<sod>Mega-City One's population lives in gigantic towers known as [[City Block (Judge Dredd)|City Blocks]], each holding some fifty thousand people.<ref>''2000 AD'' #117 and 118</ref> Each is named after some historical person or TV character, usually for comic effect. For example, Joe Dredd used to live in the Rowdy Yates Block – [[Rowdy Yates]] was a character in the American TV cowboy drama ''[[Rawhide (TV series)|Rawhide]],'' played by a young [[Clint Eastwood]]. Eastwood would later play the lead in ''[[Dirty Harry]]'' – one of the thematic influences by which Judge Dredd was inspired. A number of stories feature rivalries between different blocks,<ref>''2000 AD'' #489</ref> on many occasions breaking into full-scale gun battles between them<ref>''2000 AD'' #182</ref> (most notably in "[[Block Mania]]").<ref>''2000 AD'' #236–244</ref> The story ''[[Origins (Judge Dredd story)|Origins]]'' revealed that Mega-City One was formed by urban sprawl rather than deliberate design, and by 2051 it was recognised as the world's first mega-city. The Judges' powers reflect the difficulty of maintaining order. Mega-City One extends from Boston to [[Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]]; but extended into Florida before the [[Apocalypse War]] laid waste to the southern sectors.<ref>''2000 AD'' #245–270</ref> At its height, the city contained a population of about 800 million; after the Apocalypse War, it was halved to 400 million. Following [[Day of Chaos|Chaos Day]] in 2134, the city was reduced to 50 million. However immigration quickly increased the population to 72 million by 2137.<ref>''Judge Dredd Megazine'' #365</ref><eod>
<sod>Mega-City One's population lives in gigantic towers known as [[City Block (Judge Dredd)|City Blocks]], each holding some fifty thousand people.<ref>''2000 AD'' #117 and 118</ref> Each is named after some historical person or TV character, usually for comic effect. For example, Joe Dredd used to live in the Rowdy Yates Block – [[Rowdy Yates]] was a character in the American TV cowboy drama ''[[Rawhide (TV series)|Rawhide]],'' played by a young [[Clint Eastwood]]. Eastwood would later play the lead in ''[[Dirty Harry]]'' – one of the thematic influences by which Judge Dredd was inspired. A number of stories feature rivalries between different blocks,<ref>''2000 AD'' #489</ref> on many occasions breaking into full-scale gun battles between them<ref>''2000 AD'' #182</ref> (such as in the story "[[Block Mania]]").<ref>''2000 AD'' #236–244</ref> The story ''[[Origins (Judge Dredd story)|Origins]]'' revealed that Mega-City One was formed by urban sprawl rather than deliberate design, and by 2051 it was recognised as the world's first mega-city. The Judges' powers reflect the difficulty of maintaining order. Mega-City One extends from Boston to [[Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]]; but extended into Florida before the [[Apocalypse War]] laid waste to the southern sectors.<ref>''2000 AD'' #245–270</ref> At its height, the city contained a population of about 800 million; after the Apocalypse War, it was halved to 400 million. Following [[Day of Chaos|Chaos Day]] in 2134, the city was reduced to 50 million. However immigration quickly increased the population to 72 million by 2137.<ref>''Judge Dredd Megazine'' #365</ref><eod>