David Lynch Cares About New York

This "public service announcement" was apparently created by filmmaker David Lynch and photographed by Frederick Elmes, the cinematographer who worked with Lynch on Eraser Head (1977), Blue Velvet (1986), and Wild at Heart (1990).

I remember seeing short films and ads like the famous "Crying Indian" public service announcement in school in the early 80s. Before the "Just Say No to Drugs" campaign (and concurrent with all the PSAs about "Bad Touch" and avoiding strangers in vans), the anti-litter/anti-pollution propaganda was everywhere.

Because these messages sunk in so deep with me and most of my peers, it's jarring to see someone tossing their cigarette pack's cellophane into the breeze. In New York, it's often hard to tell if littering is an act of defiance and protest against a city that doesn't care, or a thoughtless reflex to unburden one's self of waste. Either way, it's common.