March 29, 2004
COUNTRYWIDE EYE$ CENDANT MORTGAGE BUSINESS
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amCendant Corp., the New York-based real estate and travel services giant, is stepping up plans to sell its mortgage lending unit, Cendant Mortgage, in a deal worth more than $1...
MCI GOES FOR SECOND ROUND ON SPRINT DEAL WITH EU COURT
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amJust weeks after former WorldCom-MCI CEO Bernie Ebbers turned himself over to federal investigators, his now-bankrupt former company will go before a European Union court to argue that he should...
TALKIN' THE TALK - STERN SEEKS INVESTORS FOR PAY RADIO CHANNEL
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amRadio shock jock Howard Stern is in discussions with investors about starting his own radio business, The Post has learned. According to sources, Stern is trying to drum up backing...
'EARS' CONSPIRACY THEORY LOSES SENSE OF DIRECTION
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amEARS ON A BEATLE At the DR2 Theatre, 103 E. 15th St. Call Telecharge, (212) 239-6200. IMAGINE two FBI agents shadowing John Lennon through the tumultuous l970s. It's their experience...
STAR'S IN THE DARK ; TRUMP: 'I DON'T EVEN KNOW' WHO WINS
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amWHY is "The View" co-host Star Jones saying she already knows the winner of "The Apprentice"? "I don't even know who it is myself," the show's star, Donald Trump, told...
DO NOT 'CALL' LIST - MEADOW SOPRANO TAKES A TRIP RIGHT INTO THE GUTTER
March 29, 2004 | 5:00am"Call Me: The Rise and Fall of Heidi Fleiss" Tonight at 9 on USA Network minus * * * * (minus four stars) IT'S bad enough when no-talent, unemployed actresses...
HARD LESSONS OF WINDY CITY ; MIKE COULD LEARN FROM CHICAGO'S SCHOOL SHAKE-UP
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amCHICAGO - If you want to see whether Mayor Bloomberg's plan to hold back unprepared third-graders can work in the Big Apple, look to the Windy City - the first...
BACKERS PUSH MARIO FOR VEEP
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amWATCH out, John Edwards. Be careful, Dick Gephardt. And be wary, Bob Graham. Your hopes of becoming John Kerry's running mate may soon be challenged by a new entry. Former...
JURORS BEAT IT; JACKO PANELISTS WILL SWITCH COURTS
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amLOS ANGELES - The Jacko grand jurors won't stop 'til they get enough - privacy. The Santa Barbara panel set to begin hearing evidence on Michael Jackson's child-molestation case today...
'SCOOBY' IS THE TOP DOG
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amMoviegoers stepped into the dog Doo over the weekend, as they made "Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed" No. 1 at the box office. The latest adventures of the kooky, crime-solving...
DAPPER DRAFT DODGER GOTTI
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amThe Dapper Don dodged the draft. Newly released FBI memos reveal that John Gotti didn't go to Canada or claim conscientious-objector status. No, the future Gambino family boss simply ignored...
HERO FIRE TEEN TO THE RESCUE
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amA quick-thinking boy, his fast-moving father and four brave cops saved two families when flames swept their Staten Island house. Charles Sotiriou, 14, was sitting in his bedroom on 931...
IT'S ALL GREEK AT N.Y. PARADE
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amNew Yorkers hoping the city will snare the Olympic Games in 2012 got a preview yesterday as 30 Olympic champions from around the world marched in the Greek Independence Day...
SHOWDOWN AT THE 'OK' TYCO TRIAL
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amIt's D-Day at the $600 million Tyco embezzlement trial - thanks to one juror's five-second hand gesture, a jury expert said yesterday. "That hand signal has really limited [the judge's]...
PREGNANCY SHOCKER ; MISCARRIAGE, ABORTIONS FOR JFK JR. WIFE
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amTroubled beauty Carolyn Bessette got pregnant while dating JFK Jr. but lost the baby - and then cheated on her famed fiancé with hunky ex Michael Bergin just a week...
B'KLYNITES BASH NETS ARENA PLAN
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amHundreds of protesters were singing the blues in Brooklyn yesterday over a planned arena in Prospect Heights for the recently purchased New Jersey Nets. On a block of Pacific Street...
SCHOOLS BUDGET BATTLE
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amCity Council Speaker Gifford Miller set the stage for a budget battle with Mayor Bloomberg yesterday over how to end social promotion in schools. The council wants to spend $45.5...
GODZILLA & ELMO-SAN
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amIt's "Godzilla Meets the Muppets!" Hideki Matsui was all smiles yesterday as he was congratulated by a pair of Elmos from "Sesame Street" following the Yanks' exhibition game against the...
NYPD DAILY BLOTTER
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amTHE BRONX *** A 35-year-old man staggered into the 41st Precinct station house early yesterday after he was shot three times on a Longwood street, police said. The assailant approached...
3,000 U.N STAFFERS PROBED; OIL SCANDAL SPREADS
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amWASHINGTON - Investigators probing the United Nations' Iraq oil-for-food program are taking a close look at allegations the scandal-plagued initiative was filled with spies, terrorists and do-nothing bureaucrats earning exorbitant...
BIZ IS $MOKING; BARS 'THRIVING' WITH CIG BAN: CITY
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amBusiness is "thriving" a year after Mayor Bloomberg banned smoking in bars and restaurants, health officials said yesterday. City officials will formally present "The State of the Smoke-Free New York...
BUSINESS AS USUAL ; UCONN: FINAL FOUR IS JUST ANOTHER JOB
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amPHOENIX - Judging by the subdued celebration, you would have thought the UConn Huskies had just won the Top of the World Classic in Alaska and not the Phoenix Regional...
FIREFIGHTER HIT WITH GIRL-SEX RAP IN S.I.
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amA New York City firefighter was busted yesterday for committing sexual acts with an 11-year-old girl in his Staten Island home, law-enforcement sources said. Richard Vitale, 35, was arrested at...
BUSH SOUGHT BETTER PLAN TO FIGHT OSAMA: CONDI
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amWASHINGTON - National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice denied last night that President Bush was so obsessed with Iraq that he ignored the threat from al Qaeda. Speaking on CBS's "60...
NET LOSS: TERROR-WARY SERENA MAY SKIP OLYMPICS
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amSerena Williams says fear of terrorism may keep her from the Athens Olympic Games this summer, even though she would like to compete. The first U.S. athlete to admit to...
DAD SHOOTS ACTOR; SUSPECT IS 81, SAY QNS. COPS
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amAn elderly Queens man yesterday put three bullets into his actor son, just two weeks after the younger man came home from California to care for his ailing mother, police...
ABANDONED BABY FOUND DEAD ON CHURCH STEPS
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amA newborn boy was found dead - wrapped in a Mickey Mouse towel - on the steps of a church in the Rockland community of West Nyack. The blond-haired, blue-eyed...
'BIASED NYPD WANTS ME OUT'
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amA Manhattan transit cop who passed out last summer after a 12-hour shift underground says she was hit with a barrage of disciplinary charges after she complained about the incident....
THE CONCRETE-COFFIN CASE ; DOC'S NIGHTMARE; HAUNTED BY WOMAN'S DEATH IN QUACK'S OFFICE
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amDr. David Goldschmitt feels guilty. When quack Dean Faiello called him after allegedly botching a backroom surgery on investment banker Maria Cruz, Goldschmitt told him to immediately take his convulsing...
HAMAS 'PASSION' PLOY; LEADER: KID BOMBERS ARE LIKE JESUS
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amTHE new leader of the Hamas terror network offers this twisted rationale for sending children to their deaths as homicide bombers: He compares the baby bombers to Jesus Christ. The...
TRIBUTES OF STEEL FORGED IN TRAGEDY
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amIN HOUSTON, a piece of Twin Towers steel sits on a flag on a table in the foyer of a church. In Fountain Valley, Calif., a chunk of steel is...
LYING LAWYER HAS NO CLOSING ARGUMENT
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amA Manhattan lawyer who lied to his clients and ignored their cases - in some cases stringing them along for years - is no longer an attorney. "I am no...
MAN LONGS FOR AMMON HOME
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amWhile the Ammon house will forever be known as an infamous murder scene, a relative of one of the original owners would like to buy it for nostalgic reasons. Manhattanite...
MTA BEEFS UP $ECURITY
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amThe MTA has nearly doubled its police budget over the last three years in an effort to beef up security at its sprawling transportation network, guarding against a terror attack,...
EYE ON 'SPY' IN U.N. OIL SCANDAL
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amWASHINGTON - Investigators probing the United Nations' Iraq oil-for-food program are taking a close look at allegations the scandal-plagued initiative was filled with spies, terrorists and do-nothing bureaucrats earning exorbitant...
ST. JOHN'S DROPS BALL ON STUDENT HOUSING
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amThere's room on the St. John's basketball team, but the dorms at the Queens school are bursting, The Post has learned. St. John's University will likely boot some 350 upperclassmen...
MIKE AND AIDE GET NUMBERS CROSSED ON 911 SNAFU
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amMayor Bloomberg insisted yesterday that emergency calls during Friday's 911 outage were "normal," even as his communications czar reported a 12 percent drop. "It would appear that call volumes were...
1 IN 3 ON CITY COUNCIL ARE GOOD FOR 'NOTHING'
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amOne-third of the 51 members of the City Council haven't gotten a single bill passed in more than two years, a Post survey has found. When term limits ushered in...
Correction Date: 03/30/2004
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amCorrection: A graphic in yesterday's Post said 51 City Council members have not enacted a bill in more than two years. The correct number is 16. 1 IN 3 ON...
PHILLIPS ENJOYS HAVING IT MADE
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amORLANDO - The Yankees and their nearly $200 million payroll are in Japan, attracting the kind of attention normally regulated to rock stars. Meanwhile, halfway around the world the Mets...
CAN'T BLAME R.J. FOR NETS' WOES
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amThe Nets' defense has been one part sieve, one part Ghandi passive resistance, one part Swiss cheese, all parts bad. The two All-Stars, Jason Kidd and Kenyon Martin, have missed...
PACKER 'EMBARRASSED' BY UNWANTED ATTENTION
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amIt was 1 a.m., yesterday, and CBS's Billy Packer was back in his hotel room, having just returned from the Meadowlands after calling Oklahoma State's two-point win over St. Joe's....
YOU'D BETTER MAKE IT, ISIAH
March 29, 2004 | 5:00am"I don't want to think about not making [the playoffs]. We're gonna make it. We're gonna make it."THESE words were not spoken by Knicks chief Isiah Thomas, though they should...
TAKE THE YEN AND RUN ; JAPAN OPENER SELLS OUT U.S. FANS
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amWHERE is the outrage? Have we become so conditioned and resigned to MLB's money-mindedness that we no longer respond? It took until Saturday, listening to ESPN Radio-New York, before we...
PROUD BIG EAST IS STILL A BEAST
March 29, 2004 | 5:00am"People who said the Big East was down have never had to compete in the Big East."JIM CALHOUN PHOENIX - The proud old giant needed this one, because it's been...
TROUBLE LOOMS IF DERMARR STARTS
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amKNICK NOTES If DerMarr Johnson starts again at small forward at the Garden tonight vs. Portland, you can count on another loss for the Knicks in what it is a...
SUTTON'S PLACE ; OSU OUT TO GIVE COACH BIGGEST PRIZE
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amThere's a different focus with each team as it bumps and grinds and winds its way into the Final Four. Sometimes, it's the hotshot freshman, or the loyal senior, or...
BALL-HAWKED ; TECH DEFENSE SEALED KANSAS' FATE
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amST. LOUIS - The Yellow Jackets swarmed Wayne Simien, making him pass the ball out until Kansas effectively passed out. "They came with the doubles pretty quick, they did a...
ZITO STILL HOPES FOR THE BEST
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amIt wasn't the best of weeks for trainer Nick Zito. Zito gained a reputation as one of the nation's top Triple Crown trainers winning two Kentucky Derbys in four years,...
METS ADD GUTIERREZ TO MIDDLE
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amMET NOTES PORT ST. LUCIE - The Mets have their backup middle infielder, acquiring Cleveland's Ricky Gutierrez yesterday for a player to be named later. The Mets also get cash,...
RING IS THE THING - FLOYD'S GOAL: BRING CROWN TO SHEA
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amPORT ST. LUCIE - Cliff Floyd has been there before, you know. Back in 1997, he was on a Marlins team that won the World Series. Floyd was 24 years...
STIRLING DROPS SLUMPING YASHIN TO FOURTH LINE
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amThe old rule of thumb is that if it looks like chicken salad, smells like chicken salad and tastes like chicken salad, then it must be chicken salad. Using the...
DEVS SNAP ELITE HEX - END NINE-GAME DROUGHT AGAINST EAST PLAYOFF TEAMS
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amDevils 3 Isles 2 They needed their last chance, but the Devils finally beat an Eastern Conference playoff team in March. That is, if the Islanders ever actually get in....
WORLD STAGE SUITS MATSUI ; DRAMATIC HR TOPS OLD CLUB AS FANS GO WILD
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amYankees 6 Yomiuri 2 TOKYO - They jammed the Tokyo Dome to worship Hideki Matsui and the best player in Japanese baseball history didn't disappoint the festive gathering. In his...
MLB FINALIZING WORLD CUP DEAL
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amTOKYO - The Commissioner's Office and the Players' Association are moving closer to agreeing on a stricter, more comprehensive drug-testing policy. But not for the major leagues. It is fitting...
TECH THAT, JAYHAWKS ; JACK LIFTS JACKETS TO OT WIN
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amST. LOUIS REGION / OTGa. Tech 79Kansas 71 ST. LOUIS - J.R. Giddens hit a 3-pointer for Kansas with 16 seconds left after Georgia Tech's Jarrett Jack had missed a...
NOW, IT'S A-ROD TIME AGAIN
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amTOKYO - The question was perfectly understandable in this time and place. "What does it feel like to overshadow the Yankee debut of Alex Rodriguez?" a reporter asked Hideki Matsui....
PADRAIG'S RUN A REAL STUNNER
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amPONTE VEDRA BEACH - Padraig Harrington knew finishing his round with six consecutive 3s on his scorecard was going to be extremely beneficial to him. "Any time you finish with...
CONTRERAS STINT IMPRESSES JOE
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amYANKEE NOTES TOKYO - Lost in Hideki Matsui's memorable night at the Tokyo Dome was Jose Contreras' third straight strong outing. "I feel great physically and I feel good mentally....
IRABU NOT LOOKING BACK
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amTOKYO - Hideki Irabu wants no part of reliving his brief but turbulent Yankee career. After pitching six innings against the Devil Rays yesterday at Tokyo Dome, the Hanshin Tigers...
DUKE-ING IT OUT - DENG CARRIES DEVILS PAST X-MEN
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amATLANTA REGION Duke 66 Xavier 63 ATLANTA - Destiny and mystique did not send Duke into next weekend's Final Four. It was a few lucky whistles and a lot of...
DEVS' HOPES GET BOOST ; WIN ENDS SLUMP VS. EAST, IMPROVES DIVISION CHANCES
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amFor all their stumbling, first-round home-ice is suddenly possible. So is a sixth Atlantic Division title in eight years. The Devils yesterday required their last chance to finally beat an...
SCOTT & TIGER TWO OF A KIND
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amTPC NOTES PONTE VEDRA BEACH - Let the comparisons between Tiger Woods and Adam Scott, yesterday's Tournament Players Championship winner by dramatic 18th-hole knockout, begin in earnest. The 23-year-old Australian...
DENG AND DESTINY ; FORWARD MARCHES DUKE PAST X-MEN
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amATLANTA REGION Duke 66 Xavier 63 ATLANTA - Aura and Destiny, to paraphrase that great philosopher Curt Schilling, did not send Duke into the Final Four. It was the second-half...
LOFTON DROPPED TO NINTH
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amTOKYO - When Kenny Lofton makes his Yankees' debut tomorrow, one of history's premier leadoff hitters will be batting last. And if Bernie Williams were healthy, there is a good...
XAVIER CURSES 'PHANTOM' FOUL
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amATLANTA - Losing last night's Elite Eight game to Duke didn't tarnish the sterling season Xavier has had, and coach Thad Matta wasn't about to use the fact Anthony Myles...
COWBOYS STILL FEEL TRAGIC VOID
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amHE was the valedictorian of his high school class, a dream boy from Edmond, Okla., whose parents and sisters had gone to Oklahoma University. But Oklahoma had too many point...
OSBORNE ROCKED, SPOT IN DOUBT
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amYANKEE NOTES TOKYO - Two weeks ago, Donovan Osborne was the prohibitive favorite to be Joe Torre's fifth starter. Today, his roster spot should be in jeopardy. Osborne was rocked...
GREAT SCOTT! AUSSIE WINS TPC WITH CLUTCH PUTT
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amPONTE VEDRA BEACH - The kid had given virtually nothing back all day. One by one, the best players in the world took their best shots at his lead as...
GEMS AND JUNK ON THE DIAMOND
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amWith the help of scouts and major league executives, The Post's annual look at the best and worst of the majors: BEST ALL-AROUND PLAYERS 1. Alex Rodriguez, Yankees - Only...
WORST MAY BE OVER FOR METS
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amSO, what should you expect from the 2004 Mets? The long answer is this: Expect the Mets to be inspiring underdogs who hang around the playoff chase . . ....
MYSTERIES UP THE MIDDLE - CAN MATSUI PLAY HERE, OR WILL HIS TALENT GET LOST IN TRANSLATION?
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amHE is used to lingering in the shadows, playing his career on the fringe, away from the mad rush. He is comfortable conceding the spotlight's glare to others. That has...
MYSTERIES UP THE MIDDLE - WILL CHRONIC LEG INJURIES DERAIL REYES' FAST TRACK TO STARDOM?
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amWILL it be a dream career or a nightmare for Jose Reyes? Will he live up to his talent or will his career become a succession of pulled muscles along...
NL PREVIEW
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amEAST 1 PHILLIES Billy Wagner will have Mariano Rivera-like impact on team and on mental health of Larry Bowa. Mention the number 18 to Bowa and he will tell you...
AL PREVIEW
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amEAST 1 RED SOX Losing A-Rod to the Yanks should not diminish that Curt Schilling and Keith Foulke addressed their most pressing needs. They have many key players in their...
CHOICE CUTS WITH MIKE - PIAZZA TALKS STEROIDS, A-ROD, FIRST BASE & MORE
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amELEVEN years in the majors, 358 home runs and 10 All-Star appearances give Mike Piazza a lot of things.Most of all,they give him credibility. So when you ask Piazza the...
BOMBERS RETURNING TO THE A-PEX
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amWhile the most obnoxious Yankee fans are already making plans for a parade up Lower Broadway in late October; there is the matter of 162 regular-season games and three postseason...
PAIR EXCELLENCE! A-ROD & JETER DUO GREAT FOR YANKEES - AND BASEBALL, TOO
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amEVEN now, it seems as if the eyes are playing tricks, a pinstriped mirage. We've had a few weeks to ponder the concept, to get used to the idea, to...
COMPLIMENTS TO THE SHEFF - 'ROID CLOUD, BUM THUMB WON'T DERAIL GARY
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amYankee fans gained valuable insight into Gary Sheffield this spring when the right fielder injured his right thumb. He will not let anything get in the way of his performance....
VIBRANT TORRE IS YANKS' MOST VALUABLE PERSON
March 29, 2004 | 5:00amMariano Rivera has carved out a Hall of Fame career under his tutelage. Derek Jeter can start forwarding his mail to Cooperstown. Jorge Posada, Bernie Williams, Tino Martinez, Paul O'Neill...