We've been following the fallout over the late Brooke Astor's will and estate for a while, but today's in-depth article in the NY Times about lawyer Francis Morrissey's numerous clients who put him in their wills is pretty damning. Morrissey was indicted (along with Astor's son Anthony Marshall) on charges if trying to, essentially, loot Astor's estate last month. The Times explains that he worked with two other lawyers, Wililam Forsythe and Peter Kelly, used......

EVENT: Come feel the love at the hotel QT tonight, as the Love party returns. Get those swimsuits out of storage, because there's a pool! And don't worry, the open vodka bar (8-9) will help you warm up. Friday // 7pm to 2am // Hotel QT [125 W 45th St] // Free MUSIC: There's a lot of music options for your Friday night. First up, at Bowery Ballroom, Brooklynites A Place to Bury Strangers and......

Anthony Marshall, the son of the late Brooke Astor, might have chosen a different lawyer if he suspected that he'd be eventually accused of looting his mother's estate. Or perhaps Francis X. Morrissey was the perfect man for the job. Papers are reporting today that Marshall's lawyer has a long history of profiting from soon-to-be-deceased clients. He was in court yesterday, arriving handcuffed, but leaving free on bail.It would seem to be the darkest moment......

Anthony Marshall, the only son of New York society legend Brooke Astor, pleaded not guilty to 18 counts of criminal activity related to the handling of his mother's finances. The 83-year-old former Marine spoke in court once (to utter "not guilty") and, after his bond was approved, left the courthouse using a cane. He also apparently cried. Among the accusations the Manhattan DA's office made against Marshall and his former lawyer Francis Morrissey (a PDF......

Dare we say that Brooke Astor is rolling in her grave? Yesterday, it was reported that her son Anthony Marshall and his former lawyer Francis Morrissey would be indicted for criminal activity over the handling of her will. And this morning, Marshall turned himself in at the Manhattan DA's offices, to face charges of fraud, forgery and grand larceny. Or, as DA Robert Morgenthau said, "The indictment charges that Marshall and Morrissey took advantage of......

Morrissey x5 It was only a few years ago when Morrissey's run of 5 shows at the Apollo Theatre was the hottest ticket in town, and it's a bit sad to see Mozzer basically begging for people to buy tickets for his run at Hammerstein Ballroom this week. The $65 ticket appeared to be a bit too rich for the average fan's blood, despite these shows being his first in NYC since 2004. The ticket......

People close to the case of Brooke Astor and the possible mishandling of her estate by her son Anthony Marshall say that they have been contacted by the Manhattan DA's office and told they could expect a grand jury to be convened as soon as September. The grand jury will be investigating whether Marshall fraudulently made changes to his mother's will that enriched him personally, while she was suffering from a state of reduced mental......

Has Andy Warhol's estate been dominating the market for the artist's work? One owner of a silkscreen by Warhol says that it has, and yesterday filed a $20 million lawsuit in the U.S. District Court. Filmmaker Joe Simon-Whelan's Warhol original was marked as a fake by the estate who he says has conspired for 20 years to control the market and create an artificial scarcity of original works. The board does this with the authority......

Black Lips Trash Bowery One of the nice things about being a music fan in New York City is that you rarely have to wait very long to see a band you're recently missed. The Black Lips famously played about 6,000 shows at SXSW this year, yet despite our interest in checking them out, we managed to catch them exactly zero times (with our final chance being cut short by that whole collapsing balcony thing.)......

Billy Bob Thorton sets aside his raunchy Bad Santa persona with his new family movie The Astronaut Farmer about a man building a rocket in his backyard. This family drama looks cheesy like Velveeta from the previews, but hey, that's what you expect with these "ordinary Dad does extraordinary thing" movies. They're always heavy on the sentiment. Jim Carrey senses the universe may be trying to communicate mysteries to him through numerology and a book......

Myspace.com/heresthethingcomedy is Sean O'Connor , Nick Maritato , and Andrew Wright . You're going to be hearing those names a lot starting February 6th when their show makes its debut at The People's Improv Theater. They'll lure you in with their line-ups, but it's their hilarious sketches and stand up is what's going to keep you coming back for more. Sean O'Connor Why should people go to HTT? I think people should go to......

ART: Yesterday we mentioned a few friends who spend their time making hamster nests, art and apparently making people very upset by merely existing. Anyway, one of them, Ryan McGinley, had an opening last night for his new show Irregular Regulars. His photographs of Morrissey were taken at shows from the past two years, and seem to depict Moz as God. Tuesday through Saturday, 10am to 6pm // Team Gallery [83 Grand St] READING: Village......

Sunday. Usually, a quiet, contemplative day in the Blogosphere. But not here in the Ist-a-Verse. Nonono! Just look below and see all of the wild and crazy stuff our staffs are up to. In Austin, bands are beginning to confirm for SXSW and the rumor mill is up and running. Good thing, too, because we all know how much Austinites love live performances. Austin also found itself in the national spotlight, with Longhorn Legend......

The poor Hotel Chelsea is feeling a bit down after finding a letter from one Steven Morrissey (known to most as. simply: Morrissey). The letter states that he will be leaving (artless) Texas to do a photoshoot using the hotel as an "insignificant background". Of course, legends are often forgiven, and this is no exception. The Hotel Chelsea bloggers write: "Since your letter is dated January 16, 1981, I feel confident you have repented of......

Ooh, finally we move to the "Handwriting Analysis" portion of the Astor spat! There were accusations of her son Anthony Marshall making 104 year old Brooke Astor wear tattered nightgowns and sit on a couch reeking of dog pee and being cheap with her medical care. Then there was the odd sale of her favorite painting. And of course allegations that her estate was being mishandled. Although Marshall has agreed agreed to give up his......

The NY Sun looks at the strange but-more-common-than-you'd-think phenomenon of New Yorkers waiting for things. Well, in addition to Magnolia cupcakes and Shake Shack (yeah, you knew it) burgers and shakes, the Sun listed some waits:HALAL GYRO AND CHICKEN Sixth Avenue at 53rd Street Waiting for: A hefty platter of meat, rice, salad and secret sauce combination. Peak time: 8:30 to 9:30 p.m., and midnight to 3 a.m., Fridays and Saturdays Average wait time:......

THEATER: A mysterious production is in previews at the DR2 theatre near Union Square. Dubbed “Esoterica”, it is described as a multi-media exploration of matters “philosophical, metaphysical and arcane” by actor, magician and mentalist Eric Walton. On his website, www.ericwalton.com, this description piqued our interest further: “Walton is sort of what you'd guess the devil would be like if he had his own nightclub act." It could be we’re just curious about what a “mentalist”......

The last vestige of 1970s SoHo is about to disappear: Rocks in Your Head, the record store on Prince Street, is closing after twenty-eight years of business. Manhattan's loss is Brooklyn's gain: the store is moving to North 5th and Roebling Street in Williamsburg. The Villager reports: “I’ve been losing money for the last few years, and the rents being what they are, business hasn’t been good,” Barouch said on Monday. “The name of......

It's exciting to see a band like Voxtrot at this point in their development. They have a unique blend of untapped potential and lo-fi naïveté. They are still so young. So raw. Their on stage persona is that of a bunch of kids messing around in their parents garage after school. It's fun and free and almost hard to take too seriously. What's so fascinating is that, in stark contrast to this novice image, they......

Many strange things happen at NYC public schools, but this hasn't happened (yet): A boy's school project of a 30 inch burrito left a New Mexico junior high school in lockdown yesterday. A concerned citizen called authorities when they spotted eighth grader Michael Morrissey carrying "something long and wrapped up." The best line, of many, from the AP:The drama ended two hours later when the suspicious item was identified as a 30-inch burrito filled with......

Yesterday we gave you the Fever and today it's the Decemberists Colin Meloy. Last night we headed over to the late show at the Fez to see him perform his own songs along with some Morrissey tunes. Due to the fact that this was a solo show, the images aren't very plentiful, but we've included captions and a video clip! [Meloy takes the stage at the Fez and performs to a crowd lit by candlelight.......

Do you remember rock n' roll? Not the synthy 80's stuff that's been inundating our ears lately, but actual guitar grinding rock. Well Dear Leader will make you remember, incase you don't. They are what rose from the ashes after the band Sheila Divine broke up in 2003. Their lyrics and sound are anthemic and loud. So come stomp your feet to them tonight at Pianos. More details after the interview. Recently Aaron Perrino......

A sextet from Montreal the Dears create a new sound through old influences. A whirlwind of sonance reminiscent of The Smiths, Belle & Sebastian, Serge Gainsbourg, the Kinks and a list that could go on forever. Brit pop, french pop, art rock. Lyrics and drama that create orchestral anthems for a new age. With ten years behind them the Dears are ready to descend upon us as more than just another band in the......

- Augusten Burroughs runs with Gothamist Interviews - City's economy picks up some - NYC Concert questions: How close can you get to Ad-Rock and why did Morrissey leave the stage early? - Wine and cheese pairing suggestions from our own (Tamara)Lover - Gothamist Sports on college football's top 15 - Feral cats rule city streets - The J-E-T-S have a 4-0 start - Commuting by pod in NJ might happen - Food carts......

Gothamist was there for some strange happenings at the Morrissey concert last night at Radio City Music Hall. After a pretty good show, featuring songs from his recent "You Are The Quarry" album, as well as older favorites ("Now My Heart is Full", "The More You Ignore Me, the Closer I Get", etc), Morrissey mysteriously cut short the encore and fled the venue. Gothamist reader Mark summarizes the action: After the break, during the......

If you plan on hitting the clubs next week and taking part in the annual CMJ music binge, why not use the coming days to rest up, get some sleep and save your pennies? A week of rest woudln't hurt, would it? But it's not that easy. Not this week...though the shows are mostly big ticket events that will set you back a few bucks. The big names precede CMJ this year. Next week we'll......

NY Times reporter Warren St. John is best known to NY-area readers as the byline behind articles in the Styles section about David Sedaris, metrosexuals or bank-robbing grandpas (okay, not Styles section, but still good reading fun). But running deeper in his blood is a love of University of Alabama college football. Alabama born and bred, St. John just released Rammer Jammer Yellow Hammer, a book about the 1999-2000 season for his beloved Crimson Tide.......

Why is it not that surprising Lollapalooza, with Morrissey as one of the headliners, would have poor ticket sales, resulting in its cancellation? Sure, Sonic Youth, PJ Harvey, The Flaming Lips, Modest Mouse, Le Tigre, Polyphonic Spree, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, all great performers...but even indie darlings can't guarantee volume. Gothamist wonders if these artists are appealing to the same customer, versus different groups of customers. [Via Chicagoist] What went wrong with Lollapalooza this year?......

Keep those questions coming! A reminder: if you want to keep your questions anonymous, send us an alias. See also some tips for sending us questions. What you may have missed: -Is it okay to get bootleg DVDs overseas if you don't have access to movies otherwise? -Where a girl can go to get a good haircut. -Necessary limits for open relationships. -Cheater, cheater! Is she cheating with your best friend? Is he cheating on......

[Ed. note: Gothamist got our favorite music blogger, Coolfer, to take a break from his copious music industry watching and give us the scoop on this weekend's shows that might be of interest. Without further ado, straight from Coolfer:] A few of the best shows this weekend are sold out, but this is New York and there's never a shortage of good live music. The Cardigans play Southpaw Sunday night and the Bowery Ballroom Monday......