"People say New Yorkers can't get along. Not true. I saw two New Yorkers, complete strangers, sharing a cab. One guy took the tires and the radio; the other guy took the engine"

David Letterman’s observation about New Yorkers captures not just the stereotype of tough city living, but does so with a sharp comedic twist. He starts with an assertion familiar to anyone who has heard generalizations about big city residents: people claim that New Yorkers are brusque, unfriendly, or unable to cooperate. He immediately undercuts that with a story, suggesting he witnessed the opposite, a moment where two total strangers shared a cab, a very communal act in such a large, busy city.

However, the humor emerges as the apparent act of cooperation is revealed to be a scenario of mutual theft rather than civility. The punchline tells us they did share the cab, only in the sense of both stealing parts from it: one helped himself to the tires and radio, while the other took the engine. Their form of ‘sharing’ isn’t teamwork for mutual convenience or kindness, but co-conspiracy in crime, each maximizing his own gain out of the situation. The joke plays off audience expectations, first appearing to affirm the possibility of communal spirit, then subverting it in a way that highlights the extremes of selfishness.

Underlying the joke is a broader commentary on urban life, particularly within New York’s popular mythology. Cities are often imagined as places of hustle, opportunism, and sometimes moral ambiguity. Letterman channels that idea by suggesting that people cooperate, but not in the benign ways we hope; instead, collaboration might actually look like coming together for personal advantage, disregarding rules or social norms.

Finally, the absurd escalation, from simply sharing a cab to jointly dismantling and looting it, amplifies the comic effect, exaggerating urban stereotypes to the point of parody. It’s a humorous reminder that generalizations about cities and the behavior of their residents can be complicated, multifaceted, and often the basis for pointed social satire.