In Defense of Mime

Filed under: Video

Marcel Marceau passed away last week, leaving behind one of the most remarkable artistic legacies of the past century. He will likely be remembered as the preeminent ambassador of the universally recognized (and almost as universally parodied) art of mime. He was best known for his breathtaking live performances, which captivated audiences around the globe for 50 years. In addition to the innovations he made to his own art, Marceau's work was deeply influential to artists such as Mikhail Baryshnikov and Twyla Tharp. Michael Jackson said that without Marceau's "Walking Against the Wind," there would have been no Moonwalk.

As a young mime artist, Gregg Goldston chased Marceau around for over a decade before he finally met the man that would become his friend and mentor. Of Goldston Marceau once said, "His work is among the best I have ever seen." Gregg took some time earlier this week to talk to the BPP about Marceau, the state of mime artistry, and the loss of his friend.

After the bump, check out video of Gregg wrangling with an invisible hat.

Win Rosenfeld

11:22 AM ET | 09-28-2007 | permalink | comments (16) | e-mail post

Climb Aboard the BPP Bandwagon

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MGM Studios/Getty Images

 

Our newfound fame, thanks mostly to the piece about us in the New York Times yesterday, has prompted a flood of comments from people interested in the show, but concerned that their advanced age might make them unwelcome. Joel writes:

"OMG, here I am turning 57 next week, an NPR junkie for a couple of decades -- and this pilot is the best thing I've heard on public radio since the start-up of This American Life. (OK, not counting the day Bill O'Reilly walked out on Terry Gross...) Mind letting a few of us 50+ folks into your listener's club? How about if we promise to sit in the corner and not complain about our prostates?"

Craig says:

"I'm just irked that I am now 45, putting me just outside your desired demo, but too young to be one of those still angry about Bob Edwards being booted off ME. Could you narrow cast a bit for my age group? Maybe:

1. Are you a Gen X trapped in a boomers body? Or sports injuries you might still bounce back from.
2. I don't remember where I was when Kennedy was shot, but my mom does.
3. Roth IRA Conversion or Red Miata convertible? Which choice says you're old?"

Well Joel and Craig, to show you just how welcome you are, I've selected a vintage photo (above) from a talking picture serial which my grandmother tells me was called "Our Gang," later turned into a TV series called "The Little Rascals." Apparently, it was quite popular in her day. I use it now to illustrate not only the diverse tableau that the BPP plans to weave, but also the lengths to which we'll go to find reference points that all can appreciate. Even if your idea of podcasting is to dictate this blog post into a recording device, press it onto a vinyl record, and play it on your Victrola, you're okay with us.

Dan Pashman

10:27 AM ET | 09-28-2007 | permalink | comments (5) | e-mail post

The Best Song in the World Today

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One regular feature on our blog is "The Best Song in the World Today," where a member of the show staff highlights the one song that is rocking his/her world today. It doesn't have to be the best song of all time, it can be new or old, but for whatever reason, today, this song kicks butt. And since my Cubs are on the verge of clinching a division title, it's my BSITWT. For more on the interesting and poignant history of this Steve Goodman classic, check out this great piece posted yesterday to the Chicago Tribune blog.

Dan Pashman

9:52 AM ET | 09-28-2007 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

Mike Huckabee Takes on the BPP

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Remember when...

Here's the show with the full Huckabee interview.

Dan Pashman

10:07 AM ET | 09-27-2007 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

We're Not Regurgitating, We're Recycling

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So the BPP is in the New York Times for the first time today, which is the closest that a radio show gets to a debutante ball. Our video producer Win Rosenfeld is applying one more layer of pancake makeup to a brand new video piece for tomorrow, but in the meantime we wanted to throw up some of our best work from the show piloting process, to give newcomers some idea of what we're about.

In a minute we'll post our video of the classic ping pong showdown between host Luke Burbank and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee. Other popular videos we've done are a scientific explanation of Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time, an interview with The Hold Steady, and a look at personal space issues in Second Life. Plus, who could forget Petra Haden's a capella rendition of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'?"

And if you're one of those old fashioned types who actually wants to HEAR what our radio show SOUNDS like, stream or download two of our best pilot shows here and here, and check out an interview we did with NPR's Robert Krulwich about Alan Greenspan's underwear secret.

Dan Pashman

10:06 AM ET | 09-27-2007 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

We Made the 'New York Times!'

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While we are working furiously toward our terrestrial and satellite radio launch on Monday, we took a minute to be excited by this article in today's New York Times.

Luke thinks the picture makes him look like a duck, but otherwise we're pretty happy with the piece.

Back to work!

Tricia McKinney

9:45 AM ET | 09-27-2007 | permalink | comments (11) | e-mail post

A Little Update

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The next few days will be a bit quiet on the BPP front, but we do have a couple of blog-exclusive tidbits in the pipeline. We'll be focusing most of our energies on preparing for next week's launch. And what do we have in store, you ask? Well the proposed guest list looks something like this: Nancy Pelosi, Reese Witherspoon, Dave Grohl, Steve Martin, Kanye West, Bill Clinton, J.D. Salinger, Bono, Dick Cheney, both Presidents Bush, Osama bin Laden, and Jared from Subway. Unfortunately, while we proposed those guests, we didn't necessarily get them. Or even try to get them.

But we do have Ben Harper coming into the studio for an interview and live performance, so that's super cool. And there will be more, much more.

On a separate note, I did want to respond to a question raised by Drew and others: Will the blog continue? The answer to that is an unequivocal "Hells yeah." We intend to do enough original writing, blog-exclusive audio and video, and general engagement that this site will stand on its own, period, radio show notwithstanding. Of course the show and blog will complement each other, and the separate components might be even more awesome when enjoyed as a whole, but this blog will live on, even during the times of day when the microphones are off.

Dan Pashman

12:57 PM ET | 09-26-2007 | permalink | comments (6) | e-mail post

Campaign buttons, continued

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Tuesday's conversation on the presidential candidates' logos continued on email after the show.

Ilya Marritz (producer): Btw, what do you think of the Keyes logo? I kinda like it.

Ryan Bowman (designer): I almost like the Keyes logo, its dead simple which is good but his name needs to stand out a little bit more.

Continue reading "Campaign buttons, continued" »

Ilya Marritz

12:50 PM ET | 09-26-2007 | permalink | e-mail post

Pilot #29: The End of the Beginning

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Credit: Win Rosenfeld/BPP Luke Jacunski (left) and Mami Nagase, who were mugged as he proposed to her in Central Park. The pair was not harmed in the incident, and while some valuables were taken, her engagement ring was saved. Luke is showing off a ring designed by Mami.

It's our last pilot show, friends. We go live on the real radio this Monday, October 1. We'd like to thank you all for your enthusiastic feedback, thoughtful suggestions, encouragement, and especially, brutal excoriation. The process of disregarding your input has been invaluable to us.

That was a joke. We really do love you, and we couldn't have gotten this far without you. In fact, at the end of today's show we'll honor our most frequent poster, Steve Peterson, with the Bryant Park Project Award for Meritorious Blog Commenting, which we'll hand craft from a Microsoft template and mail to him. We'll also tackle the news thusly...

We'll cover Ahmadinejad at Columbia with two students who were there. We'll cover the strike at GM with a journalist in Michigan and an auto worker in Tennessee. (Notice a pattern here? The BPP doesn't just transmit the news, we invite it over for dinner.)

After that, it's a veritable smorgasbord. The biggest cricket event of the year just took place. Who cares? Vivek Agastya, that's who. He'll tell us about the new, faster-paced version of a game that, until recently, could go on for days. We'll learn more about protests by Myanmar monks. We'll ask Republican strategist (and African-American pastor) Joe Watkins whether leading candidates are wrong to skip a debate geared towards black audiences, and we'll learn about what candidates' logos say about them.

We'll also have a recently-engaged couple in the studio. Why? Because as he was proposing to her in Central Park, they got mugged, and the bandits got away with everything...but the ring. He'll explain how he hid it. All that plus new music with our buddy Andy Langer, The Ramble, The Most, and a vintage Mike Pesca piece. Listen!

Dan Pashman

12:03 PM ET | 09-25-2007 | permalink | comments (16) | e-mail post

Illustrating the Path to the White House

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In today's pilot, graphic designer Ryan Bowman explains what it takes to make a winning campaign sticker. He analyzes the candidates of 2008 by looking for the ideas behind the images.

Check them out for yourself (after the bump) and let us know what you think the art says about the politicians behind them.

Continue reading "Illustrating the Path to the White House" »

Win Rosenfeld

12:02 PM ET | 09-25-2007 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

U.N. Excitement: Not Actually An Oxymoron

Filed under: Inside The BPP

The United Nations General Assembly meeting may be happening way to the east of our home off of Bryant Park, but the buzz in the air is palpable and the evidence of the excitement is everywhere.

I just popped downstairs to the street level of our building to get a soda, and saw this guy walking by, dressed as an American flag and carrying the stars and stripes over his shoulder. He was walking fast, so I sprinted behind him to ask what he was doing. He told me he was heading to the U.N. to protest the presence of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The protester was a lively guy with an accent--he said he's an American, though originally from Kosovo. He told me he has protested at the U.N. many times before.

I got him to stop long enough to let me take his picture...

...and give me permission to post it on this blog, and then he was off down the street, and I got my soda.

--Tricia McKinney

Win Rosenfeld

2:33 PM ET | 09-24-2007 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

Seeing Octoviginuple: Pilot #28 is Here

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Alex Wong/Getty Images

 

Seeing Quintuple: Senator Hillary Clinton appeared on all five Sunday talk shows yesterday, including Meet the Press, as seen above.

Radio shows grow up so fast these days. It seems like one day you're doing five minute segments and the next day, a two hour show is the norm. And that next day is today.

Before we get into today's show, we want to welcome the BPP's new Web Producer, Laura Conaway. (She taught me how to make that cool gray line up there below the photo caption.) She'll be contributing blog posts very soon, which will free me up a bit to man the BPP distillery, where we refine your world into single malt news. Anywho, today's show goes a little something like this...

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is in New York. (In case you still haven't settled that bet you made with your friend at the bar Saturday night, it's pronounced "ah-mah-DEEN-eh-jahd." I called someone in Tehran yesterday to make sure.) As you probably know by now, the man's visit is causing quite a stir. Today we'll talk to NPR's own Robert Smith, who's on his way to the Columbia campus to cover protests there, and we'll get the bigger picture with USA Today's Barbara Slavin, author of a forthcoming book on Iran. She was the first US newspaper reporter to interview Ahmadinejad and has some interesting insights on him.

Hillary Clinton appeared on all five Sunday talk shows yesterday. We'll distill her 90-plus minutes of face time into three minutes of highlights. You'll laugh. She did.

We'll report on the closing of the last horse slaughter plant in the US, and the demise of the hyphen. Plus, Newt's presidential aspirations and the latest installment of Make Me Care. Today we'll have a reporter from Cnet try to make Luke and Alison care about the release of Halo 3. And Luke will offer an obituary for Seattle radio host Walt Crowley, who he featured in February on Day to Day.

Dan Pashman

9:33 AM ET | 09-24-2007 | permalink | comments (5) | e-mail post

We Slept In

Filed under: Inside The BPP

It's one of our last chances before we start our daily production schedule. This week's test run went well -- as well as it could given we all woke up at 3:30 in the morning.

We're working on two shows for next week -- Monday and Tuesday. We're kind of in hunker down mode today -- more coming soon, stay tuned.

Matt Martinez

1:18 PM ET | 09-21-2007 | permalink | e-mail post

Pilot #27: "Sublimation is the Real Deal"

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Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images Residents of Jena, Louisiana, show their support for six black teens, dubbed "The Jena Six," charged in an alleged attack on a white classmate. Protestors are converging in Jena today.

"Sublimation of an element or compound is a transition from the solid to gas phase so rapidly that the liquid phase cannot be observed." The BPP sublimates radio every day. Ponder that, and while you're at it, try to figure out during which conversation in today's show the above quote will be heard. Here's what's on tap...

-- We'll get the latest news on the Jena Six, and we'll get the pulse of the town when we talk to a local cafe owner as activists and protestors arrive there. We'll also talk Alan Greenspan with a guy who's interviewed him many times, NPR's own esteemed reporter Robert Krulwich. (Click here to download the Krulwich interview separately.)

-- A judge in the Philippines lost his position on the bench because he says he believes in three elves who give him advice. The elves are named Angel, Armand, and Luis (of course). Now a movement is afoot in the country to get the judge back on the bench. We'll talk to the reporter who's covering the story. And we'd like to ask you: Is there a difference between a judge who gets advice from elves and a judge who gets advice from saints?

-- Did you see this video of Pluto flipping out at Disney World? We'll talk to a professional mascot about the trials and tribulations of mascot-dom. And we'll look into the burgeoning movement away from clothes dryers and towards clotheslines in an effort to save energy.

-- We'll have NPR's David Folkenflik break down Dan Rather's lawsuit. Plus, the search for Steve Fossett continues, and we're very curious: Why is it so hard to find a wrecked plane in the middle of the desert? We'll find out when we talk to someone involved in the search. All that and our new favorite website, The Ramble, The Most, and so much more. Consider yourself sublimated.

Dan Pashman

10:14 AM ET | 09-20-2007 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

Krulwich Exposes Greenspan's Underwear Secret

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Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan, seen here providing his stock response whenever anyone asks him to divulge his secrets of economic prognostication.

Economics professors and analysts around the world have studied theorems, computed derivatives, and crunched numbers into submission, all in the hope of predicting economic fluctuations as adroitly as Alan Greenspan has for the past half century. For years they've all asked, "What's his secret?" Well, it turns out his secret is in the men's underwear drawers of America, as this BPP interview reveals. (Isn't that where most people keep their valuables?)

We spent a good part of yesterday searching for just the right guest to talk to us about Alan Greenspan. We wanted someone who understands economics, of course, but also someone who could shed some light on Greenspan as a person. It turns out the ideal guest was just over the cubicle wall here at BPP HQ. We were pleased to welcome NPR's esteemed science correspondent Robert Krulwich, formerly an economics correspondent for NPR, CBS, and ABC, and someone who has interviewed Greenspan on numerous occasions. Grab a snack and enjoy.

Dan Pashman

8:33 AM ET | 09-20-2007 | permalink | e-mail post

Dog Day Afternoon: A Bryant Park Minute

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Being that our offices are smack dab in middle of New York City, there's always something interesting going on outside our door on any given day. Sometimes it's kind of intense, other times there's an interesting person doing something out of the ordinary, and once in a while there's a dogs-jumping-into-swimming-pools contest. Yesterday was one of those days. And that's the first subject of our brand-new, semi-regular feature, "A Bryant Park Minute."

Win Rosenfeld

1:39 PM ET | 09-19-2007 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post

The Tasering Heard Round the Net

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Is Andrew Meyer a victim of police overreaction or a troublemaker who got what he deserved? Watch the video and tell us what you think.

Dan Pashman

11:46 AM ET | 09-19-2007 | permalink | comments (7) | e-mail post

Pilot #26: We're Lovers, Not Tasers, Bro

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Well the early morning hours seemed a little more normal today, though it's still far from routine. Here's what's on tap...

-- We'll discuss Hillary and her health care plans (Then and Now) with journalist and author Carl Bernstein, who wrote a book about Hillary. "Stewart, Burbank, and Bernstein" may not sound as pretty as "Woodward and Bernstein," but then again, Woodward doesn't look like Robert Redford.

-- We'll get our dose of hard news when we cover the latest on an incident involving security contractor Blackwater USA that left at least 11 Iraqis dead, and we'll cover the Fed's decision on interest rates with NPR's own Adam Davidson. Plus, the mortgage crisis has hit areas of California especially hard, so we'll talk to a realtor from the Stockton area to get a sense of things on the ground there.

-- The news is flying fast and furious around OJ Simpson. One guy says OJ was set up, while one of the victims is in critical condition after a heart attack. We'll take it seriously when we speak to a law professor who can tell us whether OJ might actually be getting treated unfairly. Plus we'll chronicle the story of the student who was tasered at a John Kerry speech, and we'll celebrate the 25th anniversary of the emoticon, all on today's edition of the BPP.

Dan Pashman

11:45 AM ET | 09-19-2007 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

Argggh Matey! It's National Talk Like a Pirate Day!

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Avast, there!

Yo, ho, ho and show number 26 on the way.

The Bryant Park pirate ship is preparing to raise the jolly roger with a new pilot today.

We don't have 15 men and a dead man's chest but we do have an interview with Carl Bernstein about candidate Clinton and her healthcare plan.

Check back soon, ye land lubbers.

Alison Stewart

9:41 AM ET | 09-19-2007 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

Luke Got to Work at Five in the Morning and Promptly Dropped His (BLANK)

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Check out the BPP's tribute to The Match Game, as heard on today's pilot. And in case you were curious, Luke dropped his box of donuts on the table.

Win Rosenfeld

4:33 PM ET | 09-18-2007 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

Pilot #25: The Best Part of Waking Up

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For the first time in BPP history, we actually made radio during the early morning hours that will be our regular time slot. It was only one hour instead of two, and we started at 8 instead of 7, but when you're rolling into work at 4:45 AM, you don't make those kinds of distinctions. In any event, something about early morning hours must have agreed with us, because we pulled off a pretty damn good show. Where else could you find all this and more in one tidy hour?

-- Blackwater in hot water in Iraq - We talk to an Iraqi on the ground near the incident in question to find out what happened, then we break the story out with Bill Sizemore, reporter for the Virginian-Pilot, who co-wrote a six-part series on Blackwater that was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting.

-- Brett Somers, best known as a panelist on the classic game show "The Match Game," passed away Saturday. Rather than mourn her death we choose to celebrate her life, by playing The Bryant Park Project Match Game, with our own Mike Pesca as game show host, and blog readers not unlike yourself as contestants.

-- Copper Theft Epidemic - Yes, we did say copper theft epidemic. Who? Why? Where? When? How? And what does it have to do with crystal meth? We'll find out when we talk to Scott Berinato, who wrote a fascinating article all about it.

-- Plus we'll play Make Me Care with NPR's Frank Langfitt, who's covering the negotiations between the United Auto Workers and auto manufacturers. And we'll do The Ramble, which includes the news that Crocs may be dangerous. Not the animals--the shoes.

Dan Pashman

9:23 AM ET | 09-18-2007 | permalink | comments (8) | e-mail post

The BPP Is Awake

Filed under: Inside The BPP

"Morning Meeting" is a recap of our daily editorial meeting.

Good morning. The BPP starts our normal operating schedule today -- which means getting into the office before the sun rises. We're not the first people in the world who have to wake up at such an early hour, so we'll keep the moaning to a minimum.

We'll have a show for you later this morning, here's some of what you'll hear:

BLACKWATER -- The Iraq Interior Ministry halted the license for the security firm Blackwater after a shooting incident resulted in the deaths of nine Iraqi civilians. More on what Blackwater does and what this will mean for U.S. security in Iraq.

MARRY MY DAUGHTER -- A hoaxter published a website earlier this month called "Marryourdaughter.com." If you came across the site, and were so inclined, the site offered you a chance to buy a young bride. But some folks didn't know it was a hoax -- its founder claims he has gotten "tons" of responses to ads -- we'll talk with him.

COPPER WIRE -- Last weekend, a high school football game in Scottsdale, Arizona was canceled because someone stole the copper wiring in the stadium's field lights. That got us wondering, what kind of person steals the copper wiring from a school lighting pole? It turns out that small time copper theft is a rising epidemic in the U.S. -- we'll find out why.

Also, we've got The Ramble and a tribute to Brett Somers, who died this past Saturday, she was 83.

Matt Martinez

6:10 AM ET | 09-18-2007 | permalink | e-mail post

For Micro-Miniaturist Willard Wigan, Less is More

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Earlier this month, the collected works of sculptor Willard Wigan sold for over 11 million British Pounds ---22 million US dollars.

His subjects include the Titanic hitting the iceberg, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and the Statue of Liberty. But Wigan brings a remarkable perspective to these subjects...his work is all very small. Very very very small. In fact, many of Wigan's sculptures aren't visible to the naked eye. Starting with a grain of sand or rice, he carves away for months with a diamond shard before a piece is completed. And because the scale is so minute that he can only see what he's doing by using a microscope, Wigan can lose months of work by accidentally inhaling a sculpture or sneezing one away.

Check out some of his work in the video above.

Win Rosenfeld

7:06 PM ET | 09-17-2007 | permalink | comments (9) | e-mail post

Contestants Needed!

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As you may have heard, Brett Somers, a regular on the classic game show "Match Game," has passed away. On tomorrow's BPP we're going to do a little tribute to her by playing our own rendition of The Match Game, with game show host Mike Pesca and a panel including luminaries like our own Alison Stewart and Luke Burbank. So what's missing? Contestants. The first two people to post a comment to this blog post saying they want to participate will be our contestants. The only rules are that you must be available via land line telephone tomorrow (Tuesday) between 8:00 and 8:40 AM Eastern time, and you must be over 18 years old. We'll contact the winners via email to work out the details. Ready...Set...Go!

Dan Pashman

5:28 PM ET | 09-17-2007 | permalink | comments (7) | e-mail post

Don't Call It a Comeback. We Just Don't Do Shows on the Weekend.

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Credit: Win Rosenfeld/BPP

This old newspaper on Mike Pesca's desk inspired us to dig into the latest on former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Tomorrow we'll do another story inspired by a different old paper on Mike's desk.

Tricia wrote up this post but I (Dan) am posting it because her login hasn't been set up. Here's Tricia...

Hey, everyone, this is the new BPP editor, Tricia McKinney. I'm a long-time listener, first-time blogger. We put together two fun-packed hours of the Bryant Park Project for you, so stow those tray tables and put your seats in their full, upright position.

On today's show:

--President Bush announced his pick to succeed former attorney general Alberto Gonzales. It's this guy, retired federal judge Michael Mukasey. The last time he was big in the news, the story got eclipsed by coverage of this other guy. It's happening again.

--Which brings us to the latest twist in the strange story of one Orenthal James Simpson. The Juice is no longer loose. He's cooling his heels in the slammer, accused of felonies in connection with the theft of sports memorabilia. And today, celebrity news website TMZ.com posted some audio they say is of the robbery.

--Meantime, a year-and-a-half-old headline laying around on Mike Pesca's desk (see photo above) caught Luke's eye. Former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has been in a coma since January 2006. We'll ask a correspondent from the Jerusalem Post whether Israelis have forgotten their former leader.

Continue reading "Don't Call It a Comeback. We Just Don't Do Shows on the Weekend." »

Dan Pashman

4:28 PM ET | 09-17-2007 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post

Jeremy Harper Counts to a Million, Survives

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Last Friday, Jeremy Harper said "One million" into his webcam, and 89 days of counting out loud came to an end. He raised over ten thousand dollars for Push America, a charity aimed at providing aid for the disabled, by counting to a million over the course of nearly three months. During this time he stayed confined to his house, taking breaks only to eat and sleep.

Watch the final semi-delirious moments of the count above.

Win Rosenfeld

2:58 PM ET | 09-17-2007 | permalink | e-mail post

The Best Song in the World Today

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British musician, producer, and mixmaster Mark Ronson, best-known for his work with Amy Winehouse and Lily Allen, has just remixed Bob Dylan's classic song "Most Likely You'll Go Your Way (And I'll Go Mine)." The results are AWESOME. (Click the link and scroll down a bit to see the accompanying video.) We dare you to listen and not get funky.

Two more hours of the BPP are coming your way this afternoon!

Dan Pashman

12:13 PM ET | 09-17-2007 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

BPP Show #23.2

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As promised, here's Hour Two of today's show. In this hour we'll do the Week in Iraq with guest Rachel Martin. Yes, the same Rachel Martin who acts as our newscaster. She spent a month in Iraq reporting for NPR, so we're glad to have her here to lend her expertise. (On a separate but related note, check out Rachel getting the Barbara Walters photo treatment on her NPR bio page.)

We'll cover New York Knick GM Isiah Thomas' troubles with Henry Abbott from the blog TrueHoop, we'll talk movies with NPR's own Bob Mondello, and we'll find out exactly what it's like to work with 3.2 million year old bones.

Have you heard about this guy? He locked himself in his apartment three months ago and began counting to a million. He should make it in a few hours! We got regular updates throughout today's show.

Dan Pashman

3:40 PM ET | 09-14-2007 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

BPP Show #23.1

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We're breaking the show into two separate one-hour posts, so you can download either or both. In hour one we'll cover President Bush's speech and talk to Iraqi journalist Ali Fadhil in the studio. Ali just got back from Iraq two weeks ago, and he'll share his experiences and some amazing stories about conditions at Baghdad's Yarmouk Hospital, which he covered for several months.

We'll learn more about a test for a very rare gene in women that puts them at much higher risk for breast and ovarian cancer. An ethical discussion surrounding the test has arisen because the test is so expensive (over $3,000) and the gene is so rare, but the test is being marketed on a mass scale to women who, almost entirely, aren't at risk. We'll talk to medical ethicist Dr. Arthur Caplan and Connie Elliot from Salt Lake City, who had a double mastectomy and hysterectomy after finding out she does in fact have the gene*.

After that we'll talk to C. Joel Marino, who's written a brutally honest column about coming to terms with his own sexuality in the wake of the Larry Craig scandal.

We'll also learn more about federal prisons' efforts to remove religious books from their stacks. Plus we'll have The Ramble, and NPR's own Mike Pesca on commonly misquoted "classic" movie lines. Hour Two is on the way!

*- Myriad Genetics released the following statement to the BPP regarding our story on their genetic testing:

Myriad Genetics has initiated the BRACAnalysis Awareness Campaign to improve awareness of the potentially life-saving information provided by its genetic test, among the 2-3 million American women with a family history of breast or ovarian cancer. Women at risk are not widely aware that they can take measures to significantly reduce their likelihood of getting breast cancer and ovarian cancer. We encourage women with a strong family history, through use of a positive, responsible message, to become empowered by visiting their healthcare provider to determine whether they are appropriate candidates for testing.

Dan Pashman

3:39 PM ET | 09-14-2007 | permalink | comments (9) | e-mail post

We Have a Good Show Coming Your Way!

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Things got a little hairy this morning because we did TWO hours, which will be posted shortly. But it wasn't nearly as hairy as this sideline action at the University of Oregon Ducks vs. University of Houston Cougars football game. Watch this and check back soon:

Alison Stewart

1:27 PM ET | 09-14-2007 | permalink | e-mail post

The Author and His Ink....

Filed under: Video

Writer Lord Byron famously wrote "a drop of ink may make a million think." If that's true, children's book author Phil Padwe will stimulate the minds of trillions. His new book is all about teaching kids not to freak out at the sight of tattooed adults. After speaking with Luke and Alison, Phil took a minute to show us his ink.

Win Rosenfeld

5:41 PM ET | 09-13-2007 | permalink | comments (5) | e-mail post

Iraq, a Ramble, a Mob Trial: BPP's Pilot 22

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We've done twenty-two pilots, people, and we are exhausted. The good news, though, is we've set up highly sophisticated behind-the-scenes systems that are going to make this thing run like butter. That, in turn, will make us less exhausted and better equipped to provide you the news, information and YouTube trends that your mind grapes so desperately crave.

On today's show:

-- A preview of this evening's national address by President Bush.

-- We do "The Ramble" on national security snafus, the kilogram losing weight (it's complicated and worth the listen), also -- the White Stripes and Led Zeppelin, and James Fry gets a book deal, though it could be fake.

-- Two trials intrigued us today: The mob trial in Chicago and the ongoing Phil Spector trial. We talk to reporters covering both of those cases.

-- We break out our patented "Make Me Care" segment -- today, it's all about the man who helped raise $850,000 in campaign donations for Senator Hillary Clinton: Norman Hsu. She returned the money, so why should we care? NPR's very own Peter Overby follows the money and politics in Washington, he'll give us the lowdown.

-- Authorities in West Virginia are dealing with a strange and, frankly, disgusting crime. A 20-year-old woman was held captive for about a week in a mobile home and allegedly tortured by six people in all kinds of brutal ways. We have Gary Harki, police reporter for the Charleston Gazette.

-- Also on the show: A new book for kids that helps quell any fear kids might have over parental tattoos and we talk sports with Sam Farmer from The Los Angeles Times.

Matt Martinez

1:01 PM ET | 09-13-2007 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

Show on the Way

Filed under: Inside The BPP

Morning everyone -- we're working on today's show. Should be up lickety-split, around 1:30p ET or so. Coming up today: President Bush's nationwide address scheduled for tonight, the trials and tribulations of Chicago's mob bosses and Phil Spector -- and we're talking sports with Sam Farmer from the The Los Angeles Times.

Stay tuned ladies and gents...it's going to be a good one today...

Matt Martinez

10:34 AM ET | 09-13-2007 | permalink | e-mail post

Meetin', Meetin', Meetin', Keep Them Doggies Meetin'

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There's a highly complex radio concept which most veterans refer to as "organization," loosely defined as "a state of being brought about by the proper employment of a set of logical systems." The BPP has not had as much of this so-called "organization" as we'd like, so we're meeting today to get more of it. This means no show pilot today, although we may post more this afternoon, so check later. We'll be back in full effect with two-hour pilots tomorrow and Friday.

Dan Pashman

11:03 AM ET | 09-12-2007 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

Moustache Rides 5 Cents

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Credit: Vice Magazine

Big Red

Hot-tipper and girlfriend (full disclosure) Vanessa sent along this excellent interview from Vice Magazine. It's a Q & A with Jack Passion, the 23-year-old man who recently won Best Beard at The World Beard and Moustache Championship.

The best part of the interview is Passion's answer to why he grew the beard so long:

The beard came in so huge and fast and ginger, that I had no choice but to rock it.

And rock it he did. We salute you Mr. Passion. You and the rest of The Beard Team USA. (Of course they have a blog.)

Oh, and Dan Pashman pointed out that no beard-related post would be complete without a link to this deeply troubling Skittles commercial:

Luke Burbank

4:36 PM ET | 09-11-2007 | permalink | e-mail post

BPP Pilot #21

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We put a lot of thought into this pilot. How exactly should we cover 9/11? Is there a story out there that hasn't been covered yet? How much should our personal thoughts and feelings be included? And as USA Today asked, "Is 9/11 becoming just another calendar date?" We settled on a few different approaches, which you'll find in various parts of today's pilot.

But it's not all September 11th. We also cover the Congressional testimony of General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker when we survey a variety of the nation's editorial pages. We'll talk to the Seattle Seahawks' team doctor about spinal cord injuries in football, we'll talk new music with Rolling Stone's Melissa Maerz, and we'll explain how human saliva may have helped us evolve beyond apes. All that and The Ramble, in today's edition of the BPP.

Dan Pashman

1:28 PM ET | 09-11-2007 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post

9/11: An Open Thread

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Everyone has a 9/11 story. We'll tell you ours, you tell us yours. Go to the comments section of this post and join the conversation.

Dan Pashman

12:42 PM ET | 09-11-2007 | permalink | comments (10) | e-mail post

A Four-Dimensional Tribute to the Late Madeleine L'Engle

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Over the weekend, children's author Madeleine L'Engle died at 88. Her most noted work, A Wrinkle in Time, is a story about a girl's journey across the universe in an effort to rescue both her father and the galaxy itself from the evil "Black Thing." The book, which dealt with heady (and un-kid-friendly) concepts like religion, theoretical mathematics and evil, took years to finally find a publisher due to its perceived weirdness. Since finally going into print in 1962, Wrinkle has sold millions of copies and remains a favorite read for young teens today.

One concept L'Engle explored in the book was tessering, a method whereby people could traverse great distances in the universe by "folding" space and time. Although they don't behave in exactly the way L'Engle describes, tesseracts do exist, and serve as important and elegant examples of multidimensional space.

An actual tesseract is best described as a four dimensional cube...and is kind of confusing. So, in memory of L'Engle, we met up with Physicist David Morgan who took a little time out of his day to talk tesseracts with the BPP. Put your measley three-dimensional brains to work on this one.

Win Rosenfeld

7:55 PM ET | 09-10-2007 | permalink | comments (20) | e-mail post

NPR Lite vs. NPR Different

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An interesting discussion broke out in the comments section of a recent show post, and I'd like to take a minute to respond. The discussion centers on whether the BPP represents the introduction of "NPR Lite," programming that lacks the depth that NPR listeners have come to expect.

I must say, while I understand how the perception could arise, I disagree with the characterization of the BPP as "NPR Lite." I think of it more as "NPR Different." Shows like Morning Edition, All Things Considered and so many others are phenomenal shows, but we aren't trying to emulate them. We could never do what they do as well as they do it, and we don't see a need to try, since they already do it so well. But that doesn't make what we do (or strive to do) "lite." It just makes it different. (The term "lite" suggests that something has been removed without being replaced by something else, and I don't think that's the case.) Just as I don't think we could do what they do, I also doubt, with all due respect, that they could do what we do (or strive to do).

This discussion is not unlike the debate over whether Chicago-style or New York-style pizza is better. Chicago pizza is thick and dense, full of delicious gobs of glorious cheese and fillings. When you eat one, you plan your night around it, and it rarely disappoints. New York pizza is nimble and flavorful, with a type of crust that leaves a chef little margin for error and a construction that makes it conveniently portable.

But I can tell you, as someone who's lived in both cities, that pizzerias in Chicago don't know a damn thing about making thin crust New York-style pizza, and places in New York don't know a deep dish from a trough. So which style is better? NEITHER. They aren't even the same food. They're both amazingly awesome in their own rights. Just like other NPR shows and the BPP.

Thoughts?

Dan Pashman

5:30 PM ET | 09-10-2007 | permalink | comments (11) | e-mail post

The Happy Ending: Monday

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Regular BPP blog readers know that on Friday, we put up a bunch of content. In fact, you may have scrolled through a good number of posts without even getting through the day. So we want to highlight some great original video content by our own Win Rosenfeld from the end of last week that may have been buried before you got to see it:

- BPP Bling: Water at $55/Bottle

- Petra Haden Performs Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" A Capella, Live in Studio

Dan Pashman

4:17 PM ET | 09-10-2007 | permalink | e-mail post

Pilot #20: Part of Your Complete Breakfast

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Credit: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

A Cherokee Indian stands in front of the US Capitol after praying. The Cherokee Nation is embroiled in controversy over whether descendants of its slaves should be recognized as tribe members.

While putting together today's show we learned that after you've done a few two-hour shows, a one-hour show seems to fly by. So starting tomorrow, we're going to broadcast 24/7 until the day before the show launches. That way, when we're up and running for real, it'll be a breeze. Here's what's on tap for today...

-- As Gen. Petraeus and Amb. Crocker get their Iraq testimony going, we'll ask people who know them: Who are these guys? And we'll play Make Me Care when we cover Nawaz Sharif's arrest in and deportation from Pakistan.

-- Every Monday we present While You Were Out (Possibly Drinking), a survey of weekend news you may have missed. Today we'll cover the death of Madeleine L'Engle, author of A Wrinkle in Time and other children's classics, Oprah's star-studded Obama fundraiser, and Sen. Chuck Hagel's decision not to run for re-election in '08.

-- The BPP also goes in depth today when we explore a dispute between Cherokee Indians and the descendants of the Cherokees' slaves over what should constitute a member of the tribe. The Cherokee Nation voted earlier this year to oust descendants of their black slaves, who had been granted status in the tribe back in 1866. In response to the Cherokee vote to revoke membership from their slaves' descendants, the US House voted recently to revoke some federal funding provided to Cherokees. We talked to people on both sides of this issue.

-- We'll also talk sports with BPP sports guy (and spouse) Bill Wolff and fall TV with Variety's Brian Lowry.

It's just another Manic Monday, but we wouldn't want it any other way.

Dan Pashman

12:46 PM ET | 09-10-2007 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post

The BPP Holiday Shopping Preview

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In the spirit of the early presidential primary schedule, we here at the BPP realize that "earlier" translates to "more relevant." To that end, we have decided that it's time to officially launch the holiday season. So, I went over to Times Square and camped outside Toys 'R Us to see how New Yorkers are handling their Christmas shopping.

Ho! Ho! Ho!

Win Rosenfeld

5:45 PM ET | 09- 7-2007 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

A Whole Hour of BPP Goodness

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If drips and drops isn't your style, this should keep you occupied. In the UK, the mother of a missing girl has been named as a suspect in a story that has capitvated the nation. We'll talk to a reporter covering the story. Meanwhile, Bryant Park is overrun with fabulous people right now, because it's Fashion Week. Apparently naming our show after Bryant Park didn't make us cool enough to get invited, so we'll talk to Michael Musto about the parties, then Luke will attempt to sneak into the tent while he's on the air. We'll cover YouTube sensation Marie Digby, who turns out to be backed by a major record label, we'll preview the football season with 21-year-old prognosticator Andy Benoit, who's been analyzing football since he was 11, and we'll have a major BPP announcement. Check it out!

Dan Pashman

5:17 PM ET | 09- 7-2007 | permalink | comments (6) | e-mail post

The Happy Ending: Friday

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A daily feature in which we point out our favorite NPR stories:

- Bill Clinton Urges 'Substantial Drawdown' in Iraq
- L'Engle, Author of 'A Wrinkle in Time,' Dies at 88
- Imagining a World Without Humans
- Brilliant new art-pop by Bishop Allen

Lauren Spohrer

5:14 PM ET | 09- 7-2007 | permalink | e-mail post

Petra Haden in Studio

Filed under: Music, Video

A capella groups get a pretty bum rap. To some people, they are to music what mimes are to acting. But don't tell Petra Haden that. She brought her group to our studio for an interview and performance, and it was awesome. We also posted the video of their rendition of the Journey classic "Don't Stop Believin'" here. It's cool to hear it, but seeing it is even better.

Dan Pashman

5:02 PM ET | 09- 7-2007 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

US Open Update

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The US Open is taking place right now. Luke was struck by what a big deal it is in New York, since it hasn't been such a big deal every other place he's lived. We talked to Tom Perrotta, senior editor from Tennis Magazine and columnist at The New York Sun, who broke down the men's and women's brackets, and gave us his take on Serena's little hissy fit.

Dan Pashman

4:54 PM ET | 09- 7-2007 | permalink | e-mail post

Ramble On

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In today's Ramble: A painting of Michael Vick riding now-deceased former Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro sold for $200 on eBay...Guinness really is good for you...British hospital bans Crocs due to safety concerns.

Dan Pashman

4:39 PM ET | 09- 7-2007 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

Checking in on the Toronto Film Festival

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Movie critic and blogger David Poland from The Hot Blog is at the Toronto Film Festival, and he stepped out of the theater just long enough to give us a rundown of the festival's biggest hits and misses. He covered new films by the Coen Brothers and George Clooney, as well as a Sean Penn project based on the Jon Krakauer book Into The Wild.

Dan Pashman

2:50 PM ET | 09- 7-2007 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

BPP Bling: Water at $55 a Bottle

Filed under: Video

At over 50 bucks a bottle, here's a new upscale beverage popping up in the hands of executives and movie stars all over the country. It's not surprising that it can be found in swag baskets at the MTV Video Music Awards. And maybe it's not shocking that the bottle is adorned with Swarovski crystals. Heck, you might not even bat an eyelash when you hear that Paris Hilton's dog drinks it. But we aren't talking about champagne, wine, or even a new energy drink.
This stuff is just plain old water.

It's called Bling H2O and it's billed as the "Cristal of Waters." I got to taste it myself at a Westchester, New York "water bar." The owner, Diane Felicissimo, a self-professed water connoisseur, indoctrinated me in the ways of high-end H2O. And because we're all about the unscientific survey, I brought a bottle back to Manhattan and gave New Yorkers a taste test to see if the Bling lives up to its price tag.

Click below for the full video.

Win Rosenfeld

2:31 PM ET | 09- 7-2007 | permalink | comments (62) | e-mail post

A Frustrating Day for the Fledgling BPP...

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Peter Cade/Getty Images

 

Some days you eat the bear, some days the bear eats you. Some days you're the bat, some days you're the ball. Today, a bear kicked our asses with a bat. (And by asses, I mean the pet donkeys we keep in the board room.)

It went off the rails pretty fast, starting 0.1 seconds into the show, when we failed to hit RECORD. We did manage to catch that error quickly, so we're going to post chunks of the first hour in individual segments, then we'll post the second hour in its entirety. In spite of the truly rough nature of today's Rough Cuts, we think you'll still find plenty of gems to be mined. Keep checking back, we'll be posting audio and video throughout the afternoon...

Dan Pashman

2:08 PM ET | 09- 7-2007 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

Petra Haden Live at the BPP

Filed under: Music, Video

Music is in Petra Haden's blood. She's the daughter of jazz legend Charlie Haden and has been singing with her sisters (they're triplets) since childhood. Since then she's been a member of the Decemberists and The Rentals, and has collaborated as a singer and violinist with people like Beck, Green Day, Mike Watt and the Foo Fighters, to name a few. This month she contributed a cover of Journey's classic "Don't Stop Believin'" to the compilation album "Guilt By Association," a collection of different artists' guilty pleasures. She performed that song live for us in the studio yesterday, and frankly, it was so beautiful that it drove us damn near to tears.

Check it out.

Win Rosenfeld

12:20 PM ET | 09- 6-2007 | permalink | comments (32) | e-mail post

Planned Obsolescence-Induced Insanity (Or: Damn You Steve Jobs! Why Must You Torment Me?! )

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Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Apple CEO Steve Jobs announces a new generation of iPods in San Francisco yesterday. Shortly after this event, Jobs declared the new iPods obsolete.

So the new iPods have been introduced. Lest you think I'm one of those Macophiles who's camped outside the Apple Store, I'll have you know that I'm still rocking the black and white 40 gig (ten pound) iPod I got nearly four years ago. (Well, technically I'm on the fourth free replacement of that iPod because they keep breaking, but the point is, an iPod purchase is not routine for me.) When replacement iPod #4 started acting up on me a few weeks ago, I decided it was time for an upgrade. But a new generation hadn't been released in a while, so I figured I'd wait for the next new thing. At least that way I'd have the best iPod for a few weeks. Just days later, I heard that some brand spankin' new iPods would be released September 5th. I waited. I got excited...

Wikipedia defines planned obsolescence as "The decision on the part of a manufacturer to produce a consumer product that will become obsolete and/or non-functional in a defined time frame."

Companies of all stripes do it, but technology companies seem to do it most of all. Apple has probably already developed iPods that double as jetpacks that allow you to orbit the moon. But you won't see those any time soon. And when they come out, they'll first just have iPods that can fly you to your neighbor's house. Then a few months later they'll introduce ones that can fly you across the country. And that'll seem pretty amazing compared to the ones that could only go down the street, but they won't be amazing three months later, when the iPod Sputnik hits the market...

Continue reading "Planned Obsolescence-Induced Insanity (Or: Damn You Steve Jobs! Why Must You Torment Me?! )" »

Dan Pashman

11:49 AM ET | 09- 6-2007 | permalink | comments (6) | e-mail post

BPP Back in the Saddle: Bush in Iraq, Liberians in Ohio, Cubicle Culture in America, and The Most in the World

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Credit: Koichi Kamoshida/Getty Images

In today's show Jared Sandberg, who writes the "Cubicle Culture" column for the Wall Street Journal, explains "The Art of Playing Dumb to Deter Unwanted Tasks."

After a five day break from the studio, Luke and Alison are back behind the mics today, and didn't seem to miss a beat. Here's a taste of today's show...

-- ALL THINGS POLITICAL: We'll talk about the jockeying for presidential primary position, Fred Thompson's arrival, Condi Rice's disappearance, Larry Craig's return, and President Bush's secret visit to Iraq. What's it like to be a reporter invited on one of those secret trips?

-- BPP IN DEPTH: We take on two stories in greater depth today. The first is the case of a Liberian woman who the US is trying to deport, even though she's been here for 24 years and is married to a US citizen, also a Liberian immigrant. We'll talk to them to get their story. Plus we'll have Wall Street Journal writer Katherine Rosman in the studio to tell the emotional and fascinating story of discovering her mother's online life after her death.

-- MAKE ME CARE: The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum is underway. We weren't sure why we should care, so we invited Steve Clemons from The Washington Note on the show to play Make Me Care. He got 60 seconds for his pitch. Did he make you care?

-- THE MOST: Our roundup of some of the most emailed stories on the web...Baseball star Alex Rodriguez has reunited with his half brother, an Air Force Lt. Col., after 23 years apart...Since high altitude port-o-potties are too hard to clean, mountain climbers are having to pee into jars...NPR's Brian Unger has some tips for parents who need to explain senatorial bathroom misconduct to the kiddies.

-- THE RAMBLE: The mayor of a Russian town is fighting bureaucracy by banning phrases like "I don't know" and "It's not my job."...A pair of pants was found on the street with a $41,000 cashier's check inside...Nepal Airlines has sacrificed two goats to the Hindu sky god in the hopes it will address a problematic 757.

-- AND MORE: On top of all that, we introduce our brand new newscaster, Rachel Martin! Don't worry, the arrival of a new member of the BPP team is not an empty ploy to garner listeners. It was part of the plan all along.

Dan Pashman

1:36 PM ET | 09- 5-2007 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post

The Happy Ending: Tuesday

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A daily feature in which we point out our favorite NPR stories:

- For Okkervil River, a Pop Slant on Thorny Issues
- Drumming Up a Protest in a Harlem Park
- Highlander Celebrates 75 Years of Social Activism
- Chronicling Comedy in 'The Python Years'

Lauren Spohrer

4:11 PM ET | 09- 4-2007 | permalink | e-mail post

A Heartbreaking Work Of Staggering Genius.

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I was looking at my friend john's blog today, and came across this video, which I've now watched about 30 times. Prepare to have the thin candy shell that surrounds your heart broken.

UPDATE:

I just couldn't leave this posting alone, because for the past year or so, I've been admiring the insane ad campaign for Skittles and Snickers, engineered by Mars Inc. (the candy maker) and their ad agency TBWA \ Chiat \ Day. Forget these being commercials, they are freaking art, people. That's the reality.

here are some of the best:

Skittles Stable
Snickers Song
Skittles Singing Rabbit
Starburst Berries & Cream

Luke Burbank

3:58 PM ET | 09- 4-2007 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

Greetings from Bryant Park, Michigan

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I spent the weekend in beautiful Traverse City, Michigan, attending the wedding of my friends Carly and Joe. It turns out that Traverse City also has a Bryant Park! It only required a small detour to capture photographic evidence of said park, shown above with Lake Michigan's Grand Traverse Bay in the background. The discovery of a second Bryant Park led me to wonder how many more of them there are across the country, and whether we should conduct live broadcasts from each of them. (That budget request is pending.) Is there a Bryant Park in your neck of the woods? This is a national radio show, so when we talk about the Bryant Park Project, we're talking about ALL Bryant Parks. Even the ones we haven't heard of yet.

Dan Pashman

11:40 AM ET | 09- 4-2007 | permalink | comments (7) | e-mail post

A Time for Posting and a Time for Planning

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We talked about a boatload of stories and potential segments in this morning's meeting, all in preparation for shows tomorrow, Thursday and Friday. We won't go into too much detail now, lest we spoil the (theoretically) riveting radio to come. But here's a taste of what's on our radar...

-- President Bush made a surprise visit to Iraq. Aside from covering this news, we're really curious about the logistics of these surprise visits. We want to talk to a reporter who traveled on Air Force One to find out how this all goes down.

-- AT&T has introduced new parental controls for cell phones. And the next generation iPods are due tomorrow. As former White House chief of staff Andrew Card told the New York Times while discussing Iraq back in 2002, "From a marketing point of view, you don't introduce new products in August." So what other goodies are in the pipeline for September?

-- Neil Hamburger is coming to town. We want to book him.

-- Where in the world is Condi Rice?

-- Plus: New music, TV shows, and movies, Fred Thompson latest, Football kicks off, Fashion Week in Bryant Park, and so much more. Time to get prepping!

Dan Pashman

11:09 AM ET | 09- 4-2007 | permalink | e-mail post

A Fashionable Return!

Filed under: Inside The BPP

The Bryant Park Project crew is back from the holiday weekend!

And we are not alone, our new Executive Producer Sharon Hoffman has come on board and we are getting some help from Ilya Marritz, most recently of All Things Considered.

Also here in the 'hood ... a lot skinny ladies strutting down the catwalk while chic editors and gossip columnists attend Fashion Week. Here's my favorite fashion week reporter -- bon vivant/rockstar/comic Dave Hill. Watch him work it.

Alison Stewart

9:32 AM ET | 09- 4-2007 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post