December 27, 2004
TOYS 'R' BUST - UNION SQUARE WORKERS AMONG MASS FIRINGS
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amToys 'R' Us played the cruel Grinch with the sudden firing yesterday of an estimated hundreds of employees in a desperate cost-cutting move at the embattled toy store. The retailer...
I WON'T BACK DOWN: SPITZER
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amNew York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer vows to come down harder on the business world's wrongdoing this coming year - and not give up an inch. Spitzer says he's also...
GIFT CARDS GIVING STORES BELATED XMAS GIFTS
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amShoppers hit the nation's stores yesterday armed with gift cards that could be the missing ingredient for a happy holiday season in retailing. The day after Christmas is traditionally a...
HOMER MEETS HIS MAKER
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amHOMER is going to die. "Simpsons" creator Matt Groening says he is going to kill off Daddy Simpson so that the star can go to heaven to argue with God....
BARKER'S BACK FOR 34
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amBOB Barker, now 81, says he's coming back next year for a 34th season as host of "The Price Is Right," according to reports. Barker is in the last two...
STARR REPORT
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amWhen you wish . . . It's time again for The Starr Report's annual year-end "Wish List," in no particular order. So here goes: * That "The Tony Danza Show"...
SALE INTO 2005 - FROM SHOES TO JEANS TO DESIGNER GEAR, THE BEST FASHION BUYS TO SCORE THIS WEEK; THERE'S SO MUCH IN STORE
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amFORGET Black Friday - now's the best time of the year to snap up fashion bargains. From uptown department stores to NoLIta boutiques, the entire city is in the throes...
IRAQ VETERAN'S CAR WAR
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amA Queens court officer who served in Iraq has found himself on the wrong side of the gavel after a penny-pinching Long Island auto dealership sued him to get back...
ANDY IS EARLY FAVE FOR ATT'Y GEN.
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amANDREW CUOMO, who died politically two years ago when he quit the race for governor, is the early favorite to win the Democratic nomination for attorney general in 2006, a...
NEW LAWS DAY - RULEBOOK GROWS JAN. 1
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amALBANY - Dozens of new state laws go into effect on Saturday, including a hike in the minimum wage and a slight cut in the personal income tax. The slew...
PROPERTY-TAX GLITCH STIFFS CITY
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amThousands of residential properties are being kept off the tax rolls while the Finance Department works to straighten out glitches in its computer system, The Post has learned. The properties...
WEIRD BUT TRUE
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amA Georgia man walked nearly two miles with a bullet in his head after a robber shot him for his cellphone - saying he was determined to die in the...
BELOVED L.I. INSTITUTION SAVED BY FIRE CREWS
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amA 332-year-old Long Island landmark narrowly averted destruction early yesterday morning when a blaze tore a blackened hole through its roof before being extinguished. Firefighters from three nearby departments rushed...
IRAQIS 'YEARNING' TO VOTE, SAYS TOP GOP SENATOR
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amWASHINGTON - A top-ranking Senate Republican predicts massive voter turnout for the Iraqi elections later next month - despite increasingly violent terrorist attacks throughout the country. "I think it will...
'O' IN OVAL OFFICE - OPRAH AMONG FAVES IN CELEB-PREZ POLL
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amOprah for president! That's who Americans want in the White House, according to a new Harris pop-culture poll done for Parade magazine. When 3,077 adults were asked whom they'd most...
LIRR TRAGEDY IN BROOKLYN
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amA young man was killed last night when he was struck by a train on the LIRR tracks in Brooklyn, authorities said. The unidentified victim, described by police as Hispanic...
CROWDS GREET THE 'FOCKERS'
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amForget the Kranks - moviegoers spent Christmas with the Fockers and Fat Albert. "Meet the Fockers" - the star-studded sequel to "Meet the Parents" - was the holiday weekend's No....
JAIL HOUSE CROCK - KERIK 'FUDGED STATS'
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amAs commissioner of the city Department of Correction, Bernard Kerik achieved his much-heralded drop in violence by reclassifying some incidents, according to a report from an internal critic. Kerik, who...
MOSUL TERROR VIDEO - SICK CLIP ON WEB
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amThe group that took responsibility for the deadliest attack on a U.S. base in Iraq backed up its claim yesterday with a chilling video of the strike, complete with the...
PARENTS FIGHT STEALTHY KILLER
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amA Manhattan couple who lost their only son is launching a new campaign in their crusade to alert other parents about the disease that killed him. Nearly two decades after...
SURVIVOR'S BATTLE FOR HEALTH
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amSummer Krisel was born with a fever, and over the next two years, suffered from a string of sinus and ear infections, sudden high fevers, and boils on her legs,...
SNOW COMES A DAY LATE
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amNew Yorkers got their white Christmas a day late, as light snow fell over most of the tristate area yesterday afternoon. Forecasters predicted the city would get a 1- to...
ERR-LINE ANARCHY - TRAVELERS STRANDED AFTER DELTA MELTDOWN
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amDelta subsidiary Comair got airplanes back into the sky yesterday, a day after a massive computer failure grounded all 1,100 of its flights. But the fix wasn't enough to avert...
TOXIC AVENGER LEADS IN UKRAINE ELECTION
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amPoison survivor Viktor Yushchenko appears to have trounced Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych in the third round of presidential elections yesterday, as thousands of Ukrainians cast their ballots here in Manhattan...
2-COUNTY CHASE FOR SUSPECTS
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amTwo men traveling in a stolen vehicle - suspects in a series of thefts from parked cars - were busted yesterday after Nassau cops chased them across the county line...
9/11 FLAP AT EMPIRE STATE
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amTourists venturing atop the Empire State Building have been disturbed to see horrible images of Sept. 11 greeting them in the gift shop. Two 9/11 tribute booklets adorn the top...
'SUPERMAN' INSPIRED UNSER KID
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amThe gutsy young daughter of race-car champ Al Unser Jr. has a lot to celebrate this holiday season - even though it comes with a bittersweet twist. Cody Unser will...
'DYING' DRUNK GETS AN EARFUL AND AWAKES FROM COMA
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amA man who drank himself into a coma and lay near death in a hospital bed suddenly woke up after hearing that his boss had commanded, "Get your ass back...
TRAGIC SACRIFICE - QNS. GUARD DIES TRYING TO CONTAIN ARSON FIRE
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amA "heroic" security guard suffered an excruciating death, being burned alive in an elevator on Christmas while trying to prevent an arson fire from spreading throughout a Queens apartment building....
MASSIVE QUAKE RAVAGES S. ASIA - 11,300 DEAD AS TSUNAMIS CRASH OVER COAST
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amThe most powerful earthquake in 40 years struck southern Asia yesterday, triggering deadly 20-foot tidal waves that smashed into coastal towns, fishing villages and seaside resorts in seven countries, killing...
ABE: HONEST & STRAIGHT - SKEWING HISTORY FOR POLITICAL ENDS
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amIN the pantheon of presidents, was Abraham Lincoln a queer eye among a bevy of straight guys? Yes, claims a new book, "The Intimate World of Abraham Lincoln," which has...
FLORIDA HS BYTES BACK AT TARDY STUDENTS
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amLate to school? That does not compute! A Florida school has started using a new handheld computer device to nail students who are late to class. You could call it...
ASPCA A LO$T CAUSE - FUND-RAISING FLOPS
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amALBANY - Eighteen New York State charities - including the city-based American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals - actually lost money trying to raise money last year,...
'TOXIC AVENGER' ROMPS IN UKRAINE
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amUkrainian reform candidate - and poison survivor - Viktor Yushchenko early today claimed victory over Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych in the third round of presidential elections. "This is a victory...
NYPD DAILY BLOTTER
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amBROOKLYN * A woman was shot dead yesterday on a Bedford-Stuyvesant street. Tawana Claybourne, 32, of Clifton Place, was shot under her arm at Putnam Avenue near Franklin Avenue at...
FIRST FRUITS OF KWANZAA
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amAfrican-American New Yorkers joined millions worldwide in beginning the seven-day celebration of Kwanzaa yesterday. The festival, which runs to Jan. 1, was first celebrated in 1966. The name comes from...
MASSIVE QUAKE RAVAGES S. ASIA - 13,000 DEAD AS TSUNAMIS SMASH COASTLINE
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amThe most powerful earthquake in 40 years struck southern Asia yesterday, triggering deadly, 20-foot tidal waves that smashed into coastal towns, fishing villages and seaside resorts in seven countries, killing...
LASER LIGHTS SPELL OUT BROADWAY WEDDING PROPOSAL
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amA British drama-school teacher had her name up in lights over Broadway last night, and all she had was one line to utter - "Yes." In fact, 25-year-old Manchester native...
MAIN BURSTS ON PARK AVE.
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amA water main break on the Upper East Side shut down part of Park Avenue last night, closing one track of the Metro-North Railroad, which runs beneath the avenue. The...
MASSIVE QUAKE RAVAGES S. ASIA - 14,500 DEAD AS TSUNAMIS SMASH COASTLINE
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amThe most powerful earthquake in 40 years struck southern Asia yesterday, triggering deadly, 20-foot tidal waves that smashed into coastal towns, fishing villages and seaside resorts in seven countries, killing...
9/11 GAL'S NEW LOVE - 'FACE OF MOURNING' WEDS WTC SURVIVOR
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amA Manhattan woman who lost her fiancé on 9/11 is celebrating new beginnings this holiday season after marrying a childhood acquaintance who's alive only because he left the World Trade...
UNION BIG EYED IN $1M CONDO SCAM
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amA showbiz-union boss tried to sell more than $1 million worth of real estate bought with his hardworking members' dues to his brother and brother's girlfriend at sweetheart prices, according...
HOUSTON 'GREAT' IN 1ST START
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amKNICK NOTES Allan Houston hit his first shot of the game yesterday and said he had no difficulty starting for the first time this season - and for the first...
PATRIOTS LEAVE GREEN GROSSER - PLAYOFFS IN JEOPARDY
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amPatriots 23 - Jets 7 If you're a diehard Jets fan who has been through it all with this franchise through all the years of tears and teases, you had...
THEY'LL TAKE IT - SHAKY KNICKS ABLE TO HOLD OFF SCRAPPY BOBCATS
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amKnicks 91 - Bobcats 82 Considering the alternative, following two straight losses and an embarrassing showing on their home court the last time out, the Knicks will take yesterday's 91-82...
REMATCH NO TIME FOR TANTRUM
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amFIRST, the good news: Mike Breen, as usual, gets it. Breen worked Pistons-Pacers for ESPN, Christmas Day. And when Chauncey Billups got himself a "T' then kept complaining, Breen wondered...
NOBODY'S AFRAID OF JETS
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amTHE problem with the Jets is that they game-plan for elite teams as if they are an elite team themselves. They act as if they are the hunted, the team...
COUNTDOWN TO CARTER - MAKES FIRST NETS START TONIGHT
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amIn the Nets' world, the countdown to tonight's game against the Pistons will trump the countdown to midnight on Friday. You can have your ball dropping in Times Square. The...
TIM THOMAS TURNS CORNER
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amTHERE are times when Lenny Wilkens looks at the size, the athleticism and the natural ability of Tim Thomas and sees the ideal NBA prototype. There are other times when...
MARTIN HITS HIGH AND LOW
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amJET NOTES Curtis Martin keeps on breaking records. The Jets running back set a career-high for rushing yards in a season yesterday against his former team. Though the yards came...
IMPERFECT 10 EQUALS ZERO
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amON a day when Chad Pennington and the Jets needed to show up as big and mean as Shaquille O'Neal, they gave us Pee Wee Herman instead. Or Herman's pee...
BRADY FLUSHES FLOP VS. FINS
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amHanging in his hotel room yesterday morning, Tom Brady flipped to HBO's Inside the NFL to fill an idle hour. Soon after, the show covered last Monday night's Dolphins-Patriots game....
CHREBET MAY BE GONE GREEN
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amJET NOTES The Wayne Chrebet fairy tale might have played out its final act at home yesterday, and it wasn't a happy ending. First, the Jets lost 23-7 to the...
MOSS MISSED HIS SHOTS
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amSantana Moss was at a loss for catches, and then for words. But the ones he found told you all you needed to know about the frustration he was feeling...
RUNNING IN WRONG DIRECTION
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amThe pity is that it seemed the Patriots were worried far more about balls in the air than feet on the ground. The Pats rarely put eight men in the...
GOTTA HAND IT TO PAT 'D'
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amThe refrain was born Wednesday in a Gillette Stadium meeting room, and it returned last night in a Giants Stadium locker room. Safety Rodney Harrison sang it loudest of his...
MARTIN: RAMS WON'T LAY DOWN
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amCurtis Martin looked like he was sick to his stomach after the Jets' 23-7 loss yesterday to the Patriots, their worst defeat since the beginning of 2002 when the Vinny...
A LOSS FOR WORDS
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amCINCINNATI One yard to make for a first down at the four and the Giants couldn't do it. One more first down to put a win away, or one more...
NOTHING NEW - MISSED CHANCES, BAD DECISIONS DOOM BIG BLUE YET AGAIN
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amBengals 23 - Giants 22 CINCINNATI - He called it "one of the most bizarre games I've ever seen in my life" but in reality, Tom Coughlin should know better....
BACKPEDALING - GIANTS SIDESTEP COUGHLIN MUTINY REPORT
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amCINCINNATI - Tom Coughlin did not react to the scathing attack on him in yesterday's Post - with players under their veil of anonymity stating they hated playing for him...
ELI SHOWS PROGRESS ... SORT OF
December 27, 2004 | 5:00amGIANT NOTES CINCINNATI - Eli Manning barely completed half his throws and compiled a shabby quarterback rating of 56.2, yet the feeling yesterday was he showed signs of progress as...