A novelist and her husband are suing a Manhattan hotel for negligence after their cats almost died at the hotel. Marisha Pessl and Nicola Caiano claim that the cleaning staff at the AKA Sutton Place hotel, which says it's "pet-friendly," left out some rat poison--which was eaten by their three cats. The Post reports Pessl, who wrote Special Topics in Calamity Physics, and Caiano decided to relocate to the AKA SP after their Tribeca apartment......

Two cats living in an apartment completely destroyed by the Midtown crane collapse have been found and reunited with their owners. The recovery of Mr. Gloves and Gooksie was in no small part due to the efforts of Gini Otway, a neighbor who also volunteers at the animal rescue and adoption organization City Critters. As residents of buildings around the crane collapse were being evacuated, someone told Otway that they had seen a cat huddled......

Photo: Carol Rosegg I hate going to Broadway shows: fighting through the mobs in Times Square, being herded into the theater like livestock, cramming into a tiny seat while feedback from hearing aids and hacking coughs reverberate on all sides. Admittedly, I’m a world-class grouch when it comes to these things, so it’s no faint praise that I’d eagerly subject myself to it again for Passing Strange, the multidisciplinary rock musical that just blazed onto......

Cats in delis: they are ubiquitous, loved, objected to, necessary, and illegal. City inspectors are constantly on the prowl to ferret out deli felines, but deli owners say they are necessary fixtures to keep their businesses free of pests like mice, rats, and roaches. The New York Times has a story today on the ongoing battle between the city and the cats that are the sentinels of its delis--feline samurai who serve their masters in......

Over the weekend yet another production of the Andrew Lloyd Webber classic, Cats, closed. This hipster-ized version of the legendary musical used American Apparel styling for their look, and it all went down on Broadway...that's 1100 Broadway in the 11211 zip code. ArtCal points out that because the original Cats "ran parallel with corporate and municipal efforts to 'clean up Broadway' for big business," these hipster cats may be trying to make a point. Though......

Above are Oliver, Scout, and Simon Little, three Brooklyn siblings currently without a home. Fortunately, they have a kind neighbor who leaves them food and water and has some outdoor housing in her backyard. The other day she found Simon on her windowsill, caught out in the rain and looking forlorn. With the arrival of winter and snowstorms, these cats need a home. We spoke to their human friend (who would love to take......

An appellate court ruled this week that a 71-year-old woman could remain in the West Village apartment she shares with her two cats, despite a no-pets clause in her lease. Siiri Marvits has lived in the same apartment for 43 years and has had her two cats Athena and Apollo for more than ten years. The Daily News reports that according to the New York City Law Journal, a landlord must begin eviction proceedings within......

SHOP: Want to pick up some cheap(er) fashions by John Varvatos -- the rock n' roll designer taking over the CBGB space next year? Head to a sample sale today to get in on some 80% off clothing, footwear and accessories. 10am to 6pm, through November 4th // 260 Fifth Ave MUSIC: We've sort of been ignoring this band because of, or perhaps despite, their cutesy name -- but tonight UK rockers Holly Golightly take......

Today at noon, animal advocates will be holding a rally outside the Port Authority's headquarters at 225 Park Avenue South (between 18th and 19th Streets) to protest the PA's decision to round up feral cats at JFK Airport. The rally is organized by Neighborhood Cats and In Defense of Animals, two of many rescue groups who question the agency's reasoning that cats pose a danger to air traffic safety. In fact, Neighborhood Cats offers......

The Mayor's Alliance for NYC's Animals thinks the Port Authority is a liar when it comes to how the agency will handle the the tens to possibly hundreds of cats it hopes to trap from the grounds of JFK Airport. The Port Authority ramped up its cat trapping efforts, claiming that cats were a danger to air safety and passengers, since leftover food (much of it given by airport and airline workers) would attract rodents......

Forget terrorists or crippling airline delays: Cats are enemy number one at JFK Airport. After years of airport and airline employees taking care of the many feral cats who make Kennedy their home, the Port Authority is trapping the cats. Rescue groups are worried, because the cats are feral, they are very unlikely to be placed in homes - which means they will probably be killed. A large cat population has grown at the......

Madison Square Garden will be purring with excitement as the annual CFA-Iams Cat Championship opens its doors tomorrow and Sunday. Hundreds of cats from 41 breeds will be competing for Best of Breed and Best in Show prizes, and there are a number of other events, like watching cats compete in the Feline Agility Competition course and seeing the Parade of Breeds. You can buy purebreds or adopt some shelter kitties, too! We met......

A 26-year-old Yale graduate and Greenpoint resident got a lot of attention in Times Square yesterday - and the NY Post's cover today - by walking around naked. The Post reports that Josh Drimmer was walking in his birthday suit for "several minutes" around 11AM along Seventh Avenue between West 47th and 48th Streets. Reporter Jennifer Fermino overheard one witness calling a friend on his cellphone and saying, "Yo, homeboy's got full-frontal nudity right here!"......

This Saturday and Sunday, Madison Square Garden welcomes the Annual CFA-Iams Cat Championship Cat Show. The show has many guest speakers and events, like the Feline Agility Competition, which is open to the public's cats, too. And, of course, there is the Best of Breed and Best in Show judging. We'll have more about the cat show tomorrow, but we wanted to draw your attention to one of the areas. The Mayor's Alliance for......

We visited the Cathedral of St. John the Divine yesterday to participate in the Feast of St. Francis service - and to see all the animals that flocked to Morningside Heights for the annual animal blessing. Many people brought their pets - mostly dogs, but there were quite a few cats, birds and bunny rabbits - and the cathedral was packed. One highlight of the service is the procession of animals. And everything from......

This week, Phillyist saw the waters of a landmark fountain run red for a Showtime marketing stunt, the Phils pull ahead, and some serious nostalgia. They also got a chance to review an awesome tribute album, reminded folks to see the King, and appreciated their beautiful skyline. Chicagoist knows what it's like to like the Cubs. But naming your kid Wrigley Fields? At least they can breathe a little easier now that Grossman's out and......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a child struck by a school bus on 102nd St. and 2nd Ave. in Manhattan, a serious trauma on 41st Ave. and Northern Blvd. in Queens, and a missing child on Wilson St. in Brooklyn. 4,000 respondents to a survey of service on the L train gave the line a grade of C, which is passing we suppose. The second line to be graded by riders improved on the......

The Brooklyn Paper has a sad tale of some Prospect Heights kittens. The ferals wandered into the back yard of the Pond family, who immediately fell in love, had them spayed/neutered, called them their own and named them Inky, Blinky, Mookie and Clyde.The Ponds grew so attached to their backyard kitties that they began treating them as if they were their own. They had the cats spayed and neutered. They fed them daily. When the......

A 62-year-old woman was attacked in her Gerritsen Beach home when two masked men pushed their way in. WNBC 4 reports that the woman's husband ran downstairs to help fight off the attackers, who fled and left the scene in a black Jeep. According to WABC 7, the woman had been letting her cats back inside the house around 10PM when the men approached her. One of the men may have been armed with a......

Some neighbors were relieved when the ASPCA arrived in their Carnarsie neighborhood at the home of David and Laraine Spivak. The couple had taken in between 23-31 cats, and the smell of cat feces had become so unbearable that neighbors called 311 to complain. Apparently the Spivaks slept in their cars while the cats lived in their E. 99th Street home. A neighbor told WCBS 2, "Every morning we see them. They take a bottle......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a child was found at 115th St. and Nicholas Ave. in Manhattan, an unusual incident at Columbus Circle in Manhattan with a man atop the globe in front of the Trump International, and a double shooting on Hegeman Ave. in Brooklyn. A worker fired from her job at the substance-abuse outreach organization Odyssey House said that her former supervisor would talk of his sexual exploits constantly. One of the......

Meow! The Post reports that a Long Island man is suing a West Village bodega Andy's Deli at Seventh and Grove Street because the bodega's cat attacked him - and wants $5 million. However, Andy's Deli owner Andy Singh says he doesn't even own a cat. Dunh dunh DUNH! The claim: Adalberto DeSousa says he went to Andy's to buy a sandwich when he "felt something strange on my shoes." It was a kitty at......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: An overturned vehicle on the Triborough Bridge, which can't be good for all those getting away for the weekend; an escaped prisoner in The Bronx; and multiple pedestrians were struck Dyckman Street & Broadway. Early this morning in Bed-Stuy, a police officer sitting in a marked vehicle was shot in the arm. The officer was treated and released from Kings County Hospital but the NYPD is still searching for......

Betty Matas passed away in Arizona Monday after battling kidney and heart problems. She was 75 years old. Matas and her husband Bob captured the interest of many New Yorkers back in April, when the couple decided to make their move from Forest Hills, Queens to Sedona, Arizona in a taxi. Their driver was Douglas Guldeniz, a taxi driver from Turkey they met a few weeks earlier when returning from Manhattan to their home......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a possible abduction on West 15th St. and Surf Ave. in Brooklyn, a water main break on Broadway in Manhattan, and an escaped prisoner at Bainbridge St. and Rockaway in Brooklyn. Jamaican-New Yorkers were worrying about friends, relatives, and countrymen as Hurricane Dean was bearing down on the island nation. Fortunately, Jamaica escaped the full brunt of the storm. Emily "Pemmy" du Pont Frick feels that its "a tragedy"......

If you've passed the the Daryl Roth Theatre in Union Square lately, you may have wondered, "What is a Meow Mix Acatemy?" Well, it's simple: Meow Mix is giving cat owners an opportunity to understand their cats better by offering classes about cat behavior! The Meow Mix Acatemy has all sorts of interactive courses to simulate different aspects of cat behavior. For instance, there's Catnapping, Cat-isthenics (rock climbing walls and human-sized scratching areas), Cat......

I Dig Doug, a new production in this year’s Fringe Festival, concerns a status-obsessed uptown debutante who decides she should so get involved in presidential politics. When the farcical story begins, the unnamed teen (Karen DiConcetto, called Girl in the program) and her equally self-absorbed friend Nicole (Rochelle Zimmerman) are coasting along on their parents’ money, only mildly concerned about their imminent college application essays – Girl is smart enough to know that if they......

Start sharpening your spurs, gays and gals, because Jake Gyllenhaal is coming to Broadway! If director Mike Nichols has his way, you’ll soon have your chance to stalk the sensitive heartthrob as he flees through the stage door of Farragut North, a new play about presidential campaign hardball penned by a former Howard Dean staffer. According to today’s Post, Gyllenhaal (who made his stage debut in a Maggie Gyllenhaal-directed production of Cats in their parents’......

Manhattan's Bide-A-Wee animal shelter is having a grand opening today and tomorrow for its new "Kitty Cat Habitat." The space is now cageless, allowing cats to "roam free, romp on ledges and bridges and enjoy looking out windows while waiting for permanent homes or foster homes" and to be happy as they await their new humans. Aw! There will also be a Bideawee trainer available to answer questions about cats, information about grooming, refreshments, and......

Yankees 8, Orioles 7: Way back on June 28th, the game between the Yankees and Orioles was suspended in the 8th inning with New York up 8-6. Last night, the two teams continued the June game with Mariano Rivera allowing one Baltimore run to make things exciting in the 9th before picking up what is officially his 10th save of the season. Orioles 4, Yankees 2: In the regularly scheduled game last night, the Yankees......