John Turturro Scales Great Heights in the Service of Ibsen
Andrew Carmellini's Lafayette is The Great Gatsby of Restaurants
Brooklyn Bowl Owner to Build Rock n’ Roll Preschool/Bar in Gowanus
What’s in his bottle?
Entrepreneur Peter Shapiro, owner of Brooklyn Bowl and former owner of Wetlands in Tribeca, wants to turn a Gowanus warehouse a rock and roll preschool and bar.
Mr. Shapiro, a father of two, plans to call the space The Rock and Roll Playhouse and have it play host kiddies in the day Read More
Post Stalks Photographer Who Secretly Snapped Photos of Neighbors
The cameras have turned.
From the vantage point of neighbor Mariel Kravitz’s apartment, The Post captured a few pictures of photographer, and Tribeca peeper, Arne Svenson’s apartment. This comes after Mr. Svenson put on a Manhattan exhibit titled “Neighbors,” which featured unwilling shots of Mr. Svenson’s neighbors, including Ms. Kravitz.
Using a telephoto lens, Read More
Court Also Thinks $2,000 Fine for Plucking a Used TV Antenna From the Trash is Ridiculous
One man’s simple search for the perfect art project turned into a battle with New York City Courts.
This week, a Manhattan appeals court overturned a $2,000 fine issued in 2011 to a Brooklyn carpenter, Albert Prince, for taking a TV antenna from the side of a curb. Yes, you read that right. Read More
Meet Philip: Derek Jeter’s Incredibly Boring Alter Ego
Turns out Derek Jeter lacks imagination when it comes to things that are not sports or women.
The Uber-Yankee has been caught trying to hoodwink employees in a Greenwich Village Starbucks into believing he’s a man called Philip, according to The New York Post. The plan may have failed when they released he’s one Read More
The Feature Well vs. Featurewell.com
Last week, we reported that Pacific Standard digital director Nick Jackson is starting a new website called The Feature Well that will be a “smarter version of MediaBistro.” But maybe Mr. Jackson should have done some more research before he bought that domain name-the name, The Feature Well, is remarkably similar to Featurewell.com, a syndication marketplace service that represents writers and publications (including The New York Observer) so that editors can purchase and republish stories.
“I was surprised to see that someone had ripped off our name,” FeatureWell founder and CEO David Wallis told OTR. “Either Nick Jackson is arrogant or stupid. Maybe both.” Read More
Majority of U.S. Women Prefer Smartphones Over Sex, Should Just Marry Their iPhones Already
Okay, we’ll admit it: a smartphone is almost as good as a boyfriend. Texting is a perfectly fine substitute for talking, a Snapchat of a penis is not that much less exciting than the real thing, and who needs to fall asleep to the comforting sound of your loved one’s snoring when you can drift off to dreamland guided by your favorite chillwave band? Read More
Amanda Bynes Apparently Thinks Google Results Are a Substitute for a State-Issued ID
Perfectly well-adjusted human being Amanda Bynes apparently believes that Google can help solve life’s pesky predicaments. TMZ reports that the talking, off-brand velour suit/actress was denied boarding on a private flight in New Jersey this weekend because her driver’s license was suspended, so she didn’t have a valid government-issued ID to board.
So, in a Read More
‘He’s Got Some Balls’: Tabloid Touts Faux Anthony Weiner Cover
When former Congressman Anthony Weiner officially launched his mayoral bid yesterday, he took the unprecedented step of releasing an announcement video in the dark of night and only granting phone interviews with the media throughout the day. Some strongly speculated the strategy was designed to dampen the pun-filled tabloid reactions by entering the race after their print deadlines. If so, the plan worked–mostly.
Mr. Weiner was indeed kept off the front pages yesterday and today, but both the New York Post and Daily News managed to slip in some loud sideswipes. The News, in particular, seemed annoyed. On page 12, an insert read, “Here’s one for his scrapbook. Weiner’s midnight declaration prevented him from getting on the front page. Now for a ‘what if’ …” Read More
To Do Thursday: Betsey’s Bash
70-year-old reality TV star Betsey Johnson (The Style Network’s XOX Betsey Johnson, starring her daughter) and comeback kid (she recently filed for bankruptcy) has dug into her extensive archives and rejiggered her youthquake-y creations to present a Bollywood-style runway show. Break out the neon pink bindis. After Johnson’s style spectacle, funny ladies Sandra Bernhard and Taylor Negron will do some stand-up before a dance performance by Rioult Dance NY. Read More
5Pointz Backfire: Developer Blasted For Taking Back Building He Let Artists Use for Decades
During his opening remarks at the 5Pointz redevelopment hearing, developer David Wolkoff, whose father Jerry bought the Long Island City property in the 1970s, told the audience, “We’ve been members of the community for over 40 years.” Though they certainly tried (26 years! 29! 33! 4!), none of the speakers in opposition could quite top his time in Long Island City.
“I have fond memories of crawling in the basement of this building” as a child, he told the hostile crowd.
Normally the Wolkoffs wouldn’t have to grovel—it is, after all, their property. But the city dangles extra density as a carrot to developers— a tantalizing 60 percent in the case of this site— if they agree to build extra parking and plazas and to endure the public review process. (Amenities that Court Square has in abundance, including the surprisingly dense thicket of trees by One Court Square. If Jane Jacobs were still alive, we can’t help but wonder if she’d question the number of trees and the paucity of people.) Read More
