J.J. Abrams’s ‘Cloverfield’: Okay, Maybe There Are RaptorsAin’t it Cool News has purported new plot details from J.J. Abrams’s Cloverfield (or Monstrous or 1-18-08 or Overnight or whatever it’s called) which seem to corroborate what we told you last week about the movie featuring — in addition to the big monster— multiple smaller raptorlike ones.
party town
Gandolfini, Falco, Turturro Reunited!• Romance & Cigarettes American premiere. Chelsea West Cinemas, 333 W. 23rd St., nr. Eighth Ave., 6:30 p.m. Writer-director John Turturro will be there; so will stars James Gandolfini and Bobby Cannavale, plus Edie Falco, Bebe Neuwirth, Aida Turturro, and others. Romance, a musical comedy set in working-class New York City, was finished a few years ago and is finally being released, just in time for our joke about how foolish it is to make a musical about working-class types to be ruined by the $100 million-grossing Hairspray.
Strawberry Dessert Quartet at Jean GeorgesJohnny Iuzzini of Jean Georges is one of the leading figures in the modern Dessert Revolution and arguably the most influential dessert chef working today. Typically, any meal at Jean Georges ends with one of four dessert tastings — four dishes united by a single theme. While summer strawberries last (likely another two or three weeks), this strawberry tasting will be available for both lunch and dinner. “The idea is to show how versatile strawberries are,” Iuzzini says. “There are so many ways to manipulate it and yet still maintain its integrity.” As always, mouse over the different desserts to hear them described in the chef’s own words.
in other news
Angela Lindvall Proves Americans Still PrettyModel Angela Lindvall, who has been lying a bit low in the past year or so, has re-signed with IMG Models just in time for Fashion Week. Fashionista reports that the former Victoria’s Secret catwalker (now the face of Zara) will be walking in the shows, and, knowing her star power, you can expect to see her a lot. A couple of things of note about Lindvall: She’s 27, which is like being 74 in model years. She also has two kids. And she’s an environmental activist. But perhaps the most refreshing thing about her is that she’s American. Since nearly every other major model is Brazilian, Russian, or Canadian, we were beginning to think we were declining as a nationality! But it seems, the Yanks are back. Check out Lindvall’s stats and pics in New York’s new Model Manual, where you can learn everything you need to know about more than 200 models who will be stomping down the runway in Bryant Park next week.
Angela Lindvall: Back to IMG [Fashionista]
The Model Manual
tube junkie
Big in Japan: ‘The Butt-Biting Bug Song’We’re not sure why, exactly, but in Japan “The Butt-Biting Bug Song” is more popular than “Chocolate Rain,” the Star Wars kid, and LOLcats combined.
Someone Is Already Stealing Christmas?Astoria: Someone has stepped up and claimed a family tie to that recently sold “mystery mansion” on 47th Street. Yeah, the one with all the sculptures. [OuterB]
Brooklyn Heights: Jeez, you’d think that after all it took to schlep that floating pool to Brooklyn Bridge Park they could leave it there at least a few weeks longer than this weekend. But no. And the pool goes to the Bronx next summer. [Brooklyn Heights Blog]
Chelsea: Residents in and near the London Terrace apartment block are dwelling on the bright side of long-term scaffolding: They can walk their dogs in the rain without their umbrella … ella … ella. [You Want a Piece of Me?]
Greenpoint: In the city’s Great Bedbug Scare of 2007, it’s come to this: free sidewalk sofas claiming they’re critter-free. Wow, free and uninfested. [Newyorkshitty]
Maspeth: Who hired some guy this past weekend to cut down what serves as the area’s beloved Christmas tree? And, as the mystery cutter said, is a replacement tree really en route? [Queens Crap]
Park Slope: You can almost forgive Slopesters for being so smugly bougie-boho when you see how they rally behind someone like Andy, the local fruit-truck guy who’s temporarily away after having a stroke. Get better, Andy! [OTBKB]
Williamsburg: An e-mail leaked out of a city-council member’s office complains of oil unearthed at a development site across the street from — you guessed it — the famous contaminated Roebling Oil Field! [Gowanus Lounge]
Neighborhood Watch
Gael Greene Unmasked and on the Loose in Midtown WestAstoria: Sakura sushi has just opened on Ditmars near 36th Street, and they have quite an extensive menu. [Joey in Astoria]
Flatiron: Macaroni-and-cheese porn has been posted to tease an upcoming roundup on the city’s best, and Mayrose already sounds like it has a leg up on the crusty contenders: “Down and dirty, this macaroni. It will fight you on the way down, and you may lose.” [Gridskipper]
Midtown West: Gael Greene unmasks herself at BLT Market and is treated to some nice extras. “A note to my pal, Restaurantgirl, ” she writes, “that’s what a restaurant can do when you’re not anonymous.” [Insatiable Critic]
Upper East Side: An Alto Adige white on Sfoglia’s wine list does not name the varietals because producer Elena Walch refuses to share what grapes she uses. [Mouthing Off/Food & Wine]
West Village: Julius on West 10th Street is open again after a brief seizure by New York State Department of Taxation and Finance and “crammed with the usual ancient drunkard queens.” [Eater]
party lines
Richard Branson Forgives Colbert, Considers Janet Jackson as BallastRichard Branson was late to his own party at the Box for Virgin America Airlines’ inaugural flight from LAX to JFK. He blamed, no joke, flight delays. Daily Intel caught up with him and asked about the now-famous incident when he angrily splashed Stephen Colbert with a glass of water during a taping of the Colbert Report. Turns out all is forgiven. He and Virgin America CEO Fred Reid also have plans for hotels in space and fond memories of the time Branson threatened to throw Janet Jackson off a hot-air balloon. It’s all after the jump.
art candy
Bling: Now With More PotassiumPuerto Rico–born, Brooklyn-based artist Miguel Luciano, one of 45 Caribbean artists showing in the Brooklyn Museum’s “Infinite Island: Contemporary Caribbean Art,” brings us Plátano Pride, a seamless amalgamation of North and Central: one precocious teen, a taste of hip-hop culture, and Puerto Rico’s favorite starch.