July 14, 1999

FBI SEARCHING ITALY IN HUNT FOR MARTY FRANKEL

FBI agents on the trail of Martin Frankel have gone to Italy after discovering the fugitive financier hired a charter jet to fly him there when his fraudulent empire began...

MERRILL PROFITS SOAR AMID EXEC SHAKEUP BY BETH PISKORA

One day after delivering the stunning news that its president was stepping down, Merrill Lynch delivered a second stunner to Wall Street in the form of much higher-than-expected profits. Still,...

GULLIBLE FALL INTO THE GAP IN LATEST CHAIN E-MAIL HOAX

Walt Disney, Microsoft, Nike and Miller Brewing have all been targets, as well. None has figured out who is behind the letters. There is, of course, no free lunch; and...

RED GUARD GOES YUPPIE WITH CHINA.COM IPO

The newest member of the Internet millionaire's club is - the People's Republic of China. Investors devoured shares of China.com yesterday after the government-dominated web company went public on the...

LOEHMANN'S QUITS QUEENS

Loehmann's is clearing out of Queens as part of a sweeping geographic realignment of the the bankrupt retailer's operations. In all, the chain is closing 14 of its 69 stores...

IMPACT OF REMNICK'S REIGN STILL CLOUDY

SHORTLY after David Remnick landed the job as editor-in-chief of The New Yorker he made a call to one-time mentor Ben Bradlee, the venerable former editor of The Washington Post....

SAD SONG: ROCKET MAN LOSING LABEL

Elton John - just out of the hospital and recuperating from emergency heart surgery - is now set to lose his record label. Rocket Records - the label he founded...

CONDE NAST AT HALF-MAST

Conde Nast appears to be off to its bumpiest first half since the dog days of the early '90s advertising recession, according to figures released last week by the Publishers...

GLOBE INSIDERS BRACE FOR BOSTON MASSACRE

A day after seizing control of its sister newspaper in Boston, The New York Times was accused of cannibalizing the smaller paper just to improve the Times' national circulation. The...

TV TICKER

'Early' opening Say goodbye to CBS News' "This Morning" - and hello to "The Early Show." That will be the new name of Bryant Gumbel's CBS morning show beginning Nov....

TEMPEST IN A TUTU AT THE MET

THE American Ballet Theater is being muscled out of its traditional slot at the Metropolitan Opera House. For more than 30 years, ABT - one of New York's premiere dance...

MUPPETS FLICK IS A REAL TRIP

MOVIE REVIEW A NYBODY who grew up with the Muppet menagerie in the '70s will always have a soft spot for the fuzzy buggers. But on evidence of the likable...

LIZARDS OF 'OZ'

GETTING back into "Oz," which starts its third season on HBO tonight, is like taking a dip on a hot afternoon. If you try to ease into the water, it's...

END TO ASYLUM NIGHTMARE? FREEDOM FINALLY IN SIGHT FOR ADELAIDE ABANKWAH

ADELAIDE Abankwah laughed yesterday. It was one of the few smiles that have pierced her miserable, nearly lightless existence for more than two years. The crime that landed the soft-...

SALA NEEDS HEAVIER SPANISH ACCENT

Sala 344 Bowery (212) 979-6606 'CANAPES, my ass," Frankie Pantangelli dissed the Cor leone family's Frenchified party snacks in "Godfather II." "It's tuna fish on Ritz cracker." Frankie wouldn't likely...

AN EDIBLE COMPLEX: ANNUAL TRADE SHOW TURNS JAVITS CENTER INTO WACKY FOOD EMPORIUM

'WAITER, I'll have the os trich filet and a side of seaphire, please." Implausible as it seems, someday you might find yourself actually saying this - as you order a...

RESTAURANT CURRIES FAVOR WITH SOUTHERN INDIAN FARE

Saffron 81 Lexington Ave. (212) 696-5130 THE hand-picked dried stigmas of a small crocus may well be the world's most expensive spice - namely saffron - but the restaurant named...

'BLAIR' IS A REAL SCARE

MOVIE REVIEW The Blair Witch Project 1/2 Starring Heather Donohue, Michael Williams and Joshua Leonard. Written, directed and edited by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez. Running time: 87 minutes. Rating:...

JOAN POPS TOP AT JEWS FOR JESUS

JOAN Rivers went ballistic on the air Monday night after a commercial for Jews for Jesus aired on her WOR radio show. "Do not prostyletize on my show, you a-holes!"...

MR. T IS BACK AND BETTER THAN EVER!

MR. T isn't your average cancer patient. The tough-guy actor from "The A-Team" looks like he's in his best physical condition since he took on Sylvester Stallone in "Rocky III"...

IRAN QUASHES PRO-DEMOCRACY PROTESTS

Iran's paramilitary forces and riot police, backed by Islamic vigilantes, regained control of most of central Tehran from pro-democracy protesters last night in fierce fighting that recalled Ayatollah Khomeini's 1979...

CHINA-TAIWAN TENSION SNARES U.S. IN MIDDLE

The Clinton administration yesterday urged China and Taiwan to begin "meaningful, substantive talks" to quell the furor ignited by Taipei's repudiation of the decades-old "one China" policy. But Beijing intensified...

THEY PLAYED WELL - AND THEY PLAYED US FOR SUCKERS

IT SHOULD surprise no one, and disappoint everyone, that the victorious women of the U.S. soccer team are proving as graceless and greedy as pro athletes can be. But, really...

2 COPS PROBED FOR 'BOTCHED' KID-ABUSE CALL

Two cops have been suspended for improperly investigating a child-abuse allegation against a Brooklyn woman, police said yesterday. Officers Stephen Monroe and Ronald Holmes, both six-year veterans, were sent to...

LAZIO TO GET A$$IST FROM TOP GOPERS IN SENATE

ALBANY - In a setback for Mayor Giuliani, Republican leaders in the U.S. Senate have agreed to host a major fund-raiser for his likely GOP rival, Rep. Rick Lazio, it...

THE DOGS THAT DIDN'T BITE LAST WEEK: HILLARY'S PUFFBALL PRESS

F ROM the moment Hillary Rodham Clinton began getting serious about running for the U.S. Senate, there has been one universally accepted piece of received wisdom: that the snarling New...

BADILLO SAYS CUNY WILL ACT FAST IN HIRING A CHANCELLOR

City University will likely have a new chancellor within weeks, the CUNY chairman said yesterday. "We need to move ahead. I don't like to waste time, so I'm pushing to...

DONNA DOES HER (JURY) DUTY

Duty called, and Donna Hanover answered. The wife of New York's law-and-order mayor followed in her husband's footsteps this week when she served jury duty in the civil branch of...

FOTOG BARES LAWSUIT OVER NUDE-PIX BUSTS

A photographer loaded for bare is trying to re-buff cops' attempts to stop him from snapping photos of naked models on city streets by slapping them with a lawsuit. Spencer...

LOUIMA PROSECUTOR EYED AS BROOKLYN'S U.S. ATT'Y

"She is tough, honest and fair. She has been a strong asset to the U.S. attorney's office." U.S. SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER Sen. Charles Schumer yesterday tapped a prosecutor from the...

DID BRA-ZEN BRANDI SC0RE F0R NIKE? - SOCCER GAL FLASHED ITS NEW LINGERIE

The sports world was abuzz last night with talk that one of the greatest moments in women's sports history was just a marketing ploy. "Intentional or not, it was one...

TA COMES CLEAN ON METROCARD PROBLEM

Transit officials who spent years taking swipes at passengers for MetroCard failures finally admitted yesterday it's mainly the machines' fault - and said they would spend $1.2 million to solve...

N0 U.N. DEAL F0R SERB THUG

The U.N. War Crimes Commission yesterday turned thumbs down on a proposal that would let a notorious Serbian paramilitary leader escape justice for atrocities committed in the Balkans. Sources close...

DAY-CARE BIGS ABUSED CITY $$: AUDIT

Officials at a city-funded day-care center used the program to give relatives jobs, run up long-distance phone bills and create no-show posts for substitute teachers, a city audit found. Among...

HILLARY HITS SHORE SPOT AFTER TAKING A POKE AT PATAKI

First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton yesterday took a swipe at Gov. Pataki - then hit sunny Jones Beach - during the second week of a statewide "listening tour" for her...

$200M SNARL-ALERT SIGNS STEER DRIVERS TO GO WITH THE FLOW

The state will spend a whopping $200 million installing snazzy high-tech signs on all the city's major highways to notify motorists of tie-ups and help ease traffic congestion. "This investment...

'TALKING' KIOSK HELPS BLIND LIRR RIDERS

The Long Island Rail Road yesterday unveiled a "talking" kiosk - touted as the first in the nation - at Penn Station yesterday, to help guide blind transit riders to...

PAULA'S DOC DID A CLINTON, SUIT SAYS

The doctor who did Paula Jones' nose job dropped his surgical trousers and demanded oral sex from one of his employees minutes after performing the infamous operation, a sexual-harassment suit...

VICTIMS' KIN ANGRY FEDS HAD HIM - BUT LET HIM GO

FIRST, there was horror. Janet Johnson's father, George Morber, 79, was fatally shot and her sister Carolyn Frederick, 51, was beaten dead inside their attached trailer homes in Illinois on...

BUSH'S GOP JUGGERNAUT CLAIMS FIRST CASUALTY

WASHINGTON - Republican 2000 front-runner George W. Bush's juggernaut today claims its first scalp as one wannabe rival, Rep. John Kasich of Ohio, drops out to endorse the Texas governor....

B'KLYN DISTRICT SAYS CREW RENEGED ON FUNDS

Chancellor Rudy Crew hasn't put his money where his mouth is when it comes to cutting class size and adding reading teachers for an experimental program to boost kids' scores...

BARAK CONFERS IN JORDAN AND HEADS TO D.C.

JERUSALEM - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak flies to Washington today after urging King Abdullah of Jordan be true to the peace-minded legacy of his father, King Hussein. Barak held...

GOP BLOCKS DEM BILL ON HEALTH CARE

WASHINGTON - The GOP-controlled Senate nixed a Democratic plan for women's health care in a test vote yesterday that suggests the patients-rights debate could be headed for a partisan deadlock....

JESSE, PEROT GRAPPLE OVER PARTY'S FUTURE

WASHINGTON - He may be the governor of Minnesota these days but Jesse "The Body" Ventura would still like to wrestle one guy right down to the ground - and...

RAILROAD-SLAY SUSPECT GIVES SELF UP - KIN HELP LAWMEN REEL HIM IN AT MEXICO BORDER

Suspected "Railroad Killer" Rafael Resendez-Ramirez came to the end of a trail of terror after three frenzied days of talks between law enforcement and his family. "You have no place...

GOP BLOCKS DEMS' BILL ON HEALTH CARE

WASHINGTON - The GOP-controlled Senate nixed Democratic efforts to expand patients' rights in a string of votes yesterday that indicate the health-insurance debate is headed for partisan deadlock. President Clinton...

D.C. BARAK'S NEXT STOP

JERUSALEM - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak flies to Washington today after urging King Abdullah of Jordan be true to the peace-minded legacy of his late father, King Hussein. Barak...

BILL BLASTS $864B GOP TAX-CUT PLAN AS PLAY FOR VOTES

House Republicans yesterday rolled out plans for what would be the biggest tax cut in 18 years - but President Clinton immediately blasted it as a "spend now, pay later"...

CITY AGENCY'S BLUNDERS MAY HAVE DOOMED 2 FIREFIGHTERS

Two hero firefighters may have died because a city agency did an incompetent job rebuilding a Brooklyn row house - and then ignored an inspector's warning that the structure might...

IRAN QUELLS PRO-DEMOCRACY PROTESTS

Iran's paramilitary forces and riot police, backed by Islamic vigilantes, regained control of most of central Tehran from pro-democracy protesters last night in fierce fighting that recalled Ayatollah Khomeini's 1979...

AYATOLLAH: CRUSH THE RIOTERS

Iran's "supreme leader" last night gave free reign to his Islamic youth militia, Basij, to crush the violent rioting which followed a week of pro-democracy student unrest. "My Basij children...

OLAZABAL ONLY HAS A PUNCHER'S CHANCE

OPEN NOTES CARNOUSTIE, Scotland - Spanish shotmaker Jose Maria Olazabal has vowed to control his off-the-course emotions this week. The defending Masters champion, who had to withdraw from last month's...

THE BLOOM IS OFF ROSE

CARNOUSTIE, Scotland - This was a no-brainer. The kid was destined for greatness. Not only, at age 17, did his star shine at one of the most prestigious major golf...

THE NOT-SO-GREAT SCOT MONTY OUT TO END STRING OF MAJOR DISAPPOINTMENTS

CARNOUSTIE, Scotland - He's affectionately known as "Monty" here in Scotland and around Europe, but as "Mrs. Doubtfire" or the "Heat Mizer" by some critics in the States for his...

FAVES FACING A LONG HAUL IN BIG M PACE

John Campbell did not become the youngest member of Harness Racing's Hall of Fame by complaining. So yesterday when his horse, The Panderosa, the favorite to win Saturday's $1 million...

JINTS SIGN SIX FREE AGENTS

The Giants yesterday filled out their training-camp roster by signing six players, all of whom are first-year free agents. Invited to camp, which begins July 29 in Albany, are linebacker...

WATERFOWL HUNTERS, MARK DOWN THESE DATES

THE New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has released a tentative schedule for the coming waterfowl season in hopes that hunters will take advantage of the early release and...

JONSSON MULLS ISLES' LAST OFFER

Negotiations between the Islanders and Kenny Jonsson's older brother, Jorgen, have reached the final hour. Either Jonsson, a Swedish left wing who has been loathe to come to America since...

AUSSIES EXPECT FULL DOSE OF SAMPRAS

The Australian Davis Cup team yesterday scoffed at the notion Pete Sampras won't be suiting up for singles Friday when the USA-Aussie quarterfinal showdown opens at the Longwood Cricket Club...

MILESTONE FOR JOE TORRE RELISHES CHANCE TO LEAD AL'S ALL-STARS

"After everything that happened this spring, I am going to enjoy every inch of this."JOE TORREBOSTON - When Joe Torre was diagnosed with prostate cancer this spring, perhaps the farthest...

HOUSTON: KNICKS NOT EWING'S TEAM

"I don't think it has to be just one person's team. When we play a certain way, we win. "ALLAN HOUSTON SAN JUAN - After the Spurs had dispatched the...

CHAMIQUE PLANS A GARDEN PARTY

Chamique Holdsclaw grew up in Queens, spending her summers playing ball at various parks in the city. Tonight, her game moves indoors. Into the most lavish gym in New York....

RANGERS FIND RICHTER'S BACKUP IN MCLEAN

The search for a back-up goaltender pretty much started and stopped with Kirk McLean, whom the Rangers signed yesterday to a two-year deal for a base of approximately $1.8M. At...

COMMISH TO ROSE: NOT ON MY WATCH

BOSTON - Commissioner Bud Selig slammed another door in the face of baseball outlaw Pete Rose yesterday at a news conference to kick off the balloting for baseball's All-Century team....

CHEAP 'SHOT' ARTISTS TODAY'S HR HITTERS NO MATCH FOR OLD-TIMERS

BOSTON - Here we are at the All-Star break and Sammy Sosa has 32 home runs. Ken Griffey Jr. has 29. Mark McGwire checks in with 28. And only the...

BIRD: '92 DREAMERS HAD IT ALL

NOTEBOOK SAN JUAN - Larry Bird says the Dream Team he played on in 1992 had something very special. "We can put together a team every year that would be...

ZIMM'S THE STAR NOBODY WANTED

BOSTON - The story of one of the most remarkable ascents to All-Star glory in many, many years belongs to Canadian Jeff Zimmerman, the almost untouchable Rangers relief pitcher who...

LEFT-OUT ALFONZO OUT A MILLION BUCKS

ALL-STAR NOTEBOOK BOSTON - Edgardo Alfonzo came close to earning an extra million dollars when National League manager Bruce Bochy debated making him an emergency selection. When pitcher Mike Hampton...

IT'S TEDDY'S BALLGAME: '99 STARS EMBRACE WILLIAMS

BOSTON - A month ago, when the Red Sox were at Shea Stadium, Ted Williams threw out the first pitch in a touching scene. But it was nothing compared to...

BOSTON 'K' PARTY MVP PEDRO FANS 5 OF RECORD 22 AS AL WINS MID-SUMMER WHIFF-FEST

American 4 National 1 BOSTON - If Pedro Martinez pitched for the Indians they would probably break the Yankees' record for wins in a season. Martinez pitched two no-hit innings...

A NIGHT FOR ALL AGES OLD-TIMERS, YOUNG FLAME-THROWER SHARE SPOTLIGHT

BOSTON - Tears filled the eyes of Ted Williams, the beloved old ballplayer throwing out the first pitch at the beloved old ballpark. Willie Mays and Hank Aaron stood on...

HOMETOWN HEROES STEAL SHOW

BOSTON - From the man who threw out the first pitch (Ted Williams) and received the biggest ovation of the night for it, to the man who threw out the...

ZIMMERMAN THE STAR NOBODY WANTED

BOSTON - The story of one of the most remarkable ascents to All-Star glory in many, many years belongs to Canadian Jeff Zimmerman, the almost untouchable Rangers relief pitcher who...

CONE WILL NEVER FORGET SPLENDID SCENE

BOSTON - David Cone was a little boy again last night at Fenway Park. Heart racing. Eyes bugged. All smiles. In awe of the world-class athletes surrounding him. "Tremendous time,"...

BOSTON 'K' PARTY: MVP PEDRO FANS 5 OF RECORD 22 AS AL WINS MID-SUMMER WHIFF-FEST

BOSTON - The stadium and the pregame festivities were the brightest of all the stars, and the real-game excitement lasted for all of 28 pitches. That was how long it...

TRIBE FOURSOME PROVES BALLOT-STUFFERS RIGHT

BOSTON - There was some controversy over the fact that the Cleveland fans voted in all of their favorite Indians, but the players proved all of the votes right, as...