Around here (Grand Rapids, MI) a stock item for making a privacy fence or blocking something off is an Emerald Green Arborvitae. They're not fancy but they work. Does your wife have an objection to something like that?
How high and wide do you need this to be? That might help us a bit.
Stuff that hasn't been mentioned yet:
Holly. Castle Wall / Castle Spire will get up to 12 feet tall. Not sure if that flies in your zone though.
Grasses might work. My favorite suggestion is Erianthus Plume Grass. Grass itself gets 5-6' tall but it shoots up plumes that get near 9-10' off the ground. It goes dead in the winter but the grass and plumes still stand. Even here in Michigan. Just chop it down come spring and it'll regrow. A single plant, when mature, will make about a 4' wide circle.
Miscanthus Gigantus is a grass that'll shoot up to 13'. Unfortunately I have no idea where you'd get it as it's under patent and it was bred to be a fuel source and not a landscaping tool.