- And former Mayor Koch met some advertising icons in Times Square today, all for Advertising Week... will Mayor Dinkins be meeting members of the Justice League next? more ›

) to product names (the Subaru Tribeca SUV, Seven for All Mankind jeans' New York Rinse). And why does everyone want a piece of the Big Apple? Mayor Giuliani "cleaning up" the city, September 11, and TV shows Seinfeld, Sex and the City, and Friends - you know, shows without ethnic characters. There were some we think the article forgot, most notably the Olsen twins heading to NYU and The Apprentice, which, while annoying, has an opening that's like a Valentine to the city. Anyway, Gothamist felt both proud that New York City has that must-have cache but also wary, because what do these other people really know about New York? Do they get sweaty from waiting on the subway platform, because it's 100 degress there while it's at least 20 degrees cooler outside? Do they agreeably wait an hour for a table at the latest brunch place? Do they pay $15 for a cocktail? Do they have their toes run over by all the baby carriages on Seventh Avenue? Maybe the city has a point in trying to show what is made in NYC... more ›

- And in this update about the closest baby panda to NY, aka the little guy in DC at the National Zoo, it looks like his eyes are open! more ›

Last week, the The National Federation of Colombian Coffee Growers opened its second Juan Valdez coffee shop in Manhattan (the first opened in Washington, D.C. earlier in September). There are plans to open 300 of these shops worldwide in the next three years. more ›

To celebrate the advertising agencies that pump much cash into the city, this week is Advertising Week NYC. There are many events, such as panels about politics and advertising, cities and brand (the city's partnership with Snapple will be mentioned, and that panel is at the Bloomberg headquarters!), and the legends of advertising, exhibits of famous campaigns and icons at Grand Central Terminal and various agencies, and a festival of commercials. About forty years ago, you could expect Madison Avenue ad execs to be having three-martini lunches, expensing everything. It's unclear whether that will be celebrated. more ›

AdAge was at the event and reported (registration required, but it's free):

Many icons were no-shows, including Ronald McDonald and the Jolly Green Giant. A rumor quickly circulated that the Energizer Bunny did not make an appearance because the marketer felt that it would be "off-message" for the drum-thumping rabbit to be seen in public being "wanded" at City Hall's security checkpoint.