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Now that you've read all about New York City's bloody history, prepare to descend into the world of Copper, BBC America's brand-new, original series. Academy Award®-winner Barry Levinson (Good Morning Vietnam, Rain Man) is among its executive producers, and he and series co-creator, Emmy®-winner Tom Fontana (Oz, Homicide: Life on the Streets), are big-time NYC history buffs.

Copper is set in the den of corruption that was New York City in the 1860s, where bowler-hat/beard combos are sported with the same frequency as they are in modern-day Williamsburg. Tom Weston-Jones (MI:5) stars as Kevin Corcoran, an Irish detective who is on three missions: to clean up Five Points, to find his missing wife, and to identify his daughter's killer. On top of all that, his friendship with his Civil War buddies — one, the son of a wealthy industrialist, the other, an African-American doctor — take him from the gilded apartments of Fifth Avenue to the farmlands of Upper Manhattan on a regular basis. But Corcoran has found a way to allay his nearly unbearable stress: "visits" with a local madame, Eva (played by Franka Potente of The Bourne Supremacy).

Copper, in all its wonderfully foul, historically accurate glory, premieres on August 19 — click here for more trailers and info, and check back later this week for an exclusive behind-the-scenes video.