After seeing his name dragged through the mud, an Australian businessman acquitted of trying to rape a maid is suing The Standard hotel for $10 million. Matthew Moorhouse, 42, was accused of throwing the unidentified maid onto the bed and trying to force himself upon her, until another worker came to her rescue. But he convinced a jury that the maid made up the story after he caught her rifling through his bag. His lawsuit against The Standard charges that the hotel's "racy atmosphere contributed to the false charges against him," the Post reports. Anyway, this is as good an excuse as any to revisit these NSFW photos of The Standard's racy top floor pool, Le Bain. more ›

An Australian businessman accused of attempting to rape a maid at the Standard Hotel last year was found not guilty by a jury in Manhattan Supreme Court yesterday. According to the unidentified maid, Matthew Moorhouse, who was formerly involved with Australian pop star Rani Kamahl, had hit on her as she cleaned the room, then threw her on the bed and tried to force himself upon her. She claimed her screams were heard by another hotel worker, who intervened. more ›

Like any tool-fearing New Yorker, we finally turned our backs on the Meatpacking District for good once Florent closed. But The Standard Hotel gets a pass: We love its look, its location, its grill, its exhibitionists—even its infuriatingly exclusive club, which taunts us with its lurid red light from the 18th floor, throbbing irresistibly like the Eye of Sauron. more ›

This year's Fashion Week has an unexpected star: Ozzy-spawn Kelly Osbourne! The 25-year-old has been everywhere, even on the runway for Naomi Campbell's show (center photo), looking very blonde and very thin. She credits her weight loss to pilates and her recent stint on "Dancing With The Stars." Hopefully she won't become too bobble-headed! more ›

The Australian businessman suspected of attempting to rape a maid at the Standard Hotel claims the charges against him are made up. A lawyer representing 42-year-old Matthew Moorhouse denied allegations that his client forced himself upon a hotel staffer last Saturday as she tidied up his $400-per-night room. "There was no assaultive conduct — nothing that can be construed in that fashion," his lawyer, Joseph DeMatteo, told The Post. The suspect served four nights in jail before being released yesterday on $20,000 bail. According to the criminal complaint, Moorhouse asked the victim "Where are you from? How long have you been here?" before pushing her onto a bed, groping her, and shouting "Touch me!" Another hotel worker heard the victim's screams, and the woman was able to escape from the room and alert hotel security.
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An Australian businessman was arrested at The Standard Hotel Saturday after allegedly trying to rape a chambermaid. The unidentified 28-year-old woman claims the assault occurred after she began cleaning Matthew Moorhouse's $400-a-night room at 4:25 p.m. "He just asked me, 'Where are you from? How long have you been here?'" Then Moorhouse, 42, allegedly asked her if she had a boyfriend. When she said no, "He asked me, 'Do you think I'm handsome?' He went to hug me. And then he pushed me onto the bed." more ›

After two entertaining yet vicious slams on Hotel Griffou and Gus & Gabriel, interim Times dining heavy Pete Wells throws a one-star bone to The Standard Grill, which has been winning over critics despite the grotesquely exclusive velvet rope scene at the door. Wells declares that "it is not the place I would send friends who want to study the latest contortions of the yoga masters of haute cuisine. But it is exactly where I would direct anybody who needs to recharge by plugging straight into the abundant, renewable energy source that is downtown Manhattan." And yet! "The tiled, barrel-vaulted ceiling makes for treacherous acoustics. At times conversations across the room are beamed directly to your table. Sitting by the open kitchen one night, we heard an expediter shouting out orders as if he were communicating with cooks in Jersey City." Still, "with 100 seats in this room, another 100 in an even noisier antechamber, and 85 more on the sidewalk, it is a marvel that the kitchen reliably bangs out solid, flavorful food." more ›

After weeks of trying to make it work, Robert Valin has given up on what would have been his annual West Village Leather & Bear Street Fair. The bears were thwarted when the Standard's Andre Balazs said the fair would clash with the image of his precious hotel (even though it's known for baring it all). The Food & Wine Festival is also taking place in the area that weekend, and the executive director said "next year we can all work together and coordinate." That'll be an interesting crowd! [Scoopy's Notebook via Curbed] more ›

This just in: people are still showing off their naughty bits at the Standard. Last week a reader spotted some flesh at the hotel, just two minutes in to a walk on the High Line. They ask: "Guy or girl?" more ›

Things got a little crazy at the opening party for the Boom Boom Room, a new club on the top of The Standard Hotel Saturday night—Jesse Camp straight-up urinated off the roof! Wait, who's Jesse Camp? Apparently, he was an MTV personality at the end of the last century. And he still gets invited to things! But just because Camp accepts an invitation doesn't mean he's agreeing to play by society's uptight rules. Here's how he breaks it down for New York's Shira Levine: "I'm not going to lie, man; I peed off the roof. But honestly what’s that in the name of a good time? I mean, I keep it real... I didn't break a city law. No one can say that." Levine points out that Camp sure did break the law, but he's ready with an airtight defense: "I didn't know I was going to do that, so can you even blame me? So, like, fine — come and arrest me." But before anyone gets too worked up about the ethics of urinating off a roof onto a crowded city, lets all step back and remember that Camp was relieving himself onto the Meatpacking District. more ›

Andre Balazs of the Standard Hotel claims he's not the one behind keeping the West Village Leather & Bear Street Fair off his turf. After reports came in that the hotelier was anti-Bear (despite fully supporting his guests baring it all for visitors of the High Line), he now says it's the mayor's fault! His hotel is actually "headquarters for the big NYC Wine and Food Festival happening that same weekend, so the mayor's office wants the bears to reschedule." Robert Valin, executive director of the Leather Weekend, told the Villager that the "hotel’s managing director, Ian Nicholson, reached out to him, and that a sit-down was set for this week. The hotel people now claim they had no idea the leather fest was being booted off the block—though Valin the previous week had told us the Mayor’s Office clearly said the hotel didn’t want the S&M confab there." Looks like no one wants to be on the bear's bad side! As for staying at the hotel, Valin told the paper: “I think I would request that the bears get higher floors—we are sexual men." [via Curbed] more ›

In honor of Fashion Week, KnittaPlease installed some of their crafty graffiti outside of the Standard Hotel. The knit pieces will remain there until the 17th, but when we first heard about this project we were sort of hoping Magda Sayeg would be knitting coverups for the hotel's naked guests. Perhaps the Standard should make good with the Bears and adorn the entrance with leather and whips for their upcoming (and possibly canceled) street fair. more ›

The Standard Hotel may be able to handle some skin... as long as it's not leather. Following all the attention they've gotten for their exhibitionist guests (and staff), the Villager reports the hotel on the High Line didn't want the West Village Leather and Bear Street Fair coming near their doors, even though it won unanimous approval from Community Board 2. more ›

After a week of hearing all about these exhibitionists at the Standard Hotel, someone has finally sent us an image. See a much larger version here, and try to guess what's actually happening in this hotel room. Or don't. As Vanishing NY points out, city living has always offered glimpses into stranger's lives; two years ago HBO projected this on the side of a LES building, and before that we had films like Rear Window. The site points out that the Standard's management has created the dullest version of a voyeuristic experience, and "In his direction, the luxury hotelier lacks the depth and nuance of Hitchcock." It's true, but what does one expect from André Balazs? Maybe the residents at the Hotel Chelsea should create an artier version of this. more ›

The naked truth about the Standard Hotel originally broke on Curbed in early July, and now it's made it all the way to the desk of Brian Williams after getting daily coverage in the New York papers this week. more ›

The Standard is casting more than just a shadow over the High Line, its guests are giving park-goers a full-on peep show. The NY Post reports that many go beyond showing off their naughty bits to passerby—they also have sex, masturbate and even film professional pornos. Heavens to Murgatroyd! Who will save the children? Not hotel management. more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a shooting on 120th St. and 3rd Ave. in Manhattan, a stabbing on West 31st St. in Brooklyn, and a fall victim at MoMA in Manhattan.
• The New York Yankees took first place in franchise spending, with a total payroll of $218.3 million last year. The World Series-winning Boston Red Sox payroll totalled $155.4 million to finish a distant second.
• The New York Water Taxi is terminating its South Brooklyn service between Sunset Park, Red Hook, and Wall St. at the end of this month.

Wow-- things are really changing fast up on the Highline. Since we last visited a couple of weeks ago, new benches have been installed, and holes seem to have been cut for new stairwells leading down to the street. The entire platform bed south of 30th Street has been cleared of brush and coated with a new layer of concrete, giving the rail-bed an eerie surface-of-the-moon look. The buildings along the line have also grown-- especially the new Standard Hotel near 12th Street. more ›