Since it first hit the market, more than 200 million copies of the game Angry Birds have been downloaded into people's phones (U.S. gamers have spent more than 1.2 billion hours playing it!), 30 million t-shirts have been sold and three million plush toys have hit people's beds. So naturally the game's creator, Rovio, is going to... self-publish an Angry Birds cookbook filled with egg recipes? more ›

Pawn takes rook, check mate! As everyone had hoped those rascally Inwood chess players were vindicated in court today when a judge threw out the NYPD's case, saying that summonses were wrong. Which—since the tickets were for being in a park after hours and were written at 2 p.m.—they were. Of course, this doesn't mean that cops looking to fill quotas won't be coming after more chess players. Norman Siegel, who represented the players, advises adults to stay away from chess tables near playgrounds, since quota-filling cops can always cite a different Parks provision in future cases. more ›

The iPad cometh, even if you don't want it to. Over at Gizmodo they excitedly announced today that the app store for the gadget is now open (their first impressions: "So many apps! Also: So expensive"). But really.... apps? Yawn. What about turning your iPad into an old time arcade game? Because you totally can do that for just an extra $149! ThinkGeek's already got the iPad Arcade Cabinet for sale, along with a few notes from the creators, who ask, "How cool would it be to slide your iPad into a desktop-sized arcade cabinet and rock it old school with some Pac-Man or Space Invaders?" Alas, you will need the iCade App (which is free!) to get it to work. more ›

Itching to jump back into Liberty City yet? The New GTA IV website has been launched, in preparation for the quickly approaching April release. The previews so far have been somewhat light on details, but the site finally sheds some light into what kind of trouble you can expect to get into while traversing a virtual NYC. more ›

This week in the Times, Bruni one-stars Mesa Grill (pictured), knocking the restaurant down from the two stars given it by William Grimes in 2000. Says that while the Bobby Flay restaurant “has considerable charms… on balance [it] presents only flickers of the excitement it did [when it opened] in 1991… It’s an overly familiar, somewhat tired production. More to the point, it’s an inconsistent one.” more ›

Isiah Thomas thinks he deserves more time. Not that much more, just two weeks, but time to show he can turn this club around. Of course, he has had four years already, but at this point who is counting? Maybe Isiah noticed that the next two weeks contain six games, but only two of those teams currently have winning records. The two-week timeframe came up as Thomas was asked what he would do to a coach with his record as GM. His response: "That's a better question in a couple of weeks. Not today, but in a couple weeks, that would be a fair question. We'll see if we can come out of this. If we can't come out of this, then those are fair questions. There's still a lot of basketball left in the season. There is time to turn it around." more ›

But, it wasn’t just the top guys. Chris Drury had added two points and the defense held Pittsburgh to 18 shots. Henrik Lundqvist looked solid in net, coming up some big saves when he was finally tested in the third period. more ›

The Patriots and Jets didn't have the worst weather in the league Sunday, but they still had plenty to complain about. Rain and wind didn't stay the Patriots from improving to 14-0 with a 20-10 win over the Jets in Foxborough, Mass.. It did help the Jets keep the game close and easily cover the record 27-point spread, for those who care about those things. more ›

The spread opened at 27 points. It's recently settled at 24 1/2 points, which, if held, would be the largest ever for an NFL game. More went into that spread than a terrible team playing an unbeaten one on the road. The Patriots have been running up the score on opponents all year, and everyone thinks they're doing it to teach the league a lesson after it was exposed -- on the word of jets Coach Eric Mangini -- that New England was recording the Jets' defensive signals during a Week 1 win in the Meadowlands. more ›

Ted Corbitt passed away yesterday, costing NYC one of its own icons of long distance running. The 88-year-old died from a respiratory condition related to separate cancers that outdistanced his life as a pioneer of racing. Ted Corbitt was a former and founding president of the NYC Road Runners Club, an Olympian, and a champion of ultra-marathon running. While the NYC Marathon is regularly won by Kenyans and other African runners, Corbitt established himself all... more ›

The NY Times is reporting that the Nets won't be playing in Brooklyn for the 2009-2010 season because the arena won't be finished until 2010. The Times attributes the delay to legal challenges. The most publicized lawsuit is the federal case brought by 13 property owners and tenants. The suit alleges that the taking of their property via eminent domain was unconstitutional. In June, a US District Court judge dismissed the case, finding that... more ›

Clippers 91 Nets 82: The Nets simply couldn’t shoot Tuesday night, finishing a dismal 32% from the field in an ugly loss to the Clippers at the Izod Center. Jason Kidd managed a triple-double and Richard Jefferson had 21 points, but it wasn’t enough to stop LA. Chris Kaman and Tim Thomas each had 18 points while Dan “the Knicks cut me this offseason” Dickau added 11 points off the bench. Carl Pavano isn’t sure... more ›

Mavericks 99, Knicks 89: Are James Dolan and Isiah Thomas watching the same team the fans are? More boos were heard in Madison Square Garden during the latest Knicks debacle. But James Dolan and Isiah Thomas don't seem to hear them -- or feel the "Fire Isiah" chants are justified. What more evidence do they need? A loss to the Mavericks, the team that finished with the best record in the NBA last season, wouldn't... more ›

How many times this season are we going to say that the Knicks have hit an all time low? It seems that every couple weeks the team drops another disgraceful notch, and this weekend was the latest. No one knew how the team would react to the death of Stephon Marbury's father last week, but the sense was that they had come together as a unit out of the tragedy, and many might have thought... more ›

Rangers 1 Devils 0 Overtime: This was one the Rangers needed to win and it showed. From the start of the game they played a smart, defensive style that gave New Jersey very few chances. It worked to perfection as the Devils only got 17 shots during the entire game, but the problem was the Rangers couldn’t score. Time and again Martin Brodeur stopped them and when the game went to overtime, it appeared likely... more ›

A look at some of this week's noteworthy television: Spike TV's Video Game Awards 2007 (Sunday, 9:00 p.m., Spike TV) It is the fifth annual outing for this awards show for video games. Live From Lincoln Center: Red Hot Holiday Stomp (Monday, 8:00 p.m., WNET 13) Jazz at Lincoln Center is highlighted with this special hosted by Glenn Close. There will be a program of holiday music and jazz, plus it also features the broadcast... more ›

Philadelphia 105 Knicks 77: On Tuesday, the Sixers fired their GM and President. On Wednesday, they lost to Boston, a team that is currently 17-2. On Friday and Saturday they swept a home-and-home against the Knicks, a team that desperately needs to start over again. It’s time Jim Dolan, if you even care anymore. It’s time Isiah Thomas, if you care about anything beyond your current job. Long ago the Garden was a magical place... more ›

As the Jets look ahed to their game Sunday against the Cleveland Browns, they may be hoping that's where they are in a season or two. Cleveland, like the Jets, is coached by a former defensive protege of Patriots Coach Bill Belichick. Romeo Crennell had a rough go of it during the first few seasons, but he now has an offense filled with playmakers like Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow and run by an unheralded... more ›

76ers 101, Knicks 90: Under most circumstances, losing to one of the worst teams in the NBA would be of concern to the Knicks. But with the death of guard Stephon Marbury's father, it doesn't seem so bad. Marbury played for the first half and scored two points but didn't come back out for the second half. Jamal Crawford had his second straight excellent game, but the Knicks frontcourt couldn't contain Samuel Delambert. The two... more ›

So if you remember correctly, Grand Theft Auto IV, the New York City crime simulator, was supposed to be in stores by now. But between production delays and the million other great games this season to compete with, they decided to just push it back till next Spring and get it right. But just in case you've you've still got an itch for some Eastern European organized crime this holiday season, here's a brand... more ›

The New York Rangers have hit a speed bump, coming out flat in two-straight games, getting some bad goaltending and losing badly at home. Thursday night’s 6-2 loss was even more disappointing than Tuesday’s because the Rangers rallied in this game and then fell apart. Down 2-0 in the first the Rangers came back with two goals off of the power play to even things up heading into the second. But, Toronto took the... more ›

Knicks 100, Nets 93: No Stephon Marbury, and the Knicks take down the Nets. Of course, the Nets didn't have Jason Kidd (headache), so who knows which team was worse off. Richard Jefferson's heroics couldn't get the job done for the Nets, who continue to play inexplicably poorly at home following road games. Jamal Crawford filled the backcourt "void" for the Knicks with 29 points, and Zach Randolph had 25. Richard Jefferson had 31 points... more ›

Rangers 5 Ottawa 2: The Senators may be in a funk of late, but they still have the best record in the Eastern Conference. That may not last for too much longer as the Rangers beat Ottawa soundly Saturday afternoon, scoring three goals in the first period and forcing a goaltending change. Everything seemed to work for New York as the power play scored twice, Brendan Shanahan had two goals and Blair Betts even got... more ›