July 19, 2003

VIVENDI HOLDERS SUE TO STOP BRONFMAN PAYOUT

French investors are dragging Edgar Bronfman Jr. into their widening war against golden parachutes at crippled Vivendi Universal. While a legal dispute escalates on two continents over the controversial $23.4...

STATES BACK SPITZER : LOCAL REGULATORS FIGHTING BAKER'S SECURITIES BILL

State securities regulators came out in force yesterday to join New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's battle against a bill that would limit their ability to fight securities fraud. All...

STOCKS SHATTER A LOSING STREAK

Wall Street is finding enough recovery strength to keep buying stocks. Investors continued to dump bonds yesterday to give stocks a rally, fueled by Microsoft's stronger sales and a bullish...

LAST TANGO FOR PENTHOUSE?

Penthouse owner Bob Guccione, Sr., is walking a financial tightrope once again as his debt-heavy porn empire teeters and his century-old mansion on East 54th Street appears to be up...

SEC LISTS STOCKS FOR INVESTOR REBATES

Line up and try to get some cash back. The SEC is releasing the names of bum stocks for which investors many now be eligible for restitution, because the shares...

'STARGATE' RUMOR WAS ONLY SCI FI

CONTRARY to rumors, "Stargate SG-1" is returning for an eighth season, TV Guide has confirmed. And not only will it return intact with star Richard Dean Anderson, it's spinning off...

ROCKERS AND ROLLERS

If your idea of extreme sports is a midday bike ride down Broadway, check out the real deal at the Ramps & Amps Invitational at Randalls Island today. They've all...

CHEAT SHEET

Lorena Bobbit no longer needs to pore over the classifieds. There's a job at Clinton Correctional Facility that's perfect for her.THROW AWAY THE KEY Murderer Mark Brooks, who killed a...

SPRING BREAK

The Barbelles are always on the look-out for a fresh face on the New York summer cocktail scene. We thought we'd seen it all as far as martini flavors go...

SUB-CULTURE UNDERWATER ADVENTURES FOR URBANITES

Think you've seen absolutely everything there is to see in New York? Well, take a deep breath - there's a whole side of the city that's visible only to those...

ROMANCING THE TOME:WRITERS MEET AND LET THE BODICES RIP

SORRY, guys - don't bother trying to find a men's room on the third floor of the New York Hilton. As of yesterday, the Midtown hotel's Grand Ballroom - and...

MIKE CREATES PENSION TENSION

Mayor Bloomberg yesterday charged that the City Council has been busting the budget by repeatedly seeking pension sweeteners for union members, but council officials said they have nothing to do...

WEIRD BUT TRUE

A Florida man charged with assault and armed robbery pleaded insanity at his trial in Panama City - and tried to convince jurors of his diminished state by mooning them...

NYPD DAILY BLOTTER

Bronx Police are searching for the bicycle-riding thug who shot a woman to death on a Claremont street last night Anasa Adamson, 22, of Teller Avenue was returning home from...

DOWN-HOME THANKS FROM MEMPHIS BELLE

She lives in an East Village apartment, but the Bravest at Engine Co. 33-Ladder Co. 9 are sure Beth Landau is an angel. "She's our little gift from God," said...

IRAQ BOY HAS GIANT TUMOR CUT OFF NECK

An 8-year-old Iraqi boy, brought from his poor village by a U.S. humanitarian group, was in stable condition in Seattle today after a team of volunteer doctors completed a marathon,...

SALSA QUEEN'S SEND-OFF VERY FESTIVE AFFAIR

Hundreds of adoring fans of salsa legend Celia Cruz sang, danced and paid farewells yesterday as the beloved singer's Miami-bound casket was carried from an East Side funeral home to...

DEMS $EEK DEAL ON MIKE'S ELECTION REFORM

State Democrats yesterday pledged not to use TV ads to urge the defeat of a nonpartisan election proposal - if Mayor Bloomberg agrees not to reach into his deep pockets,...

ISRAEL SET TO FREE SOME MILITANTS

JERUSALEM - Israel may spring dozens of Islamic militants - as demanded by terrorist groups who are respecting the Mideast truce - in the next big release of Palestinian prisoners,...

ACCUSER HAS TOWN BUZZING

The 19-year-old hotel worker who accused Kobe Bryant of raping her in a Colorado hotel room is an aspiring musician and former cheerleader who once dreamed of being on the...

BIG-BUCKS CHUCK SURPASSES PREZ WANNABES

WASHINGTON - Sen. Chuck Schumer now has a $16.5 million war chest that's bigger than any Democratic 2004 presidential contender - even though no well-known Republican wants to run against...

'SEX ASSAULT' SHOCKER

Some basketball watchers said yesterday they believe Kobe Bryant will play this season despite the charges against him. But a Los Angeles Lakers spokesman refused to speculate on whether Bryant...

BIOWEAPONS PROF FOUND DEAD: MYSTERY SWARMS OVER BRITISH 'DEEP THROAT'

A mild-mannered British bioweapons expert - said to be the "Deep Throat" of the Iraqi arms controversy - was found dead outside London yesterday in the latest mysterious twist in...

PORN KING AL'S CONVICTION X'D OUT

Notoriously foul-mouthed Al Goldstein is back on top in his battle with the law after a Brooklyn appeals court tossed a harassment conviction because a prosecutor took inappropriate pot shots...

'CATSING' CALL GOES OUT FOR SUBWAY KITTY

Gizmo, get an agent - or at least a post office box. Off-off-Broadway is calling for the black-and-white kitten who made headlines this week for spending 40 hours in a...

SUICIDE COP'S POISON PLOT

Detectives have pieced together the final tragic moments of an NYPD lieutenant and his longtime girlfriend who were found shot to death in their bed, The Post has learned. Armed...

'BRIBE JUDGE' SAYS DA OUT OF ORDER

Lawyers for embattled judge Gerald Garson say Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes has overstepped his legal authority. In papers filed yesterday in Brooklyn State Supreme Court, the attorneys asked a...

CIA UNVEILS MORE NUKE-PLAN PROOF ; PAPERS REVEAL SADDAM'S BOMB DREAM

WASHINGTON - A CIA-backed analysis last fall found "compelling evidence" that Saddam Hussein was trying to rebuild a uranium program to make nuclear weapons, according to documents released yesterday by...

BAKER NABBED IN SEX-SLAVE STING

A Kentucky baker accused of trying to recruit a 15-year-old girl to be his "sex slave" was nabbed in a sting operation after he allegedly fired off more than 20...

DEMOLITION BUS DRIVER HITS COP CAR THIS TIME

An out-of-whack bus driver - who swore he would never drive a bus again after a demolition derby through Queens - plowed an automobile into the rear of a police...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ; CENTRAL PARTY THEME; BASH TODAY FOR 150-YR.-OLD PARK

Central Park marks its 150th birthday with a tree-mendous party today - and everyone is invited to the blockbuster bash for New York's beloved back yard. The all-day, activity-packed celebration...

CRAZED FIRE ATTACK; FRENZIED BEAU SETS WOMAN, SELF ABLAZE IN QNS.

A jilted lover flew into a murderous rage yesterday, dousing his estranged girlfriend with gasoline and setting her on fire in Queens, police said. Ran Mi Bae, a 35-year-old mother,...

19 BLOODS NAILED IN DRUG BUST

Police busted 19 members of the notorious Bloods gang for selling crack and heroin in the Hunts Point section of The Bronx, cops said yesterday. The arrests came after a...

BIKE BULLIES GET BUSTED IN PARK

Cops busted six teen thugs in the theft of a bicycle from another teen in Central Park Thursday. The theft occurred at 8:45 p.m. Thursday at East 83rd Street and...

NATIVE SON'S DISGRACE HITS HOME

LOWER MERION TOWNSHIP, Pa. - "How could he be so stupid!" the woman screamed at the TV. Linda Jackson, the director of the Ardmore Avenue Community Center, where Kobe Bryant...

CHEATING KOBE ON DEFENSE ; ADMITS TRYST BUT DENIES ATTACK RAP

Prosecutors in Colorado yesterday slammed basketball superstar Kobe Bryant with sex-assault charges that could land him in prison for life - prompting the athlete with the squeaky clean image to...

SCHOOL VETERAN EXODUS; FACULTY RETIREMENTS SET TO TOP 5,000 AGAIN

A wave of veteran teachers and supervisors is saying goodbye to the city public school system - 4,388 have retired since January. Of that total, a flood of 3,259 educators...

MUSIC CO. THIEF AN 'INSIDER': COPS

Cops are looking into whether a break-in at the offices of TVT Records was an inside job or committed by a former employee, law enforcement sources said yesterday. Some electronic...

ENDORSEMENT $$ IN DANGER

Now that Kobe Bryant has been charged with sexual assault, executives at the corporations that pay him millions of dollars a year in endorsement fees are likely combing through their...

SUBWAY 2-SEATER SAYS IT'S BUM RAP

Next time you find yourself in a virtually empty subway car, pretend it's rush hour or it might cost you a $50 fine. Regular subway rider Stephen Lamarch figured there'd...

DEMOLITION BUS DRIVER 'HITS' COP CAR THIS TIME

An out-of-whack bus driver - who swore earlier this year he would never drive a bus again after a demolition derby through the streets of Queens - plowed a car...

NETTLES TRADE THE BEST EVER

And you thought the island of Manhattan came cheap. That was nothing compared to the heist the Yankees pulled on Nov. 27, 1972, giving John Ellis, Jerry Kenney, Charlie Spikes...

A WINNING PAIR ; GIAMBI TWO HRS, BENITEZ TWO SHUTOUT IP LIFT YANKS

Yankees 10Indians 4 It's only one night, but so far Armando Benitez's Yankee career couldn't be going any better. Benitez made his Bronx debut last night and earned rave reviews,...

SEASONS FULL OF CHANNEL SURFING ; YES, THEY'RE A LONG WAY FROM CH. 11

IT'S a habit that, starting in 1951, was 48 years in the making. It might last nearly as long in the breaking. Four seasons after the Yankees no longer can...

MUNSON'S FAMILY CARRIES ON ; WIFE HAPPY JETER'S NEW CAPTAIN

THIS is what being Yan kee Captain meant to Thurman Munson. After the Yankees won the World Championship in 1977, their first World Series victory in 15 years and the...

THE OKLAHOMA KIDS ; MANTLE SHOWED MURCER HOW TO BE A PROFESSIONAL

THE MICK saw himself in this 19-year-old rookie from Oklahoma. That is why he reached out to him on this spring day in 1965, putting his arm around Bobby Murcer....

DOC WORKED MAGIC FOR MEL

In Mel Stottlemyre's eight seasons as pitching coach for the Yankees, he has experienced some magical nights in Pinstripes. None compares to the wonder of May 14, 1996. "The one...

LYLE PUT SPARK IN BULLPEN

NASHUA, N.H. - From Fenway Park's visitors bullpen, Yankees pitcher Sparky Lyle watched a tumultuous season teeter on an electrifying at-bat. At the plate stood Carl Yastrzemski, whose 1967 Triple...

BOMBERS ALWAYS WERE HOT TO KAAT

THE home runs came from everywhere in 1961, not just from Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle. That season, the Yankees set a major-league record with six players pounding 20 or...

FLOYD'S ACHILLES SORE AGAIN

ATLANTA - Cliff Floyd is hurting again, and it's clearly hurting his game. The gimpy Met cleanup hitter committed two first-inning errors in the 11-4 loss to Atlanta last night....

STREAKIN' GIAMBI BELTS TWO

After putting two more homers on his stat line last night, Jason Giambi tied the Blue Jays' Carlos Delgado for the AL home run lead with 28. More impressively, Joe...

REHABBING NICK HAS BIG NIGHT

YANKEE NOTES Nick Johnson certainly didn't play like someone who was rehabbing from a broken right hand. The Yankees' injured first baseman/DH began his rehab assignment last night with Triple-A...

A WINNING PAIR ; BENITEZ & GIAMBI POWER YANKS

Yankees 10Indians 4 Armando Benitez has found a new home at 161st Street and River Avenue. The proof was in the cheers. Benitez's Yankee career is off to a smashing...

RIGHT PLACE, WRONG TIME ; WINFIELD'S TENURE ONLY MISSING A TITLE

AFTER Joe DiMaggio, the Yankees have never had a right-handed batter as good as Dave Winfield, or had a player other than Mickey Mantle who did so many things as...

IT WAS A REAL ZOO: IN BRONX, CHAOS REIGNED

IF you were around then, in that seminal summer of 1978, you had to laugh at what you were reading in the newspapers a few weeks ago. The daily exclamation...

ISLANDERS QUICKLY SEWING UP SKATERS

The Islanders continued signing players at rapid-fire pace yesterday, inking restricted free agents Arron Asham and Jason Wiemer to new deals just a day after GM Mike Milbury signed free...

JONNY WALKER GETS HIS SHOT

The MetroStars will officially move out of the Tim Howard era tonight when their new keeper, Jonny Walker, makes his first MLS start against the Burn in Dallas. Before Howard...

BAD ROUND HAS DUVAL ON VERGE OF BLOWUP

SANDWICH, England - David Duval, the British Open champion just two years ago, left Royal St. George's yesterday an angry man after finishing his two rounds at 19-over par. While...

POWER KNOWS IT'S MUST-WIN VS. MIA

With five games remaining in the season, the Power are finally hitting their stride. But tonight's opponent, the Washington Freedom, could set them back. In two previous meetings, the Freedom...

BIRDIE LIFTS ELS BACK INTO DEFENSIVE POSITION

BRITISH OPEN NOTEBOOK SANDWICH, England - Ernie Els, the defending British Open champion, played himself right back into contention yesterday after a horrible opening-round 78 Thursday looked like it might...

BOGEYS BUG TIGER ; FALLS TO 4 BACK DESPITE HOT START

SANDWICH, England - There was a time yesterday when it looked as if Tiger Woods were about to take over this 132nd British Open and make it his entering the...

'SPOON CAN STILL WING IT FOR LIBERTY

When you see Liberty guard Teresa Weatherspoon pushing around Becky Hammon in a wheelchair, you might be mistaken for who's doing the driving. And now that Hammon is out for...

SPOKEN FUR HOPES TO GO THE DISTANCE

With more than $10 million banked this year, trainer Bobby Frankel is on a pace to smash the single-season record for purse earnings of $17,842,358 set by D. Wayne Lukas...

LOVE LEADS THE WAY ; MAJOR MAGIC BACK FOR ONLY MAN UNDER PAR

SANDWICH, England - When Davis Love III captured the PGA Championship in 1997 at Winged Foot, separating himself from that ghastly group of best-players-never-to-win-a-major, the popular theory was that the...

SORIANO'S ANTICS ANNOYING

YANKEE NOTES Alfonso Soriano says he doesn't mean to show up an opposing pitcher when he hits a home run. Still, the Yankees continue to be concerned about his post-homer...

BETH'S COMMITTED TO BIG APPLE SPONSOR

Beth Daniel could have skipped the Sybase Big Apple Classic this week to prepare for next week's Evian Masters in France, as many of the LPGA's top players did. But...

PERRY CONTINUES TO SURPRISE AS HE LEARNS LINKS

SANDWICH, England - Kenny Perry didn't necessarily come here expecting to win the British Open, though that's a notion that might sound a bit odd considering that he's won three...

ALMONTE AT HOME IN APPLE

MET NOTES ATLANTA - From the age of six, Edwin Almonte lived near the intersection of Delancey and Orchard Streets on the Lower East Side - and apparently, he grew...

CHANEY STILL LIKES VAN HORN

BOSTON - During training camp last October, Knicks coach Don Chaney privately wondered if the Nets would regret getting rid of Keith Van Horn. When the Nets fell in the...

ARMANDO:FRANCO NO MET FINK

Even wearing dark blue pinstripes and a Yankee cap, Armando Benitez can't yet escape his Met past. Before last night's game at the Stadium, a surprised Benitez addressed a published...

BYRON: 'I'VE TRIED TO CALL JASON'

BOSTON - Byron Scott said if he felt there was a real rift, he would fly to Lake Tahoe today to iron things out with Jason Kidd. Scott was in...

ARMANDO: FRANCO'S MY FRIEND

Even wearing dark-blue pinstripes and a Yankees cap, Armando Benitez is having some trouble escaping his past. Before making his first appearance as a Yankee last night at the Stadium,...

LIBS WEATHER STING ASSAULT BEHIND VICKIE

Liberty 56Sting 48 Last night's 56-48 win over Charlotte snapped a three-game Liberty losing streak, but with an increasing tone of physical play at the Garden floor, it could have...

FED-UP CEDENO: DEAL ME

ATLANTA - The Mets are likely done unloading their major players, which is bad news for the player who wants out the most: Roger Cedeno. Cedeno's agent, Peter Greenberg, told...

SEO AWFUL, METS WORSE IN LOSS

Braves 11Mets 4 ATLANTA - It's a given that the Mets won't hit much. But when they get nothing from their pitching staff and their defense, as they didn't last...

CAPTAIN CRUNCH: RED-HOT DEREK A HIT MACHINE

The way Derek Jeter sees it, it's pretty simple. How does he account for his last 30 days of scorching hitting? He just had spring training later than anybody else....

THE ABCS OF YANKEE HISTORY: TEAM'S BEEN NEARLY LETTER PERFECT

Twenty-six championships. Twenty-six letters in the alphabet. How better to follow the extraordinary Yankees century than to take a tour of their history from A-to-Z, from a manager named Alfred...

REGGIE AT CENTER OF AMAZING RACE

The Boston Massacre complete, Reggie Jackson sat next to Lou Piniella in the cramped Fenway Park clubhouse. The Yankees had survived trailing the Red Sox by 14 games and had...

BOMBERS BY THE NUMBERS

100 reasons they're best team ever It's always been a numbers game for the Yankees, the first team to put them on the backs of uniforms. From their 15 retired...