The Midtown Gazette

A Columbia Journalism School newsroom covering Midtown Manhattan in the heart of New York City.


Author: ALEXANDER CONTRATTO
  • Diego Rivera’s Return to MoMa 80 Years After Rockefeller Destroyed His Mural

    Diego Rivera’s Return to MoMa 80 Years After Rockefeller Destroyed His Mural

    The Museum of Modern Art hosts an exhibit of Diego Rivera murals through mid-May. The installation features several of Rivera’s portable frescoes from his 1931 exhibition at MoMA, as well as a sketch of Man at the Crossroads, the controversial mural commissioned by Nelson Rockefeller to adorn the RCA Building in Rockefeller Center before it…

  • No Baby Steps for Baby Buggy Charity

    No Baby Steps for Baby Buggy Charity

    Baby Buggy founder and president Jessica Seinfeld, along with husband Jerry Seinfeld, visited the Empire State Building to celebrate her organization’s ten year anniversary with a lighting ceremony on December 5. Baby Buggies, dedicated to donating essential items to in-need families, showcased their blue and green lights on the Empire State Building Monday.

  • Black Friday Buyers:  Too Big a Secret to Tell

    Black Friday Buyers: Too Big a Secret to Tell

    Ever wonder what it’s like to be a fashion buyer during Black Friday? Keep wondering, because fashion buyers from the Garment District will not reveal their secrets as we head into the biggest shopping season of the year.

  • I Saw The Book of Mormon for $28, On The Day I Wanted To Go

    I Saw The Book of Mormon for $28, On The Day I Wanted To Go

    I waited over six hours in line to understand the culture of obsessed South Park followers and Broadway fans alike, who put their lives on hold to get tickets to The Book of Mormon, even if it means standing up inside the theater as well.

  • Herbie Hancock Performs For Launch of New Canon Product

    Herbie Hancock Performs For Launch of New Canon Product

    Jazz legend Herbie Hancock performed a five song set, including the 1973 hit “Chameleon,” for a crowd of Canon executives and photographers, who transformed his classic into a new kind of music video.

  • “Watch The Throne” Takes Over The New Garden

    “Watch The Throne” Takes Over The New Garden

    Jay-Z and Kanye West took over the renovated  Madison Square Garden for two nights last week to promote their new collaborative album Watch The Throne.  The sold-out performances featured an amalgam of songs off the new album and old favorites, over 50 songs in all.  The setlist for the November 8 show can be found here.

  • Sea To Table Urges Consumers To Ask Where Their Fish Comes From

    Sea To Table Urges Consumers To Ask Where Their Fish Comes From

    Eat raw, local fish: That’s the message of Sea To Table and Slow Foods NYC, which recently hosted an event at the Institute of Culinary Education.

  • Pumpkins as Art, Not Food, at the Union Square Greenmarket

    Pumpkins as Art, Not Food, at the Union Square Greenmarket

    With Halloween less than a week away, two artists craft unique details into pumpkins at the Union Square Greenmarket this past Saturday, October 22nd, while Occupy Wall Street protestors gathered at the southern end of the square for the second week in a row.

  • Crowd-Pleasing Detour Spotlights Anita’s Way

    Crowd-Pleasing Detour Spotlights Anita’s Way

    Times Square just turned the spotlight on Anita’s Way. Artist Adam Frank unveiled his newest installation, a simple spotlight in a passageway — hoping to brighten people’s days as they pass by.

  • Street Buzz: Precious iCargo

    An armored truck delivered a lunchtime supply of the new iPhone 4S to the Sprint store at 42nd Street and Sixth Avenue today. While midday lines were shorter than those at eight in the morning, when Sprint outlets opened, demand remained high. Pre-orders started last week, once new CEO Tim Cook introduced the phone in…

  • Street Buzz:  Core of Apple Fans Memorialize Steve Jobs

    Street Buzz: Core of Apple Fans Memorialize Steve Jobs

    New Yorkers and tourists alike stopped last Sunday to read notes posted at the Apple Store at 14th Street and Ninth Avenue since the October 5 death of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. The notes expressed thanks, a sense of loss, and admiration for Jobs’ innovative work, and soon spread to cover several windows; the Fifth…

  • Local Libraries Seize E-reader Opportunity, Large Public Libraries Lag

    Local Libraries Seize E-reader Opportunity, Large Public Libraries Lag

    As the digital age consumes traditional print media, smaller libraries add programs offering tablet readers available for lending. Larger libraries provide remote access through a mobile app, but struggle to meet demands for loanable e-readers due to budget limitations.