From the Fifth Avenue walking tour: In the 1976 film Marathon Man, Laurence Olivier plays Die Weisse Engel (the White Angel), an old Nazi and former concentration-camp torturer now living in New York City. During the war, the White Angel systematically stole diamonds from his victims and eventually amassed a huge fortune. He now wishes to exchange his diamonds for millions in cash. He goes to 47th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues in Manhattan, then (as now) the center of New York City's thriving diamond trade. The trip puts the White Angel at substantial risk: he escaped Germany without being prosecuted for his crimes; he hasn't shown himself in public for more than 25 years and might be recognized. As it turns out, he is recognized by someone, by one of his victims, an old Jewish woman who pursues him down the street, shouting "Die Weisse Engel! Die Weisse Engel!" Tragically, he manages to escape, while the old woman runs into traffic and gets run over by a car.
If the White Angel were to make his trip to 47th Street today, despite the passage of time, he'd still be spotted and tracked. But instead of being spotted by a person, he'd be spotted by one or several of the 20 continuously-operating surveillance cameras that (since 1976) have been installed over the entrances and at the sides of buildings all along the street. There has been an improvement: the security guard (or face-recognition system) that recognizes the White Angel's face will be able to pursue the villain as he flees down the block, but won't have to risk getting run over by a car to do it. The guard or computer program simply turns the camera's angle or adjusts the zoom, or switches to the view from the next camera in the series. In the meantime, the guard will be able to use his/her radio system to call in a report to the police, who will have a car over there in a matter of minutes. Big improvement! The White Angel will still get away.
From the Fifth Avenue walking tour:
From the Washington Square Park walking tour:
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