The ‘Times’ Helps Us Keep Up With the RichesWhy do we know so much about how Alex Witchel and Frank, Simon, and Nathaniel Rich spent their summers? Because some crazy old Gray Lady told us!
Exotic Clinton Getaway in East HamptonIn the days between her concession and her appearances campaigning on behalf of Senator Obama, the Clintons were rumored to have made like average, filthy-rich New Yorkers and hit the Hamptons.
‘Gossip Girl’ Will Return Before the Summer!If you’re wondering what’s going to happen now that the strike is over, head over to Vulture’s Poststrike Encyclopedia. They have a complete roster of what shows are coming back and when and how. And as far as we’re concerned, the best news is that Gossip Girl will be back to complete its season before the summer! They still have 9 of their 22 planned episodes to go. It will be back in April and might complete all the rest of the hour-long shows going into the summer. Guess what that means? Months more coverage of the Greatest Show of Our Time! And up to nine more exhaustive episode recaps! That’s okay, take a minute to revel in your own joy. We’d write more, but we think we just blacked out.
Vulture’s Poststrike Encyclopedia: When Will My Show Be Back? [Vulture]
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Your Labor Day Forecast: Sunny and Mild
Okay, we just checked, and the weekend forecast basically couldn’t be any better. In town, on the East End, down the shore, upstate, even on the Vineyard: It’s supposed to be completely sunny, warm but not too hot, not even too humid. So get thee to the beach, people — but if you’re going to Coney Island, pictured here on July 4, get there early to grab a spot. Have a lovely Labor Day; we’ll see you Tuesday.
in other news
So Apparently There’s One More Way the City Can Fine You for Enjoying Yourself
Funny thing we learned from the Times today (no, not that Bush thinks Alberto Gonzales was the victim of overpoliticization, though that’s funny, too): Apparently it’s illegal to wade in fountains in New York City. Which means all these kids frolicking in Washington Square Park earlier this summer were potentially liable for $50 fines. And all this time we thought it was merely gross.
Is That Quick Dip a Cool Idea, or Not So Hot? [NYT]
video look book
What Kind of Man Wears Short Shorts?
Stylist Charles Manning has recently started wearing short shorts. “It’s too hot to wear anything else,” he explains to New York’s Amy Larocca in this week’s Video Look Book. As it turns out, the short shorts are getting a reaction: Old men tell him they’re great; young men want to exchange high-fives. Maybe you’ll like ‘em, too.
Charles Manning [Video Look Book]
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Hello, My Coney Island Baby
Coney Island, yesterday, when the high reached 92 degrees, according to Weather.com. It’s 89 degrees right now, with a forecast high of 92 again. Isn’t it fun sitting at your desk, staring at the computer?
in other news
Suits of Armor: The New Suits of SeersuckerSo you’re sitting there on the subway, bored and crowded and sort of hating your life (which is sort of inevitable in New York in August), and you see one of those School of Visual Arts ads promising the much more fun and fulfilling things you could be doing if you just took one of their classes. Yes, I would like to turn my passion into a program, you think. Or: Yes, I would like to learn to take pretty pictures of birds like the guy in that poster. As the always-angry Copyranter points out today, in SVA’s latest campaign, as seen in the Voice, you now also have the option of becoming a knight. Or a blacksmith. Or something. All of which, we’ve got to tell you, seem even less pleasant to be doing on humid 90-degree-plus days than squeezing onto the downtown Lex. Maybe it’s nice to know that things could be worse?
School of Visual Arts Doth Prepare Thee Well, Young Apprentice [Copyranter]
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Surfin’ NYC
Sure, if you want to be a snob, you could insist on Waikiki Beach on Oahu or Kirra Point on Australia’s Gold Coast. But you can’t get to either of those with a MetroCard — and today the city’s Parks Department opened New York’s second surfing-only beach in the Rockaways. Until 2005, a musty law banned surfing anywhere within the five boroughs. But that year a stretch of seashore at Beach 90th Street was opened to surfers and closed to everyone else, and, well, it was gnarly, dude. Today, after the local chapter of the Surfrider Foundation cleaned the area and a Parks commish Adrian Benepe led a small ceremony, the strip of sand at Beach 67th Street was also turned over to the boarders. It’s just an A-train ride away — and, on that note, we think we’ll call it a week. Catch you Monday.
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Summer in the City
You know what’s wrong with society today? This: Even the dude photographed in Central Park for a New Yorkers–are–relaxing–on–a-sunny–summer–Friday beauty shot is busy working on his cell phone and laptop. Well, that and the Bush administration.
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It’s Like a Heat Wave
And so it continues. Yesterday’s high was a mere 91 degrees (it was forecast for 97); today’s forecast high is 91 again. If you need us, we’ll be napping by a fruit cart. (Or, you know, inside, standing in front of the A/C.)
New York, NY [Weather.com]
It’s Not Easy Being a Steamroller
• Eliot Spitzer admits to the Times that his feud with Joe Bruno has become “ugly” and “eclipse[d] all discussion of policy and legislation.” Plus, all the personal attacks are upsetting Mrs. Spitzer, who now regrets her husband didn’t go into real estate. [NYT]
• The city is opening 290 “cooling centers” to help New Yorkers beat the heat; “I don’t care how strong you are, you should take some precautions,” Mayor Bloomberg declared, sounding even more like a testy grandmother than usual. [amNY]
• Now this is getting interesting: The Department of Transportation under Janette Sadik-Khan is trying to hire Danish planner Jan Gehl as a consultant (as Daily Intel reported two weeks ago), and now word is that his proposals include banning cars from Times Square. [NYDN]
• At the Phil Spector trial, the judge has allowed in a piece of blockbuster testimony from the producer’s bodyguard — who says he’s heard Spector say “all women should be shot in the head.” [WNBC]
• And a Manhattan psychologist, William Swan, is accused of groping a prospective assistant during an interview and showing her porn to boost her “assertiveness.” In an apparent triumph, she’s now assertive enough to sue and go to the press. [NYP]
in other news
It’s Too Darn HotWeather.com tells us it’ll reach a high of 97 degrees today, with 48 percent humidity. (Weather.com apparently also thinks we get to play golf on Mondays.) As the Week in Review conscientiously explained yesterday, that means it’ll feel like it’s 110 degrees or so, which is only —only! — dangerous heat, not extremely dangerous heat. Still, any bets on when the first blackout hits the Upper East Side?
New York, NY [Weather.com]
How Hot Is It? Check the Heat Index [NYT]
Earlier: First Blackout of ‘07
the morning line
Just Say No
• Hidden among other traffic-reducing measures in New York’s application for federal congestion-pricing funds is a doozy: Just Stay Home. One of the proposed changes is “telecommuting as a travel demand management strategy.” [Metro NY]
• The Post, firmly on Joe’s side in the Bruno-Spitzer battle, reports that Spitzer’s aides pretty much begged anyone with a badge to investigate the state senator (including, unsuccessfully, “at least one New York City D.A.” — how many of those do we have?). [NYP]
• Despite “experts” insisting that the Bancroft-Murdoch deal is done, the Dow Jones board will be meeting with Ron Burkle today. In the meantime, Journal defections start: A top editor is moving to Business Week. [NYT]
• The first week the new noise regulations were in effect prove one thing: We’re a city of nasty little tattletales. The top complaint to 311 — almost half of the calls — concerned not construction clatter or Mister Softee but noisy neighbors. [NYDN]
• And here’s a free mobile service that puts Google Maps to shame. Should you ever find yourself lost in the Manhattan grid with nowhere to relieve yourself, mizpee.com will send you the address of the “closest, cleanest” restroom. You know, in case you lose the ability to walk into a hotel lobby on your own. [NYDN]
announcements
Every Day’s the Fourth of July
We’re off tomorrow, as we suspect you are, too. Macy’s says the big show starts at 9 p.m., with “120,000 burst of color” shot from four barges in the East River, three between 23rd and 42nd Streets and one south of the Brooklyn Bridge. We’ll be watching from Brooklyn Heights; if all else fails, there’s always the NBC broadcast. See you Thursday, ideally sunburned and hung-over.
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When Days Are Hot, When Days Are Cold…
The Floating Pool, the four-foot-deep pool-on-a-barge that’ll be anchored off Brooklyn Heights for the summer, welcomes the public tomorrow. But opening-day celebrations were held today, as notables including Parks Commish Adrian Benepe, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, and — of course — Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz all took dips, as did 9-year-old Nayhira Baird. The barge also features a beach, volleyball courts, and space for sunbathing — plus, we must say, a pretty awesome view.
Related: Floating Pool’s Opening Signals Start of Brooklyn Bridge Park [Brooklyn Daily Eagle]
the morning line
Fireworks, Pools, Booze — Not Terror — Will Kill You Tomorrow
• There’s no reason to fear terror attacks on the Fourth of July, the mayor is insisting; the threat of terror, he says, is nothing compared to the dangers of unguarded beaches and pools. “Don’t let the kids play with fireworks. Don’t drink and drive,” he advised. Oh, also, the NYPD is on its highest alert. [NYDN]
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Hot Dog
Sometimes, like when it’s 90-plus degrees at the Columbus Circle fountain, it’s good to be a pooch.
Hot Town, Summer in the City
Hey, we often think of the subway system as our backyard, too.
[Snap a Photo Op–worthy shot? Send it to us at intel@nohib.com.]
in other news
The Second Avenue Subway: Now With AC?
Now that it looks like the Second Avenue Subway will actually happen — the groundbreaking is set for next week — it’s time to dream even bigger: As the Times reports today, the planners are considering “roomier, brightly lighted” stations with glass walls and double sets of sliding doors (like on AirTrain). And the glass walls are merely a harbinger of something even, um, cooler: With the platforms sealed off from the tunnels, the dream of every sweaty summertime commuter — air-conditioned stations — becomes a tantalizing possibility. Those Upper East Siders get everything, don’t they? Well, except a subway line, that is, for the last 80 years.
2nd Ave. Subway Platforms May Get Glass Walls and Sliding Doors [NYT]
Earlier: Groundbreaking Set (Again) for Second Avenue Subway
intel
Governor’s Island Is Set to Reopen for the Summer, But Does Anyone Care?
Governor’s Island — that slightly mysterious dot of parkland and old, crumbling officers’ houses sitting in the middle of New York Harbor — will for the first time ever this summer be open to the public on both Saturdays and Sundays, according to an announcement yesterday from the city-state agency that runs it. Lots of time to spend on lots of pretty parkland with lots of amazing views. But what do actual New Yorkers know about it? We asked a few and were favorably surprised by their answers — not that many are actually planning to visit.
