continues to embarrass the book publishing industry. Writer Margaret Jones, who told her publisher she was a half-white, half-Native American raised by a black foster family in South Central L.A. and former Bloods gang member, was exposed as Margaret Seltzer, white private school graduate from Sherman Oaks, California. more ›

Last year WNBC got up close and personal with the Civic Fame statue atop the Municipal Building, and this week The NY Times looks at the woman who modeled for that statue, and many others -- Audrey Munson, "a long-forgotten New York celebrity whose face and figure continue to grace the contours of statues all around Manhattan."It was Ms. Munson’s eyes that stared stoically from the marble forms of the Firemen’s Memorial on Riverside Drive,... more ›

Entertainment Weekly’s #1 “smartest” Hollywood player, Judd Apatow, says “it doesn’t look good” for an end to the writers’ strike any time soon. The well-connected catalyst behind hits like Knocked Up has told the Toronto Star that the studios and producers are prepared to dig in and crush the union’s demand for payment for Internet downloads and movie streaming, “which are expected to become a big part of the industry in the coming years.”

It would cost very little money to end the strike and (the producers) are basically trying to create a way of paying people so that when the Internet explodes, they’ll wind up paying less than they do now to writers. And I don’t think they’re going to get away with it. The writers really failed to stand up for themselves with the DVD (in a previous contract dispute) and they feel terrible about it, and enough of them will not give up that it will have to be resolved in a reasonably fair manner.

Early yesterday morning in Hell's Kitchen, soap opera actor Nathaniel Martson allegedly attacked three people. The Daily News reports that Marston, who plays Dr. Michael McBain on One Life to Live, swung a metal crate at his victims, which broke one of the men's legs. One of the victims, Salvatore Cabibo who didn't even know the actor, said Marston had been arguing with a cab driver and then charged at him, shouting, "I'm going to get you!" more ›

MUSIC: Last week Craig Finn made a solo appearance amongst the books at Barnes & Noble, tonight he's with his rock band, The Hold Steady, playing another free show. Joining them are the Old 97’s, and newer band, Illinois. A triple-threat lineup with a can't-be-beat pricetag. more ›

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• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a pedestrian struck at Richmond Terrace and Federal Place on Staten Island, a water rescue at Chambers St. and River Terrace off Manhattan, and a homicide at Bruner and Barnes Aves. in the Bronx.
• A Connecticut doctor lost his family yesterday after two men broke into his home and held them hostage, while one family member was taken to a nearby bank to withdraw money. After killing the man's wife and two teenage daughters, the suspects set the house on fire before being apprehended at a police road block.The doctor survived a head wound and is in stable condition.
• The Weekly World News, the checkout line eye-catching tabloid that brought us Batboy, is folding in early August. There are rumors in the publishing world that Teen Vogue may follow suit.
• A stripped-down, one act version of the Broadway production Suessical will be playing at the Lucille Lortel Theater on Christopher St. this summer and all tickets are free.
• A puzzling brickwork sybmol built into a wall on Pearl St. in 1832. The building was destroyed, but the section of wall was preserved to keep the mystery alive.
• Curbed looks around the Domino Sugar plant on Brooklyn's waterfront.
• G-Unit member and rapper Tony Yayo rejected an offered plea deal that would have him serve nine months for slapping and punching a 14-year-old on 25th St. this March.
• 22-year-old Derick Phanord was arrested and charged with animal cruelty after police said he confessed to tying his dog to a tree, dousing it with clorox and then gasoline, and then setting the pitbull on fire. Phanord pleaded not guilty, but police say that in his confession, Phanord admitted he left his dog to die because it was "unfriendly."
• ConEd hasn't cornered the market on poor service. Blackouts are happening all over San Francisco today, and the servers for sites Craigslist, Live Journal, VOX are all temporarily offline.

This week ended with the launch of the seventh and final Harry Potter installation. But while the world was consumed with Pottermania, it's important to remember that there were more serious things going on in the world, too - two of them in -Ist cities. more ›

What’s worth watching on food-related TV this week? Here’s the breakdown: more ›

What’s worth watching on food-related TV this week? Here’s the breakdown: more ›

What’s worth seeing on food-related TV this week? Gothamist has got the breakdown: more ›

Thanks to a vigorous anti-smoking campaign, the number of New Yorkers lighting up since 2002 has plummeted 20%. This amounts to 240,000 fewer smokers City puffers than there were five years ago. There are currently fewer smokers than ever in NYC history with about 18% of citizens doing the deed. In fact, there are only five states in the country with a lower smoking rate (CA, WA, ID, UT, and CT). more ›

to look forward to seeing. But this week? Nada. Don't believe that could possibly be the case? Check out what other early reviews of this week's releases are saying: more ›

Documentary filmmaker Michael Moore and his distributor, Harvey Weinstein, appeared at a press conference yesterday to question why the government is investigating Moore's trip to Cuba for his upcoming film, Sicko. The film, which premiered at Cannes and is scheduled to open in a few weeks, questions the American health care system and, at one point, Moore takes three September 11 rescue workers to Cuba to get health care treatment for them there. more ›

Tonight at 9PM, The Sopranos will air its final episode on HBO. It marks six seasons over eight years where viewers got to know NJ mob boss Tony Soprano, his blood family and his mob family. Creator David Chase filled each episode with enough angst, passion, violence, and intensity to make pretty much anything else on TV seem half-hearted. As we approach the final hours before we say good bye to Tony, Carm, Paulie and everyone else who remains, we wonder what you think: more ›

(directed by John Landis) more ›

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In the email exchanges he was unwittingly having with FBI agents, McDarrah tried to impress the fictional 13-year-old by name dropping celebrities he'd interviewed, like Rene Zellwegger and Jennifer Lopez. more ›

is definitely a movie worth staying in to watch or re-watch. more ›

We know that sometimes the volume of posts at Gothamist can be a bit much to keep up with. For that reason, we developed our Favorites page, which shows you the top ranked stories over the last day, week, month, or year. We've recently added an "all time" option-- did you know that the most commented story in the history of Gothamist.com is "First Thoughts on the Matrix Reloaded" from May 2003? more ›

Apparently, sexy Hollywood beefcake is what Columbia College is trying to promote at its Class Day this year! Last year, father-of-fellow-Columbia College-student Senator John McCain spoke, to wide protest. This year, Columbia College has selected Matthew Fox, star of Lost, to be the main speaker. more ›

Although the extremely gross clip of Glenn Beck propositioning an US Weekly writer on CNN was amazing, it's too awkward for us to enjoy. So our vote for the best line on TV yesterday is from 30 Rock. more ›

EVENT: An evening with David LaChapelle is sure to be a fabulous one. He'll be signing his new coffee table art book, Heaven to Hell, tonight. Wear your Sunday best. more ›

You would have thought Delilah shaved Samson's head again after the breathless reports of Britney Spears shaved her head Friday night. Apparently the pop singer-mother-train wreck did the deed before going to a Sherman Oaks tattoo parlor and giving the tabloids something to pun about. more ›

EVENT: Nerd Alert! Come on by for Nerd Night tonight at Orchid Lounge where there are two geeked out presentations awaiting you. Presentation #1: "Genesis Rules! Wait, I Meant To Say Neurogenesis". Something about Adult Neurogenesis and Phil Collins, or something. Presentation #2: "TETROMINOWLEDGE: How Four Blocks, Arranged In Different Patterns, Have Changed the World, Kind Of". This one is mostly about Tetris. So put the Wii down and get out of the house. more ›

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association voting pool for the Golden Globes only consists of 83 members, but every year their mainstream tastes become one of the potential early prognosticators for the Emmys and the Oscars. Over in Beverly Hills today, the stylists are putting the finishing touches on the stars' couture, that long red carpet is being laid and some assistant is double checking the seals on the envelopes. Here in New York of course, we get to play the more enviable armchair critic job hashing out who might be taking home this year's statues after tonight's telecast [8 - 11 pm on NBC]. more ›

Okay, so it's been 2007 for the last four days but since everyone's doing it from the critics circles to the awards nominating pools, it seemed worth it to weigh in on last year's movies. However, constructing end of the year top ten lists can be both painful and thrilling. Looking at a long list of the year's movie releases reminds you how many films passed you by in the theaters and playing favorites amongst the pool is never easy. It's much more fun to look at a top 10 and what various moviemakers from around the world have churned out in the last 12 months as glass half full. In the midst of the dreck of horrible new releases are some very bright spots, and here are 10 of our personal highlights. more ›

Today, the NY Times Thursday Styles section looks at two popular accessories: The tiny, teacup dog and the huge, monstrous hobo totes. Many women love little dogs, especially since their little dogs can be dressed in little designer outfits. And many women love their big purses because they can carry everything, even if they are suffering back and shoulder pain as a result. We are surprised that the area of intersection for these two topics - teeny dogs in big bags - was not exploited. What kind of back pain do women who carry their dogs around have? Are they putting their dogs in hobo bags? And do women with big bags and teeny dogs consider getting their dogs hobo bags for canines? more ›

May the television gods hear our and others' pleas! Last month, the Chicago Tribune's Maureen Ryan broke the news that Tim Gunn was not signed for a fourth season of Project Runway:

Will he be back? Ever the modest one, he would only say he "makes no assumptions," but he would come back "in a heartbeat" if asked. There's no official word, by the way, that there will be a fourth season, but it seems more likely than a supersize season finale of "Grey's." more ›