November 10, 2006

Same old Van Gundy

By MARC BERMANHOUSTON - It was just like old times. I ask a question. Jeff Van Gundy erupts.It didn't take long for Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy to be his...

LISTS: The gas station people give out prizes

It's ratings season! On the heels of the AAA announcement last week, Mobil releases its 2007 ratings.There's some debate over which award is more prestigious, but the main difference between...

LIVEBLOG/ITALY: Making the "no possible" possible

When we picked up our rental car in Bologna and asked for directions to the Piazza Maggiore, where our hotel is located, the garage attendant is all, "No possible."Turns out,...

FIVE YEARS IN QUEENS CON

A Forest Hills broker who scammed $10 million from his clients in an elaborate stock fraud scheme was sentenced to five years in prison yesterday, despite having what his lawyer...

TARGET'S TRICK FOR POST-TURKEY SALE

Target is hoping to work a little magic - and make some of Macy's traditional holiday-shopping dominance disappear. The "cheap chic" chain is calling on stuntman and illusionist David Blaine...

THAIN'S BANE - NYSE BOSS SEES SARBANES-OXLEY CHANGES

BOCA RATON, Fla. - Despite the Democrats' victory this week, New York Stock Exchange boss John Thain is confident that regulators will curtail certain aspects of the Sarbanes-Oxley corporate governance...

SUE ME, SUE YOU ; FAIRFAX COVER-UP CHARGED

A stock analyst at the center of lawsuit pitting Canadian insurance giant Fairfax against a gaggle of short-sellers has struck back against the executives and auditors of the company, filing...

GRASSO PAY SUIT CUOMO'S PRIORITY

Andrew Cuomo's election to the New York Attorney General's job doesn't mean the battle over Dick Grasso's disputed $187.5 paycheck will be any less of a battle. Cuomo is said...

VIACOM: NO CRUISIN', BUT BRUISIN'

If Sumner Redstone was sitting at his computer watching Viacom's stock price yesterday - and you know he was - he wasn't a very happy camper. That's because investors sent...

BREAK-UP SHAKE-UP ; BRITNEY FED DIVORCE STORY TO PEOPLE, SPIKED OTHER CELEB RAGS

SO why, exactly, did Britney Spears drop her bombshell divorce from Kevin Federline on a Tuesday when most of the country was gripped by the tense Election Day saga? Most...

CROWE CHEZ

A GOOD YEAR (two and a half stars) Beautiful mindless.Running time: 118 minutes. Rated PG-13 (profanity, sexual references). At the Empire, the Union Square, the Lincoln Square, others. HUGH Grant...

'NIP/TUCK' STAR QUITS HOT SHOW

'NIP/Tuck" star Joely Richardson has left the series to care for her sick daughter - and isn't sure if she will return. The British-born Richardson, who plays ex-wife Julia McNamara...

FANS DOLOVE HIM. . . STILL

LIONEL RICHIE NICOLE Richie's dad, Lionel, the R&B singer who fronted the Commodores in the '70s and owned the charts in the '80s, hit the comeback trail with a theater...

SUPER FREAKIN' STRANGE

FUR: AN IMAGINARY PORTRAIT OF DIANE ARBUS (one and half stars) Shaggy dog story .Running time: 122 minutes. Rated R (profanity, nudity, sexuality). At the Lincoln Plaza and the Angelika....

BEETHOVEN BIO IS DUM DUM DUM DUM

COPYING BEETHOVEN (one and a half stars) Bring back the Saint Bernard.Running time: 104 minutes. Rated PG-13 (sexual references). At the Paris, 58th Street and Fifth Avenue. 'HE'S a force...

'MORNING' RISES

COME EARLY MORNING (three stars) ASHLEY Judd, long stuck in a lucrative rut of Hollywood thrillers, returns to her indie roots to give the perform ance of her career in...

COMIC FIT - SITCOM BEING TAILORED FOR 'IDOL' KELLIE

SOUTHERN-fried "American Idol" fan favorite Kellie Pickler is getting her own sitcom - playing herself. Pickler has inked a deal with Fox, which airs "Idol," to star as a "naive...

DOESN'T 'MIZ' A TRICK

LES MISERABLES (three stars)The Broadhurst Theatre. 235 W. 45th St. (212) 239-6200. BACK to the barricades, mes enfants! Cameron Mackintosh's production of "Les Miserables," which left us only in May...

DICTATOR'S TEENAGE LEGACY

CAUTIVA (two and a half stars) THE Argentine thriller "Cautiva" features a solid performance by 23-year-old Barbara Lombardo that goes a long way in making up for the telenovela script....

GREAT DANE LAPS IT UP

DANE Cook is the Tony Robbins of stand-up comedy. Ripe for imitation, easy to mock - and wildly, undeniably successful. So now as he plays an impressive two shows in...

'STUDIO 60': IT'S ALIVE!

NBC will stick with "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" - at least for this season. The network confirmed yesterday that it's ordered an additional nine episodes of the Aaron...

'STAR WARS' STRATEGIES - SIX MOVIES, 14 HOURS, NO HOPE

'STAR Wars" fans are readying their lightsabers in a battle over the proper order in which to view the impending "Star Wars" marathons on Cinemax. Should someone-say, a young child...

PUPPY LOVE ON MONGOLIAN PLAINS

THE CAVE OF THE YELLOW DOG (three stars) A Mongolian "Lassie."In Mongolian, with English subtitles. Running time: 90 minutes. Not rated (nothing objectionable). At the Angelika, Mercer and Houston streets....

BAD L.A. TIMES

HARSH TIMES (three and a half stars) Badman begins.Running time: 120 minutes. Rated R (graphic violence, drug abuse, profanity). At the E-Walk, the 19th Street East, the 84th Street, others....

NOT SO NOVEL

STRANGER THAN FICTION (two and a half stars) Write and wrong. Running time: 113 minutes. Rated PG-13 (profanity, disturbing images, sexuality, brief nudity). At the E-Walk, the Lincoln Square, the...

GARTSIDE ALIVE AND WELSH

SCRITTI Politti is having a very good year. Green Gartside, the Welsh singer synonymous with the band, released his first album in seven years and is performing again after more...

'HIGH FIDELITY,' LOW BOX OFFICE

PANIC is starting to set in at "High Fidelity," the new Broadway musical, based on Nick Hornby's popu lar novel, that begins previews Nov. 20 at the Imperial Theater. The...

STARR REPORT

It's 'Criminal'! "Criminal Minds" continues to kick some serious derierre, beating the fall finale of "Lost" Wednesday night, in total viewers, for the second consecutive week. "Minds" also continued its...

FILM PICK

Actor Crispin Hellion Glover's controversial (most of the actors have Down syndrome) directorial debut, "What Is It?," finally arrives in New York. Difficult to describe, the film (pictured above) is,...

MARY'S HOT PICK

THE fiery blend of bebop jazz and Latin jazz are in full effect on "Simpático," a new CD from the Brian Lynch/Eddie Palmieri Project. The CD is the crowning achievement...

CASINO BEAT

NEW JERSEY * Meet RACHEL RAY, (right) up close and personal Sunday at 12:30 and 4 p.m. in Caesars' Circus Maximus. Tickets: $25; harrahs.com, (800) 677-SHOW. * THE ROLLING STONES...

CLASSROOM EXTRA - EDISON LIGHTS THE CITY

There was something strange and wonderful happening at 257 Pearl St. in lower Manhattan, the result of which would change the city and the world forever. NEW York is always...

SUNDAYS WILL NEVER BE THE SAME WITHOUT HIM

SUNDAYS without Ed Bradley will seem like Mondays a day early. Sunday is "60 Minutes" and "60 Minutes" is, in big part, Bradley. More, much more than simply being one...

NYPD DAILY BLOTTER

QUEENS *** (LCF) Eric Johnson (above), 39, is being sought for questioning in the fatal stabbing of his ex-girlfriend in the Queensbridge Houses in Long Island City on Wednesday, cops...

L.I. ACTIVIST GETS FISH-RAPPED BY POLS

An outspoken Long Island activist has been ordered to stop bringing live large-mouth bass - or even cans of fish - to town meetings to illustrate his battle to have...

NO-NAME POL FIRST OUT OF '08 PREZ GATE

The 2008 campaign season kicked off yesterday as Iowa's Democratic Gov. Tom Vilsack became the first to announce a presidential campaign - and observers mined for clues about potential front-runners...

BRIGHT-NEY JAZZED TO SHED FED - HAPPY DAY HERE OF CUTTING ALBUM - AND DITCHING MANSE

Gone are the days of eating Cheez Doodles while barefoot and pregnant - newly hubbyfree Britney Spears looked quite the gay divorcée as she stepped out for a late-night recording...

ICE GOING, B'KLYN; SPORTS COMPLEX GETS MSG BOOST

The Knicks just beat the Nets to Brooklyn. Madison Square Garden announced yesterday that it has expanded its empire into Brooklyn by partnering with the borough's answer to Chelsea Piers:...

PERVY PETER'S THREAT SPREE - MENACED AT LEAST 3 OTHER GALS: DA

Maniac molester Peter Braunstein threatened at least three other women involved in the fashion industry before he posed as a firefighter and sexually assaulted a former co-worker in her Chelsea...

CBS EYE SHEDS A TEAR FOR ED - DEATH OF '60 MINS.' STAR BRADLEY A SHOCK

Trailblazing "60 Minutes" correspondent Ed Bradley, who covered the major stories of the last four decades, died unexpectedly yesterday, leaving colleagues and fans in a state of shock. Friends said...

'NO SECRET DEAL' IN TEACHER PACT

On the heels of a historic new contract with the city, the head of the teachers union yesterday dismissed speculation that the deal committed her to supporting extending mayoral control...

NEW WAVE OF ROCKAWAYS

The Rockaways are making a comeback. The city is adding nearly 4,000 units of middle-income housing, a YMCA, a Super Stop & Shop grocery store, more than 500,000 square feet...

SUV MA CLINGS TO LIFE - AFTER KILLER 'HIT-RUN'

The mom of a Brooklyn boy killed by a careening SUV as he walked to a school bus Wednesday was in a coma yesterday, as authorities arraigned the driver on...

N.Y. DOC TO TRY WOMB TRANSPLANT

New York doctors are hoping to carry out the world's first successful human womb transplant. The revolutionary procedure, which will be performed at Manhattan's New York Downtown Hospital, could potentially...

'NO PAY' BUILDER ARRESTED

A contractor was arrested yesterday for allegedly failing to pay undocumented workers he hired for construction jobs in Queens. Roberto Perez, 66, who owns Park Construction Company in Astoria, was...

PATAKI'S LAST DITHER; DODGING HIS DUTY ON HEVESI

ALBANY HOW fitting it is that in his final weeks in office, Gov. Pataki has given New Yorkers a clear reminder of the indecision and disingenuity that came to define...

SCHOOL DUO IN 'SEX RUMOR' FUROR

The Department of Education wants to fire two employees for covering up rumors - that later turned out unfounded - of a teacher having sex with students, officials said yesterday....

SHARKS THREATENED TO TRUNK-ATE MOB WIFE: DA

Three alleged Bonanno crime-family loan sharks threatened to put a woman "in the trunk of a car" - mob code for being killed - for not repaying a loan, unaware...

REP. DUO IN WAR TO BE NO. 2

WASHINGTON - A split between two senior House Democrats threatens to undermine party unity before incoming Speaker Nancy Pelosi even assumes office. Two of Pelosi's top lieutenants, Minority Whip Steny...

CALVIN PLAYIN' BROCK OPERA

WHEN Calvin Brock enters a room, he looks more like an insurance agent, high school teacher or a CPA. His usual wardrobe is a sport coat, button-down shirt and jeans,...

'KRISTALLNACHT' FACE-OFF WITH NAZI

Hundreds of Jewish high-school students marked yesterday's anniversary of Kristallnacht by protesting before the German Consulate in Manhattan and at the Queens home of an ex-Nazi guard. "No SS in...

'KIN RAPE' COP: I DIDN'T

The lawyer for a Manhattan cop accused of raping his 15-year-old stepdaughter yesterday called the alleged victim a "problem child" who "made false allegations" against his client "She has been...

HOSP BIG CHARGED IN 350G SCAM

A former Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital official was charged yesterday with using a federal program as "her own piggy bank" - siphoning off more than $350,000 to buy plane tickets, a stained-glass...

'HEAVY'-DUTY RESCUE - CITY EYES SUPERSIZED AMBULANCES FOR OBESE

The City Council has revived a proposal to buy special "jumbo" ambulances for the morbidly obese, officials told The Post. The idea for the ambulances - which can easily transport...

WISEGUYS PLAY THE MARKET; GAMBLING RING IS BUSTED IN HUNTS PT.

That's a lotta cabbage. Tucked in among the bananas and potatoes at the Hunts Point markets in The Bronx, a Genovese -run gambling ring pulled in $1 million a year...

MOB 'GROWING' PAIN - BUGGED WISEGUYS TAPED TRASHING 'DISGUSTING' GOTTI REALITY-TV SHOW

"Growing Up Gotti" got two thumbs down from a group of old-school gangsters who were secretly taped ripping the reality show, which cashed in on the name of infamous Mafia...

GRACING GRACIE - GOV-ELECT VISITS MIKE AT MANSION

Gov.-elect Eliot Spitzer and Mayor Bloomberg yesterday sat down for a private breakfast at Gracie Mansion that included political gossip and policy talk about the city - such as how...

TWO TEENS BUSTED IN 'GAY SLAY'

Two 17-year-olds have been busted for strangling a man in his Queens home and then beating him with a bat and a fire extinguisher, cops said yesterday Billy Ray Staton...

TIME SLASHES RATE BASE AND UPS PRICE

Time magazine said it was chopping its rate base - the amount of circulation it promises advertisers it will deliver each week - by 19 percent, or 750,000 copies, down...

CENTER STAGE FOR SCHUMER, THE NEW 'DON' OF THE DEMS

WASHINGTON - Sen. Charles Schumer will serve as the political consigliere for the Senate's top Democrat with the job of preventing the party from making a hard left turn, The...

1ST UP FOR '08 GIVES HILL FAIR WARNING

The 2008 campaign season kicked off yesterday as Iowa's Democratic Gov. Tom Vilsack became the first to announce a presidential campaign - but only after a heads-up call to presumptive...

BORAT SUED OVER DRUNK FRAT 'TRAP'

In what may be a blow to phony journalism everywhere, two "victims" of the Borat movie are now suing the producers. Two frat boys who appear in "Borat: Cultural Learnings...

STUDENTS IN ANTI-NAZI PROTESTS

Hundreds of local Jewish students marked yesterday's anniversary of Kristallnacht by protesting at the German Consulate in Manhattan and at the Queens home of an ex-Nazi guard. "No SS in...

HEAD CASE - CATHEDRAL VANDAL CHOPS WASHINGTON; STATUE-TORY CRIME: CATHEDRAL VANDAL BEHEADS WASHINGTON

By George! Our first president has lost his head in Morningside Heights. A brazen and unholy vandal decapitated a stone statue of George Washington inside The Cathedral of St. John...

PAM MISCARRIAGE

Actress Pamela Anderson has suffered a miscarriage, it was reported last night. Anderson, 39, who is married to singer Kid Rock, 35, lost her baby late last week in Vancouver,...

MAN'S BODY FOUND BAGGED IN B'KLYN

The body of a man was found yesterday stuffed into a black duffel bag on the side of a Brooklyn road, police said. A pedestrian made the grisly discovery on...

ACTIVIST IS FISH-RAPPED

An outspoken Long Island activist has been ordered to stop bringing live large-mouth bass - or even cans of fish - to town meetings to illustrate his battle to have...

JETS WON'T RUN & HIDE; READY FOR PATS' GROUND GAME

The Jets know exactly what's coming Sunday in Foxborough, Mass. There are no secrets, no Bill Belichick wrinkles to worry about. They know the Patriots are going to try to...

BRUSCHI: MANGINI 'DOING GREAT JOB'

JET NOTES Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi, who played in Eric Mangini's defense for New England, said he sees impressive characteristics of mental toughness in the Jets that are a reflection...

INJURIES CREATE A GIANT HURDLE; BIG BLUE NOT THINKING TOOM' AND GLOOM

One thought crossed Tiki Barber's mind yesterday as he arrived to work at Giants Stadium and processed the impact of yet another injured teammate. "I think I'd like to find...

MADISON LIKELY TO PLAY; 5 OTHERS NOT

GIANT NOTES At least one sidelined Giants player appears on the road to recovery and figures to be available Sunday night vs. the Bears. Cornerback Sam Madison made it through...

THOMAS STAYS MUM ON BROWN'S BUYOUT

KNICK NOTES HOUSTON - Isiah Thomas bit his tongue and then skipped around questions about Larry Brown one day after the news the former Knicks coach had cleared $18.5 million...

ISIAH MOURNS ED BRADLEY

CBS' Ed Bradley, who passed away yesterday at age 65, was a Knicks season ticket-holder since 1983. Bradley, whose family still owns the seats, sat in the second row, right...

THIS JUST IN: SUN EXPECTED TO RISE IN EAST

WE'RE often left to wonder how much of what's reported on TV actually is believed by those doing the reporting. For example, HBO's current edition of "Real Sports" asks us...

GUARD DUTY; CRAWFORD SPARKLES IN FRANCIS' SPOT

HOUSTON - Jamal Crawford, hero of the Knicks' 109-107 victory Wednesday in Denver, is expected to start again tonight in Houston for injured Steve Francis. Isiah Thomas, however, declared it...

DAMAGED TRACK KOS BIG A

Racing at Aqueduct was canceled yesterday because of the uneven, pockmarked condition of the main track following Wednesday's rain. This was the third cancellation at the Big A in the...

HEAT'S ON NETS

So here it is for the Nets, Game 4 of the NBA season tonight and they're facing World Champion Miami. Again. "It seems like we're always playing them," Vince Carter...

MLK, LEHMAN EYE SOCCER SHOWDOWN

A year after being upset in the PSAL title game, Martin Luther King avenged that defeat with a 4-0 win over fourth-seeded Beacon in the PSAL soccer semifinals yesterday at...

BOOKS THAT BELONG ON YOUR SHELF

IF you are looking for a book that would be a great stocking stuffer, here are a few that I think are worthy. The Greenwich Workshop Gallery in Fairfield, Conn.,...

BLUELINERS EARNIN' BOOS

ATLANTA - Dale Purinton and Eric Cairns can come back now. All is forgiven again in front of the net. "There's a physical element that can prevail," says Ranger coach...

LEVINE: SHEFF LACKS LEVERAGE

Randy Levine denounced and dismissed Gary Sheffield's latest potshots at the Yankees as "a lot of noise" yesterday, and the Yankees president crowed that Sheffield has no leverage regarding his...

ROBERTS' PLAN ON RIGHT TRACK

This is the year. Norm Roberts has been pointing to this season since he took over a downtrodden and demoralized St. John's men's basketball program three years ago. The coach...

QUESTIONS LINGER ABOUT ROTATION

YANKEE NOTES The Yankees rotation is full of question marks, and Brian Cashman didn't have many answers yesterday. Mike Mussina was still unsigned, although a two-year, $22-24 million pact was...

GOODBYE, LARRY; ALREADY MISSING EX-KNICKS COACH

AS MUCH as I regret it, it appears the time has come at last to gently slam shut the cave door on Larry Brown's dreamy season in New York. The...

FLICKS OF THE WEEK

'Rocky' marathon(Parts 1-4) With "Rocky Balboa" about a month away from release, this might be a good time to jog the memory and remember Rocky's (Sylvester Stallone) past. Rocky emerges...

DEVILS PILING UP SHOOTOUT WINS

Devils 2B'hawks 1 The shootout has become the Devils' fallback weapon. As their struggle to score continues, so does their winning streak. "We definitely have some success, and these are...

TOM DECLINES OPTION ; BUT GLAVINE MAY STILL REMAIN A MET

Tom Glavine took care of some paperwork yesterday, filing provisionally for free agency. Glavine still has not made up his mind whether he will return to the Mets in 2007...

PRIDE OF PISCATAWAY - NEVER THOUGHT THERE'D BE A KNIGHT LIKE THIS

TWO and a half hours before kickoff and they were screaming and they were hollering and many of them were actually sober, too, lined up in a scarlet crush outside...

PRIDE OF PISCATAWAY- RUTGERS MAKES BELIEVERS WITH IMPROBABLE FINISH

YOU'RE lucky to get the one chance at the movie-script ending, and Jeremy Ito knew he'd just let it drift into the paper shredder. Somehow, with 44,111 people holding their...

PRIDE OF PISCATAWAY - NEVER THOUGHT THERE'D BE A KNIGHT LIKE THISQ

THE ball split the uprights, bisected them clean and true, and it was here that you could feel the belief start to kick in for 44,111 towel-waving, scarletwearing, fable-trusting faithful....

PRIDE OF PISCATAWAY - ITO KICK SECURES MONSTER COMEBACK

Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run" was blaring over the loudspeakers, over the din of a record 44,110 fans that had crammed Rutgers Stadium, over the groans of ghosts that have...

RUTGERS HOPED TO ERASE LOGO GAME

It will go down in history as the Logo Game. When Rutgers completed its pregame warmup at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium last season, the Scarlet Knights fielded one last punt...

DEVILS SURVIVE WITHOUT GOMEZ

The Devils probably won't have their top offensive center for two more weeks, but they are hopeful they can continue surviving as well as they had in their best stretch...

GIANT ADVANTAGE - TIKI'S PATIENCE PERFECT VS. BEARS' ATTACK 'D'

It is called rushing, but it is Tiki Barber's patience that might be the difference in Sunday's NFC showdown between the Giants and Bears. Against a Chicago defense that likes...

'WILD' MOVE FOR CRIS? COLLINSWORTH MAY LEAVE STUDIO FOR PLAYOFF BOOTH

NBC is considering putting studio analyst Cris Collinsworth in the booth for one of its wildcard double-header games on Saturday Jan. 6. While Collinsworth seems like a no-brainer, the better...

MARCHAND'S MEMO OF THE WEEK

To: Stuart Scott From: Andrew Marchand Re: Chad Johnson CC: Santa Claus Chad Johnson might be loud and talkative, but he is not dumb. So don't insult his intelligence. On...

5 QUESTIONS FOR JOHN MADDEN

This week, NYP TV Sports' Andrew Marchand spoke with NBC's John Madden. Madden, 70, was inducted into the Hall of Fame this year. Q: When you did your first game...

TRENDSETTERS - THE TOP PLAYS

VIKINGS (-51/2) VS. PACKERS, 1 P.M. Minnesota is 3-1 at home, has covered nine of the last 11 in the series and seven in a row vs. the NFC North....

THE BEAR FACTS

EVEN counting last week's loss to the Dolphins, the Bears come into Giants Stadium Sunday having won 17 of their last 21. So this is not a team the Giants...

WEIRD BUT TRUE

Here's a genuinely foul twist on being rear-ended by a bus. An Ohio family is suing Greyhound over a load of human waste that one of its buses dumped on...

THE 6TH QUESTION W/ JOHN MADDEN

By ANDREW MARCHANDEvery Friday in NYP TV Sports, our sports television pullout that appears in the middle of the print edition and online, we present "Five Questions for …" This...