Video: Rockette does the splits

Video: Legendary Boxing Promoter Aaron Braunstein Talks Judaism, Boxing

Legendary boxing promoter Aaron Braunstein talks about the difficulties that Jewish boxers like Dmitriy Salita have in and out of the ring.






--Andrew Nusca

Video: Getting in the Ring with a Champion

Intrepid journalist Matthias Bernold gets in the ring with Dmitriy Salita, undefeated Jewish boxer and New York Golden Gloves champion.




--Andrew Nusca

Rockette auditions start this week in NYC

Calling all aspiring Rockettes! Auditions for the annual "Christmas Spectacular" show at Radio City Music Hall start today. Check out the rest of the audition schedule:





Tuesday, May 6
10:00 am - Rockettes

Wednesday, May 7
10:00 am - Rockette Callbacks

Monday, May 19
10 am - Female Dancer
2 pm - Male Dancer

Tuesday, May 20
10 am - Male Dancer Callbacks
1 pm - Female Dancer Callbacks

Wednesday, May 21
10 am - Male Vocalists and Singers who dance well
1 pm - Female Vocalists and Singers who dance well
5pm - Little People performers

Thursday, May 22
Vocalist and Singer Callbacks
4pm - Children

44 West 51st Street (Stage Entrance between 5th and 6th Avenues)
New York, NY 10020

Auditions will continue in Chicago and Los Angeles over the next few weeks.

Meeting 'Kid Kosher'

Quite frankly, when it's a Monday afternoon and it's pouring outside, the last place I want to be is in Starrett City without a car.

But that's exactly where I found myself when I met Dmitriy Salita, the undefeated welterweight Jewish boxer that won the New York Golden Gloves in 2001.

Salita's got a quiet braggadocio. He's silent as he works his way around the gym -- the famed Starrett City Boxing Club, which is nothing more than a hole in the wall in a drab, suburban office complex -- but he moves around with confidence.

As Salita and I talk religion (he's an orthodox Jew by way of Chabad) a young boxer walks by, fresh from defeat in a practice sparring match. Salita pulls him over, interrupting our conversation:

"You move backwards too much. You gotta get in there; get low. You've got more talent than most guys your age, but you can't be scared."

The same could be said for Salita, who is only 26, but is making strides toward a full professional career.

In this way, Salita is New York: he's a Ukrainian immigrant; he lives in Flatbush, Brooklyn; he's an orthodox Jewish boxer who has already won in boxing's biggest house, Madison Square Garden.

All he needs to do now is land a knockout punch on the right guy at the right time, and he's a step from being a New York legend. --Andrew Nusca

Video: Jewish Boxer Dmitriy Salita Reconciles His Sport and Faith

Undefeated New York boxer Dmitriy Salita talks about how he discovered boxing and his Jewish faith.




--Andrew Nusca

The Orthodox Stance

okok. here is our post. it's not that it would not be interesting or anything. au contraire! in fact, it's really exciting. after seeing these unique jewish boxing promotor, who lives in the apartment of Mike Tyson and has this room stuffed with pictures showing him and muhammed ali and ari sharon and whoever and belts of all the titles his boxers won and gloves and a collection of walking sticks and 500 magazines AND a piano, alright so after seeing this guy, which was really, really amazing we went to see this boxing gym in - well andrew said it is new york, but the truth is this is the farest I ever got when I left the columbia neighborhood except , maybe, for my ride to upstate new york for my awesome crimeprisonviolence story, but that IS another story. however. where was I? right. so andrew, it'all his fault, of course, he took us to this gym at the far, far end of brooklyn. it is as far as the l-train can take you. did you know that these trains go without a driver, fully automatique, isn't that scary? and then you have to walk for, andrew said it would only be a few blocks, but then we ended up walking for more than half an hour. in the rain. AND I was carrying the camera and my lunch bag. but I dont blame andrew. he is a good guy, in general I mean. in the end - yes I really have to say that- in the end this is was truely a newsworthy trip. oh, my god we shot so many pictures our single lens cameras started smoking. and we shot video and stuff. and I went in the ring with dimitri, who is waiting for his shot to become world champion. it's cool, isn't it. but I dont wanna tell you more right now. be patient and wait. aloha

The Brooklyn Brewer

Back in 1996, Mayor Rudy Giuliani told the press, "I want you all to look at this man. He used to be a reporter, but now he is making an honest living."

That man was Steve Hindy.

A former AP Middle East correspondent, Hindy learned to brew beer while in he was in Saudi Arabia. Tired of being the wife of a war correspondent, Hindy's wife made the decision to move her family back to the states. Hindy was soon back in the states, living in an apartment in Park Slope, working as a Newsday editor, and brewing beer regularly. He soon met Tom Potter, a banker, who would come up with business plan, and the next you know, both were quiting their jobs to pursue brew business. And the Brooklyn Brewery was born in 1986.

The opening of the brewery marked a return of the brew business back in Brooklyn, a borough that once was a home to 100 breweries. The brewery has become a staple of Brooklyn, and some would argue New York City.

Corliss Whitney: Eighty-year-old former Rockette shares her love for America's most famous dance group

Corliss Whitney, 80, of Rockville Center, NY, performed with the Radio City Rockettes from 1945 to 1953. Joining the group at age 17, Whitney danced with women who had been with the group since its inception in 1925 in St. Louis, Missouri.

Although she left the group in 1953 to give birth to the first of three sons, Whitney stayed active in the Rockette community by writing the newsletter for the Rockette Alumnae Association, which began in 1955. She has met many generations of Rockettes and attributes the group's legendary success to the vision and talent of its founder, Russell Markert.

Today, Whitney gives lectures about the history of the Rockettes. Her house brims with Rockette memorabilia, including hundreds of photographs, article and letters she has collected over the years. Most importantly, Whitney never quit dancing. She currently teaches a senior dance troupe on Long Island.

Say what? He is an Indian, not an Arab!

Yes, he was in Basra long before Americans even knew about Basra. He lived in Kuwait for almost two decades working as an engineer abroad a ship and then in an airport. He speaks Arabic but he says he is an American at heart. He loves chanting "God Bless New York" because for Harjinder Singh Duggal, New York is the best thing that has ever happened to him.

Duggal came to the United States in 1986. Born in India to a Sikh family, Singh, 64, is an unusually energetic man. One of the reasons he loves New York is because he thinks even the criminals are polite in this city. You've to watch the video (coming soon) to find out why.

Duggal, who once used to be an engineer, is one of the five Sikhs to be elected to the Queens County Democratic Committee in 2006. He has driven gypsy cabs, run newspaper stands, lobbied for social security, fought for equality of minorities and says he is a good friend of the Clintons. He has photos to prove it. How New Yorky can it get?

Uh-uh girl, HE is New York!

Billy Martin, seen left, has been working at the Apollo Theater for more than 30 years. From stagehand to program officer to tour guide, he's known around the hood as "Mr. Apollo." He's seen Kings of Pop, comedians Rock and female crooners debut to Zion all in front of his eyes, which were mostly behind  the scenes! In this tiny teaser photo, Billy (barely-seen-right) kicks it with James Brown, that true-daddy of Soul....Stay tuned for more photos, links to video from Billy and more interesting tidbits about Harlem's one true steady: The Apollo Theater. He's just so verrrry NYC you see? Word.