Is a big May wedding just around the corner? People is reporting that Beyoncé Knowles and Jay-Z have taken out a marriage license in Scarsdale, New York this morning. The happy couple hasn't commented on the incident, but since the document is only valid for 60 days, time will tell. According to the City Clerk's office, getting married in New York City requires requires the couple to apply "in person for a marriage license at......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a pedestrian was fatally struck on East 4th and Bowery in Manhattan, a child was shot on Blake Ave. in Brooklyn, and a shooting/homicide on Fish Ave and East Gunhill Rd. in the Bronx. The oldest living inmate in New York State is a Long Island surgeon convicted in 1978 of killing his wife. He'll turn 89 this week and concedes that divorce might have been a better choice.......

Unfortunately, what happens in Vegas doesn't always stay in Vegas. Last night MTV took over the Strip and filled it with up and comers, the standard rock, rollers and rappers and of course...the token has beens. Last week The New York Times reported on some problems at the network over the past few years. For one thing, critics say the Video Music Awards, intended as a raucous counterpoint to more staid ceremonies, has become stale......

Stephen Colbert (busy taking over the world) adds one more notch on the "celebrities are clumsy, too" bedpost. Before filming a recent episode the faux-news anchor broke his left wrist while running around the studio of The Colbert Report to pump up the audience before taping. He really does hate the left! This past week, he removed a giant foam hand to reveal the cast, saying "I didn't want to draw attention to it. I......

With all that went down this week, we thought we thought we'd cheer everyone up by giving everyone a double dose of dogs. It was a rollercoaster ride of emotions this week at DCist. Like the rest of country, we were floored by the news of so many dead coming out of Virginia Tech, and with so many of the victims and their relatives from the D.C. area, we felt it important to pay......

Would-be Yankee pitcher Kei Igawa took a visit to Yankee Stadium last night as the Yankees and the 27 year-old lefty close in on contract negotiations. Reports say that the two parties have agreed in principle on a five-year, $20 million contract. The Yankees bid $26 million just for the right to negotiate with Igawa after failing to bid enough to negotiate with Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka. While in town, Igawa was traipsing around......

As we sat down to write this week's Best of the -ists post, a car blaring "21 Questions'" passed by our house. And that started us thinking about how some of the best -ist posts out there have at their hearts questions, some of which are answered, and some of which are left open. Check out the Best of the -ists from this week, and see if you agree. Londonist answers the questions "How......

Breaking Beverage News: Rap star, entrepreneur and Beyonce's boyfriend Jay-Z is boycotting Cristal champagne after some remarks Cristal management made about the rap world. Jay-Z is going to stop drinking Cristal in his personal life (note to all musicians about to appear on Cribs - get the Cristal out of the fridge!) and remove it from the bars of all 40/40 club locations. Here's a summary of what caused the boycott from the AP:In a......

- Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn lines up an exceptional boardof Brooklyn stars and intellects for its efforts to fight the Atlantic Yards; does this mean Bruce Ratner will make Jay-Z line up his friends? Imagine Beyonce vs. Rosie Perez! - More proof the Moussaoui life sentence was good: Now he claims he lied about his Al Qaeda connection - It looks like there will only be one greenmarket on the Upper East Side as......

MTV is going to broadcast the 2006 awards. Now, Gothamist will use our cranky and cliche cards: We don't remember the last time we saw a video on MTV! And we're kind of upset at MTV for making stars out of people who are worthless, although the horrifying pleasure we get when we watch My Sweet 16 almost balances that out. But the show itself is usually trippy fun to watch - whether it's a......

A few times a week, Gothamist publishes music reviews by our contributor Jeff Baum. The opinions below belong entirely to the author. I’ve seen a number of bands play the Bowery Ballroom over the last couple years that have gone on to do great things, but I have never seen the place light up like it did for the Magic Numbers last night. There was an unmistakable buzz in the room, humming louder than at......

You know it's the Oscars when P. Diddy busts out the velvet suit! Gothamist loves the Oscars, and we're going to attempt to do a little liveblogging. We might need to order a vat of caffeine and an EMT team at the ready; not because Chris Rock will be boring, but because we think that Gil Cates might kill us with his newfangled ideas and because we're meh about this year's nominees in the big......

These Knicks columns are just writing themselves lately. Gothamist was on hand late Friday night along with Jay-Z, Beyonce, and Ludacris to witness Stephon Marbury dribble aimlessly for 20 seconds, then pass to a flummoxed Jamal Crawford with one second on the shot clock and all but gift-wrap a narrow 92-91 victory for the Houston Rockets. When the crowd all expects that you'll find a way to lose, a change is certainly in order. After......

Macy's in New York has welcomed "big-bottomed mannequins" to show off fashions, and this warrants a Reuters story. In the photograph above, Ecko Red jeans are one of quite a few brands that are part of this "serious sociological trend that is positive for retailers and customers in that the tyranny of the undernourished perfect model is over" (quote from Rich Rollison, whose company Lifestyle Forms and Display created the mannequins). Of course, there......

Ah, last night's Grammys. Yes, Prince opened up the show to a thankless medley of songs (Gothamist would have preferred one whole song) with Beyonce channeling Tina Turner with her dress and hard-working legs. Justin Timberlake apologized for his behavior at the Super Bowl (though making it everyone else's problem that they were offended) and, thank the Lord, he did not rip off Arturo Sandoval's shirt to expose man boob. Christina Aguilera did note......

One of the requirements to perform at the Super Bowl: Jazz hands!; as demonstrated by Beyonce and Steven Tyler of Aerosmith.......

Mayor Bloomberg, don't just hold the jersey, wear it! You should go to the Atlantic Avenue mall and buy yourself some Enyce sweats, Pumas, and a Sean John hat and let it ride. Just ask Jay-Z for help; we're sure that he'd be happy to take you shopping. Maybe Beyonce could help you pick out some eye creams. In actual Nets/Brooklyn news: Ben McGrath's Talk of the Town piece looks at how Bruce Ratner's......

It's two games into the Stephon Marbury–as–a–Knick era, and though it might be premature to say, it's looking bleak. Eight points his first game, six points last night (though he did get 10 assists). Even though everyone is talking about how a team can't click immediately, Marbury said, "I would never think that it would happen this bad." information leafblower has a good look at the Knicks–Suns trade, in which the Knicks gave up......

Scratchy voiced Alan Light and John Rollins (Gothamist doesn't know anything about Rollins' voice, only Light's because he'dcomment on ANYTHING on VH1) bring a new music magazine offering with Tracks, oriented to more adult readers. The Times' David Carr looks at this venture, which seems to follow the music industry's realization that older consumers will buy, versus download, music, but the older consumers are simply not being spoken to. One doubtful industry expert, wondering if......

Recently, the best thing on VH1 has been their in-house promo: A montage of various musicians (Beyonce, Chris Martin, Justin, etc.), with animation over it, against the Flaming Lips' song, Do You Realize. Slate's Scott Metcalf noted that the song is "lush and trippy and infallibly alluring." There is indeed something hypnotic about Wayne Coyne singing, "Do you realize...that you have the most beautiful face?" with the fluttering animated flowers rising and swelling to the......

When you've read the eighteenth interview with Renee Zellweger and realized you've learned nothing about her, except that she loves her dog, you know that celebrity interviews are a smokescreen. Jeanette Wells asks various interviewers who the boringest interviewees are, and besides Renee, here are three: George Clooney: “During the interview, I was so excited because he seemed so forthcoming and disarming. Then I got home and listened to my tape, and realized he hadn’t......

Okay, let's get it out of the way: Madonna kissed Britney. Madonna kissed Christina. Fine. Of course Madonna did something outre and not very Gappy by kissing Britney and Christina, but when Gothamist started to think about it, it was totally predictable and not that hot or exciting. It was calculated and a little boring. It's hot only in the way that the media will be able to say "girl-on-girl" action, but big deal.......

The Post lets us know where the hot post-MTV Video Music Awards parties are going to be, who is expected to be there, and how to crash. Venues include the Four Seasons (Madonna, Fatboy Slim, Fred Durst), Show (P. Diddy's bash, Justin Timberlake, Beyonce Ed Burns, the Hilton girls), Tao (Avril, Tim Robbins, Rosario Dawson, Tony Hawk), Splashlight Studios (The Donnas, Drew & Fabrizio, Iggy Pop), and we're sure enterprising kids will be photoblogging the......

Gothamist can't help - Beyonce's Crazy in Love with Jay-Z is crazy addictive. The amazing horn loop, the layering of many Beyonces, Jay-Z rapping "pocket is fat like Tony, Soprano," lyrics like: "Got me looking so crazy right now, your love's/ Got me looking so crazy right now (in love)/ Got me looking so crazy right now, your touch/ Got me looking so crazy right now (your touch)/ Got me hoping you'll page me right......

I love the Neptunes and N.E.R.D., and they do have a very hot sound, but the over-Pharell-ization of music today makes things a bit...boring? The Neptunes are the hottest producers these days, but case in point: Beautiful, Snoop Dogg's new song with Pharell Williams (the most visible member of The Neptunes/N.E.R.D.). It's tight and sexy but it gets predictable. This quote by Sasha Frere-Jones in the Village Voice's Pazz and Jop ('Tune versus Tim, as......