E-mail This Article To A Friend:

letter from new yorkLetter From New YorkNotes from around town.22142550newyorkfalsefalsespacernotembeddedletter from new yorkThe Con's EnglishBryan CurtisHow to write a dictionary in prison.noThe Con's EnglishHow to write a dictionary in prison.noRandy Kearse wrote Street Talk, his dictionary of urban slang, over a period beginning in October 1997 and ending on Aug. 17, 2005. Eight years might seem like a long time to nurture a manuscript, but not for Kearse, who was serving a term of 13 years, six months, and two days in various federal prisons for conspiracy to distribute narcotics. Prison was not a bad place to be a writer, Kearse said. There was plenty of down time and, as a lexicographer bent on chronicling the latest slang locutions, he had plenty of wisecracking muses. "Guys have nothing but time on their hands in prison," said Kearse. "So being able to talk witty, being able to talk slick, really highlights you as an individual." For instance, at the Federal Correctional Institution in Terre Haute, Ind., Kearse learned that if your cellmate has gone Viking—that is, he refuses to bathe—the phrase ain't no sharks in the water is a subtle way to convey to him that he might want to think about taking a shower. You know, when he has a moment. No rush.truenotochyperlinkno20075172123AMTuesdayMayMay75/1/2007 11:21:23 AM63313600883000000020075172123AMTuesdayMayMay75/1/2007 11:21:23 AM633136008830000000letter from new yorkSay Good Night, DummyBryan CurtisA ventriloquist puts his puppets to bed.noSay Good Night, DummyWhy is ventriloquism creepy?notruenotochyperlinkno2006924114558PMSundaySepSeptember239/25/2006 3:45:58 AM6329473835800000002006924114558PMSundaySepSeptember239/25/2006 3:45:58 AM632947383580000000letter from new yorkThe Birth of BrunchBryan CurtisWhy and how we eat at midday.noThe Birth of BrunchThe evolution of brunch.no"It started right here. This is the beginning of the brunch." This is Gary Greengrass, the owner of the Upper West Side delicatessen Barney Greengrass, known as "The Sturgeon King." A large, bald man who has run his grandfather's deli since 1983, Greengrass is sitting at a Formica table, his eyes trained on the customers coming through the door. At my behest, he is speculating that New York brunch as we know it began here on Amsterdam Avenue at 86th Street, amid pickled herring, whitefish salad, and salmon with eggs and onions. "It sort of evolutionized from here," he says.truenotochyperlinkno200683172051PMThursdayAugAugust198/31/2006 11:20:51 PM632926488510000000200683172051PMThursdayAugAugust198/31/2006 11:20:51 PM632926488510000000letter from new yorkFrench BreakfastBryan CurtisA Parisian cabaret singer in New York. noFrench BreakfastFrench breakfast.noArielle Dombasle's walk to breakfast the other morning began in the lobby of the Carlyle Hotel, where she flipped her hair while the bellmen flashed shy smiles and then continued into the restaurant, where she flipped her hair some more while a valiantly professional waiter offered her a table in the corner. Getting an early-morning view of Dombasle, a French actress and cabaret singer, is like having your face sprayed with a fire extinguisher. She stands about 5 feet 10 inches in heels; she has curly auburn hair and soft, creamy skin; her waist has been described by Parisian society magazines as the smallest on the Left Bank. In the restaurant, Dombasle had begun to attack a bowl of yogurt in the most unusual way. She would flip a scoopful upside-down, push it into her mouth, and then withdraw the spoon with excruciating slowness.truenotochyperlinkno200671861229PMTuesdayJulJuly187/18/2006 10:12:29 PM632888431490000000200671861229PMTuesdayJulJuly187/18/2006 10:12:29 PM632888431490000000200671861229PMTuesdayJulJuly187/18/2006 10:12:29 PM632888431490000000200671861229PMTuesdayJulJuly187/18/2006 10:12:29 PM632888431490000000falsetruetruetruetruetruetrue2006526123120PMFridayMayMay125/26/2006 4:31:20 PM6328424348000000002006526123120PMFridayMayMay125/26/2006 4:31:20 PM632842434800000000