The quiet death of the public option is quiet no longer. The Times is reporting that Democrats have reached a "tentative deal" to drop the public option from the Senate health care bill. Well, there's always Republicans, right? [NYT]

Underground deadpan king Dan Mintz unleashes a slew of one liners about his romantic life, each one ending in disaster. On dates or — on the web — women always assume he has an evil ulterior motive.

If you were weirded out by Bob Dylan's Christmas album, avert your ears: Senator Orrin Hatch, a Mormon Republican from Utah, has given Jews a "gift" by writing them a Hanukkah song. What is Yiddish for: "Jesus fucking Christ"?

Nicole suggested sexing up Sesame Street; Debbie Gibson LOLed at a Krispy Kreme employee; and Susan Orlean's mind was controlled through the mail. The Twitterati got their kicks, one way or another.

We get lots of suggestions of what to post on Gawker every day. Let's take a look at what came in through the #tips page: college kids are never trustworthy, a Tiger Woods prediction, plus Ann Coulter's getting older.

• Didn't crash last month's state dinner? No worries. Marcus Samuelsson's Riingo will offer the same menu he served the Obamas next week. [GS, TONY]
• Closings: Pink Tea Cup in the Village will close its doors next month after 55 years in business; and nearby Gus' Place has been shuttered by the tax cops.
• The Wright, the new eatery inside the Guggenheim, opens on Friday. [Eater]
• East Side Social Club, the new Midtown spot co-owned by photographer Patrick McMullan, is the 2009 version of the Waverly Inn, apparently. [NYP]
• UWS deli Artie's has a new owner and will expand across NYC. [Crain's]
• A handful of local food-related holiday gift ideas for you consideration. [SE]

AOL roped New York Times tech reporter Saul Hansell into heading up "Seed," the ominous project to churn out news stories in response to what people type into search engines. Can Hansell make this hellish scheme less dreadful?

[It may have been June when these ladies were jumping for joy on the Chelsea Piers, but the weather looks familiar. Image via Kharied's Flickr]

Some consider 90210, airing tonight at 8 on The CW, a fitting sequel to that seminal teen drama, Beverly Hills, 90210. Hustler knew better, and decided to celebrate the original as only they could: with implied-incest porn. [NSFW]

On the afternoon of September 1, 2009, Gawker launched a wide-ranging, multi-front investigation into the hazing practices of a State Department contractor in Kabul. About an hour later, we published the shocking results. Today, the State Department listened.

The revelations about Tiger Woods' extra-curricular escapades may now be catching up with him, or it may just be a coincidence, but Gatorade confirmed today that it plans to discontinue Tiger Focus, the sports drink "inspired" by Woods' "legendary mental toughness" that promises to reduce mental and physical stress. The company says the decision to drop the beverage had nothing to do with recent events, though, and was made more several months ago. [CNBC]

Leo Wolinsky, a former Los Angeles Times executive editor, hired as editor of Daily Variety.

2009 will be remembered for a lot of things. Those things will probably be remembered better if we mash 'em up and autotune them.

What are you watching tonight? Let us know in the comments.

CORRECTION: This post originally referenced the INXS Need You Tonight video, which was partly animatd. Clearly, A-Ha's "Take On Me" is the closer analogy. Gawker regrets the miscalibrated pop culture reference.

Former New York Times editor Abe Rosenthal famously said, "I don't care if my reporters are fucking elephants, as long as they aren't covering the circus." Someone tell Raymond Hernandez, who covers Congress in D.C. while dating a congressional spokesperson.

For real, Rastas believe all types of weird shit. Bob Marley thought the Emperor of Ethiopia was basically Jesus. That's crazy! Great music though. What have we learned? People who hold psycho political beliefs can make jammin-ass music. Surprise!

• Goodbyes: After 53 years on the air, CBS has canceled As the World Turns; meanwhile, the Bonnie Hunt Show won't be renewed after this season.
• JuJu Chang will take over for Chris Cuomo on Good Morning America. [NYP]
• Vevo, which is hoping to become the Hulu of music videos and is owned by Universal Music and Sony Music, made its debut today. [NYT, Reuters]
• Advertising is picking up again at the New York Times. Surprise! [AP, NYT]
• Related: The number of people who accepted Times buyouts has topped 50; tech reporter Saul Hansell is leaving the paper for AOL. And the Times is working with Google on a plan to "change the way news is consumed online."
• Bryant Gumbel revealed on Live with Regis and Kelly this morning that he has lung cancer and had surgery to remove a tumor two months ago. [NYP]
• Random House announced plans today to restructure its Crown Publishing Group; the division's publisher, Jenny Frost, is leaving the company. [NYT]
• Daily Variety has hired LAT veteran Leo Wolinsky as its new editor. [Variety]
• Will James Cameron's Avatar achieve Titanic-like success? Not so much. [AP]

A clip from a 70s era sex education video purportedly made for special needs adolescents. The mother takes a relaxed, accepting approach of her son's burgeoning sexuality, while he, clearly excited by his illicit activity, stares on expressionlessly.

[That's the closest I'm going to the requisite Sarah Jessica Parker horse joke for this photo from the Did You Hear About The Morgans? premiere in London today. Image via Getty]