It Happened Last Week

Getting Emotional

By Mark Adams
Published Jan 13, 2008

A resurgent Hillary Clinton wasn’t the only one who felt like having a good cry last week. Barack Obama, whose momentum washed out prior to the New Hampshire primary, decamped for a $700,000 midtown fund-raiser at the Grand Hyatt; Richard Gere and Iman looked on as Obama plotted his counterthrust against the Clinton machine, vowing angrily to “take it to them just like they take it to us.” Rudy Giuliani barely nosed out lovably loony libertarian Ron Paul in the Granite State for fourth place but insisted that he only has eyes for Florida, anyway. Governor Spitzer tried to play nice in his State of the State address—he suggested capping property taxes and renaming the Triborough Bridge after RFK—but Albany Republicans were not impressed. Iran’s government press agency announced that a contingent from Columbia would visit Tehran; college officials said it was news to them. The City Council passed a bill requiring chain stores to recycle plastic bags and agreed to permit meetings of more than 50,000 people on Central Park’s Great Lawn. Cops busted two Hell’s Kitchen hustlers cashing a dead pal’s Social Security check when they used his corpse as I.D. Staffers from Pastis and Balthazar accused Keith McNally of allowing tip-skimming and forcing servers to cover dine-and-dash tabs. The oven mitts came off in the Gotham children’s-cookbook battle, as Missy Chase Lapine sued Jessica and Jerry Seinfeld for allegedly stealing cauliflower-camouflage strategies and calling her names on TV. Former Yankee reliever Goose Gossage was voted into the Hall of Fame; future Cooperstown resident (and accused steroid user) Roger Clemens summoned reporters to hear a taped phone conversation with his accuser, former trainer Brian McNamee. Dan Rather got the thumbs-up to proceed with his lawsuit against CBS. Geeky NBC entertainment chief Ben Silverman had an odd reaction to the news that striking writers might torpedo the Golden Globes, complaining that “it feels like the nerdiest, ugliest, meanest kids in the high school are trying to cancel the prom.” And elegant expansionist Philippe de Montebello announced his retirement from the Met.