Robert De Niro

We got the details on Armin Amiri's plans for the space formerly known as Cafe Socialista, which he is turning into an exclusive all-night diner.

At a lunch in honor of Bill Maher's Religuous, we solicited opinions on religion and religious person Sarah Palin from Kathleen Turner, Joy Behar, Janeane Garofalo, and Andre Balazs. 

We took a walk down a rather dissolute memory lane with David Carr and Tom Arnold at a Soho House celebration for the film adaptation of Toby Young's How to Lose Friends and Alienate People (bonus: info on star Kirsten Dunst's burgeoning writing career!).

Robet De Niro expressed ambivalence about a poorer--but grittier!--post-crash Manhattan at the premiere of What Just Happened?

We got shut out of Rupert Murdoch's party for New York Post writer Steve Dunleavy, but had a pretty good time anyway.

Barry Levinson’s What Just Happened? is not a particularly good or funny or incisive inside-Hollywood movie, but no one who was leaving the film's premiere on Wednesday evening at the Museum of Modern Art seemed to mind. Afterward, on the second and third floors of the nearby 21 Club, Sean Penn--who before the film started had spent at least three minutes having a gesticulation-heavy conversation with Robert De Niro--was at Table 6. In the film, he plays himself playing the lead role in an overly violent action movie.

What are his thoughts on the financial crisis? “I’m not going to comment tonight," he said. "I’ve had a couple, I’m going to leave it at that."

A few minutes earlier, a significant-looking balding man walked by and said very loudly, “Harvey Weinstein will never speak to me again!” Then an 80-pound woman with razor lips and very touchable-looking hair adjusted the tight, thick leather choker around her neck. Nearby, Men’s Health editor in chief Dave Zinczenko was blocking the way by talking with two men. “This bastard always steals things!” one said to the other about Mr. Zinczenko. Har-har-har! Around the corner there was Cybill Shepherd, dress cut low, talking to four men. And Barbara Walters and Steve Buscemi and Peter Dinklage; Roger Waters, Bob Balaban and Jay McInerney.  read more »

In an 11-year-old tape anonymously leaked to Page Six, Harvey Weinstein can be heard warning director Quentin Tarantino of potential "weird late night phone calls" from Robert De Niro, who was apparently angry about the salary he received for Tarantino's 1997 film Jackie Brown. [P6] 

Actor Shia LaBeouf will not be charged for a July drunk driving incident due to insufficient evidence. [TMZ] 

OK Magazine's Kent Brownridge may be putting a moratorium on the purchse of celebrity baby photos. Meanwhile, staffers are complaining that he seems "addled." [P6] 

 

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The much-anticipated 11 a.m. City Council hearing today on whether to require board members of certain nonprofit organizations to disclose personal financial information has been canceled, according to the Council’s web site.

The proposed law would have required people like Oscar de la Renta and Robert De Niro to publicly disclose financial information because they, as well as other celebrities and many wealthy people, belong to boards of nonprofits that get public money.

According to this New York Times article, Michael Bloomberg was not in favor of the move.

UPDATE: According to a City Council spokesperson, the hearing was canceled at the administration's request.

Vanity Fair editor and restaurateur Graydon Carter has admitted what many have long suspected (hoped?): There is nothing that special about his ultra-exclusive Waverly Inn, the design for which was apparently "shamelessly" and "ruthlessly" borrowed from other places.  [P6 ]

Leonardo DiCaprio is off-again with Israeli model Bar Refaeli. [NYDN] 

During the filming of Righteous Kill, Robert DeNiro took 50 Cent to a shooting range to "break the ice." [People] 

Reformed drunk-dialer and Insider correspondent Pat O'Brien is having weird delusions of grandeur, as evidenced by an email he sent out to the staff of his show (sample: "Even Joe Biden said, 'You should be running for president!'") [  read more »

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen's West Village neighbors are becoming increasingly irritated by the girls' "military presence" on their block. [P6] 

Kanye West was arrested yesterday for breaking a photographer's camera at LAX. [TMZ] 

At the premiere of their joint venture, Righteous Kill, neither Robert De Niro nor Al Pacino would comment on the swipe director Francis Ford Coppola took at the two of them in GQ. [NYDN]

Barack Obama will join Michael Phelps on the season premiere of Saturday Night Live this weekend. [People]   read more »

The Real Deal checks in with Robert De Niro this month. Here's how the greatest living actor got into New York real estate:

Robert De Niro's real estate empire started in the 1980s, when the actor was living Downtown near Drew Nieporent's restaurant Montrachet. To hear the celebrity restaurateur tell it, De Niro would come in and "sit at the last table with his back to the restaurant," to preserve his anonymity.

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New York can make you, and it can ruin you. Fast.

Case in point: Novak Djokovic.

Last year, in his two weeks at the Open, Djokovic transformed himself, on our stage, before our very eyes, from a gifted-but-little-known Serbian up-and-comer into a full-fledged star. Yes, it had much to do with his daring, nerveless play, but it was more than that.

Robert De Niro and wife Grace Hightower sat in the Djokovic player's box during his Open final against Roger Federer; they treated him to dinner at Nobu during the tournament and at Wakiya after he lost the final. Maria Sharapova cheered him on every step of the way, and rumors started running high that they began dating at the Open.  read more »

Celebrity hotelier Robert De Niro's notoriously secretive Greenwich Hotel has finally allowed another media outlet, besides Vanity Fair, to peak inside its exclusive chambers. Sort of.

Hotel Chatter - which had its own reservation revoked in April - directs us to this recent Newsweek review of Bobby D.'s lodge, which briefly discusses the rooms, the food, and the decor of this supposed "below-the-radar" hotel.

What, no mention of that posh illegal penthouse?

Carla Bruni's nude photo taken by Michel Comte sold for $91,000 at Christie's yesterday. [NY Daily News]

The ex-wives of Jason Kidd, Patrick Ewing, and Eddie Murphy were overheard discussing a "First Wives Club" type reality show over drinks at the Gansevoort Hotel. [P6]  read more »

It seems the control freaks running Robert De Niro's new Greenwich Hotel aren't only cracking down on camera-equipped spectators.

On opening day, management also kicked out a reviewer for the hospitality industry site Hotel Chatter, abruptly canceling her reservation.

And she wasn't even requesting a cheap press rate! To wit:

we had a room booked at the Greenwich Hotel tonight. Juliana was going to stay there. In fact, she was excited to stay there.

However, our credit card was flagged by the hotel, Focker style, and we were informed this weekend that we needed to agree not to publish any images that resulted from our hotel stay. Long story short, the hotel has an embargo on photos with some international publication with a long lead time, how archaic is that?

 

Celebrity hotelier Robert De Niro's hugely anticipated and high-priced lodge, the 88-room Greenwich Hotel, officially opens for business today in Tribeca.

And talk about excellence in hospitality!

A Curbed tipster reports from the scene:

there are three staffers outside the hotel, guarding against photographs. OF THE EXTERIOR. I managed to get a few shots, and one through the glass of the lobby, before a nice Asian lady nearly popped a blood vessel and grabbed at my camera. Bobby D, you've done it again, sir.  read more »

It'll be a family affair at the Tribeca Film Festival's opening night. Tina Fey and Amy Poehler's comedy Baby Mama will open Tribeca with its world premiere on April 23. "As a film festival with a true commitment to New York City and its film community, what better way to open this year's festival than with a New York production that brings together some of the city's most beloved and creative talent," said festival co-founder Jane Rosenthal, according to the Associated Press. Awww. Ms. Fey, is of course, a former SNL head writer and performer, and Ms. Poehler is a current cast member. SNL creator Lorne Michaels produced the film and it was written and directed by former sketch writer Michael McCullers. After the SNL -tastic opening night, the seventh annual festival will run through May 4.

Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal will co-chair a bigger and stronger version of the Tribeca Film Institute. TFI is merging with the Rockefeller Foundation's Renew Media to deliver more than $1 million film, media and arts grants annually. The two not-for-profit groups are expected to complete their union by April, setting a goal to create a permanent exhibition space, screening venue and artist workspace in downtown Manhattan, according to the Hollywood Reporter.  read more »

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.—Robert De Niro has shown up to pitch for Barack Obama, just as the rumor had it, here at the Izod Center at the Meadowlands. He's looking sporty in a blue blazer. "Barack Obama does not have the experience to be president of the United States" is his opening line. For one thing: "He wasn't experienced enough to authorize the invasion of Iraq."

"And that's not all,” he went on. “It's clear Barack Obama does not have the experience to let the special interests run the government."  read more »

"We didn't make the product -- the product made us," Ian Schrager told The Observer about becoming a famous hotelier.

What does the godfather of boutique hotels think of the latest wave of aspiring celebrity hoteliers, Robert De Niro, Giorgio Armani and Jay-Z?

"I think when people hear Jay-Z's name, they have a certain level of expectation of the kind of music they're going to hear. I don't think they have a lot of expectation about what kind of hotel they're going to get," he said.  read more »

Actor Robert De Niro used to be just another famous guest in the world of swanky hotels.

Now, he’s opening his own posh lodge in downtown Manhattan.  read more »

Former Vice President Al Gore called on television executives, producers and performers to help warn viewers about global warming as he accepted a special honor last night at the 35th International Emmy Awards at the Hilton New York. Robert De Niro introduced Gore as this year's recipient of the International Emmy Founders Award for his efforts to promote "our common humanity."  read more »

Last night at a party for The Atlantic Monthly's 150th anniversary, held on the stage of the NYU student center auditorium, the aging cable-access porn star Robin Byrd was looking around the room. She saw Robert DeNiro, and locked in.

"Hello!" she said, touching his right arm.

"Hi" he replied.

"Hi," she said, curling a smile.

"Hi, hi," he replied, holding his look for an extra second and turned away.

"I guess he recognized me and doesn't wanna talk," Ms. Byrd concluded. "Look at him! He's got a clavicle problem, you know. A clavicle problem."

Mr. DeNiro's left arm and shoulder were in a sling.

"Because his arm is not in a cast, just a sling! He has a clavicle problem, poor guy."

"I don't really know what The Atlantic is," she continued. "Is it something political?"  read more »

CHUD via Variety:

Four months ago, it looked as though Don Winslow's aging hitman saga, The Winter of Frankie Machine, was going to be the (potentially) perfect coda to the Martin Scorsese/Robert De Niro mobster trio of Mean Streets, Goodfellas and Casino. Alas, it didn't work out.

But, in a semi-inversion of what went down with The Aviator, Michael Mann has now stepped in to replace Martin Scorsese (who was actually never signed in the first place). This is, I think, a more-than-acceptable trade-off.

Before you get too excited, I should note that Mann has only signed to develop Frankie Machine (as it's now being called). And while Brian Kopperman and David Levien seemed an ideal duo to adapt Winslow's tome, their draft is now getting what Variety's Michael Fleming terms a "major overhaul" by Alex Tse (who re-tooled David Hayter's script for Watchmen before getting re-re-tooled himself by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman).

245 films; 12 days. Geez. In its sixth year Tribeca is transitioning from downtown booster event, groaning and growing to industry position.  read more »

You know the drill: The Prospect Park Audubon Center offers the kids some  “interactive exhibits” (let’s hope that doesn’t include that baboon family) with music, crafts and general whoop-de-do.  read more »

GO, SHORTY, IT'S YOUR EARTH DAY: You know the drill: The Prospect Park Audubon Center offers the kids some “interactive exhibits” (let’s hope that doesn’t include that baboon family) with music, crafts and general  read more »

Watch out, Rupert Murdoch!  read more »

The far East Side is not your father's far East Side. "Ever since Peter Falk lit the opening cigarette in the 1971 Broadway version of The Prisoner of Second Avenue, the eastern reaches of the Upper East Side have been known as a haven--or hell--for modest renters. The real-estate boom has changed all of that, prompting condo conversions as far east as First Avenue and turning a weathered redoubt for curmudgeons into a glossy destination for young, well-heeled families." Go to story by Matthew Schuerman Renting a Manhattan apartment not as tough as you think. "You wouldn't wish it on your worst enemy. Yet it's something that has to be done many times a month in Manhattan: the hunt for an apartment to rent. But the hunt's no worse here than in L.A. or even Boston. Really." Go to The Lab by Tom Acitelli How is American Apparel like 100 candles? "Avoiding the glare of American Apparel isn't easy these days, as the ever-expanding L.A.-based clothing chain continues to flip on more fluorescent lights across New York City. On Nov. 15, the international retailer opened its newest well-lit casual-wear emporium at the corner of Fifth Avenue and 19th Street--its 15th such location in Manhattan and Brooklyn in just three years. The California company that prides itself on providing "proper lighting" for its factory workers seems determined to do the same for gloomy Gotham streetscapes." Go to Counter Espionage by Chris Shott Mrs. De Niro buys Upper East Side limestone. "Though Grace Hightower and her godly husband Robert De Niro just paid $20.9 million for a 15-room Central Park West apartment last month, she has also bought a $3,440,000 limestone townhouse at 516 East 89th Street. 'She's going to gut it and renovate it,' said listing broker Beverly Feingold, a vice president at Halstead. 'It could just be a hobby! I don't know.'" Go to Manhattan Transfers by Max Abelson

Director Martin Scorsese is asking $6.7 million for his East 62nd Street townhouse, according to the New York Post. Mr. Scorsese has owned the five-story home for close to 20 years, before listing it with Edward Lee Cave. (Not sure if the vintage Renior poster is included in the asking price).

Also, Robert De Niro--who's starred in plenty of Mr. Scorsese's films--might still be looking for an uptown place, too. His wife, Grace Hightower, was reportedly checking out the $49 million triplex apartment at 823 Park Ave.  read more »

And Philip Seymour Hoffman was seen cruising down Gay Street--checking out a townhouse.

- Michael Calderone

When the Weinstein brothers broke ties with Disney last April, there were a few matters that needed to be addressed, including real estate. As part of their settlement agreement, The Weinstein Company recently purchased a 3rd floor office at 375 Greenwich Street for $2.2 million, according to public records. Conveniently, the 6,930-square-foot office had been home to Miramax for several years. While Harvey and Bob might have to toss out the Mickey Mouse stationary, they can keep their hip, Tribeca digs. The Tribeca Film Center offices and Robert De Niro’s Tribeca Grill are located in the same building.

Now that they’ve avoided being tossed on the street with a cardboard box full of Oscars, the Weinstein brothers can continue gathering billionaire and celebrity investors for their post-Miramax filmmaking venture.  read more »

A Weinstein Company spokesperson declined to comment about the purchase.

-Michael Calderone

You have a problem running an event when Mayor Mike is your most charismatic speaker. Such was the case at the opening press conference of the Tribeca Film Festival where he joined festival co-founders Bobby De Niro, Charlie Gargano and others to try out a few zingers, as witnessed by our Jake Brooks.

"This has been an exciting twenty-four hours for me. Last night I was introduced by Elizabeth Hurley," said the mayor, who looked tan—either because of the theater lights or all that time spent playing golf in the Caribbean—in a pink shirt and light purple tie. "Today, it's Robert De Niro." He then added with a mischievous grin, that he has to be nice to Mr. De Niro to get "a last-minute reservation at Nobu," which De Niro, in part, owns.  read more »

He also quipped that film commissioner Katherine Oliver had "worked [Kofi Annan] over" to let Sydney Pollack shoot The Interpreter at the U.N. "Nobody stands in Katherine Oliver's way," he said. When a reporter asked why it had taken so long to create a festival of TFF's stature, Mike responded, "Well, I wasn't mayor before then. I'm not taking credit. I'm just stating a fact." Bobby D stood there and laughed.

Artists who think big and don't hesitate to let the world know about their ambitions are often a tri  read more »

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The audiences who check out Touch , which begins previews Sept.  read more »

Beneath the striking W.P.A.  read more »

Post-9/11 lower Manhattan may end up looking more like Hollywood than Wall Street.Though many financ  read more »

The tuxedo-clad man in the Waldorf's ballroom elevator sounded furious.  read more »

Michael Caton-Jones' City by the Sea , from a screenplay by Ken Hixon, based on the article "Mark of  read more »

If Hollywood is high school with money, Tribeca's film industry is Dalton downtown: sophisticated, s  read more »

Despite Troubled Climate, Hotelier Goes Forward With Chelsea Plan On the evening of Feb.  read more »

Wednesday 30th Last gawsp of the 90's?  read more »

On Oct.  read more »

Like this city, the Hamptons have long been a place where opposing forces co-exist in a fragile stat  read more »

Over the hiss of a transatlantic cell-phone call, Thierry Klemeniuk, the owner of the newly opened M  read more »

The film forecast this week is bleak, black and bad for thedisposition.  read more »

Show Me the Mean De Niro Cuba Gooding Jr.  read more »