http://www.blackbookmag.com/ en michael.orell@gmail.com Copyright 2009 2009-11-24T02:20:00-05:00 http://www.blackbookmag.com/img/logo2.gif http://www.blackbookmag.com http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/adam-lamberts-american-music-awards-performance-incites-phone-calls/13322 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/adam-lamberts-american-music-awards-performance-incites-phone-calls/13322#When:02:20:00Z Where am I going to find a house with 1,500 closets for everyone to come out of? Adam Lambert’s performance at the American Music Awards stirred up something saddening in 1,500 unidentified individuals who have called into to ABC complaining of a metallic Sonic the Hedgehog reenacting the only reason to watch 1994s Disclosure. I haven’t watched the video of the performance because I’m a night blogger and it will be fun to see if I can spread this peanut butter out over an entire post without having to resort to YouTube. Plus men aren’t visual learners or something like that I once visually-learned. I read somewhere that he led a dancer around by a leash and made out with a guy on a stage. Who cares? I’m making out with a guy right now. And watching For The Love of RayJay who, without question, is much more of a menace to impressionable youth than Lambert’s love of S&M and ugly jewelry. pop culture 2009-11-24T02:20:00-05:00 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/nyc-healthy-restaurants-to-balance-the-holiday-bulge/13288 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/nyc-healthy-restaurants-to-balance-the-holiday-bulge/13288#When:00:00:00Z I just got back from a wedding. In Florida. A normal wedding would not have been as detrimental to my waistline, except this one was a combined vacation, right? It's a wedding and it's vacation, and when on a vacation wedding, you're allowed to eat and drink as much as you want. But it's okay because I'm going to start a healthy fast this week. Yup. No eating meat or dairy or anything Gwyneth Paltrow deigns to ingest. So basically, I'll eat nothing solid for the rest of the week, and I'll be back on track for the holiday season. Oh, I forgot. Thanksgiving is this week. And before that I have drinks with a friend in town for the holidays, and then I am having a pre-Thanksgiving feast with people who will be out of town for the actual feast. Then there's the actual feast. I'm not the type of girl who skips special occasion eating, and I am not the kind of girl who'll down pro-biotic liquid chalk while everyone else has stuffing. So balance, I need balance. I need smart restaurant reservations amid all of the customary gorging. Here are some healthy alternatives to even out your This Is Why You're Fat holiday binge-a-thon. fashion 2009-11-24T00:00:00-05:00 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/paradou-wrapping-up-the-waiter-rage/13310 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/paradou-wrapping-up-the-waiter-rage/13310#When:23:30:00Z Well, when we last checked in on the hands-down winner for Restaurant Rage of the Year -- Paradou owner Vadim Ponorovsky -- he was still fairly unrepentant about his debatable management style, which peaked when he sent a scathing, pejorative-laced email to his staff (to put it kindly). So, what happened since it went down hard on Friday? Well, for one thing, I knew somebody who was actually headed there. restaurants 2009-11-23T23:30:00-05:00 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/the-11-most-fashionable-pulitzer-prize-winners/13312 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/the-11-most-fashionable-pulitzer-prize-winners/13312#When:23:00:00Z With the stylish Michelle Obama in the White House, America is witnessing a clear intersection of fashion and the intellectual. But this certainly isn't the first time such an intersection has occurred. While we may sometimes think of writers as hunchbacked schlubs who don't know the difference between a pashmina and a cardigan, many wordsmiths over the years have demonstrated a keen sartorial eye in addition to their ear for prose. In honor of style and fashion colliding in the White House, below we've spotlighted 11 Pulitzer Prize winners who found a personal fashion to complimented their literary talents. fashion 2009-11-23T23:00:00-05:00 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/rolling-stones-cash-in-on-susan-boyles-wild-success/13306 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/rolling-stones-cash-in-on-susan-boyles-wild-success/13306#When:22:30:00Z So you're a leathery husk of a once-fearless band (The Rolling Stones) looking to recapture some long-lost mojo. What to do!? You pin your hopes on a viral internet sensation who became one of the year's most unlikely and enduring pop stars (Susan Boyle) and let her continue doing the legwork for one of your most overplayed singles. Naturally! And it's here that her predictably stirring rendition of "Wild Horses" has breathed life into the withered rock outfit. In fact, Boyle's runaway success is the impetus behind the Stones' new reissue of the single, which include remastered versions of the tune as well as a live recording of the tune from 1995's Stripped. Meanwhile SuBo's worldwide chart conquest is well underway, with many tipping I Dreamed A Dream to go platinum before Christmas. After the break is her performance of "Wild Horses" at last night's X-Factor show which also saw the exit of her favorite contenders Jedward. pop culture 2009-11-23T22:30:00-05:00 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/a-sneak-peek-at-terrys-un-retouched-pirelli-calendar/13296 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/a-sneak-peek-at-terrys-un-retouched-pirelli-calendar/13296#When:22:00:00Z Over the course of the last several months, both behind-the-scenes video and stills from Terry Richardson's much anticipated shoot for next year's Pirelli Calendar have surfaced sporadically on sites across the Internet. But now come the first official images to be leaked since Richardson and his lens made their way down to Brazil with models including Lily Cole, Daisy Lowe, and Ana Beatriz Barros. Not surprisingly they feature a whole lot of flesh-baring and provocative posing (not to mention a cameo from a sloth -- surely not the sexiest animal, but it serves its purpose). The Telegraph has a great gallery of a handful of images from Richardson's shoot as well as past Pirelli images from the likes of Peter Lindbergh and Bruce Weber. Also of note: the fact that this year's Pirelli calendar won't be retouched. fashion 2009-11-23T22:00:00-05:00 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/forecasting-thanksgiving-travel-delays/13300 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/forecasting-thanksgiving-travel-delays/13300#When:21:30:00Z Wednesday, November 25, is officially the busiest traffic day of the entire year. In 2009, there's going to be even more traffic out on the roads and more delays in the air. On the east coast, Manhattan has already posted their "Gridlock Alert Days" citing 11/25 as the worst of them all, compounded by all the street closures for the Macy's Parade. Over on the west coast, I-5 should be a veritable parking lot starting midday on Wednesday. This year should be particularly bad for driving, as more people opt to go by car than spend on plane tickets. But that doesn't mean air travel will be substantially easier. travel 2009-11-23T21:30:00-05:00 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/the-olsens-ss10-for-the-row-lots-of-leather-no-shirts/13286 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/the-olsens-ss10-for-the-row-lots-of-leather-no-shirts/13286#When:21:00:00Z So the "no pants" trend has been making waves for what feels like a full fashion lifetime. But, thanks to the new Olsens lookbook for The Row, there's a new garment-less trend: no shirts. In an aboriginal-themed shoot, Mary-Kate and Ashley showcase SS10 wares from their higher-priced fashion line (Elizabeth & James retails at a slightly cheaper price point). Included in the mix: light-wash boyfriend jeans (a dead ringer for vintage Levi's), silk slip dresses, leather shorts, a sheer black mumu of which Stevie Nicks would surely approve, and black satin as blouses and a trench coat. Also included: sunglasses from the Olsen's premiere optics line, which likewise debuts in spring. fashion 2009-11-23T21:00:00-05:00 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/mariah-carey-robbie-williams-shun-broken-record-label-business-models/13290 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/mariah-carey-robbie-williams-shun-broken-record-label-business-models/13290#When:20:30:00Z Some time ago, Mariah Carey, of all pop stars, remarked incisively about how it's no longer enough for musicians to record songs. Now they have to establish themselves as businesses. It then makes sense that Robbie Williams, who's currently riding the high of a well-tailored comeback, is looking to branch out similarly. With his current four-album record deal with EMI coming to a close, Williams is looking to sidestep record label bosses and establish himself as a self-governing musical entity for the next phase of his career. This way, investors -- maybe including financial institutions -- would his production costs on the promise of a 50% return on all profits. It's another advance that hacks away overgrown weeds of an industry still gasping to keep up with the predominantly digital tendencies of music fans. It also makes them the latest in a growing line of self-employed pop stars increasingly fed up with record label cock-ups. pop culture 2009-11-23T20:30:00-05:00 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/fede-alvarezs-panic-attack-apocalypse-on-the-cheap/13302 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/fede-alvarezs-panic-attack-apocalypse-on-the-cheap/13302#When:20:00:00Z In just two weeks on YouTube, the short film Panic Attack has garnered Uruguayan filmmaker Fede Alvarez an unusual amount of attention in Hollywood. As Borys Kit recently reported, Alvarez started getting calls almost immediately, and is already in LA being courted for upcoming projects. It’s not hard to discern what’s gotten people excited -- and it’s not just Alavarez’ gift for dramatically blowing things up either. The big surprise after the jump. pop culture 2009-11-23T20:00:00-05:00 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/cpr-for-your-thanksgiving-wines/13272 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/cpr-for-your-thanksgiving-wines/13272#When:19:20:00Z Thanksgiving is a time to gorge yourself on highly fattening, savory foods, assembled in a not-always-harmonious, semi-random way. This gluttonous holiday has such an eclectic mix of textures and flavors (salty, sweet, fruity, gamey, creamy...) that it’s a feat to find wines versatile enough to go with everything. So what’s a wine lover to do? Chugging a Bud is not an option. Clearly, you have to drink wine. You’ll have turn to CPR to breathe some life into your Turkey Day. What’s CPR? Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Riesling, of course! Here’s why each is a match. nightlife 2009-11-23T19:20:00-05:00 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/black-friday-travel-deals/13294 http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/black-friday-travel-deals/13294#When:19:00:00Z While the travel industry doesn't go quite as hog wild as the retailers do -- the lines forming at JFK or LAX at 4:15 am the day after Thanksgiving are not for special savings on round trip flights to the Caribbean -- there are some deals to be had starting this Friday as the luxury goods retailers try to make some kind of cash in this depressed travel season. Though the deals might get a little more fast and furious for Cyber Monday, when people put down their shopping bags and start clicking their way through holiday sales, there are three good sales you can get your hands on this Friday. travel 2009-11-23T19:00:00-05:00