June 29, 2003

BULL'S EYE

STRETCHING TRUTH Sometimes lying to the boss is really worth it. About 20 percent of America's workers plan to call in sick either Friday or Monday to stretch their Fourth...

TIMES BRASS PUTS LEASH ON MILLER

Judith Miller is the latest New York Times star reporter to come under a cloud of suspicion. Now her buddies at the Iraqi National Congress are coming to her aid...

FAB FURRYFASHIONS

Two weeks ago, the Japanese luxury department store Mitsukoshi - Tokyo's answer to Saks Fifth Avenue - held a fashion show featuring eight four-legged models wearing the latest designer dog...

HIGH NOTES & LOW NOTES

One's not enough: Eminem hates multi-tasking: "That cloning thing they are doing, they should hurry that up," he quipped. "Then I'd be able to do movies and rap and produce...

WHERE TO EAT AFTER ... GALLERY-HOPPING IN CHELSEA

The last days before the July 4th weekend are made for gallery-going in Chelsea and Flatiron. It's your last chance to catch Suzanne Bocanegra's enigmatic mixed-media installations at Lucas Schoormans...

SUMMER SHOWDOWN - BEYONCE'S IN THE LEAD - BUT SHE'S GOT SOME HITS TO CONQUER

What will this summer's anthem be? The season may be just eight days old, but the frontrunner is Beyonce Knowles' Staxx-influenced debut single, "Crazy in Love." "It's all about Beyonce,"...

IN THE SWIM

LUDIVINE Sagnier, whose erotic performance in the French thriller "Swimming Pool" has people calling her "the new Bardot," has two words for the original BB: Shut up! "I hope I...

HEY, PAL: WHY FRIENDSTER.COM IS CAUSING A FRENZY

Would you like to be friends with a member of the Strokes? How about one of the stars of "The Amazing Race"? You can - just log on to Friendster.com,...

SHOPAHOLIC: I DARE YOU: CAN DESIGNER JESSIE DELLA FEMINA PUT TOGETHER A GREAT LOOK FOR ONLY $100?

Jessie says: "If you spend $95 on a pair of great shoes that you'll wear forever, that's worth so much more than 10 different pieces." Jessie Della Femina is not...

CYBORGS & SWEET THINGS: SIZZLING SEQUELS STORM THE BOX OFFICE THIS SUMMER

Get ready for the biggest battle of the summer! The Independence Day weekend is always one of the hottest movie weekends of the year - and this July 4 weekend...

EXPLOSIVE FUN: THE GREAT FOURTH OF JULY THINGS-TO-DO LIST - ENJOY!

Head out to Coney Island for Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot-Dog Eating Contest. Last year's champ, Takeru Kobayashi, inhaled 50½ hot dogs during the 12 minute contest; this year,...

YOU CAN'T MAKE THIS KIND OF STUFF UP! IN CASE YOU WONDERED IF I'M REALLY WATCHING

NOT that there's a shortage of pop-culture panderers on TV, but Ch. 5's Jillian Barberie, in her role as effervescent, cleavage-leading co-host on Ch. 5's "Good Day New York," last...

BIG FATTY GREEK WONDER - PRAISE THE LARD! GREASY NEW DIET IS HEALTHY: DOCS

Greeks smoke, drink, don't get much exercise and eat fatty foods - but they're healthier than North Americans. Now doctors are advocating the high-fat Mediterranean diet as the "miracle" that...

'BLUE SPIES' FOR CITY; KELLY'S ANTI-TERROR COPS GO GLOBAL FOR HIGHER INTELLIGENCE

The NYPD has created its own vast terror-intelligence network - getting its own terror tips from Park Slope to Pakistan instead of relying on the feds, The Post has learned....

GAY PRIDE'S ON PARADE

Expect an extra-happy crowd celebrating their sexuality at the Gay Pride Parade today in Manhattan, in light of recent victories allowing gay marriage in Canada and gay sex in Texas....

WEIRD BUT TRUE

A Florida man known as the "Gentleman Bandit" has finally been nabbed. Larkin Derks, 49 - who robbed four banks in the Ocala area over the last three weeks by...

BUTTAFUOCO IN MOB FLICK

Now that's a stretch. Joey Buttafuoco is honing his acting chops to star in "Gangsta Mafia," a new movie about an Italian mobster from New York who expands his operations...

NYPD DAILY BLOTTER

Bronx A blood-drenched man was found critically injured in a possible stabbing yesterday at a Soundview apartment building, police said. Cops responded to a call of a man bleeding behind...

NYPD HUNTS RUSSIAN IN KILLINGS

Police are asking the public to help track down a 32-year-old Russian immigrant wanted for questioning in connection with two slayings in Brooklyn. Police said that Gary Neserov, aka George...

'DID IT HAVE TO BE HIM?' ANGUISH AS JERSEY SGT. IS FOUND DEAD WITH FELLOW GI

Two soldiers missing in Iraq - one of them from New Jersey - were found dead early yesterday by U.S. forces. The bodies of Sgt. 1st Class Gladimir Philippe, 37,...

DUMPLING FEST A PIG SUCCESS

He had six eggs with bacon, a large coffee and a juice for breakfast, but that didn't stop Ed "Cookie" Jarvis from swallowing 91 dumplings in eight minutes at the...

DEATH BLAMED ON COPS' RAID

Cops burst into the wrong home looking for a suspect, terrifying a man with a heart condition - who died early yesterday, his outraged family charged. But police say they...

3 TERROR GROUPS VOW TO STOP FIGHTING TODAY

Palestinian terror groups tentatively agreed to stop their bloody attacks on Israel yesterday on the eve of U.S. presidential adviser Condoleezza Rice's arrival in the Middle East. The Palestinian Authority...

ARBITRATOR SAYS BONUSES MUST BE PAID

NHL teams who care to spend money this year but at the same time wish to remain unencumbered under the coming restrictive CBA have been given the power to do...

HOME-TEAM FANS DOUBLE UP ON THRILLS

Big Apple baseball backers were having a ball yesterday as the Yankees and Mets resumed their Subway Series, duking it out in a day-night, home-and-home doubleheader. In the day game,...

GRAY'S KOBE 'SCOOP' FAR FROM EXCLUSIVE

THAT was quite a story Jim Gray "broke" on draft night; it seems, Kobe Bryant revealed to ESPN's perpetually vigilant correspondent he plans to opt out of his Lakers' contract...

FRANKEL'S 'FUR' CAPTURES GOOSE

Trainer Bobby Frankel and jockey Jerry Bailey hoped to capture this year's Triple Crown and the $5 million bonus that goes with it with Empire Maker, but had to settle...

INKSTER HAS 'RITE' STUFF TRAILS BY STROKE IN CLASSIC

GALLOWAY, N.J. - They ran out of tickets for yesterday's session of Michelle Wie Mania, aka the ShopRite LPGA Classic. The 13-year-old phenom, however, became the side show to the...

PREGNANT MOM IS SLAIN IN HER HOME

A 28-year-old pregnant woman who feared she was being stalked was found shot to death in her Brooklyn apartment early yesterday - and heroic efforts by doctors failed to save...

THIS DUCK IS FOWL; AGGRESSIVE MALLARD STALKING CENTRAL PARK

A flock of web-footed fiends prowling the Central Park ponds has been responsible for creating an unusual new species of duck, scientists said during yesterday's wildlife census. The mallard -...

MUTILATED CORPSE FOUND NEAR AIRPORT

A headless and handless body washed onshore near La Guardia Airport yesterday, police said. The unidentified male corpse was discovered around 11 a.m. at the edge of runway 13-31. Cops...

REAL COPS NAB FAKE ONE

A scam artist who posed as an undercover cop to rip off at least four elderly Manhattan residents - including a blind man - is in police custody, authorities said...

LOBBYING FIGHT LEAVES RAP MOGUL DAZED

ALBANY - Hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons is "laying low" after a disastrous first-time outing in the hardball world of New York state politics, sources close to him told The Post....

'DID IT HAVE TO BE HIM?'; ANGUISH AS JERSEY SGT. IS FOUND DEAD WITH FELLOW GI

"My heart is torn!" Those were the mournful words spoken by Redford Philippe, 19, at his New Jersey home yesterday as he learned that his brother Gladimir, 37, an Army...

GETTIN' DOWN & DIRTY WITH THE SUPREMES

Funny how you go weeks without discussing sodomy, and then suddenly - pow! - it's on everyone's lips. OK, bad choice of words. Yes, last week, while men in suits...

1 & 9 TRAINS TO SKIP 191ST ST.

Straphangers who board the 1 and 9 trains at 191st Street in Manhattan will have to make other travel plans starting Tuesday when the station shuts down for six months,...

NOT A BUNCH OF GIRLS . . .

"Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" opened last week, proving that women can kick ass as well as men - except women have to do it in a thong. Adding insult to...

OLD WIFE'S TALE

Harry Potter's fiction is outselling Hillary Clinton's fiction by five to one, even though both are mythical tales of power with little or no relation to the real world. I'm...

RUNNING NUMBERS

Why was everyone so shocked when the courts said the state has used fuzzy math for years to cheat city kids out of a fair share of dough in the...

MARKET CLOSED

Finally, a way to get through meals without hearing, "Hi, I'm conducting a brief survey" or "I'd like to lower your APR." Look, even if I knew what an APR...

YOU'VE GOT E-MAIL

From Bud Man: "The state of Texas has executed yet another inmate. However, unforeseen legal issues have arisen. The state has killed so many people this year, it must now...

CARD SHARK: DAPPER DEM BOSS PROBED OVER EXPENSES

Brooklyn Democratic Party boss Clarence Norman, a state assemblyman, may have spent as much as $200,000 of the organization's funds over the last several years on personal expenses, including pricey...

36% OF DA CASES FALL SHORT IN COURT

Case dismissed! It's a phrase more than a third of the city's criminal court defendants heard last year, court statistics show. About 36 percent of the 325,000 misdemeanor and low-level...

COMMISH PACKS A BIG PUNCH

City Finance Commissioner Martha Stark was fuming mad when a man tried to sell her a $5 pack of untaxed Newports on Park Avenue last month. Stark called in city...

WEB SELLERS BURN TAX-DODGE PUFFERS

New Yorkers dodging heavy taxes on cigarettes by buying from Native American sellers on the Internet could be hearing soon from the taxman. Under a settlement in the federal appeals...

$CHOOL DAYDREAMS; HOW BEST TO SPEND COURT-ORDERED AID

Principals, teachers and parents are eagerly drawing up their wish lists after the state's top court last week ordered Albany to steer more education dollars to the city to improve...

FRIENDS SAY MAKE WAY FOR FREDDY IN '05

THE pressure is on Comptroller Bill Thompson to stay out of the 2005 mayoral race. Supporters of former Bronx Borough President Fernando Ferrer, who seems certain to take another shot...

MUSIC PLAYS ON - DOWNLOADERS DEFIANTLY TUNE OUT 'NET THREAT

Catch us if you can! That seems to be the attitude of hip young New Yorkers who download tunes from the Internet, despite threats last week from the Recording Industry...

MISERABLE MILE-AND-A-HALF: CENTRAL PARK FENCE PROJECT THROWS OFF JOGGERS

New York's favorite jogging path is getting a much-needed makeover, but it's going to mess with city exercise habits. The 1.58-mile dirt track around the Central Park Reservoir - well-traveled...

ADVANTAGE, LADIES

Here's sizzling proof that you've gotta keep your eye on more than just the ball at Wimbledon this year. Members of the new generation of tennis stars now holding court...

EATERIES AB-ZORB FATTER $$ TAKE

Now that the news is out that Greeks have more fun, restaurateurs around New York are experiencing a little spike in business. Chris Giorgou, owner of Greek restaurant Trata on...

THE DEVIL, YOU SAY? CHAMPS SHOULD GO AFTER LEETCH

COMING up on an unrestricted free agency he never sought, Brian Leetch faces the crossroads. Wouldn't it be something if they led the consummate Ranger directly through the Lincoln Tunnel?...

ART HOPES REYES WILL STAY PUT

Early yesterday, Art Howe made his strongest case yet for keeping rookie shortstop Jose Reyes. But Howe couldn't say who would be replaced on the roster when Rey Sanchez is...

KNICKS AREN'T DONE YET ; STILL PURSUING DEAL TO GET LONGER

Knicks GM Scott Layden said he drafted 14½ feet of center Thursday. But if 18-year-old 7-footer Majiec Lampe, who has a small forward's game, and 7-6 Slavko Vranes are not...

A DAY IN THE LIVES OF SUBWAY SLUGGERS; IT'S CLIFF RAVIN': APPLE BASEBALL SIMPLY AMAZIN'

FLOYD'S DIARY The alarm went off at 8:30 yesterday morning for Cliff Floyd, trumpeting the arrival of pure baseball bliss. Two games. Two stadiums. One city. For Floyd, you can't...

PRICE FOR URBINA COMES DOWN

YANKEE NOTES The Rangers have finally gotten the message from the Yankees: Quit asking for Brandon Claussen or Nick Johnson for reliever Ugueth Urbina. GM John Hart believes it, because...

IT'S JUST A TRAIN WRECK ; IN-SEASON SERIES LOSES ITS SUBSTANCE

ACROSS the street, the kids played pickup basketball at Macombs Dam Park, a couple of youth league baseball teams getting after each other. Jamal Kuwan, 15 years old and owning...

TORRE PASSES ON HIS PITCHING STARS

David Wells is 10-2. Mike Mussina is 10-4. Roger Clemens is 8-5 and leads the AL in strikeouts with 119 in the season he notched career win No. 300. Mariano...

TORRE GIVING REELIN' ROBIN A LITTLE R & R

The first sign that something was different was seeing Todd Zeile's name in the lineup at third against Mets right-hander Jeremy Griffiths for the first game of yesterday's Subway Series...

BUCKS, KARL JUST CHUCKED CASSELL AWAY

AS part of the Sam Cassell-Joe Smith exchange (Anthony Peeler and Ervin Johnson will never suit up for their new teams), are the Bucks obligated to sign Jolt-less Joe to...

GRIFFITHS GOES FROM WASHOUT TO WIPEOUT

That rainout came a week too early for Jeremy Griffiths. Last Saturday, the Mets rookie right-hander made his first major-league start, an emergency stint against the Yankees at Shea that...

ALL YANKEES IN SUBWAY SWEEP: GODZILLA & ROCKET LEAD WAY IN OPENER

GAME 1Yankees 7Mets 1 With Hideki Matsui at the plate and Roger Clemens on the hill against inferior competition, the Yankees seem mythical. That's why the Subway Series not only...

IT'S ONLY TOKEN INTEREST: IN-SEASON SERIES LOSES ITS SUBSTANCE

LATE in the Bronx morning, in the shadow of Yankee Stadium, where a couple dozen kids were playing basketball at Macombs Dam Park, Jamal Kuwan, 15 years old and owning...

THE BEST OF TIMES, THE WORST OF TIMES; GIAMBI SAVORS HIS BUS RIDE BETWEEN TWO YANK VICTORIES

GIAMBI'S DIARY What has less juice than the boring Yankees-Mets Subway Series? Try the Yankees' bus ride from Yankee Stadium to Shea Stadium in between games of yesterday's two ballpark...

YANKS WIN EVERY MATCHUP

HIDEKI Matsui hit a grand slam and drove in five runs in the opener and by the time yesterday's day-night, Bronx-Queens doubleheader was done, he had reached base safely in...

'OTHER' MATSUI ON BOSS' LIST

One Matsui isn't enough for George Steinbrenner, The Post has learned. Buoyed by Hideki Matsui's recent succes, the Yankees are ready to dive into the race for Japanese shortstop Kazuo...

WALKING LIKE WINNERS

THEIR timing was per fect. Isn't it always perfect? The Yankees walked into Shea Stadium last night at 6:26 p.m. They entered from the right-field bullpen and made their way...

METS JUST CAN'T GET ENOUGH

THEIR timing was perfect. Isn't it always perfect? The Yankees walked into Shea Stadium last night at 6:26 p.m. They entered from the right-field bullpen and made their way down...

CLAUSSEN WINS AS BOMBERS HANG ON IN CAP

GAME 2 Yankees 9 Mets 8 This town might not be big enough for both the Yankees and Mets, but for one night there was plenty of shared embarrassment. The...

THE BEST OF TIMES, THE WORST OF TIMES; CLIFF EXPECTED AN AMAZIN' DAY THAT NEVER MATERIALIZED

FLOYD'S DIARY It started with the anticipation of pure baseball bliss. It ended with the whimper of utter hardball heartbreak. Welcome to Cliff Floyd's Subway Series doubleheader. Perhaps nobody was...

CLAUSSEN GIVES YANKS A WIN AND WELCOMED DEPTH

On their own, Brandon Claussen's numbers in his major-league debut last night at Shea Stadium don't sizzle. Yet, when put to his background and under the circumstances in which he...

SHINJO SENT TO MINORS

MET NOTES In a move that was overdue, the Mets shipped weak-hitting outfielder Tsuyoshi Shinjo to Triple-A Norfolk between games yesterday. They recalled outfielder Raul Gonzalez, who nearly rallied them...

IS THERE A KILLER ON YOUR BOAT?

AS THE boating season begins in earnest this week, the United States Coast Guard is warning boaters that there could be an unseen danger aboard, one that has the potential...

ACADEMY NEEDS TO PRODUCE MORE DONTRELLES

DOWN THE LINEDontrelle Willis has more than a chance to be an outstanding lefty starter. Willis - if handled properly - could become a symbol. Like how Fernando-mania elevated interests...

MARIANO SHOULD BE CO-CAPTAIN ; CLASSY YANKEE CLOSER HAS SAME CREDENTIALS AS JETER FOR THIS JOB

HE FIRST arrived in 1995, began to make a huge impact in 1996, is a cornerstone of four titles, is home grown, is recognized as an elite player, and is...

THE PLAYBOY: SHOCKWAVE IS SPREADING ALL ACROSS THE COUNTRY

So now we know. For a full season, those around and inside the Giants marveled at this blonde dynamo who seemingly could not be tackled, contained, quieted or stopped. The...

SEAVER, KAAT SAW TROUBLE UP AHEAD

THE sun hadn't yet set Friday - it wasn't yet 8 p.m. - before Jim Kaat and Tom Seaver, fellas with nearly 10,000 major-league innings pitched between them, had done...

KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT - WHICH ROOKS ARE KEEPERS?

SOME keeper-league members have tough decisions on who will fill out their 2004 rosters. Assuming you'll be in your league for at least three years, you must keep an eye...

CLAUSSEN WINS AS BOMBERS HANG ON IN 'CAP

GAME 2 Yankees 9 Mets 8 The once-magnificent Subway Series has become ridiculously one-sided. And while the Mets escaped embarrassment last night after trailing 9-0 in the middle of the...

SUDDENLY, YANKEES SLAM GRIFFITHS

That rainout came a week too early for Jeremy Griffiths. Last Saturday, the Met rookie right-hander made his first major-league start, an emergency stint against the Yankees at Shea that...

YANKEES WINNING STAR WAR

EDGARDO ALFONZO was benched by the Giants. These days that passes as the best news for the Mets. Somehow they were right about a guy. Too bad that is pretty...

OLD PITCHERS ON TARGET: SEAVER, KAAT SPOT TROUBLE BEFORE IT HAPPENS

THE sun hadn't yet set Friday - it wasn't yet 8 p.m. - before Jim Kaat and Tom Seaver, fellas with nearly 10,000 major-league innings pitched between them, had done...

A DAY IN THE LIVES OF SUBWAY SLUGGERS: GIAMBI TAKES OUR ADVICE AND RIDES TO SERIES IN STYLE

GIAMBI'S DIARY For yesterdays classic twin-borough twinbill, the Post spent the day with the Yankees Jason Giambi. the first baseman was gracious enough to grant The Post exclusive access to...

THE INSIDERS: THE POST TAKES YOU BEHIND THE LOCKER-ROOM DOORS

DARKO SCORES ALREADY It didn't take long for the Knicks and Nets new stars to find new friends in New York, along with Detroit top pick and No. 2 selection...

ANOTHER MONSTER GAME FOR YANKEES: GODZILLA TOO MUCH

GAME 1 Yankees 7 Mets 1 With Hideki Matsui at the plate and Roger Clemens on the hill against inferior competition, the Yankees seem mythical. That's why the Subway Series...