Tomorrow, it'll be a year to the day that Adam Yauch passed away. This morning, at a park in Brooklyn just blocks from where Yauch grew up, his family and friends honored him in a very special way. The former Palmetto Playground — a tiny little slice of green tucked away from the honking trucks and screeching traffic of the BQE — will now, and forevermore, be known as Adam Yauch Park.
The ceremony took place at 11 a.m. this morning, with Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz and Yauch's parents in attendance. A program was handed out, which explained that Yauch "grew up in Brooklyn Heights, on State Street, and learned to ride a bicycle in this park that will now bear his name."
We're now waist-deep in awards season, and the Grantland staff would like to take this opportunity to remind all the Oscar, Grammy, and Golden Collar nominees out there that should they have to step up to that podium and take that mic on national television, they owe it to themselves to study up beforehand and see how the pros handle it. Here are our favorite awards show acceptance (and unacceptance) speeches from all corners of the entertainment world.
We began this week’s podcast on a somber note, remembering the life, music, and influence of Adam Yauch (1:00), a man whose eclectic taste, in my partner Chris Ryan’s words, basically was the Internet for a generation of ‘90s teens. Then it was back to the present day to consider the wild success of The Avengers (9:40) and the unexpected pleasures of The New Girl (18:45), which ends its first season tonight. We also did our regular roundup of Game of Thrones (26:25) and Mad Men (34:15), focusing on how the characters are knocked around violently on both shows, though it's by generational shifts in the latter and giant, neck-hacking broadswords on the former. What was meant to be a shout-out to Meek Mill’s new mixtape (42:45) quickly devolved into a dissertation on last week's bizarre Rick Ross press conference (and his even more bizarre promotion of the eminently forgettable Walé), but we got it together long enough for the next entry in our Double Down Book Club: Papa Bear himself, James Crumley (48:44). We talked up his masterpiece, The Last Good Kiss, as well as his nuttiest fever dream, Bordersnakes. All told, we learned some very important lessons this week. For instance, two nostrils full of illegal drugs won’t necessarily treat a broken nose — at least not medically — and when in doubt, never (never!) ask Walé a question. Class dismissed!
