.
Edge: New York
SUPER BOWL SUCCESS
New York: Giants 3-1 in Super Bowl, beat the Pats in '08; Jets 1-0 in Super Bowl
Philadelphia: Eagles 0-2 in Super Bowl, lost to Pats in '05
The Jets and Giants may own the biggest Super Bowl upsets in history, with their stirring victories in Super Bowl III and XLII, respectively. More recently, it was the Giants who spoiled the Patriots' undefeated season en route to winning their third championship. How'd the Eagles do against Belichick's boys? We remember their quarterback puking ...
Edge: New York
BEST '80s MALE RAPPER
New York: Big Daddy Kane, Chuck D, KRS-One, Slick Rick
Philadelphia: The Fresh Prince
This one isn't even fair to discuss anymore.
Edge: New York
BEST ALL-TIME FEMALE RAPPER
New York: MC Lyte
Philadelphia: Eve
Eve got her start with DMX and the Ruff Ryders crew, and quickly emerged as the most talented female rapper of the day. But MC Lyte paved the way for artists such as Eve. Plus, Lyte can still cold rock a party in a B-Boy stance.
Edge: New York
EDDIE MURPHY IS POOR BUT NOW HE'S RICH MOVIES
New York: "Coming to America"
Philadelphia: "Trading Places"
Arguably Murphy's finest work, "Trading Places" centers around his character Billy Ray Valentine going from the streets to Wall Street thanks to Duke & Duke in Philly. He single-handedly brought frozen concentrate orange juice to the forefront of pop culture. But, in order for his plan to work, he had to travel to New York City to make it happen. But where in New York can one find a woman with grace, elegance, taste and culture? A woman suitable for a king. Queens!
Edge: New York. (In the face, Philly! In the face!)
WEIRD CITY TRAFFIC OBSTACLE
New York: Times Square pedestrian mall
Philadelphia: City Hall on Broad Street
The Times Square thing is fairly new, but it's a bit of hassle when you get there in your car and forget you can't drive down 7th Avenue or Broadway, depending on the day. At least with City Hall on Broad Street, you know what you're getting: A big structure in the middle of a main street that leads to a traffic circle with 83 lanes that will eventually guide you in the wrong direction three times before you get where you want to go. Think "Look kids, Big Ben, Parliament."
Edge: Philadelphia
STRANGE ACCEPTED PARKING PHENOMENON
New York: Double parking
Philadelphia: Parking on the median
Down in South Philly, they just park their cars in the middle of the street. Literally. There's a median lane which, everywhere else in the country, is used for emergencies or to create a divide between oncoming traffic. In New York, people do not hesitate to park their cars in the traffic lane next to parked cars. Hey, it's an emergency!
Edge: New York
CITY BASED SITCOMS
New York: Seinfeld, Friends, Sex and the City
Philadelphia: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Boy Meets World
New York-based sitcoms are pretty much a dime a dozen. Seinfeld. Friends. Will and Grace. Caroline and the City. But is it quantity or quality? The drunken hijinx of Sweet Dee, Dennis, Mac and Charlie in their Philly-based bar "Paddy's Pub" have involved everything from rescuing a baby from a dumpster to Sinbad and Rob Thomas shacking up with Dennis in a Philly rehab facility. Mad points for creativity, colorful language and overall inappropriateness. And what girl didn't want to grow up to be exactly like Topanga in "Boy Meets World" (minus the DUI)? However, probably the most timeless and hilarious sitcom of all time, "Seinfeld" has its roots in New York City. More than 10 years after "Seinfeld" went off the air, the jokes are still relevant and hilarious.
Edge: New York
Use the comments below to post your own "Tale of the Tape" suggestions for NYC vs. Philly.
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