When the smoke (and, along Broadway, confetti) cleared last week, the great Democratic heavyweight bout had ended in a draw. Hillary Clinton wasn’t shedding any tears—she won in New York, New Jersey, and California—though she also had to loan her own campaign $5 million. Barack Obama managed to take Connecticut, which along with a number of other victories left pundits debating who was really ahead in the delegate count. John McCain cruised to victory on the GOP undercard, knocking out Mitt Romney and possibly TKOing an independent bid from Mayor Bloomberg. Meanwhile, the FBI took a long, hard look at State Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno’s mysterious consulting business. Local housing foreclosures hit new highs, even in Manhattan. The city medical examiner ruled that Heath Ledger died from “acute intoxication” owing to a lethal overdose of prescription medications. Celebrities, including a very pregnant Jennifer Lopez, flocked to the Fashion Week shows (and the re-re-re-re-relaunch of Halston, this time in Marco Zanini’s tasteful earth tones). The super at the 26th Street Armory was busted soliciting fabulous payoffs from Marc Jacobs and others to use the facility. Redevelopment plans for the Williamsburg Domino Sugar plant left a sour taste in the mouth of preservationists. The Chinese Year of the Rat kicked off with firecrackers, dragons, and a creepy Falun Gong–sponsored show at Radio City Music Hall. Christie’s auctioneers called authorities when a guy walked in with a $4 million Warhol (he claimed he’d found it at a flea market). Cops busted a midtown psychic who conjured $487,000 out of the pockets of a Wyoming stockbroker “for praying, meditation, and an exorcism.” Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte met with congressional attorneys about steroid and HGH use; Rocket accuser Brian McNamee turned over used syringes and vials said to be a possible “smoking gun” in the case. The champion Giants rode through the Canyon of Heroes, led by sticky-fingered superman David Tyree, while area airports also earned bragging rights for another year, sweeping the top three spots on a list of the destinations air travelers are least likely to reach on time.

Related:

• Archive: “It Happened Last Week”
• Articles by Mark Adams
• Table of Contents: Feb 18, 2008 issue of New York | Subscribe!