October 4, 2001

'MONEY PIT' HOUSE FOR $ALE

IF life does imitate art, you may want to avoid buying this house. The mansion that Tom Hanks' character got for a steal - and subsequently lost his shirt paying...

MORE COMPANIES TO REPORT BAD EARNINGS

WHICH companies are the most likely to surprise investors with bad third quarter earnings report? I asked First Call, the Wall Street stock watcher, to run its computers overtime and...

HAVE THE MARKETS FINALLY HIT A BOTTOM?

THE post-Sept. 11 stock market sell-off bottomed out at 8,236 for the Dow and 1,423 for the Nasdaq. Since then, both averages have regained a lot of lost ground. The...

BANANA REPUBLIC PREZ: WE LOST OUR APPEAL

Banana Republic's president admit yesterday the clothing company screwed up. "I think we alienated our core customers because we became too slick," said Banana Republic President Gary Muto. "We made...

MAG NAMES MONEY HONEY 'BEST STRESSED'

Forget "Best Dressed" - Maria Bartiromo has been named "Best Stressed." Spa Finder Magazine has chosen CNBC's "Money Honey" as the first winner of the award, created to recognize those...

IT'S A RED, WHITE & BLUE CHIPS RALLY: DOW ZOOMS 173 AFTER BUSH UNVEILS HIS STIMULUS PLAN

Buyers jumped into stocks in a big way yesterday, bumping the Dow above 9,000 and handing techs their largest point gain in six months. President Bush's proposal of a $75...

RIAA AT WAR AGAIN

Hilary Rosen's in the mood for war. Her Recording Industry Association of America is going after the vast distributed network of alleged pirates who use the popular Fast Track software....

PRISON COS. GET HOT ; TERROR THREAT FUELING FIRMS' STOCKS

America's new wall of homeland security is creating a big demand for cells to hold suspects and illegal aliens who might be rounded up. Stocks of private companies that build...

11,000 MORE LAYOFFS ON WAY IN U.S.

Layoffs mounted yesterday as thousands of pink slips were doled out across businesses and across the nation. On Wall Street, the first wave of layoffs since the Sept. 11 tragedy...

'CHICAGO': A HOT OLD TIME

CHICAGO Shubert Theater, 225 W. 44th St., (212) 239-6200. SLICK, deft, raw and tempestuous, the brand-new cast in the brilliantly stripped-down version of John Kander and Fred Ebb's musical "Chicago"...

'BUFFY' BITES BACK ON UPN

'BUFFY the Vampire Slayer" came back to life this week - and took off running. The teen-cult hit jumped from the WB to UPN on Tuesday night with a two-hour...

STARR REPORT

FNC inks Smith to new multi-year deal Fox News Channel has inked anchor Shepard Smith to a new long-term deal. "The Fox Report with Shepard Smith" is the highest-rated newscast...

WE GAVE 'SURVIVORS' JUST ENOUGH FOOD TO STAY ALIVE, SAYS HOST

'SURVIVOR" host Jeff Probst says the "Survivor 3" contestants were "better fed" than their predecessors - but adds that CBS was sensitive to the subject of food since "S3" takes...

ALL-NEWS CHANNEL BIN LADEN LOVES

WHAT I WATCH OSAMA BIN LADEN Leader, Al Qaeda terrorist network and fugitive "People say I don't watch TV - but what do they know? It's obvious that I watch...

'RUDE' BUT ALL RUDNICK

YEARS ago, there were nightclubs or revues that featured topical skits - and the more harmless ones went onto TV. Paul Rudnick is trying to keep the flame alive. He...

HALF A 'LIFE' BETTER THAN MOST

CHARLES Nelson Reilly has half a neat notion in his theatrical memoir, "Save It for the Stage: The Life of Reilly." He tells of the gestation of a performer in...

A 'CLOUD' PLEASER

CLOUDSTREETBAM Harvey Theater through Oct. 7. Call BAM Ticket Services at (718) 636 4100 or Ticketmaster (212) 307 4100 Acontinent bursts into view in "Cloudstreet," the five-hour Australian theater experience...

YES, HE TAKES REQUESTS

NEW Yorkers seeking comic relief are squeezing in to Arlene Grocery for the "The Adam Roth Challenge," a zany act that's part rock concert, part game show, part stand-up comedy...

MUSICIANS VIE FOR NEW PRIZE

THE 10 finalists for the new Shortlist Prize for Artistic Achievement in Music were announced yesterday. Competing for a $10,000 award from Virgin Megastore are Ryan Adams, Air, Bilal, Nikka...

RETURN OF ROMANCE: LOOKS FROM MILAN RUNWAYS ARE SOFT, SWEET AND SEXY

NEXT season's biggest fashion trends? Milan's got them. Romance ruled the runways at Italy's fashion week, which went on as planned, even if attendance was off. There were peasant blouses,...

ADVERSITY BRINGS BUSH LEGITIMACY

REMEMBER how they laughed at Dubya for saying he'd looked into Vladimir Putin's soul and decided Russia's leader could be trusted? Doesn't seem so silly now that Putin is backing...

COLUMBIA'S NEW PREXY

Columbia University has a new president - Lee Bollinger, a constitutional scholar who earlier this year was passed over in a bid to become Harvard University's president. Bollinger, 54, said...

GREEN'S TOUGH TO LIKE

BOY, do these guys hate Mark Green. Democratic moderates like Peter Vallone, Ed Koch and Floyd Flake are jumping on board Freddy Ferrer's bandwagon - the same Ferrer, mind you,...

DEAL LETS 'KIDNAP' BIZMAN DODGE JAIL

Bobby Kumar - the GOP-connected Long Island businessman who faked his kidnapping in July - has copped a plea that keeps him out of jail and erases his criminal record...

POST MEMENTOS WILL HELP HEROES' FAMILIES

Here's a great way to enjoy the New York Post and support the Twin Towers Fund at the same time. New York's favorite newspaper has created the "Stand Tall" series...

DIAMOND DEALER BUSTED IN $34 MILLION PONZI SCAM

A Midtown diamond dealer was indicted yesterday in Brooklyn federal court on charges that he ran a remarkable, multi-million dollar diamond-buying Ponzi scheme - bilking investors month after month until...

PA PASSENGERS GET JITTERS

Nerves were frayed and tempers were short at Manhattan's Port Authority Bus Terminal after yesterday's Greyhound tragedy. "To be honest, I knew something like this would happen sooner or later....

PUPPY SAVAGELY KILLED - BEAU BEAT HIM OVER BOWLING SNUB: COPS

A Long Island man - drunken and enraged because his girlfriend failed to show up for his bowling league - pummeled her tiny 4-month-old Chihuahua puppy to death with his...

CUNY VOWS CRACKDOWN ON ANTI-U.S. HATEFEST

CITY College's orgy of hate will not be ignored. City University trustees are horrified by a forum in which professors blamed America for the attack on the World Trade Center...

SEARCHES GIVE 'JOB SECURITY'

Fears of more terrorist strikes in New York have led to heightened security at many Midtown office buildings - but rather than feel inconvenienced, employees are enjoying some peace of...

RUSSIA JOINS CRUSADE - WILL LET U.S. USE BASE NEAR AFGHANISTAN

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration has forged a history-making partnership with old Cold War adversary Russia, in which the two powers will be working together on the upcoming military assault...

FRIGHT'S AWAY FROM GREAT WHITE WAY

AFTER three endless weeks of being displaced, disconnected and disgusted, Eloise Heppard had had enough. Terrorists had damaged her way of life, not to mention her peace of mind. Heppard...

A 'MONEY TRAIL' TO MAKE US ALL PROUD

LET'S not talk about the "money trail" that leads to the desert caves where rats live. There's another "money trail," one that should make the entire city proud. It stretches...

UPSTATE 'SOAP' CULT FINED FOR CHILD LABOR

ALBANY - The state yesterday fined the controversial Twelve Tribes cult $2,000 for illegally using underage children as workers in their factories. The fines come in the wake of a...

JURORS SEE PHOTOS OF BRIDE SLAY

There won't be a wedding album for Manhattan travel agent Gladys Ricart. Instead, there are photographs in evidence, studied by jurors yesterday in a Bergen County, N.J., courtroom - pictures...

JACKO IMPERSONATOR CAN'T GET TO 1ST BASE

A man claiming to be pop legend Michael Jackson brought a phony camera crew to Yankee Stadium last night, but the song and dance act struck out with cops, who...

ON A STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN - FRIENDS REMEMBER ROCKIN' FIRE HERO

Firefighter Richard Kelly got a rock-'n'-roll sendoff yesterday as a live band played more than a dozen of his favorite songs as family and friends remembered him as "someone who...

FBI TRAITOR: I RATTED OUT U.S. 'MOLE'

WASHINGTON - FBI spy Robert Hanssen confessed he was the first one to betray a Soviet double-agent who was executed, it was reported yesterday. Intelligence officials previously believed notorious CIA...

NEW TAX CUTS: BUSH PLEDGES $75B TO BOOST ECONOMY

President Bush came to Wall Street yesterday and vowed to pump as much as $75 billion more into the economy, kick-starting it with tax relief so people have more cash...

ROCKER OZZY SINGS SELFLESS TUNE

The rock wild man who once bit the head off a live bat is now going to bat for the Twin Towers Fund. Ozzy Osbourne says he'll donate all proceeds...

POLL: MOST PARENTS LIKE CITY SCHOOLS

Most city parents give their kids' public schools a good grade at a time when hundreds of thousands of students flunk state standards, a Board of Education survey found. The...

KEY CRIME EVIDENCE IS BURIED

Crucial evidence against murderers, gangsters and drug smugglers was lost or destroyed in the Twin Towers attack - spurring fears that dozens of criminals might go free, The Post has...

REBUILDING FIGURE: $100B - HOW MUCH CITY NEEDS FROM FEDS

The required federal aid for rebuilding New York City could top $100 billion, a New York official estimated yesterday - but admitted it is too early to have any real...

GROUND ZERO VELVET ROPE - CITY KEEPS MOST CELEBS AWAY FROM DISASTER SITE

The city has made an unexpected plea to celebrities trying to visit the World Trade Center disaster scene: Keep out! "We've asked celebrities and people in the entertainment business to...

B'KLYN MUSLIM STUDENTS: WE'RE NOT THE ENEMY

Frightened and frustrated Muslim students said yesterday they want to remind the city that the terrorists who killed thousands of people in the World Trade Center are the enemy -...

PREZ LEARNS HOW MUCH CLASS KIDS HAVE

They were giggly and adorable first-graders, but they welcomed President Bush to New York yesterday with drawings of horrors no 6-year-old should ever dream of. "The Twin Towers got crashed....

BUS SLASH HORROR - GREYHOUND CRASH KILLS 6 AS RIDER SLITS DRIVER'S THROAT

A razor-wielding maniac slit a Greyhound driver's throat and forced the bus off the road in Tennessee yesterday - killing six, injuring dozens and prompting the coach line to suspend...

$20M BOOST FOR TOURISM

Gov. Pataki said yesterday he loves New York - to the tune of $20 million. His office said the grant will be used to promote the "I Love NY" campaign...

NEW VIOLENCE ROCKS MIDEAST - ISRAEL BLAZES BACK AFTER HAMAS ATTACK

Israel retaliated for a deadly Hamas attack on a tiny Gaza Strip settlement by bulldozing Palestinian farmland and using tanks to shell a string of police posts yesterday, killing six...

'MISSING' LIST DROPS 233

The number of people missing in the World Trade Center disaster decreased by more than 200 yesterday. City officials said the large drop - from 5,219 missing to 4,986 -...

FRENCH FIND 'CODEBOOK'

French police have found a codebook used by a terror cell linked to Osama bin Laden - and are combing through intelligence data in hopes of finding fresh evidence, it...

FEARFUL CITIZENS' NEW POLICY: BUYING LIFE INSURANCE

ALBANY - Insurance companies are already weighing more than $2 billion in claims from the World Trade Center attacks - but the industry expects to recoup some of the money...

'PAYMASTER' HELD, BUT FREED

Osama bin Laden's banker - who served as paymaster for the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center - was once under arrest in Tanzania in connection with the bombing...

GIULIANI SCUTTLES BID TO RUN FOR 3RD TERM

Facing a roadblock in Albany, Mayor Giuliani pulled the plug yesterday on his improbable candidacy for a third term, on the Conservative Party line. The mayor also appeared resigned to...

MARK DIDN'T HAVE MUCH-NEEDED SPARK

ANALYSIS Because Mark Green finished second in last month's primary, many observers expected him to come out swinging against Freddy Ferrer. Instead, Green offered a feather-duster fighting style last night...

BRAVE NEW TV

THE world is new since Sept. 11, as old alliances show signs of fracture and new alliances form. Some of us are startled to find that among the true voices...

GREEN RAPS FERRER FOR HIS TALE OF 'TWO CITIES'

Mark Green blasted Democratic rival Fernando Ferrer last night for running a campaign that divided New York into two cities - only to jettison the tactic after the World Trade...

TWO EVILS 'INTERTWINED' - BIZARRE MARRIAGES LINK OSAMA TO TALIBAN

WASHINGTON - Although Taliban leaders are facing a massive U.S. military buildup along their borders and a likely assault, U.S. officials believe it's almost hopeless that Afghanistan's rulers will turn...

CHUCK WANTS $99 AIR FARES

WASHINGTON - Sen. Charles Schumer yesterday urged airlines to offer a week's worth of dirt-cheap fares to lure nervous fliers back into the skies. Schumer said if just one airline...

BIN LADEN'S MONEY MAN WAS HELD, THEN FREED

Osama bin Laden's banker - who served as paymaster for the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center - was once under arrest in Tanzania in connection with the bombing...

FRENCH COPS FIND TALIBAN 'CODEBOOK'

French police have found a codebook used by a terror cell linked to Osama bin Laden - and are combing through reams of intelligence data in hopes of discovering fresh...

RUDY SCUTTLES BID FOR THIRD TERM

Facing a roadblock in Albany, Mayor Giuliani pulled the plug yesterday on his improbable candidacy for a third term on the Conservative Party line. The mayor also appeared resigned to...

CHALK UP A 'W' FOR MIKE AT BIZ MEET

Mike Bloomberg yesterday made a surprise appearance with America's best-known Republican -President Bush -at a Big Apple business leaders' meeting about the shaky economy. The GOP mayoral candidate first had...

GREEN FIRES BACK: KOCH'S BACKING WON'T HELP FREDDY

Mark Green yesterday downplayed Ed Koch's endorsement of rival Fernando Ferrer and brushed off criticism from the former mayor, saying that "being called arrogant and obnoxious by Ed Koch is...

'WEST WING' WIMPS OUT ON TERROR

The liberal Democrats of "The West Wing" took on terrorism last night - and did little but make pompous speeches. The highly anticipated episode, which aired on NBC, was the...

EL DUQUE PUSHED BACK TO SUNDAY

Which Orlando Hernandez will show up for the playoffs? The one mirroring Bob Gibson, or the one resembling Roberto Duran? Slated to make his final start of the regular season...

3 WALKS LEAVE BONDS AT 69 HRS: BUT HE BREAKS BABE'S BB MARK

Giants 11 Astros 8 HOUSTON - The free-falling Astros let Barry Bonds and the Giants walk all over them last night at Enron Field. When Bonds finally did get his...

ONE FOR THE AGED: PETTITTE READY TO PITCH IN

YANKEE NOTES Andy Pettitte announced himself fit to go yesterday afternoon. The Yankees' 29-year-old lefty will make his last regular-season start Saturday in Tampa. Pettitte threw a bullpen session that...

IT'S A NUMBERS GAME ; RANGERS MUST GET 82 GAMES FROM 88

The Ranger danger in acquiring Eric Lindros isn't so much having No. 88 front and center in the team's latest incarnation, it's that the entire program may now be skewed...

FLEURY: I FINALLY HAVE AN IDENTITY

Theo Fleury's triumph isn't that he'll be on the ice with the Rangers to start his 14th NHL season tomorrow night in Carolina, it's that he is finally comfortable with...

TACKLING DUMMIES ; EMBARRASSED JETS PLAN TO FIX FLAW VS. BILLS

For James Darling, the call was as jarring as Garrison Hearst busting through an arm tackle. The day after the Jets' 19-17 loss to the 49ers Monday night, the Jets'...

COTTRELL STILL HAS PLENTY OF BUFFALO PALS

JET NOTES Sunday's game against the Bills is certain to be an emotional one for Jets' defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell. He spent the last seven years in Buffalo as the...

JEFF PUTS RUN 'N' GUN INTO KNICKS

CHARLESTON, S.C. - Jeff Van Gundy's ire got raised during fast-break drills yesterday. That's no surprise since the Knicks coach has considered his club a sloppy transition club the past...

ISLES PROMOTE PECA TO CAPTAIN

There was no surprise yesterday when the Islanders named Michael Peca captain for the 2001-02 season. Acquired on draft day for blue-chip prospects Tim Connolly and Taylor Pyatt, Peca is...

WITHOUT LARRY, CAMBY MUST FILL LOW-POST VOID

KNICK NOTES CHARLESTON, S.C. - With Larry Johnson out of the playing picture, the Knicks don't have one guy on their roster who specializes in low-post scoring. Power forwards Clarence...

RED(SKIN) ALERT! FASSEL WARNS JINTS: RIVALS WON'T ROLL OVER

To prove his point, Jim Fassel yesterday played a little game of Redskins Roulette with his team. The purpose was to show that this Sunday's opponent, while 0-3, non-competitive and...

BELMONT GEARS FOR CUP

A smorgasbord of big-money preps for the Oct. 27 Breeders' Cup will be run at Belmont Park on Saturday, culminating with the Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup,...

TIKI'LL KNOW IF HE CAN GO BY SATURDAY

GIANT NOTES There will be no decision on Sunday regarding whether Tiki Barber plays against the Redskins. Jim Fassel said Barber, who is hobbled by a pulled left hamstring, will...

BRODEUR HITS DEVS FOR $40M

Even as they exploded their salary structure, the Devils still landed a bargain yesterday. By signing franchise goalie Martin Brodeur to a $40 million, five-year contract extension, the Devils kept...

MARTIN TAKES HIS GAME FULL CIRCLE

Kenyon Martin doesn't want any geometric debate on this, OK? This year, he claims he has done an "360" from last year in terms of pain, conditioning, confidence and whatever...

WHAT NEXT FOR METS? 5 KEY QUESTIONS WILL SHAPE '02 SQUAD

The Mets' main question this coming offseason could have been answered last year - but they didn't even try to sign Alex Rodriguez. No slight to shortstop Rey Ordonez, who's...

JOHNSON POWERS UNKNOWN METS

Mets 3 Pirates 0MET NOTES When they played "Meet the Mets" on the radio before last night's game, they meant it. The lineup didn't include Mike Piazza, Edgardo Alfonzo, Robin...

TRACHSEL TWO GOOD ... BUT TOO LATE

Mets 3Pirates 0 Only 6,627 fans showed up at Shea to watch last night's Mets-Pirates game - a 2-hour, 12-minute affair that featured two eliminated teams first-pitch swinging, trying to...

ONE FOR THE AGED: O'NEILL'S GAME-WINNER CLINCHES HOME FIELD

Yankees 2 White Sox 1 Paul O'Neill finally ran the bases last night, but it wasn't the way anybody could have imagined. The veteran outfielder, out since Sept. 7 because...

CALL THIS LINEUP 'THE WHO? CREW'

When they played "Meet the Mets" on the radio before last night's game, they meant it. The lineup didn't include Mike Piazza, Edgardo Alfonzo, Robin Ventura, Todd Zeile, Rey Ordonez...

DO-OR-DIE FOR DUQUE: HERNANDEZ GETS POSTSEASON TRIAL TONIGHT

Which Orlando Hernandez will show up for the playoffs? The one mirroring Bob Gibson, or the one resembling Roberto Duran? Slated to make his final start of the regular season...

PETTITTE READY TO PITCH IN

YANKEE NOTES The Yankee press notes have Saturday's scheduled starter as TBA (to be announced), but Andy Pettitte announced himself fit to go yesterday afternoon. The 29-year-old lefty will make...

ASTROS' FANS TAKE DIM VIEW OF BONDS

HOUSTON - The flash bulbs are missing. When Mark McGwire was on his great home run pace of 1998, every pitch offered a sea of flash bulbs as the fans...

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS: FLYING THE FLAG - WITH STYLE

No disrespect should be shown to the flag of the United States of America. The flag should never be displayed with the union down, except as a signal of dire...