Senior's Olive Garden review goes viral

FARGO, N.D. -- A North Dakota newspaper columnist sat down to review her town's hot new Italian restaurant, rhapsodizing about the chicken Alfredo, crisp greens and "two long, warm breadsticks."

But because the restaurant was the Olive Garden, Marilyn Hagerty's earnest assessment swiftly became an Internet sensation, drawing comments both sincere and sarcastic from food bloggers and others. For the 85-year-old Hagerty, the response was bewildering - and it threatened to make her late for a bridge game.

Hagerty's column in the Grand Forks Herald focuses on local food, and in North Dakota that means chain restaurants that are shunned by big-city food critics. She's reviewed Ruby Tuesday, Pizza Ranch, Applebee's and Country Kitchen. Even fast-food joints such as KFC, Qdoba and Subway have undergone scrutiny.

But it was her unfailingly polite prose about the Olive Garden - complete with a detailed description of the bustling waiters - that catapulted her to online stardom, at least briefly.

"At length, I asked my server what she would recommend," Hagerty wrote in the column called Eatbeat published Wednesday. "She suggested chicken Alfredo, and I went with that. Instead of the raspberry lemonade she suggested, I drank water."

The Olive Garden is "the largest and most beautiful restaurant now operating in Grand Forks," she concluded. "It attracts visitors from out of town as well as people who live here."

By Friday morning, her appraisal had received more than 290,000 hits on the newspaper's website. The second most-read story - a report about the University of North Dakota's Fighting Sioux nickname - got a mere 5,500 views.

"I do not get it," Hagerty said Friday. "I mean, I'm sitting here minding my own business yesterday morning, trying to get my Friday column finished off so I could go play bridge. And all of a sudden, all hell breaks loose."

Within hours of appearing, the piece was spreading rapidly across the Web.

"Residents of Grand Forks, N.D., are lining up for blocks to enjoy a one-of-a-kind European dining experience that finally puts the city on the culinary map with its unique brand of Tuscany refinery," mocked the news website Fark. "It's called The Olive Garden."

But this is what Hagerty does.

"She writes five columns a week, and they are all this sort of this very direct, no-nonsense approach to what's going on," said Mike Jacobs, publisher of the newspaper. "She has her detractors, but she's very popular. She's a real asset to the Herald."

News Update

Robertson boxes off foot injury

TAMPA — Dave Robertson was long gone by the time that the Yankees received its official diagnosis Friday afternoon, but the relief should be back on the mound earlier than expected.

After the relief was initially diagnosed with a sprained foot, additional tests revealed a little more than a bone bruise on top of the right foot of Robertson, Joe Girardi news referred to as optimistic scenario.

"Is a huge relief," said Girardi. "I was worried when they said that there was a cause for concern, but obviously this is good news.

PHOTO: THE LAMEST INJURIES IN SPORTS

"When you say there is a cause for concern that you're thinking that there might be something broken or who knows what might have been. I saw him get out yesterday; I was not real encouraged when I saw him walk. This is as good as it gets for us. "

Robertson did not return a phone call Friday night, but it seemed cautiously optimistic the pitcher earlier in the day, as he awaited word from doctors.

"After hearing that they did not see anything in the first round (of tests), I feel better now," Robertson said in the morning.  "I hope it's something that is just going to go in a week or so and I'll be right back out there."

That period could be on the optimistic side, but the Yankees are confident that Robertson can be back on the mound within two weeks. The Setup man for all-star that would give two weeks to get ready for the April 6 opener against the rays.

"Hopefully, it will be walking around here quite well by sometime next week and we'll be able to get him back to playing catch and doing all that stuff," said Girardi. "We probably have it play fetch from a Chair for a while."

Robertson will start walking through the weekend, at which point the Yankees will reevaluate its status. Girardi said Robertson rehabilitation program "Andrei as he can tolerate," but the manager has stressed that they put him on a mound until he is pain free.

"She doesn't want him and encouraging to everyone," said Girardi. "If it's still sore, we're not going to put him out of a molehill."

Robertson suffered the injury when he landed awkwardly on Wednesday a step in her home.

Robertson was still embarrassed, even though he joked that it was not as bad as the neck injury that Tampa Bay's David Price immediately while the sponge head.

"Is awkward; I don't even want to talk to you guys, "Robertson said with a smile. "I'd be like," stumbled upon a Chair in the clubhouse "or something to tell you fell down the stairs in my house. Not as a full flight of stairs; It was just a stair. "

Initial tests of Robertson on Thursday caused some concern, pushing the Yankees to send him for a second round of tests. Team medical specialist Dr. Chris Ahmad and Dr. Justin Greisberg examined the results and diagnosed with the bone bruise.

The initial diagnosis of a sprained foot brought back memories of Chien Ming Wang, who initially was diagnosed with the same injury in 2008 before it was discovered that he had a more serious — and the end of the season — Lisfranc foot injury.

Robertson has not been alerted by the request of doctors for a second round of tests, noting that they did the same to his elbow in September 2009. The arm has proven to be sound, and has played an important role in the world series of bombers run a month later.

"They just wanted to take a look," Robertson said. "Whenever there is something with your foot, you're putting all your weight on it so you don't know how bad it is. If it's just a little sore, could have broken something or might not be. "

Twitter.com/BloggingBombers

News Update

U.S. service member opens fire on Afghan civilians: official

An American service member went on a shooting rampage in Afghanistan, reportedly killing at least 15 people after breaking into their homes in a village near his base, Afghan officials said Sunday.

The service member, who has not been identified, is in NATO custody and the incident is being investigated, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) coalition said.

A NATO spokesman has confirmed multiple people wounded but has not confirmed any deaths.

“I wish to convey my profound regrets and dismay at the actions apparently taken by one coalition member in Kandahar province," said a statement from Lt. Gen. Adrian Bradshaw, the deputy commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan. “One of our soldiers is reported to have killed and injured a number of civilians in villages adjacent to his base. I cannot explain the motivation behind such callous acts, but they were in no way part of authorized ISAF military activity.”

Tooryalai Wesa, governor of Kandahar province, told The Associated Press that a group of officials had gone to the base to determine exactly what happened.

"The incident happened. There are some people killed, some wounded. But I don't have the details," he said in a phone interview.

The shootings occurred around 3 a.m. in Panjwai district of Kandahar province, in a village about 500 yards from a U.S. base, AP reported.

An AP photographer reported seeing 15 bodies of Afghans that villagers claimed were killed by an American service member.

The photographer saw the bodies — some of them burned and some covered with blankets — in the villages of Alkozai and Balandi.

With News Wire Services

News Update

Louisville rolls past Ireland in Big East Championship

LOUISVILLE 64, NOTRE-DAME 50

The Cardinals rolled in Big East championship games for the third time in four years, pressure Defense and speed riding a semifinal victory over 23 in the rankings and third-seeded Notre Dame. Louisville (25-9) won the 2009 Championship against Syracuse and lost last season, Connecticut. The fighting Irish (22-11) never again reached the title game; they are 5-0 in the semifinals.

PHOTO: LOUISVILLE ROUTS NOTRE DAME IN BIG EAST SEMIS

Louisville blew past ND in the first half with a 23-2 run that included 10 points by Gorgui Dieng and Peyton Siva six. Put the cards up 32-17 and led by double digits the rest of the way.

Dieng had 16 points and Siva 13 points, nine assists and eight rebounds for Louisville, which he shot 56 percent. Eric Atkins had 12 points for the Irish, who made only two of the 17 rounds of 3 points.

News Update

Irish music fills the air in New York City

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, music fired by ballads, jigs and reels is having another American moment.

Last month, the all-female act Celtic Woman opened at No. 1 on Billboard’s World Music Chart (and No. 13 on the pop chart). Two weeks later, the Chieftains, one of the prime exporters of Irish song, released an all-star disk to celebrate their 50th (!) anniversary. And, just this week, Bruce Springsteen issued an album (“Wrecking Ball”) fired, in key part, by Celtic lilts, as well as ones heard in that genre’s popular American offspring: Appalachian folk.

This isn’t an isolated surge.

Every 10 years, or so, the U.S. goes gaga for an Irish brogue.

In 1961, the Clancy Brothers appeared on “The Ed Sullivan Show,” escalating the folk revival of the day while setting off a fashion trend with their trademark white wool sweaters. In 1975, the Chieftains enjoyed a huge hit with the “Barry Lyndon” soundtrack, causing a run on their entire catalogue. And, in the ’80s, Enya sold millions by merging Irish sounds with, of all things, New ge music.

Continuing the commercial, if not necessarily artistic, escalation of all things Celtic, the ’90s saw “Riverdance” explode into a worldwide franchise, while by 1997, pennywhistles became the rage of the airwaves via Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On,” the theme from “Titanic.”

In this decade, Celtic Woman (brainstormed by the same guy who created “Riverdance”), began a run of six hit albums, leading to their latest chart triumph.

To be sure, critics view some of these acts as rank bastardizations of the Celtic ethic. But supporters of Irish culture can’t help but take pride in what these successes say about the endurance of the sound, as well as the music’s ability to keep assuming new attention-getting guises.

Surely, that spirit which will rule this St. Patrick’s Week. No fewer than 10 major, green-themed concerts will take place in the city, representing just as many mutations on venerable forms, like the murder ballad and the wedding waltz.

Here’s a look:

CELTIC WOMAN

Where and When: Radio City Music Hall, Sunday, 8 p.m.

Sound and Style: Celts go Vegas, or worse, travel to Branson. These decorative women dress in evening gowns while warbling daintily through either historic pieces or newer, sentimental ones, like “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” Small wonder they’re wildly popular.

THE SAW DOCTORS

Where and When: The Stone Pony (Asbury Park, N.J.), Thursday, 7 p.m.; Irving Plaza (17 Irving Place), Friday, 7 p.m.

News Update

5 Langkah Sederhana Mencegah Kanker

Jakarta - Kanker telah menjadi penyebab kematian terbesar di seluruh dunia. Menurut data yang diambil dari situs Parkway Cancer Center, dari total 58 juta kematian di seluruh dunia pada tahun 2005, kanker merupakan penyebab dari 7,6 juta kematian (sekitar 13% dari seluruh kematian).

Begitu seriusnya dampak dari kanker membuat sebagian besar orang dengan riwayat keluarga pengidap kanker mencoba berbagai cara untuk menghindari penyakit ini. Meskipun Anda tidak memiliki riwayat penyakit berbahaya tersebut, namun tidak ada salahnya Anda hidup sehat untuk cegah kanker dan berbagai penyakit lainnya, dengan melakukan cara-cara berikut yang dirangkum dari Women’s Day.

1. Menjaga Berat Badan Seimbang
Penelitian terbaru menunjukkan, kelebihan berat badan dapat meningkatkan risiko kanker usus besar, kanker hati, kanker pankreas, kanker esophagus (kanker kerongkongan), kanker endometrium (kanker di luar jaringan rahim), dan kanker payudara pasca-menopause. BMI atau Body Mass Index merupakan perhitungan untuk menentukan berat badan ideal dengan membandingkan jumlah berat badan dan tinggi badan.

Orang yang sehat memiliki jumlah BMI 18,5 hingga 24,9. Sedangkan risiko kanker ditemukan pada orang dengan jumlah BMI 23 atau lebih. Contoh cara penghitungan BMI, BB = 55 kg dan TB = 165 cm, maka BMI = (55) / (1.65) * (1.65) = 20,2.

2. Berjalan Kaki 10 Menit Setiap Hari
Laporan dari studi di University of California menunjukkan bahwa berjalan kaki 10 menit sehari bisa menurunkan risiko terserang kanker payudara. Dalam studi tersebut dinyatakan, wanita yang melakukan 45-60 menit olahraga seperti jalan cepat atau bersepeda selama selama setidaknya lima kali dalam seminggu dapat meningkatkan perlindungan tubuh terhadap kanker payudara atau kanker usus besar.

3. Konsumsi Buah dan Sayur
Konsumsi buah dan sayur tidak hanya membuat berat Anda menjadi ideal, tapi makan buah dan sayur berwarna dapat menurunkan risiko kanker.

"Kebiasaan yang sering dilakukan dalam diet sehat ini juga dapat mengurangi risiko terserang kanker, termasuk kanker paru-paru, mulut, kerongkongan, lambung, dan kanker usus besar," ujar Colleen Doyle, RD, Direktur Nutrisi dan Aktifitas Fisik untuk ACS.

4. Hindari merokok dan Menghirup Asap Rokok
Sebanyak 87% kematian atas kanker paru-paru disebabkan oleh kebiasaan merokok. Sekitar sepuluh tahun setelah Anda berhenti merokok, risiko kanker paru-paru berkurang setidaknya setengahnya, begitu juga risiko terserang kanker mulut, kandung kemih, dan kanker ginjal sangat berkurang, jelas Norman Edelman, MD, Kepala Medis dari America Lung Association. Jika Anda bukan perokok, maka Anda juga harus menjauhi orang-orang yang sering merokok, asap yang terhirup berefek sama dengan perokok.

5. Hindari Alkohol
Alkohol meningkatkan risiko Anda terserang kanker mulut, kanker rongga mulut (laring), kerongkongan, hati, dan payudara. Meski meminumnya hanya sedikit, namun dapat berdampak besar pada kesehatan tubuh. Tercatat dalam penelitian, wanita yang meminum alkohol selama seminggu dihubungkan dengan adanya peningkatan risiko kanker payudara.

(kik/kik)

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Obama a fan of ‘Homeland’, says star

LONDON — Actor Damian Lewis has a warning for Barack Obama.

He says the U.S. president shouldn’t watch the Showtime TV series “Homeland” too much “because he won’t sleep at night.”

The British star at the heart of the political thriller, which was named the Best TV Drama at the Golden Globes, says the leader of the free world is a big fan of the show that has generated white-hot buzz.

“Not only has Obama been watching it but his aides have been calling up going, ’We need to see it,”’ Lewis said. “So he’s been getting entire state departments, top of the U.S. government, asking to see it because their boss watches it and they feel they need to know what their boss has been watching.”

And why should Obama be worried?

“(The show) spreads its criticism around of state governments and terrorists alike,” Lewis explained.

Lewis, 40, along with British co-star David Harewood, 46, spoke to The Associated Press recently ahead of the U.K. launch of the series. Both are excited about getting reactions from home firsthand.

Lewis quips he can’t wait to hear what fans think of it while he’s out supermarket shopping, as he hasn’t generated that level of interest in the U.K. for a while.

He plays returning American war hero Nick Brody, who was discovered in a cell in Iraq after being missing for eight years.

Claire Danes, who won best actress in a drama at the Globes, is the CIA agent who doesn’t believe him. Harewood plays her boss.

In their London interview, Lewis and Harewood appeared relaxed, chatting away in their native English accents, something they ditch when on U.S. soil. They each try to stay in their American voices all day long in the United States because it’s easier and helps them practice.

They can slip out of the American twang when talking together, however.

Lewis admits the first time he was cast as an American soldier in the 2001 “Band of Brothers” he stayed in character so as not to offend anyone.

“I didn’t want to make anyone feel uncomfortable,” he said. “If you just go tearing around like ’Rah, rah, rah, rah,’ and they’d be, ’Bloody hell, why did we cast him? He sounds so English.”’

He said he wanted directors to “all just forget I’m English and just be happy that you’ve cast me.”

As for the success of “Homeland,” Lewis suggested that intelligent TV drama helps to fill the gap left by the death of the indie movie.

“Films are either now made for $500 grand or $500 million, you know, there seems to be little in-between,” he noted. “TV has sort of filled that slot and actually you can make provocative, interesting, quirky, independent, movie-type TV.”

Shooting on the second season of “Homeland” starts in May, and Harewood says he is already looking forward to getting into his character again.

Lewis admits there is pressure to deliver the goods.

“TV audiences are notoriously fickle. If they don’t like it, they just tell you. Suddenly there are blogs everywhere saying ’That was a pile of crap,”’ he said.

“It’s an unenviable job,” he added. “I’m glad I’m not writing it!”

News Update

Rangers slide as slide hits three games

CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS 4, NY RANGERS 3

CHICAGO — Losing two in a row qualifies as a collapse for the Rangers. Dropping three straight in regulation — as the Blueshirts have done for the first time all season Friday night after losing 4-3 to the Blackhawks at the United Center — means there is officially a race for first place in the Atlantic Division and the Eastern Conference, with 15 games to play.

"It's really unfortunate, because I thought we took a real good step forward to get back as we can play," said Ryan McDonagh, who played a strong 22:52 of ice time. "To see him vanish there typically a flash is a difficult pill to swallow."

Rangers (42-18-7, 91 points) now lead the penguins (41-21-5, 87) by just four points after the shooting of 2-1 Pittsburgh win over Florida on Friday. The teams have two head-to-head matchups and the remaining feathers could bring the deficit right then and there.

The Blueshirts rightly felt good on their first 47 minutes in the Windy City. They outhit the Blackhawks 20 and 40 to 17 shots blocked, returning to the brand of hockey that has them at the top of the East. But they then collapsed into defense after taking a 2-1 advantage on goal by Brandon Prust with 12:47, remaining off a rebound McDonagh.

"I don't think we're not good enough to close it out," said Brad Richards, who has shown resilience Rangers ' scoring with 40.4 seconds to close the deficit to 4-3 below empty-netter by Patrick Kane. "We are giving them opportunities. So we know that we can solve the problem. That's why it's an 82 game season. "

As Tuesday in New Jersey and Thursday in Ottawa, though, it came down to a lackluster third period. The Rangers were outscored 12-5 during their three-game skid, including 8-2 disadvantage in the third period.

Patrick Sharp bound on a trio after Brian Boyle with the puck fell at his feet in the defensive zone and Ryan Callahan and mistreated with remaining 6:58. Then 01:01 after, Carl Hagelin has lost a battle along the wall and rap Johnny Oduya deflected slightly off Rod Callahan from Henrik Lundqvist and past (18 Saves).

The Rangers allowed only five shots in the third period on Lundqvist and the doorman "felt like we were close enough to a solid game here and getting two points, but let slip."

' Blueshirts came just three defeats in the first three games of the season — in overtime to the Los Angeles Kings in a shootout to Anaheim Ducks and regulation for the Islanders.

Friday night, played without winger Brandon Dubinsky (hand, breast) for a second straight game, and defender Michael Del Zotto (bruised right hip) for the second time in five games. The Blackhawks (37-25-7, 81 points), sixth seed in the Western Conference, were without their Captain Jonathan Toews (concussion). Toews is still firm but now ice skating.

A defiant John Tortorella insisted that the Rangers did what they had to do.

"If you look at the game, the third period of going our way," said Tortorella, denying that his team was tired at the end. "We are doing well. We have a defensive error, someone falls and ends up scoring, and then they get another one after that. No, there is no effort. We needed a couple defensive works and don't get 'em, but all in all I thought we played a good match. "

Twtiter.com/NYDNRangers

News Update

Cruising on Disney ship is a Dream

Being no cruise aficionado, I approached the Disney Dream with tremendous skepticism. This was only my second cruise, and the sail to the Bahamas was only for three nights. Adding fuel to the fire, we were cruising without children.

No matter. On board, my husband and I were immediately swept away by the high-flying, high-speed water coaster, AquaDuck. Step inside and sit down in the oversized, inflatable raft and off you go at lightning speed, twisting and turning, down short descents as you increase acceleration, even at one point swinging out 13 feet over the ocean — woo-hoo! This cruise-industry first is enough to quicken the pulse of even the most jaded adult (who will only want to ride again come the splashdown on Deck 12). Confidential Tip: Queue up for AquaDuck immediately following cabin check-in (or else when the passenger load is on a shore excursion), as the line is long throughout the cruise.

Care to satisfy your taste for nostalgia? Step up to Eye Scream on Deck 11 for soft-serve ice cream, just like when you were a kid. Here's the cherry on top: it's serve yourself, and you can go back for a serving of banana, chocolate, strawberry and vanilla as often as you want. A jumbo LED screen on Deck 9 also allows you to enjoy those flavors while swimming, sunning or even watching some Disney classics like “Cinderella.”

The Quiet Cove Pool, within dashing distance to Eye Scream, is the adults-only pool. It is also mere steps away from the Cove Café, a peaceful retreat for sipping gourmet coffee, reading or hooking up to WiFi. Both the pool and Cove Café are rarely crowded, making this the perfect spot for peace and quiet. Also inside this restricted enclave: two large, adult-only hot tubs whose glass bottoms provide spectacular ocean views.

Our first dinner aboard the Dream, in the Animator’s Palette, proved great fun. If you enjoyed the movie “Finding Nemo,” you’ll love having the turtle Crush interact with you and the other guests. “Duuude, the big guy is from The Conn-ECT-icut,” Crush, with his stoner-surfer inflection, said to my husband — who also got a high-five from Crush with his front flipper (the turtle’s flipper; not my husband’s). The restaurant, which resembles a giant animation studio, also changes its wall backdrops throughout the meal, offering scenes and characters from Disney and Pixar hits.

After dinner, my husband and I opted for a little boot scootin’ at Evolution in The District on Deck 4, where the dance floor glows and pulsates to rock classics and pop artists. DJ Pete Down takes requests and mixes some fresh tunes of his own. Evolution also hosts some great games and karaoke.

News Update

Peplum Dress, Busana Wajib Musim Ini

Jakarta - Menggunakan mini dress model pensil atau A-line mungkin sudah terlihat membosankan. Opsi lain yang bisa Anda gunakan adalah memakai dress model peplum. Seperti apa?

Peplum bisa berupa dress atau rok mini yang mengembang di bagian pinggang, seolah menggunakan busana yang ditumpuk. Dress peplum sebelumnya telah populer di era 80-an, tapi berkembangnya dunia fashion selama 30 tahun terakhir yang didominasi dengan gadis ramping cenderung kurus, membuat dress model tersebut tidak lagi digemari.

Dress peplum memang membuat bentuk tubuh menjadi lebih berisi, karena detail gelembung yang ada di bagian pinggang dan pinggul. Namun, meningkatnya minat wanita pada bentuk tubuh yang sehat dan curvy membuat dress peplum kembali menjadi idola.

Dress peplum kini menjadi tren musim ini. Para desainer pun banyak yang memamerkan rancangan dress peplumnya pada koleksi Spring/Summer 2012.

Marc Jacobs misalnya, yang menggabungkan rok peplum yang dipadukan dengan atasan stripe, merah-hitam. Kesan rocker, namum feminin sangat terlihat dari rancangan desainer asal Amerika itu.

Sedangkan Jason Wu merancang peplum yang digabungkan dengan celana pendek. Kesan playful, namun elegan sangat tergambar jelas dari desainnya.

Berbeda lagi dengan peplum yang dipakai oleh Emma Stone. Bintang film 'Crazy Stupid Love' itu menggunakan dress peplum colorblock. Bagian atas warna merah dan rok peplumnya berwarna pink neon, yang membuat Emma tampil ultra chic.

Baru-baru ini, Kate Middleton juga tampil elegan dengan setelan model peplum. Setelan warna hijau dari brand fashion L.K. Bennett itu merupakan blazer peplum yang diberi ikat pinggang warna hitam pada blazernya yang dipadukan dengan rok pensil. Tidak lupa, The Duchess of Cambridge itu mengenakan headpiece yang menjadi ciri khasnya.

(kik/kik)

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Downfall of Manhattan elite in novel 'The Darlings'

Let’s just get it out of the way. Cristina Alger has the pedigree to write "The Darlings" (Pamela Dorman Books, $26.95), a novel about a family at the summit of Manhattan's social/financial hierarchy caught up in a scandal of Madoff proportions. Alger is a former Goldman Sachs analyst whose father was a prominent financier. One of her closest friends from childhood is Tom Wolfe's daughter, and no one sniped at him for putting his insider knowledge to use.

The year is 2008, and the carnage on Wall Street is underway. Paul, whose powerhouse Wall Street firm went under in a barrage of indictments, finds work as general counsel with his billionaire father-in-law's seemingly scandal-proof hedge fund. He knows better, believing "the only way to be part of a family as powerful as the Darlings is never to take anything from them." But being the unemployed, and possibly unemployable, son-in-law is an even less attractive option.

Paul's wife Merrill is as earnestly worthy as he is but in thrall to her father, Carter, whose wife is the steely dominatrix of society, lashing outliers with an icy glare. Pride, derived from position, comes before the fall in "The Darlings," and the nuances of old money are spelled out. Nantucket red is the novel's theme color.

The hedge funds' phenomenal returns are generated by one man only, a reclusive money maker who, it is revealed, has been running a Ponzi scheme. The scandal strips the Darlings of both their standing and fortune. Carter retreats with a corrupt attorney to plot his way clear of the most punishing consequences. Paul has to choose between the family and his conscience.

Well, we all kind of know how this going to turn out. Nevertheless, there's legitimate tension in "The Darlings," as family loyalty crosses swords with the law. And while the demise of the Darlings is hardly tragic, Alger reaches beyond the obvious morality tale to portray their loss with feeling.

News Update

Holding off on pension-war ads

ALBANY — An ad war over Gov. Cuomo’s pension reform proposal was averted as negotiations on an overhaul intensified Friday.

At the urging of Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, t he state AFL-CIO pulled a planned ad blitz blasting Cuomo’s plan.

Silver told state AFL-CIO President Mario Cilento that some type of pension reform is likely and that “you’re better off at the table than not being at the table,” a source briefed on the talk said.

AFL-CIO spokesman Ryan Delgado confirmed the ads were pulled but wouldn’t go into specifics as to why.

“That ad is now being held as we monitor the rapid development of the state budget.”

He said the labor group “is ready, willing and able to be on the air at a moment’s notice should we need to do so.”

Cilento, sources said, is under intense pressure “not to cave” on pension reform from his national group, which sees New York as a barometer for the country.

One well-known official said Cuomo has threatened to veto lawmakers’ legislative redistricting plan if a deal on pension reform is not reached.

Cuomo aides insist the two issues are not tied together and that no veto threat was made.

Assembly spokesman Michael Whyland declined comment.

Senate GOP spokesman Scott Reif said, “There are ongoing discussion on a number of different issues, but no issues have been linked.”

Team Cuomo met Friday with union reps as well as legislative officials to discuss lowering pension benefits. Talks are expected to continue this weekend.

Cuomo got an assist from frenemy Mayor Bloomberg , who went on a statewide radio blitz Friday in support of the governor’s plan to rein in soaring retirement costs.

During an appearance on an Albany radio station, Bloomberg depicted legislators as pawns of public employee unions.

And he warned a vote against pension reform would actually help criminals because localities would be forced to layoff cops.

“I don’t think the governor is going to get rolled here,” Bloomberg said. “He is too smart and just too dedicated to this state. He is going to do what is right.”

gblain@nydailynews.com

News Update

Obama: America is coming back

HOUSTON -- Raising campaign cash in Republican territory, President Barack Obama today hailed a rebounding economy and accused Republicans of banking on voters having "amnesia" about the steps that led to a brutal economic collapse.

"The recovery is accelerating. America is coming back," Obama told 600 supporters at a Texas fundraiser.

Bidding for re-election, Obama bounded between a rally-style event in a sprawling Rolls-Royce manufacturing plant south of Richmond, Va., to a pair of Houston fundraisers. Framing the trip: a new monthly jobs report showing employers 227,000 jobs in February, the latest sign that the economy is headed in the right direction.

Every month's jobs report is seen as a barometer of the economy and an important factor in the presidential race. The unemployment rate held steady at 8.3 percent, the result of more Americans looking for work as job growth takes hold month by month.

The jobs report and split loyalties among Republican voters assessing Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum and the rest of the GOP field give Obama's team renewed confidence that the path he has forged could help him win re-election and rebuild the economy. But privately, his advisers know that outside factors in the United States and abroad — from high gasoline prices to instability in the Middle East — could still derail his political and economic ambitions in the months leading to the fall election.

Pointing at Republicans, Obama said: "They think you have amnesia. They think you've forgotten how we got into this mess."

He spoke at Union Station at Minute Maid Park, home of the Houston Astros, with tickets starting at $500 per person.

Both in Houston and on the factory floor in Virginia, the president cautioned that too many Americans still long for work. But he said the nation's economy had made progress because of difficult decisions he made, including rescuing U.S. automakers.

Romney, campaigning in Jackson, Miss., took a different view: The unemployment rate remains above 8 percent. "This president has not succeeded; this president has failed — and that's the reason we're going to get rid of him in 2012," Romney said.

Obama was stocking up on campaign cash as Republicans appear locked in a primary process that may not be settled for months.

Republican Gov. Robert McDonnell of Virginia, who joined Obama at the factory and has been talked about as a potential vice presidential candidate, said he was heartened by Obama's recognition of the innovative Virginia plant. "When the president is right, I'm going to commend him and say he's doing things right," he said.

News Update

Free & cheap New York: Sat., March 10

Mesmerized by KLEZMER?Golem, who plays klezmer music without a clarinet, is one of the go to groups New York folk-rock Eastern European. The group will perform songs in Yiddish, Russian, French and Ladino at BAMcafé Live. 21 free. 30 Lafayette St., Brooklyn. (718) 636-4100.

CHERYL, meet CINDY. PopRally presents CHERYL, a collective of four members, sometimes disguised as cat artist. The Brooklyn group will give one of their performances over-the-top to celebrate the new exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art, Cindy Sherman. 21 $ 18. 11 W 53rd St (212) 708-9400.

The JIG is up Kids can celebrate St. Patrick's day approaching learning to dance step. 14 $ 6. Staten Island children's Museum, 1000 Richmond Terrace. (718) 273-2060.

Watch the birdie!To celebrate family day, Bard Graduate Center asked Caroline Borderies to create a new shadow-puppet play called "there's a bird in my hat!" and after the show, children can make their own marionette duck, goose or ostrich. Noon-4 p.m. $ 3-$ 5. 18 w. 86th St. (212) 501-3011.

Saturday night fever. Get groovy Spot Moxie family disco at night. Children eat for free and if you dont want to boogie the night, there are board games, toys and crafts to keep them entertained. 18 free. 81 Atlantic Ave., Brooklyn. (718) 923-9710.

BROOKLYN IN BLOOM. Brooklyn Botanic Garden will host the annual making Brooklyn Bloom 31, a day of workshops that celebrate the sustainable city gardening. The Conference will be coverclimate change and community composting. Dr. Sandra Henderson and give a keynote address: "when talking about plants, listen: gardeners as citizen scientists. 10-16. 900 Washington Ave. (718) 623-7200.

' PARTY ' leader.Arden Myrin and Lisa deLarios will host "The Party Machine", a wacky comedy lineup of actsand party, among other artists. 19:30 $ 5. Union Hall 702 Union St, Brooklyn, New York. (718) 638-4400.

Hi, HOLLY!Catch the latest exhibition of photographer Holly Andres, "The Fall of Spring Hill," at the Robert Mann Gallery. It depicts childhood memories in a summer Church camp. 11 free. 210 11th Ave. (212) 989-7600.

Have a ball. Experience of some popular ballroom dances of England denza at the New York Public Library. Presented by the istorical Dance Company in New York, Mary Ball fantasy is part of "Shelley's Ghost: the afterlife of a poet" exhibition. No prior dance experience is required, but wear comfortable shoes. 14 free. Webster Library, 1465 York Ave. (212) 288 5049.

A green thumbs-up Enjoy family day children's Garden HSBC. The hands-on program for small-large planters, age 11:55, teaches them about nature while enjoying a beautiful outdoor environment. 2-4 p.m. free. Queens Botanical Garden, 43-50 Main St (718) 886 3800.

News Update

Techies say NYC needs more black geeks

 

Big Apple geeks say the code to startup success requires major networking. Want to learn programming or rub shoulders with developers over drinks? There’s an event for that.

One thing most of the city’s tech events have in common: relatively few of the high-profile entrepreneurs and developers in the crowd are black.

In New York’s booming start-up scene, African Americans “are absolutely underrepresented,” says Ron J. Williams, co-founder and CEO of Knodes and SnapGoods, startups that help people share goods and knowledge.??Sara Chipps, co-founder of the city’s popular Girl Develop It programming classes for women, says she’s concerned about the New York tech scene’s lack of diversity. “It is definitely not ethnically diverse…it’s mostly Asians and white people,” she said.?Techies say there’s an especially noticeable gap between the number of high profile female black entrepreneurs and developers in New York and their peers.

“In the past when I’ve gone to speak to groups of high school girls. I’ve looked for people that I can bring with me – I want to bring a diverse group with me.  When I was getting into this, you want to find someone who looks like you, so you can be like, ‘I want to be like this person when I grow up’. Often it’s very difficult for me to find black and black female developers and as far as entrepreneurs go – I know maybe one or two, but I know dozens and dozens of entrepreneurs, so there’s really no real representation in the community,” Chipps noted.

Is lack of education to blame?One possible reason: education. The Computing Research Association reports only 4.2% of all undergraduate computer science degrees went to blacks in 2010 – even though blacks account for 12% of the U.S. population. At the Interactive Technology Program (ITP) at New York University, widely considered one of the most creative innovation programs in the nation, the numbers are slightly higher. “We have 6% of the people enrolled this year who identify as African American,” said Dan O’Sullivan, the ITP department chair.“Certainly part of the problem can be mitigated by having vastly larger numbers of people of color…going into STEM [Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics] fields and coming out with engineering and science degrees. There’s no question about that,” said Hank Williams, founder and CEO of Kloud.Co, a tool for organizing cloud service data. (Hank Williams is not related to Ron Williams).But Ty Ahmad-Taylor, CEO and founder of FanFeedr, a real-time sports website, says there are opportunities for people to teach themselves. “If you’re in New York City, there’s enough low-cost and online resources where someone can fully immerse oneself in the New York tech community if one wanted to,” Ahmad-Taylor said.??While Hank Williams believes not enough blacks are getting relevant degrees, he’s quick to add that “it doesn’t explain the numbers.” Not all careers in the digital technology industry - – like social media and venture capital positions -- require computer science or engineering training.  “An awful lot of the people who have been successful in tech – particularly in the venture world – don’t have engineering degrees,” Hank Williams said.Whether or not education is the reason for low black representation in the startup world, Ron Williams says the lack of high profile black role models in the industry is a problem. “If you don’t have folks who look like you, who feel like you, who relate to the same things as you, who are also off doing this interesting thing called tech entrepreneurship, it’s hard to actually get started, it’s hard for you to model behaviors, based on people who look familiar to you,” Ron Williams said.But Ahmad-Taylor says despite the challenges, it’s necessary for aspiring founders to overcome those feelings. “You shouldn’t be a CEO if you’re going to be limited by those thoughts or that attitude,” he said. 

Networking is key

It’s not that successful black tech entrepreurs don’t exist – they do, and they are increasingly well-networked in the city.“The New York City tech scene for minorities is maybe the most supportive of all technology communities in the world,” said Ron Williams. “I think we have an unbelievable investment in each other, from my experience – over the past year it has become an incredible place to find support from other kindred spirits, mentors, people to give back to."Ahmad-Taylor, Hank Williams and Ron Williams, along with about 20 other black CEOS in New York, belong to a monthly networking group called Digital Internet Gentlemen. “The goal is information and knowledge sharing, access to capital, and relevant introductions,” explained Ahmad-Taylor.But both Ahmad-Taylor and Hank Williams say New York’s community of black CEOs and geeks has a long way to go before it’s as well networked as its counterpart on the West Coast. “I would say the Bay Area has a better network – there’s an organization out west called Black Founders that does a pretty good job. There’s nothing that’s been as effective as that here in New York,” Hank Williams said.In an industry where everything from attracting talented staff to raising capital is all about who you know, a strong network of supporters is crucial to the success of any startup founder – including aspiring black techies. “Finding mentors and being rigorous around using their mentors is the best way for people to get ahead,” according to Ahmad-Taylor.Do black founders have to work extra hard to succeed? Ron Williams believes it depends on their connections. Success in the startup world “comes down to social interaction, people who advocate for you – you’ve just got to make sure you’ve got about as many friends in high places as the next guy. But if you’re starting off with less friends – if you didn’t go to Harvard, you didn’t go to MIT, you’re not a hacker yourself, you weren’t in that great computer science program somewhere, then by definition aren’t you starting off with less friends?”??“If that’s the case, you’ve got to work your butt off harder,” Ron Williams said.ITP's O’Sullivan agrees that one of the major benefits of attending a professional program is the connections that come with it. “I think the community of support from students and alums is more important than classes at ITP. That is what you pay for," O'Sullivan said.Where are the black Venture Capitalists?It’s not enough for aspiring entrepreneurs to build great products – they need someone to inject money into their companies, too. Venture Capitalists (VCs) are a major source of funding – and competition for their cash is fierce.?“Black VCs are far and few between. Period. That is a fact. It’s not that there are none – there are just very few,” Ron Williams said.?? He thinks diversity in the VC world is crucial. “Having that diversity increases the odds that you’ll look at someone who comes to the table with some brilliant idea or technology and say I want to back that person – not because you’re somehow overtly racist or prejudiced but just because people tend to more easily see merit in people who are like them, that’s a natural human trait – so having diversity helps offset that,” he said.Chipps agrees. “I think that there’s a mindset of who gets funded and what kind of person that is. And the person who comes to mind doesn’t tend to be black or female -- or a black female,” she said.Startups are risky investments - according to Harvard Business School, 70-80% of all startups fail to achieve their projected return on investment. Ron Williams doesn’t think VCs are explicitly making decisions not to fund black people, but wonders if some VCs may have a tendency to choose to invest in people who look like people who have been successful before.

“People are pattern recognizers,” Ron Williams suggested. “Whenever they can take risk off the table, they will. Just because we have similarities doesn’t mean I’ll get your money – but if we have enough differences I almost definitely won’t get your money.”

But, Ron Williams added, “You can’t just blame race when black tech companies don’t get funded. That’s not how it is to raise money. Whether you are black, white, or other, it’s really hard to raise money."Hank Williams is concerned, as the tech industry continues to grow, about what will happen if more blacks don’t enter the industry. “For those people that are not sufficiently engaged in the technology economy I fear the world is like a giant game of musical chairs. When the music stops, the people that have not secured a piece of the tech economy pie will be left without a chair to sit in, leading to a growing, permanent underclass."“The Internet is the largest recording of history that human kind has ever had, and it’s being made by white guys and Asian guys,” said Chipps. “We don’t know yet the consequences of how this will end up effecting future generations, but it will. The fact that we recognize people aren’t being represented in engineering – we need to talk about it and figure out why that is and think of a solution.”

News Update

Top 10 TV things for the week of March 11, 2012

1. “Once Upon a Time” (ABC, Sunday, 8 p.m.) While ABC has been trying to find the next “Desperate Housewives”-style soap smash for Sunday, this fairy tale drama has quietly built a nice following. It’s good gentle fun.

2. “The Good Wife” (CBS, Sunday, 9 p.m.) It’s gotten a little soapy, but it still may be the best legal drama on TV.

3. “The Walking Dead” (AMC, Sunday, 9 p.m.) Or, if you don’t feel like watching lawyers chew each other up, maybe you should watch zombies give it a try.

4. “Breakout Kings” (A&E, Sunday, 10 p.m.) This is what cable dramas can do well: a simple, stripped-down, focused drama with characters we like.

5. “The Voice” (NBC, Monday, 8 p.m.) It’s more than a fad. It may not deliver an army of stars, but it’s fast-moving and fun.

6. “2 Broke Girls” (CBS, Monday, 8:30 p.m.) It’s a rerun this week. Shut up and watch anyway.

7. “My Super Psycho Sweet 16 Part 3” (MTV, Tuesday, 10 p.m.) Television so rarely embraces the teen slasher genre as lovingly as it does here. It’s almost a shame this is the — heh, heh — last in the series.

8. “Justified” (FX, Tuesday, 10 p.m.) A modern-day Western that can stand with the best of the old ones, thanks largely to Timothy Olyphant as Elmore Leonard’s Raylan Givens.

9. “Nikita” (CW, Friday, 8 p.m.) The CW has almost fallen off the radar lately, but “Nikita” is still a fun action show, and Maggie Q is great to watch.

10. “In Plain Sight” (USA, Friday, 10 p.m.) Alas, this is the final season for this drama about a neurotic marshal who is very good with other people’s lives and not so good with her own.

News Update

Let the dream come true

With the political deadlock on immigration reform — including the no-brainer Dream Act, which aims to stop the deportation of young people illegally brought here by their parents — the nation lose critical talent to our competitors by the day.

A farsighted group of industry luminaries is not taking technical lying. It includes the family of Andrew Grove, Intel's founder; Laurene Powell Jobs, widow of Steve Jobs and other respected leaders.

They have ramped up donations to a group called educators to find consideration — non-profit that provides scholarships, career advice and legal services to hundreds of students brought to the country illegally as children.

The dream Act may remain a dream for the moment. But some business leaders are pragmatic wake up.

News Update

Joe Dziemianowicz’s theater picks for week of March 11

1. Michael Esper & Co. (Playwrights Horizons) Today is your last chance to see the ace cast of the terrifically mean-streaked “Assistance.”

2. “The Maids” (Theatre at St. Clement’s) Jean Genet’s 1947 classic French thriller comes courtesy of the ever-adventurous Red Bull Theater.

3. “An Iliad” (New York Theatre Workshop) It’s a story of war and remembrance well-told by the show’s co-writer Denis O’Hare and Stephen Spinella, who alternate the role of narrator.

4. “Newsies” (Nederlander Theatre) How to turn a Disney dud movie into a delightful stage musical? The production, starting Thursday, shows you how.

5. Drama Book Shop (250 W. 40th St.) The invaluable theater resource offers an in-store chat with “Other Desert Cities” writer Jon Robin Baitz on March 15.

6. Linda Lavin. The drop-dead funny actress who returns to Broadway next month in “The Lyons” gets feted on March 12 at the Vineyard Theatre, where the Nicky Silver comedy ran last year.

7. End Stage (480 W. 42nd St.) After a Goldlilocks-like trek through Signature Center’s three theaters, this airy home to “The Lady from Dubuque” is just right.

8. “Tribes” (Barrow Street Theatre). A beautifully acted, directed and designed production of Nina Raine’s drama about a deaf man, an outsider in his own family.

9. Elizabeth Marvel (Booth Theatre). She’s back in the role she originated in “Other Desert Cities,” playing a writer whose memoir shakes up her family.

10. The logo for “Once” (Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre). Star Steve Kazee likes the charming drawing of a guitar so much he’s considering get a tattoo of it.

News Update

Trial ' Desperate Housewives ': Exec says he OKed by killing the character Sheridan

Former ABC Chief Stephen McPherson testified Friday that he approved a plan to kill presumably serial seductress "Desperate Housewives" Edie Britt a full four months before Show creator Marc Cherry hit actress Nicollette Sheridan in the head of a highly controversial incident in rehearsal.

McPherson, who left the network in July 2010 amidst news of an internal probe of sexual harassment, said Cherry asked for his blessing upon the death of Sheridan Realtor vampy during a pitch meeting in May 2008.

"Presented information that wanted to kill the character off," said McPherson. "This was the time to let us know in the confidentiality that wanted to put an end to period of Edie."

Wearing a v-neck sweater casual sneakers, McPherson said he remembered telling cherry who wanted to make the death of five season "promotable".

"I gave them my approval," he said. "We were really excited about the possibilities."

Under interrogation, Sheridan's lawyer Mark Baute McPherson asked if it were true that he resigned from ABC "with a notice period of one day."

Cherry's lawyer Adam Levin objected, calling it irrelevant, and the judge agreed.

Baute previously told the Daily News that the circumstances of McPherson's departure from ABC were off limits, when he entered the jury box.

Sheridan, now looking for 6 million dollars with his drums and wrongful termination case against Cherry and ABC, claims that she was fired from the show in February 2009 in retaliation for his complaint that Cherry walloped her "tough", in a fit of frustration on September 24, 2008.

Cherry has previously testified that he "Tapped" the head to give his creative direction, and that the incident played no part in his decision to kill Britt.

Show Senior scribe Jeff Greenstein took the stand after McPherson and said that he believed that the decision was not finalized until early 2009.

"As the fall (2008), there were a lot of discussions about whether this was or was not a good idea," Greenstein said jurors. "I remember that during October, November, December, this was still an issue (Cherry) was not completely at rest with."

Greenstein acknowledged that was a part-time private not for all creative discussions, but said that he had regular high-level meetings with cherry covered arches of the main character of the show.

Earlier Friday, one of the show's executive producer testified that Sheridan was habitually late on set and often forgot her lines but she added that she was "receptive" flowers of inputs and deserved after the altercation on the set.

News Update

Ashleymadison.com: Oscars' home great for an affair

BILLY CRYSTAL called the Kodak Theatre “Chapter 11 Theater” at this year’s Academy Awards, but AshleyMadison.com has another idea. The notorious extramarital dating site has made an official bid for the naming rights to the Hollywood and Highland Center, home of the Oscars telecast since 2001. Owner CIM Group has been searching for a replacement sponsor since Eastman Kodak filed for bankruptcy earlier this year, and last week the website offered $5 million a year to rename it the AshleyMadison.com Theatre, noting that “Hollywood and infidelity make for a natural partnership.”

The site’s bid is actually slightly higher than the $70 million that Kodak earlier agreed to pay over a 20-year period, but we suspect that the Academy would rather name the theater after Harvey Weinstein than go there. A rep for CIM declined to comment.

JULIANNE MOORE might not have developed any newfound respect for Sarah Palin by playing her in HBO’s adaptation of “Game Change,” but the actress who plays daughter Bristol Palin has a different story to tell.

On the red carpet at the film’s Ziegfeld Theatre premiere on Wednesday, Melissa Farman told us that she “absolutely” empathized with Bristol, who was a teen when the events of “Game Change” took place (she’s now 21). “I remember how awkward it was for me to be a teenager,” said Farman, adding, “I can’t imagine being pregnant and having my mother run for vice president.” In December, we asked Moore if playing Palin had given her a deeper understanding of the Grizzly Mama. She raised an eyebrow, sighed deeply and quietly replied: “No.”

JUDE LAW is enjoying the single life again. On Tuesday night, a spy tells us the handsome actor and a beautiful blond tripped the light fantastic at Catch Rooftop in the Meatpacking District. “They were dancing provocatively and making ‘Dancing With the Stars’ moves,” says our insider, who says Law left with the woman around 1 a.m.

His presence was noted by at least one other person. On Tuesday, @nycclubslut tweeted: “Jude Law at Catch. I think we all just died.”

Law has been laying low since officially breaking up with on-again, off-again fiancée Sienna Miller in February 2011. The actress rebounded with actor Tom Sturridge, and she’s now barefoot and pregnant with his baby.

SCENE STEALERS: Bobbi Brown telling guests at Real Simple magazine’s “Women & Time: Setting a New Agenda” breakfast panel that her cosmetics company’s “most important employee” was the full-time manicurist she employs. ... Adrian Grenier and a pal enjoying the view and some Remy V as women swarmed his table at Baoli Miami on Wednesday. ... Giants receiver Hakeem Nicks partying at Tenjune in the Meatpacking District Wednesday with rappers French Montana and Maino and dancing to their song “First Round Draft Pick” ... CNBC anchor Mandy Drury checking out a Havanese puppy at the Humane Society of N.Y. shelter after being moved by lawyer Mark W. Smith’s speech at the HSNY benefit at District 36 on March 3.

TAMMY FAYE STARLITE’S homage to Nico is attracting serious pop music talent. The performance artist, who plays the former Velvet Underground singer in “Chelsea Madchen,” is back in town after an L.A. tour that brought out Pet Shop Boys Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe. The “West End Girls” guys liked the show so much that they recommended it to pal Siobhan Fahey of Bananarama and Shakespear’s Sister fame. “The band was brilliant, the interview interludes were hilarious, and Tammy Faye Starlite is an incredible actress,” said Tennant. Lowe agreed, adding: “There wasn’t a minute when we didn’t think we weren’t watching the real Nico.”

Contact Gatecrasher:

Frank DiGiacomo: fdigiacomo@nydailynews.com

Carson Griffith: cgriffith@nydailynews.com

Adam Caparell: acaparell@nydailynews.com

Follow us on Twitter:

@NYDNGatecrasher

News Update

Song Spotify what Mitt Romney say collects about his soul

A man of constant sorrow that roams this world alone, condemned to accomplish his greatest loves only in dreams.

This sound like the description of a man running for President?

More like a tortured artist, right?

Believe it or not, that is the inner life suggested songs that Mitt Romney caressed enough to put on your Spotify playlists.

Yes, it is that we're talking about Mitt Romney 's, better known as a successful business magnate wildly, doting family man, eager public servant and all around a nice guy.

Who knew?

Romney opens his list of 25 song version of The Soggy Bottom Boys ' of the classical song of suffering ' I am a man of Constant Sorrow ". He continued to pepper the list with the cover of Clint Black's ode to a stop Eagles ' "Desperado," lonely by Roy Orbison uber-Moby "Weeps" (along with its classic love song "In Dreams" foiled), rumination on eternal damnation Johnny Cash, "Ring of Fire" and Willie Nelson play the final song of yearning hopeless, "Somewhere Over The Rainbow".

Together, these selections suggest a boy whose soul may be much deeper and less satisfied with his public persona.

The list includes some other surprises — as some low life choices, including two songs by The Killers ("Read My Mind" and "Somebody Told Me"). It also makes room for Carrie Underwood's song less than male stereotpyically "All American Girl".

Underwood is the only female artist on the list.

There is only one African-American Act included, "The Commodores with" Only You, "Although specific" long version ".

Unlike the iPod play list of Obama, Romney has no hip-hop and decidedly less classic rock — although he did make room for "Good Vibrations", The Beach Boys and Frankie Valli and "December 1963 Oh What A night," the four seasons

Country artists occupy about one third of the list. And there is at least one piece of American rah-rah, Kid Rock's "born free."

But the most telling of all is that Romney's list, which includes many songs of sadness and unfulfillment.

No wonder they say that it is not really a people person.

jfarber@nydailynews.com

News Update

Bullet in neck, he's sent home

Two girls and a man who was sent home from a hospital with a bullet lodged in the back of his neck were the latest victims of senseless gun play — all cut down at a Bronx bodega.

Ricardo Acevedo, 47, was on a ladder replacing a security camera outside Astor Deli Grocery in Bronxdale just before 8 p.m. Thursday. He heard three or four gunshots and felt a sudden burn near the base of his skull.

“I felt a pain in my neck,” the married father of five said. “I reached back and touched my neck and saw blood all over my fingers.”

The wounded Acevedo stumbled to a salon where his wife works, about a block away from the shooting. He was taken to St. Barnabas Hospital and was released just two hours later with the slug still stuck in his flesh.

Acevedo said doctors at St. Barnabas told him to go to a clinic affiliated with the hospital on Monday. The bullet could be removed then.

“I’m not worried about it,” he said of the decision to release him from the hospital so soon after the shooting. “I feel okay. I don’t know anything about medicine. Since I felt okay, I listened to the doctors.”

Hospital officials declined to comment on the decision to send the wounded man home. Acevedo on Friday was just happy to be breathing.

“It’s a miracle I’m still alive,” he said. “I could have died from that shot.”

The gunman, believed to be a teen, ran inside the Astor Ave. bodega and squeezed off at least two more shots, Acevedo and cops said.

One bullet hit 15-year-old Aleah Detres in the hip; another pierced the leg of 12-year-old Mia Washington, relatives and friends said.

“I don’t know who he was shooting at,” said Aleah, who was in the store with friends to buy a soda. “He came in the store, looking crazy. We all ran and he started shooting.”

The Theodore Roosevelt High School sophomore said she ran inside a bathroom when she heard the shots and then realized she had been hit.

“I looked down and I saw blood all over my side,” she said.

Aleah and Mia were recovering from their wounds Friday at Jacobi Medical Center. The two girls were sharing the same room as doctors decided if surgery was needed to remove the bullet from Aleah’s side.

“I’m hanging in there,” Aleah said. “It was really shocking. . . I feel lucky, because if it was a bigger bullet, I don’t think I would have made it.”

Investigators believe the shooter was aiming for a person who was standing in a crowd outside the store. The gunman chased them inside when they tried to escape, sources said.

The suspect ran out of the store, leaving behind chaos and a flurry of bullets. No arrests have been made.

News Update

Jim Farber’s Top Ten in music for week of March 11

1) The Lijadu Sisters “Danger” and “Mother Africa” : By now, you know all about Fela. Next, you should check out his cousins, the Lijadu Sisters, who also emerged from Nigeria in the ’70s with an Afro-meets-psychedelic sound, heard on four classic albums. The first two have now been reissued: “Danger,” the rockier of the two, sung in English, and “Mother Africa,” a more trad CD, sung in Yoruba. Both disks match the Sisters’ close, conversational harmonies to beats that undulate gorgeously.

2) Caetano Veloso and David Byrne “Live at Carnegie Hall” : David Byrne deserves credit for introducing many benighted Americans to the sumptuous lilts of seminal Brazilian artist Caetano Veloso through several ’90s compilations on his Luaka Bop label. In 2004, Veloso returned the favor by inviting Byrne to split a bill with him at Carnegie Hall. Amazingly, Veloso’s rapturous work works well with Byrne’s jerkier style, providing a sweet and telling contrast.

3) Macy Gray “Covered” : Ironically, Macy Gray has found her most serious voice by covering the songs of others. They range from a sinister run at Eurythmics’ “Here Comes the Rain Again” to a take on Metallica’s “Nothing Else Matters” that’s both funky and graceful.

4) Andrew Bird “Break It Yourself” : Bird’s violin work has a beauty, and formality, ideally suited to his boyish voice.

5) Ana Tijoux “La Bala”: Rappers who sing seldom do both well. But Chile’s Ana Tijoux has a voice that’s fluid and a rapping style of genuine force.

6) Lyle Lovett “Release Me” : Lovett’s latest finds its sweet spot in a loving duet with k.d lang on the title track. Also of note: his rocking revival of Jesse Winchester’s obscure blues gem “Isn’t That So.”

7) Galactic “Carnivale Electricos” : New Orleans’ funk meets Rio’s samba on the latest disk from Galactic. The result? An international party.

8) Tennis “Young & Old” : Singer Alaina Moore has a Lulu-like, girlish purity to it that adds winsome lilt to songs blessed with a ’60s pop snap.

9) Robert Glasper Experiment “Black Radio” : At the hinge of hip-hop and jazz lies pianist Robert Glasper. His latest, sprawling effort creates a radio station of the mind, full of cameos from the likes of Erykah Badu and Lupe Fiasco, together creating a fresco of riffs and rhymes.

10) The Kaiser Chiefs “Start the Revolution Without Me” : Lots of bands went ’80s-crazy five years ago. But on their fifth disk, the Kaiser Chiefs continue to make that retro strategy seem more individual and catchier than any of their peers.

News Update

'Casablanca' celebrates its 70th with 500 theater showings

When you commute for enough years on a train or bus, you inevitably have an occasional random thought about some totally uncharacteristic thing you’d like to see happen, just once.

Call it a commuter bucket list.

Mine involves the film “Casablanca,” which comes to mind because on March 21, “Casablanca” is returning for a one-night stand in several hundred movie theaters.

More on that in a second. Meanwhile, back to me.

I am not objective on the subject of “Casablanca.” I’m obnoxious. You can ask my wife, who refuses to watch it with me anymore because I involuntarily say all the lines a second before the actors.

I’m the guy at the party who randomly says things like, “That is my least vulnerable spot” or “She’s coming back. I know she’s coming back.”

That may explain why I don’t get invited to many parties.

Anyhow, my iPod includes a six-minute excerpt from “Casablanca.”

It starts with Victor Laszlo (Paul Henreid) approaching Humphrey Bogart’s Rick Blaine in Rick’s Cafe and asking, “Monsieur Blaine, may I have a minute?” It ends with Major Strasser (Conrad Veidt) telling Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman), “Mademoiselle, you may have observed that in Casablanca, human life is cheap.”

In between, Victor has heard Major Strasser and his German officers singing “Die Wacht am Rhein” (“Watch on the Rhine”) and ordered Rick’s house orchestra to drown them out by playing “La Marseillaise.”

Even though Rick knows this incendiary act will infuriate Major Strasser, he nods approval. Against the backdrop of a world where the Germans have conquered France and occupied Paris, this defiant anthem becomes so stirring the whole cafe joins in.

Call it a cheap setup if you like. Me, tears well up in my eyes every time I see or hear it, including when I hear it on my iPod on the 6:24.

That’s where the commuter fantasy kicks in.

As I’m riding along I imagine “La Marseillaise” blasting through the whole car, echoing off expensive shoulder bags and forcing every head to look up from their smartphones and Kindles.

I envision one person, then two, then everyone starting to sing “La Marseillaise,” swelling to a finale that rattles the steel wheels and dissolves into shouts of “Vive La France!”

Okay, I know that’s less likely on the 6:24 in 2012 than it was in Casablanca in 1942.

So what, I say. You deal with commuting in your way and I deal with it in mine.

This much, however, should not be in dispute: No one has ever made a more justifiably beloved movie than “Casablanca.”

News Update

10 March: mourning the death of Lexington, St Pat's dog and bemoaning the evil in our midst

All dogs go to heaven — especially this one

Closter, NJ: Re "St Pat's dog goes to heaven" (7 March): Lexington, can rest in peace. I love you, and you will always be in my heart. Amy Bezer

Not in my back yard? Could be

Whitestone: a cache of weapons was found in a house in Woodmere, L.I., and all the neighbors said things like that don't happen in neighborhoods like them. When was brutally murdered little Leiby Kletzky, reactions were the same — one of their own could not do a monstrous thing. We are by nature likely to ignore signals that something is a bit off because we are willing to suspect of people who seem to be just like us. It's time to step away from that false sense of security and face the fact that crime happens everywhere, evil can be found everywhere and it is not always that cause problems. If we all accept this fact and became a little more cautious, attentive and willing to speak, everyone would be much safer. Carolyn Bunkley

Missed opportunity

Manchester, N.J.: I agree with Voicer Mike Campisi about all attacks that caused Muslim extremists. Many of them occurred when Bill Clinton was President, and nothing was done. Maybe if we had stopped them, then we would be in the mess we are now. Carol Cavanaugh

On guard

Morganville, N.J.: Voicer Mike Campisi, I say, amen! Unfortunately, the good suffer for evil. Not all Muslims are extremists, but we must be vigilant. Debbie Jordan

The Jersey I connection

Middle Village: If the Governor of New Jersey Chris Christie tries to stop the New York City police from spying on Muslims in his State, perhaps the families of the victims of the attacks of 9/11 and the 1993 Trade Center should sue the State of New Jersey for not doing his job with law enforcement. Most of the terrorists came from New Jersey. Do your job in New Jersey, and NYPD won't have to do it for you! Steven Diaz

Connecting Jersey II

Little Egg Harbor, N.J.: we love Chris Christie the Governor of the State of the garden, but his views on efforts to protect us all NYPD by terrorists are misguided. The terrorists of 9/11 that took down the twin towers had driver's licenses in New Jersey, and that is how they got they hijacked aircraft. We also spy the President if saves lives. Political correctness will be our downfall. Doug Wilson

Uneasy rider

Clifton, NJ: Neydit: cyclist Voicer Bob Evan Neumann was not "doing right by a left lane through lane." The Daily News reported on March 6 that he "was the ticket when policemen saw pedal northbound bike lane ... to get to the other side of the road, turn right on Stanton St." His ticket was for failure to use a bicycle. Ronald K. Samuel

News Update

3 Kesalahan Dalam Merawat Kulit Kering & Solusinya

Jakarta - Kulit kering membuat tampilan kulit terlihat kusam dan tidak cerah. Terkadang, wanita juga tidak sadar kalau mereka sering melakukan kesalahan saat merawat kulit, yang malah membuat kulit semakin kering. Maka dari itu, coba ikuti saran dari para ahli agar Anda lebih mengerti bagaimana membuat kulit tetap sehat dan tidak kusam.

Berikut kesalahan yang sering terjadi ketika mengatasi kulit kering dan cara mengatasinya, seperti dikutip dari Daily Glow.

1.Tidak Dapat Membedakan antara Kulit Kering dan Kulit Dehidrasi
“Kebanyakan mereka berpikir kalau kulit kering itu berarti kulit dehidrasi. Padahal, kulit kering sangat jarang ditemukan,” ujar Joanna Czech, seorang ahli kecantikan. Perbedaannya, kulit kering memiliki pori-pori kecil dan kulit terasa kaku. Kalau kulit dehidrasi tidak cerah dan mengelupas.

Solusi: Pakai produk pelembab dua kali sehari. Pada pagi hari pelembab sangat penting untuk menjaga kesehatan kulit Anda. Pelembab bermanfaat untuk menggantikan air dan menghindari kerusakan kulit akibat terkena sinar matahari. Saat malam hari, pelembab berfungsi untuk menyimpan air setelah mandi atau mencuci muka.

Anda juga perlu memfokuskan perawatan di sekitar mata dan bibir yang lebih mudah kering, sehingga menimbulkan kerut halus. Gunakan krim mata dan lip balm yang bagus untuk menjaga kelembaban bibir. Pelembab lebih diutamakan yang banyak mengandung minyak almond dan shea butter (krim yang terbuat dari ekstrak biji pohon shea).

2.Menggunakan Scrub Secara Berlebihan
Efek dari kulit kering adalah kulit menjadi bersisik. Solusi yang kerap Anda lakukan mungkin menghaluskan kulit kembali dengan men-scrub tubuh.

“Jangan terus-menerus menggunakan scrub demi mendapatkan kulit yang cantik secara instan. Hal itu dapat menimbulkan peradangan kulit. Membersihkan kulit dengan kasar tidak dapat menghasilkan apa-apa,” tutur Jessica Wu, M.D, seorang asisten klinik, ahli penyakit kulit di Universitas Southern California Medical School di Los Angeles.

Solusi: Anda boleh saja menggunakan scrub, tapi ada jarak waktu pemakaiannya, minimal seminggu sekali. Hindari pembersih yang berbentuk gel dan produk yang banyak mengandung sulfat karena memiliki zat keras yang dapat menghilangkan kelembaban kulit.

3.Penggunaan Produk yang Salah
Apa Anda tahu kondisi dan jenis kulit Anda? Wanita kerap kali memakai produk yang tidak sesuai dengan kulit mereka. “Rata-rata orang yang mempunyai kulit dehidrasi atau kulit kering karena menggunakan produk kecantikan yang terlalu berat dan banyak mengandung zat dengan kadar tinggi. Ketidakcocokan molekul-molekul di dalamnya membuat zat tersebut susah mengatasi kerusakan kulit sehingga tidak menghasilkan apa-apa,” ucap Wei Lang, seorang ahli kecantikan selebriti dan pemilik Wei Lang Spa di New York.

Solusi: Cari lah produk perawatan yang tepat. “Serum yang bagus memiliki molekul kecil yang menambahkan kelembaban, menguncinya di dalam, serta membuat lapisan pencegah dehidrasi,” papar Lang.

Dokter Wu menyarankan memakai produk yang mengandung akar manis dan ekstrak kedelai karena bermanfaat sebagai obat anti peradangan, mengurangi kulit kemerahan, juga mencegah iritasi. Selain itu, Wu merekomendasikan produk yang kaya akan hyaluronic acid (zat yang berfungsi untuk mengikat air) dan niacinamide, yang meningkatkan hidrasi, mengurangi kulit gatal dan kaku.

(kik/kik)

berita unik

Free and Cheap NYC for the week of March 11

BUBBLE BLOWER Be amazed by award-winning performer Casey Carle’s one-man show “Bubblemania.” Combining comedy, jazz and bubble blowing, the performance includes fog-filled sculptures, bubble ping-pong and more. 1 & 3 p.m. $14. Queens Theatre, 14 United Nations Ave. South. (718) 760-0064.

MUSIC FOR THE SOUL Be the first to see rising R&B stars on the legendary B.B. King Blues Club stage. “R&B Spotlight,” hosted by Datwon Thomas of Vibe magazine, features musical guests Winslow Dynasty, Rasheeda Wallace, Mio Soul and more. 8 p.m. $12. 237 W. 42nd St. (212) 997-4144.

LIVE ART Bring your own art supplies to “Dr. Sketchy’s Anti-Art School,” an event that is part burlesque and part live drawing class. This week’s model, dominatrix Dante Posh will pose in costumes inspired by historic sculptures. 4 p.m. $15. The Bowery Poetry Club, 308 Bowery. (212) 614-0505.

FIGHT OFF THE BLUES Head to Pete’s Candy Store and listen to hauntingly beautiful music by the Great Republic of Rough and Ready. The group strips down works by artists ranging from Ma Rainey to Skip James to reexamine the traditions of country, folk and blues music. 8:30 p.m. Free. 709 Lorimer St., Brooklyn. (718) 302-3770.

CAMPING OUT Look for the perfect summer camp at “The New York Family Camp Fair Series.” Representatives from camps across New York and New Jersey will help parents find the perfect experience for kids ages 3 to 17. Register at newyorkfamilycamps.com. Noon-3 p.m. Free. Union Temple, 17 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn. (646) 442-1662.

MOVIE STALKER Join writer Geoff Dyer at the Museum of the Moving Image as he talks about his longtime obsession with Russian director Andrei Tarkovsky’s “Stalker.” Dyer turned the movie into a book called “Zona: A Book About a Film About a Journey to a Room.” 3 p.m. $6-$12. 36-01 35th Ave., Queens. (718) 777-6888.

PHOTO OP Get a sneak peek at award-winning photojournalist and filmmaker Ed Kashi’s upcoming book, “Photojournalisms,” based on 20 years of field journal entries and images addressed to his wife. The book launch also features a slide show of Kashi’s recent work for National Geographic. Wine will be served. 5 p.m. $5. powerHouse Arena, 37 Main St., Brooklyn. (718) 666-3049.

FUN WITH ROBOTS Celebrate the opening of RoboFun with a day of kid-friendly events. Build things with Lego, operate a robot, experience stop-motion animation and design a video game. Don’t forget to take home a goody bag. Email openhouse@vemny.org to register. 1-4 p.m. Free. 2672 Broadway, at 101st St. (212) 245-0444.

News Update

Bearcats bounce Orange in Big East semis

CINCINNATI 71 SYRACUSE 68

The Cincinnati Bearcats were a part of the ugliest moment of this college basketball season. On Friday night, they got to be part of one of its most glorious.

Cincinnati, three months removed from a bloody brawl against hometown rival Xavier, scored a shocking upset of top-seeded and No. 2-ranked Syracuse, 71-68, in a Big East semifinal at the Garden.

PHOTOS: BEARCATS BOUNCE ORANGE IN BIG EAST SEMIFINALS

The same players who apologized on camera for giving their school and their city a black eye were standing at midcourt after surviving the Orange’s furious comeback with their index fingers held high. The Bearcats (23-9) will play in their first Big East championship game Saturday night against seventh-Louisville, which ousted Notre Dame in the late semifinal.

“My guys played with unbelievable toughness,” Cincinnati coach Mick Cronin said. “When our toughness rises to the level of our talent, we have a great team. We can beat anybody.”

For Syracuse (31-2), the loss isn’t likely to cost it a No. 1 seeding when the NCAA Tournament field is announced on Sunday.

“Most national championships — not all but a lot — have been won by teams that lose in their conference tournament,” Orange coach Jim Boeheim said. “As much as we wanted to win this tournament, the tournament that starts next week is the only one that matters.”

Cincinnati looked as if it might cruise in taking down the beast of the Big East when it was up 17 in the first half, but it couldn’t close the door on Syracuse until the final seconds. A Dion Waiters 3-pointer with 17.1 seconds left cut the Cincy lead to 68-66, and Syracuse fouled JaQuon Parker quickly. He made one of two at the line, and then Cronin made the strategic move of having Cashmere Wright foul Waiters with 5.4 seconds left instead of letting him try for a game-tying three.

Waiters hit both foul shots to get the Orange within 69-68. Syracuse pressed on the ensuing possession, but White Plains product Sean Kilpatrick got off an outlet pass to Justin Jackson, who sealed it with a breakaway dunk.

Kilpatrick and Yancy Gates each scored 18 and Wright and Dion Dixon each scored 11 for the Bearcats. Waiters had 28 points, including seven 3-pointers, and Fab Melo had 11 points for Syracuse.

Kris Joseph had nine points and no rebounds, Scoop Jardine had six points and five turnovers and Boeheim pointed out that their play was a factor.

“When we played our best, Scoop and Kris have been there,” he said. “Scoop wasn’t there. Kris didn’t get a rebound in 33 minutes.”

Cincinnati didn’t look like a team that was playing in its first Big East semifinal as it made six of its first seven threes to take a 25-8 lead less than 10 minutes into the game — “They were on fire,” Waiters said — and put the Orange into the sort of deficit it saw only when it lost its other game Jan. 21 against Notre Dame. The ’Cuse managed to get within 35-23.

“We’ve come a long way since that,” Gates said of the Dec. 10 fight. “We became a better team as the season went on. Tonight, this is what we’re capable of becoming.”

News Update

Eating Along the 7: Japanese bakery Cafe Zaiya

The ice rink is down at Bryant Park — a sure sign that spring is almost here.

And the perfect spot to watch the space transform from a winter wonderland to a warm weather oasis?

Cafe Zaiya, located on the second floor of Sixth Avenue’s Kinokuniya bookstore.

Just steps away from the 7 line’s Fifth Ave.-Bryant Park stop, the Japanese bakery has long been an affordable lunch spot for midtown office workers.

Most go for the traditional bento boxes — or donburi, Japanese rice bowls.

There’s also a large selection of wrapped sandwiches, including the customer favorite, chicken cutlet with the house mayo.

Lighter fare include sushi and onigri, Japanese rice balls.

Shaped into triangles, the rice “balls” come stuffed with salmon, shrimp tempura or spicy tuna.

Be sure to follow directions on how to unwrap it or the seaweed covering will quickly separate from the rice, turning the portable snack into a messy meal.

While most diners grab and go, the aerial view of Bryant Park from Cafe Zaiya’s window bar is truly worth a stay.

Stop by during the post-lunch rush and enjoy the cafe’s real gems: the pastries.

Sit down for a coffee — they brew Seattle’s Best — or better yet, a green tea latte. On hot days, Cafe Zaiya regulars recommend the black sesame frappe, a frothy milkshake made with ground sesame paste.

Pair the drinks with a savory bun like the C.O.B. (corn, onion and bacon) or satisfy your sweet tooth with yakimochi, a grilled rice cake stuffed with mashed azuki beans.

The desserts are a mix of East and West — the berry berry mousse, made of strawberries, raspberries and white chocolate, sits next to a green tea cake in the display case near the cash register.

Meanwhile, pudding cups come in flavors like mango mousse and tiramisu.

Between the food and the nearby shelves teeming with Japanese fashion magazines and mangas, it’ll feel like you’ve been transported to Tokyo.

Just ignore the yellow cabs rushing by underneath the window.

Cafe Zaiya 1073 Sixth Ave. at W. 41st St., 2nd Fl. (212) 764-6785.

News Update

Smith ' regrets ' tweeting photos of naked woman

MILWAUKEE — JR Smith said Friday night that he "deplores" post a picture of a naked woman on her Twitter account.

Smith, whose content social media sometimes inappropriate he got in hot water first, officials hinted that the Knicks had addressed the issue with him, but that the NBA has not contacted him.

"No, not yet," said Smith. "I am sure it will be. I haven't heard from anyone yet. "

Smith has posted a picture of Tahiry reportedly lying on his bed hotel room late Thursday night. Deadspin.com linked to photos on his website.

"I mean, I didn't know it was going to be as big of a deal as it is now," said Smith. "Definitely regret it. At any time I do anything that takes our team I have absolutely no intention of regret. "

Smith, who leads the team in social media, has posted occasionally misogynist and raunchy material. Last month, he used his account @ TheRealJRSmith to confirm a report Daily News that he had signed with the Knicks.

Asked if team officials have talked about him his latest controversial tweet, Smith replied: "some people told me about it. It wasn't the smartest move. I understand that now. I just gotta be smarter with my decisions. "

Smith made his first start for the Knicks on Friday night 119-114 loss to Milwaukee. He played only 18 minutes, he attempted three shots and was visibly upset, as he sat on the bench in the second half.

A sixth man for most of his career, Smith would be a scorer off the bench.

News Update

Top 10 movie things for week of March 11, 2012

1. “John Carter” finally arrives, without “... of Mars” as part of its title. Disney probably didn’t want audiences to think it was another Republican primary candidate.

2. Angelina Jolie wants a better screenplay for a “Salt” sequel. Her right leg, though, loved a scene where it blew away a team of evil, terrorist legs.

3. “Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax” opens huge, with a Thneed-shaking $70 million-plus weekend.

4. “Hunger Games” author Suzanne Collins gives the movie version “a thumbs-up.” Then she goes back to eating a giant plate of money.

5. A battle royal: Best Actress winner Julia Roberts plays the evil queen in this month’s Snow White update “Mirror, Mirror” — the same role Best Actress winner Charlize Theron plays in June’s “Show White and the Huntsman.”

6. An actor named Joel Kinnaman will be the new RoboCop. Producers searched high and low for just the right chin.

7. Ryan Reynolds says he’s still hoping to do a movie as Marvel character Deadpool. Now showing at the bottom of the Deadpool: A double feature of “The Change-Up” and “Green Lantern .”

8. First picture of Johnny Depp's upcoming "The Lone Ranger" is released. In the comics, LR was related to the Green Hornet, and look how that movie turned out.

9. Lindsay Lohan's March 3 hosting gig on "Saturday Night Live." Her last time on the show was in 2006 to promote "Just My Luck." Now she's pushing her luck.

10. After this summer’s “Battleship,” get ready for the next board-game movie, “Ouija.” Hey look what it’s spelling out! P...l...e...a...s...e... D...o...n...’t... M...a...k...e... T...h...i...s...

News Update

Rugby cookbook raises the bar on pub grub

Rugby players are a force to be reckoned with — in the kitchen as well as on the pitch.

“I am out to destroy the myth that all rugby players do is eat fried food and burgers,” says David Martin, author of “The Hooligan’s Table: The Rugby Player’s Cookbook.”

His new guide rounds up some familiar pub staples, like shepherd’s pie and chicken wings, pulled from rugby bars around the world.

The book scores by including quirkier fare, such as beer can chicken and gut bomb pudding, which are as unique as the full-contact English sport that blends elements of football and soccer.

“I was blown away by the diversity of recipes that I collected,” says Martin, 51, a former Daily News reporter and Brooklyn freelance writer who still boots up with the Gentlemen of New York old boys rugby club.

He earned a reputation among his teammates for sniffing out the best local dishes whenever the club traveled to tournaments.

He began tapping teams to share their favorite recipes, but soon realized his cookbook doubled as a playbook to understanding rugby culture.

What other sport sees both teams bellying up to the bar together and sharing a pint after 90 minutes of beating each other to a pulp?

“I tried to show the camaraderie,” says Martin.

“Rugby is still under-the-radar, but not necessarily for long,” he continues. “It’s already on TV. It’s going to be in the Olympics in a couple of years. Every major city has at least one or two teams.”

And each of those teams has its own regular bar that specializes in a different dish.

Martin began collecting recipes in his own backyard, tackling the bars across the boroughs, such as O’Brien’s Bar and Restaurant in Times Square.

Owner Des O’Brien’s pub is the New York Rugby Club’s official bar. The upstairs Sin Bin is decked with rugby balls, jerseys and framed pictures of players.

“There is a culture among rugby players of ferocious appetites, so this book is an interesting angle,” says O’Brien.

His dishes include authentic Irish fish and chips, plus bangers and mash, which run over the competition thanks to his specialized batter that uses a splash of his bar's own Langan’s Ale.

“Anybody who’s ever picked up a rugby ball and has picked up a knife and fork will have something to gravitate to,” says O’Brien. “I can see rugby parties coming out of this book!”

“The Hooligan’s Table” delivers pub grub perfect for noshing while watching the Six Nations Championship, a rugby tournament between European countries that runs until St. Patrick’s Day that Martin calls “the March Madness of rugby.”

The Australian restaurant in midtown (home of the New York Knights rugby club) lends its kangaroo filet mignon with boar bacon to the menu for adventurous foodies.

Or novice chefs can keep things sweet and simple with fried chocolate bars courtesy of the Chip Shop in Park Slope, whose owner, Christopher Sell, hails from Rugby, England, where the sport was born.

“I hope to show you how to cook some things that you’ve probably tried in a bar, along with some recipes that are really interesting that you can use to impress a date,” says Martin.

His favorite picks include the beer can chicken from the Miami Trident rugby football club, which involves drinking half a can of beer before mounting a seasoned chicken on top of it and grilling for an hour and a half.

“It makes the most moist, tender barbecued chicken,” says Martin. “It’s fantastic.”

o

YOU SHOULD KNOW

“The Hooligan's Table,” published by iUniverse, is available for $21.95 at TheRugbyCookbook.com.

o

Serves: 4

From the Chip Shop in Park Slope, Brooklyn
FOR THE FILLING:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 onion, medium sized, diced
1 carrot diced small
1 pound ground beef
1 14-ounce can crushed tomatoes (or diced if you prefer)
1 teaspoon flour
1 cube beef stock
4 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded
Salt & pepper to taste
FOR THE MASHED POTATOES:
(The Chip Shop does not use milk, cream or garlic powder in their mashed potatoes.)
5 potatoes, peeled and quartered
2 tablespoons salt
¼ cup milk
¼ cup heavy cream
¼ cup butter
¼ teaspoon garlic powder (optional)

First in a large pot half-filled with water, add salt and get the water boiling, then drop in the potatoes. When you can easily run a knife through them, drain the water and add the milk, cream, butter, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Mix them until they are smooth. Set aside.
In a skillet, heat the vegetable oil and add the carrots and the onions for five minutes. Then add the ground beef to cook for a further 15 minutes until the beef is cooked. Add the flour, and mix in well. Add the canned tomatoes and the beef stock cube and cook for about five minutes. Season to taste.
Now place the meat mixture in the bottom of a medium-size oven proof dish. Cover with the mashed potatoes, then the cheese. Place in an oven at 375 degrees for about 30 minutes or until hot and nicely browned.

News Update

Stick&Pop puts cake and frosting on a stick

Jacki Caponigro and Christy Nyberg are real pop stars —

at least when it comes to cake pops.

After starting Stick&Pop as an online business more than a year ago, the two have opened a brick-and-mortar location in Chelsea.

The airy shop, with smooth white cabinets and girly pink details, stocks all 11 of their original decadent flavors, including Teddy Bear and Johnny Cakes.

Caponigro, who worked in fashion, and Nyberg, a former marketing professional, started Stick&Pop in 2010 while they were between careers.

“We had lunch one day and Jacki was talking about some pops she had at a party and how amazing they were,” recalls Nyberg. “I’m actually not into sweets, but I’m into small bites so we decided to start experimenting.”

Though cake pops look relatively simple — cake dipped in chocolate then topped with sprinkles — the pair discovered that the treats are actually quite time consuming.

It took a lot of trial-and-error before Caponigro, a French Culinary Institute grad, and Nyberg came up with a working formula — one that, even now, changes depending on the ingredients they use.

“It’s funny to think how many things we tried, like cutting silicone spheres and pouring the batter in,” says Nyberg.

“Or cooking peanut butter cups into them,”adds Caponigro.

The trick to having the cake stay on the stick, they eventually discovered, is rolling it with frosting.

“Baking it into the ball was never going to work if you want to dip it into chocolate,” explains Caponigro.

Stick&Pop’s menu is an homage to the mix-and-match feel of an old-fashioned ice cream parlor.

Flavors include the O’Hara (coconut cake dipped in dark chocolate), Lunchbox (peanut butter cake with a raspberry swirl) and Moonpop (vanilla cream cheese cake dipped in crushed Oreos).

Instead of constantly changing the menu, Caponigro and Nyberg opted to roll out new ones for holidays instead.

Since they opened their Chelsea shop, the two have received plenty of suggestions from customers, something they’ve heartily embraced.

“You have these visions of getting feedback on Facebook, but it’s not like the face-to-face experience or the opinions, solicited and unsolicited, and ideas about things people want to try,” says Nyberg.

“I think it’ll be fun to do tastings. If you want to develop a flavor, that’s the way. You can’t do that online.”

Stick&Pop 233 W. 19th St., (646) 481-4767.

News Update

L'estensione di tre anni di segni Sanchise

Amidst all the hoopla surrounding the Peyton Manning sweepstakes, the Jets left little doubt that they believe that Mark Sanchez is their quarterback of the future.

Green stripe Sanchez signed a three-year extension for $ 40.5 million on Friday night and now has five years remaining on his deal for a total of 58.25 million dollars. Sanchez, who had two years remaining on his rookie deal, will earn $ 20.5 million fully guaranteed in the coming two seasons, according to the source.

The jets are also expected to free up salary cap space in 2012. Sanchez was going to count 14.25 million against the CAP before signing the extension.

General Manager Mike Tannenbaum has admitted that the jets were negotiating for "several weeks" on an extension to Sanchez as they explored the possibility of landing Manning, who came out for the Colts on Wednesday after 14 years.

"When a quarterback first ballot Hall of Fame becomes available, look inside," Tannenbaum said. "Did look into it. We discussed internally. We have kept the process of negotiation with (Sanchez's agents) in progress. "

Manning visited the Denver Broncos on Friday to kick off his tour of recruitment. According to the Denver Post, Manning left his condominium in South Beach and flew to Denver to meet Broncos vice President of football operations John Elway, head coach John Fox and General Manager Brian Xanders, who were in Stillwater, Oklahoma, earlier in the day to watch Oklahoma State quarterback Brandon Tony Weeden working out.

He reportedly will visit the Arizona Cardinals and Miami Dolphins with the hope of making a decision for the start of free agency on Tuesday.

PHOTO: MANN-HUNT PEYTON IN PHOTOS

Sanchez had an irregular season which included career highs in touchdown passes (26) and turnovers (26), but Tannenbaum said he never lost faith in him.

"He is a young player, and just like any other young player, there are some inconsistencies that have to get better," Tannenbaum said. "We've won a lot of matches of football with mark as a starting quarterback for the New York Jets. This is really what got Rex (Ryan), Woody (Johnson) and me. It is not a projection. Not a hope. It is not an incremental leap of faith. Ha, here is a body of three years ' work. That said, we do not have blinders on. It did get better. And we think it will get better. We think it will become more coherence into the fourth year of s. Marco. We are excited and encouraged by the trajectory of the career of Mark. "

MARK SANCHEZ'S STATISTICS

Sanchez, who spoke for the first time since the Gang Green missed the playoffs in his career, he maintained that he was insulted by the interest of castings in Manning.

"This team has an obligation to consider all its options," said Sanchez. "I am thrilled that the Jets believed in me and that I was the guy who want to pursue for the future".

"The best part is that he chose to stay with me," added Sanchez. "I'm going to be the starting quarterback for the next few years here. That is exciting. The team gives just a reminder that I am the leader of this team. And I'm happy to return. I'm going to work my tail off these coming months to return as the best possible starting quarterback that can get this franchise. "

Sanchez called criticism from unnamed players and members of the organization in a daily news report in January "non-issues."

"If you're an anonymous source, you don't speak for yourself and therefore not really speak to the team," said Sanchez. "So really didn't pay any mind. I didn't really worry about it. "

He challenged the notion of different players like LaDainian Tomlinson and Damien Woody that he coddled by the organization. He also admitted that he has patched up differences perceived with Santonio Holmes, who was visibly upset at the loss of the end of the season, jets of dolphins, for not being more involved in the game.  "We have been in touch really this offseason," said Sanchez. "To think that a bigger deal was made out of what was supposed to be. But okay. With none of us commenting on it, I think it's gotten bigger. So we kind of laughed it off at this point. "

The Jets made it clear that they are willing to go along with Sanchez, with a steep investment. Sanchez, who spent some time this offseason in Florida working with former jets quarterback Chad Pennington, admitted that he was eager to learn from its failures in 2011. "This past year, I have learned more than anything in my first two years combined on how to manage adversity," said Sanchez. "There is a lot more to achieve together for us. I'm excited to be able to do so. "

News Update