05 November 2007

Old school poker room gets flipped in Flatiron
























The underground Flatiron poker club robbery that left one gambler dead on Friday may be connected to a robbery at a swank Upper East Side club back in June.

The Post notes that the two robberies were similar, with gunmen holding up patrons and making off with a lot of cash.

The Upper East Side robbery at the National Card Room did not turn violent, whereas the Flatiron robbery did, when one of the robbers "accidentally" fired his pistol when picking up a sawed-off shotgun.

A 55-year-old man from NJ, Frank DeSena was fatally hit. The robbers were masked, and witnesses have been unable to tell the police what race they were. A police source told the Post, "[The robbers] were good, they were professional." Apparently they referred to each other during the robbery as "One, two and three"

Reports say that dozens of people were playing at the make-shift gambling club on the 7th floor of 251 Fifth Avenue. The club was run by owners who owned a similar establishment called Straddle and had been open for a week, attracting "middle class" or "well-to-do" players.

DeSena, who had worked as an economist for AT&T, is described as a regular guy with a wife and 16-year-old son.



Sit down and shut the fuck up

Last month, a jury believed former Knicks marketing VP Anucha Browne-Sanders' allegations that General Manager Isiah Thomas and Madison Square Garden created hostile work environment and awarded her $11.6 million. Naturally "The Reverend" Al Sharpton got involved. Yadda yadda yadda and now he's called off his threats to boycott and protest outside Knicks games. I am so fucking sick of this guy sticking his mug into everything and making threats. He is a bully, abusing whatever power he somehow hijacked from the black community. Nothing incites me more than hearing him say things like he's gonna "call off" the boycotts or protests; like 'OH, THANK YOU LORD SHARPTON FOR YOUR GRACE AND MERCY'. Fuck you, Al Sharpton. You are transparent and full of shit. I just don't buy that he really CARES about any of it; he just wants his mug in the news so he can muster the power to threaten again like a self-fulfilling prophecy of self-interest that feeds off its own bullshit. See: Reverend Bacon from Bonfire of the Vanities


Tattoo Clue in Jam Master Jay Case...


For five years now, police have had little information on the gunman who killed Run-DMC DJ Jam Master Jay. But, according to a witness who was in the 24/7 studios the night Jay was killed on October 30, 2002, the gunman, who has never been identified, has a telltale tattoo on his neck — and another witness to the shooting could help solve the mystery if he'd just speak up.

Mizell's business partner, Randy Allen, revealed that bit of information in public for the first time in an interview in Sundays Daily News. Allen told the paper that the inked killer hugged the hip-hop legend before pulling out a gun and shooting him in the head.

"Jay looked up at the guy to say, 'What's up,' " Allen said. "And the next thing you know, a shot goes off." Allen said that Mizell had come to the studio that night to help a group he was working with, Rusty Waters, prepare for an upcoming tour. Jay was taking a break and playing video games with a pal, Tony Rincon, when two gunmen — one of whom he did not know — broke into the studio.

Read more: Jam Master Jay's Killer Reportedly Had Distinctive Tattoo: New details emerge in five-year-old case, according to New York's Daily News. {MTV}

Berlin is beautiful this time of year...

Berlin takes over New York this month with the Berlin in Lights Festival. Through the 18th you can soak up the German city through film, music, art, architecture and more. This evening you can check out a couple of Berlinesque events. First up is the "Urban Design and Memorials" dialogue. A panel discussion which will touch on the "challenges of integrating memorials into the urban fabric, and how Berlin and New York address issues of politics of preservation and lessons of history. What are the differences and similarities in approaches to building memorials." Next up, at MoMA, there will be a screening of 2006's Valerie, followed up by a performance by Nomad SoundSystem at Zankel Hall.

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