And another weird New York institution bites the dust: The Off-Track Betting Corporation, the state-owned horse betting business, has finally closed after years of threatening to do so. Fifty parlors were shut down and 1,000 people were laid off.

Here's a recent news report by Joe Torres of New York's WABC regarding some unsolved robberies in the Bronx's Bedford Park neighborhood. But wait! Just as Torres finishes, a random woman in the background takes quite a tumble. Watch inside.

[The Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center in New York City was lit on Tuesday night, bringing Christmas cheer to Christians, and reminding everyone else to pick a movie and a Chinese place for the 25th. Photo via AP.]

Actor Jim Carrey was filming Mr. Popper's Penguins on the roof of 480 Park Ave on Monday when a tipster in a neighboring building snapped this shot. Seen someone interesting? Email it to stalker@gawker.com or post it yourself to #stalker.

This breathtaking compilation includes timelapses of many of your favorite New York City landmarks and is nothing short of epic.

On Sunday, The New York Times took it upon itself to introduce us all to five "night life scenemakers" who are "carving out new party spaces in the city's ever-gentrifying neighborhoods." But which one is the coolest?

A lot of people have been wondering why New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg tapped former Hearst chief Cathie Black to run the city's school system. Add Black to the list: Bloomberg never even interviewed her before offering her the job.

A new study found that the economy is causing stress in 75 percent of New Yorkers—highest in the country. Other stresses include "health issues, housing costs and personal safety." What they're not stressed about: finding good Thai food.

Tony Judt, the British historian and intellectual, died in August after a genuinely courageous battle with ALS, and we already miss him. So it was a treat to read a new essay of his in The New York Times.

Most people train for the New York City Marathon above ground, in sneakers, after years of working up to marathon distance. Edison Peña trained thousands of feet underground, in boots he sawed the ankles off of. And he still finished.

Central Park has seen a 45% increase in crime this year—including seven rapes, up from zero in 2009. The culprit? The bad economy, which apparently brings more people to the park, and then induces them to commit crimes.

"Craziness in the sky," an intrepid tipster emails us. "There are some sort of flying hovering bright objects above the Queensboro bridge." Have the Manhattan UFOs returned from their sojourn to El Paso? Or is some kind of viral-marketing stunt?

New York's tyrannical mayor Michael Bloomberg, after winning his third term, now strongly supports an NYC ballot measure to restore the two-term limit. The explanation: "A spokesman says Bloomberg only supported three terms for himself, because the situation was extraordinary."

The Millionaire Matchmaker's season debut concentrated on the show's move from Los Angeles to New York City. Throughout the episode, Patti Stanger spouted a staggering amount of awful stereotypes about what she believes dating is like in our city.

Hiram Monserrate, former New York state senator and all-around awful person, has been indicted on federal corruption charges.

Last Wednesday, New Yorkers were startled by some UFOs above Chelsea. The next day, reports stated that they was just balloons. But wait! This news report from El Paso, Texas reopens the mystery, because the same UFOs were seen there.

According to the New York Post, three New York City high school teachers were fired for having "inappropriate" Facebook "dealings" with students, including commenting "This is sexy" on a student's photos. Let's turn this into a teachable moment! Teachers: Don't.

We told you that tonight's New York gubernatorial debate—with seven participants!—would be crazy, but we could have never anticipated this level of it: watch as Jimmy McMillan, of the "Rent Is Too Damn High" party, uh... introduces himself.

New York City's billionaire CEO-for-life, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, is looking for ways to save the city some money. And he'd like ideas on how to do that from the people. Let's stuff his suggestion box full of brilliant ideas!

Four high school students in Staten Island have been arrested and charged with assault and aggravated harassment as hate crimes for their roles in the continuing, yearlong abuse of a Muslim classmate. What's going on with New York City?