The police say a man was mugged and slashed in Central Park around 12:30 this morning. According to the Post, "The man, described as in his 30s and dressed up in a tuxedo, had lost his glasses and “couldn’t see properly,” according to one cop at the scene. As the man stumbled by the rink, he was jumped by a group of men who sliced him in the hand with a knife, and then stole his wallet and an iPod, the officer said. The muggers fled." more ›

Before 6:40 a.m., a man was stabbed in Central Park. The 28-year-old victim was on the Center Drive, near the Wollman Skating Rink (which is in the south east part of the park), when the incident occurred. He was taken to NY Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center. The police are looking for a suspect and, WABC 7 reports, "Police closed Center Drive to the west of Wollman Skating Rink." The NYPD has its own precinct in Central Park. more ›

So just what is David Blaine doing to fill the time during his "Dive of Death" stunt? A trip uptown yesterday revealed that yes, as has been reported, Blaine has taken regular standing breaks to be checked on by a physician. He also noted that standing was the only time he can drink water because drinking it upside-down "makes me feel like I'm gonna puke." more ›

David Blaine spending 60 hours suspended upside down over Central Park's Wollman Rink just got even less interesting! While being lowered closer to the ground in order to chat with fans still falls within the rulebook, his medical exams have him standing upright on his own two feet! One spectator caught him and now there's photographic evidence! Well, if you want to suspend (heh) disbelief for a while and ignore the cheats, you can now join Blaine for a few minutes--his "expert stunt team has arranged for fans to take the David Blaine Challenge by safely hanging upside down for a minute or two, Tuesday, 3 - 11 p.m., Central Park’s Wollman Rink." more ›

David Blaine has been upside down since yesterday, and today his medical team will be on hand at Wollman Rink to check in on their patient. There have been some concerns about what being in his position for 60 hours can do to the human body (like blindness!), so stay tuned for what's likely to be a dramatic yet reassuring press conference with the docs. more ›

Street illusionist-stunt fiend David Blaine embarked on his 60-hour project to hang upside over Wollman Rink in Central Park. While doctors say his head won't explode from doing The Dive of Death (as it's called for his ABC special), he could very well go blind. more ›

Unsurprisingly, doctors have some concerns over David Blaine, who announced his latest stunt, the "Dive of Death," last month. The idea is simple enough: hang upside down over Wollman Rink for 60 hours; Blaine has already been practicing at a gym and was up to 8 hours at the last check-in. While hanging upside down, in some people's opinions, has its health benefits (Rosie O'Donnell does it to treat depression!), a doctor told The Daily News, "His head is not going to explode, but it could cause some problems with the blood flow to his brain. I wouldn't do it, and I wouldn't counsel anyone else to do it." So far the 35-year-old endurance stuntman hasn't suffered from his practices, but he did note: "This is a lot more difficult than it looks." more ›

Illusionist David Blaine is looking for your support when he suspends himself to a cable with magnetic boots upside-down above Wollman Rink for three days next week. In today's NY Daily News, he revealed more details about the stunt including that doctors will check on him every few hours, a cherry-picker will lift visitors to his level and he will urinate through a catheter. Blaine has been practicing by hanging upside-down with gravity boots at a private gym in the Flatiron district. The longest he's gone thus far is eight hours. Next week he'll try to do it without any sleep for sixty. Blaine told the News that he's fine with criticism, but gets upset when "people think it's an elaborate hologram." more ›

Brooklyn's leading magician David Blaine will live in the great outdoors of New York once again in just a few weeks for his next major public stunt, walking upside-down above Wollman Rink for three days. Blaine will perform the "Dive of Death" starting on the morning of September 22 as passers-by in Central Park will be able to see him as he hangs upside-down like a bat while connected to a wire via magnetic boots. He will not eat during his sixty hours on the wire and plans to sleep-upside down as well. This will all culminate in a two-hour special to air on ABC on the 24th. How he will get down remains--like the man himself--wrapped in mystery. The stunt will be less than a mile from Lincoln Center where in 2006 Gothamist visited the "Mysterious Stranger" while he lived in a bubble for a week. more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a bank robbery on Austin Rd. in Queens, another bank robbery on Church Ave. in Brooklyn, and a police car vs. scaffolding in Manhattan; the scaffolding has been compromised.
• A Queens high school was locked down this afternoon for two hours after a student's 'To Do' list was found listing seven students "To kill today."
• The projected cost of restoring the separate homes that constitute Admiral's Row at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.
• Alcides Moreno, who fell more than 40 stories in an accident that killed his brother, has been yawning and moving his arms and legs.
• The owner of Central Park Carriage and Horse Stables and the managers of Wicker Park Cafe and Bistro and Penang on Columbus Circle were arrested for attempting to bribe a Consumer Affairs inspector, hoping he'd overlook multiple violations.
• A $10,000 security system is being installed at the Wollman Rink in Prospect Park after thieves broke into the skating facility's concession stand last week.
• The ad sales execs at NBC are getting tricky by placing AmEx bumper spots featuring cast members of Tina Fey's "30 Rock" that segue directly from the show.

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: A fatal car accident in Manhattan at 55th and 12th Avenue, a water rescue on West 50th and a three-alarm fire at a Bronx post office
• Cute animal maternal instincts alerts: A Central Park turtle tried to lay her eggs at Wollman Rink and there's a cute shot of a hawk and her baby hawk at City Birder
• The Post lists NYC's most 50 powerful women: Mayor Bloomberg's squeeze Diana Taylor is #7, Ivanka Trump is #23, and the Post's Cindy Adams and Liz Smith are also on the list
• The Times looks at the struggles of the former child soldier from the Ivory Coast; for instance, after detaining him for months, immigration authorities released him on the random and unknown streets of Lower Manhattan at 10PM
• A Rap-A-Thon was held this past weekend in Harlem, and profanity was not allowed
• Queens want to attract more tourist dollars (our number one idea: Talk to the MTA about more consistent subway service)
• Chuck Hagel says he'd like Mayor Bloomberg to be his running mate on a presidential ticket
• The child stabbed with a stick by another child is still in a coma; his father says, "God is going to give him life again. That is what I need - I believe it."
• After screwing up evidence, the NYPD is finally looking for ways to better organize its evidence-tracking system by issuing RFPs to various vendors

THEATER: At the end of December 2003, with her daughter in an induced-coma brought on by septic shock from a fatal bout with pneumonia, Joan Didion’s husband John Gregory Dunne unexpectedly died during dinner. Her struggle to navigate the subsequent minefields of grief formed the basis for her best-selling memoir, The Year of Magical Thinking. She’s now adapted the book into a one-woman play of the same name, directed by David Hare and starring Vanessa Redgrave. (Photo of Didion and her late husband.) - John Del Signore more ›

A few days ago, Gowanus Lounge reported that Prospect Park is getting a $25 million skating facility with two rinks – one for hockey and one for recreational use. The plan was presented by Prospect Park Alliance President Tupper Thomas at a recent Park Slope Civil Council meeting. more ›

The Rink at Rockefeller Center is 70 years old today. The rink, in the heart of Midtown and unrivaled for many years (until the Bryant Park's Pond opened), first opened on Christmas Day in 1936. Being located right by the Rockefeller Christmas Tree and the Today Show studios has helped its popularity. It seems to be open today - here are more details. more ›

You know how we know it's almost winter, besides feeling the chill in the air? The fact that Wollman Skating Rink in Central Park is opening today. This year happens to be the 20th anniversary of the rink's re-opening, thanks to Donald Trump's chutzpah and swooping in to take over renovations from the city (the city had been "working" on the rink for 6 years). Admission to the rink is $9.50 weekdays/ $12 holidays/weekend for adults; children 12 and under - $4.75/$5. more ›

beats hit the trifecta yesterday, with news that there was a coyote wandering around Central Park, not too unlike a tourist in awe of the 800+ acre urban oasis. Visitors to the park reported seeing a wolf-like animal yesterday afternoon, and even Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe saw the coyote (and then hit speed dial to the press office to round up some reporters). Benepe told the Post, "We'll call him 'Hal' for now because he was found near the Hallett Sanctuary. If we discover that it's a she, then we'll just have to call her 'Henrietta.'" Uh, Mr. Parks Commissioner, how about Halle? Anyway, Benepe also thinks the coyote traveled from Westchester County, and the commuter was tracked by the police (armed with tranquilizer guns and/or in helicopters - don't worry, the tranq-patrol stopped at night). And to be tracking the coyote's moves! The NY Times seems to have the only firsthand account:

About 10:30 p.m. a reporter spotted what appeared to be the coyote — a tawny, furry animal that resembled a German shepherd — on the steps leading to the parks department headquarters, at 64th Street off Fifth Avenue. It leveled a distinctly blank stare from black eyes as it was approached.

With the proposed chill coming this weekend, we thought it would be a good to remind everyone that the city's ice skating rinks will be closing on April 2. Yes, the Pond in Bryant Park has been closed since January and Prospect Park's rink closed last weekend, but there's still the Abe Stark Rink at Coney Island, World’s Fair Ice Skating Rink in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, the Staten Island War Memorial Ice Skating Rink in Clove Lakes Park, and Lasker Rink and Wollman Rink in Central Park. And speaking of toe picks, has anyone seen The Cutting Edge 2 on ABC Family yet? more ›

Of course, after the storm of '06 hits we suggest snowball fights. Prior to the snowfall, however, we offer up the following... more ›

Last month was the fourth driest September ever. Less than half an inch of rain fell. As of 3 p.m. this month is the third wettest October, only 0.03 inches behind 1913 for second rainiest, and less than half an inch from the wettest October. Unless a drought sets in immediately, that old record is toast. Mark Gothamist's word! After getting the October record, it'll be a stretch to break the all-time record –September 1882's 16.85 inches of rain. more ›

Today, the Parks Department will announce that Bryant Park will get a skating rink from October 28 until January 15. The New York Public Library had been worried that a rink would damage an underground book storage area, but say, "The concerns we've raised are being addressed and we know that Bryant Park, with its views of the library's Beaux-Arts facade, will provided a beautiful setting for skating this winter." And how. The rink, called The Pond at Bryant Park, will cost $4 million and is 17,000, which the Times says is half the size of Wollman Rink and double the size of Rockefeller Center. Fun fact: The rink and equipment like the Zamboni, plus crowds, will weigh less than the fashion shows! And to top it off, the skating will be free (there is $7.50 skate rental). more ›

Life takes on insanely surreal proportions when the local real estate egomaniac/ punchline about hair/ reality star goes to Washington to testify about real estate development. At least, Gothamist thinks so. Donald Trump testified in front of Congressional leaders to explain why the U.N.'s plans for their redevelopment are terrible. The U.N. has been contemplating various options, including moving its headquarters to Brooklyn, in order to secure enough space for its offices. Trump thinks that the U.N.'s plan to pay $1.2 billion for redevelopment is too much and explained it with his usual brio:

We have major slime in New York, and much of that is in the form of contractors. Isn't that a sad thing to say? And every one of them, I guarantee you, will find their way to the United Nations."

While NYC's ice rinks are tempting, as well as a fun time, you do tend to hear stories about people breaking an arm or slipping. And since it involves people on thin blades of metal on ice, it's not that surprising. That's why, even though we know we're living in the most litigious city in the country, Gothamist was taken aback when we read skating-related lawsuits have topped $100 million. The city hasn't had to pay out money since many skating rinks are operated by skating rink concessionaires (the Trump Organization runs Wollman and Lasker rinks, for example), but some of the lawsuits do seem egregious. Like blaming the crowds at the ice rink. Gothamist must say, while some ice rinks could stand to be better run, suing the ice rink because you fall seems extreme. We wonder if ice rinks will make people sign waivers before skating. more ›

- Riverbank Skating Rink (at 145th Street and Riverside): $4.50 for adults more ›

Geoff Wolinetz, Freelance Satirist more ›