February 19, 2006
MINIMIZING UNCLE SAM'S BITE ON A PROPERTY SALE
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amDear John: I own a small, six-unit building in lower Manhattan. I've recently been offered $3 million for it. There's not much going on in our neighborhood except a little...
FRENCHMAN ATTACKS MARKET WITH MOBILE GAMES IN U.S.
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amOK, so maybe the U.S. and France haven't seen eye-to-eye in recent years. But that hasn't stopped Michel Guillemot, the brain behind Gameloft, Europe's largest mobile gaming company, from setting...
WAIVING OLD GLORY MISUSES
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amMore than 100 million U.S. flags were sold last year - and it just seems as if half of them are being waved at the Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy....
NEW LINE USING X-RATED VIDEO GAME TO SPARK INTEREST
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amNew Line Cinema is trying to arouse interest in its upcoming crime thriller, "Running Scared," with a video game featuring gory shootouts and graphic sex scenes. The studio said the...
TW'S NEXT ACT; WHAT WALL STREET WANTS FROM PARSONS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amJust because Carl Icahn tucked his tail between his legs and ran for cover doesn't mean that investor anxiety over Time Warner's performance has similarly gone away. If anything, the...
FORGIVEN FOR UNFORGIVABLE; DIDDY, STOUTE MAKE UP OVER FRAGRANCE MARKETING
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amSEAN "Diddy" Combs and Steve Stoute, the former music executive- turned brand ing and marketing mogul, have buried the hatchet once and for all. Combs and Stoute, who got in...
SONYBMG CAREENS TOWARD BREAKUP
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amIt could be Rolf's way or the highway for SonyBMG. Whispers among the music industry's chattering classes last week were that without marked improvement in both performance and internal politics,...
HIT OUT ON HBO RIVAL; SHOWTIME LAGGING
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amShowtime, meet no time. After being handed a two-year window of opportunity and recording its most buzzworthy year ever - a Golden Globe award for "Weeds" and ample ink about...
CHECKS ARE IN THE MAIL FASTER & FASTER
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTIME used to pass more and more slowly in correspondence chess. The world championship took three years to complete in the 1950s and '60s - but as more and more...
ICE STORM - NY'S EMILY HUGHES SKATES INTO OLYMPIC'S MOST DRAMATIC RACE
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amWHO needs Michelle Kwan? In what was likely to be her last quest for an Olympic gold medal, Kwan was NBC's best hope for Olympic ratings gold. But even without...
RUNWAY'S JAY STRUGGLES WITH SUCCESS AND FAME
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTHAT'S Jay McCarroll been up to since winning last year's inaugural edition of "Project Runway"? The fashion designer has been trying to find his way in the fashion industry. "I'm...
FOR TV MOVIES, THIS BRIT IS THE BEST
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTHE world's best writer and director of made-for-TV movies is a man you've never heard of. His name is Stephen Poliakoff, 53, a London-born playwright who has been a fixture...
THE DON'T MISS LIST
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amM A D E - F O R - T V JEAN HARRIS, the homicidal prep school headmistress, has already been the subject of one TV movie starring Ellen Burstyn....
REEL GOOD - LINDA STASI PREVIEWS THIS WEEK'S BEST MOVIES
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTERMINATOR 3: RISE OF THE MACHINES (2003) Sunday,9 p.m., CBS Arnold Schwarzenegger is called upon to save the earth from a robot who's built more like a brick house than...
PRIME TIME - SHARPTON RAGE MISSES THE MARK
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amIN the recent annals of social criticism and activism, there is no critic/activist more selectively indignant than the Rev. Al Sharpton. Recently, we shared Sharpton's outrage that a Cartoon Network...
HOT LIST - WHAT WE'RE OBSESSED WITH THIS WEEK
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amSole power Get 'em any way you want at American Eagle 's customized flip-flop bar - startin ' Thursday only at the Union Square and 34th Street locations. Friends shooting...
HEAR THIS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amIN CONCERT At Lincoln Center's Allen Room: Singer/songwriter Duncan Sheik on Wednesday. Jazzy piano player Nellie McKay on Saturday. Indie rockers Lola Ray dig an "Automatic Girl" at the Knitting...
APE OVER THE MONKEYS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amARCTIC MONKEYS "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not" 4 STARS Domino The Arctic Monkeys are poised to be the hottest band of the year. But unlike other...
MEANER STREETS - INSIDE SOUTH AFRICA'S SHANTYTOWNS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amRECENTLY, movies from the Americas have held a monopoly on indie cred. "Amores Perros," "City of God," "Y Tu Mama Tambien" and "Motorcycle Diaries" won over subtitle-averse audiences with gritty...
WHAT ARE YOU LAUGHING AT? BACK FROM AFRICA, BACK ON FILM, DAVE CHAPPELLE WON'T BACK DOWN
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amJESTING THE LIMITS - Dave Chappelle walked away from $50 million and a hit show. Now he's back, looking for smaller, quieter laughs Dave Chappelle's a tough guy to figure...
A JONES FOR FILM IN ENGLISH
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amWONG Kar-wai, the supercool Hong Kong auteur, has announced plans for his first Eng lish-language film. It's tentatively called "My Blueberry Nights" and it will feature U.S. pop star Norah...
JOHNNIE (WALKER) COME LATELY
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amHere in the States, Johnnie Walker scotches are well known for their labels (in order of ascending rarity and price): red, black, green, gold and blue. Now American scotch fans...
MEET MARKET - THE PLACE WHERE THE POST HOOKS YOU UP AND SENDS YOU OUT
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amSPORTS-LOVING GAL SEEKS HOME RUN Meet Mary, a 35-year-old sales assistant who is a serious sports fan. "I love to watch the Jets, Mets and Rangers," she says, summarizing herself...
HOT JAMS - HARRY CONNICK JR. HEATS UP 'THE PAJAMA GAME'
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amWhen Harry Connick Jr. first broke through in late '80s, he was the hunky young savior of classic crooning. Now he should get ready for a new designation: the babe...
COP HORSES NEED STABLE HOME
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amThe city's four-legged Finest are becoming homeless horses. The NYPD's Mounted Unit is being kicked out of its West Side headquarters to make way for a park, leaving the 21...
HAMAS' EVIL FACE; MURDER-LOVING MOM JOINS NEW GOV'T
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amJERUSALEM - Meet the newest members of the Palestinian government: a terrorist who tried to poison Jerusalem's water supply, a murderer serving life in prison and the war-mongering mother of...
HERE ARE THE $365M NUMBERS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amCould you be a winner? The lucky numbers for the record $365 million Powerball jackpot were drawn just before 11 p.m. last night - meaning anyone who picked 15, 17,...
LUST FOR 'LOST' ; PRODUCER TARGETED TV STAR: COLLEAGUE
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amThe Broadway producer accused of being "sexually obsessive" was particularly smitten with hunky young "Lost" actor Ian Somerhalder, whom she constantly discussed inappropriately, a former co-producer said. Theater heavyweight Dede...
LAW BITES SITTER WHO BOOTED PAL'S DOG: COPS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amA Bronx woman cruelly tossed her friend's pit bull out onto the streets while continuing to take money for taking care of the pooch, authorities said yesterday. Elia Falu, 50,...
NYPD DAILY BLOTTER
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amMANHATTAN *** Two women have been nabbed for an impersonation scheme that netted them more than $100,000 in ill-gotten proceeds from a Chelsea bank, sources said yesterday. A detective assigned...
DEMS SNUB SUOZZI BASH
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amALBANY - In another snub from his own party, elected Democrats yesterday skipped a reception held by Tom Suozzi, the Nassau County executive set to announce his primary challenge against...
$4M ATM CARD SHARKS ; ID RING CRACKED WITH BUST OF 'FORGER' AT TIMES SQ. RESTAURANT
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amPlainclothes transit cops eating lunch in a Times Square diner - agog as a dandily dressed Brooklyn man stuffed piles of cash from an ATM into a gym bag -...
BODY-PART TALE HEADS INTO COURT
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amA Brooklyn jury is set to indict the reputed leaders of a gruesome body-snatching ring, sources familiar with the investigation revealed yesterday. The grand jury has nearly completed its investigation...
GOV STAYS EXTRA DAY IN HOSPITAL
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amALBANY - Gov. Pataki's release from the hospital after emergency surgery to remove a ruptured appendix was delayed yesterday as doctors wanted to continue to monitor his progress. Pataki was...
'GODFATHER' ACTOR KILLED BY TOUR BUS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amA debonair 68-year-old actor - whose half-century career included a memorable role in all three "Godfather" movies - was last night dragged to his death in a horrific tour-bus accident...
SOMEBODY HAS A $365M TICKET
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amAt least one lucky winner took home last night's record-breaking Powerball lottery - a Nebraska resident, who beat astronomical odds to win a chunk of the $365 million jackpot. Officials...
SEPT. 11 TOXIC HEART SHOCK ; AIR WOE EYED IN SIX RESCUERS' DEATHS - AND MORE LOOM
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amDoctors tracking 9/11 rescue and recovery workers are studying whether the toxic air at the World Trade Center caused not only lung disease and possibly cancer - but also heart...
FEDS GET A SECOND GO AT GOTTI
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amAfter narrowly ducking a conviction that could have put him away for 30 years, John "Junior" Gotti faces a fresh showdown this week with federal prosecutors, who saw their star...
CONS TRAIN BOMB-SNIFF BOWWOWS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amFRANKIE Marsicoveterie was a mob hit man. David Wood killed his girlfriend and her lover in a crime of passion. Jesse Mulligan killed a guy in a robbery that went...
'WI' NOT? B'KLYN HAS 'NET GAIN
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amResidents of five trendy Brooklyn neighborhoods will soon be able to check their e-mails and surf the Web from park benches. The city is looking to bring free wireless Internet...
BUSTA NOW A BOASTER IN RAP WAR
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amJust weeks before clamming up to cops about his security guard's slaying, Busta Rhymes slammed fellow New York rappers for becoming bogged down in a world of drugs and guns....
DRIVE-OFF CABBIES AREN'T FARE: RIDERS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTHE number of complaints filed against cabbies for service refusals has jumped 40 percent, even as the Taxi & Limousine Commission boasts that undercover agents have recorded the lowest number...
DOC: WE'LL RETIRE AT 85
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amOld people should be ticking off their golden years by punching a time clock, a Stanford University biologist says. Dr. Shripad Tuljapurkar says the age of retirement should be bumped...
PUNK SHOOTS GIRL, 17, DEAD
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amA beloved Bronx teen was caught in the gunfire of a cowardly triggerman who, witnesses say, fled from a scuffle and then blindly blasted away at his foe from a...
L.I. HIT-RUN RACER BUST
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amA Long Island man was arrested yesterday for striking a police officer with his car as he fled the scene of a drag race. Suffolk County police received a complaint...
SHOOTOUT HORROR - BABY SITTER, 17, KILLED IN BRONX
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amA beloved Bronx teen was caught in the gunfire of a cowardly triggerman who, witnesses say, fled from a scuffle and blindly blasted away at his foe from a block...
HEARTLESS CARETAKER OF CANINE IS BUSTED
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amA heartless Bronx woman secretly threw her friend's dog out onto the streets to starve while she continued to take money for her care, authorities charged. Elia Falu, 50, of...
ACTOR KILLED BY TOUR BUS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amThe back wheel of a tour bus dragged a debonair 68-year-old actor to his death yesterday on the Upper West Side, police said. The victim, whose name was being withheld...
OLD-TIMER, 68, KILLED UNDER WHEELS OF BUS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amA 68-year-old actor died on the Upper West Side yesterday after getting caught under the wheels of a tour bus - which continued on because the driver didn't know he...
N.Y. $$ DREAMERS HIT ROAD
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amFeeling lucky? New Yorkers with a dollar and a dream flooded the Connecticut border as the Powerball lottery jackpot ballooned to a record-high $365 million. With the drawing scheduled for...
BRYANT FOCUSED FOR GAME
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amHOUSTON - Kobe Bryant has called this the second season of his career. He and Shaquille O'Neal seem to have called a truce in their highly public spat, the dark...
VETS TELL CHANNING 'KEEP YOUR HEAD UP'
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amALL-STAR NOTES HOUSTON - Channing Frye didn't get to enjoy a victory in the Rookie Challenge game Friday night at the Toyota Center as part of the NBA All-Star Weekend....
LESS OF MO THIS SPRING
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amYANKEE NOTES TAMPA - If Mariano Rivera had to make the team on the first day pitchers and catchers took the field, he would be sent packing. While Rivera threw...
IT'S SHOE TIME ; PEDRO 'OK' IN MODIFIED CLEAT
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amPORT ST. LUCIE - In the first week of spring training, Tradition Field has nearly been all about Pedro Martinez. The ace's opening few days here have been more about...
WAGNER TAKES IT QUEASY
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amMET NOTES PORT ST. LUCIE - Unfortunately for Billy Wagner, his first official workout day as a Met probably didn't go down the way he would have imagined. Wagner suffered...
ST. JOHN'S AWAITS NCAA RULING
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amSt. John's had its hearing with the NCAA Committee on Infractions on Friday; now the Red Storm faces an agonizing wait for the crucial decision of the 10-man committee (a...
RED STORM DEMON-IZED
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amDePaul 81St. John's 75 Where was the blatant disgust after the most inexcusable St. John's loss of the season? How come there were no broken chairs, kicked-over water coolers or...
OHNO HAPPY WITH BRONZE
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTURIN, Italy - Another American star at the Olympics, another disappointment. Short track speed skater Apolo Anton Ohno took the bronze in last night's 1,000-meter race, an improvement from his...
LIKE NOW TAKES STAKES DEBUT
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amLike Now, a gelding who broke maiden for $75,000 tag last November, coasted yesterday for trainer Kiaran McLaughlin, cruising gate to wire under Fernando Jara to win his stakes debut,...
LAING-ING TOUGH ; SOPHOMORE SPARKS HALL'S RESURGENCE
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amAs Brian Laing elevated to take alley-oop after alley-oop against West Virginia on Tuesday - three in all - the symbolism was apparent. While Kelly Whitney and Donald Copeland are...
TMA TAKES MANHATTAN
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amPSAL BOROUGH CHAMPIONSHIPS The building at 135th and Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard used to be renowned as a spot for some of the best jazz in Harlem. Nearly half a...
HALL D-PLORABLE ; IRISH SHOOT HOLES IN PIRATES' DANCE DREAM
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amNotre Dame 102Seton Hall 91 Seton Hall came into last night's trap game against underdog Notre Dame needing a great defensive effort. What the complacent Pirates got was their worst...
TRADE WINDS & HOT AIR
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amHOUSTON - The All-Star Game returns to the Space City for the first time in 17 seasons. By my count, the similarities are eerie. Back then, there was a Bush...
AMENDMENT IS NO IMPROVEMENT
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amFAR from the disinterested party he represented himself to be earlier this month, NHLPA executive director Ted Saskin is recommending the union amend the CBA and accept a payroll band...
GEORGE'S NEW TOY ALL WOUND UP
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTAMPA -In case you did not now, Johnny Damon plays center field and leads off. Does them quite well, in fact. These facts might have escaped casual attention since the...
BOSS TO A-ROD-BASHING GUILLEN: SHUT UP!
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTAMPA - Hey, Ozzie! Zip it. That was the message George Steinbrenner (left) sent World Champion White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen yesterday. Earlier this week, Guillen said in Sports Illustrated...
AN AMAZIN' PROSPECT - OWENS EMERGING AS PHENOM OF THE FUTURE
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amPORT ST. LUCIE - It doesn't happen every spring, but when it does, it sure is fun. A pitcher comes out of nowhere to light up camp. Faster than you...
JOHNNY ON THE SPOT - DAMON: 'WE ARE EXPECTING TO WIN A WORLD SERIES'
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTAMPA - Animal House invaded IBM yesterday at Legends Field when Johnny Damon dropped into the Yankees' clubhouse, pressed the flesh and made sure the uniform pants fit. "I am...
WOE, CANADA! SWISS SPRING UPSET
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTURIN, Italy - Switzerland, playing like its watches, won its biggest hockey game ever yesterday, 2-0, against the mighty NHL professionals from Canada. You would expect a massive underdog, especially...
IT'S GETTING UGLY FOR AMERICANS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTURIN, Italy - We're stinking up Italy. Bode Miller, that ugliest American of them all, stumbled in the giant slalom and packed it in yesterday, four days after straddling the...
BODE TO WORSE - MILLER FALLS, QUITS SUPER-G
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amSESTRIERE, Italy - Boozing Bode Miller bombed again yesterday. The mouthy American skier, who was the U.S. team's top medal hopeful, hit a gate, almost fell, and did not finish...
SAY IT AIN'T SLO' - U.S. TEAM STILL FIGHTING TO ADVANCE
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTURIN - Days after its jet lag dissipated, the opening game tie with Latvia still hangs over the U.S. Olympic hockey team. The Americans played hard and for the most...
SHANI STRIKES GOLD - SPEED SKATER MAKES OLYMPIC HISTORY
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTURIN, Italy - Shani Davis did it his way. The U.S. speed skater ruffled feathers this week, choosing to sit out a team event, but you can't argue with the...
HEAD TO HEAD - JUDGING OMAR
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amPost baseball writer Michael Morrissey and columnist Kevin Kernan slug it out over whether GMOmar Minaya left the Mets too thin in the starting rotation: Michael Morrissey: Kevin, while most...
H.S. PICKS RIGHT ON 'MONEY' IN '02
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTAMPA -The A's 2002 draft was immortalized in the bestseller "Moneyball" because they had seven first-round picks (seven of the first 39 overall) and Oakland GM Billy Beane dictated choosing...
SKY HIGH - GREAT NATE IS NOW THE 'STUFF' OF LEGEND
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amHOUSTON - It was clearly the most exciting thing involving the Knicks all season. Nate Robinson won the NBA All-Star slam-dunk competition here last night, beating the Sixers' Andre Iguodala...
HIT PARADE - BOMBERS' BEST LINEUP HAS GIAMBI 3RD, A-ROD 4TH
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amTAMPA - Jason Giambi's rehabilitation from pinstriped pariah to Yankee in good standing was accentuated last week when the organization actually tried out and ultimately signed Scott Erickson on the...
KOBE BRIGHTEST STAR - 'FOCUSED' BRYANT SOARS ABOVE THE REST
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amHOUSTON - Kobe Bryant has called this the second season of his career. He and Shaquille O'Neal seem to have called a truce in their highly public spat, the dark...
PAINFUL TO WATCH - HOCKEY INJURIES A WARNING TO BASEBALL STARS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amIf you are a Rangers fan, if you've felt like this NHL season has been equal parts destiny and dream, then the heart palpitations began the moment that Jarkko Ruuto's...
HARD TO FIGURE - WHY DOES NBC NEED FOUR IN SKATING BOOTH?
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amNBC's Dick (The Olympic Destroyer) Ebersol is forever congratulating himself as the world's wisest spender of network sports money. And then you tune to the Olympics Thursday night, and there...
NO DEFENSE AT HALL - HOT IRISH SHOOT HOLES IN PIRATES' TOURNEY GOAL
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amNotre Dame 102 Seton Hall 91 Seton Hall came into last night's trap game against struggling Notre Dame needing a great defensive effort. What the complacent Pirates got was their...
MEANWHILE, AT HOFSTRA, PRIDE & PROSPERITY ENDURE
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amVILLANOVA, Pa. - Five years after Jay Wright left Hofstra for Villanova, the basketball program is no worse for the wear. Just ask Wright, whose good friend and former assistant...
JAY CAT STRUT - WRIGHT HAS 'NOVA AMONG ELITE
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amVILLANOVA, Pa. - When Jay Wright began his first head-coaching gig at Hofstra in 1994, there were only 150 people at some games. The refs really earned their money, former...
TMA STUNS WADLEIGH - SEAGERS' 32 POINTS POWER PANTHERS
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amHS HOOPS The building at 135th and Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard used to be renowned for having some of the best jazz in Harlem. Nearly half a century ago, Smalls...
WEIRD BUT TRUE
February 19, 2006 | 5:00amA 62-year-old California great-grandmother became one of the oldest women in the world to give birth when she delivered a healthy 6-pound, 9-ounce boy. Family members said the delivery went...