ART

LIFE STORIES

The exhibit “Looking at LIFE” includes more than 200 prints from the pages of Life magazine during the mid-20th century. The exhibit gives a glimpse of the magazine’s coverage of war, politics, celebrities, and culture. Highlights include Margaret Bourke-White’s account of the construction of Fort Peck Dam in the inaugural issue and images from the civil rights movement and President Kennedy’s assassination. Kennedy is explored in greater depth in the concurrent exhibit “JFK for President,” featuring photographs taken by Cornell Capa (Robert’s younger brother) during the 1960 presidential election and through the first 100 days of Kennedy’s presidency. Capa captured a pregnant Jacqueline Kennedy standing in a shower of parade confetti, Kennedy’s hands reaching into an adoring crowd, his 1961 inauguration, and behind-the-scenes White House meetings.

Through Sunday, November 28, Tuesday-Thursday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Friday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., International Center of Photography, 1133 Sixth Ave. at 43rd Street, 212-857-0000, $10 general, $7 seniors and students.

NIGHT SPOTS

A collection of William Gedney’s rarely seen night photographs are on view at P.S. 1 until next week. The landscapes were taken on cross-country trips between 1965 and 1975. Gedney’s haunting pictures are paired with more than 100 photographs from Christopher Wool’s series East Broadway Breakdown, which is being exhibited in New York City for the first time. Through Monday, September 27, Thursday-Monday, noon-6 p.m., P.S. 1, 22-25 Jackson Avenue at 46th Avenue, Long Island City, Queens, 718-784-2084, $5 general, $2 seniors and students, free for members.

STORMY WEATHER

The exhibit “Into the Storm” examines artists’ interest in storms in paintings, drawings, and prints between 1800 and 1940. Violent seascapes, gathering clouds, and farmland drenched in rain show how stormy imagery is used to signify both destruction and renewal. Through Sunday, October 10, Wednesday and Thursday, noon-5 p.m., Friday-Sunday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m., the National Academy Museum, 1083 Fifth Ave. at 89th Street, 212-369-4880, free.

BENEFIT

FORBES FUN

An upcoming charity auction offers an autographed Derek Jeter photograph (donated by Steve Forbes). Also on the block: the opportunity to have bidders’ name included in Harlan Coben’s next book. The event benefits the Community Coalition, an organization that helps the disabled and homeless find housing and employment. Catherine Forbes and Allison Weiss are among the hosts. Thursday, 6:30-9:30 p.m., Forbes Magazine Galleries, 62 Fifth Ave., between 12th and 13th streets, 610-415-1167, $100, $250, and $1500.

BOOKS

FIGHTIN’ WORDS

The author of “Fight Club” (Hyperion),”Diary” (Doubleday), and the essay collection “Stranger Than Fiction” (Doubleday), Chuck Palahniuk, discusses his work, which often centers on a violent underworld. Tonight, 6:30 p.m., Cooper Union Great Hall, 7 E. 7th St. at Third Avenue, 212-998-2100, free.

WHISKEY READER

The author of “Ballad of the Whiskey Robber” (Little, Brown), Julian Rubinstein, reads from his debut novel in a bar. The comic story’s hero is a Transylvanian hockey player on a whirlwind bank-robbing spree through Eastern Europe. Tonight, 7 p.m., the Half King, 505 W.23rd St. at Tenth Avenue,212-462-4300, free.

DEATH ROW ON TRIAL

Lawyer and novelist Scott Turow discusses his nonfiction book “The Ultimate Punishment” (Farrar, Straus & Giroux). The book follows Mr. Turow’s evolution of beliefs on the death penalty based on his experiences as a prosecutor, death row-inmate advocate, and member of the Illinois Commission on Capital Punishment. Tonight, 7 p.m., Barnes & Noble Lincoln Triangle, 1972 Broadway at 66th Street, 212-595-6859, free.

OVER THE LINE

Salman Rushdie, most recently the author of “Step Across This Line: Collected Non-Fiction” (Modern Library) reads from and discusses his work as part of the Distinguished Writer Series at Hunter College. Tomorrow, 6:30 p.m., Hunter College, Kaye Playhouse, 695 Park Ave. at 68th Street, 212-772-4448, $10.

SNOW IN SEPTEMBER

Turkish writer Orhan Pamuk reads from his new novel “Snow” (Knopf),which follows a poet living in Germany who returns home to Istanbul for his mother’s funeral. Wednesday, 7 p.m., 192 Books, 192 Tenth Ave. at 21st Street, 212-255-4022, free, reservations suggested.

COLLECTING

MISSED OPPORTUNITY

Art collector Agnes Gund discusses the chance she had (and missed) to purchase Ben Heller’s collection of art. “The Ones that Got Away” is part of the museum’s series of lectures on connoisseurship. Wednesday, 6:30 524 2161 637 2172p.m., Guggenheim Museum, Sackler Center, Peter B. Lewis Theater, 1071 Fifth Ave. at 89th Street, 212-423-3587, $10 general, $7 seniors, students, and members.

DANCE

CHANCE FOR DANCE

The Fall for Dance Festival hosts 30 dance companies over six evenings for a notably low price. Participating companies include the Dance Theatre of Harlem, the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, the American Ballet Theatre, and the Martha Graham Dance Company. Tuesday, September 28, through Sunday, October 3, 8 p.m., New York City Center, West 55th Street between Sixth and Seventh avenues, $10. See www.nycitycenter.org for full schedule.

FILM

SOJOURN TO SIBERIA

The new documentary “Siberian Dream” follows model Irina Pantaeva and her family as they travel from New York City to southern Siberia. The film, which is based on Ms. Pantaeva’s memoir of the same name, touches on both the downfall of the Soviet system and the international fashion scene. Ms. Pantaeva and the movie’s director, Janet Gardner, attend the screening. A reception follows. Tonight, 7 p.m., Asia Society, 725 Park Ave. at 70th Street, 212-288-6400, $10 general, $7 members, $5 students.

DRINKS AND DARKO

Writer Ned Vizzini reads from his novel “Be More Chill” (Miramax) and introduces a screening of the director’s cut of the 2001 cult classic “Donnie Darko.” Admission to the open bar event includes a copy of Mr. Vizzini’s book. Thursday, 7 p.m., Brooklyn Brewery, 79 N. 11th St., between Berry Street and Wythe Avenue, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, 718-486-7422 for information, www.brooklynbrewery.com for tickets, $25.

FOOD & DRINK

SLOW ROAST

Il Buco celebrates this Wednesday’s Autumn Equinox with an outdoor festival. The event features slow-cooked North Carolina pork prepared with the first New York state apples of the season. Delicacies include barbecue roast pork, porchetta panino, apple pork sausage, macaroni all’amatriciana, and apple fritters. The event is cosponsored by Slow Food. Wednesday, 1-7 p.m., in front of Il Buco, 47 Bond St., between Bowery and Lafayette Street, 212-533-1932, $7 tastings.

HEALTH

EARLY DETECTION

The Foundation for Medical Evaluation and Early Detection provides full screenings for prostate cancer. Today through Friday, October 15, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. screenings, Mount Sinai Medical Center, Department of Urology, 5 E. 98th St. at Fifth Avenue, 212-241-0045, free, reservations required.

MUSIC

METRIC SYSTEM

The Canadian band Metric is led by the hypnotically cool Emily Haines, who sings and plays keyboards. The bands Priestess (9 p.m.) and Death From Above 1979 (10 p.m.) open the show. Wednesday, 8 p.m. doors open, midnight Metric show, Bowery Ballroom, 6 Delancey St. at Bowery, 212-260-4700, $14, 18 and above.

MANHATTAN MELODIES

The Manhattan School of Music Philharmonia Orchestra plays a program of works by Mussorgsky, Bizet, and Beethoven.Thursday,8 p.m., Mahattan School of Music auditorium, Broadway at 122nd Street, 917-493-4428, free.

POLISH PIANO

The Polish Cultural Institute presents two Polish keyboardists, Adam Makowicz and Leszek Mozdzer. The pair plays their interpretations of jazz standards and Chopin, both individually and, for the first time, as a duo. Saturday, 2:30 and 8 p.m., Carnegie Hall, Weill Recital Hall, 57th Street and Seventh Avenue, 212-247-7800, $20-$40.

TALKS

AFTERNOON WITH THE HERMITAGE

A roundtable discussion and rare-book display mark the weeklong celebration of Hermitage Week (today through Monday, September 27). Scholars from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the New York Public Library, and the Hermitage discuss rare illustrated volumes from the library.

Wednesday, 2-3:30 p.m. first program, 4-5:30 p.m. second program, New York Public Library, Fifth Avenue at 42nd Street, 212-930-0940, free, reservations required.

SERVING CELEBS

A panel of lawyers discusses what it takes to represent high profile clients in a talk moderated by CNN legal analyst and staff writer for The New Yorker Jeffrey Toobin. Panelists include Benjamin Brafman (who represented Michael Jackson), Robert Morvillo (Martha Stewart), and Lorna Schof ield (Rosie O’Donnell). Thursday, 8 p.m., 92nd Street Y, 1395 Lexington Ave. at 92nd Street, 212-415-5500, $25.

THEATER

BROKEN BROOKLYN

A lawyer for the New York City Law Department, Chuck Orsland, presents his new play about a gentrifying South Brooklyn neighborhood. “Broken Windows” examines how the city’s quality-of-life crackdowns during the early 1990s affects three friends.

Opens: Wednesday, 8 p.m.. Runs: Wednesday through Monday, September 27, Wednesday-Saturday and Monday, 8 p.m., Sunday, 7 p.m., Creative Place Theatre, 750 Eighth Ave., between 46th and 47th streets, 212-769-7973, $15.

WORKSHOP

PENNING PLAYS

Playwright Amy Fox conducts a workshop in writing for the stage. The one-night class is intended to introduce aspiring playwrights to play construction and basics of script-writing.

Wednesday, 6 p.m., Drama Book Shop, 250 W. 40th St., between Seventh and Eighth avenues, 212-944-0595 ext. 417, free, reservations suggested.