October 1, 2002

BERTELSMANN TO MOVE ZOMBA TO RCA LABEL

As Bertelsmann continues to haggle with music mogul Clive Calder over how much it must pay to buy his Zomba independent record company, the German media giant plans to consolidate...

BEWARE! OCTOBER IS A VERY BAD MONTH FOR THE STOCK MARKET

WHEN the stock market rose 158 points last Wednesday, Bloomberg News and The Times said it was because General Electric had reaffirmed its profit target. Nonsense. And when the Dow...

ABC FALLOFF PUTS EISNER ON HOT SEAT

Disney's ABC Network is already striking out with its fall lineup - and that could mean trouble for CEO Michael Eisner's future. Angry investors and some board members are not...

DOWNTOWN'S 'IT' GIRL IS 55 WATER

THERE'S no guarantee any of them will make a deal, but at least three big companies not currently based Downtown are aggressively looking at space there. And no, we don't...

SLOW-MO MELTDOWN - DOW, S&P FINISH WORST QTR. SINCE '87 CRASH

The stock market's slow-motion crash continued yesterday, leaving the Dow Jones industrial average and the S&P 500 index with their worst quarterly performances since 1987. "A series of shocks -...

3RD IN TOUCH MAG SETS LAUNCH

When German media giant Bauer launches its latest U.S. effort - a women's entertainment magazine called In Touch Weekly in the last week of October - the new magazine will...

PROSECUTOR MAKES HABIT OF STEALING FEDS' THUNDER

The feisty Manhattan prosecutor who's launched a separate probe of the Tyco looting scandal has always been a thorn in the side of the feds. John Moscow, 52, the veteran...

SOLLY'S 'PIG' OUT - SPITZER EXPOSES GRUBMAN'S SMOKING GUN E-MAIL

Prosecutors came out swinging yesterday against greedy telecom bigwigs, but it's Citigroup that's taking the worst beating. New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's suit to recover $1.5 billion in IPO...

KARAN WINS 1ST ROUND WITH ARNAULT

Donna Karan had her first showdown with her billionaire boss Bernard Arnault - and won. At least this round. The flare-up came in a tug-of-war with the business brain that...

MUSIC COS. SETTLE FOR $143M

Attention music shoppers - you might get as much as a $20 refund for overpaying on your CDs. The world's music industry and attorneys general of 43 states yesterday announced...

KLEIN'S TRUTH SCENT SPARKS SUIT

Calvin Klein is selling its Truth perfume at Wal-Mart - but not without upsetting downmarket competitors. The trendy designer staple of department stores and pricey shops is ringing up hot...

STARR REPORT

The dead zone: 'SpongeBob' goes to HBO HBO's "Six Feet Under" will feature footage from "SpongeBob SquarePants" in an episode - going outside the Time Warner domain to feature the...

ON BOROUGHED TIME - STYLE, ROMANCE AND SOUL FOOD IN BED-STUY

THERE'S a neighborhood in Brooklyn where rows of brownstones, elaborate apartment buildings, churches and schools fill tree-lined streets dating to the 1890s. The styles are Victorian, Gothic, French, Italianate. Is...

GETTIN' IN 'LICKS'

* ROLLING STONES "Forty Licks" [] Virgin Records Whether they're playing the Garden, Giants Stadium or Roseland Ballroom, the Rolling Stones are the hottest property in town. With so many...

OLDIES AND GOODIES

AS the holiday season approaches, reissued albums and greatest-hits packages flood the music market. This week, two of the better releases include "Blondie: Greatest Hits" ([ 1/2] Chrysalis) and "The...

GETTING DOWN & DIRTY IN BECKETT'S 'HAPPY DAYS'

HAPPY DAYSAt the Cherry Lane Theatre, 38 Commerce St. between Seventh Avenue and Hudson Street. For tickets, call Telecharge, (212) 239-6200. -------- SAMUEL Beckett was actually a very funny writer....

FIERY ACTRESS AT FILM FEST

SHABANA Azmi is a busy woman. In the past 30 years, Azmi (one of India's most respected actresses) has appeared in 100 films (both commercial and art house), played numerous...

A DARING 'SYMPHONY'

THE JUNEBUG SYMPHONYAt the New Victory Theater, 209 W. 42nd St. Through Oct. 13. Call Telecharge, (212) 239-6200. ------- THE grandson of Charlie Chaplin and great-grandson of Eugene O'Neill has...

BETWEEN 'FRIENDS,' YOU PROBABLY CAN'T AFFORD IT

'FRIENDS" isn't TV's top-rated show - but it is the most expensive. A 30-second spot on NBC's warhorse comedy costs nearly $456,000 - vaulting it past "Survivor" as TV's most...

HARDLY 'PERFECT' ; ERIC ROBERTS PLAYS VAIN ANCHORMAN AND ANDY DICK MAKES HIS COMEBACK

"Less Than Perfect" [] Tonight at 9:30 p.m. on WABC/Ch. 7 -------- OKAY, let me get it out all at once. "Less Than Perfect," ABC's sit-no-com is not only less...

TRAVELER'S UPDATE

Go north Alaska comes closer to New York with the Oct. 28 inauguration of Alaska Airlines' daily nonstop flight from Newark to Seattle, where travelers can make easy connections to...

WHAT'S BASEBALL DOING ON ABC FAMILY CHANNEL?

IN one of last twists on an already weird baseball season, as many as a dozen Major League playoff games are going to appear - starting today - on the...

THE SPECTER OF THE WALL OF SOUND RESURFACES

'THE Beat Goes On, Volume 15" series visits "The Wall of Sound - From the Ronettes to the Ramones," paying tribute to legendary record producer Phil Spector. Local artists such...

IS RUDY THE NEW DR. PHIL?

OPRAH Winfrey yesterday turned her show over to Rudy Giuliani for a full-half-hour - something she says she'd never done before. After being interviewed for the first half hour, Oprah...

CASH AND CARRY: HERE'S THE POOP ON BABY'S BOTTOM LINE

THE best things in life may be free - but motherhood isn't one of them. Just ask Betsy Howie, who's figured out, down to the last Pamper, exactly how much...

WEIRD BUT TRUE

Pizza has been declared king at a California high school after students turned their noses up at healthier meals in favor of the fast-food favorite. Berkeley HS had invited local...

PRIME MINISTER SHARON TRIP TO RUSSIA

MOSCOW - Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon went to the Kremlin yesterday to lobby for Russian support of a U.S. move against Saddam Hussein, saying mere arms inspections in Iraq...

JAIL DELAYED FOR AILING BRIBE JUDGE

A former Brooklyn judge, due to be sentenced on bribe charges, got an extra month of freedom after his lawyer revealed the disgraced jurist is suffering from complications following an...

'SAFE' SEX ON LIRR - TRAIN TRIO: AT LEAST WE WEREN'T DRIVING

A lawyer for two of the three Long Islanders nabbed for allegedly having kinky three-way sex on a train after an all-night party said yesterday they should be praised for...

POTSHOTS FROM SADDAM: VIDEOS BARE HIS FUTILE BID TO HIT U.S. JETS

WASHINGTON - These dramatic and previously classified photos show U.S. warplanes under fire from Saddam Hussein. The videos - taken from cameras aboard the American planes and released yesterday by...

MISTRESS: MORE $UGAR, DADDY

It will cost a deadbeat sugar daddy a lot more than $100,000 to kiss and make up with his former mistress. Deborah Vandevelde has turned down a $100,000 offer to...

BU$BOY EYES GUILTY PLEA

A Brooklyn busboy with an alleged penchant for cleaning out the bank and brokerage accounts of the rich and famous is expected to plead guilty Thursday to scheming to fill...

WILL TORCH SPARK DEM MELTDOWN?

DON'T believe the insta-hype that says the Democratic Party may now be in a better position than it was before Bob Torricelli quit the New Jersey Senate race yesterday. Yes,...

QNS. 'NAZI' CASE WILL GO FORWARD

The case against a 78-year-old Queens man accused of being a guard at a Nazi camp where thousands of Jews were massacred will proceed, despite his alleged health problems. Defense...

KILLER STUFFS BODY IN BOX

A box containing the body of a man whose throat had been slashed was found in front of an apartment building in the High Bridge section of The Bronx early...

AIDES 'HIGH' ON PATIENTS' JAUNT: COPS

Four people who work with the mentally and physically disabled were arrested for smoking pot while escorting a dozen of their charges on a nature hike in a Long Island...

CLASS ACT: KLEIN ADDS INSTRUCTION

Responding to complaints from parents, Schools Chancellor Joel Klein yesterday announced a tentative deal with the teachers union to add more classroom instruction to the school day. Klein said the...

IVANA SAYS, 'OWE? NO!' - HER FIRM DRAGS FEET ON 205G JUDGMENT

Ivana Trump walked away from The Donald with a cool $25 million, but she's digging her heels in over a relatively paltry $205,000 bill from an Arizona clothing manufacturer. The...

MIDTOWN BANK HEIST NETS 2G

A neatly dressed bank robber made off with several thousand dollars yesterday when he passed a threatening note to a teller inside an HSBC branch in Manhattan, police said. The...

POORLY 'TRAINED' - JFK CRASH FIRM HAS BAD TRACK RECORD

The fatal accident on the new JFK AirTrain was the latest in a series of setbacks for Bombardier, the beleaguered Canadian company whose subway and Amtrak trains have also stalled...

RAPE-SLAY SUSPECT BLAMES VICTIM

A Manhattan man charged with raping a 15-year-old girl and then throwing her off a roof says he's not to blame for the teen's death - she is. The amazing...

HS DEFENDS HOOKY FIGURES

Computer problems are largely responsible for Washington Irving HS in Manhattan posting one of the worst attendance records in the city, angry staffers charged yesterday. About 40 percent of the...

KING OF THE BUNGLE - MAN STOLE LION STATUES FOR LAWN: PROSECUTORS

An ex-city construction supervisor said he swiped two 1920s sculptured lions from the front of a Brooklyn school because "they would look great on his lawn and his wife would...

RICH'S BEAU PEST - DENISE SAYS EX WANTED HANDS ON HER MONEY

Wealthy socialite Denise Rich has revealed details behind the bitter breakup of her jet-setting relationship with Montreal mogul Herbert Black, accusing him of tricking her to get his hands on...

JIGGLE JOINT IN COURT FOR SEX APPEAL

Strip Wars: Episode II debuts in Manhattan Supreme Court today with the "gentlemen's club" Tens arguing the city's new ordinance aimed at shutting down topless joints is unconstitutional. It wants...

A REAL 'TURNOFF' FOR DRIVERS

Mayor Bloomberg said yesterday the city will prohibit vehicles from turning off five pairs of east-west Midtown streets to ease bumper-to-bumper congestion. The designated streets are 36th and 37th, 45th...

HE NEVER LEVELED WITH N.J.

IN the end, Bob Torricelli's problem was one of hubris and arrogance. Which is why it was so ironic to hear him late yesterday blubbering on about his devotion to...

THE TORCH FLAMES OUT - FEEDING DEM CHAOS

DON'T believe the insta-hype that says the Democratic Party may now be in a better position than it was before Bob Torricelli quit the New Jersey Senate race yesterday. Yes,...

DEMS IN DESPERATE SEARCH

Democrats frantically scrambled to recruit a squeaky-clean replacement for Sen. Bob Torricelli last night, making a desperate plea to ex-Sen. Bill Bradley to help save the seat - and the...

HOUSING BIGS TOLD TO SNUFF CIG BREAKS

A smoking-mad Mayor Bloomberg immediately ordered Housing Authority bigs to get off their butts yesterday after reading a Post exposé about employees puffing away when they should be working. "The...

DISGRACED POL STILL BELIEVES HE'S A MARTYR

Sen. Bob Torricelli fought tears as he kissed his political career goodbye - but defiantly denied he'd done anything wrong, and instead painted himself as a martyr. While Torricelli claimed...

DEADLY WEDDING HORROR ON L.I.E.

A joyous family wedding on Long Island turned into a nightmare early yesterday when a car driven by an allegedly drunken guest crashed on the way home, killing his mom,...

THE POT THICKENS IN MET CASE

The lawyer for Mets groupie Jodi Turner said pitcher Grant Roberts used her as "his personal ATM" and that she's the "victim" in the pot saga. The brouhaha, now before...

HASIDIC DRIVER TO SURRENDER

A Hasidic driver who struck down a 3-year-old black girl in Crown Heights in August was expected to turn himself in to the Brooklyn DA today. Solomon Stern, 42, of...

COPS: S.I. MAN MADE WOMAN HIS SEX SLAVE

A Staten Island man forced a penniless mother to be his sex slave for two months, imprisoning her in a room the size of a jail cell and savagely beating...

LOVER'S SLIM SLAM - WEIGHT WATCHERS EXEC IN $5M SUIT

A former mistress of Weight Watchers Chairman Raymond Debbane is looking to make his wallet $5 million lighter. In papers filed in Manhattan Supreme Court, Adrienne Papp charges that Debbane...

ELVIS LIVES! HE'S THE KING OF THE CHARTS ALL OVER AGAIN

And the hits just keep on comin' for Elvis Presley, whose new record debuts tomorrow at No. 1 on the charts - even though he's been dead for 25 years....

SEWAGE LEAK KILLS WOMAN AT HOSP

A 41-year-old Rockland County hospital employee died mysteriously yesterday after being exposed to a yellow liquid that spilled from a broken pipe. Tests later showed the liquid was sewage and...

'MARCOS' IMPOSTOR COPS PLEA

A con man who posed as a fabulously wealthy son of late Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos has come clean about his double life, admitting he's a scammer who tried to...

KNICK IN HOME SCRAPE: THOMAS ASSAULTS WIFE: COPS

Knicks tough guy Kurt Thomas was charged yesterday with assaulting his wife and endangering one of his kids following an early morning bust-up at his Greenwich, Conn., home. The 6-foot-9-inch,...

LEGAL WAR LOOMS OVER HAND-OFF

WASHINGTON - Passing the "Torch" to another candidate could be a tricky task. New Jersey election law says a political party can replace a statewide nominee on the ballot if...

FLAMEOUT: 'TORCH' GOES OUT IN SHAME - TAINTED SENATOR QUITS JERSEY RACE AMID GIFT SCANDAL

Sen. Robert Torricelli threw the New Jersey Senate race into chaos yesterday, quitting after becoming convinced that he would lose and doom the Democrats' control of the Senate. Top state...

WEIGHT WATCHERS EXEC IN $5M SUIT

A former mistress of Weight Watchers Chairman Raymond Debbane is looking to make his wallet $5 million lighter. In papers filed in Manhattan Supreme Court, Adrienne Papp charges that Debbane...

HOUSEWORK IS OFTEN ALL BROOM AND GLOOM

Doing the dishes and vacuuming the carpet - or even just thinking about it - can sink you into depression. That's the word from the University of Glasgow in Scotland,...

ELVIS LIVES! HE'S KING OF THE CHARTS AGAIN

And the hits just keep on comin' for Elvis Presley, whose new record debuts tomorrow at No. 1 on the charts - even though he's been dead for 25 years....

NO 'FAVOR' LETTERS FOR GOV YOU CAN CHECK: AIDES

Gov. Pataki - unlike rival Carl McCall - has never written official letters in an attempt to help a relative get a job, Pataki's aides said after a review of...

CARL: MORE JOB NOTES LIKELY IN UNSEALED FILES

Carl McCall announced yesterday he will return his letters to the State Library this week for public review - and his spokesman said he "expects" there are more letters seeking...

MAYOR WARNS OF TAXING TIMES

Mayor Bloomberg gave his strongest indication yesterday that a tax hike next year is on the way. "Cutting, borrowing, taxing or some combination of any or all is not an...

COACH POTATOES

GIANTS REPORT CARDQUARTERBACKS: C- Two bad decisions led to two interceptions and gave the Cardinals seven points, which is not winning football for Kerry Collins (19 of 36, 199).RUNNING BACKS:...

'D' IS FOR DISMAL

JETS REPORT CARD QUARTERBACKS: C+ Chad Pennington (21-34, 281) didn't miss open receivers and made a couple of good throws to Laveranues Coles and Tory Woodbury to keep drives alive....

ECKSTEIN WON'T SELL SELF SHORT

David Eckstein isn't even close to your average major-leaguer. First, when he spoke one-on-one with a 5-foot-6 reporter, the interview was eye-to-eye. As he watched the Yankees work out at...

RIVERA TO START IN LEFT

How's this for an improbable story? Juan Rivera, the Yankees' starting left fielder in tonight's Game 1 of the ALDS, began the season in Triple-A. When called up, Rivera was...

PLAYOFF PINSTRIPES SUIT GIAMBI

You could tell as Jason Giambi walked off the field yesterday that he loves being a Yankee at this time of year. The slugger appeared to be walking on air....

PHILLIPS' PLAN: BUILD HOPE FOR FUTURE

Like the Met players he watched finish in last place this year, Steve Phillips survived what was once thought to be his own unsalvageable off-field controversy. The Met general manager...

CHERISHING THE EXPERIENCE - PLAYOFF KNOW-HOW A PLUS FOR YANKS VS. YOUTHFUL HALOS

Experience and talent don't always prevail, but that's the way to bet. Using that formula Las Vegas has installed the five-time AL East defending champion Yankees as almost a 2-1...

YANKS, ANGELS ALL EVEN

Let's put it this way: If the regular season is any indication, figure the Yankees and Angels will need all five ALDS games before someone advances. Why? The two teams...

FIRST-TIME ANGELS IN FOR A SURPRISE

IT is Disney vs. the Evil Empire. The Rally Monkey vs. baseball's King Kong. This is an argument between combatants as different as Orange (County) and (The Big) Apple. The...

BEST TEAM, WITH CAPITAL TEE

SUTTON COLDFIELD, England - The right team won the 34th Ryder Cup on Sunday at The Belfry because it was the best team. Europe winning golf's cherished gold chalice was...

WASHBURN ON THE SPOT - JARROD'S PSYCHED FOR OPENER

Against Angels Game 1 starter, Jarrod Washburn, the Yankees won't be guessing. His pitches are as predictable as a partisan politician. Lacking solid secondary options, Washburn almost exclusively throws fastballs....

HERM VOWS BIG SHAKEUP

JET NOTES Subbing Chad Pennington for Vinny Testaverde was the first move Herm Edwards made to right what Curtis Martin called "a sinking ship." But it won't be the last....

ROCKET READY TO FIRE UP YOUNG TEAMMATES

Back in 1986, when he was a phenom pitcher with the Red Sox, the postseason was a blur for Roger Clemens. Sixteen years later, The Rocket is savoring each moment...

JETER'S LEGEND OF FALL

COME every October, the Genius of Jeter shines through. There's good reason for that. All that matters in October is winning. The rest of the year the baseball world is...

MO: JOE CAN COUNT ON ME

His right shoulder smothered in heat, Mariano Rivera pronounced himself ready for whatever ALDS role Joe Torre has for him. Torre hopes to avoid using Rivera before the ninth inning,...

ALL-STAR SOUTHPAW WAS NEARLY A YANK

Handshakes were exchanged, a trade in principle completed pending ownership approval and for a few minutes in early November 1997, Jarrod Washburn was a Yankee. Had the baseball-detesting group at...

FURIOUS FASSEL: NO MORE GAMBLING

When an angry Jim Fassel addressed his Giants yesterday, still steamed over Big Blue's 21-7 loss in Arizona, he was so vexed his face matched his scarlet shirt. And when...

PLAYING CATCH-UP

HAVING run low on my stash of shampoo, conditioner and body-lotion containers glommed from hotels, I'm compelled to cut short my three-month vacation and pick up the NBA scent. Clearly,...

DEFENSE KEY AT NETS CAMP

The talk already centers on titles and rings, on aspirations of a championship run forged in defensive fire and propelled by a relentless up-tempo offense. Yeah, the Nets are back...

FICKLE FINGER (SPREE'S) MAY SEAL KNICKS' FATE

The Knicks haven't even taken the court, and already their season is turning into another disaster. Latrell Sprewell was diagnosed yesterday with a broken right pinkie, and will miss six...

HERM PULLS PLUG ON THE VINNY ERA

It was exactly 11:52 and 15 seconds in the morning inside Weeb Ewbank Hall yesterday when Herm Edwards made up his mind to end the Vinny Testaverde Era and begin...

WEAVER LEADS YANKS' PLAYOFF FIRST-TIMERS

ALDS NOTES Jeff Weaver gives the Yankees a weapon they didn't have last October. He's also the envy of his former Tiger teammates. The righty reliever/spot starter is one of...

A'S, TWINS CASHING IN - LOW-BUDGET SERIES A HIT

OAKLAND - For a cheap thrill, the A's and Twins open a divisional series today. The Billy Beanecounters, with a $46 million payroll, oppose the $40 million Minnymalists in a...

GIAMBI ON THE SPOT: YANK SLUGGERS JUDGED BY OCTOBER HEROICS

He wanted it and tonight he gets it. Jason Giambi said that coming to the Yankees was about more than the $120 million. It was about the big payday. October....

SOAR-IANO! AFTER MVP-TYPE SEASON, A NEW PLAYOFF CHALLENGE

A year ago he was a rookie hitting at the bottom of the Yankees' October order. Scouts knew of his lightning-quick hands and understood the power potential but when it...

SAY HALO & GOODBYE: YANKEES-ANGELS MATCHUPS

Tons of October experience on one side. A fundamentally sound club armed with the hottest closer in the game on the other. Welcome to the best-of-5 ALDS that pits the...

HOW TO: AMBUSH THE ANGELS: SCOUTS GIVE INSIDE SCOOP ON SCRAPPY WILD-CARD WINNERS

This is the Angels' first postseason since 1986. Thus, it is possible to view Anaheim as a "just-happy-to-be-here" novice unlikely to provide much resistance to the October-honed Yankees. But there...

HOW TO: BEAT THE BOMBERS - SCOUTS' FORMULA FOR ENDING YANKEES' AL REIGN OF TERROR

Will their rotation pitch to its pedigree? Will Mariano Rivera hold up? Will the homer-or-nothing offense of the regular season score enough? Will this group demonstrate the same grace under...