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In the days following the synchronized New Year's drops of the Times Square glitter ball and Britney Spears onto the floor of a dance club, everyone seemed to be feeling gravity's pull. Ex-mayor Rudy Giuliani's presidential momentum took a swan dive when a copy of his campaign battle plan fell into the wrong hands. (In it, he'd singled out Bernard Kerik and ex-wife Donna Hanover as two things likely to weigh him down.) New governor Eliot Spitzer, possibly fearing an approval-ratings plunge after Jimmy Fallon's inaugural comedy routine tanked, proposed a $6 billion diminution in property taxes and hinted that predecessor George Pataki had sunk New York into a "Rip Van Winkle"-like sleep for "much of the past decade."

1/ 5/07

5:32 PM

Emerging Artists Not as Interesting as Established Artists

If there were ever a love child spawned by Vince Vaughn and Dave Matthews — just go with us here — he was performing last night at Joe's Pub. Nicholas Barron, a Chicago-based singer-songwriter, kicked off the New York Times' "Emerging Artists" series with an intro by, of all people, James Taylor. The launch of a new monthly concert series is only part of the Times' annual "Arts & Leisure Weekend," running through Sunday, which this year features a slew of artistic heavyweights (Joan Didion, Mikhail Baryshnikov) singing, reading, and talking about being great, being artistic, and being great at being artistic. The tradition began in 2001, either in celebration of the paper's 150th anniversary or in competition with The New Yorker, which began hosting a similar event the year before. But last night, Barron and his backing band (including a bassist who looked like Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter movies) were busy emerging as artists. Barron has been jailed for busking on the streets of London and Chicago, and he founded the Coalition for the Advancement of Street Arts. Barron's family supports his endeavors, and Joe's Pub was filled with kin, right down to a third cousin, twice removed. For the remainder of the weekend, Joe's Pub will host other performers like Morley and Martin Luther. The artists (and critics) who have already emerged — like New York's own David Edelstein — will be interviewed or sit on panels at the Graduate Center at CUNY. You might be better off there. —Jocelyn Guest

It Just Happened

1/ 5/07

4:55 PM

La Plus ‘Time’ Changes...

Has today been feeling a little different for you, with some extra electricity in the air? Are you thanking God even more than usual that it's Friday? Of course! And why? Because today is the first Friday in 50 years on which readers could leaf through a brand-new Time magazine. Oh, that's right, boys and girls: After months of fevered anticipation, the stalwart newsweekly has shifted its production schedule to deliver new issues to newsstands on Fridays instead of Mondays. We were naturally excited, then, to find the new issue sitting on our office desk today. We dug in, eager to see all that has changed. And after some serious consideration, we can now pronounce that the new Friday Time magazine is, well, very much like the old Monday Time magazine. Excitement!

January 15, 2007 Issue [Time.com]

Off the News

1/ 5/07

3:58 PM

Spitzer Not Actually Forcing Gay Things Down Your Throats

It turns out John Faso — remember, that guy who was trounced by Spitzer? — was wrong after all when he infamously accused his rival of planning to "force gay marriage down the throats of New Yorkers." The first days of the Spitzer administration suggest the governor has a slower, gentler method in mind. Same-sex marriage, which the GOP wanted you to believe was all but a lynchpin of Spitzer's platform, was conspicuously absent from the barrage of proposals in his State of the State address. Gay-rights advocates are somewhat alarmed, the Sun reports. But not to worry: As Spitzer's communications director says, "Gay marriage isn't a Day One issue." The governor will get around to it, eventually: "We have to prioritize and that's how we prioritized." Spoken like a true leader.

Spitzer: Gay Rites Ahead [NYS]
Earlier: Spitzer's Support for Gays Will Not Be Tested [E&O;]

Vu.

1/ 5/07

3:22 PM

Time Warner Center Jacks Up Apartment Costs

Years after Time Warner Center put an expensive sheen on Columbus Circle, properties nearby are still basking in its reflected glory. Many apartments on the open-house list below reference the project as a not-so-subtle reminder to buyers that the area deserves as much asking-price respect as its neighbors, the increasingly posh Upper West Side and the trendy but unpolished Hell's Kitchen. Still, deals exist in pockets, especially in no-frills walk-ups, though glitzy condos — marble baths, concierge service, you name it — can be had here, too. In fact, a few of them are going up within the shadow of the billion-dollar Time Warner Center itself. — S. Jhoanna Robledo

1/ 5/07

2:33 PM

Bruce Ratner Will Ensure You Have Overpriced Coffee

Speaking of the inexorable march of franchised coffee, we noticed something interesting while idly gazing at some Atlantic Yards plans today. While much about Bruce Ratner's project is still up in the air — Miss Brooklyn's size, the project's time line, the exact numbers of jobs it will create and people it will push out of their homes, who will win Daniel Goldstein's lawsuits — one thing, however, is set in stone, at least according to sketches provided by Frank Gehry's office. Atlantic Yards will definitely have a Starbucks.

Photos: Atlantic Yards Project [amNY]
Earlier: Old East Villager Distressed By Starbucks Influx; Also, Sky Is Blue

Neighborhood Watch

1/ 5/07

1:46 PM

Ugly Buildings Are Attacking the City!

Brooklyn Heights: The mysterious sign maker who guided visitors to the Brooklyn Bridge pedestrian walkway has outed herself. Thanks, Roslyn Beck. [Brooklyn Papers]
East Village: When Jane Jacobs and New Urbanism collide, you get New Yorbanism and buildings like "Sculpture for Living" at Astor Place. [Horizoner via Polis]
Gowanus: Once the Whole Foods opens, expect 1,000 people a day to show up at Third Avenue and 3rd Street. [Gowanus Lounge]
Greenwood Heights: If you're a developer missing some permits, the Concerned Citizens of Greenwood Heights are gonna getcha. [Concerned Citizens of Greenwood Heights via Brownstoner]
Harlem: Food from the meat truck on 132nd and Lenox may be a little too authentic for city dwellers, unless you want your apartment to smell like a barn. [Harlem Fur]
Park Slope: The campaign begins to get writers–crime victims Doug and Barbara Rushkoff to stay in Brooklyn. [Steven Berlin Johnson via Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn]

Intel

1/ 5/07

12:59 PM

Spitzer, Already Bored of Taking on Albany, to Take on Moses, Too?

The Spitzer administration seems poised to undo a former public official's legacy in the South Bronx — and this time we mean Robert Moses, not George Pataki. Community groups in the neighborhood have been trying since 1999 to raze Moses's 1.25-mile, never-completed Sheridan Expressway and build a 28-acre greenway underneath. The state Department of Transportation committed a decade ago to overhauling parts of the Sheridan, but bureaucrats had dawdled while seeking easy plans for big contractors (and, as goes without saying, ignoring locals' thirst for parkland). Now, says Sustainable South Bronx director Majora Carter, two of the four scenarios the state will consider this year include the local bikeway plan. That would replace the Tyrolean folly in the top picture with the boulevard in the lower shot. The community-proposed path would end at a park on a former cement plant usable for kayak launches. And it would mesh with Mayor Mike's notion of making the mainland borough a middle-class beachhead. Imagine: You might pedal to Hunts Point's wholesalers with your grocery basket and shopping list. What would Moses think? —Alec Appelbaum

1/ 5/07

Off the News

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12:13 PM

Old East Villager Distressed By Starbucks Influx; Also, Sky Is Blue

Off the News

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11:36 AM

Group Wants to Shape Up New Yorkers, New York

Photo Op

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11:01 AM

January Continues Bustin' Out All Over

Cultural Capital

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10:27 AM

Playboy TV Finds Naked, Happy New Yorkers

Gossipmonger

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9:48 AM

It's Not All Sunshine and Happiness for Marilyn Manson

Intel

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9:16 AM

Giuliani Plans Join Wallets, Dildos as Hotel Detritus

The Morning Line

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8:38 AM

Petty Cash

1/ 4/07

Photo Op

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6:05 PM

‘Floodwall’

Off the News

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5:26 PM

Ewan McGregor Comes to New York for the Cybersex

Off the News

|

4:38 PM

Lift Ev'ry Voice and Chicken Wing

Intel

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4:06 PM

‘Little Dog’ to Stop Laughing

Intel

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3:22 PM

Magazine Can't Wait for End of Bloomberg Era

Restroom Report

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4:50 PM

Morimoto’s TOTO Toilets: The Iron Chef Would Be Flush With Embarrassment

Two for Eight

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4:00 PM

Table Available at Picholine; Balthazar and Le Bernardin Mostly Booked

Foodievents

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2:00 PM

Dishwashers, Culinary Elite Being Allowed Into Peter Luger’s Kitchen

READ ALL »

Today’s Best Bet

Indulge Your Inner Prep
With a Jenny Bee Calendar

Fashion Calendar

1/6: Belly Dance Maternity has tops, dresses, and pants on sale.
1/7: Head to the Met and catch curator Harold Koda talk about Nan Kempner.
1/11: Invigorate your skin with a Kanebo Sensai Shiatsu Facial at Barneys.

Faces

The Foxiest of Them All: Pam Grier

The Blues Balladeer: Willie Nelson

The Gypsy: The Look Book

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Wednesday, January 3
Also on Wednesday: Nightlife, Theater, Readings, Art, Classical & Dance… All Events Today »
7pm	Stand up for talented Last Comic Standing reject Jessica Kirson, who's back to prove careers do flourish after reality TV.
7:30pm	Discover the next Bill T. Jones or Twyla Tharp at DTW's emerging-choreographer showcase, "Fresh Tracks."
9:30pm	Resurrect the spirit of Lenny Bruce: Steve Cuiffo channels the late controversial comic at Joe's Pub for a one-night gig.

Thursday, January 4
Also on Thursday: Nightlife, Theater, Readings, Art, Classical & Dance… All Events Today »
5pm	Rapper. Actor. Designer. Now publisher-author? Celebrate the change with 50 Cent, who debuts his hip-hop novellas.
6:15pm	Stick with the facts as documentarian Ken Burns discusses his career at an Oxonian Society lecture.
8pm	Hail lo-fi, DIY heroes Japanther when the Brooklyn pop-punk duo plays a hometown gig at Europa.

Friday, January 5
Also on Friday: Nightlife, Theater, Readings, Art, Classical & Dance… All Events Today »
8pm	Get your kicks at "Slamfest," choreographer Karl Anderson's twenty-year retrospective at the Joyce Soho.
8pm	Keep things familial with quirky indie sibling duo the Fiery Furnaces, who'll be rocking out at Northsix.
8pm	Peek behind the curtains when the Metropolitan Opera trifecta of Renée Fleming, Peter Gelb, and Bartlett Sher takes the stage at CUNY Graduate Center.

Saturday, January 6
Also on Saturday: Nightlife, Theater, Readings, Art, Classical & Dance… All Events Today »
2pm	Critique the critics: Movie reviewers Nathan Lee and New York's own David Edelstein talk shop with the Times' A.O. Scott.
8pm	Grin unabashedly from ear to ear when eternally upbeat dance-pop act Matt and Kim lands at Studio B.
8pm	Be cheap and high-minded at Carnegie Hall's "One Dollar Concert," a benefit for the Amazon rainforests with the Bachiana Chamber Orchestra.

Sunday, January 7
Also on Sunday: Nightlife, Theater, Readings, Art, Classical & Dance… All Events Today »
11am-6pm	Dissect myths and mortality with sculptor Kiki Smith, whose first full-scale museum retrospective is at the Whitney.
2pm	Rehash the dirty details with best-selling memoirists Augusten Burroughs, Frank McCourt, and Jeannette Walls.
3pm	Envy late fashion plate Nan Kempner as Met curator Harold Koda discusses the socialite's relationship with designers.

Monday, January 8
Also on Monday: Nightlife, Theater, Readings, Art, Classical & Dance… All Events Today »
6:30pm	Push the soundtrack to the forefront with Crime in the Streets, a featured flick in MoMA's tribute to composer Franz Waxman. (John Cassavetes stars.)
7pm	Put down US Weekly; pick up Fame Junkies. NPR reporter Jake Halpern ruminates on the psychological underpinnings of celebrity obsession.
7:30pm	Just try not to shake your hips as Grammy nominees Groove Collective bring jazz-funk-Afro-Cuban to Joe's Pub.

Tuesday, January 9
Also on Tuesday: Nightlife, Theater, Readings, Art, Classical & Dance… All Events Today »
7pm	Romanticize the dark days of winter as indie singer Emily Haines waxes poetic on everything from drug addiction to feminism in her haunting solo act.
7pm	Acknowledge your sentimental side with Calvin Trillin, who takes a break from satire to read from his moving ode to his late wife, Alice.
7:30pm	Do a double take for Taye Diggs who proves he's not only an actor but a choreographer at the Joyce.

Wednesday, January 10
Also on Wednesday: Nightlife, Theater, Readings, Art, Classical & Dance… All Events Today »
1pm	Witness notorious Nazi war criminals on trial in Nuremberg, Christian Delage's documentary that opens the New York Jewish Film Festival.
6pm	Smudge on some eyeliner and pull on those skinny jeans for the Windy City's dark glam-rock act Kill Hannah at Bowery Ballroom.
8pm	Infuse poetry with Hollywood glamour: Actress Patricia Clarkson joins poet Howard Altmann for a reading of his Who Collects the Days.

Thursday, January 11
Also on Thursday: Nightlife, Theater, Readings, Art, Classical & Dance… All Events Today »
7pm	Expand your mind beyond three dimensions when David Lynch presents his new book Catching the Big Fish: Mediation, Consciousness, and Creativy.
8pm	Envy cellist Alisa Weilerstein, already one of the world's premier soloists at the age of 24, as she makes her Philharmonic debut.
8pm	Sample the acerbic wit of the veteran deadpan comedienne and Air America liberal mouthpiece Janeane Garafalo.

Adventures in Chemical Therapy

FeaturesMore Features

The Brain Behind the NYSE: How has John Thain managed to convince hundreds of alpha-male traders to follow a plan that will make them superfluous?

The Rise of Anal Sex Among Hetero Couples

Columns More Columnists

Lucky 2007: An equity shortage, a new M&A; boom, and lower interest rates point to another year of big winnings on Wall Street.

Andersen: A Call to Arms for Populism

Intelligencer More Intelligencer

Dan Rather Doesn't Mind Porn Colleagues: The newsman insists he has no problem with Perfect 10 pugilists.

Food Find Restaurants & Menus

Adam Platt's Where to Eat 2007: Our restaurant critic's annual rundown of what New York's best culinary minds are whipping up for urban gastronomes.