We figured the Cosa Nostra had moved to the burbs by now.........

Dear Wegmans: This past weekend, I discovered your awesomeness. I had to go to the Cherry Hill Mall for a new pair of glasses. There's no LensCrafters in Center City and I didn't have the time or energy to go to King of Prussia. But what to do in that hour between picking out my glasses and picking them up? Brunch, and then a trip to see you for dinner ingredients and snacks for......

Life is better on a Mac. Air is sweeter, food tastes better, and music sounds musicer. Some people (we’ll call them PC users) have a natural disgust for all things Apple—they disparage the products as being over hyped and overpriced; they leer at you from behind inferior laptops in coffeehouses; they roll their eyes in disgust as you casually check the internet on your iPhone, they mock your devotion to a collection of machines as......

The presidential race will be coming to the area tomorrow when Bill Clinton travels to Cherry Hill, New Jersey to campaign for his wife. 23-year-old Chante Wright, as part of a deal to cut her boyfriend's jail sentence, agreed to testify in a murder case. It was a dangerous move, and her testimony was crucial, so "she became the first state witness in Philadelphia to enter the federal witness-protection program." She was given a......

Remember when people used to go out to meet other people?......

The best of the internet, squirted out in flavorful neon globules, just for you. The big news today is, of course, the fact that Peter Jackson and New Line Cinema have mended fences and Jackson is going to direct not just one, but two movies based on The Hobbit. We don't remember the book being all that long, but hey, we'll give them our money twice. In slightly less exciting Peter Jackson-related news, Jackson and......

Dear Philadelphia: Congratulations! Just a day after The Inquirer reported that violent crime was down across the city, we received a press release from the GPTMC extolling all your other achievements in 2007. You deserve a big pat on the back for the national and international media mentions you've garnered this year. People are paying attention to you. You're like a celebrity now. On the Food front, The Today Show decided that Vesuvio Restaurant's......

Due to the fact that owners and players were not able to resolve a long-standing labor dispute, the 2008 National Lacrosse League season was canceled yesterday. A spokeswoman for the Philadelphia Wings said its 5,000 season-ticket holders would receive full refunds and could expect a communication today. A Scranton woman has been cited for disorderly conduct for shouting profanities at her overflowing toilet. Apparently she was yelling near an open window, and her neighbor (an......

Many things that had to wait while PA and NJ were in their impasse about dredging the Delaware can now move forward. One of those things is repainting the Ben Franklin Bridge. This holiday weekend, lots of folks were getting in as much fun as they could at the Jersey shore, despite the fact that, in Surf City at least, there was the possibility of blowing up. A beach replenishment project ended up digging up......

Five people in Cherry Hill and one in Pennsylvania, who are being described now as "Islamic radicals," were arrested last night for an alleged plot to attack Fort Dix, and a public information officer at Fort Dix says it wasn't the only base targeted; there was actually a plan to attack several bases in the Northeast. "Five of the men are expected to be arraigned in federal court in Camden today. The other one is......

Paul Mecurio Giveaway
4/27/07-5/1/07...

Toby Lightman...

As everyone watched Haley Scarnato get her ass kicked off American Idol last night, we were at The Tower Theater watching Toby Lightman's kick-ass show. She was so good we forgot who she was opening for. Oh yeah, Taylor Hicks, the winner of American Idol's fifth season, and better known as The Soul Patrol. Toby Lightman, a native of Cherry Hill, NJ, rocked the house last night showcasing songs from her new album, Bird......

That's right, the Soul Patrol is in town. Not really sure if Philadelphia needs any more soul, but I guess we can decide that tonight. I'll be honest, I am not really a fan of Taylor Hicks. I didn't vote for him nor do I agree with America that he should have won American Idol's Season 5. He's a good performer and singer, just not an "idol" to me. His part of the show should......

To the Bus Driver Who Took Me to My Joke of a Job Interview in Cherry Hill: When we stopped at a red light and I walked up to the front of the bus to ask you a question, it didn't exactly reassure me of my safety when I saw that you were sending a text message. A simple Google search tells me that from April 2002 to July 2004, 456 drivers over the age......

What's new and/or interesting at Philly theaters this weekend. The Departed - This film came out quite a while ago, and we talked about it then, but we wanted to mention that it's being re-released this weekend, in a shameless attempt to drum up some more box office action based on its Oscar nomination. So if you didn't catch it before, and you're curious, now's your chance. Trailer Showing at: Ritz Five Blood and Chocolate......

If you’re looking for a nice way to spend your Friday that doesn’t involve work, but, to keep your conscience at bay, involves doing SOMETHING worthwhile, check out the Urban-Rural Connections bus tour, which is part of Farm Aid. Stops include Pheasant Hill Farm, Rodale Institute Farm and Somerton Tanks Farm. You’ll be riding with farmers from around the country who can talk about innovative and organic farm programs that are working to improve......

Somebody Set Us Up the Bomb: The Lunabomber is trying to resurrect the "All Your Base" meme in honor of its fifth year. Phillyist is happy to help, because we'd rather see "All Your Base" make a triumphant return than the dreaded Dancing Hamsters. We Get Signal: The Kimmel Center Blog reports that they will be allowing folks the chance to play the new organ between 1 - 5 PM this Saturday (for a......

If you want to get down and dirty in Jersey this Thursday night, WMMR is sponsoring a Painfully Singles Mixer at Top Dog in Cherry Hill, N.J. We spoke with Nick McIlwain of the Preston & Steve show about the mixer, the crowd and how to get on the list. When is the event? This Thursday at 6pm-9pm. It is our first one at WMMR in New Jersey and our third overall one in......

Frugal in Philly is a weekly celebration of all things Philly that are fun, frugal (costing $10 or less) or free! Stop here each week to see what Philly's got to offer for those of us who haven't quite mastered the art of becoming Independently Wealthy (although believe us, we're trying). Featured Pick of the Week: Holiday Hoopla Phillyist reader Maria recently chided us for not pointing out the many Frugal in Philly appropriate, holiday-related......

In a post last week, we directed you to the Philadelphia livejournal community, where the posters were fondly remembering the not-quite-dead Dave Roberts and his, as it turns out, not-quite-dead weather board. Phillyist reader Jen Miller writes in to tell us: "The original board is in the Garden State Discovery Museum in Cherry Hill, NJ, I THINK. I was there last year, and I believe they said it was the original." Now, while it's funny......

It should come as no surprise that Phillyist is aggressively local. And why not? There’s good livin’ in Philadelphia - cheap real estate (compared to other Eastern cities, anyway), restaurants and culture that hold their own at the very least, and teams in every major sport that, even if they’re not always good, are always fun to follow. What constantly surprises Phillyist is how aggressively, er, regional Philadelphia magazine seems to be. Phillyist spent some......