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Feeding the Pigeons, in Memoriam

Victor Kerlow

Dear Diary:

A few days ago I saw my neighbor feeding pigeons in Riverside Park, a no-no for some, a cause for others. I asked him why he was engaged in an activity that city residents and the government so frown upon.

He told me that a friend, before he died, was very concerned about who would feed the pigeons he “took care of” all these years. My neighbor promised him he would take care of the birds, and now, even though he himself has a hard time getting around lately, he keeps that promise daily, rain or shine.

It should make us wonder why we decry the care of pigeons. Why not make room for them in our parks with feeders and watering stations?

Why can’t we all live together? Or is this just the Pollyannain me?

Read all recent entries and our updated submissions guidelines. Reach us via e-mail diary@nytimes.com or follow @NYTMetro on Twitter using the hashtag #MetDiary.



Feeding the Pigeons, in Memoriam

Victor Kerlow

Dear Diary:

A few days ago I saw my neighbor feeding pigeons in Riverside Park, a no-no for some, a cause for others. I asked him why he was engaged in an activity that city residents and the government so frown upon.

He told me that a friend, before he died, was very concerned about who would feed the pigeons he “took care of” all these years. My neighbor promised him he would take care of the birds, and now, even though he himself has a hard time getting around lately, he keeps that promise daily, rain or shine.

It should make us wonder why we decry the care of pigeons. Why not make room for them in our parks with feeders and watering stations?

Why can’t we all live together? Or is this just the Pollyannain me?

Read all recent entries and our updated submissions guidelines. Reach us via e-mail diary@nytimes.com or follow @NYTMetro on Twitter using the hashtag #MetDiary.



June 30: Where the Candidates Are Today

Planned events for the mayoral candidates, according to the campaigns and organizations they are affiliated with. Times are listed as scheduled but frequently change.

Joseph Burgess and Nicholas Wells contributed reporting.

Event information is listed as provided at the time of publication. Details for many of Ms. Quinn events are not released for publication.

Events by candidate

Albanese

Catsimatidis

De Blasio

Lhota

Liu

Quinn

Weiner

Group event


John A. Catsimatidis
Republican

12 p.m.
Receives the Christopher Columbus Award from the Italian Cultural Association at its award reception, at Russo’s on the Bay in Howard Beach.

3:15 p.m.
Speaks at the 13th U.S. Peking Opera Festival, at Flushing Town Hall.

Bill de Blasio
Democrat

8:30 a.m.
Addresses Rev. Floyd Flake’s Queens congregation, one of city’s largest and one whose pastor has already endorsed Bill Thompson, to rally support for the City Council’s two recently passed bills, one banning racial profiling by police officers and the other creating an inspector general of the New York Police Department, at Greater Allen African Methodist Episcopal Cathedral in Jamaica.

12:30 p.m.
Participates in the 2013 Gay Pride March featuring grand marshals Edie Windsor and Harry Belanfonte, beginning at 36th Street and Fifth Avenue in Midtown and ending in the West Village.

3 p.m.
Accepts the endorsement of the Coalition of Brooklyn Caribbean Clergy, sealed ! in large ! part because of his support for an independent Inspector General for the New York Police Department, in Brooklyn.

John C. Liu
Democrat

8:15 a.m.
Attends Sunday services at St. Luke Baptist Church in Morningside Heights in Manhattan.

9:45 a.m.
Greets voters in East Harlem, at 103rd Street and Lexington.

10:30 a.m.
Attends the Sunday Service at Lov Gospel Assembly, on the Grand Concourse in the Bronx.

12 p.m.
Participates in the 2013 Gay Pride March featuring grand marshals Edie Windsor and Harry Belanfonte, beginning at 36th Street and Fifth Avenue in Midtown and ending in the West Village.

1:30 p.m.
Greets voters in Chinatown, accompanied by members of the Fujianese Association, at 88 East Broadway.

2 p.m.
Visits an Independence Day celebration, at Sara Roosevelt Park in Lower Manhattan.

2:45 p.m.
Stops by the annual Taishan volleyball tournament, at Leif Ericson Park in Brooklyn.

3! :30 p.m.
Stops by “Summer Sundays in the Heights” block party, in Washington Heights.

4 p.m.
Attends the annual Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial Lecture and Award Ceremony, at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.

4:45 p.m.
Greets voters at the Riverdale Riverfest, at the College of Mount St. Vincent in the Bronx.

5:30 p.m.
Attends reception in honor of Mexico’s Deputy Consul General Ismael Naveja, at Mojito Restaurant in Upper Manhattan.

6:15 p.m.
Stops in at the “Groovin’ in the Park” concert, featuring artists Patti LaBelle and Queen Ifrica, in Roy Wilins Park in Queens.

Joseph J. Lhota
Republican

11:30 a.m.
Participates in the 2013 Gay Pride March featuring grand marshals Edie Windsor and Harry Belanfonte, beginning at 36th Street and Fifth Avenue in Midtown and ending in the West Village.

2:30 p.m.
Attends the Brooklyn Young Republicans’ annual meeting, at Ceol Pub in Brooklyn.

!

Christine C. Quinn
Democrat

11:30 a.m.
Joins Edie Windsor and Roberta Kaplan in launching “LGBT for Quinn,” currently consisting of 1,700 L.G.B.T. activists, leaders and other New Yorkers who support Ms. Quinn’s candidacy for mayor, at 35th Street and Fifth Avenue.

12 p.m.
Participates in the 2013 Gay Pride March featuring grand marshals Edie Windsor and Harry Belanfonte, beginning at 36th Street and Fifth Avenue in Midtown and ending in the West Village.

Some of Ms. Quinn’s events may not beshown because the campaign declines to release her advance schedule for publication.

William C. Thompson Jr.
Democrat

12 p.m.
Participates in the 2013 Gay Pride March featuring grand marshals Edie Windsor and Harry Belanfonte, beginning at 36th Street and Fifth Avenue in Midtown and ending in the West Village.

5:30 p.m.
Stops in at the “Groovin’ in the Park” concert, featuring artists Patti LaBelle and Queen Ifrica, in Roy Wilkins Park in Qu! eens.

Anthony D. Weiner
Democrat

11 a.m.
Speaks at the Metropolitan Community of Manhattan, on West 36th Street.

12 p.m.
Participates in the 2013 Gay Pride March featuring grand marshals Edie Windsor and Harry Belanfonte, beginning at 36th Street and Fifth Avenue in Midtown and ending in the West Village.

Sal F. Albanese
Democrat

11 a.m.
Arrives early to participate in the 2013 Gay Pride March featuring grand marshals Edie Windsor and Harry Belanfonte, beginning at 36th Street and Fifth Avenue in Midtown and ending in the West Village.

1 p.m.
Participates in his second parade of the day, Brooklyn’s Puerto Rican Parade, at Leonard and Grand Streets in Brooklyn.

3 p.m.
Meets voters at the Astoria Park Festival, in Queens.

5! p.m.
Greets voters outside of the Bayside Historial Society Lawn Concert, at Crocheron Park in Queens.

Adolfo Carrión Jr.
Independent

1 p.m.
Takes his place next to a big blue Cadillac and the Stonewall Veterans’ Association of the 1969 Stonewall Rebellion to march in the 2013 Gay Pride March, featuring grand marshals Edie Windsor and Harry Belanfonte, beginning at 37th Street and Park Avenue in Midtown and ending in the West Village.

George T. McDonald
Republican

12 p.m.
Marches with the Log Cabin Republicans in the 2013 Gay Pride March featuring grand marshals Edie Windsor and Harry Belanfonte, beginning at 36th Street and Fifth Avenue in Midtown and ending in the West Village.



‘Monsters University’ Holds Off ‘White House Down’ at Box Office

Pixar Animation Studios/Walt Disney Pictures “Monster’s University.”

LOS ANGELES â€" Big guns and heavy star power took aim at the weekend film box office, but “Monsters University,” an animated frolic from Disney’s Pixar unit, was still standing when the dust settled. In its second weekend, “Monsters University” had about $46.2 million in North American ticket sales, and about $171 million in domestic sales to date. That put it well ahead of “The Heat,” a heavily armed action comedy starring Melissa McCarhy and Sandra Bullock. “The Heat” placed second with $40 million in weekend sales for 20th Century Fox.

Zombies, guns and Brad Pitt, in Paramount’s “World War Z,” placed third with about $29.8 million in the film’s second weekend; it has had $123.7 million in domestic sales since opening. Roland Emmerich, the master of on-screen disaster, meanwhile had a misfire in “White House Down,” with Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx in an action thriller about an assault on the White House. The film opened in fourth place, with about $25.7 million in sales for Sony Pictures, placing it well below the openings Mr. Emmerich, its director, posted with apocalypse-themed hits like “2012,” “The Day After Tomorrow,” and “Independence Day.”

Warner’s Superman redo, “Man o! f Steel,” placed fifth in its third weekend, with about $20.8 million in domestic sales, for a total of $248.7 million since opening. In all, the weekend box-office fell about 8.5 percent from the comparable weekend last year â€" when the comedy “Ted” and Channing Tatum’s “Magic Mike” were on top â€" to about $192 million from about $209.9 million, according to Hollywood.com.



‘Monsters University’ Holds Off ‘White House Down’ at Box Office

Pixar Animation Studios/Walt Disney Pictures “Monster’s University.”

LOS ANGELES â€" Big guns and heavy star power took aim at the weekend film box office, but “Monsters University,” an animated frolic from Disney’s Pixar unit, was still standing when the dust settled. In its second weekend, “Monsters University” had about $46.2 million in North American ticket sales, and about $171 million in domestic sales to date. That put it well ahead of “The Heat,” a heavily armed action comedy starring Melissa McCarhy and Sandra Bullock. “The Heat” placed second with $40 million in weekend sales for 20th Century Fox.

Zombies, guns and Brad Pitt, in Paramount’s “World War Z,” placed third with about $29.8 million in the film’s second weekend; it has had $123.7 million in domestic sales since opening. Roland Emmerich, the master of on-screen disaster, meanwhile had a misfire in “White House Down,” with Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx in an action thriller about an assault on the White House. The film opened in fourth place, with about $25.7 million in sales for Sony Pictures, placing it well below the openings Mr. Emmerich, its director, posted with apocalypse-themed hits like “2012,” “The Day After Tomorrow,” and “Independence Day.”

Warner’s Superman redo, “Man o! f Steel,” placed fifth in its third weekend, with about $20.8 million in domestic sales, for a total of $248.7 million since opening. In all, the weekend box-office fell about 8.5 percent from the comparable weekend last year â€" when the comedy “Ted” and Channing Tatum’s “Magic Mike” were on top â€" to about $192 million from about $209.9 million, according to Hollywood.com.



New York Today: Pools of Rain

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Rock On, or Live Long and Prosper

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Baby Raccoons Not in Peril, Merely Adorably Sleeping

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June 27: Where the Candidates Are Today

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Landmarks in History of Gay Rights, Found and Lost

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With Tote Bags, Police Try to Combat a ‘Blessing Scam\'

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New York Today: The Big Escape

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A Library of Discards

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A New Home for Clemente: On a Pedestal in the Bronx

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June 28: Where the Candidates Are Today

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Big Ticket | Park-Centric Luxury for $17.53 Million

The sale of a floor-through apartment at 18 Gramercy Park South comes on the heels of two other sales there; several more units are in contract.Suzanne DeChillo/The New York Times The sale of a floor-through apartment at 18 Gramercy Park South comes on the heels of two other sales there; several more units are in contract.

Three is a charm for the collaboration of Zeckendorf Development and its go-to architect, Robert A.M. Stern, at 18 Gramercy Park South. As a sequel to the jaw-dropping sales they logged by building the billionaire magnet 15 Central Park West, this smaller-scale but equally park-centric luxury condominium represents their first crack at refurbishing a landmark in a fussy historic district, and their third closing of the mo nth again netted the most expensive sale of the week, according to city records. Several more of the 16 homes there are in contract.

This time the floor-through residence was No. 11 (the previous sales were Nos. 9 and 5). The cost was precisely $17,539,356.25 - the original asking price of $17,225,000 plus transfer taxes. And the closing gift from the sponsor was the usual $350 key that opens the locked gates of Gramercy Park, Manhattan's only truly private park.

The key to No. 11 will unlock a turnkey residence in the 18-story Georgian Revival building; the unit provides 4,207 square feet of prewar charm and modern amenities. It has 40 feet of park fr ontage - and 134 feet overlooking historic Irving Place - as well as 34 windows and 4 exposures. The northward views from the living room extend across the green canopy of the park to the Chrysler Building, and in another signature feature throughout 18 Gramercy Park South, all of the windowsills are marble. The monthly carrying charges are $11,225.26.

A private elevator landing opens into a foyer connected to the 7-foot-by-15-foot windowed gallery; the eat-in kitchen has a center island, hand-painted Smallbone of Devizes cabinetry, Lefroy Brooks fittings, and bianco perlino marble countertops and backsplashes. The kitchen is adjacent to the family room to encourage mealtime socializing.

There are four bedrooms, all with en-suite baths, and a powder room is lined in black onyx. The 27-foot-by-14-foot master bedroom has his-and-hers windowed baths, a Gris Souris marble slab shower, a Calacatta caldia marble slab steam shower, and a free-standing cast-iron soaking tub.

Zeckendorf Marketing handled the sale. The buyer, using a rustic limited-liability-company moniker, Sky View Ranch, and a law firm address in Warren, N.J., was represented by Stan Ponte and Randall Gianopulos of Sotheby's International Realty.

Farther downtown, in TriBeCa, a sophisticated penthouse at the Hubert, a 2003 Art Deco condo at 7 Hubert Street, was the week's runner-up, at $15.6 million. Unlike its neighbor, PHC, notable for having its own private jogging trail, PHB maximizes its 4,200 square feet of loft-style indoor space with a Bulthaup kitchen and a living/entertainment area with a bronze-clad wood-burning fireplace. The unit has three bedrooms, three baths and a powder room, as well as prime views of the downtown cityscape; the asking price was $17.5 million, with monthly carrying costs of $8,643.

The sellers, Washington and Laurie Druker, were represented by Raphael De Niro of Douglas Elliman Real Estate. The buyer, based in Rowayton, C onn., used a limited-liability company, JLM Hubert Street, in the transaction.

The week's most epic closing was celebrated, or more likely suffered through, by the actress Mary-Louise Parker, who finally sold her rambling 10-room duplex at 32 Washington Square West, a 1925 15-story co-op on the northwest corner of Washington Square Park, for $7.45 million. This spring, after two unproductive years on and off the market, the apartment, No. 14W, was accorded a new broker, underwent a spruce-up session, had its asking price reduced to $6.99 million, and suddenly became the locus of a bidding war so fierce it could have been scripted for the Broadway stage Ms. Parker frequents. The duplex, which has five bedrooms, four and a half baths, beamed ceilings and two fireplaces, sold in a week.

The first couple to tour it after its minor face-lift, Charles O'Kelley and Elizabeth Rovere, were enchanted and made an offer, but so did the next house hunters, and the next. Ulti mately Mr. O'Kelley, the chief executive of AppNexus, and Ms. Rovere, a clinical psychologist, upped the ante and proffered the winning bid. They were homesick for the West Village after selling their penthouse there last year to follow the stampede of Manhattanites to Brooklyn. They had paid $7.3 million for a modern town house at 40 Willow Street, which at the time was the highest assessed single-family home in Brooklyn Heights. Although it is against the vogue, they have now sold the house and are departing Brooklyn for Manhattan.

“The whole thing was like a fairy tale, with both the buyers and the seller just delighted by the outcome,” said Laura Rozos, the Corcoran Group broker who took over Ms. Parker's listing in March after it had failed to sell at prices ranging between $7 million and almost $8 million. The monthly maintenance is $6,623.

“It really is the quintessential Manhattan apartment in a beautiful location,” Ms. Rozos said, “and its owne r was understandably exasperated by the time I came into the picture.” The buyers were represented by Deborah Rieders, also from Corcoran.

Big Ticket includes closed sales from the previous week, ending Wednesday.



Ask a Location Scout

The final subject in Metropolitan's Q. and A. series will be Kevin Breslin, a location scout for television commercials who has arranged thousands of shoots, including the New York Lottery “If I Had a Million Dollars” spots.

Kevin BreslinMichael Kirby Smith for The New York Times Kevin Breslin

Negotiating a Saturday night shoot in Times Square? Check. Shutting down the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway for an early-morning setup? Check. Filming atop the eagles on the 61st floor of the Chrysler Building? That too.

Wondering how he sweet-talks his way into these situations? How he discovers new spots in the city? The craziest place he has ever taken a crew?

Please share your questi ons in the comments section below.

We will pass on the best to Mr. Breslin with some of our own, and publish the answers next week.



Week in Pictures for June 28

Here is a slide show of photographs from the past week in New York City and the region. Subjects include a rally in the Village after a ruling on same-sex marriage, umbrellas at Jones Beach and a retirement celebration for a beloved principal.

This weekend on “The New York Times Close Up,” an inside look at the most compelling articles in Sunday's Times, Clyde Haberman will speak with The Times's Danny Hakim, Jim D wyer, Eleanor Randolph, Dorothy Samuels, David Chen and J. David Goodman. Also, Norman Siegel, a civil liberties lawyer, and Colum McCann, an author. Tune in at 10 p.m. Saturday or 10 a.m. Sunday on NY1 News to watch.

A sampling from the City Room blog is featured daily in the main print news section of The Times. You may also read current New York headlines, like New York Metro | The New York Times on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.



Glossy Ibises Are Like 21st-Century Pterodactyls

Along the Atlantic coast, summer afternoons arrive on the wings of the glossy ibis (Plegadis falcinellus). These dark birds seem to appear magically, suddenly haunting shallow mud flats and wet meadows where just minutes earlier none had been.

Johann Schumacher

Even in the velvety late afternoon light, it is hard to call the glossy ibis beautiful. It seems as if every ibis hides an inner dinosaur. Up close, there is something primitive about them, almost vulture-like, and even in flight - where their grace is on display to its greatest visual effect - their long outstretched necks seem to hark back to something more ancient than lovely.

Ibises' charms are never wasted on children, though, who are generally more familia r with dinosaur books than field guides, and frequently make comments like: “Look, Mommy, a pterodactyl!”

They probably are not far from right, and theories about modern birds' reptilian ancestry aside, the ibis's ancient lineage plays nicely against a 21st-century New York City skyline.

Until recently ibises were not a part of this modern landscape. Indeed, for a beginning bird-watcher in the early 1970s, an ibis was a bird of some note, worth a visit to Jamaica Bay in Queens or Pelham Bay in the Bronx. Glossy ibises first arrived in South America from Africa in the mid-19th century. They have been steadily expanding their range northward since. The bird is quite cosmopolitan and can be found in Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia.

In flight, an ibis is easily distinguished from other waders like herons and egrets, as it flies with its neck outstretched, an odd posture that serves to further emphasize its long, down -swept bill.

Johann Schumacher

The birds use their bills as highly effective probing tools, searching the soft mud with their heads bobbing up and down like sewing machines. When the bill hits the bird's preferred prey (crustaceans, worms, snakes, small fish and mollusks), the unfortunate food item is quickly dispatched with a simple nod of the head. At times, just the tip of a hapless tail remains briefly in view until it, too, is maneuvered down the bird's long gullet.

At a distance ibises appear to be uniformly dark, which accounts for one of their early common names, black curlew. When observed through binoculars or a spotting scope, however, the birds are a rich chestnut brown, with a greenish or purplish iridescenc e spreading across their shoulders, lower backs and wings. Their interesting behaviors and unusual colors have sold many pairs of binoculars over time, as the bird fascinates many a neophyte bird-watcher.

Glossies have made themselves at home along our shorelines and now breed within New York City. The birds build twig nests in low shrubs on the city's remote islands, generally in mixed colonies of other long-legged wading birds like egrets and herons. Ibises depend upon soft mud and open water for survival, so come September, the birds can be observed making their way southbound to the Carolinas and beyond, well ahead of fall's first frosts.

A version of this article appeared in print on 06/30/2013, on page MB4 of the NewYork edition with the headline: ‘Look, Mommy, a Pterodactyl!'.

June 29: Where the Candidates Are Today

Planned events for the mayoral candidates, according to the campaigns and organizations they are affiliated with. Times are listed as scheduled but frequently change.

Joseph Burgess and Nicholas Wells contributed reporting.

Event information is listed as provided at the time of publication. Details for many of Ms. Quinn events are not released for publication.

Events by candidate

Albanese

Catsimatidis

De Blasio

Lhota

Liu

Quinn

Thompson

Weiner

Group event


John A. Catsimatidis
Republican

10 a.m.
Celebrates the opening of his campaign's Manhattan headquarters with a pancake breakfast, at the Metropolitan Republican Club on the Upper East Side.

12 p.m.
Participates in a mayoral candidates' forum, sponsored by the New York
Coalition of One Hundred Black Women, One Hundred Black Men of New York and the N.A.A.C.P. Mid-Manhattan Branch, at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem.

2 p.m.
Lines up Nicole Malliotakis, a local assemblywoman who has taken on Sheldon Silver for his stances on women's issues and sexual harassment cases, to kick off the opening of his campaign's new headquarterson Hylan Boulevard in Staten Island.

3 p.m.
Tours Eger Health Center, in Staten Island.

Bill de Blasio
Democrat

1:30 p.m.
With a July 11 deadline approaching for candidates to have at least 3,750 signatures to get on the ballot, he is going to be
petitioning voters in Castle Hill, the Bronx.

6 p.m.
Continues gathering signatures for his petition to get on the ballot, at “Celebrate Brooklyn!” at the Prospect Park bandshell, in Brooklyn.

John C. Liu
Democrat

9:45 a.m.
Greet s voters at the greenmarket in Fort Greene Park, Brooklyn.

10:30 a.m.
Visits the opening weekend for the Douglass and DeGraw Pool, at Douglass/Greene Park in Gowanus, Brooklyn.

11:45 a.m.
Greets voters in East Harlem, at 116th Street and Park Avenue.

12:30 p.m.
Participates in a mayoral candidates' forum, sponsored by the New York Coalition of One Hundred Black Women, One Hundred Black Men of New York and the N.A.A.C.P. Mid-Manhattan Branch, at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem.

2 p.m.
Attends Delta Sigma Theta sorority's youth rally and step show, at P.S. 175 in Harlem.

2:15 p.m.
Attends the Harlem Pride 2013 celebration, at Jackie Robinson Park.

3 p.m.
Greets voters on Roosevelt Avenue and Main Street, in Flushing, Queens.

3:45 p.m.
Attends the Rochdale Village apartment complex's 50th anniversary, at the Rochdale Village Community Center in Queens.

4:30 p.m.
Greets voters at the “Fun for All” Block Party in Queens Village, the first of three back-to-back block parties he is attending this Saturday, in Queens.

5 p.m.
Greets voters at the 125th Street Block Party in Kew Gardens and Richmond Hill, the second of three back-to-back block parties he is attending this Saturday, in Queens.

5:30 p.m.
Greets voters at the “Let the Summer Begin” Block Party in Kew Gardens, the third of three back-to-back block parties he is attending this Saturday, in Queens.

7 p.m.
Greets voters at East Fordham Road and Grand Concourse, in the Bronx.

8 p.m.
Honors Richard Hsueh, the Chinese American Voice radio show host, at Mulan Restaurant and Mudan Banquet Hall in Flushing, Queens.

Joseph J. Lhota
Republican

7:30 p.m.
Attends the Celebrate American Concert and Fireworks, at the Midland Beach Turtle Circle in Staten Island.

Christine C. Quinn
Democrat

11:30 a.m.
Follows up last night's Kabbalat Shabbat services with Edie Windsor at Beit Simchah Torah by attending Saturday morning Shacharit services, at Lincoln Square Synagogue.

12:30 p.m.
With a July 11 deadline approaching for candidates to have at least 3,750 signatures to get on the ballot, she will be petitioning voters on the Upper West Side, at the Fairway Market on 74th Street and Broadway.

Some of Ms. Quinn's events may not be shown because the campaign declines to release her advance schedule for publication.

William C. Thompson Jr.
Democrat

12 p.m.
Participates in a mayoral candidates' forum, sponsored by the New York
Coalition of One Hundred Black Women, One Hundred Black Men of New York and the N.A.A.C.P. Mid-Manhattan Branch, at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem.

4:30 p.m.
Attends the Afro Latino Festival of New York, at Prospect Park, Brooklyn.

5:45 p.m.
Opens his campaign's first field office in Manhattan, on Amsterdam Avenue and 131st Street.

Anthony D. Weiner
Democrat

10 a.m.
Addresses the new graduates of the Preparatory Academy for Writers, in Queens.

11:15 a.m.
Greets shoppers at a Key Foods supermarket in Rochdale Village, Queens.

12:30 p.m.
Participates in a mayoral candidates' forum, sponsored by the New York
Coalition of One Hundred Black Women, One Hundred Black Men of New York and the N.A.A.C.P. Mid-Manhattan Branch, at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Cultu re in Harlem.

2:30 p.m.
Attends the Harlem Pride 2013 celebration, at Jackie Robinson Park.

Sal F. Albanese
Democrat

12 p.m.
Participates in a mayoral candidates' forum, sponsored by the New York
Coalition of One Hundred Black Women, One Hundred Black Men of New York and the N.A.A.C.P. Mid-Manhattan Branch, at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem.

2 p.m.
Meets fairgoers at the Family Days Street Fair, on Amsterdam Avenue on the Upper West Side.

3:30 p.m.
Stops by the endorsement meeting of the League of Independent Theater, at P.S. 261 in Brooklyn.

4:30 p.m.
Stops by Howard Houses Family Day, in Brownsville, Brooklyn.

6 p.m.
Meets with concertgoers, in Prospect Park.

Adolfo Carrión Jr.
Independent


Travels to Chicago for the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials 30th Annual Conference.



Video Reviews of ‘The Heat,\' ‘White House Down\' and ‘I\'m So Excited!\'

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Billy Crystal Reads for an Audience, Prompting Laughter and a Surprise

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London Theater Journal: The Empire Crumbles

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Book Review Podcast: The Fall of Galleon

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The Sweet Spot: Parks and Trepidation

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Christie\'s Leader Returns Ancient Bronzes to China

Liu Yandong, vice premier of the China's State Council, with two bronze animal heads that had been looted in the 19th century.Christopher Bodeen/Associated Press Liu Yandong, vice premier of the China's State Council, with two bronze animal heads that had been looted in the 19th century.

At a ceremony in Beijing on Friday, the family of one of France's wealthiest businessmen officially returned to China two bronze animal heads that were among the treasures looted in the 19th century from the imperial Summer Palace near Beijing by invading British and French troops.

The businessman, François-Henri Pinault, chief executive of Kering, the luxury goods company that owns Christie's auction house, attended the ceremony at the National Museum of China in Tiananmen Square along with senior Chinese and French government officials, including China's highest-ranking female politician, Liu Yandong, vice premier of the powerful State Council.

“This donation is a token of our family's appreciation for China as well as our passion for the preservation of art and cultural heritage,” Mr. Pinault said, according to a statement.

The two bronzes, a rat head and a rabbit head, were unveiled from beneath red silk covers by Ms. Liu and Mr. Pinault's father, François Pinault, Reuters reported.
For the Chinese, the looting of the palace symbolizes the humiliation it suffered at the hands of imperial Western forces during the Second Opium War. The two bronzes were among 12 animal heads, replicating the Chinese zodiac, featured in a central fountai n clock at the palace.

Mr. Pinault, whose company has significant stakes in China, made the offer to return the two bronzes when he accompanied the French president, François Hollande, on his first visit to the country in April.

Also in April, Christie's announced it had been granted a license that would enable it to become the first international auction house to operate independently on the Chinese mainland, where the art market has grown fast.

The chief executive of Christie's International, Steven P. Murphy, was also in Beijing for the handover of the 18th century relics to the museum where they will go on display to the public. “As one of the leading proponents of the importance of cultural heritage, Christie's is delighted to have played an instrumental part in ensuring their return,” he said in a statement.

Christie's and the Pinault family had organized transporting the bronzes back to Beijing.

Li Xiaojie, vice minister of culture and head of China's state administration of cultural heritage, said, “The Pinault family's donation is a friendly gesture to the people of China and demonstrates great support for the preservation of China's cultural heritage.”

A version of this article appeared in print on 06/29/2013, on page C3 of the NewYork edition with the headline: Christie's Leader Returns Ancient Bronzes to China.

Anatomy of a Scene Video: ‘Laurence Anyways\'

Xavier Dolan, the writer, director and editor of “Laurence Anyways,” discusses a scene from his film about the male-to-female transition of Laurence, played by Melvil Poupaud. In this scene, after Laurence comes out to his mother (Nathalie Baye) as transgender, the two have a conversation.



The Week in Culture Pictures, June 28

David Morse, left, and Rich Sommer in the play, The Unavoidable Disappearance of Tom Durnin at the Laura Pels Theater.Sara Krulwich/The New York Times David Morse, left, and Rich Sommer in the play, “The Unavoidable Disappearance of Tom Durnin” at the Laura Pels Theater.

Photographs More photographs.

A slide show of photographs of cultural highlights from this week.



‘Catfish\' Returns to Average Numbers

In January, “Catfish: The TV Show,” the documentary series on MTV that follows Nev Schulman and his videographer, Max Joseph, enjoyed a brief moment in the spotlight when when the Notre Dame football player Manti Te'o became the most high-profile example of someone who was “catfished” - that is, the victim of a hoax involving a faked online identity. But so far, any interest from that incident has not translated into higher ratings for the show.

The Jan. 21 episode, which ran after the Manti Te'o story broke, propelled the series to a high of 2.8 million viewers. The Season 2 premiere on Tuesday had only 2.5 million viewers, barely above the average viewership of Season 1, which was 2.4 million.

It should also be noted that original airings of Season 1 were scheduled at 11 p.m., making the ratings for those episodes more impressive. The Season 2 premiere unfolded in prime time, at 10 p.m., a higher-profile slot but also a more competitive one.

This post has been revised to reflect the following correction:

Correction: June 29, 2013

An earlier version of this post rendered incorrectly the surname of the Notre Dame football player who was "catfished." He is Manti Te'o, not T'eo.



Graphic Books Best Sellers: A ‘Thor\' That Wows

At No. 9 on the graphic books hardcover best-seller list this week is Volume 1 of “Thor: God of Thunder,” which reprints the first five issues of the latest series devoted to Thor, one of Marvel's top heroes. The series is written by Jason Aaron and illustrated by Esad Ribic. The first word to describe the result of this creative team is: Wow.

I've read a bit of Thor in the past, but I've mostly experienced him as one of the many colorful heroes in the Avengers. I never gave his godhood, or his long lifespan, much thought. Thankfully, Mr. Aaron has taken care of that for me in this story arc, introducing a menace known as the God Butcher, who travels across space and dimensions to murder all manner of gods and goddesses. Mr. Aar on has crafted a tale in which Thor confronts this threat at three points in his timeline: a younger, brasher Thor, the modern-day incarnation and one at the twilight of his career. The scope is epic and the stakes are high. The artwork by Mr. Ribic is stunningly beautiful, adept at capturing the quiet moments, the grandeur of the mighty beings being eliminated, and the incredible ferocity of the battles between Thor, in each of the time periods, and the God Butcher.

This volume of Thor is part of Marvel's “NOW” initiative, which restarted many of the company's signature series. The Hulk, Captain America and various groupings of X-Men and Avengers have been nothing short of impressive, and now Thor happily joins those ranks.

As always, the complete best-seller lists can be found here, along with an explanation of how they were assembled.



June 29: Where the Candidates Are Today

Planned events for the mayoral candidates, according to the campaigns and organizations they are affiliated with. Times are listed as scheduled but frequently change.

Joseph Burgess and Nicholas Wells contributed reporting.

Event information is listed as provided at the time of publication. Details for many of Ms. Quinn events are not released for publication.

Events by candidate

Albanese

Catsimatidis

De Blasio

Lhota

Liu

Quinn

Thompson

Weiner

Group event


!

John A. Catsimatidis
Republican

10 a.m.
Celebrates the opening of his campaign’s Manhattan headquarters with a pancake breakfast, at the Metropolitan Republican Club on the Upper East Side.

12 p.m.
Participates in a mayoral candidates’ forum, sponsored by the New York
Coalition of One Hundred Black Women, One Hundred Black Men of New York and the N.A.A.C.P. Mid-Manhattan Branch, at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem.

p.m.
Lines up Nicole Malliotakis, a local assemblywoman who has taken on Sheldon Silver for his stances on women’s issues and sexual harassment cases, to kick off the opening of his campaign’s new headquarterson Hylan Boulevard in Staten Island.

3 p.m.
Tours Eger Health Center, in Staten Island.

Bill de Blasio
Democrat

1:30 p.m.
With a July 11 deadline approaching for candidates to have ! at least ! 3,750 signatures to get on the ballot, he is going to be
petitioning voters in Castle Hill, the Bronx.

6 p.m.
Continues gathering signatures for his petition to get on the ballot, at “Celebrate Brooklyn!” at the Prospect Park bandshell, in Brooklyn.

John C. Liu
Democrat

9:45 a.m.
Greets voters at the greenmarket in Fort Greene Park, Brooklyn.

10:30 a.m.
Visits the opening weekend for the Douglass and DeGraw Pool, at Douglass/Greene Park in Gowanus, Brooklyn.

11:45 a.m.
Greets voters in East Harlem, at 116th Street and Park Avenue.

12:30 p.m.
Participates in a mayoral candidates’ forum, sponsored by the New York Coalition of One Hundred Black Women, One Hundred Black Men of New York and the N.A.A.C.P. Mid-Manhattan Branch, at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem.

2 p.m.
Attends Delta Sigma Theta sorority’s youth rally and step show, at P.S. 175 in Harlem.

2:15 p.m.
Attends the Harlem Pride 2013 celebration! , at Jack! ie Robinson Park.

3 p.m.
Greets voters on Roosevelt Avenue and Main Street, in Flushing, Queens.

3:45 p.m.
Attends the Rochdale Village apartment complex’s 50th anniversary, at the Rochdale Village Community Center in Queens.

4:30 p.m.
Greets voters at the “Fun for All” Block Party in Queens Village, the first of three back-to-back block parties he is attending this Saturday, in Queens.

5 p.m.
Greets voters at the 125th Street Block Party in Kew Gardens and Richmond Hill, the second of three back-to-back block parties he is attending this Saturday, in Queens.

5:30 p.m.
Greets voters at the “Let the Summer Begin” Block Party in Kew Gardens, the third of three back-to-back block parties he is attending this Saturday, in Queens.

7 p.m.
Greets voters at East Fordham Road and Grand Concourse, in the Bronx.

8 p.m.
Honors Richard Hsueh, the Chinese American Voice radio show host, at Mulan Restaurant and Mudan Banquet Hall in Flushing, Queens.

Joseph J. Lhota
Republ! ican

7:30 p.m.
Attends the Celebrate American Concert and Fireworks, at the Midland Beach Turtle Circle in Staten Island.

Christine C. Quinn
Democrat

11:30 a.m.
Follows up last night’s Kabbalat Shabbat services with Edie Windsor at Beit Simchah Torah by attending Saturday morning Shacharit services, at Lincoln Square Synagogue.

2:30 p.m.
With a July 11 deadline approaching for candidates to have at least 3,750 signatures to get on the ballot, she will be petitioning voters on the Upper West Side, at the Fairway Market on 74th Street and Broadway.

Some of Ms. Quinn’s events may not be shown because the campaign declines to release her advance schedule for publication.

William C. Thompson Jr.
Democrat

12 p.m.
Participates in a mayoral candidates’ forum, sponsored by the New York
Coalition of One Hundre! d Black W! omen, One Hundred Black Men of New York and the N.A.A.C.P. Mid-Manhattan Branch, at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem.

4:30 p.m.
Attends the Afro Latino Festival of New York, at Prospect Park, Brooklyn.

5:45 p.m.
Opens his campaign’s first field office in Manhattan, on Amsterdam Avenue and 131st Street.

Anthony D. Weiner
Democrat

10 a.m.
Addresses the new graduates of the Preparatory Academy for Writers, in Queens.

11:15 a.m.
Greets shoppers at a Key Foods supermarket in Rochdale Village, Queens.

12:30 p.m.
Participates in a mayoral candidates’ forum, sponsored by the New York
Coalition of One Hundred Black Women, One Hundred Black Men of New York and the N.A.A.C.P. Mid-Manhattan Branch, at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem.

2:30 p.m.
Attends the Harlem Pride 2013 celebration, at Jackie Robinson Park.

Sal F. Albanese
Democrat

12 p.m.
Participates in a mayoral candidates’ forum, sponsored by the New York
Coalition of One Hundred Black Women, One Hundred Black Men of New York and the N.A.A.C.P. Mid-Manhattan Branch, at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem.

2 p.m.
Meets fairgoers at the Family Days Street Fair, on Amsterdam Avenue on the Upper West Side.

3:30 p.m.
Stops by the endorsement meeting of the League of Independent Theater, at P.S. 261 in Brooklyn.

4:30 p.m.
Stops by Howard Houses Family Day, in Brownsville, Brooklyn.

6 p.m.
Meets with concertgoers, in Prospect Park.

Adolfo Carrión Jr.
Independent


Travels to Chicago for the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials 30th Annual Conference.



Glossy Ibises Are Like 21st-Century Pterodactyls

Along the Atlantic coast, summer afternoons arrive on the wings of the glossy ibis (Plegadis falcinellus). These dark birds seem to appear magically, suddenly haunting shallow mud flats and wet meadows where just minutes earlier none had been.

Johann Schumacher

Even in the velvety late afternoon light, it is hard to call the glossy ibis beautiful. It seems as if every ibis hides an inner dinosaur. Up close, there is something primitive about them, almost vulture-like, and even in flight â€" where their grace is on display to its greatest visual effect â€" their long outstretched necks seem to hark back to something more ancient than lovely.

Ibises’ charms are never wasted on children, though, who are generally more familiar with dinosaur books than ield guides, and frequently make comments like: “Look, Mommy, a pterodactyl!”

They probably are not far from right, and theories about modern birds’ reptilian ancestry aside, the ibis’s ancient lineage plays nicely against a 21st-century New York City skyline.

Until recently ibises were not a part of this modern landscape. Indeed, for a beginning bird-watcher in the early 1970s, an ibis was a bird of some note, worth a visit to Jamaica Bay in Queens or Pelham Bay in the Bronx. Glossy ibises first arrived in South America from Africa in the mid-19th century. They have been steadily expanding their range northward since. The bird is quite cosmopolitan and can be found in Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia.

In flight, an ibis is easily distinguished from other waders like herons and egrets, as it flies with its neck outstretched, an odd posture that serves to further emphasize its long, down-swept bill.

Johann Schumacher

The birds use their bills as highly effective probing tools, searching the soft mud with their heads bobbing up and down like sewing machines. When the bill hits the bird’s preferred prey (crustaceans, worms, snakes, small fish and mollusks), the unfortunate food item is quickly dispatched with a simple nod of the head. At times, just the tip of a hapless tail remains briefly in view until it, too, is maneuvered down the bird’s long gullet.

At a distance ibises appear to be uniformly dark, which accounts for one of their early common names, black curlew. When observed through binoculars or a spotting scope, however, the birds are a rich chestnut brown, with a greenish or purplish iridescence spreading across their shoulders, lower backs and wings. Their interesting beaviors and unusual colors have sold many pairs of binoculars over time, as the bird fascinates many a neophyte bird-watcher.

Glossies have made themselves at home along our shorelines and now breed within New York City. The birds build twig nests in low shrubs on the city’s remote islands, generally in mixed colonies of other long-legged wading birds like egrets and herons. Ibises depend upon soft mud and open water for survival, so come September, the birds can be observed making their way southbound to the Carolinas and beyond, well ahead of fall’s first frosts.



Week in Pictures for June 28

Here is a slide show of photographs from the past week in New York City and the region. Subjects include a rally in the Village after a ruling on same-sex marriage, umbrellas at Jones Beach and a retirement celebration for a beloved principal.

This weekend on “The New York Times Close Up,” an inside look at the most compelling articles in Sunday’s Times, Clyde Haberman will speak with The Times’s Danny Hakim, Jim Dwyer, Eleanor Randolph, Doroty Samuels, David Chen and J. David Goodman. Also, Norman Siegel, a civil liberties lawyer, and Colum McCann, an author. Tune in at 10 p.m. Saturday or 10 a.m. Sunday on NY1 News to watch.

A sampling from the City Room blog is featured daily in the main print news section of The Times. You may also read current New York headlines, like New York Metro | The New York Times on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.



‘Catfish’ Returns to Average Numbers

In January, “Catfish: The TV Show,” the documentary series on MTV that follows Nev Schulman and his videographer Max Joseph, enjoyed a brief moment in the spotlight when when Manti T’eo became the most high-profile example of someone being “catfished,” that is, the victim of a hoax involving a faked online identity. But so far, any interest from that incident has not translated into higher ratings for the show.

The Jan. 21 episode, which ran after the Manti T’eo story broke, propelled the series to a high of 2.8 million viewers. The Season 2 premiere on Tuesday had only 2.5 million total viewers, barely above the average viewership of Season 1, which was 2.4 million.

It should also be noted that original airings of Season 1 were scheduled at 11 p.m., aking the ratings for those episodes more impressive. The Season 2 premiere, however, unfolded in primetime, at 10 p.m., a higher-profile time slot but also a more competitive one.



The Week in Culture Pictures, June 28

David Morse, left, and Rich Sommer in the play, “The Unavoidable Disappearance of Tom Durnin” at the Laura Pels Theater.Sara Krulwich/The New York Times David Morse, left, and Rich Sommer in the play, “The Unavoidable Disappearance of Tom Durnin” at the Laura Pels Theater.

Photographs More photographs.

A slide show of photographs of cultural highlights from this week.



The Week in Culture Pictures, June 28

David Morse, left, and Rich Sommer in the play, “The Unavoidable Disappearance of Tom Durnin” at the Laura Pels Theater.Sara Krulwich/The New York Times David Morse, left, and Rich Sommer in the play, “The Unavoidable Disappearance of Tom Durnin” at the Laura Pels Theater.

Photographs More photographs.

A slide show of photographs of cultural highlights from this week.



Anatomy of a Scene Video: ‘Laurence Anyways’

Xavier Dolan, the writer, director and editor of “Laurence Anyways,” discusses a scene from his film about the male-to-female transition of Laurence, played by Melvil Poupaud. In this scene, after Laurence comes out to his mother (Nathalie Baye) as transgender, the two have a conversation.



Ask a Location Scout

The final subject in Metropolitan’s Q. and A. series will be Kevin Breslin, a location scout for television commercials who has arranged thousands of shoots, including the New York Lottery “If I Had a Million Dollars” spots.

Kevin BreslinMichael Kirby Smith for The New York Times Kevin Breslin

Negotiating a Saturday night shoot in Times Square? Check. Shutting down the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway for an early-morning setup? Check. Filming atop the eagles on the 61st floor of the Chrysler Building? That too.

Wondering how he sweet-talks his way into these situations? How he discovers new spots in the city? The craziest place he has ever taken a crew?

Please share your questions in the comments section below./p>

We will pass on the best to Mr. Breslin with some of our own, and publish the answers next week.



Christie’s Leader Returns Ancient Bronzes to China

At a ceremony in Beijing on Friday, the family of one of France’s wealthiest businessmen officially returned to China two bronze animal heads that were among the treasures looted in the 19th century from the imperial Summer Palace near Beijing by invading British and French troops.

The businessman, François-Henri Pinault, chief executive officer of Kering, the luxury goods company that owns Christie’s auction house, attended the ceremony at the National Museum of China in Tiananmen Square along with senior Chinese and French government officials, including China’s highest-ranking female politician, Liu Yandong, vice premier of the powerful State Council.

“This donation is a token of our family’s appreciation for China as well as our passion for the preservation of art and cultural heritage,” Mr. Pinault said,according to a statement.

The two bronzes, a rat head and a rabbit head, were unveiled from beneath red silk covers by Ms. Liu and Mr. Pinault’s father, Francois Pinault, Reuters reported.
For the Chinese, the looting of the palace symbolizes the humiliation it suffered at the hands of imperial Western forces during the Second Opium War. The two bronzes were among 12 animal heads, replicating the Chinese zodiac, featured in a central fountain clock at the palace.
Mr. Pinault, whose company has significant stakes in China, made the offer to return the two bronzes when he accompanied the French president, François Hollande, on his first visit to the country in April.

Also in April, Christie’s announced it had been granted a license that would enable it to become the first international auction house to operate independently on the Chinese mainland, where the art market has grown fast.

Li Xiaojie, vice minister of culture and head of China’s state administration of c! ultural heritage, said: “The Pinault family’s donation is a friendly gesture to the people of China and demonstrates great support for the preservation of China’s cultural heritage.”



Big Ticket | Park-Centric Luxury for $17.53 Million

The sale of a floor-through apartment at 18 Gramercy Park South comes on the heels of two other sales there; several more units are in contract.Suzanne DeChillo/The New York Times The sale of a floor-through apartment at 18 Gramercy Park South comes on the heels of two other sales there; several more units are in contract.

Three is a charm for the collaboration of Zeckendorf Development and its go-to architect, Robert A.M. Stern, at 18 Gramercy Park South. As a sequel to the jaw-dropping sales they logged by building the billionaire magnet 15 Central Park West, this smaller-scale but equally park-centric luxury condominium represents their first crack at refurbishing a landmark in a fussy historic district, and their third closing of the month again netted the most expensie sale of the week, according to city records. Several more of the 16 homes there are in contract.

This time the floor-through residence was No. 11 (the previous sales were Nos. 9 and 5). The cost was precisely $17,539,356.25 â€" the original asking price of $17,225,000 plus transfer taxes. And the closing gift from the sponsor was the usual $350 key that opens the locked gates of Gramercy Park, Manhattan’s only truly private park.

The key to No. 11 will unlock a turnkey residence in the 18-story Georgian Revival building; the unit provides 4,207 square feet of prewar charm and modern amenities. It has 40 feet of park frontage â€" and 134 feet overlooking historic Irving Plac! e â€" as well as 34 windows and 4 exposures. The northward views from the living room extend across the green canopy of the park to the Chrysler Building, and in another signature feature throughout 18 Gramercy Park South, all of the windowsills are marble. The monthly carrying charges are $11,225.26.

A private elevator landing opens into a foyer connected to the 7-foot-by-15-foot windowed gallery; the eat-in kitchen has a center island, hand-painted Smallbone of Devizes cabinetry, Lefroy Brooks fittings, and bianco perlino marble countertops and backsplashes. The kitchen is adjacent to the family room to encourage mealtime socializing.

There are four bedrooms, all with en-suite baths, and a powder room is lined in black onyx. The 27-foot-by-14-foot master bedroom has his-and-hers windowed baths, a Gris Souris marble slab shower, a Calacatta caldia marble slab steam shower, and a free-standing cast-iron soaking tub.

Zeckendorf Marketing handled the sale. The buyer, using a rustic limited-lability-company moniker, Sky View Ranch, and a law firm address in Warren, N.J., was represented by Stan Ponte and Randall Gianopulos of Sotheby’s International Realty.

Farther downtown, in TriBeCa, a sophisticated penthouse at the Hubert, a 2003 Art Deco condo at 7 Hubert Street, was the week’s runner-up, at $15.6 million. Unlike its neighbor, PHC, notable for having its own private jogging trail, PHB maximizes its 4,200 square feet of loft-style indoor space with a Bulthaup kitchen and a living/entertainment area with a bronze-clad wood-burning fireplace. The unit has three bedrooms, three baths and a powder room, as well as prime views of the downtown cityscape; the asking price was $17.5 million, with monthly carrying costs of $8,643.

The sellers, Washington and Laurie Druker, were represented by Raphael De Niro of Douglas Elliman Real Estate. The buyer, based in Rowayton, Conn., used a limited-liability company, JLM Hubert Street, in the transaction.

The week’s most epic ! closing w! as celebrated, or more likely suffered through, by the actress Mary-Louise Parker, who finally sold her rambling 10-room duplex at 32 Washington Square West, a 1925 15-story co-op on the northwest corner of Washington Square Park, for $7.45 million. This spring, after two unproductive years on and off the market, the apartment, No. 14W, was accorded a new broker, underwent a spruce-up session, had its asking price reduced to $6.99 million, and suddenly became the locus of a bidding war so fierce it could have been scripted for the Broadway stage Ms. Parker frequents. The duplex, which has five bedrooms, four and a half baths, beamed ceilings and two fireplaces, sold in a week.

The first couple to tour it after its minor face-lift, Charles O’Kelley and Elizabeth Rovere, were enchanted and made an offer, but so did the next house hunters, and the next. Ultimately Mr. O’Kelley, the chief executive of AppNexus, and Ms. Rovere, a clinical psychologist, upped the ante and proffered the winning bid. The were homesick for the West Village after selling their penthouse there last year to follow the stampede of Manhattanites to Brooklyn. They had paid $7.3 million for a modern town house at 40 Willow Street, which at the time was the highest assessed single-family home in Brooklyn Heights. Although it is against the vogue, they have now sold the house and are departing Brooklyn for Manhattan.

“The whole thing was like a fairy tale, with both the buyers and the seller just delighted by the outcome,” said Laura Rozos, the Corcoran Group broker who took over Ms. Parker’s listing in March after it had failed to sell at prices ranging between $7 million and almost $8 million. The monthly maintenance is $6,623.

“It really is the quintessential Manhattan apartment in a beautiful location,” Ms. Rozos said, “and its owner was understandably exasperated by the time I came into the picture.” The buyers were represented by Deborah Rieders, also from Corcoran.

Big Ticket includes cl! osed sale! s from the previous week, ending Wednesday.