Inception Spoof Is Shot-On

There's a fun spoof of the INCEPTION trailer I came across recently called INEBRIATION.  It's pretty funny and silly and made for about 1/1000th of the actual movie. Though it certainly helps to have Hans Zimmer's score to make the point.  Anyway, I'll just let the damn thing speak for itself. 

Don Draper Is In The Hood

On this week's episode of MAD MEN, Don Draper wrote a check which had on it the address of his new bachelor pad:  104 Waverly Place, apt 3B.  Yes, it's true, Don Draper is in the hood, his apartment just a few blocks from mine....though we are separated, of course, by about 40 years.  


Anyway, I stopped by 104 Waverly Place to see what the joint looked like.  Unfortunately, there is no 104 Waverly Place.  There is 106 to the right and then the back of a large apartment building on the corner, listed as 29 Washington Square West.  If there were a 104, it would be that little alleyway with all the garbage out front. (The picture is from GoogleMaps, clearly taken on garbage pickup day.)


It was probably due to legal necessity that the producers had to use a fake address.  However, I'm sure the people at 106 Waverly are breathing a sigh of relief.  The unfortunate folks who live in the building at the corner of Bedford and Grove (the exterior for FRIENDS) are constantly beseiged by camera-wielding tourists standing on the corner day & night snapping their own friends. 

A New Reminder Of The Old Penn Station

Coming out of Penn Station this weekend, I discovered some new artwork that recalls the glory of old Penn Station.  Inside a new entrance to the station at 31st and 7th ave that NJ Transit opened about a year ago, a series of 10 natural stone mosaics pay homage to the grandeur of the McKim, Mead & White's original "Temple To Travel".  


These pieces are the work of a Russian-born artist Yakov Hanansen and they are a beautiful tribute to the old station, which was torn down in 1964 to make way for Madison Square Garden. Currently, there are many plaques and photos and sculptures scattered through the underground tunnels which now make up the so-called station, in remembrance of the terminal's storied past.  But Hanasen's mosaics are the most elegant homage to a grand place that still lingers in the imagination.

Takin' It To The Summer Streets-Aug 21

This weekend is the last chance to enjoy Park Avenue without cars.  The annual Summer Streets program, which expanded from 1 to 3 Saturdays this year, wraps up on the 21st with all sorts of events from 72nd Street all the way down to Chatam Square.  The biggest buzzed about addition this year are the three dumpster-diving swimming pools that have been set up near Grand Central Terminal.  If you're interested in taking a dip on Park and 40th, you should get there early as the pools are small and there can be a wait.  
Last Saturday, I hit the Summer Streets and took advantage of the free bike rentals, provided by Bike'n'Roll.  You get use of the bike for an hour which was plenty of time to head from Spring and Lafayette to 72nd Street and back.  Riding below 14th Street was a little crowded but once you get onto Park it was better and above Grand Central it was gorgeous, biking past the Seagrams Building and the Lever House and enjoying the wide roadway and no dangerous taxis.


Even if you don't have a bike, there's tons to do; free yoga and exercise classes from Crunch on 25th Street, an outdoor Whole Foods market on 24th and excerpts from Fringe NYC Shows at a small stage on Spring/Lafayette.  Summer Streets starts early tomorrow at 7am and goes to 1pm when the streets are reopened to traffic. 

The Shocking Things You'll Find At Ground Zero

There has been a furious debate lately over the "mosque at Ground Zero." First of all, it's not a mosque they are planning, it's an Islamic community center and secondly, it's not "at" Ground Zero, but roughly 2 1/2 blocks away.  From the street, you can not see Ground Zero from the community center and vice versa. 


The thing that infuriates me the most about this inane debate is that the majority of the uproar is coming from people who don't live in New York City and thus don't understand how this city operates.  Given the limited amount of real estate, the sacred and the profane are often forced to live side by side in NYC. That has always been the nature of this particular urban beast and always will be....even when it comes to Ground Zero.   


To illustrate this fact, Daryl Lang's excellent NYC blog History Eraser Button showed a number of businesses that are within the same 2.5 block radius from the former Trade Center site.  He found a strip joint, a betting parlor and a Burger King.  Notably, this BK served as a makeshift morgue and then police HQ in the weeks after 9/11, as it was directly across from the site. 


My kudos to Daryl for defusing the debate by pointing out the realities of city life. Hopefully, as this controversy continues, people will look start to look beyond the headlines and consider the actual facts involved. Not to mention the merits of the First Amendment.

Hey Ladies--It's The New Cami-Secret

I am a secret fan of bad infomercials.....you know the type, where people have ridiculous problems that are solved by a miracle product.  The only thing the product can't fix is the bad overacting and breathless narration that are the hallmark of these ads.  


Yesterday, I was turned on to a new commercial for a product so ridiculous it could have easily be dreamed up by the writing staff of SNL.  Yes folks....it's the Cami-Secret, which is essentially a dickie for women to hide their cleaveage without the "mess and fuss" of a real camisole.  I found this on D-Listed but apparently it is airing on TV. So check your CW channel, maybe around 2am. Or just watch it here.  Don't delay--watch it TODAY!

Send In The Divas

Sondheim's "A Little Night Music" had a diva switchover last month, as Catherine Zeta-Jones and Agnela Lansbury were replaced by Bernadette Peters and Elaine Stritch.  This cast change seems to be the inspiration behind a YouTube video posted by a very talented NYC cabaret singer.  If you are a Broadway baby or diva devotee, you'll find her impressions are spot-on.  

Sondheim's 80th Year Celebrated With Online Recital

As part of the yearlong celebration of Sondheim's 80th, NY TIMES music critic Anthony Tommasini posted a lovely little recital yesterday in which he deconstructs the master's music and marvels at Sonheim's ingenuity as a composer.  It's a must-view for musical theatre fanatics like myself.  I especially loved his discussion of "Merrilly We Roll Along", Sondheim's 1981 Broadway flop which now is considered possibly his most interesting score.  I was in a production of this show back at Wildwood Summer Theatre and, though the show didn't make much sense, the music still resonates with me today.  Not a day goes by....indeed.

MTA's Gap Rap

If you ride the LIRR, you may have noticed the profusion of signs in recent years to "Watch The Gap".  Continuing this program to educate the public about the dangers of falling through the gap between the station platform and train, the MTA has now put out a "Gap Rap".  The rap was created by the LIRR's medical director Dr. John Clarke.  He's not a rapper but he plays one on YouTube, having already created a rap for the MTA's H1N1 educational program last fall.  The MTA's website says the Gap Rap is "MTV ready".  Well, let's just say the MTA should probably stick to the business of getting the trains to run on time.


The interesting story behind this story, though, is the gap safety program itself.  In 2006, a teenager named Natalie Smead fell through the gap at Woodside and was killed by a train.  Her family sued the MTA and won a very substantial multi-million dollar settlement.  It was this death and lawsuit (which revealed that there had been hundreds of gap-related accidents) that forced the MTA to address the issue of the unusually wide gaps on the LIRR.  In addition to signage everywhere as well as posters and PSA's, the MTA has actually filled in the gap at many LIRR platforms.  


So this "Gap Rap" is the latest measure in the MTA's recent gap education program to prevent further accidents, deaths and massive lawsuits.

What's On The Menu At The State Fair

State and county fairs of late have become summer playgrounds for culinary crackpots, dishing newfangled treats like deep fried butter and spaghetti-on-a-stick.  Now comes word of the latest caloric catastrophe: a hamburger served on a Crispy Creme donut.  

This is the hot item at the Wisconsin State Fair, where many folks are lining up for the $5 patty presented on a sliced glazed donut.  The mixture of savory and sweet was praised by many. As for myself, I think I would take a pass.  I'm not a huge fan of the lastest sweet/savory mashup trend, where enterprising chefs like to add bacon to ice cream for instance. I prefer to enjoy my desert and breakfast foods separately.