Jeffrey Epstein, the money manager who will soon start serving 16 months in jail for soliciting underage prostitutes, first came to the media's attention in 2002 when he used his mysteriously acquired wealth to fly some newfound friends like former President Bill Clinton, and actors Kevin Spacey and Chris Tucker, to Africa on his private jet.

But just where was Mr. Epstein's money coming from?  read more »

The Paterson administration has replaced Port Authority board commissioner Christy Ferer with Fred Hochberg, a former Clinton administration official at the Small Business Administration and dean of Milano, the New School's center for management and urban policy.

While the Paterson administration generally announces such nominations beforehand, this one went in quietly and stayed that way until it was done, as the state Senate last night voted to confirm Mr. Hochberg for the unpaid position on the agency's board.

Ms. Ferer, whose term expired last year, was appointed to the board by Governor Pataki in 2004. Her husband was  read more »

Cinematical tells us that Film Forum will be screening newly restored 35mm prints of The Godfather and The Godfather Part II for three weeks beginning Sept. 12. There's no added footage or CGI effects (this ain't no big-time Star Wars re-release) but, rather, tastefully restored productions under the direction of director Coppola, original cinematographer Gordon Willis and film historian Robert A. Harris. You'll see Brando in a whole new light!  read more »

On Tuesday evening, Anthony Martignetti, the 28-year-old owner of Bar Martignetti, threw himself an engagement party at Manhattan Sailing Club's floating clubhouse, the Honorable William Wall, in anticipation to his September wedding to Annette Amundsen.

According to Guest of Guest's Rachelle Hruska, who calls Ms. Amundsen one of her best friends, the party guests were busy chatting about Mr. Martignetti's “bachelor party to end all bachelor parties" in Montauk last weekend when his "havoc-causing Aussie" friends tried to remind him what he was giving up. (Somebody send us some details!)

Mr. Martignetti opened Bar Martignetti on Broome Street in SoHo with his younger brother, Tom.  read more »

Citizens Union is hosting a debate between Democratic State Senator Marty Connor and his primary challenger Dan Squadron on September 3.

Their first debate, last May, was organized by the liberal group Democracy for New York City.

Since then, endorsements have been rolled out on both sides. Connor got the support of his colleagues in the State Senate, and several members of Congress. Squadron was endorsed by Michael Bloomberg, Scott Stringer and Brian Kavanagh.

The debate is taking place at Founders Hall at St. Francis College, 180 Remsen Street in Brooklyn Heights, at 7 p.m.

Fernando Ferrer announced today he will endorse Joe Addabbo in the Democratic State Senate primary in Queens.

Addabbo, a term-limited City Councilman, is facing Albert Baldeo, who almost beat Republican incumbent Serf Maltese in 2006.

Democrats are paying a lot of attention to this race because it could affect the balance of power in Albany, where Senate Republicans are hanging onto a slim two-seat majority.

When Michael Bloomberg made a flurry of legislative endorsements last week, he didn't mention Maltese's district,  even though Bloomberg’s aides openly floated the idea of Addabbo running against Maltese back in 2006.

Ferrer’s endorsement, which is officially taking place at the steps of City Hall tomorrow, isn’t his first foray into State Senate politics. In 2006, he endorsed challenger Hiram Monserrate in the primary against incumbent John Sabini.

As Cityfile first noted this morning, social person Kate Schelter is the newest addition to the Huffington Post’s massive stable of opinion-havers. The inaugural post from Ms. Schelter, who was once suspected of being behind the blog SocialiteRank, is called "The Top 6 Shoe Trends For Fall 2008."

What’s in Ms. Schelter’s forecast? Black patent T-strap platform sandals (okay), classic pumps (makes sense), animal print pumps (maybe?), and most notably, a wide array of peep-toe boots. Now, we’re inclined to believe that Ms. Schelter knows what she's talking about when it comes to emerging trends—her eponymous agency specializes in “visionary branding, creative direction, styling, events, and image consulting for an exclusive clientele,” after all!—especially since we've certainly noticed peep-toe boots kicking around (heh).  read more »

The McCain campaign just held a conference call with Rudy Giuliani--recently named the Republican National Convention keynote speaker-- ostensibly to talk about an reported meeting between an Obama adviser, Ambassador Daniel Kurtzer, and Syrian government officials.

It didn't go so well.

At one point during the call, Giuliani seemed to suggest that McCain would be open to picking a pro-choice running mate. A follow-up questioner was subsequently cut off by the McCain campaign.

Earlier in the call, a reporter asking Giuliani about his own association with hostile foreign entities seemed to disappear, mid-query, from the call entirely. (The reporter subsequently said that he was dropped.  read more »

Paul Starr, a make-up artist to celebrities such as Angelina Jolie and Jennifer Garner, was found dead in his Los Angeles apartment yesterday, according to Metro UK.

While the cause of Mr. Starr's death is still undetermined, his friends said that they hadn't seen or heard from Mr. Starr in several days. After knocking on his door repeatedly, police broke down the door and found him dead. Mr. Starr's age was reported to be anywhere from 48 to 51.

According to Mr. Starr's website, his clients have ranged "from ladies who lunch to movie stars, rock stars, and supermodels.  read more »

Forget the afternoon coffee fix. How about some film noir for a pick-me-up? Hulu has posted a full version of Charles Laughton's 1955, genre-defining movie The Night of the Hunter. Nothing like Robert Mitchum as aself-appointed preacher/widow killer with LOVE and HATE tattooed on his knuckles to get your blood moving. The daymares will keep you from experiencing that delayed crash before work lets out. Hang in there.