The troubled elder Skywalker who robbed a Long Island bank Thursday morning really was allied with the evil empire—just not in a galaxy far, far away. The robber allegedly threw a Yankees drawstring backpack at the teller and demanded that she fill it with money. Finally, stone cold proof! more ›

The Long Island bank robber who disguised himself as Darth Vader wasn't afraid to use force. Witnesses tell Newsday (paywall) that when Vader entered the Chase bank in Setauket, everyone thought it was just a gag. A muscular customer at the counter jokingly tried to put his arms around Vader, at which point the 6'2" former Jedi threw him to the ground, pointed the gun at him and said, "I'll shoot you in the face. This isn't a joke." And for the first time in history, a grown man in a Star Wars costume successfully stopped people from laughing at him. more ›

It seems the Empire has fallen on hard times. Presumably to get finishing funds for his latest Death Star, Darth Vader—or a man pretending to be Darth Vader?—was reduced to robbing a bank on Long Island this morning. Impotent Rebel Alliance security forces tell Newsday (paywall) that Vader marched into a Chase bank in Setauket around 11:30 a.m. today. Brandishing a completely unnecessary handgun—as he had the power to choke the oxygen out every teller's throat—the fallen Jedi demanded cash. more ›

The first Princess Leia/Darth Vader scene from Star Wars performed right on the 6 train before an audience of confused, modern-day civilians? Yep, Improv Everywhere has returned with a new piece in their Theater of Prank repertoire, saying, "The white walls and sliding doors on the train reminded us of the rebel ship, and we thought it would be fun to see how people would react to a surprise appearance by the iconic characters." Check it out: more ›

Darth Vader finds investors' lack of faith disturbing. So today the Sith Lord made a personal appearance at the New York Stock Exchange to boost morale. Flanked by Storm Troopers, Lord Vader rang the opening bell while gazing ominously out upon the cowering traders. Great, just what Wall Street needs: more exposure to the dark power of the force. The market better be bullish today, or these guys can expect to find breathing a little difficult at closing bell. more ›

Tomorrow is the festival's last day; balloons ascensions are at 6:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. (weather permitting). Here's more information. more ›

Subway ads are always undergoing transformation, but And I Am Not Lying recently spotted a more advanced form of subway ad art. He reports:

Those great big billboard ads you see on the subway are nothing but giant peel-and-stick Coloforms, really. I love the accidental collages you see when people randomly pick and peel those thing like they’re great big scabs, and I just knew it was a matter of time before someone started making art out of them.

Though the Partnership for New York City's Kathryn Wylde told the NY Times that she finds Assembly Leader Sheldon Silver "quite the opposite" of the "dark Darth Vader figure of Albany" that many people think him to be, we're betting that Mayor Bloomberg thinks Silver is quite Vaderish. A number of lawmakers confirmed to the Post that the many people hate Bloomberg's congestion pricing plan for the city, offering comments like "It sucks, it does nothing for anybody, kill it" and "It's likely dead for good." And Streetsblog found out from new Department of Transportation Commisioner Janette Sadik-Khan that the city doesn't quite have a Plan B if congestion pricing doesn't go through. She said:

Everyone is shooting for [approval of the plan on Thursday when the legislative session officially ends] but the promise of a special legislative session later this summer is still out there. So, Plan B is the special session. We are not giving up hope at all. We are fully committed. We need to get this legislation passed. It needs to pass now. It would be ridiculous to throw away hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funds. That's our plan and when the plan passes we're looking to institute a series of immediate short term improvements before the switch is flipped on congestion pricing, including increased express bus service, ferry service and a variety of other initiatives. So, our emphasis is on making sure this congestion pricing program passes. On the transportation side, we don't think there's anything more important for the future of New York than getting this plan through.

- And tomorrow is Mayor Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Menino's "National Summit on Illegal Guns" at Gracie Mansion; mayors from Dallas, Philadelphia, Seattle, Trenton, Jersey City and DC are among the attendees more ›

While logic tells us Episode III will be as painfully disappointing as the last two film chapters, many critics have applauded Lucas's latest effort, even comparing it to A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back. The movie premieres next Thursday, May 19th, at midnight and most NYC theatres are offering several 12:01 AM shows. If you’re interested in buying tickets online, most digital projection theatres, like Loews Kips Bay, have already sold out, but you can still catch a Loews stadium seating. more ›

While Gothamist doesn't think we'll be seeing Star Wars Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith during the first weekend (as a friend put it, Hayden Christensen looked more like a date rapist than brooding Jedi), we're totally excited about the Darth Tater toy. It's a Mr. Potato Head with Darth Vader accessories. An Amazon reviewer writes:

A couple of choice lines from the packaging: "Together we shall rule as father & spud!" + "As a Dark Lord of the Sith, Darth Tater was once a promising young Jedi who lost his roots!"

According a Times article, TiVo plans to begin selling reports about its customers' viewing habits. In retrospect, this development was inevitable; Gothamist is surprised it even took this long. TiVo would probably argue that by selling out its customers' viewing habits, it will actually improve the quality of the television programming that they recieve. But that sure sounds like Darth Vader logic to us- reasoning that could only be produced by the dark side of the force. more ›