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7/10/09

Posted 7/10/09 at 5:40 PM

Party Lines

PC and Jessie Barred From Vodka Party for Being Underage

This is PC at a different party, for Keith Lissner's fall 2009 fashion presentation, with a person called

This is PC at a different party, for Keith Lissner's fall 2009 fashion presentation, with a person called "Tre."

Watching NYC Prep, you'd think that the young stars had access to any party they'd want to go to, regardless of the fact that they are all underage. At the launch party for Three-O Vodka (their slogan is "Show us your O-face") hosted by Kim Kardashian at Greenhouse last night, this theory was disproved. Jessie and PC from the show turned up and tried in vain to join their friend Ally Zarin from The Real Housewives of New York inside. Publicists refused to let them in because they were underage — even though Zarin, who also is not yet 21, was partying away inside. Jessie, wearing a gray tank and black skirt, and PC, wearing a short-sleeve dress shirt and excessive hair gel, were embarrassingly left outside on the sidewalk. Luckily, we were standing by as the awkwardness ensued.

We live for this, obviously. »

Posted 7/10/09 at 5:14 PM

Fake Suicide Is Painful

Judge May Impose Longer, Trendier Sentence on Sam Israel

The 150-year sentence Judge Denny Chin imposed on Bernie Madoff has kicked off a trend! Federal prosecutors have recommended a draconian 145 years for Ponzi-scheming lawyer Marc Dreier, and now, apparently, the judge due to sentence Samuel Israel, the Bayou Group hedge-fund fraud who attempted to fake his suicide to get out of going to prison last year, is feeling like he needs to keep up. Though federal guidelines recommend he get another twelve to eighteen months for going on the lam,

Judge Kenneth Karas in White Plains, N.Y., has notified attorneys that he's considering an even longer sentence. They have until Tuesday, the day before Israel's sentencing, to respond.


Bad luck. To think, if he'd just gone to prison like he was supposed to, he would have been out by 2026. Now he won't totter out until 3000.

NY hedge swindler faces more prison [Newsday]

Posted 7/10/09 at 4:50 PM

Party Lines

Kelsey Grammer.
Kelsey Grammer Is a Manscaper

Yesterday the New York Times revealed the stunning news that men are now shaving their body hair, like women do, with the practice skewing toward men in their twenties and thirties. So we asked 54-year-old Kelsey Grammer about his own "manscaping" habits at the Cinema Society party for (500) Days of Summer last night. “I trim, but I don’t shave," he told us. "I think it could get pretty gruesome after a while — I mean, my beard is pretty nasty. I happen to be one of those men — uh, I like to bring it in a little closer to the body." Grammer admitted to grooming his chest hair. And as for other areas ... we didn't have the the nerve to ask about, you know. View our Party Lines slideshow for more.

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Posted 7/10/09 at 4:30 PM

The Third Terminator

Mayor Bloomberg: Still Not Poor
Mayor Bloomberg: Still Not Poor

Mayor Bloomberg may have lost the Working Families Party nomination to Bill Thompson, but do working families have billions upon billions of dollars to spend at their whim? By definition, no. Bloomberg does, however, and so far he's burned through $36 million of it in his quest for a third term. As a basis of comparison, Hizzoner had only spent $23 million by this time in 2005. [NYP]

Posted 7/10/09 at 4:15 PM

Cougars

Barbara Corcoran Barks Up All Trees, Even Wrong Ones

In Jacob Bernstein's WWD profile of real-estate magnate Barbara Corcoran, we couldn't help but notice the constant repetition of a trope: that Babs relentlessly flirts with people, both verbally and physically. She jokes daringly with cameramen, grabs underlings' arms and asses, and pushes the envelope with language. Our favorite part, though, was when she hit on the reporter himself:

On three separate occasions, Corcoran grabs my legs and my arms and tells me how muscular I am. “Wow! Wow!” she says, all bright-eyed and amazed, as she feels my thigh. “I go to the gym three days a week and it’s the worst part of my day. How do you get like that? I wish I could do that.”


Oh, Barbara. Jacob is indeed cute and quite muscly, but we're pretty sure he won't be swayed by the wiles of a lady cougar.

Barbara Corcoran, the Jim Cramer of the Real Estate Business [WWD]

Posted 7/10/09 at 4:00 PM

Ink-Stained Wretches

Post ‘Rising Star’ Is Actually Falling

If you read the Times story about management changes at Citigroup today, you would have come away thinking that chief financial officer Ned Kelly had been demoted. No, not this Ned Kelly; they didn't hang the guy, they just moved him to an advisory position — the dreaded "vice-chairman" — from the plum role of chief financial officer, and a "much less prominent role," according to Eric Dash. To be fair, it seemed Kelly asked for the demotion and even tried to resign (internal communications quoted by the paper have him admitting he had become a "hindrance to the company" in the wake of a dispute with Sheila Bair), but was reportedly begged by Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit to stay. But either way, it was clear Kelly had been kicked way upstairs, and wouldn't really be advising Pandit on anything except maybe how to keep his job.

The Post, however, had a different take: "KELLY'S KILLING AT CITI!" screeched their headline.

Wait, what? Did they mean to say he was "getting killed"? »

Posted 7/10/09 at 3:45 PM

Equal Rites

Tom Duane Gives Up on Marriage Equality, for Now

Yesterday, marriage equality's staunchest advocate in the State Senate released a disheartened letter to constituents regarding the bill. "I expect that the Senate this week will pass only time-sensitive, non-controversial legislation," he said, indicating that Paterson's measure to legalize gay marriage won't be voted upon before the body disbands (finally) for the summer. For the issue to be raised again, it will (for a third time) have to be passed by the State Assembly. From Duane:

As disappointing as it is to admit, it is clear that this week is not the right moment to address critical but controversial bills, such as those that strengthen tenant protections, safeguard reproductive health rights, grant marriage equality to all New Yorkers, protect transgender people from discrimination, streamline testing for HIV/AIDS, and give families a voice in incapacitated patients' health care.

Isn't that why they get to vote on these things? Because they're controversial? »

Posted 7/10/09 at 3:25 PM

International Intrigue

Obama Manages to Not Screw Up His Gift to the Pope

Obama Manages to Not Screw Up His Gift to the Pope

Photo: Getty Images

Based on his visit with Pop Benedict XVI earlier today, President Obama seems to have learned from the previous, infamous gift-giving failures that brought him so much grief on both sides of the Atlantic. This time the White House was able to procure a one-of-a-kind artifact rich with history — a stole that was draped for eighteen years around the body of St. John Neumann, the first American bishop to be canonized. Okay, not something most people would be ecstatic about finding under the Christmas tree, but for the Pope, we're sure it beats the hell out of a bunch of DVDs or an iPod. Of course, no international meeting could pass without some kind of awkward present, and the Pope did not disappoint. In addition to a signed encyclical and a mosaic of St. Peter's Basilica, His Holiness bestowed upon Obama a copy of a Vatican document on bioethics and the right to life. Just in case he wants to rethink things.

Obama and pope meet for first time [AP via HuffPo]
The Scoop on Obama's Gift to Pope Tomorrow [On Faith/WP]
Pope discusses bioethics, G-8 summit with Obama at Vatican [Catholic News Service]

Posted 7/10/09 at 3:05 PM

Cold War Kids

Now Another Hedge Fund Is Accusing a Russian Employee of Stealing Secrets

Mikhail Malyshev, the Russian CEO of start-up Teza, the Chicago-based hedge fund that was planning to hire Sergey Aleynikov until he was arrested for stealing codes from his former employer Goldman Sachs, is now being sued by his former employer, hedge fund Citadel. Why? "Industrial espionage," they say. What did he do? Well, nothing. Yet.

Defendants' activities, particularly Teza's decision to hire Aleynikov, an accused software thief, create a substantial risk that they have stolen, or may be planning to steal, Citadel's proprietary code, the hedge fund firm said in court papers.


Sounds a little more like industrial McCarthyism to us.

The Cold War in high frequency trading turns hot [Alphaville/FT]
Earlier: Intel's Coverage of Sergey Aleynikov

Posted 7/10/09 at 2:16 PM

And All We Ever Played Was "I Spy"

Charlie Gasparino and His Family Played Fun Games Together
Charlie Gasparino and His Family Played Fun Games Together

"In some ways Citigroup reminds me of this nasty neighbor I had as a kid. He was a hazard to both the community and his wife and kids whom he used to abuse on a daily basis. Then one day he got into an accident; I believe he fell off the back of a truck, cracked his skull and was in a coma. We prayed for his timely exit from this world but he hung on, first for weeks and then for months. 'Neither God wants him nor the devil wants him,' my father remarked with a laugh one afternoon as we laid odds on whether he would live or die." Wow. Long car trips with the Gasparinos must have been a blast. [Daily Beast]

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Posted 7/10/09 at 2:00 PM

Ink-Stained Wretches

Scotland Yard Not Investigating Murdoch Papers Further
Scotland Yard Not Investigating Murdoch Papers Further

After the hubbub surrounding a Guardian report that Rupert Murdoch's British papers were hacking into people's private phone lines and bank records died down, Scotland Yard said they weren't investigating the claims any further. But anyone who was affected is still free to sue! [BBC]

Posted 7/10/09 at 1:15 PM

And That's Why They Call It Hotlanta

If You Lived in Atlanta, You’d Be Having Sex Right Now
If You Lived in Atlanta, You’d Be Having Sex Right Now

"Atlanta is a second-tier city," one New Yorker who moved down under told Bloomberg last year. "New York is cooler and more exciting in every respect." Well, maybe not in every respect: According to a survey from Trojan, Atlanta tops the list of "the most sexually satisfied cities in America," while New York only comes in fifth. :( [Kempt, Creative Loafing]

Posted 7/10/09 at 1:00 PM

The Supremes

Sonia Sotomayor Won’t Date Lawyers

"How about that guy over there — he's cute," suggests Chuck Schumer.Photo: Getty Images

As we near Monday's confirmation hearings, the Times has delved ever deeper into Sonia Sotomayor's life in the city. They've uncovered a bunch of fun little tidbits — for example, she used to wear a bulletproof vest when she ventured into Chinatown, and she's partial to Grimaldi's. But the article kind of brought us down, because though Sotomayor's devotion to the law has elevated her to the precipice of the Supreme Court, it also seems to have put the kibosh on her romantic life.

No time for suitors ... »

Posted 7/10/09 at 12:45 PM

Neighborhood News

It’s a Bad Week for Bridges
It’s a Bad Week for Bridges

On Wednesday, a truck fire shut down the Manhattan Bridge for part of the afternoon. Today, early in the morning, a fire that started in scaffolding on the Throgs Neck Bridge expanded to burn parts of the span in both directions. According to the MTA, it will be shut down completely for an indefinite amount of time. [NYP]

Posted 7/10/09 at 12:32 PM

Wise-cracked

The Boy That Came Between Ali Wise and Nina Freudenberger

Nina Freudenberger, Josh Deutsch with an entirely different blonde whose phone is probably getting hacked, Ali Wise.

Nina Freudenberger, Josh Deutsch with an entirely different blonde whose phone is probably getting hacked, Ali Wise.Photo: Patrick McMullan

Yesterday we put on our thinking caps and determined the only reason Dolce & Gabanna publicist and alleged serial electronics hacker Ali Wise could have possibly had for tapping into the voice mail of designer Nina Freudenberger, whom she does not know, was a boy, and we were correct. Furthermore, Freudenberger, having apparently decided that secrecy is futile, or at least uninteresting, has given up the identity of their mutual suitor to "Page Six." He is Downtown Records founder Josh Deutsch.

"I briefly dated him two years after she did, which is our only connection," Freudenberg says. According to a source: "Ali has basically been targeting people who have been with Jason and her ex-boyfriends."


Interesting.

We TOTALLY KNOW HIM. (Kind of.) Does this mean we're getting hacked? »

Posted 7/10/09 at 11:45 AM

America's Sweetheart

Palin-Felling Ethics Charges Not Really That Onerous, Actually

As confusing as her original statement was, in the days following Sarah Palin's surprising announcement that she was stepping down as Alaska governor, it became pretty clear that she was trying to pin her decision on a string of ethics charges. She claimed the (almost entirely debunked) charges were costing the state "millions of dollars" and "countless, countless hours" of wasted work. But now that claim is getting more closely examined, and while it does seem like much time was devoted to the fifteen-odd charges, not that much more money was spent than would usually be spent on in-house lawyers. According to the Anchorage Daily News, the staffers who worked on those issues were full-time, and would have been paid no matter what they were doing. "Is it a check that we wrote? No," said Sharon Leighow, a Palin spokeswoman. "But is it staff hours, yes." All in all, Palin's office estimated that $1.9 million of their time was devoted to the charges. Another spokesman told the Plum Line that the complaints were really "just distracting them from other duties."

So are we back at square one, not knowing why she resigned? »

Posted 7/10/09 at 11:32 AM

White Men With Money

Vikram Pandit: Rearranging Executives in Order to Hide Behind Them?

Lots of management shuffling at Citigroup today: Eugene McQuade, of Freddie Mac, Merrill Lynch, and FleetBoston, will join the company as chief executive of the Citibank unit, while Bill Rhodes, who was occupying that position, will give up that role but continue as Citi’s senior vice-chairman. Ned Kelly, who was appointed CFO in March, will now become the bank’s vice-chairman, while John Gerspach, the bank's controller and chief accounting officer, takes over the role of finance chief (he'll be the third person to take that job this year, by the way, and the fifth in five years). Meanwhile, the CFO before Kelly, Gary Crittenden, who has been doing something for CitiHoldings, is leaving the company "to relocate to Utah and spend more time with his family and pursue other business interests." Then they're all going to take one step to the left, cross their right foot over, and spin around to the tune of "Achy Breaky Heart." In a memo, CEO Vikram Pandit explained the changes:

“Our relentless focus on executing against our strategic priorities at Citi continues as we remain focused on rationalizing Citi Holdings, and on Citicorp as our core operating business,” Vikram Pandit, Citi’s chief executive, said in a statement Thursday. “The senior management changes I am making today will further help in positioning our company for the future.”


Not to mention, it might distract from the relentless focus on himself.

Read more »

Posted 7/10/09 at 11:00 AM

International Intrigue

Obama Maybe Not As Pervy As Advertised

A photo making the rounds last night shows what appears to be President Obama and French President Nicolas Sarkozy checking out the tush of a woman later identified as a 17-year-old Brazilian. Yikes. And that was just one of many photos from the G8 conference capturing similar not-so-surreptitious glances. But a video of the moment tells a different story. Indeed, it appears that Obama was actually being gentlemanly, as he may have simply been looking down to grab the hand of a woman as he assisted her down the steps. No, seriously, look at the eyes. The eyes can never lie. Meanwhile, though the video might vindicate Obama, it does the opposite for Sarkozy, who looks even sleazier than before.

Posted 7/10/09 at 10:45 AM

Gossipmonger

Beyoncé Has Been Known to Sweat

While many partygoers got denied at the door of D.J. Cassidy's birthday party at the New York Public Library, Jay-Z and Nas celebrated inside as Bobby Brown gave an impromptu performance. Beyoncé has prohibited photographers from shooting her from behind on her "Sasha Fierce" tour. The justification? "Beyoncé's costumes are so tiny and her choreography is so complicated that inevitably she sweats." Joe Simpson is trying to revive his daughter Ashlee's "career" by pitching an album where she records Michael Jackson songs. Meanwhile Jackson's London concert producer discusses the licensing of a special-edition MJ charm bracelet over dinner at Solo with his PR rep and the owner of the Franklin Mint. Under the influence of her new Jewish beau, not only is Britney Spears flashing her Star of David necklace around Paris, but she's enlisted a rabbi to instruct her in the ways of the chosen people. And speaking of Jews, Jerry Seinfeld is shooting commercials (in Long Island) for a bank in the Australian outback, Greater Building Society.

Read more »

Posted 7/10/09 at 10:30 AM

The Sports Section

Yankees Back in First Place, Despite Everything

Mark Teixeira on the run.

Mark Teixeira on the run.

It has been only a month since the Yankees were in first place. Heading into a three-game series with a one-game lead on June 9 at Fenway Park, they were swept by the Red Sox (again), and the team was five games out of first as recently as June 24. And now they’ve made it all the way back.

So much has gone wrong, and yet ... »


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