The Statue of Liberty | blog

The draw for the U.S. Open was revealed on Thursday, and top seed Roger Federer could meet former world No. 1 Rafael Nadal in the men’s final.

Federer and Nadal have never squared off in a U.S. Open final, but it could be a possibility next month. They’ve met in seven major finals, with the Spaniard winning five-of-seven.

The reigning five-time champion Federer will open defense of his titles against American Devin Britton. The Swiss could face eighth-seeded Russian Nikolay Davydenko in the quarterfinals and possibly Novak Djokovic or Andy Roddick in the semis.

A potential third-round opponent for Federer could be 2001 champion and former world No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt. Federer beat Hewitt in the 2004 finale in Flushing.

Federer is the all-time men’s king with 15 major titles, including the last five in the Big Apple. He hasn’t lost in New York since 2003, the year Roddick claimed his only Grand Slam championship.

The amazing Federer beat Britain’s Andy Murray in last year’s U.S. Open finale.

By: miamiherald.com        Read more >>

Next Thursday, September 10th, 2009 marks the beginning of the world-renowned New York Fashion Week. To commemorate this week, NYC & Company and the City of New York have partnered with Vogue and the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) to create an unprecedented citywide initiative called Fashion’s Night Out, whose goals are to promote local retail stores, restore consumer confidence and celebrate fashion.

This initiative was announced this past May by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, as well as the CEO of NYC & Company George Fertitta, Vogue Editor in Chief Anna Wintour and the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) Executive Director Steven Kolb, to support local retailers on the first night of Fashion Week.

By: sfbaystyle.typepad.com      Read more >>

The Economist Thursday introduced a trial program that allows New Yorkers to “use their cellphones to order overnight home delivery of the new issue at the regular newsstand price,” according to Advertising Age, a BtoB sibling publication.

New Yorkers who receive weekly texts previewing the magazine’s stories will also receive a link to a Web page where they can order the issue. The magazine will then be delivered by 6 a.m. the next morning, meaning participants in the program can receive the publication before it appears on newsstands. These hand-delivered copies cost $6.99.

By: btobonline.com       Read more >>

Apparently Microsoft isn’t doing everything with Windows 7 differently from how it did Windows Vista.

As was the case with Vista, Windows 7 will get its formal launch in the Big Apple. CEO Steve Ballmer will preside over the October 22 event, with the usual array of hardware partners showing off their latest wares.

But that’s not the only Gotham event for Microsoft in October. The company is also doing a consumer open house at the Park Avenue Armory, led by Robbie Bach, on October 6. Microsoft plans to highlight everything from the Zune and new phones to hardware products like keyboards and mice.

Microsoft is hoping to turn that event into an annual event.

By: news.cnet.com     Read more >>

It’s hard to pick a clear winner for the US Open but you can’t really bet against Serena Williams when it comes to the Grand Slams, she has this knack of turning it on for the big events.

She hasn’t actually performed very well since Wimbledon, I’ve watched some of her matches and she’s lacked a bit of intensity and lost to players you wouldn’t expect, but I’m sure when it comes to a Grand Slam she’ll be very focused and turn it on.

But I do think the women’s draw at the US Open is so open, it’s really up for grabs.

It will be interesting to see how Kim Clijsters does having had two years out of the game. She’s made a pretty good comeback. In Cincinnati and Toronto she proved to everyone she can play well but I’m not sure she can go all the way.

It would be a great story if she did win the US Open but physically I wonder if she can play seven matches at that kind of level.

By: news.bbc.co.uk       Read more >>

Monty Python fans in Los Angeles have been looking on the bright side of life since “Spamalot” — the Broadway musical based on the irreverent 1975 film “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” — opened in July at the Ahmanson Theatre (the medieval madness ends Sept. 6).

But here’s some cheery Python news from the Big Apple: The Pythons will meet again to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the creation of the troupe on Oct. 15 at the Ziegfeld Theater in New York City.

While the event will feature no cows being flung by catapult (a highlight of both the stage and screen versions), the reunion will involve the complete troupe: John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin (to the best of Culture Monster’s knowledge, no relation to Sarah).

In fact, today’s press release even states that Graham Chapman — who died in 1989 — will be in attendance. We don’t know what’s up with that — but this release does acknowledge that only the “surviving members of the Python team” will sit down for a Q&A after the show.

By: latimesblogs.latimes.com    Read more >>

In an economy where much construction has ground to a halt, charter schools are providing a minor but growing niche for the building and design industries in the New York City area.

According to the city, 21 new charter schools will open in September, though only two of them will be in new buildings. The state has 141 charter schools in operation, and about 100 are in the city.

“There’s a lot of construction of charter schools going on, especially relative to the slowdown in the market,” said David M. Umansky, the chief executive of Civic Builders, a Manhattan-based developer that specializes in charter schools.

By: nytimes.com       Read more >>

Paul McCartney came to Citi Field on Friday night to bring a new ballpark one thing that can’t be built in: memories. No one was better qualified.

As a 23-year-old Beatle, Mr. McCartney introduced rock to a stadium audience on Aug. 15, 1965, when the Beatles played a 34-minute set at Shea Stadium, which Citi Field replaced. The Beatles returned to Shea in 1966 on what would be their last tour.

Mr. McCartney was also at the final concert at Shea Stadium, joining the headliner, Billy Joel, on stage last year. Mr. Joel returned the favor on Friday night, singing, whooping and splashing piano chords in “I Saw Her Standing There.” In case the Mets weren’t enough, now Citi Field has musical continuity.

On Friday night, in the first of three shows at the stadium, Mr. McCartney reminisced about 1965, imitating the muffled and distorted sound the Beatles got through the old stadium’s P.A. system, which by all accounts was drowned out by screaming girls. (Nearly 44 years later, somewhat older women seized their cue to scream.)

By: nytimes.com      Read more >>

Dozens of big-name performers and actors gathered at a major charity concert in New York to pay tribute to iconic anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela on his 91st birthday.

Gloria Gaynor kicked off the gala at the majestic Radio City Music Hall, in the heart of Manhattan, with a rousing performance of her 1978 disco hit “I Will Survive.”

Celebrities on the performance list included Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, and the first lady of France, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, as well as Queen Latifah, Wyclef Jean, Lil’ Kim, Gloria Gaynor, the Soweto Gospel Choir and African artists Angelique Kidjo, Baaba Maal and Sipho Mabuse.

Hollywood stars that support the Mandela Foundation charity at the event included actors Forest Whitaker, Morgan Freeman, Whoopi Goldberg, and Matt Damon.

The “Mandela Day” gala crowns a week of celebrations honoring the legendary rights activist, who battled apartheid in South Africa before becoming the country’s first black president from 1994 to 1999.

But the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize winner, whose health is increasingly fragile, is not attending.

Organizers hope that “Mandela Day” will become an event observed around the world paying tribute to the South African leader’s accomplishments.

By: AFP      Read more >>

IN the United States, politicians woo soccer moms. In Canada, they go after “Tim Hortons voters,” the folks who steer clear of lattes and start their day with a cruller and a double double (two creams, two sugars, one coffee) from the doughnut chain that’s come to represent no-frills value.

Timmies, as Canadians affectionately refer to it, is more than just a company to those who live north of the 49th parallel. It has a backstory — having been founded by Mr. Horton, a Hall of Fame hockey player, and Ron Joyce, a police officer. There’s even a sense of redemption, now that it’s once again a Canada-based company (Wendy’s owned it for years).

Oh, and it has coffee and doughnuts, which may not be quite the same here — a handful of Tim Hortons opened Monday in New York City — as they are farther north, and not exactly what they once were there, either.

By: nytimes.com      Read more >>