The Oral History of ‘The Wire Spot’ A.K.A. Marlo’s Hangout

📝 Intro + Interviews by Frozen in Carbonite

If you ask me, shit just hasn’t been the same since Home Box Office brought us all together every Sunday night at 9 P.M.

Finding spots in movies and television has long been a quantum-level subdivision of skate nerdery, from Breakfast at Tiffany’s (that black marble ledge on the east side of Manhattan) to The Godfather (Courthouse Drop) to Michael Mann’s Heat (DTLA Arco Rails area.) On an October 10, 2006 episode of The Wire, viewers caught a glimpse of a location known as Marlo’s hangout (Season 4, Episode 5) — a bleak concrete expanse with an array of banks, ledges, and bank-to ledges. It seemed insane that A) such a place existed, and B) one of the flagship programs of the “Golden Age of Television” used it as a key location.

As the legend of The Wire grew, so did that of the “The Wire Spot,” popping up in a slew of 2010s videos – primarily of the east coast variety. It seemed dope that an infamous locale in Wire lore became a destination spot, not only for locals, but for visiting pros.

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Midnight Club

The Meatrix via @blacktreylives

Bronx O.G. and Papi Brand capo Angel Fonseca has a new part out entitled “No Need For Closure.” Love the night clips, love the deep spot digging, and always an inspiration 🫡

Decent bit of New York footage + an ender in Heitor Da Silva’s new part for Adidas.

Carson Reuther has a great six-minute Philly edit out featuring Brian O’Dwyer, Matt Militano, Kevin Liedtke + more to commemorate the closing of Fairman’s Skateshop, which shut its doors several weeks ago. 47 years has got to be the longest running American skate shop, right? Anyone have another? (Guessing it’s in California, if so?)

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That’s Hollywood, Baby

Definitely remember this one being a crowd favorite at the premiere: Kevin Taylor’s part in Static 6 is now online to commemorate K.T’s new spot on the Hopps team.

Jake Baldini becomes the first person to ever return a purchase and replenish his balance in the new installment of Skate Jawn‘s “$100 Chill” series. Shout out to Jake and his crew for that bank-to-ledge at Mosquito Beach.

“I do remember chatting to him when he was pranging out about having to switch flip the London Bridge stairs, that’s quite funny. He was pranging out the night before, I just remember thinking you don’t actually have to do this.” Lev Tanju nerded out over his favorite pieces of U.K. skate lore for Slam City Skates’ “Visuals” series.

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The Rust Belt Trap Sequel — Jake Baldini & Matthew Andersen’s ‘FRONT ROW’ Video

Filmers really do it all…

…though the maxim about them being skateboarding’s most under-heralded heroes feels like a gross understatement once the credits of Front Row begin to roll. The video has opening and closing full parts from the two guys who made it, and invariably clocked in the majority of hours spent filming each other + the other 15 minutes of clips sandwiched between those two parts, AND not to mention a third shift finding and fixing so many of the haggard-ass spots that fly past your screen faster than you can even process them.

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