Editors tug on readers' heartstrings

Bogart to Bacall: "Baby, hold my gun!"

For the third day in a row, The Record explores the relationship between a young Korean art student and the boyfriend who allegedly used his car to kill her after he "discovered" she was "seeing someone else."

Could there be a more touching portrait of Aena Hong, who is shown in a Page 1 photo today at the Palisades Park Library, where she painted a mural and took English lessons?

Look at that angelic face. But why did Editor Marty Gottlieb put the story, written by former Hackensack reporter Monsy Alvarado, on the front page? 

What begins as a profile deteriorates into a blow-by-blow retelling of the ups and downs of her relationship with Charles J. Ann, 26, who was charged with murder this week.

Many of the interviews echo those published in a front page story on Wednesday. 

Ridiculous quote

Look at that silly quote from Steve Cavallo, the library's program coordinator: "The saddest thing is that she looked like a person who enjoyed life."

What is that look exactly? And if she didn't enjoy life, would her death at 25 be easier to take? 

And would The Record profile the victim if she was a Hispanic woman from Hackensack or an African-American woman from Paterson? It's doubtful.

Finally, the photo caption on A-8, the continuation page, commits a common error of saying the library mural was painted "by slaying victim Aena Hong." Did she come back from the grave?

Another A-1 story today -- on Governor Christie's school-aid proposals -- isn't clear on whether all of his previous education cuts would be restored in this budget. 

Driven journalist

On the front of head Assignment Editor Deirdre Sykes' Local section, the Road Warrior column rises to a new level of irrelevance, relating the experiences of a Wayne man who is "North Jersey's chauffeur to the stars."

Any moron can drive a limousine, so why does Stew Resmer deserve an entire column in The Record? And when is Staff Writer John Cichowski going to get off his ass and write about commuting problems?

Hackensack readers will search in vain for any news of their city. On the other hand, police and court stories appear on almost every page of Local today.

But, hey, be thankful. How many times do you get an anecdote about actress Lauren Bacall in The Record's Local news section? 

Did you ever hear the one about when Bacall was married to actor Humphrey Bogart? She leaned out an apartment window and called down to the street, "Hump-free, hump-free," and three men ran up to her room.

Or, how he got so involved in preparing for movie roles, he'd awake in the middle of the night and say to her, "Baby, hold my gun!" 


Stomach turning

Two restaurant reviews appear in the Better Living tab today, but I had a hard time getting through them.

I've had fondue once in my life and certainly have no interest in repeating the experience at the pricey Westwood spot called The Melting Pot. 

The last time I saw the reviewer, Elisa Ung, she was pudgy (in 2008). Can you imagine what she looks like now, given her obsession with dessert, including the chocolate fondue with cake she sampled for this piece?

In Eating Out on $50, free-lancer Jeffrey Page doesn't explain what makes the salmon he ordered at Fish of the C's kosher and why he was charged so much for it in a small storefront restaurant in Teaneck. 

The fool paid $20 for artificially colored farmed salmon and never asked why he wasn't being served wild-caught fish. And he really blew his $50 budget for two by ordering cheesecake.

Isn't anyone at The Record watching their weight and their cholesterol levels?