Stilted But Not Wilted, by PayPaul(Leader of the WW Tribe) at flickrToday on the Gothamist Newsmap: a shooting on 109th Ave. and Merick Blvd. in Queens, a person under a train at Sutphin Blvd. in Queens, and a cyclist pinned beneath the wheels of a bus on 14th St. and 1st Ave. (looks like victim will survive) in Manhattan. The tech-savvy youth who got himself arrested for stealing a Sidekick mobile device and then......

Today marks the third annual Informal Presentation on the Art of Dance, a dance event put on by the Dance Theatre of Harlem and the Dancing Through Barriers Ensemble. The two troupes converge each year in a most unconventional space: The State Supreme Court of Manhattan! Arthur Mitchell (himself a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet in the '50s and '60s) co-founded DTB after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr, and the......

Untitled, by Blaise K at flickr A week after the illegally converted-for-residential use warehouse 475 Kent Avenue in Williamsburg was evacuated by city agencies, due to building violations including an illegal matzoh bakery (and combustible grains being stored in the basement), the building will be padlocked this afternoon at 4PM. There will be a "solemn observance of the shutting of a great arts community," according to a press release we received. More details:Come and......

The Federal Reserve's interest rate cut helped the stave off a huge drop the stock market yesterday. Though the Dow Jones did fall 465 points at one point, it ended 128 points down. Another feature of the rate cut: Home loan applications jumped. The global markets had tumbled on Monday (during the U.S. Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday) because of U.S. recession fears, but Asian markets gained a little today after news of the......

Photographs of Spitzer, Sharpton, Dinkins and Bloomberg at Sharpton's National Action Network by Tina Fineberg/AP All over the city, events were held to remember Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy. One of the biggest events was the Reverend Al Sharpton's annual forum at his National Action Network in Harlem, which attracted Governor Spitzer, Senator Schumer, former Mayor Dinkins and Mayor Bloomberg. Sharpton hailed Bloomberg's efforts to make the city less racially divisive, "It is......

Photograph of Obama, Clinton and Edwards at an event in Columbia, S.C. by Elise Amendola/AP With the South Carolina's Democratic primary on this coming Saturday, the three leading Democratic candidates, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John Edwards gathered together at a Martin Luther King Day Jr. debate in Columbia, S.C. When Clinton addressed the crowd, she said, "We have come so far together. Barack Obama, an extraordinary, young African-American man with so much to......

Photo of Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King reflected in a Fort Greene storefront window, by Paul Fugelsang Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a shooting on Stuyvesant Ave. and Hart St. in Brooklyn, a multiple stabbing on West 49th St. and Broadway in Manhattan, and a car in the water on Beach St. and Rockaway Pt. Blvd. in Queens. After a 14% surge between 2005 and 2006, complaints about the NYPD from......

The U.S. financial markets may have been closed due to the Martin Luther King Jr. Day observance, but stock markets around the world tumbled as worries over the U.S. economy took hold. Johan Stein, who manages about $14 billion at an asset management firm in Stockholm told Bloomberg, "It's the worst I've ever seen. The financial system is in terrible shape, and no one knows where this will end.'' Many investors are doubtful that President......

Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day, to celebrate his accomplishments as a civil rights leader and to remember there is still work to be done in many areas, from racial equality to living a more peaceful, understanding existence. King's birthday is actually January 15, 1929, but the federal holiday has been observed on the third Monday of January since 1986 (the first time all 50 states observed the holiday was in 2000). With the......

Photograph of mariachi band at Lorimer St. by daniel.gene on flickr Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a person under a train at Jamaica Ave. and 95th St. in Queens, a severed limb at Blake Ave. in Brooklyn, and a child struck at 39th St. and 3rd Ave. in Brooklyn. "Prepare to be swabbed citizen." New York takes steps forward to our Gattaca-like future. A man described as being 6'1" and 300 lbs. was spotted......

Bruins 4, Rangers 3 (SO): Sometimes teams are happy with a single point, but the Rangers won't be in this one. They blew a lead in the third period -- after rallying from a 2-1 deficit -- and then saw things go against them in the shootout. A sluggish January for continues for New York. Scott Gomez had two assists and a goal, but it didn't help the Rangers avoid dropping to 2-4-1 in the......

FOOD: Drinking With the Professor: a Look at Jerry Thomas and His Liquid Legacy: Join cocktail maestro Dave Wondrich as he shares recipes from his latest book, Imbibe! plus a few that were cut in the editing process. Wondrich has an in-depth knowledge of nineteenth-century classic cocktails, so step up and taste the benefits. - Laren Spirer Friday // 6:30pm // Astor Culinary Center [399 Lafayette St] // $75, tickets available online THEATER: As you......

THEATER: Wolf Lane Productions presents Victims of the Zeitgeist (The Tragedy of Martin Luther King, Jr.), written & directed by Ellwoodson Williams. The production "offers an exciting and telling insight into just who Martin Luther King, Jr., was as leader and simply as a sensitive and intelligent human being who loved life and who had a sense of humor, a deep understanding of the human condition - its strengths and weaknesses - and a profound......

After the national debate about race turned into the national debate about how race discussed in the Democratic presidential campaign, Senators and Democratic rivals Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have declared a truce. The stir was caused by Clinton's remarks about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s efforts ("Dr. King’s dream began to be realized when President Johnson passed the Civil Rights Act...It took a president to get it done.") and when Obama criticized Clinton......

That's what Senator Hillary Clinton told Tim Russert on Meet the Press yesterday, but no matter what anyone says, race and gender are obviously factors in the hotly contested Democratic primary race. After criticism over her remarks about Martin Luther King ("Dr. King’s dream began to be realized when President Johnson passed the Civil Rights Act...It took a president to get it done.”) and her husband's remarks about Barack Obama's fairy tale Iraq stance, Clinton......

Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama made a campaign swing into our neighborhood yesterday, drawing a crowd of thousands to Yanitelli Center at St. Peter's College, and as well as supporters to a fund-raiser in Midtown last night. At St. Peter's, He told the audience, "I'm not running because of long-held ambitions. I'm running because of what Dr. (Martin Luther) King called the 'fierce urgency of now.'" Obama also complained about his opponents trying to......

Senator John McCain won the Republican primary in New Hampshire, with the race being called for him early on. Senator Hillary Clinton beat Senator Barack Obama by a few thousand votes in a very close race. Comebacks all around! Update, 11:06PM: During her victory speech, Clinton thanked the voters of New Hampshire and asked them to give the country the comeback it needs. Unlike her Iowa background of friends like Madeline Albright and Wesley......

At 6:30AM yesterday morning, federal agents delivered "wake-up" subpoenas to the Reverend Al Shaprton and four of his employees at the National Action Network. The FBI and IRS are looking for financial and corporate records, some dating back to 2001, as part of an investigation into Sharpton's financing of his 2004 presidential campaign as well as allegations of tax fraud. Ten people in total were subpoenaed, including a former chief of staff who left in......

With the MTA's vote whether to raise subway and bus fares coming in less than three weeks, speculation is running high about what will happen. Even though Governor Spitzer said that the base subway and bus fare will remain $2, unlimited Metrocard fares - which 85% of riders use - will rise. The MTA has insisted the fare hikes are necessary, given projected deficits and upcoming capital construction, but many elected officials believe that the......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a water rescue off the beach at 105th St. and Shore Front Parkway in Queens, a person struck by a train at 77th St. and 4th Ave. in Brooklyn, and a shooting at Martin Luther King Pl. and Tompkins Ave. in Brooklyn. A middle-aged man was arrested Sunday evening after attempting to rob a McDonald's on Staten Island, but settling for ripping the clear acrylic box of donations for......

MOVIE: This week's Bryant Park movie is All the Kings Men.... The movie follows the rise of politician Willie Stark from the rural country to the big city spotlight. "Along the way, he loses his initial innocence, and becomes just as corrupt as those who he assaulted before for this characteristic." Romance, women, intrigue, power...it's all there. 5pm seating, Movie at dusk // Bryant Park // Free READING: Alison Weaver (re)tells the story of family......

READING: It's New York Murder Mystery Night with novelists Jed Rubenfeld, Joel Rose, and historian Ben Feldman. The trio will be discussing New York’s famous 19th-century murders, including the bizarre events behind Butchery on Bond Street. 6pm // 108 Orchard St // Free EVENT: The Hanger Bar is having a summer soirée tonight. Head over there for an evening of couture and complimentary cocktails. A mixologist and a Prada protege have been brought in to......

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn struck Sonny Carson's name from a list of of New Yorkers to be honored with a street named after them because she thought the political activist was too divisive a figure. Carson was a proponent of black economic empowerment and was distemperate in his views of other New York groups (e.g., whites, Jews, Koreans). Councilman Charles Barron, who shares Carson's past as a radical activist, thought Carson's exclusion from the......

JV and Elvis, the on-air duo who inhabit "The Doghouse" on 92.3 Free FM, had their suspension from CBS Radio upgraded to a firing. The morning show pair were suspended late last month after CBS received complaints about a show in which a prank call is placed to a Chinese restaurant, and lewd language and racial slurs were employed in an attempt at humor. It was the second time in a month JV and Elvis......

As noted elsewhere, yesterday was the coldest Easter Sunday in 67 years. This past Christmas and New Year's were warmer, as was Martin Luther King's Birthday. Yesterday's temperatures were more appropriate for mid-February than early April and more snow fell during a Yankees game yesterday. We should rebound a little today, but don't expect to see normal temperatures –highs should be in the upper-50s this time of year– until Friday at the earliest. Interestingly, perhaps......

A NY Times reporter spent yesterday observing and experiencing the Reverend Al Sharpton's action rally at his National Action Network headquarters. On most Saturdays, the so-called House of Justice on West 145th Street can feel as casual as the International House of Pancakes 10 blocks south. Anyone can walk in and take a seat. The words etched onto the large tinted window at the entrance, facing 145th Street, read not House of Justice or......

A six-foot tall chocolate sculpture of Jesus which will be displayed at a Midtown hotel next week is stirring up controversy. Catholics are calling Cosimo Cavallaro's "My Sweet Lord" an "all-out war on Christianity." The sculpture is supposed to be installed in a window at the Roger Smith Hotel's gallery, The Lab, on East 47th Street and Lexington Avenue. Cavallaro claims that the Easter-timing was a coincidence, and besides, this isn't his first chocolate......

Harry Houdini's funeral was held on November 4, 1926, in New York, with over two thousand mourners in attendance. He was buried at the Machpelah Cemetery in Queens where the crest of the Society of American Magicians is inscribed on his grave site. To this day, that Society holds their "Broken Wand" ceremony at the grave site on the anniversary of his death. With a new biography called “The Secret Life of Houdini” that came......

In less than a year and a half, former Brooklyn Assemblyman and Democratic party boss Clarence Norman was found guilty on corruption charges. This time, a jury found Norman guilty of five counts of coercion, grand larceny by extortion, and attempted grand larceny by extortion related to, as the Daily News put it, "shaking down court candidate Karen Yellen for $10,000" back in 2002. Norman's threat was that she would lose his support if she......

Texas is thawing, the Northeast is freezing, and a sort of natural order seems almost restored to the Ist-A-Verse. Almost. Londonist HQ—that is to say, the city of London—was battered by heavy winds, making it a bad time to be a twelve-meter (nearly forty-foot) tall snowman. Still, not everyone decided to keep warmly covered. Meanwhile, back indoors, the Big Brother racism is now causing all kinds of headaches for international diplomats, and Londonist got into......