Jake Segal with the Boss in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Jake Segal, 11, of Lafayette Hill, has an uncanny knack for meeting Bruce Springsteen.

Last year in Hershey, Springsteen reached out into the crowd and held Jake's hand while singing "Spirit in the Night," and at one of the Spectrum shows, Springsteen jumped in the crowd, handed Jake the microphone, and let him sing the chorus of “Waiting on a Sunny Day," as Bruce often does with young fans.

Jake reprised the "Waiting" act Tuesday 8/25 in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Springsteen plucked Jake out of the audience, handed him the microphone, and allowed him to sing not only the chorus but a whole verse while Springsteen danced next to him and the band played behind him.

• The pizzas should be coming out of the oven this weekend (as in Saturday 8/29) at the new SliCE at 1740 Sansom St. Weekend hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Official opening will be Monday 8/31. Here's more info.
   
• Fond, the BYOB from Le Bec-Fin/Rittenhouse Hotel vets on East Passyunk, is opening Monday night 8/31. Info here and here
  .
• Famous 4th Street Deli's new spot at 38 S. 19th St. is now looking to open midweek (9/1 or 9/2).
   
• MaGerks, a sports bar replacing the Bent Elbo in Fort Washington, is aiming at the latter half of September.
   
• Zama, the Japanese spot under construction at the former Loie (128 S. 19th St.), has been cleared for its liquor license. It's up for a fall opening.
   
• Jolly's Rockin' Piano Bar, coming to 2006 Chestnut St. in late September/early October, will use the kitchen services of Brendan Smith of the nearby Smiths.
   
• Drama on Thursday night at Bibou, the very fine French BYO in South Philly: A blackout. Neighbors provided candles so chef Pierre Calmels could finish feeding his full house. Other patrons were sent to the nearby James, which classily allowed Bibou patrons to BYO. Check out Sunday's Inquirer for Craig LaBan's review.
   
• Also in Sunday's Inquirer, I explain the rash of openings and closings. And food nerds will want to scope out a couple notes of interest: The name of Jose Garces' new place (the BYO cafe at 1111 Locust that will be shared with the LCB) and an idea that's been rolling through Stephen Starr's mind.

• On a side note, postings here will be fewer and farther between for a while. I'm getting married this weekend.
   

Deviled eggs.

Anne Hathaway and her paternal grandmother, Jacqueline Anne Gouin.

Actress Anne Hathaway gave a stirring tribute to her family Wednesday morning (8/26) as she sang "Ave Maria" at the funeral Mass of her paternal grandmother, Jacqueline Ann Gouin, at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in the city's Andorra section.

She was accompanied by a harpist.

Mrs. Gouin, who passed last Friday at age 86, lived at Cathedral Village. She previously lived in Lafayette Hill, Olney and Fismes, France.

The actress' father, Gerald, is one of Mrs. Gouin's five children.

The actress' mother, Kate McCauley, also grew up in the area and went to Mount St. Joseph Academy.

It's only a glitch with the Arts Bank's neon sign at Broad and South Streets, as I spotted Wednesday night.

Phillip Van Cleave, the University of the Arts' vice president for facilities management and operations, said the school had planned to relamp the sign, but just didn't get it before the "k" burned out.

The sign will be shut off until the relamping is done, tentatively in the next two weeks, he said today.
 

The Federal Communications Commission has again rejected WIP's appeal of a $4,000 fine over the 2005 Wing Bowl.

Arnie Chapman of Long Island, N.Y., had qualified for the annual spectacle by eating 28 clementines but was later disqualified because he runs the Association of Independent Competitive Eaters, a smaller rival of the International Federation of Competitive Eating, which sanctioned Wing Bowl XIII.

The case has been before the FCC since early 2005, when Chapman filed a complaint against WIP owner CBS Radio. The FCC determined that WIP didn't announce contest terms, which were rewritten to exclude AICE eaters, and fined CBS $4,000 last year.

CBS lawyers told the FCC that Chapman had been disqualified in part because he did not reside in the station's listening area -- a curious assertion since Sonya Thomas of Virginia came within a bone of beating winner Bill "El Wingador" Simmons that year.

In Wednesday's action, the FCC clarified its rules on stations' "listening areas," though left unsaid was the potential effect of online listening. CBS has been a leader in technology that allows people anywhere in the world to listen to its stations.

Of course, $4,000 is a drop in the (chicken) bucket, but CBS appealed on principle.

CBS has 30 days to pay up.

Michael Vick's new waterfront pad seems to be only a steppingstone to a new 7-bedroom house on a ritzy new street in the city's Northwest.

The Andorra/Roxborough crowd insists that he's bought or is renting a $1.3 million house in Andorra.

The house's price squares with a real estate listing, but it raises this question: Why would anyone with a one-year, $1.6 million contract buy property in a new city? And might his bankruptcy filing affect his ability to buy?

The description, incidentally, talks about 4.5 bathrooms. Nothing about an Invisible Fence.

"There are no offers on the table," said Rana Bakhtiari, the Realtor who has the listing. "There's been a lot of interest."

ESPN reporter Sal Paolantonio just got a Thursday night show on 950ESPN to air from 7 to 8 p.m. from Connie Mac’s in Pennsauken. Starts Sept. 10.

He'll continue his appearances on 950 ESPN with Mike Missanelli every Tuesday at 5:25 p.m.

Comcast SportsNet is promising a big announcement on Tuesday's edition of its Daily News Live show.

Sources describe this scenario:

DNL -- a programming staple since October 1997 -- will be shaved from 90 minutes to 60 minutes, so it will run from 5 to 6 p.m.

Moving up a half-hour, to 6 p.m., will be SportsNite.

Following at 6:30 will be pregame shows for that night's games.

My sources did not say when the change is effective (most likely in time for Flyers season), or what will be shown on the nights when there are no games.