New York Today: Meet Your Mayor

Chang W. Lee/The New York Times Bill de Blasio on Election Night with his family.

The city woke today to a new mayor, Bill de Blasio, who won in a landslide.

To mark this occasion, we have gathered some facts about Mr. de Blasio that you might not know.

- At 6 feet 5 inches, he is the tallest mayor since John Lindsay, who was 6 feet 3 inches and was elected in 1965.

- In his 20s, colleagues referred to him as “Big Bird with a beard.”

- He speaks Italian (well) and Spanish (decently).

- In the early ’90s, he lived in a basement bachelor pad in Astoria, Queens. His answering machine greeting often quoted lyrics or poetry.

- He then courted a lesbian writer, now his wife, Chirlane McCray, and moved to Park Slope.

- He is 52; she, 58. They are the first interracial mayor and first lady.

- He is the first mayor to live in Brooklyn since Abraham D. Beame, who was elected in 1973.

- He does impersonations, including Charles Rangel, Bill Clinton and a goose.

- He is a Red Sox fan.

- Traveling in Spain, he and a fellow N.Y.U. undergrad, Barry Yeoman, wrote these words to the tune of “I Wanna Be Sedated,” by the Ramones:

Put me on a postage stamp,
Take me to a show,
Put me on some currency so everyone will know
Never once confuse me with Francisco Franco
I know, I know, I know!
I-wan-wan-wan-wan-wan-wan-wan-wan-
I wanna be Juan Carlos!

Here’s what else you need to know for Wednesday.

WEATHER

A swirl of sun and clouds, but slightly warmer and more humid than Tuesday, with a high of 62. This may mean rain on Thursday.

COMMUTE

Subways: Click for latest status.

Rails: Click for L.I.R.R., Metro-North or New Jersey Transit status.

Roads: Click for traffic map or radio report on the 1s.

Alternate-side parking is in effect the rest of the week.

COMING UP TODAY

- Officials celebrate a new line of holiday stamps by unveiling a giant gingerbread house at the main post office on Eighth Avenue at 10 a.m. [Here’s a sneak peek of the stamps.]

- Actors read from a play about an unlikely friendship that emerges from the demolition of the old Penn Station. Center for Architecture in the West Village. 7 p.m. [Free]

- Try to break a world record today - say, for completing the fastest 20-meter “butt scoot” â€" in Times Square. From 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. [Free]

- Off they go: Watch as three astronauts in Kazakhstan take off for the International Space Station, on a giant screen, also in Times Square. 11:14 p.m. [Free]

- For more events, see The New York Times Arts & Entertainment guide.

Javier C. Hernandez, Sam Roberts and Joseph Burgess contributed reporting.

New York Today is a morning roundup that stays live from 6 a.m. till about noon.

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