New York City was nicknamed "Gotham" by this author.
Bill Finger
James Fenimore Cooper
Washington Irving
George Putnam
Washington Irving. Irving bestowed the nickname in 1807, lampooning the city in the literary magazine Salmagundi. Medieval English folk tales of Gotham or Gottam, "Goat»s Town," tell of a town of fools or of townspeople playing fools to escape the attention of King John.