Fasten the safety belts: After standing ovations on the festival circuit, cult director Paul Verhoeven’s eagerly awaited Black Book is finally here. The Dutch filmmaker’s dazzling and spectacular new cinematic triumph about World War II is his first movie in six years, and it marks his first return since the 1983 thriller The 4th Man Read More
10 a.m. Sen. Hillary Clinton attends a HELP Committee Hearing into 9/11 health effects in Washington, D.C. 11:30 a.m. The state's Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions will hold a public hearing on cable franchise agreements at the State Education Building, 80 Washington Avenue, in Albany. 12:30 p.m. Noeleen Heyzer, executive director of the United Read More
Steve Wiebe has been hearing the same question repeatedly: “Is the bar closing?” His patrons have good reason for asking. Mr. Wiebe’s Westside Brewery Co., located at the corner of Amsterdam Avenue and 76th Street, is just about the last business left on the block. Apart from the bar, only the low-budget Amsterdam Inn directly Read More
The Observer has launched a new weekly real-estate section called Location. Macklowes Ink Second-Biggest Building Buy in U.S. History "Macklowe Properties paid $1.73 billion for Worldwide Plaza at 825 Eighth Avenue, the second-largest sale price for an office building in U.S. history." Durst Signs Himself at One Bryant Park "The Durst Organization will take Read More
Like many torch-bearers of old family-owned businesses, Steve Chahalis hopes that his son, too, will one day work behind the same counter as he has—as a bartender, though, not a bank teller. But in order to keep his clan’s longstanding P&G Café Bar from devolving into yet another ubiquitous Manhattan bank branch, Mr. Chahalis might Read More
I taught my first philosophy classes in the autumn of 1952, at Northwestern University. In those days, an instructor was expected to teach three or four courses a quarter, and thus in the space of a year I taught nine or 10 different courses, most of which were simply assigned to me. One was a Read More
Owner Dona Flam, left, with salesperson Stacy Pershall. The storefront mannequins were only half-dressed and the lower level was unfinished. But the shelves were stocked with yarn and knittings of all colors and kinds -- as promised -- during the Friday grand opening of Yarntopia, located at the corner of Amsterdam Avenue and 108th Street. Read More
I've spent a lot of time critiquing an event at Yivo Institute last week, well I must praise the all-day conference Yivo put on Sunday, to mark the 350th anniversary of the excommunication of Baruch Spinoza by Jewish religious authorities in Amsterdam. A wonderful event. I almost didn't get in. The conference was sold Read More
In addition to endorsing Chris Owens for a Brooklyn congressional seat today, The Amsterdam News made a number of other endorsements [no link yet]. In a surprise move, they went with Tom Suozzi over Eliot Spitzer, saying: "Both men are talented; one of them is human to the core." Update: Amsterdam News also endorsed: Read More
New York Times publisher Arthur O. Sulzberger Jr. gave the first of his 2006 State of the Times addresses at 10:30 this morning at the New Amsterdam Theatre. In his opening remarks, Sulzberger discussed the paper's efforts to expand its online and digital operations in a newspaper industry that's mired in struggle. "The intro was Read More
Click image to enlarge. Devoting an entire issue to real estate is a great idea for two reasons. First, New Yorkers seemingly can't get enough of the topic. Second, there's a lot of brokerages ready to spend big money on full-color ads for their luxury developments. Bulging to over 200 pages, this Read More
In the past year, I’ve visited nearly 100 restaurants, eaten at least a dozen tuna tartares, over 20 plates of “crudo,” a flock of organic chickens, God knows how many pounds of grass-fed beef, and enough fish to fill a tank at the Coney Island Aquarium. So this week seems a good time for a Read More
Onera Two Stars 222 West 79th Street (between Amsterdam and Broadway) 212-873-0200 Dress: Casual Lighting: Soft Noise Level: High but not unbearable Wine List: A large selection of Greek and California wines Credit Cards: All major Price Range: Main courses, $16 to $27 Brunch: Saturday and Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to 3 Read More
Onera
Two Stars 222 West 79th Street (between Amsterdam and Broadway) 212-873-0200 Dress: Casual Lighting: Soft Noise Level: High but not unbearable Wine List: A large selection of Greek and California wines Credit Cards: All major Price Range: Main courses, $16 to $27 Brunch: Saturday and Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Lunch: Monday through Read MoreVictoria’s Secret’s “Very Sexy” bra collection is flying off the shelves. Unfortunately, not everybody is paying for the push-up, padded, embroidered and bejeweled bodices. And by the way, “Very Sexy” is a registered trademark; it’s not simply a description of the garments given to police after a thief visited the store on Nov. 19 and Read More
