The former clubs housed at the 47 West 20th Street address have been shut down numerous times before fading into the New York nightlife history pages. The most famous, the Limelight, opened in the old church in 1983, and survived throughout the 90s before becoming Avalon in 2003, which shut down earlier this year. But who will haunt the building, which is "notorious for drugs, death, and destruction," next? The Limelight! But before your little......

Has Bruce Willis left behind beer and barstools for wine and a more posh drinking atmosphere? The NY Post is saying yes. Willis has reportedly become a partner with the Bowery Wine Co., where he was spotted bartending at his private party last week. The watering hole (which is "upscale and loungy") is set to open its doors to the public this weekend, and is located at 13 East 1st Street (housed within Avalon Bowery......

NYC: Daily News Building, by wallyg at flickrToday on the Gothamist Newsmap: an injured police officer at Floyd Bennet Field in Brooklyn, a gas leak on South 8th St. and Wythe Ave. in Brooklyn, and a bank robbery at the North Fork branch on 87th St. and Broadway in Manhattan. The FDNY will be stationing a battalion chief at the Deutsche Bank building until it is fully dismantled. Someone in the Clinton campaign said......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a possible abduction at 39th St. and 4th Ave. in Brooklyn, falling debris from 820 Columbus Ave. in Manhattan, and a stabbing on East 214th St. in the Bronx. Queens Councilman James Gennaro was fined $2,000 after admitting to the Conflict of Interest Board that he asked a staffer to volunteer on his campaign, although he says he has no recollection of the 2003 incident MTA CEO Elliot Sander......

Irving Plaza is Officially (and Inexplicably) Rebranded On the night Lily Allen played her first post-bloghype show in New York, the ad wizards at Live Nation decided to officially rename the place The Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza and drop some fake pseudo-hippie nostalgia to an already otherwise storied venue. It's an embarrassing and senseless stunt thought up by past their prime marketers in an attempt to make a consistent nationwide brand under the......

With 2006 coming to a close, there's a lot to look forward to in the new year. Some expected highlights: Museums: The New Museum on Bowery will be opening. Yes, it's another oddly shaped building that will stick out amongst the old lighting and restaurant supply shops in the area, but we're all for more art downtown. This museum will be bringing more of the uptown art world, below 14th. Venues: This year we saw......

All worship at the altar of...H&M? The church at Sixth Avenue and West 20th that was once the infamous Limelight nightclub (and not so famous Avalon) may be turned into retail space, according to Braden Keil in today's Post. Apparently, landlord Ben Ashkenazy doesn't want to deal with another nightclub, especially in the wake of the recent crackdown and trouble securing liquor licenses. Broker Frank Terzulli of Winnick Realty tells the Post, "He's going......

READING: Head to the New School to join the New York Times and their moderator, critic William Grimes, as Carl Hiaasen reads from his latest crime caper, Nature Girl, which chronicles the exploits of volatile Honey Santana who meets a wild cast of characters while en route to the Ten Thousand Islands. Show up early for a good seat - Hiaasen is a popular draw. - Krissa Corbett Cavouras 6:30pm // The New School [Tishman......

While not listed on the website, a small bird-shaped source tells us that the gigantic (website says 66k vs. 90k sq.ft. in reality) Whole Foods in the Avalon Christie on Houston & Bowery will open in April 2007, an almost 1 year delay. Same little birdie says that contrary to reports elsewhere, they will also get to build a Whole Foods wine store (maybe not liquor) to replace the one forced out of the Columbus......

THEATER: Less than a week post-Fringe, another festival is upon us: the Brick's new Clown Theater Festival, which starts tonight with a subway parade and "free-for-all pie-fight." Some of the participating local and international performers wear big red noses but these aren't the sort of clowns that kids get scared of at birthday parties, but rather the promoters of and participants in a vibrant physical format that's re-energizing theater; there are performances like Chiche Capon's......

READINGS: Sebastian Junger (co-owner of the Half King) will be reading there tonight from his latest book, A Death in Belmont. The book ties into Junger's own life eerily - back in 1963 when Junger was a small boy growing up in Belmont, Massachusetts, Bessie Goldberg was murdered down the street from his home. Following the stories of the two different men suspected of committing the crime (and one of them working at Junger's family......

Some might argue that you haven't really experienced New York nightlife until you've been out to a Motherfucker party. Hosted at the Roxy in Chelsea (and more recently at Avalon) in honor of various holidays, Motherfucker brings out some of the most eclectic of New York citizens to flaunt their stuff. Now the creators Michael T, Justine D, Johnny T and Georgie Seville are storming the silver screen with a documentary about the party......

Last year, you might remember, we were pretty worried about the future of the plants in one of the city's oldest public gardens, the Liz Christy Garden. AvalonBay was getting ready to build the second building of their Avalon-Christie complex on Houston between the Bowery and Second Avenue and was claiming that in order to "properly" build a basement wall it would need to excavate much of the garden. Such an excavation seemed to......

The week is short and there really isn't a huge amount going on in the venues until the weekend. Plus, it's going to be about 1000 degrees, so packing in to a small sweaty venue isn't highest on our list of priorities. Here's what we do suggest, and as usual - feel free to list some shows in the comments. Tonight Sunn O:))), Oren Ambarchi, Boris are at Avalon. Sunn O:))) is probably the most......

In an article about finding the "great outdoors" in our cramped city, the Post has a nice feature on how much people love their community gardens. A couple moving to NYC from Pennsylvania were thrilled to have a community garden near The Octogan (pricelessly described as a "former insane asylum that's been converted into 500 rental units on Roosevelt Island") and are now number 11 on the waiting list. And a woman in Hell's Kitchen......

With KEXP in town there's a lot more music than usual. Check out their in studio shows online while you're at work this week. Off the airwaves there's a lot to see, hear and enjoy as well. Tonight and tomorrow night, Angels and Airwaves and I Am The Avalanche play Bowery Ballroom. If you walk by the venue to see a cluster of pierced tweens waiting to get in, it may help to know that......

Guess last night wasn't the best night in Gotham's Clubland, eh? As the culmination of a nine-month NYPD narcotics investigation it seems the city closed seven Manhattan nightclubs, completely shutting down five of them. Details are still coming in, but we know this much: The five clubs that were shut down completely were Club Deep, View, Splash, Spirit and Avalon (aside, how many times can they shut the old Limelight down? Isn't this like......

There are a ton of shows we want to catch this week, most of them fall on Tuesday night - so we'll be consulting the magic 8 ball and various street psychics on what show to go to. Let's get to it, shall we? Part Chimp is at Cake Shop tonight, we hear they are big in London right now. Which means they'll be big here sooner or later, and we like that they almost......

Last chance for Brokeback jokes and the Pita's Music Picks: Unlike Ennis, we know how to quit you. Next time it'll be someone else's picks. See you in the clubs![Ed. Note - This is Catherine's last week on the music roundup-- thanks, Catherine!] We have never set foot inside Avalon, and we suspect tonight may be many Mogwai fans' first foray into the club, too. This is the first show that's come up on our......

- Cops are looking for a "brazen sexual predator" who attacked three young women in their apartment buildings in the Bronx this week. - Bloomie likes having horses in the city. - Pataki is staying in the Hospital an extra day after his appendix was removed. - The new YMCA on Houston (inside the Avalon Christie) will have a sliding-scale fee based on incomes. - Hillary Clinton and New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez are......

ART: The NY debut of Guerra de la Paz is this weekend. The collaborative team of Cuban artists Alain Guerra and Neraldo de la Paz creates among larger-than-life Pieta recasting Michelangelo's masterpiece to honor the pathos of the Gulf warrior. Tribute, a 2-ton rainbow pyramid of used clothing and more. Tonight through March 12th // Tonight 7-9pm // Continues through March 12th // Jack the Pelican Presents [487 Driggs Ave, Williamsburg] // Free ART +......

- Security camera's that turn and focus when they hear gunshots are coming soon. - Romance may not be dead, yet. [via G'ist Contribute] - Well before it's Whole Foods neighbor has moved in, the YMCA pool in the Avalon Christie has opened. - A Heroin ring called the Panama Express and that specialized in "swallowers" was smacked down this week. - With a $213,391 salary, Mayor Mike's first deputy mayor makes more money......

The Plug Awards are coming up next week (February 2nd @ Webster Hall). "What the hell are those?," you may be asking. Well, they're independent music awards celebrating "artists who live and flourish in the margins." And YOU can vote on everything from Album of the Year to Music Blog of the Year to Internet Radio Station of the Year. So vote now! Langhorne Slim, Gang Gang Dance, Matisyahu (and more) will be on hand......

If there's one week that folks might be at a loss for things to do in the city, this is the week. You might think not a creature was stirring, but how many times do we have to tell you? This is New York. The kids are definitely not nestled all snug in their beds. What to your wondering eyes should appear this week? Take a look.... You may be done with Christmas, but Yo......

A man tried to carjack a 65 year-old woman, but Marilyn Toppin was no sitting duck. She ended up fighting back at her attacker for a while before he was able to make off with keys to her 1990 Toyota Avalon. The NY TImes says Toppin felt ready to fight back because she was "trained in self-defense while working as a mental hygiene therapist with the city health department for more than 30 years." Whoa.......

Not since the heyday of the Limelight has there been a crowd so out of their minds as there was last night at the old Limelight space. It wasn't for drugs, partying, and God knows what else, but for sneakers. Gothamist headed over for the Sneaker Pimps show at Avalon to ogle countless pairs of sneakers. Most of the sneakers there were no longer in their original form, but given a new look by......

Gothamist didn't know what was best in the Times article about enormous dogs living in NYC apartments - knowing that one owner share a four-poster bed with his Great Dane or that a Bull Mastiff can pee "with considerable force and stamina" for 15 minutes or that someone actually rented an $1,800 one-bedroom apartment for the Bull Mastiff. While we're frightened of teeny, tiny rat dogs (yes, we get that it's because some apartments don't......

[Ed. note: Gothamist got our favorite music blogger, Coolfer, to take a break from his copious music industry watching and give us the scoop on this weekend's shows that might be of interest. Without further ado, straight from Coolfer:] A few of the best shows this weekend are sold out, but this is New York and there's never a shortage of good live music. The Cardigans play Southpaw Sunday night and the Bowery Ballroom Monday......

The Post lists what New Yorkers can do this Halloween in the city, ranging from various parties at night clubs (Avalon, Maritime Hotel, Suede) and churches (St. John the Divine) to dog parades...even a call to your dentist. Of course, the number one pick is the Village Halloween Parade, in its 30th year. And the grand marshal this year? Why, Audrey II from Little Shop of Horrors. But, after some scary incidents, Gothamist will......

Hurricaine Isabel forced the Harvest in the Square Event to be rescheduled tonight. In its eighth year, Harvest in the Square brings Union Square area chefs to offer tastings of food prepared from Union Square Greenmarket Farmers Market, accompanied by Long Island and other New York Wines. Tickets are $90 in person (cash only), $75 in advance, and will benefit the Union Square Local Development Corporation, which is currently looking to enhance the North Plaza......