January 8, 2003

TAX CUT MAY HIT RETIREMENT SAVINGS, MUNI BONDS

President George W. Bush's plan to eliminate taxes on dividends will be a big boon for stock market investors - but it may discourage long-term retirement savings. While the dividend...

AMERICAN'S CEO BEGS WORKERS NOT TO GET SICK

The CEO of American Airlines has been reduced to begging employees not to take sick days. Plagued by a trend in which 1 in 20 employees calls in sick every...

AMEX BLASTS BIG BOARD'S PROPOSAL FOR OPTION GRANTS

The American Stock Exchange is dissing a New York Stock Exchange proposal to let shareholders approve any plan proposed by companies to issue stock options. While the Big Board introduced...

HOMECOMING FOR GROTTO - MERGER WITH COLLIERS REUNITES OLD BROWN HARRIS PARTNERS

INDUSTRY consolidations are continuing as the family-run J. Grotto & Associates merges into Colliers ABR as of February. "We feel like it's a homecoming," said firm founder and patriarch Joseph...

AS BUYOUT BID BOMBS DE LA RENTA CEO QUITS

It was a dead end that led Jeffry Aronsson to leave Oscar de la Renta. The former CEO departed the company abruptly after trying to buy the company from the...

DIVIDENDS ON WAY - ORACLE, CLEAR CHANNEL LIKE TAX EXEMPTION PLAN

Some companies say they're ready to start paying dividends if President Bush can succeed in making the checks exempt from taxes. Two companies that said yesterday they're interested in the...

IT'S A BLUE CHRISTMAS FOR TIFFANY

There weren't enough robin's-egg-blue boxes under the tree this year. Tiffany & Co. warned that its fourth-quarter earnings will miss expectations. The company said its sales for November and December...

AOL MEAT MARKET - TOP BANKERS OGLE UNDERWRITING CABLE $PINOFF

For months now,Wall Street's biggest heavyweights have been jockeying for a top spot in bringing out what could be one of the biggest initial public offerings ever in the media...

TINA BACK ON U.S. RADAR - BROWN TO WRITE FOR COLLEAGUE ROSHAN AND SALON.COM

TINA Brown, the former editor of Talk, the New Yorker and Vanity Fair, has already turned down Howell Raines and Adam Moss at the Sunday New York Times Magazine, and...

CORONER: MCCAW DROWNED IN HOT TUB AT HOME

An autopsy has ruled the hot-tub death of 49-year- old cell-phone billionaire Keith McCaw an accidental drowning - but his family calls it "a mystery." An autopsy on the youngest...

BONY TO BUY PERSHING UNIT

Credit Suisse First Boston is near a deal to sell its Pershing clearing unit to Bank of New York in a deal valued at roughly $2 billion, sources told The...

STARR REPORT

Kelly's got it covered for Mother's Day TV Guide contributing editor Diane Clehane has edited "I Love You, Mom!," scheduled for a Mother's Day release in May from Hyperion. The...

GOT THEIR... MO-JOE WORKIN'

'JOE Millionaire" and "The Bachelorette" are both both looking for love - but the hottest romance is with TV viewers. "Joe Millionaire" debuted on Fox this week to huge ratings...

FOOTBALL FILM PLAYS BY DIFFERENT RULES

THE SLAUGHTER RULE [ 1/2] Frontier football. Running time: 112 minutes. Rated R (language and sexual content.) At the Pioneer, 122 E. Third St., at Avenue A. ----- A football...

STEVE-O A SICKO

'JACKASS" star Steve-O is taking a "so what?" attitude toward a kid who was killed while allegedly imitating a stunt from the anything-goes show. Worse yet, Steve-O's comments came during...

ADD THIS HEARTY AMERICAN FARE TO YOUR DISH LIST

DISH [ 1/2] 165 ALLEN ST. (BETWEEN STANTON & RIVINGTON STREETS) (212) 253-8840 ------ THESE belt-tightening days, every neighborhood needs a place like Dish, where the overworked and underpaid can...

BY CLOVE, THAT'S A BETTER BURGER!

CLOVE [ 1/2] 24 E. 80TH ST., BETWEEN FIFTH & MADISON AVENUES (212) 249-6500 ----- WINTER comfort food alert: Clove makes the best hamburger in Manhattan. Never mind the $26...

TOP CHEF GRILLED & GRILLING

JUST last November, celebrity chef Conrad Gallagher told People magazine he was through with the restaurant business. "I'm a broken man, my career is over," confessed the 33-year-old Irish native,...

ROME ON THE ROAM

WISE-guy sports anchor Jim Rome is returning to ESPN. Rome, most recently at Fox Sports Net, has inked a deal to return to the Disney-owned cable network to host "Rome...

TOTALLY LOST IN 'QUEENS'

"Queens Supreme" [ ] Friday night at 10 on Ch. 2 -------- COURT will be soon be in session on "Queens Supreme," but this show's trial is likely to be...

A SAD WINTER'S TALE - 'VAMPIRES,' 2 OTHERS MAY BITE DUST SOON

WINTER chill is setting in on Broadway - and several shows are going to find themselves in a deep freeze. Top of the list: "Imaginary Friends," "Dance of the Vampires"...

NOW, LET US PURÉE - N.Y.'S BEST COOKING SCHOOLS PUT STUDENTS TO TASTE TEST

IS this the year you finally eighty-six the takeout menus and turn up the heat on your cooking skills? Whether you have yet to learn how to boil water or...

RUDY TV MOVIE ISN'T A LOVE LETTER

LOS ANGELES - Actor James Woods, an unabashed Rudy Giuliani admirer who is playing the former mayor in a TV movie, says the film won't hide Rudy's extra-marital adventures. "It's...

NO AVERAGE JOE - LADIES HATE CONTESTANTS, LOVE FAKE TV MILLIONAIRE

THEY can't stomach the show, the premise or the contestants - but they're tuning in next week because they can't get enough of that stud. We're talking, of course, about...

ABC PLEADS TO KEEP NEW SHOW

An ABC executive admitted yesterday the struggling network would be devastated if CBS succeeds in its legal bid to can ABC's "I'm a Celebrity," due to launch next month. CBS...

$CHOOL AX MAY WHACK 2,000 JOBS

Up to 2,000 workers may soon lose their jobs under Mayor Bloomberg's plan to restructure the school system, sources said yesterday. Under Bloomberg's plan, dubbed "Children First," the staffs of...

WEIRD BUT TRUE

The circus left town - but left its three lions behind. In the middle of the town square. Inside a six-foot square cage. Seems the circus went bankrupt and its...

NYPD DAILY BLOTTER

MANHATTAN * A thief made off with less than $1,000 from an Upper West Side bank yesterday after he passed a teller a note demanding money, police said. The robbery...

TEEN FACES 7 YEARS 'DOWNTIME' IN ID-THEFT SCAM

A Queens teen who allegedly used the Internet to steal identity information from more than 100 people became the first person charged under a new state law that could send...

GOLDEN PARACHUTE - BX. BRIBE POL KEEPS PENSION, GETS ONLY 3 MOS. JAIL

A powerful but crooked Bronx assemblywoman gets to keep her big-bucks pension and will serve only three months in jail after pleading guilty yesterday to taking $24,000 in bribes. News...

SILVER'S SALVO IN RENT-CONTROL WAR

ALBANY - Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver yesterday fired the first shots in this year's rent-control war, urging the Republican-led state Senate to quickly pass a revamped version of the law....

DEEP-SIX 'PIT' PLAN: KIN - THUMBS DOWN ON 'HOLE IN THE GROUND' MEMORIAL

A Ground Zero design proposal to preserve the empty pit where the Twin Towers once stood is getting a cool reception from a surprising quarter - the 9/11 families who...

FAMILIES HAIL NEW TAX PLAN

Jay and Kimberly Golub plan to boost the Big Apple's economy with the money they'll save as a result of President Bush's tax-cut package. Jay, a dentist, and Kimberly, an...

GEEZER-PLEASER PICKS A SIGN OF BROKEN 'HIP'

THIS year's Grammy nominees are even more bizarre than usual. The academy went in big for geezers and obscure up-and-comers - but passed over some of the hippest acts around....

GRAMMYS' MUSICAL WAR SURE TO BECOME ONE FOR THE 'AGES'

THIS year's Grammy Awards are shaping up as a battle between young and old. Nominations for the 45th annual awards show were handed down yesterday with rock 'n' roll vet...

CUOMO SAYS DEMS WIMPED OUT LAST FALL AGAINST BUSH

WASHINGTON - Former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo told fellow Democrats yesterday to be tougher on President Bush - on everything from Iraq to tax cuts - if they want...

LUCKY HE GOT UP EARLY: PETE ROLLE MIGHT HAVE BEEN SLEEPING IN THIS BED AS BROOKLYN BUILDING COLLAPSED

The brick facade of a four-story Brooklyn apartment building fell away yesterday - leaving startled residents with their bedrooms and living rooms exposed to the world. "I'm on the top...

NEW ROLES FOR HILL AND CHUCK

WASHINGTON - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton was promoted to a Senate leadership post yesterday - and Sen. Charles Schumer got a perk when a special new spot was created for...

TOP COP ALLEE SET TO RETIRE

New York City's head detective is set to step down next month, on the 40th anniversary of his first day on the force, sources told The Post yesterday. William Allee,...

ALBANY STEP UP FOR MIKE GAL PAL

ALBANY - Mayor Bloomberg's gal pal Diana Taylor got a promotion from Gov. Pataki yesterday, becoming the governor's top aide for two of the hottest issues facing the city and...

'CEO' MIKE'S BIZ-WOO PLAN

Mayor Bloomberg told a summit of New York top CEOs yesterday that the city needs to be more selective in wooing new companies. "If you don't need any of the...

HS 'COP' TERRIFIED - BRANDEIS' DEAN OF SECURITY WANTS OUT

A dean of safety at troubled Brandeis HS has resigned and requested a transfer because the Upper West Side school is too dangerous - for him. "I have been assaulted...

GEEZER APT. A HOOKER HOUSE: COPS

A 75-year-old Rockland County man has been charged with allowing prostitutes to turn tricks in the bedroom of his apartment in a senior-citizen complex - for which he was paid...

MORE CASH FOR TRASH

If you're a persistent litterbug, you're going to pay if you get caught. Mayor Bloomberg yesterday signed four amendments to laws already on the books to stiffen fines for littering,...

IN BIZARRO WORLD, THESE FOOLS WOULD ACTUALLY HAVE A CASE

WE HAVE dropped into a bizarre alternate universe sometimes referred to as Manhattan federal court. Within, civil-rights activists have teamed up with legal eagles in a fight for the constitutional...

MIKE IFFY ON W. PROPOSAL

President Bush's tax-cutting plan hasn't won over Mayor Bloomberg. Bloomberg yesterday declined to support the president's effort - saying he needed time to digest it. "I haven't seen the President's...

ON THE 'OFFENSIVE' - SICK-JOKE COP PLAYS DUMB & BLAMES RUDY IN LAWSUIT

A cop sacked along with two firefighters for appearing in blackface on a parade float that made a joke of a horrific racist crime tried to convince a judge yesterday...

SENATE OKS JOBLESS $$

WASHINGTON - A revved-up Republican-led Congress was sworn in yesterday, and lawmakers quickly got to work - approving an extension of unemployment benefits to help 2.8 million Americans. The agreement...

DOUBTFUL DASCHLE TAKES BACK HIS HAT

WASHINGTON - Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle yesterday got a sudden case of cold feet about challenging President Bush in 2004 - and said he won't run for president after...

TRIAL OPENS IN ASYLUM 'HOAX'

A woman given political asylum after claiming her genitals would be mutilated if she were sent back to Ghana - a tale that won her the support of Sen. Hillary...

ENVOY WAS BUMBER-SHOT TO DEATH

The deadly ricin has been used before in London - for political murder. On Sept. 7, 1978, a Bulgarian émigré journalist and playwright named Georgi Markov was attacked by the...

2ND TEEN DIES OF HEART FAILURE

A 16-year-old special education student on Staten Island with a heart ailment collapsed and died yesterday - the second kid to die in city public schools in consecutive days. The...

L.I. CYBERPERVS BUSTED: COPS

Two alleged cyberperverts have been charged with trying to lure a 13-year-old Wisconsin girl to Long Island. Suffolk County cops said Donald Sparling, 50, of Islip Terrace, met the teen...

FAT CAT OUTRAGE - KIDS WERE STARVED, BUT TABBY IS TUBBY

New Jersey go-go dancer Sherry Murphy took better care of her pet cat than the three young boys she allegedly starved and neglected. A police source said yesterday said that...

CASH BACK NOW - BUSH DEAL FOR INSTANT TAX CUTS; BUSH MAKES HIS PUSH FOR 'TURBOTAX' RELIEF TODAY

WASHINGTON - President Bush yesterday unveiled a bold, $674 billion tax-relief plan - and said he wants to turbocharge tax cuts by fast-tracking them because the struggling economy just can't...

GOTTI MAKES A 'MENTAL' CASE FOR HOME DETENTION

Peter Gotti's mental state has deteriorated in prison, according to his lawyer, who says the reputed Gambino boss should be let out on bail during his lengthy racketeering trial. "Peter...

YANK, MET PARKS PO$TPONED

Plans for new $800 million ballparks for the Yankees and Mets - unveiled in the final days of the Giuliani administration - are indefinitely on hold because of the city's...

TROUBLED HS COULD BE SHUT

A Brooklyn alternative high school for troubled students is on the chopping block because of failing test scores and woeful attendance, sources said. The Post reported earlier that the HS...

FEDS ZAP ALIEN-SMUGGLING RING

WASHINGTON - The feds say they've busted up an alien-smuggling ring in which at least 40 foreigners, including many from Pakistan, were sneaked into New York through Canada in trucks...

THE PENTAGON IS SENDING ITS TOP WAR STRATEGISTS TO THE PERSIAN GULF

WASHINGTON - The Pentagon is sending its top war strategists to the Persian Gulf in the latest sign that an invasion of Iraq could be weeks away, officials said yesterday....

FAMED VILLAGE SHOP BALDUCCI'S SHUTS

Balducci's landmark Greenwich Village site - where shoppers could browse for spicy red Zinfandel sorbet while listening to opera music - became the latest victim of hard times and abruptly...

BRITISH BAG POISON POSSE - EXTREMELY LETHAL TOXIN IS LINKED TO IRAQ, QAEDA

British cops have arrested six North African men after finding traces of ricin - a deadly poison linked to al Qaeda and Iraq - in a London apartment, officials said...

HOMICIDE GROUP: WE GOT IRAN $$

JERUSALEM - A little-known terrorist group yesterday claimed responsibility for Sunday's Tel Aviv bombings - and said it is financed by Iran. A caller to The Associated Press said his...

ABC: 'NO PLAN B' IN SHOW FLAP

The ABC chief in charge of launching the much-touted "I'm a Celebrity" series next month admitted yesterday the struggling network would be devastated if rival CBS is successful in its...

TOP WARRIORS HEAD TO MIDEAST

WASHINGTON - The Pentagon is sending its top war strategists to the Persian Gulf this week in the latest sign that an invasion of Iraq could be weeks away, officials...

BETTER THAN EXPECTED

FINAL GIANTS REPORT CARDQUARTERBACKS: B+ What a finish (13 TDs, 2 INTs in last six games) for Kerry Collins, who rose in stature and set team records (4,073 passing yards)....

HERE'S TICKET TO PICK 6 GLORY

For the second time in the New Year, and the third time in the last eight racing days, there's a Pick 6 carryover at the Big A. There's $35,997.60 sitting...

SILVER & BLACK WITH BIT OF GRAY

ALAMEDA, Calif. - Lincoln Kennedy smiles out of the corner of his mouth as the euphemisms litter his locker. He is asked about how "experienced" he is, how "battle-tested" so...

CHANEY: REFS KURT-ING US

INDIANAPOLIS - Usually, Knicks coach Don Chaney is not one to lobby on Kurt Thomas' behalf. If anything, Chaney has been critical of his starting center's penchant for getting technical...

SEHORN LIKELY ON WAY OUT DOOR

As general manager Ernie Accorsi thought back on this year's Giants, he said, "We have such a great locker room, this is a very likeable team." That doesn't mean everyone...

BLUE SKIES FOR GIANTS - AFTER PAINFUL LOSS, OPTIMISM REIGNS AS TEAM LOOKS AHEAD

As the Giants now so painfully know, nothing is a snap. Not in a league where expectations are dashed on a weekly basis and at a time in the NFL...

KASPAR'S PICKING HIS SPOTS

His fire and snarl have vanished. As a matter of fact, most of the intangibles that Ranger fans expected from Darius Kasparaitis have been missing. The once feared, hip-checking machine...

SETON HALL'S FEELING REAL TONEY

Andre Barrett and John Allen are Seton Hall's leading scorers, but the X-factor for tonight's Big East tilt against Syracuse and superstar freshman Carmelo Anthony - and perhaps for the...

O'KOREN HAS STAKE IN STREAK

NET NOTES Nets assistant coach Mike O'Koren is hoping twice as hard for a victory over the Kings tomorrow. Naturally, he wants to see J-Kidd, RJ and K-Mart equal the...

THE KID'S IN THE HALL - CARTER FINALLY ELECTED; MURRAY GETS CALL, TOO

The Kid achieved every baseball kid's lifelong dream yesterday when he was elected to the Hall of Fame. And wouldn't you know it? Gary Carter, old No. 8 for the...

JETS FIGHT SOME AGE-OLD BATTLES - WIN WOULD HELP COTTRELL GET LOOK

HIDDEN among the angst and ruin of the Jets' horrendous 2-5 start this season was the career of a good, proud, dedicated man crumbling before his disbelieving eyes. While trying...

STORM GOES FROM FRYING PAN TO FRIAR

PROVIDENCE - Two years ago when John Linehan outplayed Omar Cook and Providence stuck a 75-63 win on St. John's, we referred to the Providence Civic Center as The Nut...

GOOSE DESERVES BETTER FROM VOTERS

FELLOW voters, give yourselves a pat on the back for having the good sense to finally elect Gary Carter to the Hall of Fame yesterday, correcting a five-year mistake you've...

NETS EYEING BENCHMARK

Success has bred confidence, which has bred more success and taken them far away from their reputation of futility. The Nets have won 10 straight games, one shy of equaling...

ARTEST 'SORRY' ABOUT TANTRUM

KNICK NOTES INDIANAPOLIS - In the first meeting against the Knicks, Pacers swingman Ron Artest did all his damage on the court, busting out for 26 points in November and...

IT'S MILLER TIME FOR WORLD CUP

BODE Miller is the first American man in 20 years to lead the World Cup overall standings. The skier from Franconia, N.H., won his second straight World Cup giant slalom...

YANKS DENY RUMOR THAT HENSON'S QUITTING

A rumor percolated from Detroit yesterday that Yankee third-base prospect Drew Henson was attempting to terminate his contract in order to play football, but it appears to be untrue. According...

WADLEIGH SURVIVES MC'S BUZZER BASKET

OVERTIME: Wadleigh 98 - Man. Center 88 It's a scene most teams dream about: Player hits game-winning layup at the buzzer, player mobbed by teammates, court overrun with jubilant fans....

'SCATCH' GETS A BATCH - HAT TRICK BOOSTS ISLES PAST PENS

Islanders 6 - Penguins 3 They gave out Peter Laviolette bobblehead dolls and not hats last night at the Coliseum, but there was no chance anyone was going to throw...

NIEU'S WINNER HAS HABS SCREAMING

Devils 3 - Canadiens 2 When Joe Nieuwendyk starts scoring, things happen. Last night, his modest explosion set off a major one from the Canadiens. "We got robbed," Canadiens coach...

'MOST POWERFUL' HONOR FOR BOSS

George Steinbrenner considers himself closer to George Patton than Dwight Eisenhower - or Simon Legree. According to the Sporting News, Steinbrenner is simply The Boss of all bosses. The Yankees...

ANGRY ARTEST 'SORRY' ABOUT CAMERA TOSS

KNICK NOTES INDIANAPOLIS - In the first meeting against the Knicks, Pacers swingman Ron Artest did all his damage on the court, busting out for 26 points in November and...

DEVILS MAY BE LOOKING FOR CHANGE OF LUC

With his GM buddies tossing Lou Lamoriello a lifeline attached to an anchor, the phone lines are said to be heating up in Devildom. One of the more curious rumbles...

IT'S ALL ABOUT PECA - CAPTAIN'S COMEBACK KEYED ISLES' REVIVAL

So the Islanders had a chance to crack the top eight in the Eastern Conference with a win last night. Pretty impressive for a team that was mired in last...

MAYHEM TOO EARLY FOR RAMS

It's a scene most teams dream about: Player hits game-winning layup to beat buzzer; player mobbed by teammates; court overrun with jubilant fans. Manhattan Center got all of those things...