Starting at about 9:30pm yesterday, the main complex on the harbor in the Fire Island Pines, gay-list New York's summer getaway, caught on fire destroying the historic Pavilion nightclub, the bar Sip 'N' Twirl, the restaurant Pines Bistro, and the eateries and retail spaces below them. The whole complex will be demolished. Here are some scenes from the wreckage.

Seth Weissman, Matthew Blesso, and Andrew Kirtzman just purchased nearly all the commercial property in New York's gay summer enclave. No, they're not turning straight, jacking up prices, or serving foie gras mousse. We talked to them about their plans.

Today the deal to purchase a large chunk of the commercial property in New York's gay summer enclave was finalized. The new owners, a real-estate development triumvirate, say they won't change a thing, at least for now.

It was just announce that most of the business spaces in the Fire Island Pines will be purchased by FIP Ventures, a group consisting of Seth Weissman, former CBS journo Andrew Kirtzman, and real estate developer Matthew Blesso.

Why didn't the authorities catch Bernie Madoff sooner than they did? According to Andrew Kirtzman, the author of the book, Betrayal: The Life and Lies of Bernie Madoff, it was Bernie's taste for fine design that kept regulators from noticing giant Ponzi scheme staring them in the face:

Gossip Cindy Adams celebrates her 79th birthday today. Barbra Streisand is 67. Designer Jean-Paul Gaultier turns 57. Mets star Carlos Beltran is turning 32. Playwright Eric Bogosian is 56. Djimon Hounsou (and Kimora Lee's significant other) is 45. Political reporter Andrew Kirtzman turns 48. Mystery writer Sue Grafton is turning 69. Veteran diplomat Richard Holbrook is 67. Kelly Clarkson is 27. Cedric the Entertainer is turning 45. And Shirley MacLaine is 75. Weekend birthdays—including that of the newly-named worst CEO ever, Dick Fuld, this Sunday—after the jump!

Kirtzman covered the local political beat for WCBS until the station dropped him in early 2008. He's also the author of Rudy Giuliani: Emperor of the City, an account of New York's 107th mayor.