Municipal Assistance Corporation - MAC

New York City in the 1970s was a real mess. You had CBGBs and Studio 54 and Plato's Retreat, so there were some bright spots. But financially speaking, the city had run into some serious problems.

It reached its low point in 1975. The government of NYC didn't have enough cash to pay its bills. It asked the federal government for help, but the feds, under President Ford, said no, leading to the famous newspaper headline, "Ford to City: Drop Dead."

Luckily, the state of New York was more generous. It set up the Municipal Assistance Corp., an entity meant to help the city out of its financial woes. MAC borrowed money, backed by state taxes, which gave the city some runway to fix its problems. The organization also took over the city's finances.

Under MAC's oversight, the city was able to regain its financial stability. Because it had to manage the bonds it sold in the dark days of the 1970s, MAC officially lasted until 2008, when its final debts were squared.