Results tagged “nyc”

Today the Times crunches the numbers on New Yorkers whose deaths are ruled accidental, noting that although there has been a significant drop in homicides and fire fatalities in recent years, there has not been a similar drop in death by oops. According to a recently released report [pdf], in 2008, 54,193 people died in NYC, and 1,044 deaths (excluding drug overdoses) were classified as accidental. It was an 8.8 percent decline from 1998, but homicides fell 17.5 percent in that same period. Why can't the government save us from accidents? more ›

There's a fascinating article in the Times Science section today about an ambitious project currently underway to examine the effects of environmental influences on the development of 100,000 children across America, following them from before birth until age 21. The study, which is expected to cost about $6.7 billion, relies on mothers to voluntarily offer their "vaginal fluid, toenail clippings, breast milk, placenta and even her baby’s first feces for scientific posterity." Naturally, the government scientists are meeting some resistance as they go door to door searching for volunteers. more ›

By the time you read this, it may already be too late, but be Forewarned: "Due to a signal problem at the Bergen Street Station, there is no F train service in both directions between the Delancey Street Station and the Church Avenue Station." Incidentally, the J train stopped abruptly for a good ten minutes halfway into the platform at Marcy Ave at 7:40 this morning. Finally an MTA worker appeared with a wooden pole and poked at a white pile of plastic on the tracks. He held it up for the train operator to see, then dropped it back on the tracks. And when the train at last proceeded, a woman's earbuds could be heard blasting the Shirelles' "Mama Said." more ›

No matter how deserted your subway train may be, you can't still afford to get comfortable by putting your feet up: It seems that transit police have not eased up on their late night ticket blitz against any rider occupying more than one seat. Last year saw a 17% spike in tickets for that crime, and it looks like the trend continues in 2010. One of the more recent violators is a 17-year-old Stuyvesant HS student who got a $50 ticket two weeks ago on his way home from a birthday party. It was 2 a.m., and there were four people other in the subway car when he dared rest his feet on the edge of an empty seat. more ›

Ah marone, this low-budget video promoting a new bus tour of Manhattan Mafia spots is so full of Italian-American mob cliches the only thing missing is a bloody horse head. In fact, it's so hilariously awful it actually makes us want to get on the bus—and we're not just saying that because some goomba's got a telephone cord wrapped around our necks. more ›

Click on the stills for more details and reviews on this week's new releases and repertory screenings, which include The Wolfman, Valentine's Day, Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, October Country, Videocracy, Ajami, To Die For Tano, Celestial Navigations: The Short Films of Al Jarnow, The Dark Crystal, and Basic Instinct more ›

ABC News is reporting that former President Bill Clinton has been hospitalized in NYC. Clinton, 63, was reportedly rushed to Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan "for a condition related to his heart." ABC News' chief political correspondent George Stephanopoulos hears that he was taken to the hospital "likely for a stent procedure." (A stent is small mesh tube that is used to treat narrowed or weakened arteries; Clinton previously had heart surgery in 2004. ) more ›

In what is likely just the first of such discoveries, eleven previously unpublicized letters from J.D. Salinger have been unsealed by The Morgan Library and Museum, and are being prepared for exhibition. The correspondence between the author and Michael Mitchell, the designer of the first cover of The Catcher in the Rye, "reveals an enduring fascination with pop culture and politics that is at odds with the popular mythology of the past half-century of Mr. Salinger as an odd recluse," the Times reports. These revelations reportedly include: more ›

The judges have wrapped up their search for a new NYC condom wrapper design, and now it's time to vote for your favorite rubber package out of five finalists! The Health Department received nearly 600 entries since December, when it invited New Yorkers to design a wrapper that would “capture the city’s distinctive culture while promoting safer sex.” But it wasn't just locals who got in on the action; designs flooded in from as far away as Perm, Russia. (There's a Yakov Smirnoff joke in here somewhere, but damned if we can find it.) more ›

As we noted yesterday, ABC News is slowly releasing some of the 2,779 new photos of the 9/11 attacks obtained from the archives of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, in response to a Freedom of Information Act request. The images speak for themselves, but today Newsday published an interview with the NYPD helicopter pilot who took many of the photos, including the one seen here. Detective Gregory Semendinger spent three hours flying about the site that morning, doing double duty as a co-pilot and photographer, scanning the rooftops in hopes of spotting someone to save. more ›

Snow noes, the teenagers are going to be running amok tonight! The Mayor's office has preemptively announced that all NYC public schools are going to be closed tomorrow out of panic that this time the impending snowmageddon will actually happen, as our venerable seers portend. Over a foot of snow is expected starting early tomorrow morning, but throughout tonight, expect adolescents to run (more) wild in the streets (than usual). Then they'll sleep half the day away tomorrow, rising for The Price is Right, followed by a mass high-jacking of snow plows to make sure roads remain impassable through the weekend. Rules were made to be frozen! more ›

The Royal Shakespeare Company will spend several hundred thousand dollars donated by Ohio State University to construct a full-size replica of their new theater in Stratford-upon-Avon, ship it in pieces to NYC, and assemble it in the Park Avenue Armory's massive Drill Hall, which has 55,000 square feet of uncolumned space. In an unprecedented plan announced today, the company will use the replica to stage five plays in repertory in July and August 2011 as part of the Lincoln Center Festival. (The five plays are Antony and Cleopatra, As You Like It, Julius Caesar, King Lear, Romeo and Juliet and The Winter’s Tale.) more ›

The faltering plan to hold trials for the 9/11 terror suspects in downtown Manhattan has elicited intense criticism from Mayor Bloomberg, Governor Paterson, the NYPD, Chuck Schumer, and other local politicians and business leaders. But in an interview with CBS News anchor Katie Couric, President Obama still declined to officially "blink," saying, "I have not ruled it out, but I think it's important for us to take into account the practical, logistical issues involved. If you have got a city that is saying no, and a police department that is saying no, and a mayor that is saying no, that makes it difficult." But what about the City Council; maybe they can turn this thing around for Obama? They've just decided to hold a hearing on the issue, so don't touch that dial... more ›

Click on the stills for more details and reviews on this week's new releases and repertory screenings, which include District 13, Frozen, Terribly Happy, Red Riding Trilogy, The Shinjuku Incident, From Paris with Love, Dear John, Reservoir Dogs, Ran, and Total Recall. more ›

Due to possibly inclement weather, the MTA has preemptively canceled all subway work this weekend. New Yorkers along the G line have been relying on shuttle buses for the past three weekends while work is done, and with the snowpocalypse looming, there was concern that roads might be relatively snowed out, stranding neighborhoods like Greenpoint without public transportation. So the MTA tells us that all subway lines will operate according to the usual weekend schedule. Oh, except the 7, which will once again not run between Times Square-42nd Street and Queensboro Plaza. Sorry, LIC. An MTA spokesperson tells us there will be a meeting Monday morning to discuss the how the storm cancellations will affect the upcoming weekend schedules. (This was supposed to be the last weekend of G suspension.) more ›

A surprising report in the March issue of Men's Health asserts that Boston is the "least drunk" city in all the land. You really don't need to read much further to realize this news is wicked retarded, but what makes it even more ridonkulous is that the Irish and college capital of America ranks even higher on the sobriety scale than Salt Lake City, which is fourth "least drunk." And ranking #2 for least drunk is Yonkers, which is such a dreary place you need a drink just to get through it on Metro North. more ›

The hole in alleged NYPD sodomy victim Michael Mineo's underwear was not caused by a police baton, an NYPD fiber expert testified yesterday during the trial of three officers. Yesterday defense lawyers summoned expert Nicholas Petraco, who told jurors, "They could not have possibly made the hole in this underwear. This is a square hole." Petraco also testified that the hole must have been "cut out" or "punched," because it's a clean hole with no flap of material left. Lawyers for the three officers are claiming that Mineo, a body piercer, used one of his own tools to make the hole after the fact. more ›

Voters across New York State are overwhelmingly in favor of ending prohibition on medical marijuana, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. 71 percent of those polled said medical marijuana is a "good idea," with the poll finding support "among all political, racial and regional groups." Even a majority of Republicans (55 - 41) are in favor of turning on medicinally. "Voters of every age have entered the Age of Aquarius," said Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. "It hasn't attracted a lot of attention, but New York State voters would like to emulate their New Jersey neighbors and approve medical use of marijuana." So what the hell's stopping us from biting Jersey's style? more ›

Back in the summer of 2008, when the city installed nine site-specific bicycle racks designed by the former Talking Heads frontman, we wondered, Is there anything this city won't do for bicycling renaissance man David Byrne? Apparently, yes! David Byrne is pissed this week, because the city’s Design Commission, which has the final say on permanent street art and architecture, has rejected two of his bike rack designs. While the original nine have been permitted to exist, one that the New Museum wanted installed on the Bowery was dismissed, as was another shaped like a liquor bottle, which the commission "deemed to be in bad taste." Byrne, writing on his blog, says it was bureaucratic politics, not taste: more ›

21-year-old Prada model Nick Snider was named the world's fifth most successful male model by Forbes magazine a couple years ago. Because he's at the top of an industry in which people do all sorts of depraved things to get ahead, he probably wasn't sweating it when cops came to arrest him for causing a disturbance at a friend's house near Little Rock Monday morning. Surely a little trip downtown would spare him a trip...downtown. Well, things sure are backwards down South, because the arresting officer says he completely blew off Snider's gracious offer to "suck your dick and balls if you let me go." more ›

For the past year or so, photographer Stephanie Keith has been going to the Flatlands in Brooklyn for dead-of-night vodou ceremonies. Her audio slide show about her experiences is killer. While we've been sleeping the night away, she's been dancing to drumming and watching spirit possession in a rum-soaked basement. By the end of one "party" there were about seven people all possessed at the same time! Unfortunately, she wasn't allowed to take pictures when the Gede spirit "mounted" participants, but still got off some great shots. "I keep telling my friends I wish I could get mounted by a spirit, but that never happened," Keith wistfully remarks. She's actually attended ten vodou ceremonies so far, but Gede is still playing hard to get. [Via Boing Boing] more ›

It gets crowded for a DNA strand up on a police baton! Today a DNA expert from the chief medical examiner's office testified that Michael Mineo's blood and DNA could not be definitively linked to the retractable police baton, or ASP, that Officer Richard Kern allegedly used to sodomize Mineo after he resisted arrested in a Brooklyn subway station in October 2008. Criminologist Sarah Philipps said that she found DNA from three sources on the ASP, and that Mineo was "included as a possible contributor to this sample." But because the other DNA was mixed with the sample, she could not confirm a match, NY1 reports. It was a different story with Mineo's boxers, however. more ›

In a promotional gimmick to rival the "Ole 96er" steak eating challenge in the classic 1988 film The Great Outdoors, local BBQ restaurant Hill Country is throwing down the goutlet with their "Feed Your Face Challenge." Think you're tough enough to consume a massive amount of meat, soft drink, and one cupcake in under 60 minutes with no bathroom break? If you pull this off, you'll not only eat $65 worth of food for free, but you'll also receive a Hill Country hat and T-shirt, plus an immortal photo of your bloated face on the "Wall of Cue!" Losers, however, "pay for their meal and carry their shame home." Hill Country says [pdf] your "opponent" consists of the following items: more ›

Thursday's incident wasn't the first time a fourth grade teacher at PS 65 in Ozone Park allegedly turned his classroom into an impromptu fight club. In the wake of yesterday's publicity, another student's parent has come forward, claiming that last year Joseph Gullotta told his class that if 10-year-old Jovan Ortiz got up from his seat, the others were, in Jovan's words, "allowed to punch me in my face." His mother, Wajana Vallechillo, tells the Daily News she filed a complaint after classmates punched Jovan in the stomach twice, and says that during a meeting with Gullota, he cried and said he was just trying to "toughen up" Jovan. more ›

Is there anything gazillionaire developer Joe "Coney Island Grinch" Sitt can't turn to crap with a wave of his gold card? Having finished holding the Coney Island amusement district hostage, Sitt's dreaming up the future of Red Hook, where he owns land between the Ikea and the Fairway. Both were controversial additions to the sleepy, cobblestone waterfront, which was most recently besieged by the cast of MTV's The Real World. Sitt's latest idea for a neighborhood so full of potential and diminishing returns? Dorms, dude. more ›

This morning a doctor from the hospital visited by alleged victim of NYPD sodomy-by-police baton testified for the prosecution. Dr. Syed Ahmed said that contrary to the officers' testimony, it was "highly unlikely" that Michael Mineo's injuries were self-afflicted. Mineo went to Brookdale University Hospital on Oct. 15, 2008, immediately after the alleged attack inside the Prospect Park subway station. According to Dr. Ahmed, Mineo had elevated pulse and white blood cell count, which he said are "sure signs of a serious inflammatory response." more ›

Did you know that in Japan, restaurants waste virtually nothing, and cooks transform unused ingredients like fish heads, bones, vegetable peels and scraps of wagyu beef into dishes eaten during the staff meals, or "makanai"? Supposedly, this act of extraneous alchemy yields delicious results, and EN Japanese Brasserie in the West Village is starting a regular series of special feasts using all these leftover bits. more ›

Back in 2008, we shared some exhilarating video of cyclists peddling through NYC at breakneck speeds. The hardcore footage is part of a documentary called Empire, which director Luke Stiles tells us is almost finished. The hour-long feature will resemble a "BMX or skate video; music-driven action sports stuff," says Stiles. "All fixed gear, all NYC, with traffic and tricks. No one has been injured to date except for the occasional shin burger or twisted angle by one of the trick guys. Everyone's pretty good at what they do." They better be—as you can see from this gnarly new video, serious injury is just one handlebar twist away: more ›

The primary, official purpose of the Broadway Pedestrian Plazas—which last May banned cars from seven blocks along Broadway in Times Square and Herald Square—was to relieve traffic congestion, because Broadway disrupts traffic where it intersects with other streets. (As part of the changes, Seventh Avenue was widened from three to four lanes at 45th Street.) But the dramatic transformation, which received razzing from some and raves from others, was always intended as a temporary pilot program, pending a DOT study on the traffic impact. It's now being reported that the study was completed a month ago, and the results are not what Mayor Bloomberg and the DOT had hoped. more ›

Yesterday 26-year-old NYPD Officer Kevin Maloney broke the blue wall of silence and corroborated allegations made by a Brooklyn man who claims he was sodomized by cops during an arrest in a subway station in 2008. Maloney testified, "I see Richard Kern has a metal retractable baton, known as the Asp, out. I saw Officer Richard Kern have it placed on Michael Mineo’s buttocks." Maloney witnessed a half inch or an inch of the baton disappeared in "Mineo’s butt crack," and testified that he later saw Mineo pull his hand from out of his pants and show the officers his bloody hands. But despite witnessing all this, Maloney kept his mouth shut for days. more ›