Midtown Elvis

Elvis Presley isn't seen around this parts very often. Which way to Las Vegas?

Sneakers on the Avenue

Discarded sneakers.

I Found Your Keys

Yeah, you know, the ones on the pink lanyard. I found them. They're hanging on a lamp post on 5th Avenue in the 60s waiting for you. Hurry up now and go get them before someone breaks into your apartment and takes your car.

Holy Smokes

Taking a moment for a cigarette in East Harlem.

The Flower Thief

You can't really nail down the flowers so they are prone to random acts of street thievery, but I've never seen a store so blatantly post the pictures of the crime in action. Not sure if this is a strong deterrent since not too much detail is evident from the pictures, but I'll give them credit for trying. Sign seen posted on the outside of a deli on Madison Avenue in the 30s.

I do like a bunch of fresh flowers -- a nice bouquet really brightens up the place.

Afternoon OJ

Since Mr. Orange hasn't been feeling so well lately and had to go to the vet on Saturday (he had his blood taken and he hates needles as much as I do), I figured I'd take some pictures of him. Here are two random happy pics while he enjoys a perch at home overlooking a wonderful view of midtown Manhattan out the window.

The Ego and the Id

The Public Art Fund recently installed a colorful Franz West aluminum sculpture, "The Ego and the Id" on the corner of 60th Street and 5th Avenue. It will be there all winter long so you have plenty of time to see it in person.

Wow!!! Cool Hair

Obviously the place to go if you want cool hair. Located somewhere way the hell up in East Harlem somewhere.

Dinner for 15

Getting ready for lots of customers at a Chinese restaurant on the East Side.

Renee Zellweger Gets Blinded by Lights at "My One And Only" Premiere

Earlier this evening, I came out of the Apple store on Fifth Avenue right next to the Plaza Hotel and stumbled upon the "My One And Only" premiere. I was on my way to Burger Joint in Le Parker Meridien and I just had to stop for a few minutes to get a few shots as the stars strode in. What's "My One and Only," you ask? It's the new Renee Zellweger movie set in the 1950's that had its New York premiere tonight at the Paris Theatre. The film also stars Kevin Bacon and Logan Lerman. Who's Logan Lerman? In case you didn't know, Logan is definitely an up and coming young star and I'm looking forward to seeing what Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief is all about next year, esp. since he plays the lead.

I really didn't have a very good vantage point for these shots and I didn't feel like running around just to get a good one of Renee so my pictures aren't the greatest, but you basically get the idea. No one comes here for the quality of my pictures anyway. Personally, I like the pictures of the packages of marshmallows that I took earlier today which are far better photographs(see below). But for all you Renee Zellweger fans, if you ever wondered what it was like to star in a movie and make your entrance at the premiere in New York City, then this set of pictures is as good an example as any of the sheer volume of cameramen and flashes that go off when you hit the red carpet. Even for a relatively small movie that presumably needs all the publicity help it can get, there were a lot of press out for Renee and assorted other stars in attendance. I didn't see Bradley Cooper who Renee has been rumored to be dating and has been seen out with in New York and Barcelona recently. I didn't see Kevin Bacon either. However, I did see George Hamilton. I didn't post the picture because he's so tan (and looks fantastic), but I really don't want to encourage the youth of the world to get skin cancer. Sorry George.


The Paris is definitely my favorite theater in the city since it is one of the only single screen theaters left in all of Manhattan and the only one with a balcony. It's currently playing the new Michelle Pfeiffer movie that seems to be doing reasonably good business there since it's been playing for the past seven weeks or so.

In case you're wondering why the theater marquee is for the Michelle Pfeiffer movie "Cheri" and not for "My One and Only," it's probably because this movie is a relatively small independent feature that's being released by a small distribution company. It's super expensive to release a movie, secure a theater for the premiere, get the after party together and pay for a pricey custom-made marquee. It makes a lot more sense to buy more print advertisements to promote the film than it does to spend on signage for the premiere.


You've got to give Renee A LOT of credit for doing a small independently financed film like this one. Her manager, John Carrabino, is one of the savviest managers in Hollywood and he gets a lot of credit for guiding Renee's career so I hope he was instrumental in helping her choose a movie like this one. Actually, I wish a lot more stars would follow her lead and we would see a greater diversity of movies being made and theatrically released. It's a lot of work to make a movie and get it out to audiences so I'm totally rooting for this one to do well when it opens and hope it does good business for the distributor (Freestyle Releasing) and for the investors. It looks like a intelligent, well-made feature and the early reviews seem to be very good. Renee is really working hard getting all the press she can for this one and she seems like she's doing a great job so far.

Of course, I know how difficult it is to get people to buy tickets to go see your little independent movie and if there are any people in San Francisco that are reading this (hint hint), it's not too late (ends this Thursday, August 20th) to see Guest of Cindy Sherman at the Roxie theater. Coming soon to a city near you.

Jet-Puffed

When something is "jet-puffed" that just means greatness to me. Do they have a fleet of turbo-charged private Gulfstream jets standing at the ready as blobs of marshmallow come out on the conveyor belt to be puffed into fluffy deliciousness? However they do it, marshmallows are good. Kraft Foods to the rescue again. These are clearly America's Favorite for a reason. I hope you agree.

Dave's Favourite Hairdresser

I don't for a minute think that David Letterman has ever actually been to this place to get his hair cut. Also what's up with the English spelling of favorite?

Update: I'm totally surprised that no one noticed that Letterman was spelled incorrectly as well. Do I have to point out everything that's funny. Of course Dave hasn't been to a hairdresser that can't even spell his name right even if it is right around the corner from the Ed Sullivan theater. What's wrong with you people? Also, it appears I only seem to get comments from non-native English speakers. When does the David Letterman show call me to book me as a guest. I'm waiting!

Just Watching The Cars

It looks like it must have been a blue day.

I kinda feel like making these. I don't think I can wait 36 hours though. I need to seek some professional help!

More messiness from the Dominican Day Parade last week. I'm not even sure this is legal.

Carriage Ride

Just a wheel.

What Death Valley Tastes Like

Isn't this is an awesome name for a flavor of potato chips? I mean who in their right mind wouldn't want to try the new Kettle Brand Death Valley Chipotle flavored potato chips. At the very least just to see what they taste like. They could be totally gross or the best things ever.

I was tempted to buy them, but I wasn't tempted to the tune of $4.49 for a relatively small bag. I could almost buy an double scoop ice cream cone for that amount. Would someone please run out and try these things and let me know how they are.

Jekyll and Hyde Late Afternoon Pick Up

"Yo baby, can we get your number?"

Jekyll and Hyde Club is on 6th Avenue and is popular with the tourists. It isn't particularly well-known for it's food and I certainly wouldn't recommend going there...ever. But if you're looking to talk to the ladies, wearing a top hat and standing out front never hurt.

Before, During and After the Parade

The Dominican Day Parade was this past Sunday afternoon. It was loud! I've never seen people make so much noise. Drums and blasting loudspeakers and people screaming all afternoon long. It was near impossible to get anything done because of the racket since I was inside on a very cloudy and overcast Sunday. The parade goers were lucky that the rain held off all day and it didn't, let's say ... rain on their parade. I probably should have gone out to witness the craziness, but I just couldn't bring myself to go out into the mayhem. Evidence of the mess is clearly apparent from these photographs. The streets were a mess of paper and flyers, but an hour or so after the parade the street sweepers came by and you could practically eat off of 6th Avenue (well, not really, but you know what I mean).

I did go out later after the parade and get an ice cream cone on 55th Street. There is a combo Dunkin' Donuts/Baskin-Robbins on that block. You have to hear the theme song on the Baskin-Robbins website. It's outrageous "Ice Cream and Cake" That was good and a great summer treat. I was shocked at the price of a cone -- $4.99 was the price for two scoops in a sugar cone with jimmies. Does anyone even call them jimmies any more? I guess people call them chocolate sprinkles, but they have other variations as well. I've never even heard them called "hundreds and thousands" before. Have you?

The King Is Dead

Long live the Queen.

Cigarette Break

I got a couple of errands done late this afternoon. You could probably say I was running some errands, but I wasn't exactly running since I rode my bike. I picked up my lamp which was getting repaired (It was my third trip way over to the nearly pedestrian free 11th Avenue. I'm happy to report it works like new. More on that later.) and I also made a quick trip to the super efficient post office on 52nd Street. I think mail is great to send and receive. No one sends it much anymore.

In my travels across town, I stumbled across this nice gentleman enjoying a late afternoon smoke off 9th Avenue in Hell's Kitchen. Watch out for the dog in the window!

A bicyclist riding up University Place after a street fair. I can appreciate the expert clutching of her cell phone which is not so easy to do.

This Is The Place

I hear this auspiciously named restaurant located off Madison Avenue on 47th Street is really popular with models, celebrities and tourists from Texas.

I don't know why you'd go here except by accident, but if y'all are in Midtown and fixin' to get a drink, this would probably be the right place to get one.

Green is for Going

Random t-shirt on 5th Avenue.

This is that t-shirt I was telling you about. The perfect one to put on when you are feeling bored and reading a posting just like this one. I warned you. It's a real beauty. Anne Hathaway loves this one.

Emma Watson's Graffiti Truck

You can't believe how surprised I was to see Emma Watson floating down 56th Street this morning behind the wheel of this graffiti truck. This is a standard model white panel truck, nothing out of the ordinary here. Standard model scrap metal hauling vehicle.

Yet, what was most unusual was that the rest of the cast of the Harry Potter movies was crammed in the back. The truck darted down the street and they all popped out after she found a great parking space so they could take a break to buy lottery tickets and grab a quick cigarette. Hogwarts!

Soon To Be Extinct

Various customers rifling through the bins looking for CD's at Other Music on 4th Street in Greenwich Village. One of the last remaining record stores in the city. They carry mostly CDs, but they also have a fairly good selection of vinyl as well. The store is quite small, but now that the far larger stores like Kim's Video, Tower Records and Virgin Megastore are all closed there really aren't any very many other locations to buy music in the city. You certainly won't find any mainstream records here and they definitely don't have any country music. I don't mind one bit.

There were a couple things I was sort of interested in, but I just wasn't in a record buying mood today. Maybe next time.

Welcome Home

Someone is clearly very excited that Fancy Pants has made it home. Graffiti doorway on Bond Street.

Under The Watchful Gaze

Why have just one surveillance camera when two will do the job so much better? There really is nowhere you can go in New York City without being watched by the penetrating stare of these ubiquitous cameras. Most of the the time you don't even notice them, but I've been seeing a lot more this past week all over the place.

Traffic Landscape

Surveying the traffic landscape on 11th Avenue.

I liked the colors and the casual fashion sense. Helmets are a necessity when you get over to 11th Avenue. You really never know what is going to hit you. Anything is a possibility.

Open Late For Inherent Vice

Inexplicably, some bookstores stayed open late on Monday night for the release of the new Thomas Pynchon novel, "Inherent Vice." I didn't know that there was so much demand for his novels. This seems like a total marketing stunt and I'm a little surprised that a hip indie bookstore would fall for this sort of sales marketing. Pynchon is definitely not on the level of Dan Brown or JK Rowling, that's for sure. Staying open late is cool, but I don't know how many extra copies they'll sell unless the famously reclusive Pynchon (he curiously appeared on an episode of the Simpsons with a paper bag over his head) was going to make an in-store appearance. Highly doubtful.

I downloaded some old punk songs this past week from a few renegade music blogs. I remember liking the Honey Bane single "Girl on the Run" a lot when I was a teenager. I always liked her very unique voice though what really made this single stand out to me was the great snarling British punk guitar sound. You can find more songs on her MySpace.