Photo via Gerry Visco, by Elsaa Rensaa. The film Captured documents the documentarian Clayton Patterson (watch the trailer after the jump), and will screen in New York on the 20th anniversary of the Tompkins Square Park police riots, which Patterson famously filmed ("little brother is watching big brother," he's noted in the past). Recently, the artist, writer, community activist, and photographer who for the past 25 years has documented the Lower East Side...from drag......

Even back in 1984 there was mainstream media attention on the ever-changing landscape of the Lower East Side and East Village. Real estate was "exploding," chain stores were popping up, and galleries were abundant. The New York Magazine cover story on May 28th of that year was titled: The Lower East Side -- There Goes the Neighborhood. Luckily, someone recently scanned the entire article, which could almost read like it was written today, if......

Actress Tatum O'Neal hasn't kept her battles with addiction a secret, but just when things in her life seem to be on the straight and narrow, the NY Post is reporting she got busted buying crack and cocaine on the Lower East Side. Seems the neighborhood still has its drug roots, the addicts just have Oscars on their mantles now. Last year O'Neal landed a role on Rescue Me playing Denis Leary's alcoholic sister, and......

Photo of Looking Northeast from a Roof on Broome Street by Jake Dobkin; McHattan billboard via chinese_fashion's flickr. Last year the National Trust For Historic Preservation named the Brooklyn Waterfront one of the 11 Most Endangered Places, and this year some of New York's land gets the honor. The Lower East Side has made the annual endangered list, which highlights the country's areas deemed at risk of irreparable damage. Thanks to new development, the......

Residents of Washington Heights and the Lower East Side may be noticing some production crews in their 'nabe this week, as filming begins for the redux of PBS's The Electric Company, which ended its series in 1977. The NY Times reports that the the show will be "refitted for the age of hip-hop and informed by decades of further educational research on reading." In addition, it will reportedly be accompanied by interactive online elements and......

Orchard Street designer Doron Braunshtein (aka Apollo Braun, pictured) is at it again; in March he launched his "Who Killed Obama?" t-shirt and now he's added a new political statement to his line: the $250 "Jews Against Obama" t-shirt. And that's not the only provocation: Braunshtein also started what he calls a "political movement" as a cute, must-have accessory to the T. His recruitment efforts have gone through his mailing list, Facebook and Myspace. As......

Almost all of the injuries suffered by tenants in Thursday night's high rise fire on the Lower East Side were preventable and the result of panic and poor decision making by residents. In addition to the 30 firefighters who reported injuries fighting the blaze on Grand St., 16 tenants of the 26 story building were injured--two seriously. FDNY officials say that all of the injuries to the tenants could have been avoided. Roy Holloway was......

Hotelier Jason Pomeranc is creating posh microcosms of gentility all over the city. Since his luxury boutique hotel brand launched seven years ago with the opening of 60 Thompson, Pomeranc has opened two more New York properties, 6 Columbus and Gild Hall. Now, everybody's wondering when his next venture, Thompson LES, at 200 Allen Street will swing open its doors to what The Observer says has become "a no-man’s land of rats, dirty streets and......

Like it or not The Real Housewives of New York are getting air time every Tuesday, and each week they invite the rest of New York (and the world) into a little bubble they call home. Touring private schools for their French-speaking children, toting their kids off to auditions, getting away to the Hamptons and presumbably being "fabulous" at whatever else fills their social schedule. Last night one of the "housewives," The Countess LuAnn, broke......

Yesterday Gawker posted about a little-known LES space that, if you know the secret handshake, will open its doors to you. Once inside you'll find a reception room, a capacious old theater space... even fishtanks. The night Gawker stumbled in they found a band playing, and in booze-induced wonderment, took a short video clip. The clip was included in the post yesterday but now both have disappeared, becoming as mysterious as this secret club itself!......

Blind item! What downtown venue was behind screwing over yet another band? We never did like blind items, so we'll just tell you through part of this letter we received from the disgruntled band behind the latest booking botch-up:We had a really bad experience at the Annex, on Orchard St. last night. Basically we showed up for a 5:00 load in to find out that our show had been canceled. The two other bands on......

Today marks the grand opening of the Moscot Museum. You know Sol Moscot, the lens shop with giant yellow bespectacled signs that look over the streets of New York like Dr. Eckleburg's eyes? Apparently they're not much less symbolic -- sticking around New York for the past 100 years is no small feat, and must stand for something. But a museum, really?The Moscot Museum will showcase never before released, historic black & white photographs of......