It's been three months since we compiled a list of the 20 most expensive apartments for sale in Manhattan. So what's happened to them since then? Not surprisingly, most of them remain on the market, and several have been discounted substantially since they were first put up for sale. (Just one of the 20 sold successfully, an apartment at 176 Perry that went for 30 percent less than its initial asking price.) The grim market conditions haven't stopped several others from putting their exorbitant homes on the market. Since we put the list together, a 78th-floor penthouse at the Time Warner Center hit the market for $65 million and a $47.5 million listing at 15 CPW surfaced. But if you're interested in seeing what happened to the original 20—and get a glimpse for what's happening to the high-end real estate market as a whole—the results are below.

Michelle Obama hasn't turned up at Fashion Week, but two of her nearest and dearest surfaced at shows today. White House social secretary Desiree Rogers appeared at Carolina Herrera's presentation (where she sat next to Anna Wintour), and later made her way to Donna Karan and Thakoon's shows. Michelle Obama's secretive stylist, Ikram Goldman, also put in appearances today, turning up at the Maria Cornejo show before heading off to Thakoon. So you can rest assured that even though Michelle isn't here to pick out her favorites in person, her shopping is getting done nonetheless. [WWD, NYP, WSJ]

As disturbing as it is to think that any movie starring Jim Carrey was a glimpse into the future, a simple blood-pressure drug appears to have the power to erase bad memories, according to a new study. By targeting the neurons in the brain involved with recollection, the beta-blocker propranolol has been found to actually weaken memories, and the psychologists conducting the research hope that it will be beneficial for sufferers of PTSD and phobias. But it's also comforting to believe that one day we'll all have the opportunity to pop a pill and consign the present era of financial ruin, romantic disillusionment, and cultural degradation to a historical black hole.

David Paterson doesn't just want to tax your soda and cigars. He now wants to tax your porn, too. The governor is proposing sales tax on music and software downloads, which, his administration points out, would also apply to adult content. The good news is the tax would only apply to pornographers located within New York state, so all those Japanese fetish films you're so fond of will probably be exempt. [NYDN]

• ABC is scrambling to find advertisers for the Oscars. [AdWeek]
• The New York Times takes a delicate look at Carlos Slim Helú today, the media mogul who also happens to have bailed out the paper last month. [NYT]
• Sam Donaldson is retiring from ABC News next week. [WP]
• Tina Brown's advice to young journalism students: Go to India. [HuffPo]
• BlackBook is cutting staff and reducing its frequency to stay afloat. [P6]
• Tim and Nina Zagat are launching a Zagat guide for doctors. [NYT]
• Friday the 13th was No. 1 at the box office this weekend. [THR]
• Alfred A. Knopf Jr. died over the weekend at the age of 90. [NYT]
• Project Runway may return to the air later this year. [WWD]

A recap of the shows, parties, and gossip you've missed at Fashion Week thus far after the jump.

The cruel blows of the recession have made a certain elite group even more elite: There are now only 49 Russian billionaires, half as many as there were a year ago, according to the annual ranking of Russia's wealthiest published today by Finans magazine. Last year's number one, aluminium magnate Oleg Deripaska, tumbled to number eight after losing $35 billion, and was replaced in the top spot by Mikhail Prokhorov, the nickel mogul (and Snob magazine backer), who is reportedly worth $14.1 billion. Roman Abramovich, despite seeing $9 billion disappear in the past year, still comes in at number two with an estimated net worth of $13.9 billion. He was also voted Russia's most interesting billionaire, an honor he clearly owes to his fiancée, everyone's favorite art patron Dasha Zhukova.

It looks like financier Steve Rattner's long-held dream of going to Washington has been dashed once again. In 2000, Rattner was on Al Gore's short list for Treasury secretary; more recently, he made a big bet on Hillary Clinton's candidacy, only turning his fundraising prowess to assist Barack Obama's campaign after Clinton dropped out of the race. But now it seems the one job in the Obama administration that Rattner was in the running for—as the nation's "car czar"—is no more. Obama has indicated he no longer plans to appoint a single person to oversee the auto industry, leaving the task to several of his key advisors. No word on whether Rattner's little scandal last week had anything to do with the president's decision, but feel free to let your conspiracy theories run wild. [NYT]

• Sting has put his four-bedroom duplex at 88 Central Park West on the market for with Prudential Douglas Elliman's Claudine DeNiro for $26 million. Update: The listing has gone to Halstead's Mark Friedman, not Claudine DeNiro as per the Times. You can see more details of $19 million listing here. [NYT]
• Icelandic mogul Jon Asgeir Johannesson and his wife, Ingibjorg Palmadottir, have put the top two floors of their penthouse at 50 Gramercy Park North on the market for $25 million. [NYT, Corcoran]
• JPMorgan exec Adam Ansaldi has sold his three-bedroom apartment at 4 East 88th Street to Laurence Mascera, a managing director at Broadpoint Capital, for $3.299 million. [Cityfile]
• Condé Nast is selling off a company-owned apartment at the Promenade at 530 East 76th Street. The five-bedroom condo, which was typically occupied by Jonathan Newhouse when he visited New York, went into contract in late January. It had been listed in December for $4.995 million. [NYT, PDE]

Feel free to wish Agyness Deyn a happy birthday if you see her at Fashion Week: The model is turning 26. Carl Icahn turns 73 today. Ice-T is 51. Tennis legend John McEnroe is 50. Sean McManus, the president of CBC News and CBS Sports, is 54. Times science reporter Natalie Angier is 51. TV host Steve Kmetko is turning 56. And photographer Timothy Greenfield-Sanders is turning 57.

• Lindsay Lohan and Samantha Ronson skipped out of a Valentine's Day appearance at the Hard Rock in Florida, supposedly because both had come down with the flu. But they didn't appear too sick the night before when the pair were spotted in a screaming match outside the Charlotte Ronson after-party on the Lower East Side. [People, NYP, NYDN]
• Chris Brown now says he's "sorry and saddened" over the incident with Rihanna. [LAT]
• Salma Hayek and Francois-Henri Pinault got married on Saturday. [People]
• Amy Sacco says she's planning to do a reality show for Bravo. [NYDN]
• Dina Lohan owes $11,485 in back taxes on her Long Island home. [P6]
• Jesus Luz's mother says her son has been "kidnapped" by Madonna. Also, in case you're wondering, Madge is the same age as his grandmother. [NYP, DM]

• Unsurprisingly, Jason Wu's show was a big hit today, and Anna herself made an appearance. [WSJ, NYM, WWD]
• Reports from Charlotte Ronson's show. [WWD, WWD, NYM, Racked]
• Reports from Yigal Azrouël's show. [WWD, NYM, Fashionologie]
• Fashion Week's official coffee, brought to you by McDonald's, is "actually not that bad." [Racked]
• Photos from Rachel Roy's fall collection. [Pipeline]
• Topshop has been delayed again; it's now scheduled for April. [WWD]
• Ally Hilfiger is planning to launch her own line. [NYO]
• Christian Siriano is covering Fashion Week for Time. [Time]
• Shoshanna will appear in the Judith Ripka's new ad campaign. [FWD]
• Diesel's Fifth Ave flagship opens next week. [FWD, Racked]

• A list of V-Day meals and deals, in case you need some inspiration. [Eater]
• The good news/bad news about the newly-opened Trigo in Tribeca. [Eater]
• Frank Bruni gives Corner Bistro's burger a try; he isn't impressed. [NYT]
• Cocoa prices are up, which means chocolate is about to get pricier. [WSJ]
• A list of this year's James Beard Awards semifinalists. [GS]
• Bobo's Patrick Connelly will be on Nightline tonight. [Feedbag]
• Don't read this piece about "natural contaminants" if you're squeamish. [NYT]

Need a target for your recession-related fury? How about Brian Williams? The NBC anchor takes home $10 million a year, yet he tells TVNewser he's had "no desire to walk into any store but a grocery store for months" because "it doesn't feel right." Go buy a new suit this weekend, Brian. You can afford it. You need it. We all need it. The economy is depending on you, damn it! [TVNewser via The Biz]

Freida Pinto Gets Whitewashed By VF [Extrawhoredinary via Jezebel]
Related: Did Vanity Fair lighten Beyonce's skin? [MSNBC]

Hedge fund titan John Paulson has even more reason to beef up the landscaping outside his $41 million Southampton home today. As shares of the British bank Lloyds plummeted by more than 40 percent this afternoon, the billionaire short-seller made $67 million in less than 25 minutes. So how did your day go? [Bloomberg via Dealbreaker]

You were thinking there weren't any jobs left in media? Think again! Two of Anna Wintour's three assistants are reportedly heading out the door and Anna is looking for replacements. "Some experience in fashion or media is good." Indeed. [NYM]

Poor Jeffrey Epstein hasn't even been released from prison yet and he's already finding himself in more legal hot water. Palm Beach Post gossip columnist Jose Lambiet reports the shadowy money manager, who is currently serving an 18-month prison sentence for soliciting a minor for prostitution, is now being sued by the contractor who built him a larger boat dock for his $10.7 million Palm Beach mansion. Apparently Jeffrey failed to pay a $105,000 bill, and the contractor says he's been trying to collect the debt since August. In Epstein's defense, though, he has been a wee bit tied up recently. [Page2Live, previously]

Tomorrow isn't just Valentine's Day. It's also Steve Schwarzman's birthday! Did you forget to order him a gift? Allow us to help. BestStoneCrabs.com will send over three pounds of their "succulent Stone Crab Claws" along with "Papa Hughie's Homemade Mustard Sauce," and it comes with cocktail forks and a mallet, too. Okay, it's only $195.00 for an order of "colossal claws," which is a bit less than Steve ordinarily spends on his crab habit, but the gesture will be very much appreciated. (And if they're not quite up to par, he can always pass them off to one of the housekeepers. They eat, too, you know.) Just make sure to select express delivery so it makes it there on time. Direct your gift packages to Mr. Stephen Schwarzman, 740 Park Avenue, Apt. 15B/16B, New York, NY 10021. Don't forget to include a "personalized note."

• Bravo is producing a reality series about New York City private school kids. Not surprisingly, it's being dubbed as "the real-life Gossip Girl." [B&C]
• Walter Anderson is stepping down as chairman and CEO of Parade. Richard Beckman has been mentioned as a possible replacement. [NYP]
• The recession has led more TV stations to accept liquor and sex ads. [LAT]
• Fox is testing out shorter commercial breaks. [NYT]
• Sirius XM is closer to a deal with satellite mogul Charles Ergen. [WSJ]
• Google is quitting the radio business. [AdWeek]
• Condé Nast has pulled the plug on a Japanese version of Glamour. [WWD]