September 17, 2003

A NEW CROP OF TECH TITANS: THIRD WORLD COUNTRIES HIT JACKPOT WITH OUTSOURCING JOBS

Among the unusual suspects at the OutsourceWorld Conference in New York this week is a booth for the South American country of Trinidad and Tobago. "It's not really promoted itself...

SPITZER NAILS BOFA BROKER IN FUND SCAM

A Bank of America broker became the first person criminally charged in the New York attorney general's far-reaching investigation into illegal trading activity by mutual funds. Theodore Sihpol, 36, is...

YOU'VE GOT A NEW NAME: TIME WARNER TO UNLOAD 'AOL'

AOL Time Warner's board of directors is expected to approve dropping AOL from the company's name at a meeting Thursday. Once the board gives that approval, it will likely be...

WARNER MUSIC, BMG END EXCLUSIVE MERGER TALKS

As it prepares to head into a key board meeting, AOL Time Warner is unlikely to extend an exclusivity agreement it signed with Bertelsmann to talk about merging their music...

MOW HIM DOWN! POLS, BIG INVESTORS DEMAND GRASSO OUSTER

Calls for Dick Grasso's head swelled to a deafening roar yesterday, as California's treasurer and the chiefs of some of the nation's largest pension funds said it was time for...

N.Y.'S NEW LOOKERS ; WEINSTEIN, NEWHOUSE MAY HEAT UP MAG SALE

Miramax boss Harvey Weinstein and Conde Nast Chairman S.I. Newhouse are both showing surprising interest in acquiring New York magazine. Their sudden interest sets up a potential battle of the...

EXPERTS WOWED BY GM BLDG. BID

INVESTORS continue shaking their heads with amazement at Macklowe Properties' audacious $1.4 billion bid for the GM Building. "To win [he had] to put up a lot of money," said...

MORGAN STANLEY HIT ON FUND SALE PERKS

Regulators nailed Morgan Stanley for illegally pushing its own mutual funds on clients and rewarding brokers with $1 million in such perks as Britney Spears tickets and Lakers playoff seats....

BLAIR MAY HAVE TOUGH TIME GETTING PAID FOR BOOK

JAYSON BLAIR might have a harder time getting paid for his new book from New Millennium Entertainment than originally thought. Blair is said to be about one-third done with the...

NYSE DIRECTORS DISCUSS POSSIBLE REPLACEMENTS

Big Board directors are beginning to discuss the names of possible replacements for their embattled chairman, Dick Grasso. One name that has risen to the top of the list of...

MARVEL AND HARVEY MULL A JOINT BID FOR ARTISAN

Two of Hollywood's biggest superheroes are talking about joining forces to capture the "Blair Witch" studio, The Post has learned. Marvel Enterprises, the leading publisher of Spider-Man and other comic...

DUNN DEAL? EX-DAILY NEWS EDITOR IN TALKS TO RETURN

THERE'S more turmoil at Mort Zuckerman's embattled Daily News. In the latest twist, deposed Editor-in-Chief Martin Dunn, who clashed with Zuckerman in 1996 - at the end of Dunn's three-year...

BLAIR PUBLISHER BLAMES COURT LOSS ON BLACKOUT

MICHAEL Viner and New Millennium Entertainment claim that the Aug. 14 blackout across eight states in the Northeast was a key reason why the company lost a federal court case...

BIG BOARD DIRECTORS EYE MCDONOUGH AS SUCCESSOR

For NYSE directors now forced to consider a successor to Dick Grasso, the name at the top of the list is William McDonough, chairman of the Public Company Accounting Oversight...

TV STATIONS SET TO GUZZLE LIQUOR COMPANY AD $$

After weathering a high-profile backlash, hard-liquor companies are quietly pouring more money into television advertising. Spirit brands like Smirnoff and Bacardi are expected to drop $20 million on commercials this...

OFFICIAL NERD OF 'THE O.C.' FORMER 'GILMORE' GUY JUST RIDING A WAVE

SOMETIMES it's a fine line between where a character ends and the actor begins. This is true for Adam Brody, who plays Seth Cohen on Fox's latest drama "The O.C."...

ON THE SIDE ; CAPITALE TOP CHEF DOFFS TOQUE

FRANKLIN Becker has resigned as executive chef of Capitale. Stepping up to take his place at the gigantic Chinatown eatery is chef de cuisine, Fred Brightman. Becker couldn't be reached...

LEAVE IT TO LEVER; BUZZ SPOT MOSTLY WORTH HYPE

LEVER HOUSE ½ (two and one half stars) 390 PARK AVE. AT 53RD STREET (212) 888-2700 LEVER House is a good new modern-American restaurant where the winning dishes outnumber clinkers...

HBO PLANS PEEK BEHIND XXX BIZ

HBO plans peek behind XXX bizHBO has commissioned a new documentary series that will explore the ins and outs of the porn business. The six-episode series, "Pornicopia: Going Down in...

... AND THE WINNER SHOULD BE

WHO will win at this Sunday's Emmy Awards? How should I know? Do I look like Kreskin to you? All I know is, I have strong opinions on who should...

ARNOLD BOOSTS 'OPRAH,' 'SHARON' SO-SO AS NEW SEASON KICKS OFF

OprahARNOLD Schwarzenegger's sitdown with Oprah Winfrey Monday helped "Oprah" score its best season premiere in five years. "Oprah" notched an 8.0 overnight rating as Schwarzenegger - running for governor of...

'TABOO'-HOO; ROSIE'S PROMOS FAIL TO SELL HER SHOW

'IT'S going to win the Tony," Rosie O'Donnell bragged a few weeks ago about "Taboo," the new musical she's producing on Broadway. Well, that's a nice show of confidence, Rosie,...

ABC: 'THE SHOW WILL GO ON WITHOUT JOHN'

ABC has decided to go ahead with "8 Simple Rules" - despite the death of star John Ritter. ABC and show producer Buena Vista have decided that Ritter's "Rules" character,...

A FEW GOOD FEEDS FOR GOOD DEEDS

CALLING all foodies: September is filled with tantalizing food events, many of which benefit charities. Here are a few of the very tasteful ways to blow your food budget for...

STARR REPORT

"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" may be gone, but the show lives on - not just in syndicated repeats, but in a new soundtrack CD being released by Virgin Records. "Radio...

LABEL-BODIED CHEFS: MARIO & CO. OFFER NAME-BRAND GOODS FOR HOME COOKS

IF you can't have Molto Mario himself at your dinner table, at least you can have his sauce. Like so many other celebrity chefs, the ponytailed Batali of Babbo and...

BRIBE SUSPECT'S WINGS CLIPPED

A state judge yesterday ordered a city finance investigator charged with bribery to surrender his passport - because he may flee to his African chicken farm. "He goes often there,"...

FED COURT TO REVIEW CALIF. RECALL

WASHINGTON - A federal appeals court said yesterday it will review a lower court's controversial decision to postpone the California recall election that had been set for Oct. 7. The...

WEIRD BUT TRUE

A Florida wife winged a knife at her hubby, stabbing him in the right leg, when he refused to prepare for Hurricane Isabel, cops say. Joan Harris, 70, allegedly went...

STARS' DESIGNER LEADS COLUMBUS

A fashion designer to the stars was announced yesterday as the grand marshal of the 2003 Columbus day Parade. Leading the Oct. 13 march up Fifth Avenue will be world-renowned...

4 IN 5 NYERS RIP SCHOOLS: POLL

More than 80 percent of New Yorkers are dissatisfied with the quality of the Big Apple's public schools, a poll says. And 50 percent want to see public education protected...

KNIGHT OR BLIGHT? CLARK MAY DEEPEN DEMS' WOES

CAN a former general who's largely unknown to the public and has no political experience (as candidate or office-holder) sweep his way into the White House? Wesley Clark thinks so:...

FASHION KING IS COLUMBUS MARCH RULER

A fashion designer to the stars was announced yesterday as the grand marshal of the 2003 Columbus day Parade. Leading the Oct. 13 march up Fifth Avenue will be world-renowned...

CAROLINE KENNEDY MAKING THE GRADE AS SCHOOLS EXEC

LAST October, Schools Chancellor Joel Klein hired Caroline Kennedy to tap Park Avenue philanthropists and Wall Street titans for money to help the Big Apple's cash-starved schools. She signed on...

'SOPRANOS' MOBSTER SINGS

Mob soldier Anthony "Marshmallow" Mannarino 'fessed up yesterday to plotting with another crime family's street boss to obtain a secret grand jury list of gangster buddies about to get busted....

GROUND ZERO TOURISTS PAINT TOWN RED, WHITE AND BLUE

The number of tourists visiting the city last year edged up by less than 1 percent, to 35.3 million - and only because of domestic travelers drawn here after the...

NYPD DAILY BLOTTER

BROOKLYN * A 31-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder for shooting a man in Bedford-Stuyvesant, authorities said yesterday. Lajay Sumpter was arrested as he left Brooklyn Criminal Court...

BIAS & REBUILDING; GROUND ZERO AGENDAS OF THE TIMES AND NEWS

TODAY, the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. and the Port Authority will unveil Daniel Libeskind's revised master plan for Ground Zero. We'll get to see how well the architect, public agencies...

SPITZER 'CAMPAIGN SPEECH' RIPS GOV

State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer yesterday sounded like a candidate for governor, repeatedly rapping Gov. Pataki for failing to help New Yorkers on a wide range of issues. Although Spitzer...

YASSER'S 'TRUCE' SHOT DOWN

JERUSALEM - Yasser Arafat proposed a Mideast cease-fire yesterday - but Israel called it a "trick" and vowed to keep targeting terrorists until the Palestinian security does. Arafat's national security...

TIRE-SLASH SPREE - B'KLYN MYSTERY VANDALS ICE-PICK 21 CARS

Thugs quietly flattened scores of car tires while people slept early yesterday morning on a normally tranquil oceanside block in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn. Vandals hit 21 cars around Seacoast Towers...

ED. CZAR TAKES SCHOOLS TO TASK

The days of accepting "excuses" for academic failure in New York and elsewhere are over, President Bush's top education adviser said yesterday. Education Secretary Rod Paige staunchly defended the new...

LAWSUIT OVER ISRAEL BIRTH

A Brooklyn family whose baby was born in Jerusalem last October filed a federal lawsuit yesterday to force the State Department to declare the place of birth as Israel. The...

PANEL TO HEAR 'ARNIE' CASE

WASHINGTON - An 11-member federal appeals court said yesterday it will review a lower court's controversial decision to postpone the California recall election that had been set for Oct. 7....

PELOSI SETS SIGHTS ON WIFE'S WILL

Danny Pelosi's lawyers are set to challenge his late wife, Generosa Ammon's, will in court next week - on the grounds that the dying woman was subject to "undue influence"...

BONO AND BUSH TUSSLE OVER AID$

WASHINGTON - Rock star Bono went to the White House yesterday and got into a "good old row" - a quarrel - with President Bush over whether to provide $3...

FATAL 911 ERROR COSTS CITY $2.57M

ALBANY - New York City will have to pay a $2.57 million judgment for botching a 911 call, contributing to the death almost 10 years ago of a 20-year-old Co-Op...

SMOKING COPS HIT BARS WITH 524 TIX

Health inspectors have written 524 tickets for violations of the city's new smoking ban, officials said yesterday. Thirty bars and restaurants were ticketed on more than one occasion since the...

9/11 FAKER EARNS MAX

An angry judge threw the book at one of the most enterprising and twisted 9/11 charity scammers yesterday - a Queens father of 12 who invented a 13th child, "Wilfred,"...

SLAY VICTIM'S KIN LAY INTO KILLER

A convicted Queens murderer blasted by his victim's kin as "senseless" was sentenced to 25 years in prison yesterday for savagely beating and stabbing his girlfriend to death after a...

MORTGAGE PROTESTERS SLAM BANK

About 200 activists stormed the lobby of Wells Fargo Bank's New York headquarters yesterday to protest allegedly unfair mortgage-lending practices targeting minorities. The activists, members of the Association of Community...

CITY COUNCIL POLS IN CLASH OVER S.I. WAVE OF 'BIAS'

A group of Republican Staten Island politicians yesterday ripped a couple of City Council members and community activists for labeling the borough racist because of a "few bad apples." Councilmen...

PARENTS HIT TEACHERS ON SENIORITY

The hiring and assignment of teachers should be based on competence - not seniority - parents are telling Schools Chancellor Joel Klein as he and Mayor Bloomberg start bargaining today...

DA DOES A DO-RAG SLAY ID

The teen suspect in last year's shooting of a correction officer - that left an innocent bystander dead - was done in by a do-rag, a prosecutor said yesterday. The...

A MENTAL CASE - JAYSON TEAM EYES BIPOLAR DEFENSE

A psychiatrist says ex-NBA superstar Jayson Williams may be manic-depressive or suffer from another mental illness, a court hearing revealed yesterday. Defense lawyers are weighing whether to tell jurors in...

GEN. CLARK GOES TO WAR VS. FELLOW DEMS

WASHINGTON - Retired four-star Gen. Wesley Clark yesterday put out the word that he's jumping into the Democratic presidential race, where he could shake up the contest and emerge as...

CRACKDOWN AT HS SHOOT SCENE

In the wake of a gang-related shooting outside Franklin Lane HS, police yesterday beefed up security at the school, which straddles the Brooklyn-Queens line. About 20 cops and security agents...

'NET-WITS NAME KOBE'S ACCUSER

The official Web site of the Colorado state court administrator goofed big time yesterday - posting the name and address of Kobe Bryant's alleged rape victim. The information stayed on...

CITY'S 1ST W. NILE FATALITY

An 85-year-old Bronx woman is the first city resident to die this year after being diagnosed with West Nile virus, officials announced yesterday. Officials also announced that insecticides would be...

STORMING IN - DOWNGRADED ISABEL STILL FIERCE

It may not be the perfect storm, but Hurricane Isabel is still packing a wallop, officials said yesterday. Forecasters let out a Category 2 sigh of relief as the tropical...

THINGS LOOK PRETTY GOOD

IT'S official! After seeing the fruits of five days of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week spring/summer 2004 shows, it's clear that looking pretty will be back in fashion next season. This is...

SWEEP FOR DEM MACHINE

Brooklyn's Democratic leaders gave party boss Clarence Norman and his allies a sweeping victory yesterday, nominating all eight of their hand-picked choices for state Supreme Court justice during a convention...

MOM TO SUE CITY OVER COUNCILMAN SLAYING

The mother of slain City Councilman James Davis filed a $100 million notice of claim against the city yesterday, charging the NYPD's "gross negligence" is to blame for her son's...

$110M SCAM-BROKER 'SUICIDE'

A former brokerage-firm executive, headed to prison for up to 30 years after a jury convicted him of swindling clients out of $110 million, has vanished - leaving behind two...

LAX LAWYER NABBED IN QNS.

A lawyer suspended for neglecting clients was arrested in Queens criminal court yesterday after appearing on behalf of a Guyanese teen charged with smuggling cocaine into the country, authorities said....

DNA HELPS CONVICT FIEND IN DECADE-OLD TEEN RAPES

A serial rapist from Long Island has been convicted of sexually abusing two teenage girls in Queens after DNA evidence proved he was the attacker, authorities said yesterday. It took...

QNS. BODY MAY BE ABDUCTEE

A man who was found shot to death in a Queens portable toilet yesterday may be a person who was abducted at gunpoint from a Harlem street on Monday night,...

'YANKS' BEHIND ATTACKS

WASHINGTON - Six prisoners rounded up on suspicion of participating in attacks on U.S. troops in Iraq are claiming to be American citizens, but Pentagon officials think they may be...

MOM SEEKS $100M FROM CITY OVER DAVIS SLAY

The mother of slain City Councilman James Davis filed a $100 million notice of claim against the city yesterday, charging the NYPD's "gross negligence" is to blame for her son's...

CLEAN SWEEP FOR NORMAN

Brooklyn's Democratic leaders gave party boss Clarence Norman and his allies a sweeping victory yesterday, nominating all eight of their handpicked choices for state Supreme Court justice during a convention...

BOUDIN PAROLE FALLOUT

ALBANY - The head of the state Parole Board has given up his day-to-day oversight of the agency as a "top to bottom" review of parole procedures begins in the...

HIGH-SCHOOL GANG SHOOT CAUGHT ON CARNAGE VID

Stunning video footage obtained by The Post yesterday reveals the bloody aftermath of Monday's gang-related shooting outside a city high school - including these scenes of a frantic father cradling...

'OUTRAGED' MAYOR BLASTS JUDICIARY PICK PROCESS

Mayor Bloomberg said yesterday that confidence in the judiciary and in political parties is "crumbling" because of widespread reports of corruption in the judicial selection process. In some of his...

WOMAN KILLED IN HIT-RUN

Police are hunting for the hit-and-run truck driver who struck and killed an elderly woman pushing a shopping cart as she crossed Brighton Beach Avenue in Brooklyn yesterday. Police said...

COURT SLAP FOR COP-PROBE RULE

A judge has dealt a blow to the NYPD's 48-hour rule, which lets cops under investigation in shootings and other on-the-job incidents put off being questioned for two days. The...

STOLEN INDIAN CLUB TURNS UP ON EBAY

A valuable American Indian ceremonial club, swiped from a Kansas museum nine years ago, has been recovered from a Manhattan art gallery after an expert spotted it for sale on...

FATAL WRONG TURN - WILLIAMS' SISTER SHOT WHILE TAKING SHORTCUT

A tragic twist of fate - a wrong turn in a gang-riddled L.A. suburb - helped doom the beloved older sister of tennis aces Venus and Serena Williams, authorities and...

SACRED GROUND: NEW WTC PLAN KEEPS 'FOOTPRINTS' CLEAR

The World Trade Center plan to be unveiled today will have no construction in the "footprints" of the Twin Towers - handing family members a victory in an emotionally wrenching...

CLASSROOM EXTRA: POWER GRIDS - LET THERE BE LIGHT

You've been hearing a lot about power grids since the recent blackout. But do you know what they are and how they work? Today's lesson sheds light on how they...

DANNY TARGETS GENEROSA'S WILL

Danny Pelosi's lawyers are set to challenge his late wife Generosa Ammon's will in court next week - on the grounds that the dying woman was subject to "undue influence"...

POLS CLASH OVER S.I. 'BIAS' WAVE

A group of Republican Staten Island politicians yesterday ripped a couple of City Council members and community activists for labeling the borough racist because of a "few bad apples." Councilmen...

SPITZER RIPS PATAKI ADMIN FOR FAILURES

State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer yesterday sounded like a candidate for governor, repeatedly rapping Gov. Pataki for failing to help New Yorkers on a wide range of issues. Although Spitzer...

BX. WOMAN, 85, FIRST W. NILE DEATH OF '03

An 85-year-old Bronx woman is the first city resident in 2003 to die after being diagnosed with West Nile virus, the city announced yesterday. Officials also announced that insecticides would...

METS SUFFER AS MIKE SKIDS

Cubs 3Mets 2 CHICAGO - Sitting at his locker wearing nothing but a towel, Mike Piazza stared straight ahead, in an apparent daze. After another 0-for-4 night and another Mets...

TOUGH 'L' TO TAKE : PAUL SCHWARTZ' GIANTS REPORT CARD

QUARTERBACKSAll the heat at the start turned Kerry Collins (21 of 51, 265 yards, 3 TDs, 2 INTs) into a jittery, inaccurate mess, but he rebounded to start throwing darts....

WIN JUST A PLAY AWAY

GIANT NOTES A stirring comeback would have resulted in a 32-29 victory and propelled the Giants into Sunday's showdown in Washington. All the Giants had to do in the closing...

BIG BLUE BLUNDER REAL KICK IN HEAD ; BRYANT: 'I WAS TOLD TO SHADE IT LEFT'

Out of the myriad of moves and madness crammed into the Giants' incredible 35-32 overtime loss to the Cowboys, two plays and two decisions lingered long after Monday night's game...

KEEPING A WARY EYE ON ISABEL

HURRICANE Isabel will have an effect on us this week, one way or another. If it does hit the Carolinas tomorrow or Friday, we will see lots of wind and...

A LATVIAN TO LOOK FORWARD TO

"He certainly has the tools that you look for in a young player."MARK MESSIER (RIGHT) ON JURIS STALS BURLINGTON, Vt. - Three weeks ago, you probably could have named 32...

BLAKE'S MOVING UP IN ISLES' HIERARCHY

WHEELING, W.Va. - The ice here at the Civic Center is so soft and slow, it doesn't do the Islanders much justice, especially during the one-on-one drills conducted yesterday. But...

FANS DESERVE BETTER FROM FASSEL

THE ball had sailed through the uprights at 1:02 yesterday morning, lodging in the collective gizzard of Giants fans forced to blow off bedtimes to have their hearts crushed one...

SMALLISH KARIYA'S GOTTA COME UP BIG

His superstar brother Paul is the exception, but Steve Kariya can't escape the cruelest words of all to those who can't help being short: Size matters, especially when seeking a...

SHOCKING DROPS HUMBLE JEREMY

"I really feel like I let a lot of my teammates down and, most importantly, myself."JEREMY SHOCKEY Giant notes: P. 56 It took a disturbing game for Jeremy Shockey to...

TIME FOR JETS TO FORCE-FEED CURTIS

THE Jets are treading dangerous, deep waters. Since the moment the Giants Stadium clock struck :00 on their loss to the Dolphins Sunday, leaving the Jets in an 0-2 hole,...

BOMBERS WARY OF BIG STORM

YANKEE NOTES BALTIMORE -The hottest topic of conversation in the Yankees' clubhouse yesterday didn't revolve around baseball. Nobody was asking about the Red Sox and the AL East lead. Nor...

JOE'S PLAYOFF DILEMMA: ANDY OR MOOSE FOR GAME 1

BALTIMORE - Slip inside Joe Torre's mind for a minute, right where he will make the decision about who starts Game 1 of the upcoming ALDS. Now, look at Torre's...

D. ABRAHAM OUT 8 WEEKS

The Jets got more bad news yesterday when they learned that Donnie Abraham, their best cornerback, will be out for at least eight weeks with a fractured right shoulder. Abraham...

WHO'S ON 1ST? NOT MIKE: PIAZZA IN NO RUSH TO MAKE MOVE

CHICAGO - At 2 o'clock yesterday on a gorgeous September afternoon, many of the Mets participated in early batting practice. For any major leaguer, few things are better than taking...

SORIANO THRIVES IN SPOTLIGHT: GIAMBI: ALFONSO'S TALENT HAS NO LIMIT

BALTIMORE - Jason Giambi has been there. He's been the young stud. That's why his perspective on Alfonso Soriano is so valuable. Check out these comments: "His talent is really...

INSULT TO INJURY: NFL HAS TO FIX PLUMMER PROBLEM IN DENVER

The NFL has a tightrope to walk in determining what it will do to Broncos coach Mike Shanahan for lying about an in-game injury to quarterback Jake Plummer on Sunday....

SORIANO'S STAR ON THE RISE

BALTIMORE - Jason Giambi has been there. He's been the young stud. That's why his perspective on Alfonso Soriano is so valuable. "His talent is really limitless," Giambi said of...

ANOTHER STEP CLOSER ; WIN CUTS MAGIC NUMBER TO 7

Yankees 6Orioles 3 BALTIMORE - Hurricane Isabel scares the Yankees more than the Red Sox. That's because Isabel has a chance to invade the Yankees' universe tomorrow while the Red...

ANOTHER STEP CLOSER: YANKS & ROCKET CUT MAGIC NUMBER TO 7

Yankees 6 Orioles 3 BALTIMORE - Hurricane Isabel scares the Yankees more than the Red Sox do. That's because Isabel has a chance to invade the Yankees' universe tomorrow, while...

THE HOUSE THAT RUTH BUILT : COL. RUPPERT GOT EXACTLY WHAT HE WANTED WHEN HE ASKED FOR 'THE GREATEST BALLPARK IN THE WORLD'

BASEBALL isn't the only thing that has filled the place with people, and with magic, and with memories, through the years. Two Popes have preached here. So has Billy Graham....