The Great Bryant Park Lawn Rush

The city runs a free movies series on summer Monday nights in midtown's Bryant Park and for some reason nobody is allowed to put down a blanket until exactly 5PM. The resulting rush has become a Manhattan tradition. Last night's movie was Ghostbusters.

First Look: 2 World Trade Center

Via Architecture  Daily:

Designed as seven unique building stacked on top of each other, the stepped 2 WTC tower will rise 1,340 feet – a height that would make it Manhattan’s third-tallest building if built today. 21st Century Fox and News Corp will occupy the 80-plus story building’s lower half. The upper portion of the building will be leased by Silverstein Properties to various tenants. Each tenants’ unique set of needs will be accommodated by the seven custom tailored volumes. At its base will be a 8,000 square-feet (3,530 square-meter) lobby, connected to Santiago Calatrava’s neighboring transit hub, and retail. 38,000 square-feet (3,530 square-meters) of lush outdoor terraces will be integrated throughout the building.

Many more renderings are at the link. 

VIDEO: Citizens Tackle Manhattan Mugger

Via DNA Info:

An Arizona tourist who brought her children to New York for their first visit to the city was mugged in Midtown and dragged half a block by her attacker before a group of Good Samaritans and police captured him and rescued her cash and belongings. Jaime Cowgur, 36, was finishing a two-day swing through the Big Apple with her teenaged son and daughter when she suddenly felt a hand reaching into her back pocket as she walked along West 35th Street near Eighth Avenue Wednesday around 6:15 p.m. “What are you doing?” she demanded as she grabbed his wrist. But then he grabbed her backpack straps and try to rip it from her back. But one Bad Apple did not sour her on The Big Apple. “So many people came to my aid,” the Phoenix resident said. “Civilians who I don’t know, police officers, men and women who came over asking if I was all right. It was pretty amazing,” she added. “People were so warm. I still love New York. It’s a great place.“

The mugger was charged with assault, theft, and possession of PCP. The victim sustained a skinned knee and split lip.

MANHATTAN: Trans Woman Pushed Onto Subway Tracks In Possible Hate Crime

Via NBC New York:

A transgender woman was pushed onto the subway tracks at a Greenwich Village station by a man "acting erratically" who demanded to know what she was looking at, police said Wednesday. Authorities said they are investigating the case as a hate crime. The 28-year-old victim was on the southbound platform waiting for the 6 train at Lafayette and Bleecker streets Monday morning when she was approached by the suspect, according to police. He allegedly asked her "What are you looking at?," then ran to a garbage can, where he fished out an empty plastic bottle and threw it at her, according to police. The man pushed the woman onto the tracks, then ran away. The woman was taken to Bellevue Hospital, where she was treated for cuts and bruises and released.

RELATED: The Daily News, which is usually relatively good on LGBT items, managed to work Caitlyn Jenner into their lede.

Remembering Chelsea's Gay Heyday

Over at Kenneth In The 212, my pal Kenneth Walsh has published a rather comprehensive photo essay recounting the dozens of businesses that have departed the Eighth Avenue corridor of Chelsea that was arguably once the nation's most popular stretch of gay nightlife, retail, and restaurants. Chelsea's demise as the center of Manhattan gay life began early this century and accelerated rapidly over the last ten years as rising rents and gentrification sent the gays packing for Hell's Kitchen.

FAO Schwarz To Close Flagship Store

Parent company Toys R Us has announced the coming closure of the FAO Schwarz flagship store on Fifth Avenue, which was immortalized in the Tom Hanks movie Big.

The toy store, which has been a staple in New York City for 145 years and was opened in 1870, is searching Manhattan for a new location to reopen its doors at a more affordable price, according to The NY Times. Until a new location opens, customers will have to rely on online shopping or the toy store's boutiques in Toys "R" Us, which owns F.A.O. Schwarz. "The company is committed to the F.A.O. Schwarz brand and growing its legacy," a Toys "R" Us representative said in a statement on Friday. The longstanding brand at one time had 40 stores nationwide, but the 5th Avenue landmark, in the General Motors Building, is the last remaining location.

RELATED: Two months ago Toys R Us also announced the January 2016 closure of its own flagship store in Times Square. That location became a hot tourist destination immediately upon its opening in 1999 due in part to its three-story Ferris wheel and 25-foot animatronic T-Rex. The Times Square location has hosted high-profile launches for many video games and movie-related merchandise. Replacement tenants for the 110,000 square foot space have not been revealed.

Case Against Killer Of Gay Man Imperiled By Lack of NYPD Miranda Warnings

It was two years ago next week that thousands of LGBT New Yorkers poured into the streets to protest the senseless murder of Mark Carson, 32, [photo], who was shot point-blank in the head after he said "yes" when asked if he was gay. The suspected killer, Elliot Morales, then 33, was apprehended immediately and reportedly laughed and boasted about the murder to the arresting officers. In August 2014 the New York County District Attorney's office declared that they would not be offering a plea deal to Morales, who faces life imprisonment without parole.

Today we learn that Morales' confession might be thrown out. Duncan Osborne reports at Gay City News:

A number of statements made to police and a prosecutor by the accused killer of Mark Carson may be thrown out because police failed to give Elliot Morales his Miranda warnings and the assistant district attorney who took Morales’ videotaped statement ignored both his request to remain silent and his refusal to answer questions. “You’re obviously aware that there are some problems with the question and answer session,” Judge Charles H. Solomon told Shannon Lucey, the assistant district attorney who is prosecuting the case, during a May 11 hearing on the admissibility of evidence in the case. Once Morales was in police custody, law enforcement was required to inform Morales of his right to remain silent, his right to an attorney, and other Miranda rights if they wanted to use any statements he made at a later trial. His attorney, Gary Sunden, said police began questioning Morales soon after he was in handcuffs. “There were questions put to Mr. Morales, on the ground, face down,” Sunden said during the hearing. “At the time of all of these alleged statements, no Miranda warnings had been given to Mr. Morales.”

Osborne notes that the case against Morales remains strong due to his possession of the murder weapon and the statements of eyewitnesses. Hit the link for much more.

Comcast Replaces G.E. Sign On 30 Rock

A friend of mine took this photo today from his office across from 30 Rock. If you look closely you'll see the nearly-installed Comcast name. Last June the New York Times reported on the sign change:

Comcast, which last year bought General Electric’s remaining 49 percent stake in NBCUniversal, applied for a “certificate of appropriateness” from the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission to replace G.E.’s 24-foot-high initials on 30 Rockefeller Plaza. G.E., now based in Fairfield, Conn., has long had a presence in New York. Whether another name change will be embraced by the public is arguable. It’s been a quarter-century since the two glowing red letters were installed, yet many New Yorkers still refer to it as the RCA Building, after the company that founded the NBC network. The RCA name had capped the 70-story Manhattan landmark, which at 850 feet amounts to the city’s tallest billboard (the MetLife Building is considered second), for more than 50 years. When the original letters were first illuminated in 1937, they were hailed as the loftiest neon sign on the planet.

Manhattan Club Promoter Fires Back At Hotelier Ian "Gays Are Cheap" Reisner

Longtime Manhattan nightlife promoter John Blair took to Facebook this weekend to react to beleaguered hotelier Ian Reisner's declaration that his club is losing money because gays are cheap.

Gays, like any group, will spend their money when you give them something that they want or need. Do not blame the community for any of your failures to make money. XL made over $8M dollars the year Beto and I ran it. Then you all thought you could do it by yourself and we got the ax. You lost your shirt the next two years trying to do it yourself. So you have no one to blame but yourselves. Gays are not cheap... as a matter of fact we spend more of our money on going to bars, nightclubs, hotels and restaurants than do most other people. Just tell the truth. You have lost money on The OUT NYC because of the way you and Mati managed or should I say mismanaged THE OUT NYC ... don't blame us for your mistakes.

Blair and his husband Beto Sutter were the main promoters of the now-shuttered Roxy nightclub before moving on to launch Reisner's XL club. In 2012 the couple married at the Out NYC in a ceremony officiated by actress Fran Drescher and reported upon by the New York Times.

Hotelier Ian Reisner: I Am Deeply Sorry

"I am shaken to my bones by the e-mails, texts, postings and phone calls of the past few days. I made a terrible mistake. I was ignorant, naive and much too quick in accepting a request to co-host a dinner with Cruz at my home without taking the time to completely understand all of his positions on gay rights. I've spent the past 24 hours reviewing videos of Cruz' statements on gay marriage and I am shocked and angry. I sincerely apologize for hurting the gay community and so many of our friends, family, allies, customers and employees. I will try my best to make up for my poor judgement. Again, I am deeply sorry." - New York City hotelier Ian Reisner, posting tonight to his Facebook page.

RELATED: Reisner's Out NYC hotel and its nightclub has been hit with several cancellations since news of his meeting with Ted Cruz was first reported by the New York Times. On Friday, Broadway Cares canceled its AIDS fundraiser. Yesterday the New York City Gay Men's Chorus abruptly canceled a fundraiser due to have taken place last night. Major club promoters have backed the boycott of Reisner's properties on their Facebook pages and Urban Bear club promoter Robert Valin has put an event scheduled for mid-May on hold for now.

Coming To NYC: Chick-Fil-A Megastore

During the Great Chicken Uproar of 2012, then-NYC Council Speaker Christine Quinn demanded that the NYU cafeteria close its tiny walk-up Chick-Fil-A window, which remains the chain's sole outpost in the nation's largest city. But not for very much longer as this summer the company will open its biggest store ever, a three-story 5000sf outlet near Herald Square.

"We are beyond excited about opening our first freestanding restaurant in New York," said Carrie Kurlander, vice president of public relations. "This location will allow us to serve fans who have been asking us to come to New York and to earn the opportunity to serve new customers." She noted that the company is actively working on additional restaurants to open here this year and next. Like its other 1,850 locations, Chick-fil-A’s New York restaurant, which is a franchise location, will not be open on Sundays, as the company "believes all operators and team members deserve a day off," according to a spokeswoman. Of course, only operating six days of a week will make affording the city’s hefty rents a difficult task. The asking rent for the Sixth Avenue space was $450 a square foot for the ground floor, for example. It also remains to be seen how the city’s gay community will welcome the chain.

The Empire State Pride Agenda reacts:

We hope that Chick-fil-A's planned entrance to New York City comes with a side of LGBT-inclusivity and a newly-thought strategy for supporting ventures that are equality friendly. The bedrock of our city is built on diversity and the history of the LGBT civil rights movement took place on our streets; we encourage all new businesses, including Chick-fil-A, to learn from the mistakes they've made and welcome a new era that is reflective of the people they will be serving.

Chick-Fil-A CEO Dan Cathy was the daily darling of anti-gay groups throughout the 2012 furor, but last year Tony Perkins labeled him a "coward" after Cathy declared that he was shutting up forever about same-sex marriage.

$100M Condo Sale Sets NYC Record

Via the New York Daily News:

It’s the crown jewel of ‘Billionaires’ Row.’ A palatial apartment on 57th St. has broken the record for the most expensive apartment ever sold in Manhattan. A mystery buyer dropped a staggering $100.47 million on the penthouse apartment, which occupies the entire 89th and 90th floors of One57, the high-end apartment tower overlooking Central Park at 157 W. 57th St., according to city records. The property is the first single-family home to sell for more than $100 million in the city’s history. The previous record for a closed deal was held by Ekaterina Rybolovleva, daughter of Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev, who paid $88 million for a condo at 15 Central Park West nearly four years ago. While the $100 million closing price set a new record, the buyer actually got better value than Rybolovlev. The deal amounts to around $9,000 a square foot, compared with the $13,000 a foot paid by the Russian scion. The jaw-dropping, 11,000-square-foot pad has six bedrooms, seven bathrooms and two powder rooms, not to mention stellar Central Park and city views.

RELATED: Last week the New York Times took at look at how many of these jillion-dollar units sit empty after being sold.

1949 Flashback: Mighty Manhattan

Via Big Appled:

If you’ve ever wished you can go back in time to the New York City of 1949, today’s your lucky day. Mighty Manhattan, New York’s Wonder City is an outstanding 15 minute tour of Manhattan, filmed entirely in technicolor. The amazing flashback film visits many of the neighborhoods and landmarks of Manhattan, and it also occasionally includes a history lesson on the various sights and sounds of that wonderful NYC. The neighborhoods visited include the Bowery, Chinatown, Herald Square, and Times Square. Some of the architectural highlights are the Empire State Building, the New York Public Library, the Central Park Zoo, and the Rockefeller Center.

NYC Apartment Rents For $500K/Month

It's a new record. Via the New York Observer:

A full-floor rental of New York’s Pierre Hotel that was listed for $500,000 a month has found a tenant, according to the listing agents. To boot, the same renter has also reserved a separate $150,000-a-month suite for guests. Jonathan Miller, president of appraisal firm Miller Samuel, said the $500,000-a-month listing sets a record for New York City residential leasing. Located on the 39th floor of the luxury hotel, the full-floor listing has 4,786 square feet of living space, six bedrooms and 6½ bathrooms, including the Presidential Suite. The unit overlooks Central Park, the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir and the George Washington Bridge, among other sights. The less expensive unit is the Getty Suite, a 1,015-square-foot apartment on the 10th floor with a 920-square-foot terrace “for an extended family-entourage situation,” Ms. Bateman said. Amenities include a language-specific butler and concierge service and a chauffeur-driven Jaguar.

Manhattan's Coming New Skyline

The New York Daily News has published a recap of Manhattan's insane boom in skyscraper construction. Embiggen the bottom image for a tally on the coming supertalls, several of which will eclipse the Empire State Building's 1250 feet. The supertall in the center of the top image, 111 West 57th, will be the world's skinniest skyscaper at 1350 feet tall and only 43 feet wide. With only 100 units, most of that tower's apartments will be floor-through. The building on the far right, One57, was recently completed. The bankster that bought its 13,500sf triplex penthouse for $90M is already trying to flip it. (Tipped by JMG reader Ed)

NEW YORK CITY: Gay Banker Found With Throat Slashed After Online Hook-up

Gay Citigroup executive Shawn Miller, 42, has been found dead in his lower Manhattan apartment after apparently hooking up with a man he met online. Miller was discovered with his throat slashed "from ear to ear," but NYPD investigators say his death was likely a suicide fueled by crystal meth and alcohol.

Cops initially suspected foul play, saying earlier that no weapon was found in the apartment and that Miller was caught on surveillance video arguing with a male companion in the building’s elevator. When crime scene investigators moved Miller’s body, they discovered a knife under him, leading them to believe he slashed his own throat and collapsed into the tub on top of the weapon, sources said. Detectives now suspect Miller killed himself after going on a booze- and drug-fueled bender since at least Monday with a stranger he hooked up with through the classified advertising website Backpage.com, the sources said. Police found evidence of alcohol and drug use in the apartment, including what appeared to be crystal meth, sources said. The man who Miller was arguing with in the elevator apparently left the banker’s apartment late Sunday or early Monday, sources. Miller called down to the lobby and asked the doorman not to allow the man back into the building, according to sources.

Records show that Miller called 911 twice to report that he was being stalked by somebody outside his apartment building. Police are seeking the man seen on the surveillance video.

NEW YORK CITY: $165M Park Planned For Hudson River Piers In Chelsea

Via Gothamist:

A crumbling old Hudson River pier once used by ocean liners like the Lusitania will be torn down and replaced by a 2.7 acre park on the water featuring rolling hills and an outdoor amphitheater. Mayor de Blasio is expected to reveal further details about the park at a press conference this morning, but the Hudson River Park Trust has revealed that the park will be largely financed by a foundation formed by the billionaire couple Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenberg. “New York has always reminded me of Venice, so I am happy the time has come to properly honor its waterways,” Diane von Furstenberg said in a statement. “What better than a park on the city’s western bank to rest, watch a sunset or a performance?” The talented producer Scott Rudin, theater directors George Wolfe and Stephen Daldry, and British theater executive Kate Horton will oversee the performance spaces, with Diller committing to fund cultural events there for 20 years.

The project will be built at Pier 55 and $35M will come from the city and state. Hit the link for more renderings.

RELATED: Meanwhile next door at Pier 57 (the site of the 2012 NYC Pride Pier Dance) a $200M makeover is due for a spring 2015 unveiling. That project, dubbed SuperPier, was first reported to include "the world's most sought after retailer, restaurant, and lifestyle brands, fused with the most promising emerging talents in food, fashion, film, art and other creative fields." More recent reports, however, indicate that much of the complex will now be devoted to office space.

MANHATTAN: 1WTC Window-Washers Trapped After Cable Snaps At 68th Floor UPDATE: Rescued By The FDNY

UPDATE: The FDNY cut a hole in the window and pulled the workers to safety. #Whew #NotForAMillionBucks.

1WTC Opens For Business Today

Via the Associated Press:

Thirteen years after the 9/11 terrorist attack, the resurrected World Trade Center is again opening for business — marking an emotional milestone for both New Yorkers and the nation. Publishing giant Conde Nast will start moving Monday into One World Trade Center, a 104-story, $3.9 billion skyscraper that dominates the Manhattan skyline. It is America's tallest building.  The building is 60 percent leased, with another 80,000 square feet going to the advertising firm Kids Creative, the stadium operator Legends Hospitality, the BMB Group investment adviser, and Servcorp, a provider of executive offices. The government's General Services Administration signed up for 275,000 square feet, and the China Center, a trade and cultural facility, will cover 191,000 square feet

(Tipped by JMG reader Ed)

NEW YORK CITY: Man Dies After OD'ing In Penthouse Of Gay Hotel Developer

A 25 year-old man died yesterday after an apparent drug overdose in the multimillion dollar penthouse of developer Ian Reisner (left), who in 2012 opened the posh Out NYC hotel and nightclub complex near Times Square.

Sean Verdi, of Bay Ridge, was rushed from 230 Central Park South to Saint Luke’s Hospital after Reisner called 911 about 8:20 a.m., police sources said. He died at 9:03 a.m. The death appeared to be a drug overdose, according to a police source, but the Medical Examiner will conduct an autopsy on Thursday to determine the cause of death. Investigators do not believe that any criminality was involved, police said.   Verdi was found unconscious in a bathtub in hotel tycoon Ian Reisner’s penthouse apartment on Central Park South, police sources said. Verdi was graduated from Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, N.J., in May. He majored in bioengineering. He met Reisner previously in clubland, his parents told the Daily News on Wednesday night. Verdi, Reisner and a friend were at a bar in Hell's Kitchen before returning to Reisner's pad, Verdi's parents said, citing information given to them by NYPD investigators.

Reisner was arrested in May for allegedly leaving the scene of an accident in the Hamptons.

The officer found Mr. Reisner to be unsteady and slurring his speech. Roadside sobriety tests were administered, which police said he failed. He was taken to headquarters, where a breath test produced a reading of .06, too low for a misdemeanor charge of driving while intoxicated but high enough for the drug-related misdemeanor charge. Mr. Reisner refused to have his blood drawn, the chief said. A blood test is the only admissible way for a court to determine the level and type of drugs in the body. Because he was arrested after East Hampton Justice Court had completed its Sunday arraignments, Mr. Reisner spent the next 20 hours in a holding cell at Cedar Street headquarters.

The nightclub at Out NYC opened as XL and is currently known as BPM. It's the largest gay nightclub in the city.

RELATED: In July, the New York Observer profiled Reisner's Central Park South penthouse, which he values at $25M.

UPDATE: Gay Socialites reports that Verdi was the manager of the popular Hell's Kitchen lounge Bartini.