Features

Morning in America

Where else could a red-meat, right-wing congressman like Joe Scarborough reinvent himself as the liberal’s favorite talk-show host?

I Have Seen the Future of Rock and Roll, and It Is Not the Hold Steady

They’d just be too hard to imitate. But who cares? An appreciation of New York’s most insightful party band.

One With the Freaks

Though the lights are dimming on funky, fetid Coney Island, there’s still time to learn the age-old secrets of the sideshow. Sword swallowing, anyone?

Columns

McCain’s Hillary Problem

He’s running her same campaign. And she lost.

Meet the Press Now

The commentariat Russert leaves behind has never been larger, or louder. But is it really any more powerful?

Intelligencer

Sam Waksal’s Return to New York

Headed to the Bronx, after a trip to Milan.

No Blackouts for Plutocrats

They won’t be left in the dark.

Where’s Russell’s Beef With Jesse?

It’s all about love, mogul says.

Why Won’t Jerry Impeach Dubya?

Now a primary concern.

Bill and Jill Join the Times Masses

To be a fish or a bull?

Final Whistle for Uptown Toy Chain

Bubble bear goes bust.

It Happened Last Week

Jesse Jackson’s accidental admission that he’d like to emasculate Barack Obama was hardly the week’s only awkward idle chatter.

The Slugger Gets Into the Groove…

Does A-Rod even know the extent to which he’s being used, and does it even matter?

…Beckoned, by Madonna, Over the Borderline

It matters to Madge, who once again has found an ingenious way to stay in our heads.

Strategist

Spurn the Bottle

Liquid containers that don’t get tossed (as well as a few other water-related items).

Tested : The Don’t-Budge Bikini

I needed a bikini that was functional (as in, I could swim in it) yet cute (for poolside lounging).

The Look Book

"My wife mainly wears her own designs."

The Restaurant Review

Scott Conant brings his uptown cooking downtown.

In Season

If snap peas are the definition of gustatory ease, favas are their polar opposite.

Restaurant Openings

Week of July 21, 2008: Tabla Street Cart, Delicatessen, and Peaches.

Insatiable Critic

Clearly, Jean-Georges Vongerichten is betting our town’s noodleheads will be moved by Matsugen.

Working the Squeeze

Lemon prices have risen 35 percent over the past year, necessitating new insights for sidewalk-stand proprietors.

Miami, or Yankees Tickets?

Yankees tickets, please. Or a facial. Better (local) ways to cash in credit-card points.

Fun With Wickets

Inspired by the cricket-heavy novel Netherland, two dozen friends discover the pleasure of a really slow game.

NYU’s Olive Branch

The school wants to expand—and says it’ll be a better neighbor. Good luck, guys.

Culture

Death by Gonzo

No one was more ambivalent about his own legend than Hunter Thompson.

The Theater Review

Inning after inning, Damn Yankees swings and misses.

The Art Review

Jeff Koons typifies event art. He also transcends it.

The TV Review

And shadowy detectives run amok across the cable dial.

The Other Joker: Jim Holt

Jim Holt, author of Stop Me If You’ve Heard This, admits that analyzing humor is inherently unfunny.

The Movie Review

They don’t make superhero franchises much darker than this.

Temperature’s Rising on the Curve, As Autumn Looms!

With fall’s quality-culture rush not far off, the curve is a great leveler.

On Location: Meryl Streep

When word got out that Meryl Streep was starring in Mamma Mia!, some people wondered whether she was being paid in euros or something.

The Approval Matrix: Week of July 21, 2008

Our deliberately oversimplified guide to who falls where on our taste hierarchies.

Agenda

We All Scream

Ice cream has a sweet history, too.

Tudor City Turnaround

Tudor City’s solitary destination restaurant, L’Impero, has been reborn as Convivio.

Departments

Comments: Week of July 21, 2008

Readers sound off on Clay Felker, gentrification in Harlem, and more.

Artifact: Using Heroin Safely

Findings from the streets, files, and hard drives of New York.