Urbanite
Nallen: Sale of untaxed cigarettes hurts honest retailers
Photo credit: Craig Ruttle
When the City Council recently proposed raising the age for buying cigarettes to 21 and restricting retail displays of cigarettes, less attention was paid to a third proposal -- the Sensible Tobacco Enforcement bill. It would crack down on trafficking in untaxed cigarettes and unlicensed tobacco sellers, as well as tobacco-company discounts aimed at luring new smokers.
Even though it hasn't...
Read more »Editorial: America's duty to help Oklahoma
Photo credit: Mayita Mendez, 2002
On a memorable day 11 years ago, grateful Oklahomans donated a red and white rescue truck to the New York City Fire Department, purchased with money donated by schoolkids and adults. Called the Spirit of Oklahoma, the truck was the Sooner State's way of thanking the FDNY for its help in 1995 with search and recovery work after a terrorist bomb claimed 168 lives in Oklahoma City.
But reflecting...
Read more »Alleged bogus art dealer charged with tax evasion
Photo credit: amNY
A Long Island art dealer accused of selling knock-off paintings was charged Tuesday by federal prosecutors for dodging taxes on the deals.
Glafira Rosales, 56, was in federal court on charges of evading taxes on $12.5 million of income from selling allegedly bogus art to two Manhattan galleries between 2006 and 2008.
The complaint accuses Rosales of pocketing the money from the...
Read more »Spring training with the NY Liberty: Fitness is a year-round job
Photo credit: Liberty's Toni Young during the NY Liberty WNBA practice in Greenburgh. (Patrick E. McCarthy)
In the Greenburgh practice facility shared by both the Knicks and Rangers, the players for the Liberty are deep into spring training.
Fan favorites Cappie Pondexter and Leilani Mitchell are engaged in an intense half-court game under the watchful eye of coach and retired Detroit Pistons center Bill Laimbeer.
While the women try out new plays, a group of men practice for a pending scrimmage...
Read more »Orr Shutuhl picks his favorite cocktails
Photo credit: Remember the Alimony at The Beagle
Orr Shtuhl’s recently published love letter to mixed drinks, “An Illustrated Guide to Cocktails,” is a beautiful compendium on mixed libations. The history of 50 classic cocktails is told alongside illustrations by Elizabeth Graeber and, of course, the recipes.
“A good cocktail has the intrigue of a drama,” Shtuhl writes.
The Serious Eats columnist and Brooklyn resident told us about...
Read more »On TV: 'Behind the Candelabra' -- 3 stars
Photo credit: Michael Douglas in "Behind the Candelabra"
Behind the Candelabra 3 stars
There’s a telling moment in Steven Soderbergh’s “Behind the Candelabra,” where Liberace (Michael Douglas) stands in front of an audience in an enormous fur coat and glittery bullfighter costume. He tells the story of one of his first concerts, when he wore a conventional black tuxedo and practically blended in with the piano, or so he felt. The tale ends with...
Read more »Captain in the NYPD arraigned on domestic violence charges
Photo credit: amNY
An NYPD captain who is a commander in the Department's leadership bureau was arraigned Tuesday on an array of domestic violence charges in Brooklyn Criminal Court before being released on his own recognizance.
Daniel Sosnowik, 49, of the Flatlands, Brooklyn, was arrested after his wife complained that Sosnowik pushed her into a doorway, wedged her in between the doorway and the wall,...
Read more »Museum of Moving Image to host Jim Henson collection exhibit in 2014
Photo credit: Mayor Bloomberg and Muppet character Miss Piggy. (Mayor's Office)
Sesame Street trash cans, the Ninja Turtles' lair and Miss Piggy's exquisite wardrobe will have a new home in Long Island City next year.
The Museum of Moving Image announced Tuesday that the Jim Henson family will donate 400 puppets, costumes, props and other memorabilia to the Queens museum for a special gallery.
Henson's daughter Cheryl said her father was always fond of the city,...
Read more »Is no place safe? New York's gay community unsettled by hate crimes
Photo credit: David Gatten of New York marches in a rally to honor Marc Carson. (Craig Ruttle)
The string of savage hate crimes in New York City, culminating with the death of Marc Carson in Greenwich Village early Saturday morning, has New York's gay community reassessing its assumption of "safe places."
Gay people come from all over the world to enjoy the non-judgmental embrace of NYC, and nowhere is seen as more accepting than Greenwich Village, a home for the bohemian,...
Read more »As Seamless and GrubHub merge, online orders continue to dominate New York
Photo credit: Seamless and GrubHub had a combined $875 million in 2012 takeout sales.
The two giants in online food ordering merged Monday, as GrubHub and Seamless became one massive company that hopes to expand its footprint and become ubiquitous nationwide.
Seamless, which is based in New York, and GrubHub had a combined $875 million in takeout sales last year, resulting in more than $100 million in revenue, and they hope that their pooled resources will allow them reach...
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