--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Now the evening's at its noon, its…" description: "\"“Now the evening's at its noon, its meridian. The outgoing tide has simmered down, and there's a lull-like the calm in the eye of a hurricane - before ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/530/cornell-woolrich-2734_city-at-night_now-the-evening-s-at-its-noon-its-meridi_1577194.jpg" --- # Now the evening's at its noon, its meridian. The outgoing… ![“Now the evening's at its noon, its meridian. The outgoing tide has simmered down, and there's a lull-like the calm in the eye of a hurricane - before the reverse tide starts to set in. The last acts of the three-act plays are now on, and the after-theater eating places are beginning to fill up…” quote by Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/530/cornell-woolrich-2734_city-at-night_now-the-evening-s-at-its-noon-its-meridi_1577194.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/530/cornell-woolrich-2734_city-at-night_now-the-evening-s-at-its-noon-its-meridi_1577194.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/530/cornell-woolrich-2734_city-at-night_now-the-evening-s-at-its-noon-its-meridi_1577194.jpg) > ““Now the evening's at its noon, its meridian. The outgoing tide has simmered down, and there's a lull-like the calm in the eye of a hurricane - before the reverse tide starts to set in. The last acts of the three-act plays are now on, and the after-theater eating places are beginning to fill up with early comers; Danny's and Lindy's - yes, and Horn & Hardart too. Everybody has got where they wanted to go - and that was out somewhere. Now everybody will want to get back where they came from - and that's home somewhere. Or as the coffee-grinder radio, always on the beam, put it at about this point: 'New York, New York, it's a helluva town, The Bronx is up, the Battery's down, And the people ride around in a hole in the ground. Now the incoming tide rolls in; the hours abruptly switch back to single digits again, and it's a little like the time you put your watch back on entering a different time zone. Now the buses knock off and the subway expresses turn into locals and the locals space themselves far apart; and as Johnny Carson's face hits millions of screens all at one and the same time, the incoming tide reaches its crest and pounds against the shore. There's a sudden splurge, a slew of taxis arriving at the hotel entrance one by one as regularly as though they were on a conveyor belt, emptying out and then going away again. Then this too dies down, and a deep still sets in. It's an around-the-clock town, but this is the stretch; from now until the garbage-grinding trucks come along and tear the dawn to shreds, it gets as quiet as it's ever going to get. This is the deep of the night, the dregs, the sediment at the bottom of the coffee cup. The blue hours; when guys' nerves get tauter and women's fears get greater. Now guys and girls make love, or kill each other or sometimes both. And as the windows on the 'Late Show' title silhouette light up one by one, the real ones all around go dark. And from now on the silence is broken only by the occasional forlorn hoot of a bogged-down drunk or the gutted-cat squeal of a too sharply swerved axle coming around a turn. Or as Billy Daniels sang it in Golden Boy: While the city sleeps, And the streets are clear, There's a life that's happening here. ("New York Blues")”” [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The city’s relentless pace creates cycles of excitement and emptiness, where people seek connection amid chaos and fleeting moments. **In simple terms:** Urban life is a constant ebb of activity and quiet, shaping human behavior. Key Takeaway Recognize the rhythm of city life and find balance. Themes urban life tempo loneliness connection nightlife Mood melancholic observational Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - commuting - night shifts - social events - personal introspection Key Concepts sociology psychology temporal perception Questions to Reflect On - How does the city’s rhythm affect your mood? - What moments bring you peace in chaos? A Different Perspective The vivid description may romanticize turbulence, overlooking systemic issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Evening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evening/) [Midnight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/midnight/) [New york city](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-york-city/) [Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/night/) [Twilight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twilight/) [York New York](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/york-new-york/) ## Related quotes > [“The thing, whatever it was - and no one was ever sure afterwards whether it was a dream or a fit or what -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/the-thing-whatever-it-was-and-no-one-was-ever-sure-afterwards-whether/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [Once the return tide starts, it will be impossible to stem it, and it will prove our undoing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-sharett/once-the-return-tide-starts-it-will-be-impossible-to-stem-it-and-it/) [Moshe Sharett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-sharett/) ## More by Cornell Woolrich > [“He should have caught up with me inside of fifteen minutes at the outside, if he'd been able to get on the next train…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/he-should-have-caught-up-with-me-inside-of-fifteen-minutes-at-the/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“Home? What is home? Home is where a house is that you come back to when the rainy season is about to begin, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/home-what-is-home-home-is-where-a-house-is-that-you-come-back-to-when/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“Gates got up, but not fast or jerkily, with the same slowness that had always characterized him. He wiped the sweat off his palms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/gates-got-up-but-not-fast-or-jerkily-with-the-same-slowness-that-had/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“As the bartender struck a match to light her cigarette, she put her hand on his wrist to steady it. Travis saw him jump,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/as-the-bartender-struck-a-match-to-light-her-cigarette-she-put-her/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“That was enough dialogue for a few pages - he had to get into some fast, red-hot action. There weren't any more hitches now.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/that-was-enough-dialogue-for-a-few-pages-he-had-to-get-into-some-fast/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“Murder is such an elastic term, isn't it? ("Mind Over Murder")”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/murder-is-such-an-elastic-term-isn-t-it-mind-over-murder/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“She was beautiful, only hers was the dark beauty of night, just as Sherry's was the bright beauty of daytime. Her hair was raven-black,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/she-was-beautiful-only-hers-was-the-dark-beauty-of-night-just-as/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“And I still say it was just a coincidence;' he muttered pugnaciously. 'You say it too! Look at me and say it! It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/and-i-still-say-it-was-just-a-coincidence-he-muttered-pugnaciously/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“And then finally she came - and the whole world faded out around us and we were just alone on the crowded sidewalk. I've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/and-then-finally-she-came-and-the-whole-world-faded-out-around-us-and/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“One of the two owners, the man who had been sitting in the front room, was stretched out in there asleep, stockinged-toes pointed at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/one-of-the-two-owners-the-man-who-had-been-sitting-in-the-front-room/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“But that's the Way, and there is no other. And once his mind's made up, the trembling and aimless walking stops, and he can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/but-that-s-the-way-and-there-is-no-other-and-once-his-mind-s-made-up/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“He just lingers long enough to see his plane put to bed properly, then grabs a cab at the airport-gate. "The Settlement" and forgetting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/he-just-lingers-long-enough-to-see-his-plane-put-to-bed-properly-then/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“There was a pause, while I fought against this other, lesser kind of death that was creeping over me - this death called strangeness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/there-was-a-pause-while-i-fought-against-this-other-lesser-kind-of/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“Every life is a mystery. And every story of every life is a mystery. But it is not what happens that is the mystery.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/every-life-is-a-mystery-and-every-story-of-every-life-is-a-mystery/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“Evans made himself their spokesman. "Charlie and Joe," he offered. "Remember us? We brought a friend back with us this time." Girls evidently didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/evans-made-himself-their-spokesman-charlie-and-joe-he-offered/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) [Explore all 152 Cornell Woolrich quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) ## More City-at-night quotes > [“The ride had begun. 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The outgoing tide has simmered down, and there's a lull-like the calm in the eye of a hurricane - before the reverse tide starts to set in. The last acts of the three-act plays are now on, and the after-theater eating places are beginning to fill up with early comers; Danny's and Lindy's - yes, and Horn & Hardart too. Everybody has got where they wanted to go - and that was out somewhere. Now everybody will want to get back where they came from - and that's home somewhere. Or as the coffee-grinder radio, always on the beam, put it at about this point: 'New York, New York, it's a helluva town, The Bronx is up, the Battery's down, And the people ride around in a hole in the ground. Now the incoming tide rolls in; the hours abruptly switch back to single digits again, and it's a little like the time you put your watch back on entering a different time zone. 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