FREE SUMMER FLICKS: Thursday night movies are returning to Tompkins Square Park. Yay! Things kick off with a bang with Robert DeNiro in — “You talkin’ to me?” — “Taxi Driver” on June 28. The other movies include “Exit Through the Gift Shop” on July 5, “Fantastic Mr. Fox” on July 12, “Summer of Sam” on July 19, “Donnie Darko” on July 26, “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” on Aug. 2, “The Big Lebowski” on Aug. 9, and “Poltergeist” on Aug. 16. The films are being offered through a collaboration of Two Boots pizza, Ella bar on Avenue A, HOWL! and Tower Brokerage, with Grolsch beer also providing financial support. Phil Hartman of Two Boots tells us they’re still working on musical acts that will open for the films, emcees and special guests. Last year boxing promoter Don King and his famous doo made an appearance. Movies start at sundown, and the music starts an hour before. There’ll also be poetry and live art. Meanwhile, there will be some good films playing on the West Side waterfront, too, this summer on Wednesday nights, courtesy of the Hudson River Park Trust’s “Riverflicks for Grown-ups.” On July 11, at 8:30 p.m., “Moneyball” with Brad Pitt will be showing on the lawn in the waterfront park’s Chelsea section, followed by “Super 8” on July 18, “Bridesmaids” on July 25, “Limitless” on Aug. 1, “Cowboys and Aliens” on Aug. 8 and more. There’s also a Friday evening “Riverflicks for Kids” (and adults who are big kids, too, we assume) series at Pier 46 at Charles St., including “Kung Fu Panda” on July 13, “Superman, The Movie” on July 20, “Hugo” on July 27, “Rango” on Aug. 10, “Back to the Future” on Aug. 17, and “The Smurfs” on Aug. 22.
IT’S A GAS, GAS, GAS — YIKES! Reverend Billy recently led a parade from Pier 54 at W. 13th St. to the High Line’s southern end to dramatize the dangers of the proposed Spectra high-pressure gas pipeline project. Now he has a special worship — remember, it’s not a show — coming up at which he and his choir will rail against the demon Spectra and hydrofracking. “We have people from the choir who live in Jersey City, the Village and Chelsea who will be impacted,” Billy tells us. “And there’s a smoking-gun document: We’ve discovered JP Morgan Chase put together a $1.5 billion bond for Spectra Energy.” In the past, Billy has exorcised the likes of Victoria’s Secret cash registers because of the lingerie company’s sinful clearcutting of Canadian forests for its catalogues — but beating back Spectra may take all his powers. Billy’s “No Pipeline at the Highline (or Jersey City either)” will go down Sun., July 1, at 1 p.m., at the Highline Ballroom, 437 W. 16th St. The $10 ticket for the family-friendly event includes lunch and “spirits served.”
HIZZONER’S FOR IT: For the record, former Mayor Ed Koch in his “Commentary” column on “Recent Controversial Issues” said he supports the current mayor’s jihad against sugary drinks over 16 ounces being served by theaters, restaurants or street vendors. “The purpose is to address rising obesity in the U.S., particularly of children,” Koch says. “Currently, nearly one in three children in America are overweight or obese. I support the mayor’s efforts. Nothing has worked to bring down rising obesity. He tried to get the Legislature to raise taxes on sugary drinks. They refused. His efforts both educational and through the use of regulation and law have reduced the number of cigarette smokers. Many in positions of authority talk a good game; he does more than talk. He implements.” Wearing his other hat of film reviewer, Koch recently gave “Dark Shadows” a minus, even though he’s a huge Johnny Depp fan, calling him “a wonderful actor.” “Big mistake,” Koch wrote. “When I left the theater a young woman asked me what I thought of the picture. I responded that it was (using the English version of the French word) merde.”
RAY GETS KIM, OFFERS KIDNEY: Ray is finally getting some help on the overnight shift at his place at Avenue A and Seventh St. Kim — who we’re told used to run a local general store back in the day — is helping serve up the Belgian fries, beignets and soft-serve ice cream at the iconic hole-in-the-wall joint. He’s not quite as pretty as Amy, who moved on to Commodities Natural Market, but he says he’s loving the job. Meanwhile, we told Ray about the plight of longtime activist John Penley, who’s busy Occupying down in North Carolina, but whose kidneys are in bad shape. “You only need one kidney — I’ll give him one of mine!” Ray, 79, immediately responded. Meanwhile, though, Ray doesn’t even have his own new teeth yet. What happened to that dentist from Stuy Town who said she’d make a mold of his mouth and give him some free new chompers? Come on — he needs help!
BREAKING OUT IN SOHO: Acne is coming to Soho — the store, that is. Other Swedish imports, like the “Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” books have translated well here, but Acne? It stands for Ambition to Create Novel Expression and is a Stockholm-based outfit known for its really cool “unisex jeans.” We don’t doubt that — but the name, yeesh. Anyway, Acne will be “breaking out” soon at the northwest corner of Grand and Greene Sts.
GOODBYE, OLD FRIEND: Mr. Bip, the Russian Blue pal of Scoopy who lived with his partner, Missy, at the Waverly Place home of Doris Diether, died Sat., May 26, at the ripe old age — for a cat — of 19. Mr. Bip, named after the Marcel Marceau character, had been ailing for some time and became very ill around 9 p.m. Diether made several calls to find a vet on the Memorial Day weekend and then had to find someone to drive her and Bip to the one she found open on 15th St. But there was nothing to be done. Just before the end, Diether was holding Bip, who patted her on the arm to console her before he left the last of his nine lives. Diether was grieving last week but Bip’s black-and-white partner, Missy, 7, who had been with him all her life, was inconsolable.
BATTER UP! John Economou is taking over as the new president of the Greenwich Village Little League this month, replacing Daniel Miller.
WIKILEAKS TRUCK ROADSHOW: If you’re heading out to Governors Island this weekend June 9 and 10 to check out the Figment Festival, check out the debut of Clark Stoeckley’s documentary theater piece about Bradley Manning. The performance — about the U.S. soldier accused of leaking classified files — will be staged from the back of Stoeckley’s WikliLeaks Truck, which is a story in itself. The vehicle was a fixture down at Zuccotti Park during Occupy Wall Street, and even helped save a protester’s life; on a cold, rainy night an older occupier went into hypothermic shock and Stoeckley, Penley and others were able to warm the man up in the van and revive him. The truck itself, as far as we can tell, doesn’t actually do anything, but just has a cool WikiLeaks decal on its side. But it freaked out the Secret Service sufficiently when Stoeckley, Penley and culture jammmer Vlad Teichberg (who projects subversive images on buildings) were tooling around the Capitol in it that Stoeckley was subjected to an eight-hour interrogation. Embattled WikiLeaks honcho Julian Assange has given his approval, and now there are scores of WikiLeaks trucks around the globe sporting Stoeckley’s custom decals. Stoeckley plans to take the Manning documentary show on the road this summer, culminating in stops at the Democratic and Republican conventions in Charlotte and Tampa.
SMOKIN’ SHOW: Health-conscious Mayor Bloomberg probably won’t be giving his seal of approval to this one, but Norman Borden, dad of Matt Borden, Assemblymember Deborah Glick’s chief of staff, has a new solo exhibition, “Thank You For Smoking,” opening at Soho Photo Gallery, at 15 White St., on Thurs., June 7, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The exhibit includes 15 photos of New Yorkers from various walks of life taking cigarette or cigar breaks or “multitasking” as they enjoy their butts. Norman is an ex-smoker himself. At least no Big Gulps will be served at the opening, we’re told.
