Urbanite

Lindsay Lohan and a fedora-less Samantha Ronson (Getty)

Lohan sat between Samantha and mom Ann Jones at the Charlotte Ronson show

It was madness in the Tents today as Lindsay Lohan and gal-pal Samantha Ronson arrived to take their seats at Sam's sister's fashion show.

-See all the photos of Lindsay Lohan and Samantha Ronson here.

The paparazzi stormed the two girls as soon as they peeked their heads out from behind-the-scenes. We tried to snap some shots, but all we got were the backs of dozens of photographers' heads. Maybe this is why fashion people wear heels.

Charlotte Ronson's clothes were great, but the focus continued to be on the couple -- even during the show, as the girls talked, giggled, whispered and cheered for the models.

Although the photographers snapped plenty of runway pics, Samantha took some digitals for the family album. Thankfully, she didn't record brother DJ Mark's timing mess-up near the end of the show, though glances were exchanged.

More to come this evening as we check out the after-party.

-Click here for all the photos of Lindsay Lohan, Samantha Ronson, and the other celebrities at Fashion Week--Miley Cyrus, Beyonce, Justin Timberlake, Mariah Carey Fergie, more.

You can also amuse yourself with 69 photos of Lindsay Lohan (and Samanthan Ronson)'s fashion looks over the years. (Warning: Some photos may not be suitable for children).

-We're live-blogging everything from Fashion Week at our sister blog, Talk of the Tents

-And this is where we're putting all the photos and videos of what the designers are showing at Fashion Week

— Julie Gordon and Jessie Pascoe

Sunday night. 10 p.m. HBO.

Entourage.

The fifth season of the show comes back after more than a year off.

When we last saw the boys from Queens, they were experiencing the epic failure of their 'Medellin' screening at the Cannes film festival. The opening of this season will deal with all of the fallout of this disaster. Vince trying to rebuild his career. E and Ari at each other's, doing their best to help Vince while dealing with their own problems. Drama dealing with his own growing success. And Turtle... well, being Turtle.

This season promises to be an exciting one, with cameos from Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Mark Wahlberg, Tony Bennett, Michael Phelps, and Phil Mickelson, as well as returning characters played by Emmanuelle Chriqui and Martin Landau (is that something you might be interested in?), and new characters played by Bow Wow, Kevin Pollack, and Fran Drescher.

Believe it or not, we're also getting the return of Dom, played by Domenick Lombardozzi, who was less than popular during his first run in the series. It remains to be seen how fans will react, but with the rabid populous craving Entourage, I doubt that many will be too bummed.

If you're a current fan, you should have a lot of fun watching this season. If you've never seen the show, do yourself a favor and check out an episode or two this weekend before the premiere. You won't be disapppointed.

-- Tim Fiorvanti

Click here for photos of Entourage's Season 5 premiere

After we heard that Mayor Bloomberg planned to remake two lanes of Broadway into a swath of tables and benches for pedestrians to sit and relax, we were skeptical about whether New Yorkers would use it - who wants to sit and lunch in a cloud of Times Square exhaust?

But a stroll outside in the upper 30s along Seventh Ave. today proved us wrong.

Still not so sure about the mayor's idea that this will encourage people to exercise (The Broadway plan will "give us a lot more room to walk on the streets and to get people ... out of their cars and walking, which is good for their health and also good for the environment," Bloomberg has said on his weekly radio show.)

But they definitely have the sitting part down.

Vivica A. Fox outside the Bryant Park Fashion Week tents.

All Day: Celeb/fashionista gazing outside the big white Bryant Park Fashion Week tents. You need a pass to get inside, but no credential required for streetside ogling. We saw Vivica A. Fox earlier ... hopefully you'll see better.

10 p.m.: The Mr. and Miss Williamsburg Pageant - As we told you a few weeks ago, it took a malt-liquor shoplifter to come up with this one. If you care, head out to Billyburg and watch the neighborhood all-stars parade their version of chic down a contrived catwalk at Supreme Trading. Many meta-levels of irony here. It's making our heads spin. (213 N. 8th St. at Driggs Avenue, 718-599-4224; $10)

Tropical Storm Hanna on Saturday will deliver two to four inches of rain and high winds across the New York area. But 23 years ago this month, New Yorkers were battening down the hatches for the terrifying Hurricane Gloria. Sure enough, schools were canceled, residents as far north as Westchester put plywood on their windows, and people watched breathless news reports of the impending doom. In the end, Gloria was not a disaster akin to the Long Island Express of 1938, but it caused considerable damage on the East Coast, including Long Island, where power company LILCO struggled to restore power to parts of the area for weeks.

Step back in time and see live coverage from 1985 of Hurricane Gloria, including an almost full hour of Weather Channel coverage with hurricane expert John Hope. And check out photos of hurricanes that have struck New York.

-- Rolando Pujol

Photo: Waves crash into Cedar Beach as homes in the background take a pounding from Hurricane Gloria. (Newsday file photo, 1985)

Paula and Johanna, both alumni of MTV's 'The Real World' model designs by Indashio at amNewYork's Reality Runway: Fashion for a Cause

amNewYork caught up with a slew of reality TV stars at ‘Reality Runway: Fashion for a Cause,’ held Wednesday night at Lower East Side hotspot BLVD. Some highlights from the evening.

-Paula Meronek of ‘The Real World: Key West’ was looking blonde and beautiful, and had clearly undergone some upper torso area enhancements. She made no secret of it though, doing some hot shimmies on the runway. You rock those babies, Paula.

-An unidentified male paid $860 to spend the evening with the beautiful Johanna Bodda from ‘The Real World: Austin.’ Which would have been the highest bid of the evening, if celebrity designer Indashio hadn’t bid $1000 to hang out with the lovely Marshana from ‘The Bachelor.’

-Speaking of the lovely Johanna, she made it perfectly clear that she is no longer with former flame Wes.

“I have recently broken up with my ex-boyfriend. I’m single and ready to mingle! And New York City is full of hot guys. It’s like being a kid in a candy store.” Bodda told us.

Click here to see pictures of the newest cycle of 'America's Next Top Model.'

--Lizzy

For two years, the publishers of Edible Brooklyn have been championing local foods and food folks in the borough.

On Monday, they will become advocates in Manhattan with the newest in the growing line of Edible magazines -- Edible Manhattan.

"Frankly, in the beginning it was too daunting to take on Manhattan," co-publisher Brian Halweil said, adding there could be an Edible for every neighborhood in the city. "Finally we're up to it and we've gotten enough steam to do it."

The line of Edible magazines got its start six years ago when two women from Ojai, a tiny exurb of Los Angeles started a magazine covering their local food and farmers.

Since, the magazine series, which focuses on local foods, artisans, chefs
and eaters, has expanded to 50 communities including, San Francisco, Brooklyn and East End of Long Island.

Halweil said Edible Manhattan will differ from its Brooklyn and East End counterparts because in Manhattan "local food is global food."

"You can get everything from the best Russian food to the best Korean, the best from East and West and South Africa," he said. "It may not have all come from here, but because it's the best and it's here, it's still very local."

The magazine will be available at Whole Foods, Zabar's, ABC Home, and various bookstores, wine shops and specialty grocers.

-- Emily Ranager

Large pieces of steel called tridents recovered from the World Trade Center site, and once a structural part of the ground level exterior arches of the twin towers, are preserved in Hangar 17 of Kennedy International Airport. There are about 1,350 pieces of steel, many weighing over 30 tons. (Photo by Lane Johnson)

Two years ago, we had the honor of visiting Hangar 17 at Kennedy Airport, where the Port Authority meticulously cares for relics from the World Trade Center, saving them for the day they either return to Ground Zero or are sent to other museums.

Here's our story from the visit, plus a flash presentation with video and photo gallery. In addition, check out these blog posts for more from our visit.

"Memorial Sites: New York to Nairobi Photographs by Julie Dermansky," an exhibit opening Sept. 10 at the Center for Architecture, will also present images from Hangar 17.

-- Rolando Pujol

Photo by Lane Johnson

After last year's false alarm, the inevitable came to pass Thursday: The owners of Coney Island's Astroland announced the amusement park will close for good this weekend after 46 years. Full story here. Photos here and here. Classic Astroland commercial here.

Here's a short history of the site:

1955—Three investors, including the owner of Nathan’s hot dogs, buy the land where Astroland sits in order to keep it out of the hands of NYC Parks Commissioner Robert Moses.

1962—Astroland opens as owners hope to capitalize on new interest in the Space Age. Attractions include the Cape Canaveral Satellite Jet and the Mercury Capsule Skyride.

1976—Astroland takes over operation of the Cyclone Roller Coaster. The next month an early morning fire destroys much of the amusement park.

1988—The Cyclone is named an official city landmark.

2006—The owners sell the land the amusement park sits on to developer Thor Equities.

2008—Unable to negotiate a long-term lease with Thor, Astroland operators announce that the park will close for good after the season.

-- Compiled by David Freedlander

See this trio for free today.

2 p.m. to 6:45 p.m. Samsung kicks off search for fan stories to be featured in Super Bowl pre-game show commercial; Sixth Avenue between 58th and 59th streets.

2 p.m. to 7 p.m. Chris “Mad Dog” Russo previews his new daily SIRIUS XM Radio sports talk show; ESPN Zone, 1472 Broadway, at 42nd Street.

3 p.m. NFL’s annual opening kickoff concert featuring Usher, Keith
Urban, and Natasha Bedingfield; Columbus Circle, check-in at southeast corner of 62nd Street and Central Park West.

8 p.m. to 11 p.m. Republican National Convention watch party; Canlon’s Restaurant,1825 N. Railroad Ave., Staten Island.

9 p.m. CNN hosts outdoor viewing of Sen. John McCain’s Republican
presidential nomination acceptance speech; Duffy Square at 47th Street and Broadway

9:30 p.m. Sean “Diddy” Combs hosts 10th-anniversary runway show for Sean
John line ; Macy’s, 151 W. 34th St., main floor.

The Long Island Express of 1938 batters the city. Hanna is expected to be "disruptive," but not nearly as bad.

Batten down the hatches—there’s a squall heading this way.

Tropical Storm Hanna pounded Haiti yesterday and is expected to zero in on the Carolinas by the end of the week, and may hit or skirt New York City on Saturday.

“It looks like it’s coming right through you,” said Andrew Uhlrich, a meteorologist at Accuweather.com. “I’d say it probably won’t be catastrophic, but it will be disruptive.”

The latest National Hurricane Center projection Wednesday evening had the storm passing just off eastern Long Island before striking southern New England. But it’s still too early for forecasters to determine a firm track.

Uhlrich said that if the storm moves east, it could drop several inches of rain on the region. If it shifts to the west, weekend weather would be drier, but New Yorkers can still expect gale-force winds.

A spokesman for the city’s Office of Emergency Management said that the agency was tracking the tropical storm closely and declined to discuss what kinds of preparations are under way.

The agency Thursday kicks off National Preparedness Month, and volunteers will be handing out Go Bags at site around the city.

Hanna is being closely followed by two other tropical systems, Ike and Josephine. Ulrich said it is too early to tell where Ike will strike, and added that Josephine was unlikely to hit land at all.

-- David Freedlander

Want to see designs from Donna Karan, Badgley Mischka, Vivienne Tam, Stacey Bendet, Pamella Roland, Christian Sirano, Rubin Singer, Maticevski, Mark Bouwer, Carmen Marc Valvo, Brian Reyes, Rebecca Taylor, Nanette Lepore, Wichy Hassan, Wenlan Chia, Tracy Reese, and Marchesa?

We've gotten a sneak peek at some of the outfits that will be on the runways at Bryant Park next week during Fashion Week.

Click here for 17 of the sketches from the designers.

--Lizzy

Bloomberg and bald-eagle via Piano Lady @ Flickr

Mayor Michael Bloomberg told the press to lay off Republican vice-presidential Sarah Palin's family, after a 48-hour media feeding frenzy turned a spotlight on Palin's unmarried pregnant teenage daughter, Bristol.

"People in the families have a right to privacy too," the mayor said at an afternoon press conference. "They are not the candidates. I know everybody says, 'oh well, if she is vice-president then her family is fair game. I don’t happen to believe that. The family has a right to their own lives."

Bloomberg's own daughters, Emma, 29, and Georgina, 25, have kept a studiously low-profile through their father's administration, though the younger one is well-known on the equestrian circuit.

Earlier in the day, the mayor praised the role of an active press corps in helping to bring to light a new initiative of his which would post bullying incidents from local schools online.

"Hopefully if somebody is reading what your write or what you put on the air that’s the way you inform people," he said. "That’s the fourth estate’s job in a democracy."

--David Freedlander

The RNC met at Madison Square Garden four years ago. (Photo by Jefferson Siegel)

Four years ago, the RNC had just concluded its eventful gathering in Manhattan. Revisit the madness here.
And check out fellow blogger Emily's look at efforts by some city Republicans to revamp the party's image here.

It's the 8th Annual Senior Olympics at Coney Island todaym

10:15 a.m. and on ... Athletes compete in the 8th Annual Senior Olympics; Coney Island boardwalk at 29th Street and Surf Avenue [MORE on CONEY]

Noon Usher [photos], Keith Urban, and Natasha Bedingfield discuss Thursday’s NFL Opening Kickoff concert in Columbus Circle; Atrium, Frederick
P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center

Noon: Craig Schley officially announces his candidacy for the
congressional seat held by Congressman Charles Rangel; 163 W. 125th
Street

1 p.m.: Neighborhood residents announce lawsuit challenging planned
construction of an NYPD Command Bunker in the Police Plaza complex; NYPD barricades at Park Row and Worth Street.

3 p.m. to 4 p.m.: Mary Joe Fernandez leads youth tennis demonstration; Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Flushing Meadows Corona Park

6 p.m. to 9 p.m.: Top picked subway musicians perform at The Cutting Room; 19 W. 24th St., between Broadway and Sixth Avenue.

6:30 p.m.: LeAnn Rimes “Stop Hiding... Start Living” photo exhibition and
reception; Twelve21, 12 W. 21st St., between Fifth and Sixth avenues.

10 p.m.:: Album release party for Donnie Klang, of MTV’s “Making the Band
4”; Marquee, 289 Tenth Ave.

The five day cone for Hurricane/Tropical Storm Hanna

As one of the two weather-obsessed Urbaniters (you can find the other one here), I was mildy excited this afternoon to discover that the NOAA has forecast the path of Tropical Storm Hanna to go right over Manhattan sometime on Saturday.

This will probably mean a total Saturday washout here in the city, but what better time to clean or rearrange your apartment, or get some board games, beer and food and have your very own hurricane party.

Just don't forget the candles. You know, just in case.

Check out pictures from Hurricane Gustav
--Lizzy

Katie Holmes

An anti-Scientology group named Anonymous plans to picket Oct. 16 at the opening night of Broadway’s “All My Sons,” which stars church member Katie Holmes, a rep for the organization said. Holmes, 29, and hubby Tom Cruise, 46, are (in)famous for their involvement in the the Church of Scientology.

Anonymous said it has “uncovered or brought into the public eye hundreds of illegal actions, fraudulent activites and human rights violations perpetrated by the Church of Scientology.”

Church spokesman Tommy Davis responded by saying a protest from Anonymous is a “very real and credible threat,” and that Anonymous has sent envelopes with powder resembling anthrax and death and bomb threats to churches in the past.

“These people are basically terrorists,” Davis said. “Let’s say Ms. Holmes was Jewish. These people would be the equipvalent of neo-Nazis protesting the fact that she’s Jewish.”

-Click here to see Katie Holmes' life, in photos

— Julie Gordon

The Times pays a visit to Jack's on City Island, and gathers up some fish tales. (Photo by Rolando Pujol)

* The breathtaking transparency of 7 World Trade Center. [City Room]

* The De Kalb Avenue subway stop turns up where you least expect it: In a bathroom in Glasgow, Scotland. [Curbed]

* Yet another vintage 1960s-1970s tower will get the glass wraparound treatment. The crown will survive, though, atop the Viacom Building, home to TRL and once the site of the Astor Hotel and its rooftop parties. [Curbed]

* A Park Slope man gets ticketed for drinking a beer -- on his own stoop! [Brownstoner]

* The Observer checks out Roosevelt Island 2.0. A few weeks ago, amNY examined the boom on the island as well.

* 10 restaurants we lost this summer, beginning with Florent. [Eater]

* And there's no end to the "when will Chumley's reopen" saga. [Eater]

* An end-of-summer visit to the Lemon Ice King of Corona. [Jeremiah's Vanishing New York]

* And a "staycation" trip to Hart Island. [Queens Crap]

-- Rolando Pujol

A dolled-up Peggy uses her feminine wiles at the Tom Tom Club, which is said to be at 44th Street and Eighth Avenue.

Peggy lives in Prospect Park? And Pete's family summers on Fishers Island? Real estate (and an ancient Rough Rider) are among the highlights from this week's "Mad Men and the City," Urbanite's look at the show's references to people, places and things in the tri-state area. While not teeming with NYC goodies this week, the episode, "Maidenform," does not disappoint. As always, let us know about your observations.

* Prospect Park -- Brooklynite Peggy Olson tells former paramour and father of her child Pete Campbell that she lives in Brooklyn, Prospect Park to be exact. A few issues come up here:

1.) Of course, nobody lives in Prospect Park. You might say you live "on" Prospect Park, but certainly not in it, unless you are homeless. 2.) In 1962, a young professional such as Peggy would likely not be living in the neighborhoods around the park, including Park Slope. At that point, gentrification was well under way in Brooklyn Heights, a more plausible neighborhood for Peggy to call home, but neighborhoods such as Park Slope were not yet meccas for young professionals. One possibility: Since her family is from Bay Ridge, and she's a lifelong Brooklynite, she may have known her way around the park neighborhoods better than a Manhattanite seeking cheap rent. Any thoughts?

Continue reading "Mad Men and the City: Maidenform" »

Bad news for those of you intent on hitting up this Saturday's First Saturday at Brooklyn Museum. It's not happening! The next free fun night is Oct. 4. Don't miss the Special Salsa Dance Party, 9-11 p.m. and don't forget to stop by Ripple Bar afterward. Everyone else will be there.

CLARIFICATION: The Brooklyn Museum has informed me that the First Saturdays take place only 11 months a year. It's not canceled this month; it just doesn't happen. See you in October!

— Emily Ngo