On the September weekend when Wall Street went poof, a friendless Dick Fuld, CEO of Lehman Brothers, the 158-year-old securities firm, couldn't get his phone calls returned.

The Monday Morning Box Office looks basically the same as it did on Friday, with Marley and Me shocking everyone with a $51 million holiday frame. But what does its surprising success really mean?

What's the one thing nearly every fake memoir scandal seems to have in common? From James Frey to Angel at the Fence, if a story is bullshit, chances are Oprah was there first.

• Adam Platt's annual "Where to Eat" guide is now online. [NYM]
• Ian Schrager may be talking to Scott Conant about taking over the Wakiya space inside the Gramercy Park Hotel. [Eater]
• Daniel Boulud shares a few of his fave places to eat in NYC. [Independent]
• The NYT asks the months-old question: Is Chloe the new Beatrice? [NYT]
• Hope you can do without guacamole: An avocado shortage is looming. [LAT]
• More options for New Year's Eve, in case you've yet to make plans. [FB]
• The documentary on Le Cirque and the Maccioni family airs tonight. [HBO]

Though our wintry economic climate provides plenty of reasons to drink, it also leaves us with little money to spend on lavish, unhelpful rehab facilities. How bad have things gotten? Just look at Promises!

You know the economy is in dire shape when highly-paid models moving in with their rock star boyfriends can't come up with the cash to hire movers (or even buy a suitcase.) [Bauer-Griffin]

[Crazy supermodel Naomi Campbell vacationing in the Maldives with a bunch of dudes; image via Bauer-Griffin]

No more Senator Kennedys! (Or Senators Kennedy?) Ever again! Boo to dynasties and entitlement!

You may know Chris London (or Christopher Dwight Mejia London, Esq. as he prefers to be known) as the man who hovers at benefits and other social gatherings with his camera in hand, snapping pics that he posts to his quirky website Manhattan Society. It turns out London isn't particularly optimistic about the future of New York's society scene, at least judging by his recent rant on the faded social networking site, aSmallWorld:

Where is the government's bank-bailout money going? In part to pay for Wall Street banker Peter Kraus's $37 million Park Avenue spread.

Like the Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at President Bush, a Philadelphia moviegoer earned instant folk-hero status on Christmas by shooting a viewer who wouldn't shut up during The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

Some 21 hotels may be planning to open their doors in 2009, but there's at least one high-profile project that will probably never see the light of day: the hotel that Jay-Z was planning to construct in Chelsea with developer Charles Blaichman. The former Time Warner Cable warehouse was due to be razed to make way for the hotel. It's still standing, though, and now Blaichman is now looking for a tenant to lease the space. [Curbed]

Whenever the Russian economy tumbles, predictions of American doom gain new currency. Igor Panarin, a Russian professor, is being trotted out to Putin's state media to make predictions of a U.S. collapse in 2010.

Previously, on the Arrested Development Film Tracker: Jessica Walter and Tony Hale threw in, while creator Mitchell Hurwitz elliptically blamed a foot-dragging Michael Cera for the holdup. Now, new news!

All those paparazzi pics of Tom Cruise leaving his East 13th Street apartment building with Katie Holmes? He's just visiting, apparently. According to British tabloids, Cruise "now lives in a separate location" from Katie Holmes and their daughter Suri, and the family travels by "bomb-proof car," due to death threats by groups opposed to Scientology. Just in case that sounds like a perfectly sensible reaction on Cruise's part, you may want to keep in mind that it's also rumored he spent $8 million to construct an "underground bunker" on his property in Colorado. [Telegraph]

Hah. INF snapped photos of actor Daniel Craig frolicking with gay Bravo TV exec (and reunion-special-hoster) Andy Cohen in St. Bart's over the holiday. It looks like fun! Pictures after the jump.

Among the year-end movie surveys bombing the landscape, few offer as rewarding a reality check as the one recapping 2008 as the Year of the Sucker.

New Year's Eve—the most important drinking night of the year—is almost upon us! What kind of party are you going to? Only five types exist, which I will detail for you after the jump.

From left to right (click photo to enlarge): 1. Madoff Canvas Tote Bag; 2. Madoff Securities Cap; 3. Bernard Madoff Gray Fleece Blanket, 4. Bernard L. Madoff Backpack; 5. Bernard L. Madoff Emergency Kit; 6. Bernard L. Madoff Golf Umbrella; 7. Bernie Madoff Beach Chair; 8. Bernard Madoff Cigar Humidor; 9. Madoff Binoculars with Case; 10. Bernard L. Madoff Insulated Travel Bag; 11. Bernard Madoff - Actual Trading Statement (Copies); 12. Madoff Flashlight

Those three months of work really paid off nicely for Peter Kraus: The ex-Merrill Banker—who collected $25 million for laboring at the bank from September until the end of the year—closed on the purchase of Carl Spielvogel and Barbaralee Diamonstein-Spielvogel's co-op at 720 Park last week for $36.63 million. [Real Deal, previously]