The Dow Jones Industrial Average crossed the 13,000 mark today, in the wake of the Greek bailout deal. The Wall Street Journal reports, "It was the first time the Dow reached the 13000 level on an intraday basis since May 20, 2008. The last time the Dow closed above that level was May 19, 2008. Shares pulled back a bit in late morning. The Dow was up 46 points, or 0.4%, at 12996." more ›

While most Americans spent last night enjoying classic holiday movies like Die Hard, Occupy Wall Street was observing Christmas Eve—and the eve of the 100th day of protests—with a candlelight protest outside the New York Stock Exchange. And as you can see in this great photo by Ryan Devereaux, the candles were specially handcrafted to convey demonstrators' dissatisfaction with the financial system. Feel the burn, banksters! more ›

[UPDATES BELOW] Today marks the two month anniversary of the Occupy Wall Street movement, and to mark the occasion demonstrators are planning a series of actions throughout the day, starting with a march on the New York Stock Exchange. Protesters say they intend to shut down the exchange before the opening bell, but that seems unlikely, as the NYPD has already declared the area around the exchange a "frozen zone." more ›

German company Deutsche Börse AG is in talks with the New York Stock Exchange to acquire the NYSE and merge the two companies. But Senator Charles Schumer, aka Wall Street's "go-to-guy," has some demands: NYSE would have to come first in the merged company's name. more ›

To raise awareness for World AIDS Day, which is tomorrow, December 1, 2010, amfAR ambassadors Liza Minnelli and Cheyenne Jackson, amfAR chairman Kenneth Cole and fashion designer and Project Runway runner-up Mondo Guerra rang the opening bell this morning at the New York Stock Exchange. You can see video here, but we're a little disappointed she didn't wear a fabulous Lucille Austero jacket. more ›

This morning, the New York Stock Exchange's opening bell was rung by some Expendables actors—Terry Crews, Dolph Lundgren, Jason Statham and Sylvester Stallone. The four brought their heaving pecs to the floor and Terry Crews even took off his shirt. Here's video from CNBC: more ›

This morning the cast of Jersey Shore rang that bell at the New York Stock Exchange, and the Today show says it was "one of the more anticipated opening bell ceremonies in some time." more ›

On this day in 1792, the New York Stock Exchange was founded at 70 Wall Street by 24 brokers with the signing of the Buttonwood Agreement. The agreement had two provisions, that the brokers were to deal only with each other (eliminating the auctioneers), and that the commissions were to be 0.25%. Here's a look back at some of the 218 years inside the Exchange. 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 ›

In his publicity blitz to promote The Pink Panther 2, the Pink Panther has been spotted around town. And he definitely ran the gamut of photo ops: Early in the day, he helped out at a Burger King (there's a Pink Panther tie-in planned)...and then he rang the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange! more ›

Yesterday morning, the New York Stock Exchange's opening bell was rung by Grandma the Clown from the Big Apple Circus. The Post has details on what happened next: Master of Ceremonies Carrie "Harvey and Grandma wandered the floor trying to spread joy and merriment, placing funny red noses on exchange officials to touch the funny bones of even the most shaken traders." more ›

The Big Apple Circus is an institution. So is the New York Stock Exchange. But given these times, was it appropriate for Grandma the Clown to ring the opening bell? (Video here.) Dealbreaker says yes, "Granted, it probably would've been more fitting for a manufacturer of ball gags and executioner's masks to ring the bell, but this works, too." In other news, the Wall Street Journal reports, "Citigroup is handing out pink slips to at least 10,000 employees" in another round of layoffs--plus raise interest rates on credit cards. T.G.I.F.! more ›

AP photographer Mark Lennihan took this photograph of 13-year-old Jeremy Conroy selling apples in front of the New York Stock Exchange today. Apparently Conroy was "reenacting a scene of boys selling apples during the Great Depression." Like this one. more ›

Even though spokesmodels for Estee Lauder, including Elizabeth Hurley, prettied up the New York Stock Exchange by ringing today's opening bell, the mood has been dark as "frightened money is jumping all over the place." Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke tried to soothe the market, by saying the Fed might extend emergency lending to investment firms. He told a FDIC forum, "Allowing Bear Stearns to fail so abruptly at a time when the financial markets were already under considerable stress would likely have had extremely adverse implications for the financial system and for the broader economy." more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap:a large crowd at 165th St. and Jamaica Ave. in Queens, a robbery on Fox Ave. on the Bronx, and a serious multi-vehicle accident in Manhattan at 36th St.
• Space for a supermarket at the new Booklyn Bridge Park/Condo development is an inviolable piece of public property.
• Was the Trump Soho's concrete not dry enough when the forms were taken away, causing the collapse?

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There's a thought-provoking essay in the Observer suggesting it's time to take down the huge American flag in the heart of the terminal. The flag was placed in Grand Central soon after September 11, 2001, and MTA Metro-North spokeswoman says the flag's "nearly four stories tall" size is "basically unprecedented." (There is also a smaller, standard sized flag in the hall.) more ›

5 to 9pm // Museum of the City of New York [1220 5th Ave at 103rd St] // Free more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: An escaped prisoner from Elmhurst Hospital, an unusual crime on 42nd Street between 8th and 9th Avenues in Manhattan, and a water rescue at Coney Island
• Is John Liu a born-again preservationist?
• Tiffany & Company and company opened its first store on Lower Broadway in 1837 before moving uptown to its present location. 170 years later, the company is reversing direction and will open a Tiffany & Co. store near the New York Stock Exchange.
• A UK Holiday Rental site is offering a Brooklyn apartment as a summer getaway for vacationing Brits. The description shows that some Brits will be prepared for a true NYC experience: "Summary of the apartment, 1 bedroom, sleeps 10".
• The burglar who broke into Brooklyn Deputy Borough President Yvonne Graham's home and stole her jewelry before being easily apprehended because left his resumé behind, penned an apology note to his victim and begged for mercy, saying that he'd returned everything he'd stolen. Cops taking his confession weren't so sure, as he was wearing a pair of her earrings while writing his note.
• The NY Times is working on a big investigative piece about Rupert Murdoch and his businesses - we hope they figure out why "So You Think You Can Dance?" is on the air.
• Peter Braunstein is worried he'll be a target in prison, but would rather his attackers just kill him, instead of fighting or mutilating him.
• A property owner tried to bribe a Department of Buildings inspector to turn a blind eye on unsafe work

Yesterday, the police arrested 44 protesters who laid down in front of the New York Stock Exchange, and our videographer Kelly Loudenberg was on the scene. Over 100 people had gathered to block entrances - and draw attention to the companies that are making millions and billions off the war - but no trade was disturbed. more ›

Yesterday, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 416 points (a significant 3.3% drop) after a plunge in Shanghai's stock market. Well, now the Asian stock markets have fallen again, because investors are worried about the American economy! The NY Times reports that share prices rebounded in China, rising "nearly 4 percent today after state-controlled media reported that the government might allow greater foreign investment in Chinese stocks and would not impose capital gains taxes on stocks soon." Way to go, state-controlled media! But in places without state controlled media, like Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Europe, the markets seem to be down by another 2%. You can check Wall Street and world stock markets at CNBC. more ›

A better Wall Street story than those crazy big bonuses brokers are getting: The grandson of late Giants owners Wellington Mara got into a fight with another broker on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. What caused the fight? The other broker's joking words about how crappy the Giants are! more ›

Occasionally, Gothamist gets great email from our readers. And there are all the rest-- which mainly fall into the "self-promotion" or "disturbing" categories. Here's one: more ›

Over 200 years ago people gathered under a tree near one end of Wall Street and traded securities. From those quaint beginnings, the New York Stock Exchange rose to become the most prominent exchange in the world and now you can own a piece of it. For years that privilege was only available if you had some serious coin and one of the 1,366 seat holders was willing to sell. Now, for about $72 plus fees, you can buy a share of the stock exchange, which trades under the symbol of NYX (NYSE would have been much cooler, but only stocks on the NASDAQ can use four-letter symbols... and we're not going to say that "NYX" looks like it sounds like "Knicks" and what that would mean ) - the stock has risen 13% since this morning. more ›

Even successful businessman are stupid! Edward Reiss, member of the New York Stock Exchange, was "busted" for leaving a message threatening to kill another NYSE member. And in the brilliant move, Reiss left the message on his "victim"'s lawyer's voice mail. The Daily News reports that he allegedly left a message saying, "[William Higgins] better be careful when he starts his car" (Reiss and Higgins were fighting over the NYSE's merger with an electronic trading system) and the police traced the call to Reiss. Hmm, maybe *69 doesn't work as well as rumored! While Reiss did turn himself in to the police, it really sounds like Reiss had one too many whiskeys and was watching Scarface or Goodfellas one too many times. more ›

Kudos to New York magazine for turning former Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik, currently laughingstock after being a September 11 "hero," into a crying, blubbering mess in their exclusive interview as he recounts the unraveling of his nomination as the head of Homeland Security. Gothamist was struck by how weepy Kerik was, like he was watching Brian's Song...Oprah producers are probably all over him to appear again, this big tough cop reduced to tear. The NY Times seemed surprised by the tear duct action as well, asking Rudy Giuliani's spokeperson if there really was communal crying. more ›

Gothamist is giddy over finding the New York Architecture Game, because with all this talk of rich dudes trying to make their mark on the city gives us serious urban development envy.

Conceived by the world-renowned game designer Thomas Fackler, The New York Architecture Game challenges players as it explores the architectural feats that went into constructing 24 New York City landmarks, including the Empire State Building, the Guggenheim Museum, the New York Stock Exchange, and the Brooklyn Bridge. Both children and adults will find much to learn as they race to complete their projects first. Vastly entertaining, this game will give every architecture fan, including New Yorkers and others who think they know the city's beautiful buildings well, a new reason to fall in love with the world's most exciting city.

company, and guess what? We don't have Martin Luther King, Jr. Day off! I'm kind of ticked at this, not just because I want a 3 day weekend, but I don't like how it's treated as a 2nd-tier holiday. Do most people have to work on Monday? How are you commemorating the holiday? more ›