Reading? It's fundamental. Imdb.com, EBay's Town Hall, The Robb Report. All till my eyes bleed. Now, there's so much Philly stuff to get you thinking about high lit, too. I was sorry I lost the 76ers "Stop the Violence" essay contest last month (www.nba.com ... contest.html). I wanted you all to read my tome "There Wouldn't Be Violence If These Fuckers'd Win." I'm trying to snag the National Constitution Center's $6.4 million journo grant named for Peter Jennings by digging deep into the how-the-fuck-did South Philly-blog boy/People mag bachelor Jason Mulgrew get a book deal when a paragraph's worth of his neuroses seems 10 words too many. It's not all about me, sadly. I admire the chapter and verse of Sebastian Hanson, whose site for steak house/gentlemen's club Scores/Suite 450 (www.ScoresPhiladelphia.info) has become a respite of literary clarity, if not tits. On the actual book tip, there's Philly's NPR-licious Mitch Myers whose The Boy Who Cried Freebird just found a home at Harper Entertainment. Certainly, everyone's excited that Philly Mag's Jason Fagone's genuinely corrosive yet touching book Horsemen of the Esophagus: Competitive Eating and the Big Fat American Dream drops next week: because no one in Philly knows anything about this. Then there's Melissa Jacobs, whose second novel, Love, Life and Linguine, hit stands April 1. "People are calling L3 chick lit, food lit, Jersey Girl lit. And that's great and good, and true," says Jacobs." But what, I ask, about diva lit? "Peruse L3 even a little, you see that Mimi Louis, my heroine, communicates with her diva." May your diva sing, MJ. Lastly: Is it just me or should someone other than Philly's Bruce Graham, a legit screenwriter with an agent and existing Hollywood credits (OK, Dunston Checks In. Didn't say it had to be a good movie!), have won the PFFs/GPFO's Set in Philadelphia screenwriting competition? Jezsaying.

By the time you read this, Mayor Street's buuuddy Clifton Davis—boss of July's Welcome America! jawn—is scheduled to announce both he and Lionel Richie'll be performing during the Independence Day weekend fest. See you in Brooklyn.

The New Face of Dancehall—or at least RuffNation's Chris Schwartz's new face—Kulcha Don takes to Temple U's Spring Fling April 20. Rub a dub.

One of Schwartz's previous charges, King Britt, just scored a major coup by getting a major gig to score four scenes in a major motion picture: Michael Mann's Miami Vice. "I couldn't believe it," says Britt (currently busy working on songs for Britney Spears) whose "New World in My View" from King's Sister Gertrude project had already been selected by Mann for Vice. "First-class flight out. Lunch with him. He's a big fan." Mann must adore Philly: Ahmir Thompson and James Poyser are scoring additional scenes.

Anthrum Recordings founder/Philly-ite MG is busting out the "Blurred" Britpop every last Tuesday at The Abbaye starting April 25 and the live house sound system "Disco Circus" at Aqua Lounge every last Saturday starting April 29. Now you know where to find him those two days.

Not to be outdone by her Drexel U/Media Arts & Design major's label (MAD Dragon), Shannon McMahon got her own label, L-Cast, together with other pals/students from Y100rocks.com's Jim McGuinn's marketing and promotion class. L-Cast drops their first CD from West Philly's answer to the question, "Wha'dhappen if you strapped Jim Morrison's head onto Kurt Cobain's body?" Answer: Come Dionysus (www.myspace.com/comedionysus), whose eponymous CD debuts April 24 at Bar Noir with theatrical labelmates To the Moon (myspace.com/tothemoonny).

Ladies love it too: The boy-strip-o-licious UpStairs at Risque opens April 25 for lasses looking to spy the ole sauseeege.

While we wait 'n' see if 6ABC gets new studio/offices next to its beat-up ones, could May 8-ish be the date NBC 10's morning show moves back to City Avenue digs—new studio, live audience 'n' all?

Amos Lee returned the other night to the scene of the crime—The Fire, from whence he was signed by Blue Note after a series of open mics—while recording bits of CD No. 2 at The Studio on North Seventh.

That's right. That's a SWEAT gym opening at the front of the 1400 Arch block YMCA building. Are they building a bar/dance club in its former squash court in the back?

Shepard Fairey, Ben Woodward, The Situation: They want your money for the Wilmington Skate Project and are willing to even hang in Delaware April 22 to get it. It must be worthwhile (www.wilmingtonskateproject.org).

Welcome to Paul Maroon of The Walkmen, the alterna-Dylanesque guy who moved to Philly and is looking for rehearsal space for his 'Men.

Prepare for the death-centric World Famous Crawlspace Brothers and the girlfriend-killing Scareho to slaughter the Murder Junkies when they open for them April 21 at the Barbary.

Who doesn't love EPs? They're short, cute and curly. Cranky pop guys Audible and lustrously doomy Northern Liberties dropped some last week. Now the operatic-gothatronic-jamjazzy-Middle-Eastern Bebek drop Open Eyes' mix of old remixes and new songs April 22 at North Star.

How will you spend April 23, the 15th anniversary of Johnny Thunders' death and five years and eight days after Joey Ramone's passing? Either at El Bar with Dead Whiskey, Thee Minks, Blessed Muthas, Dog-n-Pony and ex-members of Pure Hell, or with David Carroll -- a guy who booked both Thunders and Ramone in his time—at Monkey Bar.

(a_amorosi@citypaper.net)