June 22, 2004

FIRST NOVEL DRAWS $2M

After a heated auction that also involved Miramax and an imprint of Simon & Schuster, Time Warner's Little, Brown unit won the rights to publish a debut novel by Elizabeth...

OXFORD INDUSTRIES BUTTONS UP $146M DEAL FOR BEN SHERMAN

Oxford Industries said yesterday that it agreed to buy British shirt maker Ben Sherman for $146 million in cash. Like other large apparel manufacturers, Oxford has been adding to its...

IMMUNITY PLOY LIKELY IF DICK SHIFTS COURT

CALL him Tricky Dick Grasso. What was the ex-chairman of the New York Stock Exchange really after last week when he asked that Eliot Spitzer's lawsuit against him be transferred...

VIVENDI'S MESSIER ARRESTED

Jean-Marie Messier, the French executive blamed for wrecking Vivendi Universal, was locked up by Paris police probing suspected stock manipulation at the entertainment conglomerate. Messier, whose lavish global lifestyle included...

LOEWS SALE NETS $1.46B

A team of buyout firms sealed a deal to snap up Loews Cineplex Entertainment for $1.46 billion. Canadian buyout firm Onex Corp., which owns Loews with Oaktree Capital Management, said...

$400M TRUMP CARD - SALE OF 40 WALL COULD SAVE DONALD'S CASINOS

Donald Trump hopes to make an elephantine profit on a classic downtown skyscraper he bought for peanuts nine years ago. Trump, who spent a token $1 million for 40 Wall...

SCHRAGER'S HARD ROCK DEAL HITS A HARD PLACE

Apparent infighting between Hard Rock Hotels and a financial partner may kill plans for the purchase of Ian Schrager's Paramount Hotel. The $125 million deal to buy the 610-room hotel...

PORCAO STEAKHOUSE LANDS HERE

IN the latest in a seemingly endless profusion of big restaurant deals, Rio de Janeiro-based Porcao Steakhouse is bringing its first New York outpost to 360 Park Ave. So. at...

PERELMAN'S PULL NET$ REVLON AID

Using his clout as a major Citigroup stockholder, financier Ron Perelman has gotten a $910 million bailout from the bank for his struggling Revlon cosmetics empire. News of the bailout...

PILGRIM'S $100M DEAL -FIRM SELLS OUT FOUNDERS TO SETTLE WITH REGULATORS

Even as mutual fund company Pilgrim Baxter & Associates coughed up $100 million to settle regulators' charges against it, the firm's founders remained in the legal crosshairs. The Securities and...

TIFFANY SUES EBAY OVER BOGUS BLING

Tiffany & Co., the jewelry giant, is ratcheting up its fight against imposters, attacking not only those who make the fakes but now the Internet auction house that gives the...

TOP ANALYST BECKER EXITS LEHMAN BROS.

Holly Becker, the princess analyst of Wall Street who was dragged into a two-year insider trading probe without ever being charged, has left her post at Lehman Bros. Becker, 37,...

HARD ROCK DEAL HITS A HARD PLACE

Apparent infighting between Hard Rock Hotels and a financial partner may kill plans for the purchase of Ian Schrager's Paramount Hotel. The $125 million deal to buy the 610-room hotel...

THE PAPER CAPER - TRIBUNE, AUDIT BUREAU EYED IN CIRCULATION SCANDAL

Fake circulation reports by Newsday and the Chicago Sun-Times have sparked questions about the entire newspaper industry and the Audit Bureau of Circulations, the group responsible for monitoring the numbers....

IT'S BOY MEETS URL - PARK SLOPE GEEK PENS NEXT 'AMERICAN PIE'

IT'S the rare computer-science major who ends up with a movie deal a year after get ting out of college - but Ned Vizzini's hardly your average geek. At 17,...

STROMAN, LANE GIVE A LEG UP FOR 'FROGS'

YOU can take "The Frogs" out of the water but you can still make a splash. At least Susan Stroman hopes so, now that she's moving the Stephen Sondheim-Burt Shevelove...

SPARK DUDS - WHEN STARS FLUNK CHEMISTRY

"A lot of these huge stars don't even meet each other until the first day on set, and if there's no attraction there, there's nothing that can be done." -Jean...

MOORE IS LESS - 'FAHRENHEIT 9/11' FAILS TO TURN UP THE HEAT ON BUSH; '9/11' MISSES ITS MARK

FAHRENHEIT 9/11 [** 1/2] (Two and one-half stars) Dude, where's my exposé? Running time: 116 minutes. Not rated (disturbing images). Tomorrow at the Lincoln Plaza and Loews Village VIII (additional...

A LITTLE 'NIP' NOT SO BAD AFTER ALL

"Nip/Tuck" [] (Three stars) Tonight at 10 on FX AFTER receiving physical assaults from people I once considered friends last year because of my stinko review of "Nip/Tuck," I forced...

PAT GETS 'REAL'

FORMER CBS/ Fox sportscaster Pat Summerall talks about his battle with alcoholism - and his special friendship with former on-air partner Tom Brookshier - on tonight's "Real Sports with Bryant...

'JEOPARDY!' CHAMP STILL WINNING

KEN Jennings won for the 14th consecutive night on "Jeopardy!" last night, extending his record-setting run. Jennings won $31,600 last night, bringing his total to a whopping $471,759. Jennings, who...

STARR REPORT

Regis is on the left The folks from the Tony Award-winning show "Avenue Q" brought Regis Philbin and Kelly Ripa puppets to yesterday's "Live with Regis & Kelly," which is...

TRUE 'BLUE' - '24/7' BEATS FICTION ... AND REALITY

"NYPD 24/7" [****] (Four stars) Tonight at 10 on Ch. 7 IF the last thing you want to see is another cop drama, have I got a show for you:...

COUNT TO TEEN - SUMMER'S HERE, SCHOOL'S OUT, YOUR KIDS ARE BORED. DON'T PANIC! DAVID LANDSEL PICKS THE FIVE TOP AMERICAN DESTINATIONS FOR TEENS - AND THEIR PARENTS; IT'S KID STUFF!

AS a kid, I always dreamed of a Florida vacation - somewhere fun, like Orlando. Well, the closest I got to Disney World was the Maingate exit on the I-4...

PARADISE FOUND - COULD ATLANTIS BE THE ULTIMATE TEEN VACATION? SIXTEEN-YEAR-OLD BOBBY GUZMAN DRAGS HIS MOTHER SANDRA ALONG TO FIND OUT

BOBBY SAID: THE biggest rush of the weekend was taking the Leap of Faith, a 60-foot, nearly vertical drop that plunged me into an acryllic tunnel in a shark-infested lagoon,...

Correction Date: 06/25/2004

Correction: A story in Tuesday's Post about the city budget mischaracterized a comment made by City Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. Vallone said, "We've spent $10 million on some sort of...

'TERROR' LAWYER IN COURT

Opening arguments begin today in the trial of Lynne Stewart, the lawyer charged with helping radical blind sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman communicate with his followers from prison. After a lengthy jury...

WEIRD BUT TRUE

A Massachusetts businessman wants to open a Starbucks coffee shop at the home where infamous ax killer Lizzie Borden hacked her parents to death in 1892. Critics say Donald Woods'...

SPACE FOR RENT - 1ST COMMERCIAL MANNED ROCKET A SOARING SUCCESS

An exotic rocket plane soared to the edge of space yesterday, becoming the first privately financed manned space flight. SpaceShipOne, fueled by a mixture of rubber and laughing gas, took...

POL: SUV BLIND SPOTS KILL KIDS

Tragic accidents, like the one that took the life of a 2-year-old Long Island girl on Father's Day, occur more than once a week around the United States because many...

GUY GOES BYE-BYE FOR BRIBERY SCAM

A politician to the end, former Bronx state Sen. Guy Velella strode off to jail yesterday after making a courtroom statement in which he appeared to apologize without actually apologizing....

N.Y. FERRY TALE - 1ST PEEK AT TERMINAL SET FOR '05 DEBUT

A project to transform the Whitehall Ferry Terminal in lower Manhattan into a futuristic transit hub with a glass facade and rooftop viewing deck will be completed next year, following...

KOREANS DEFY HOSTAGE THREAT

WASHINGTON - Al Qaeda ghouls appeared ready to cut off the head of another hostage after the South Korean government rejected demands that it cancel plans to deploy troops to...

AMBUSH KILLS 4 MARINES IN RAMADI

WASHINGTON - Four U.S. Marines were killed yesterday in a brutal ambush in the volatile town of Ramadi as violence continued to escalate ahead of next week's transfer of sovereignty...

GOV OKS $1M FOR ANOREXIA CENTERS

ALBANY - The state will commit $1 million a year to help fund three new centers to provide treatment for people with eating disorders, under legislation signed into law yesterday...

RAIL BEAUTIES BACK - MISS SUBWAYS RETURNS

Miss Subways is making a comeback - thanks to the MTA and the New York Post. Posters featuring the smiling faces of gorgeous young women will again grace the inside...

ELECTION '04: PREZ ON THE RISE

WITH 132 days before the election, how is George W. Bush doing? If you clear away the partisan brush, which is almost impossible at this point, you'd have to say...

TEEN CUT DOWN - SLAIN DAYS BEFORE HS GRADUATION IN FIGHT OVER HOOPS

A college-bound Bronx teen who was looking forward to his graduation ceremony this Friday was murdered yesterday in Washington Heights - apparently in a dispute over a basketball game. The...

RAPE HELL - HOFSTRA CO-ED'S KIDNAP NIGHTMARE; HOFSTRA STUDENT IN RAPE ORDEAL

A Hofstra University student was abducted at gunpoint near the campus, raped, sodomized and brutally beaten during an agonizing five-hour ordeal, police said yesterday. The 22-year-old victim was moving into...

DUBYA DOUBLE$ UP KERRY

WASHINGTON - President Bush has more than twice as much money in the bank as Sen. John Kerry, as the big-bucks presidential race moves closer to becoming the most expensive...

NADER PICKS A GREEN FOR VEEP

WASHINGTON - Independent 2004 presidential hopeful Ralph Nader yesterday tapped a high-profile Latino member of the Green Party as his running mate, boosting his hopes for the presidential Green endorsement...

SCHOOL HELPERS HIT THE JACKPOT - 1G BONUSES FOR ALL

Hundreds of parent coordinators in the city's school system hit the equivalent of the lottery last week - an extra $1,000 turned up in their paychecks. The $1,000 - minus...

1.5M SALES NEEDED TO BREAK EVEN

Bill Clinton needs to sell about a million and a half copies of "My Life" to make any money beyond his $12 million advance. The publisher, Knopf, has announced a...

AIRPORT BUS FARE MAY SOAR $2.50

The cheapest way to travel directly to New York's airports is set to get more expensive, with operators of the popular shuttle bus service pushing for a $2.50 fare hike....

BX. COP CAUGHT IN 'NET - SUICIDE-VIDEO SCANDAL

A veteran Bronx cop is learning the hard way how just one e- mail sent to the wrong person can destroy a career. The unfortunate cop apparently e- mailed a...

NYPD DAILY BLOTTER

QUEENS * A Transit Authority worker was arrested in Howard Beach for driving with a suspended license early yesterday morning, police said. Murvyn Jean-Pierre, 35, a subway signal maintainer, was...

COP-SHOT THIEF WAS 'CAREER' BAD GUY

A robbery suspect shot dead by a cop in a Manhattan subway tunnel was a career criminal with a long arrest record, police said yesterday. Juan Aponte Huerta had been...

CANNIBAL'S 'HELPFUL' IN WARD: LAWYER

He had a horrific childhood, and he's really "helpful" around the nuthouse, jurors were told in Day 6 of the sanity trial of the notorious "Butcher of Tompkins Square." Killer...

JAVITS FIX FLIES WITHOUT JETS: CITY

A long-awaited expansion of the Javits Convention Center could go forward without a controversial football stadium and exposition hall, Deputy Mayor Daniel Doctoroff told a panel of state lawmakers yesterday....

HAMPTONS DIARY

'INSIDE the Actors Studio" host James Lipton and his Corcoran Group broker wife, Kedakai, celebrated the 10th year of his Bravo show over the weekend with a buffet dinner on...

EMBATTLED CONN. GOV FINALLY CALLS IT QUITS

Connecticut Gov. John Rowland, plagued for months by charges that he accepted gifts and trips from contractors and state employees, finally threw in the towel yesterday. Rowland, flanked by his...

N.Y. JUDGE SEPARATES EGG SUITS

A black couple and a white couple involved in a sad switched-before-birth custody battle are going their separate ways again. Jury selection was set to begin yesterday for Robert and...

DIVORCE DAD ADMITS 'GARSON' GRAFT

A Brooklyn father of five admitted yesterday that he paid $10,000 to a businessman in hopes of getting embattled Judge Gerald Garson to rule in his favor in a divorce...

POLS GIVE SCHOOL REFORM AN F

The City Council is expected to pass a resolution officially opposing Mayor Bloomberg's stricter promotional policy for third-graders. The proposal is symbolic and cannot overturn City Hall's bid to end...

MIKE & GIFFIE ON BRINK OF BUDGET DEAL

Mayor Bloomberg and City Council Speaker Gifford Miller are on the verge of a $46.9 billion budget deal that will provide a $400 property-tax rebate to some homeowners and restore...

THE MOTHER OF ALL BOORS - PREGNANT LEASH GAL 'SHOWING'

Here's embattled Army MP Lynndie England, still sporting her signature pixie haircut and boyish looks - but now obviously pregnant. In recent months, the West Virginia reservist has been stationed...

GANG RAPIST FREED - JAILED ONLY 6 MOS.

Despite prosecutors' objections, a Brooklyn teen walked free yesterday after pleading guilty to taking part in the brutal gang rape of a deaf woman. Under a plea deal worked out...

2,000 NEW TEACHERS ARE 'SWITCH' HITS

The Bloomberg administration has hired 2,000 career-changers as new city teaching fellows - including a retired nuclear engineer and 11 doctors. Brooklyn native Bob Pitre has designed and helped run...

LESBIAN COP BUSTED FOR 'STALKING' EX

An NYPD officer has been suspended without pay after she was arrested for stalking her ex-girlfriend on Long Island, authorities said. Officer Suzanne Biscardi, 34, who is assigned to the...

'ALL MY FAULT' - MATCH BOY BLAMES SELF FOR SETTING FIRE

The 5-year-old boy who accidentally set the Manhattan fire that left 65 people homeless said, "It was all my fault" and feared his disabled grandfather might die in the blaze,...

L.I. FAMILY BUSTED AS PEOPLE-SMUGGLERS

The feds yesterday arrested a Long Island family accused of smuggling scores of illegal aliens who were forced to live in squalor in order to pay for the help they...

BEN BAGS 356G IN POKER PLAYOFF

The blind crime-fighting attorney beat the tights off the arachnid superhero. Actor Ben Affleck mauled fellow star Tobey Maguire - and close to 100 other players - to win a...

MOM-TO-BE LIV'S NEW 'PRECIOUS'

"Lord of the Rings" star Liv Tyler has embarked on a new project: "Mistress of the Diapers." The raven-haired actress is pregnant with her first child, People magazine reported last...

JUDGE TOSSES POLICE-RAID DEATH LAWSUIT

A Brooklyn judge has dismissed an $11 million lawsuit filed by the survivors of a woman who claim she suffered a heart attack after cops broke down her door in...

TEEN CUT DOWN - SLAIN DAYS BEFORE HS GRADUATION IN MYSTERY ATTACK

A college-bound Bronx teen who was looking forward to his graduation ceremony this Friday was murdered yesterday in Washington Heights - apparently after a long-running dispute, police said. The family...

'ALL MY FAULT' - MATCH BOY TAKES BLAME FOR SETTING BUILDING FIRE

The 5-year-old boy who accidentally set the Manhattan fire that left 65 people homeless said, "It was all my fault" and feared his disabled grandfather might die in the blaze,...

MIKE DUMPS GOPERS OVER TERROR $$

A fund-raiser in Mayor Bloomberg's home for the National Republican Congressional Committee was abruptly dropped yesterday in a growing feud over the allocation of federal funds to fight terrorism. Sources...

MAN NABBED IN W. SIDE STABBING

A man with a long rap sheet was arrested yesterday for stabbing another man after a wild chase along 12th Avenue last week, police said. Miranda Rafael, 24, was charged...

LA GUARDIA, JFK BUS FARE MAY SOAR $2.50

The cheapest way to travel directly to New York's airports is set to get more expensive, with operators of the popular shuttle bus service pushing for a $2.50 fare hike....

DAD, BROTHERS 'RAPED' GIRL, 13

A 13-year-old girl was raped by her father and her two brothers in two separate attacks in their Brooklyn apartment, law-enforcement sources said yesterday. The names of the girl and...

VELELLA HEADS TO JAIL FOR BRIBERY SCAM

A politician to the end, former Bronx state Sen. Guy Velella strode off to jail yesterday after making a courtroom statement in which he appeared to apologize without actually apologizing....

356G IN THE CARDS FOR AFFLECK

The blind crime-fighting attorney beat the tights off the arachnid superhero. Actor Ben Affleck mauled fellow star Tobey Maguire - and close to 100 other players - to win a...

MIKE-GIFFIE BUDGET OFFERS $400 REBATE

Mayor Bloomberg and City Council Speaker Gifford Miller last night struck a deal on a $47 billion budget that will provide a $400 property-tax rebate to small homeowners and add...

FREAK ACCIDENT KILLS PEDESTRIAN

A 61-year-old pedestrian was killed when a motorcyclist lost control of his bike on Long Island, cops said. The dead man was struck on Jericho Turnpike near Tulip Avenue in...

CLASSROOM EXTRA: SIZZLING PITCHER WITH A HEAD FOR NUMBERS

Classroom Extra ends the school year with a look at role model Rob Semerano, whose fastball strikes out his opponents while he hits a home run in the classroom. For...

GANG RAPIST FREE - B'KLYN JUDGE LETS TEEN LOOSE AFTER 6 MONTHS

Despite prosecutors' objections, a Brooklyn teen walked free yesterday after pleading guilty to taking part in the brutal gang rape of a deaf woman. Under a plea deal worked out...

'BABY' DOCTOR - 291G DEADBEAT TURNS TO MOMMY FOR CASH

The deadbeat doc who's in jail for stiffing his kids out of nearly $300,000 in child support is getting financial help - from his mother, his lawyer said yesterday. Dr....

PHIL PREFERS TO FOCUS ON THE POSITIVES

"I'm not disappointed with the way I played at all." -PHIL MICKELSON Let's turn the clocks back. Let's say Phil Mickelson didn't win the Masters in April, extending his streak...

AMAZIN' BRACE - METS GIRD FOR TELLING STRETCH

When the surging Mets welcome the Reds to Shea tonight, it will be as a .500 team, sitting only 2 ½ games out of first place in the National League...

HOPING TO REIN JUNIOR

MET NOTES Sandwiched in the middle of interleague play is tonight's visit from Cincinnati and the revitalized Ken Griffey Jr., who became the 20th member of the exclusive 500 home...

SPARKS' 'SPOON RETURNS

The Liberty (6-5) are looking to snap a four-game losing streak and avoid slipping to .500 on their home floor, but tonight that Garden hardwood will belong to an opponent,...

PAGING JOLTIN' GIAMBI - YANKS LOOK FOR POWER SURGE

Three hits in a game don't mean a hitter is hot, even if the third one was a ninth-inning homer off Eric Gagne. However, a hot streak has to begin...

CBS SHIFT FOR NANTZ & GUMBEL

The shakeup of CBS' NFL coverage continued yesterday with Jim Nantz and Greg Gumbel switching positions. Nantz will be the new No. 1 play-by-play man, teaming with Phil Simms, while...

STEAMINGSHEFFIELD RIPS BORAS

Using the same aggressive style with which he attacks pitchers, Gary Sheffield is going after former agent Scott Boras. Livid that Boras has filed an arbitration appeal in which he...

HEY, PROS - QUIT WHINING ABOUT COURSE

HERE'S a parting pleasantry to the world's greatest golfers, who graced us with their presence in the Hamptons this week, who couldn't say enough nice things about Shinnecock Hills while...

NETS LIKELY TO LOSE SLAY

Charlotte Bobcats GM/coach Bernie Bickerstaff didn't speak in specifics. But in generalities, he certainly described Nets swingman Tamar Slay when characterizing the type of player he seeks in tonight's NBA...

THE GREAT DEBATE - CONDITIONS MADE TOURNEY A JOKE

THE USGA got want it wanted during Sunday's final round of the U.S. Open: A golf course that was as slick as an ice rink, a leader board filled with...

TELFAIR EYES FIRST-ROUND GUARANTEE

Sebastian Telfair isn't the first point guard from Lincoln with hopes of entering into the NBA at a young age, something his head coach is well aware of. "I still...

JOHN KEEPING HIS YANKS LOOSE

It's four hours before the game, and Tommy John's rolling through his typical afternoon talk. There's a schedule to share with the players and the normal instructions to work hard...

TRACY A ROCKET MAN - CLIPPERS GUN FOR SHAQ

GUESSING games are hereby cancelled on several channels: Come July 1, Tracy McGrady will be the newest Rocket Launcher to look off Yao Ming down low more times than not....

T-MAC A ROCKET MAN - CLIPS COVET SHAQ

GUESSING games are hereby cancelled on several channels: Come July 1, Tracy McGrady will be the newest Rocket Launcher to look off Yao Ming down low more times than not....

STEAMING SHEFF RIPS INTO BORAS

Using the same aggressive style with which he attacks pitchers, Gary Sheffield is going after former agent Scott Boras. Livid that Boras has filed an arbitration appeal in which he...

ISIAH'S TALKING TO BOBCATS

Knicks president Isiah Thomas has had several discussions with Charlotte Bobcats GM/coach Bernie Bickerstaff regarding a trade before tonight's expansion draft, but no agreement has been reached. Two GMs said...

JOHN TO YANKS: KEEP PLUGGING

Williamsport 3 - S.I. Yankees 2 His team had lost again. His bullpen allowed three home runs. His defense committed two errors. His offense mustered five hits, one with men...