Today is Monday, June 29th, 2026
Rev up the air conditioners—you’re going to need them this week. While today should be in the toasty-but-bearable range, with mostly sunny skies and a high of 83, temperatures are expected to climb steadily for the rest of the week, reaching the triple digits on Thursday and Friday. Possibility of thundershowers tomorrow and Wednesday.
On this day in 2007, Apple’s first iPhone hit the market. It wasn’t the world’s first smartphone — that honor belongs to IBM’s bulky, antenna-topped Simon, which was introduced in 1994 — but the iPhone was the first to incorporate the technology synonymous with the devices today: a powerful operating system that allowed for full web browsing, instead of pared-down pages coded for mobile browsing; a large, clear touchscreen allowing users to interact with it with their fingers instead of a stylus; and, shortly thereafter, an app store that allowed users to download third-party software. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Notices
Our calendar has lots of local events. Click on the link or the lady in the upper righthand corner to check.
A public hearing on a bill that would phase out horse-drawn carriages in the city will be held on July 15. Named Romanch’s Law in honor of Romanch Mahajan, the 18-year-old who died after being thrown from a carriage pulled by a runaway horse in Central Park earlier this month, it also would provide support to help carriage drivers transition to other jobs. If you’re interested in testifying, you can register — HERE.
In honor of the country’s 250th birthday, the New York Public Library is issuing special library cards featuring an image of the Declaration of Independence. They’re available at the St. Agnes Branch of the library at 444 Amsterdam Avenue, and will also be distributed outside Councilmember Gale Brewer’s district office at 563 Columbus Avenue tomorrow between 2 and 4 p.m. (If you thought this event was last week, you aren’t imagining things; it was postponed from last week because of bad weather.)
News Roundup
Compiled by Laura Muha
Two Bronx men were arrested for allegedly punching and stabbing another man on the M104 bus earlier this month.
The suspects, Jaiden Marrero, 24, and Donzell Mitchell, 19, were each charged with two counts of assault and one count of criminal possession of a weapon, amNY reported.
The arrests stem from an incident on June 5, in which the two allegedly began yelling at a pregnant woman with a stroller to get out of their way as the bus traveled near West 92nd Street and Broadway. When another passenger, identified as Robert Hunter, 74, told them to leave her alone, they became angry and began punching him in the chest and head, police said. The fight then spilled onto the sidewalk, where at some point during the assault one man pulled out a knife and stabbed Hunter in the shoulder, according to police. He was taken to Mount Sinai Morningside Hospital where he was treated for his injuries. He told ABC Eyewitness News after the attack that he doesn’t regret his actions. “I’m not a hero,” he said. “I try to do the right thing. Look out for anybody. It didn’t have to be her. It could have been anybody that’s having problems.”
Read/watch the full story — HERE and HERE.
Three city councilmembers are calling for an investigation into a Multicultural Day performance at an UWS school, during which fifth-grade students mimicked being shot by police, the New York Post reported.
In a video obtained by the Post, students at P.S. 075 on West 95th Street are shown dancing to the song “Glory,” sung by John Legend and the rapper Common. The song, which is about civil rights, includes a reference to the 2014 fatal shooting in Ferguson, Mo., of black teen Michael Brown by white police officer Darren Wilson, and it includes the following lyrics: “They say, ‘Stay down’, and we stand up/Shots, we on the ground.” In the video, as that portion of the song plays on the speakers in the school auditorium, the students fall to the stage.
The performance was part of a Multicultural Day celebration at the school, during which, the Post said, students from each grade focused on a different cultural group. The fifth graders’ performance immediately followed a recitation of Native American poetry by the fourth graders.
In a followup article, also in the Post, Democratic Councilmember Phil Wong of Queens and Republicans Vickie Paladino and Frank Morano, from Queens and Staten Island respectively, called for an investigation.
“The Council’s Education Committee should examine how political activism is making its way into our classrooms, because this kind of messaging only undermines respect for the brave men and women of law enforcement who keep our communities safe,” said Wong, who is a member of that committee.
Read the two stories — HERE and HERE.
Actor Melissa Gilbert, who has had an apartment on the Upper West Side for the past eight years, is moving out of it in the wake of abuse allegations against her husband, actor Timothy Busfield, People Magazine is reporting.
Gilbert announced the move on Instagram, posting a photo of herself lying on the floor in front of a wall of moving boxes. “So long perfect little one bedroom apartment on the Upper West Side. The last eight years here have been so special,” she wrote.
“Goodbye favorite newsstand, bodega, dance studio, and laundry. Goodbye shoe repair, dry cleaners, nail salon. Goodbye sweet neighbors whom we love so much. And a very fond ‘farewell and see you soon’ to our favorite city in the world. I promise we will be back it’s just that right now…..well….you know.”
In February, Busfield was indicted on four counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor by a grand jury in New Mexico. The actor, who has been married to Gilbert since 2013, has pleaded not guilty to all charges, and Gilbert has supported him steadfastedly.
In her Instagram post, Gilbert said she was moving for the foreseeable future to a home she and Busfield own in the Catskills. Though she did not mention him by name, her use of the word “we” in her post suggests that he is moving with her.
Read the full story — HERE.
Speaking of well-known actors who call the Upper West Side home: Tony Danza recently wrote in the Metropolitan Diary section of The New York Times about a New York moment (or maybe we should call it an UWS moment) that occurred while he was performing for a crowd outside Manny’s Bistro on Columbus Avenue.
“On Sunday afternoons when the weather is nice … [Manny’s] puts a really good four-piece jazz band out on the sidewalk,” he explained. “It’s a busy stretch of Columbus, and yet the band fits right in. Manny sets tables on the sidewalk and in the street and transforms it into a jazz club, and people get up and sing with the band.”
One day, while doing just that, Danza said he noticed a little girl of about five watching him closely.
“I asked her father if I could talk to her and whether she sang,” Danza said.
The father said yes, so Danza squatted and asked the little girl what her name was. “Riley,” she said.
He then asked what her favorite song was.
“The Wheels on the Bus,” the girl replied, referring to the popular children’s song.
We won’t give away what happened next, but it’s charming — and a real tribute to the warmth of UWSers.
Read about it — HERE.
In Other UWS News
- An employee of an Upper West Side senior living residence has been indicted on charges of stealing more than $400,000 from the home and its residents, Patch reported. (The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office did not release the name of the home.) Read the full story — HERE.
- The UWS’s own H&H Bagels has just opened its first location in the Windy City, reported TimeOut Chicago. Details — HERE.
ICYMI
Here are a few stories we think are worth a look if you missed them last week — or a second look if you saw them. (Note that our comments stay open for six days after publication, so you may not be able to comment on all of them.)
UWS Shed Watch: Preserving the Upper West Side’s Historic Charm Takes Time – and Sidewalk Sheds
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Another option for the special library cards: I got one at the Library for the Performing Arts, and they still had them as of 6/27 when a friend of mine got one. (I don’t know about the Riverside Branch which is a block north of LPA at 65th and Amsterdam.)
Thanks for doing the right thing Robert! You’re a hero in my book.
He truly is
I typically enjoy your tidbits about people in the neighborhood, particularly celebs, but I don’t think the Melissa Gilbert bit was really necessary.
Kudos to the man who was assaulted for standing up to the criminals. I hope he testifies against them and they are punished to the full extent of the law. Hopefully this is something we can all agree on?
Finally, I am fully supportive of and embrace diversity and think it should be celebrated. And I hate the Post. But I do think we have gone a bit overboard with the constant “diversity days.” I’m all for incorporating black history month into the curriculum and things like that. But at some point it has gone overboard and is more virtue signaling than celebrating and educating.
This is the first time I’ve noticed the Rag doing the “we won’t tell you about it” tease for a story that’s behind a paywall. That’s frustrating and to me doesn’t at feel like it fits the vibe here. Supporting the Times is very worthy but many of your readers are on limited incomes. Will you please consider not going in that direction?
As per the “I Love the Upper West Side” the embezzlement of funds took place at the Atria on West 86 Street. Employee stole both funds from residents, as well as stealing from the facility.
According to Patch
“ Devon Ragnauth, 38, of the Bronx, is accused of using his position in the residence’s business office to steal checks, divert resident funds and make unauthorized credit card purchases between 2021 and 2025, according to prosecutors.”