Would-be Yankee pitcher Kei Igawa took a visit to Yankee Stadium last night as the Yankees and the 27 year-old lefty close in on contract negotiations. Reports say that the two parties have agreed in principle on a five-year, $20 million contract. The Yankees bid $26 million just for the right to negotiate with Igawa after failing to bid enough to negotiate with Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka. While in town, Igawa was traipsing around......

After last year's mess of an awards show and this year's joke of nominations (where is love for Lauren Graham, Academy of Television Arts & Sciences?), we were going to swear off this year's Emmys. But then we realized Conan O'Brien was hosting, so we must watch and liveblog. And there's the hope of a good Steve Carrell bit, not to mention awkward reaction shots of Candy and Tori Spelling during the Aaron Spelling tribute.......

The latest news in the fatal shooting during a rap video shoot in Brooklyn is that Busta Rhymes may have witnessed his bodyguard's death. Police Commissioner Kelly announced as much yesterday, and other police sources are saying that Rhymes (born Trevor Smith) may have been playing "peacemaker" between some other rappers. Rhymes had been shooting a video for his song, "Touch It {Remix)," and there were a number of music stars on hand to do......

During an overnight video shooting for a new Busta Rhymes video in Brooklyn, a security guard was shot and killed outside the studio. The victim, Israel Ramirez, a 29 year old from Brooklyn (and raised Morningside Heights), is reported to be Busta's new guard as well as a "longtime member" of the entourage, but police think he was shot because of another fight that erupted on the shoot - not because he was Busta's jewelry......

Now that roles in Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, L.A. Story, and Sex and the City have prepared Sarah Jessica Parker for style icon status, SJP is taking her sensibilities to the Gap. The Gap's fall campaign is centered around SJP's customization of GAP jeans:On one pair, she added a velvet ribbon sewn down the legs to imitate tuxedo pants. Another one of her customized looks features jeans cut just below the knee and enhanced......

David Rees, Cartoonist...

While it's possible for most any news stories to make it the top right image block on NYTimes.com (images rotate throughout the day), Gothamist would like nothing more than a big photograph of Andre 3000 and Big Boi wearing something crazy (i.e., something they would usually wear) above the fold on the print edition after day after the Grammys. Grammy nominations are announced: Beyoncé, Jay-Z, OutKast and the Neptunes' Pharrell Williams have six nominations......

The Gap wants us to accept corduroy this fall and Madonna as their pitchwomen. Well, based on the new Madonna-Missy Elliott Gap commercial, Gothamist knows this: Madonna is looking more and more like a caricature of herself. The ad starts with Madonna lip-syncing a few bars of her new song "Hollywood" but to the melody of "Get Into the Groove." She walks down a Hollywood backlot street and then out pops Missy Elliott, and they......

Today was all wet...worries aboutfloods are alarming, but don't really affect apartment-dwellers. In the mood of the day, here are some entertainment options: Madonna has a song, Rain. Watch the video, which was directed by Mark Romanek, who directed current favorite, Hurt as sung by Johnny Cash as well. Also, there's Missy Elliott's song, The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly). But there's nothing like watching Singin' in the Rain, as close as anything that can make......

Johnny Cash 'Hurt' Video
...It is the most beautiful and riveting video I've seen in a long time, because of how the images and music work together and how Johnny Cash, icon, haunts the video......