EV Grieve directs us to this notice posted on East 9th Street asking permission "to temporarily dress several storefronts and buildings," in preparation for the Coen brothers' new 60's period piece, "Inside Llewyn Davis," which features Justin Timberlake. No word on whether Ryan Gosling has been retained to diffuse the expected hysteria when shooting begins. more ›

Justin Timberlake may have performed a couple of songs at his Manhattan restaurant recently, but his focus is set firmly on acting and saving MySpace for the moment. Some people would prefer the musical talent focus on the song and dance while he still can, however, and to that end, they've made this somber plea. more ›

Now that Justin Timberlake is a free man and all, he's hitting the town with a vengeance, dropping by his Hell's Kitchen restaurant Southern Hospitality last night for an impromptu free concert. Much screaming ensued. more ›

Move over Mark Zuckerberg! Justin Timberlake is taking his role in The Social Network off screen. The performer now has a stake in MySpace—you know, that thing you forgot your password to when Facebook came around? Timberlake noted that he believes “there’s a need for a place where fans can go to interact with their favorite entertainers," and he hopes to "bring artists and fans together." But what about his music? He hasn't put out an album since 2006! (Though he's been plenty busy acting, co-founding a fashion line, starting his own record label, launching his own brand of tequila, and co-owning restaurants—including one in NYC). more ›

Governor David Paterson was one of the many cameos on the 36th season premiere of Saturday Night Live. Former cast member Amy Poehler was the (terrific) host and her monologue included appearances from the four new cast members, Justin Timberlake, Tina Fey and Jimmy Fallon. You can click through for more videos of segments, but, as we expected, the highlight for us was the meeting of the Governor Paterson played by Fred Armisen—who joked he felt "a little neglected" since he wasn't running for governor, "I haven't felt this left out since Avatar"—and the real Governor Paterson, who mocked SNL and Albany, "Working in Albany is just like watching Saturday Night Live. There are a lot of characters. It’s funny for ten minutes, and then you just want it to be over." Also, "You have poked so much fun at me for being governor, that I forgot that I was black." more ›

OMG, this explains everything about A-Rod's relationship with Cameron Diaz. US Weekly claims she and Kate Hudson are "locked in a bitter battle over Alex Rodriguez... An insider believes Diaz is bedding Rodriguez as a form of retaliation after Hudson hooked up with Justin Timberlake in January 2007 -- just two days after the couple of four years split." The insider says, "Kate thinks it's payback, pure and simple," while Diaz's friend offers, "Cameron was actually in a serious long-term relationship with Justin. She thinks it's a joke Kate would be mad. Kate is only upset because she hates being single." Another claim: Hudson got breast implants after they broke up because A-Rod likes "busty women." more ›

Saturday Night Live is wrapping up what's certainly been a memorable thirty-fourth season—one that will conclude next weekend with a couple of 90s fixtures returning: Will Ferrell to host and Green Day serving as musical guest. Last night the show brought back a couple of familiar faces we've gotten used to seeing throughout the past year—Justin Timberlake (making his seventeenth appearance of the season) and Fred Armisen once again taking on the role of Governor Paterson. more ›

So, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Aside from the mannerisms we loved to hate when he was on SNL (talking too fast, constant fidgeting, laughing at his own jokes), how did he do on his first night filling Conan's big shoes? If you made it through the "Lick it for Ten" game, in which Our Host brings up three audience members to lick sponsor products for ten bucks, then you may have seen that the kid did alright! Yes expectations were low, but the general consensus is that Fallon is going to do his job well. You can watch the full episode here. more ›

If Saturday Night Live couldn't find a way to live up to their promise "to have Michael Phelps shirtless in every sketch" earlier this year, it seemed a little more likely that they could get us some Shirts-Off Time with good sport Paul Rudd hosting last night. They went even further than that in the digital short that featured Rudd in the buff being painted by Andy Samberg. more ›

Madonna, who recently stated that NYC gives her the zzz's, was stirring things up in town for an intimate performance last night. Her Madgesty took the Roseland Ballroom stage in front of 2,200 fans, for a show which demanded die-hards wait in line for what turned out to be 60 hours, just for a chance to get into. Fanatics? No. One of them, a Brooklynite, swears, “I’m not fanatical. But I do collect Madonna magazine covers, and I’ve got maybe 170 of them.” more ›

Oh, to be a confused, sweaty fly on the wall at the Waldorf Astoria last night, when Iggy Pop sang Madonna songs at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Pop and the Stooges covered "Burning Up" and "Ray of Light" in a tribute to the pop queen, who was inducted along with Leonard Cohen, John Mellencamp, The Ventures, and The Dave Clark Five. more ›

There's a band looking for a frontman in Brooklyn...and they're bypassing Craigslist postings, MySpace bulletins and good 'ol fashion flyers to get the open position filled. They say "we like internet" and are therefore selling their frontman position on eBay in this Buy a Rock Band auction. more ›

This week in the Times, Bruni goes to Peter Luger, gives the restaurant two stars—a drop from the three awarded it by Ruth Reichl previously. Says “no other restaurant serves a porterhouse so breakthtaking.” But he also says that the restaurant is inconsistent, service ranges from gruff to hostile, and the winelist needs an upgrade. more ›

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. more ›

A fine way for the Seaport Music Festival to send off the summer, with two of the year's biggest breakout bands on a lovely evening. We were taking in both Battles and Dearhunter for the first time last Friday and were massively impressed by both bands. Deerhunter, down a man and with their usual shtick toned down, sounded like a young Sonic Youth or stripped down Broken Social Scene. A much lighter and more accessible experience that we had prepared for by listening to their thumping album. Battles was more what we expected, playing a hypnotizing hybrid of Math-Metal and some Jammy-Groove stuff that somehow works. Stereogum has some pretty pics. more ›

Lance Bass took a bite of the Big Apple, only to spit it right back out. NY Mag reported that the ex-'n Syncer, who is in town starring as Corny Collins in Hairspray, said he doesn't like New York too much.

“There’s a lot of pieces of crap here for a lot of money,” he says. “And I don’t think anyone here has any style. I was looking at fully furnished places and it was like, you can either have a bunch of floral prints or some dusty couch from the 1960s.”

This week in the Times, Bruni goes to Café Boulud, reaffirms its three-star status. Says that under Chef Bertrand Chemel (who replaced Andrew Carmellini after his departure in 2005), the restaurant “promises about as much pleasure in the present as it did in the past.” He likes the traditional section of the menu best, but also loves the pastas. Doesn’t love the desserts, excepting the soufflés. more ›

THEATER: Described as Damn Yankees meets Ed Wood, the screwball musical LOST IN HOLLYWOODLAND is a goofy retelling of the Faust myth, with a lowly production assistant’s assistant standing in for the good doctor. (Naturally, a film producer serves as the devil.) The fun begins when the peon signs away his soul for fame and fortune. Having killed ‘em in Buffalo, the production now takes Manhattan via the New York Fringe Festival. - John Del Signore more ›

We're just going to get this out of the way: Justin Timberlake is bringing deep-fried pickle-sicles back. The modern day song and dance man has gone and opened his very own restaurant called Southern Hospitality (at 1460 2nd Ave and 76th St). It opened last night to a crowd of A-listers people you may have heard of, hankering for some barbecue. Amongst the items offered are deviled eggs, pulled pork, mac-n-cheese, fried catfish, and yes...the aforementioned pickle treat (we hope JT took his indigestion pills last night). more ›

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With all that went down this week, we thought we thought we'd cheer everyone up by giving everyone a double dose of dogs. more ›

How does one get banned from Nobu? After a rude comment to the manager on his way out of the restaurant he left a DVD of the first season of Entourage...AS A TIP. Allegedly an employee ran up the stairs and hurled it at him as he was leaving. The Daily News reports that Piven said through his rep: "I'm such a fan of Nobu and all of his restaurants. I had a great dinner at the Nobu in Aspen. As always, the meal was excellent and the service was great." more ›

If Justin Timberlake is being credited for bringing sexy back, then the Scissor Sisters can be credited for bringing disco, fun and colorful stage shows back. The (mostly) New Yorkers are back in town tomorrow night, taking the stage at MSG. Babydaddy recently took the time to answer some questions for us (he's the one in the pink pantsuit). more ›

If you haven't heard about Christina Ricci, Samuel L. Jackson and Justin Timberlake's Southern Gothic exploitation movie, . more ›

Just when we thought we were finally done having to think about the music of 2006, we get one last hurrah of ultimate listage. The 34th annual Pazz and Jop poll finally made landfall this week, and unsurprisingly, there were few shockers. Some feigned outrage/interest that Bob Dylan's latest overtook the otherwise consensus disc of the year by TV on the Radio (see image), but a few minor swaps at the top won't be enough to change many opinions at this point, as we approach Presidents Day 2007. The one thing this (hopefully) final 2006 list brings to our attention is just how, and we’ll just say it, mediocre the last year in music was. A good chunk of these albums were seen as letdowns upon release, yet they find their way up on here regardless. With the exception of TVotR, many of the albums on the final list are seen as some of the respective band's weaker efforts. Few fans thought the newest Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Decemberists, or even the very well received Hold Steady albums were their best to date, yet they all comfortably make the list. Perhaps when we look back at 2006 as the year that "indie rock" started heading towards the mainstream, this list will act more as a tribute to many of the bands that pushed the undefined genre towards the breaking point, rather than a direct celebration of the works themselves. For now, it's just a final reminder that there was so little we truly fell in love with last year. more ›

The NY Times is reporting that both hipsters and blipsters like Justin TImberlake. Of course, there's been a long history of indie holding hands with MTV pop stars. We recall numerous covers of Britney Spears "Toxic", Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone" (mp3) and more recently Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" (mp3). It's about time we all embraced JT! more ›

THEATER: Adam Rapp’s Stone Cold Dead Serious is being revived at Theatre Row on the West Side. The surreally dark comedy deals with a struggling family on the outskirts of Chicago who pin their hopes on their video-game obsessed teenage son. The kid just has to put his skills on the line in a real-life fight-to-the-death video game competition. Fun fact: When Stone Cold Dead Serious was presented at Chashama in 2003, stagehands changed the scenery in ninja suits. - John Del Signore more ›