With Whitney Houston buried, it's time for the media to dig up her skeletons! And if there is one persistent rumor the singer spent years fighting, it was that she was a lesbian—"I am a mother, not a lesbian. I am not gay," she said in a 2000 interview. Well, here it comes again. Peter Tatchell has taken to the Daily Mail to bring back the argument that Whitney's fall from grace wasn't caused by her marriage to Bobby Brown—it came with the self-repression she suffered by dropping her female lover for Brown. more ›

Twitter death hoaxes, so amusing if you're soulless and also aren't a friend or family member or fan of the person whose death is being spread by ReTweets. Anyway, as you know Jon Bon Jovi is still with us, but for a short time earlier this month he was declared dead via a rumor that spread quickly online. Who was behind the rumor—a scorned lover? An ex-manager? Sebastian Bach, for some reason? No! It was a lone wolf in Pennsylvania, who acted alone after being frustrated with JBJ's recent career path. more ›

Over at the Dave Matthews Band message board Ants Marching, there's an entire thread about the rumor going around that the band may take to Governors Island this summer, and the Governors Island Twitter now seems to be feeding the rumor with ReTweets. (According to EW, the band will be announcing plans to play series of three-day festivals this summer.) Will Dave be taking to the city's most gorgeous venue this summer? And will he dump human waste into the East River on his way there? more ›

Bed bugs are the kiss of death (or at least the kiss of lengthy and expensive cleanings) in this town, so when the internet starts crying the B-word the rumors enough can be dangerous. On January 11th, K.S. wrote on the Atlantic Center Target's Yelp page, "I heard a rumor that the towel section got infested with bed bugs." By the 16th @Tay_BeKnowin wrote on Twitter, "Eeeeew Target got bed bugs & somebody got bit lol.its not funny doh." And yesterday we got an email from a woman who was told by a Target cashier not to purchase a towel. Chika Moses writes: more ›

Marty Markowitz, and most of Brooklyn, has been hoping Apple would soon notice the borough's enticing calls, and set up shop in in one of its many tech-friendly neighborhoods. There have been rumors of the company moving to Williamsburg in the past, but with no follow through Marty's been reduced to begging (it is rather embarrassing that Staten Island got one first). Now the Observer reports that the white whining may have worked, a source tells them the company has set their sights on a location near the proposed Atlantic Yards arena in Brooklyn. more ›

A Twitter user with about one hundred followers said that Avenue Q star Marty Thomas—who was voted a Broadway Hottie of the Month by gaylifenyc.org earlier this year—has crabs. Chances are you've never heard of Thomas or his alleged condition (which he denies), but now the name Marty Thomas is forever linked with pubic lice! more ›

A close friend of Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan has come forward to dispel rumors that Obama's pick to replace John Paul Stevens is a lesbian. In an interview with Politico, Sarah Walzer, Kagan’s roommate in law school and a close friend since then, says: more ›

Governor Paterson is savoring his sense of vindication after the Times "nonshell" story blew by without causing much damage. (Though, when you think about it, wouldn't it be Jedi if someone in Paterson's camp had started the salacious bombshell rumor so that when the Times finally ran their story—about how the Governor's right-hand man has a history of assaulting women—it would seem tame by comparison?) Paterson took to the airwaves again after the hotly-anticipated article ran and had this to say: more ›

After weeks of wild speculation about a rumored "bombshell" article to be published about Governor Paterson in the NY Times, yesterday the paper's public editor, Clark Hoyt, weighed in on the non-scandal, and whether the Times was right to wait several days before clearing the air. Times executive editor Bill Keller told Hoyt that addressing rumors just "spreads them and gives them an aura of credibility, even if the intent is the opposite. For The Times to issue a statement saying, ‘We are not investigating rumors about the sex life or drug use or financial shenanigans of Public Figure X’ doesn’t clear the good name of Public Figure X. It simply announces that we’ve heard the rumors and for some reason chose not to look into them." more ›

[UPDATES BELOW] Everyone's talking about the supposed "bombshell" article on Governor Paterson that the NY Times is said to be sitting on (except the NY Times). Over the weekend, Paterson met privately with key Democratic leaders, but his campaign spokesman says the "routine" meetings concerned his re-election plans, not the sensational rumors of a drug and sex scandal that some speculate will end his administration. "The governor started making calls two weeks ago to step up his campaign effort and get ready to officially announce his re-election campaign," Fife told the AP. "The calls were—and are—going well... And then look what happens—a coordinated effort to stop him and spread rumors." But one source reveals that Paterson's resignation was discussed. more ›

The speculation about a supposed "bombshell" NY Times story about Governor David Paterson has been percolating since last week. Now, the Business Insider offers, "We've now heard from a single source familiar with the goings on at the Governor's office that the story will likely drop on Monday, and that the governor's resignation will follow." more ›

[UPDATE BELOW] All the single ladies (and whoever), Grammy-award winning Beyoncé Knowles has a new perfume out! Exciting, right? Anyway, in order to get you to buy it, DNA Info reports that she's playing a free show for the people tonight, right in Union Square. But is she? Every other listing has simply stated that "the visionary artist is illuminating the central destination with fiery red light and smoky fog... an unprecedented, spectacular display will vividly capture the spirit of Beyoncé Heat." That is significantly less exciting. We'll get to the bottom of this, in the meantime, she is having a private launch party tonight at 15 Union Square, where sister Solange will be deejaying; and tomorrow she's making an appearance at Macy's Herald Square at 5 p.m. In any case, if Union Square looks like it's on fire between 6 p.m. and 12 a.m., don't worry, it's just the glow of marketing. more ›

It's so hard to keep up with Gang Initiation Day! Is it on Easter, or around Halloween, or both... or neither. Cops are on alert again as the annual Halloween rumor settles upon us, which typically alerts the city of a Bloods-induced bloodbath that has potential new members slashing hundreds of innocent people. Of course, the NYPD notes that this is somewhat of an urban legend, and actual gang bloodshed hasn't gone down since 1995. more ›

This weekend marks the 2nd annual All Points West festival, and Jay-Z (filling in for the Beastie Boys) is set to headline the first night at the Liberty State Park venue. What's the best way to warm up for a mostly indie crowd? Secretly join the lineup tonight for the pre-APW Diesel party going down at Webster Hall; the lineup features The Roots, Passion Pit and Drake. Blackbook says they have it on good authority this rumor's got legs, providing a detailed list as to why (Lykke Li fans, they also say she'll be stopping by)—#5 on that list claims, "an unnamed source close to the event says that Hov’s showing up to jam on a few songs at the end of The Roots’ set.“ Oh, and his sister-in-law, Solange Knowles, was already announced as a special guest. And a quick note for those heading to APW this weekend: the Observer talked to organizer Paul Tollet, who says the kinks should all be worked out this year—regarding the lines, he told them, “We felt there were a lot of things we didn’t like about last year. I walked around as a fan and stood in those lines, and when you go stand in that line, you get mad." more ›

After The Guardian reported, "Staff at Goldman Sachs staff can look forward to the biggest bonus payouts in the firm's 140-year history after a spectacular first half of the year, sparking concern that the big investment banks which survived the credit crunch will derail financial regulation reforms," it was taken as a sign that excess is back. But now the investment firm is denying the report, having its spokesman tell the media, "We won't know what our compensation benefit number is until the end of the fourth quarter, which is at the end of December." The firm did return $10 billion in TARP money to the government, adding in a letter, "Our return of the government's investment does not, in any way, end our obligations to the public interest." We guess we'll have to wait until next January for stories about $1000 bottles of wine and dropping cash on new condos and cars. more ›

Future NYU students may be living in a Wal-Mart dorm one day! Okay, that's not quite true (yet!), but The Villager does have some news that isn't going to make many folks very happy, particularly Rev. Billy. The paper is reporting that as two prime storefronts in Union Square depart (Circuit City and possibly the Virgin Megastore), there's talk of some big-box stores moving in. They say a sales associate at a closing store tells them Wal-Mart has been snooping around and might be interested in taking over the space, and the company hasn't denied it either. Interesting. Last we heard from CEO H. Lee Scott Jr. he said, "I don’t care if we are ever here." And last year Rep. Anthony Weiner questioned the value of such a store in NYC. [via NYMag] more ›

The crumbling of Clubville continues, Guest of a Guest has it that "Marquee is closing! They are apparently transferring its license from its 27th street outpost to the old Earth space." Does this sounds like a Scientology newsletter to anyone else? They also note that "Marquee, the flagship of the Strategic Group’s vast empire, has defied odds by sticking around for over 5 years!" Marquee was most recently making headlines for a summertime narcotics bust and for being the club that 25-year-old Laura Garza was last seen. UPDATE: Just kidding! Lots of annoying techno beats and club kidnappings to come! GoaG now says, "The rumor to this is NOT TRUE." more ›

Someone at SubChat is spreading lies...according to the MTA. The website has a posting titled: TAs Newest $16 Million Blunder, which goes on to describe how a subway car was "reefed sometime last month, by mistake, with a sophisticated biological/radiological sensing system still hidden within the car structure." There's more about how the "prototype sensor was installed in 2005 as part of a federally funded anti-terrorism project and is housed in a waterproof–shockproof case, similar to an aircraft 'black box'" and that "retrieving the sensor is expected to be up to $16 million depending on how long it takes to locate the car" somewhere in the Atlantic, off Delaware. Wow, this sounds like the plot of what could be a great MTA-centric major motion picture blockbuster! But the buzzkills over at the MTA tell us that: "There is absolutely no truth to this internet rumor." more ›

The Brooklyn Paper takes an awkwardly close look at Miss New York's "most recognizable assets," and declares, "They're spectacular — and they're real." 22-year-old Leigh-Taylor Smith won the title of Miss Brooklyn, somewhat controversially, before donning the Miss New York crown. She'll be competing for the Miss America title in January, but before that happens she cleared up any rumors that she had been surgically enhanced. One Brooklyn Paper reader said he still had his doubts, and that "they're too perfect. If she told me she could fly, I would believe her [more]." Another passerby during a recent photoshoot observed and decided "they're fake." On a less creepy note, the Paper also reports that "Smith will participate in an eight-episode reality show with the 51 other Miss America contestants" -- where anyone with basic cable can pass judgment. For now, here's a photo of her strutting down the runway in a two-piece. more ›

Carroll Gardens, you totally got Punk'd...the seven newest Real World strangers won't be moving to your quaint little neighborhood after all, instead they'll be moving to Red Hook. So says the latest rumor, which claims "construction of a make-shift apartment has begun on the upstairs end of Pier-41 (204 Van Dyke Street) as of last week. The space had most recently been used a few years ago when it was built-out as a bar/night club for the Will Smith movie, Hitch." Does this mean they're gonna have to hack IKEA's water taxi service in order to get anywhere? more ›

Could Yankee and lover of "well-toned, muscular" women, A-Rod, be the cause of the alleged marital problems between Madonna and Guy Ritchie? Radar reports that the issue of OK! Magazine hitting newsstands tomorrow claims the two are having an affair. The pair did go to the same gym last year and share a manager, after all; further proof in the article, Radar assumes, will be given through various "close friends." more ›

The Times of London reports the Material Girl has spoken to a divorce lawyer fueling speculation the superstar is ready to dump husband Guy Ritchie. The lawyer, Fiona Shackleton, represented Prince Charles and Paul McCartney in their divorces. Notably, McCartney only gave up about $40-50 million in his divorce settlement, from his $1 billion fortune; Madonna's worth is estimated to be around $600 million--and she may not have a pre-nup. Now, will Madonna come back to borin' ol' NYC full-time? And more importantly, will she drop the British accent? more ›

Last summer Shepard Fairey was in town installing his exhibit at the Jonathan LeVine Gallery in DUMBO; new pieces also went up around the streets of Brooklyn during that time. more ›

The day after giving his State of the City address, Mayor Bloomberg headed out of town and to capital of the Lone Star State. Sure, Bloomberg did have a press conference with Lance Armstrong and former Surgeon General Richard Carmona, but more interesting was his meeting with Ross Perot's former campaign manager! more ›

With news that Mayor Bloomberg is planning to attend a meeting about a possible third party bid for the White House, the mayor's possible presidential aspirations finally enter 2008. If he does plan on running, he's lucky he has his billions to get the hundreds of thousands of petition signatures to get onto ballots across the country. more ›

Yesterday, the Washington Post reported that Mayor Bloomberg would be meeting with other Republicans and Democrats to "consider the merits of a third-party bid for the White House." Which means that today, not only do we get a NY Post cover, we also get a NY Post Photoshop illustration of Bloomberg, Gary Hart and Christie Todd Whitman (two other meeting attendees) as Revolutionary musicians! more ›

Mayor Bloomberg may deny any desire to run for president in 2008, but his non-NYC homework seems to suggest otherwise. According to the Huffington Post, he has regular foreign policy briefing session "on a wide variety of topics...from non-proliferation to the defense budget, with a specific focus on the war in Iraq." Who has been briefing him? Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and an adviser during the Clinton administration Nancy Soderberg: "One source... more ›