March 18, 2005

CITI IS WARNED; FED ASKS BELEAGUERED BANK TO DELAY ANY BUYS

Citigroup has been told to hold off on any "significant" acquisitions until it gets its compliance act together. The Federal Reserve said it expected the world's No. 1 bank to...

VIACOM MAY LOOK TO DIVIDE AND CONQUER

Investors are giving a thumbs-up to Viacom's plan to split into two publicly traded companies. Viacom shares closed up yesterday 72 cents, or two percent, at $36.72; overall the stock...

IT'S VERY TOUCH AND GO - EIGHT KEY STAFFERS QUIT SIZZLING CELEBRITY MAGAZINE

IN Touch may be surging on the circulation front, but its staff seems to be fleeing in droves. Eight people have left in the past few weeks, with seven of...

AG: BUFFETT'S OFF THE HOOK

Warren Buffett need not fear being pushed from his CEO position at Berkshire Hathaway. That was the word seeping out of Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's office yesterday after two days...

ANN RE-TAYLORED ; CLOCK RUNS OUT FOR CEO SPAINHOUR; KRILL STEPS IN

After nearly a decade of uneven performance at the helm of the Ann Taylor Stores Corp., Patrick Spainhour said yesterday that he planned to relinquish his role as chief executive....

STARR REPORT

Jane Fonda 'GMA' Diane Sawyer has snared the first morning-show inter view with Jane Fonda to talk about Fonda's upcoming bombshell autobiography, "My Life So Far." Fonda will be live...

WATERLOGGED : 'SPRING BREAK' WAS RUINED WAY BEFORE THE PLASTIC SHARKS SHOWED UP

"Spring Break SharkAttack" Sunday night at 9 on CBS/Ch. 2 (three shark fins) JUST when you thought it was safe to go back to the TV, along comes "Spring Break...

DISCORDANT RING

THE RING TWO (two stars) Sorry, wrong number.Running time: 110 minutes. Rated PG- 13 (violence/terror, disturbing images, profanity). At the E-Walk, the Loews Village, the Battery Park, others. 'THE Ring...

SAY NOPE TO MOPE

MELINDA AND MELINDA (two stars) Woody, you're no Ingmar.Running time: 99 minutes. Rated PG-13 (sexuality, drug use). At the Lincoln Plaza, 63rd Street and Broadway. WOODY Allen's latest, "Melinda and...

THIS ANIME ADVENTURE IS PRETTY, NOT WITTY

STEAMBOY (three stars) Rust never sleeps.Running time: 126 minutes (Japanese version with English subtitles) and 106 minutes (English-dubbed version). Rated PG-13 (action violence). At the Sunshine (Japanese version) and the...

'ICE PRINCESS' LEAVES YOU COLD

ICE PRINCESS (one star) Rink rat.Running time: 98 minutes. Rated G. At the E-Walk, the Lincoln Square, the Battery Park City, others. 'ICE Princess" teaches girls that, should they be...

IDOL'S#?*!CLOSECALL

FEISTY "American Idol" wannabe Mikhala Gordon didn't pull a Janet Jackson but came thisclose to potentially invoking the wrath of the FCC Wednesday on live TV. "Fu . . ....

BREATHING EASY

AQUALUNG has nothing to do with Jethro Tull. It's all about London's Matt Hales, whose favorite toy as a kid was the piano. At just 17, Hales had his first...

FOUR-WAY FIGHT ; LEADING LADIES OF STAGE GO AT IT

NOW that the rivalry between "Spamalot" and "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" is underway, let's turn up the flame on what promises to be an even more intense battle for critical garlands,...

IDOL'SMARIOREADYTO FLY

'AMERICAN Idol" quitter Mario Vazquez has hired the same powerful entertainment lawyer who sprung Clay Aiken from his contract with the show's producers. The hiring of lawyer Jess L. Rosen...

GRAND SLAM-ALOT - 'MONTY' FULL OF SUBLIME SILLINESS

MONTY PYTHON'S SPAMALOT (four stars) The Shubert Theatre, 225 W. 44th St. (212) 239-6200. BLOODY fantastic. Gorgeously silly. Superlative and better. "Monty Python's Spamalot," dazzlingly staged by Mike Nichols, opened...

A SECOND HELPING - NEW MOVIE COVERS MARTHA'S ARREST

CYBILL Shepherd is negotiating to play Martha Stewart in a TV movie - again. But this time, it's for a different network, CBS, and a different take on the controversial...

WELCOME TO THE DEATH HOUSE

Scott Peterson found out yesterday just how alone he is. Early in the morning, the convicted killer of his wife and unborn baby was transported in leg irons and shackles...

WEIRD BUT TRUE

It was a real rip-off, but homeowner Rimmon Juerakhan of Fort Pierce, Fla., isn't complaining. Seems a contractor replacing hurricane-damaged roofs misread a customer's street number and mistakenly stripped the...

ETHICS RAP FOR TA DUO

ALBANY - Two former Transit Authority workers were charged yesterday with violating state ethics law by accepting compensation for serving as expert witnesses in an asbestos lawsuit against their former...

COURT-JESTER MARTHA ; QUIPS AS SHE SEEKS NEW TRIAL

Domestic diva Martha Stewart celebrated St. Patrick's Day in court - trying to get her conviction overturned and relax the conditions of her house arrest. Stewart, whose electronic anklet was...

TODAY'S TEENS ACTUALLY HAPPY

Memo to Holden Caulfield: Get over it! Fifty-four years after J.D. Salinger created the quintessential young worrywart in his novel "Catcher in the Rye," an online survey of adolescents suggests...

SPITZER SNUFFS 'NET CREDIT-CARD CIG SALES

ALBANY - In a major blow to the online cigarette market, credit-card companies have agreed to stop processing illegal online tobacco sales, under a new initiative announced yesterday by Attorney...

PRO-CHOICE HILLARY BACKS BILL TO REDUCE ABORTIONS

ALBANY - Pro-choice Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton sought "common ground" again on the hot-button abortion issue yesterday, joining pro-life Harry Reid, the Senate Democratic leader, to back a measure she...

THE CLASS 'CON' ; HARLEM SCHOOL BOSS $CAMMED PARENTS: SPITZER

The director of a short-lived Harlem private school duped parents out of thousands of dollars by leading them to believe their kids would get the education of a lifetime, a...

DEAD MAN'S RAGE; TOLD SAMURAI ATTACKER: 'I SHOULD'VE KILLED YOU'

The teen who nearly decapitated his stepfather with a samurai sword claims his victim's last words were: "I knew it was you! I should have killed you!" The dramatic alleged...

COURT DUO SUSPENDED AS E-MAIL 'JOKE' GOES ASTRAY

Two Manhattan federal court clerks were suspended without pay after getting caught forwarding lurid photos of a naked obese woman to friends from their office e-mail accounts. Unfortunately for them,...

TERRORISTS CALL TRUCE

JERUSALEM - Palestinian terrorist groups agreed yesterday to a conditional period of "calm" until the end of the year - but they reserved the right to end it at any...

NYPD DAILY BLOTTER

QUEENS *** Police yesterday were searching for a man wanted for allegedly raping a young woman at her Fresh Meadows apartment building last month. The suspect, Danny Williams (above), 27,...

WEINER BLASTS GIFF OVER STADIUM

The battle over the West Side stadium spilled over into the Democratic mayoral primary yesterday, when Rep. Anthony Weiner accused City Council Speaker Gifford Miller of giving the project "a...

RUDY & MIKE: LET DIALLO R.I.P.

Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani yesterday endorsed Mayor Bloomberg, and they teamed up to say the Amadou Diallo shooting was a tragedy that should be left in the city's past. "It's...

BUSH GETS RADICAL; TEARING UP FOREIGN-POLICY ESTABLISHMENT

IN choosing the controversial Paul Wolfowitz as head of the World Bank - atop the appointment of the equally controversial John Bolton as U.N. ambassador and the naming of loyalist...

BODEGA VICTIM A HERO; SHOT DEAD SAVING PAL

The hardworking Jersey City bodega owner gunned down by a trio of thugs early Monday died defending a close friend whom one of the young punks was pistol-whipping, a clerk...

DVDEVIOUS 'PIRATES' BUSTED

Police yesterday busted a band of movie and music pirates who allegedly were churning out more than half a million counterfeit discs a month from the basement of a Queens...

'GREEN CARD' HORROR ; HUBBY'S SLAY MOTIVE

Enraged by a wife he thought married him only for a green card, a Manhattan immigrant went on a murder-suicide rampage before torching their apartment, friends and neighbors said yesterday....

'PLEASURE ISLAND' ; INEBRIATED KIDS AT JACKO 'PINOCCHIO' RANCH: MAID

A former Neverland housekeeper told jurors yesterday she dubbed Michael Jackson's ranch "Pinocchio's Pleasure Island" because he let kids run wild to their heart's content - and that she saw...

33% OF CITY'S KIDS COULD BE LEFT BACK

Nearly one in three of the city's 1.1 million public-school students are in jeopardy of being held back, according to new city Department of Education figures. Overall, 301,341 students recently...

U.N. WHISTLEBLOWER: I GOT SACK FOR NAILING SADDAM

WASHINGTON - A U.N. whistleblower testified yesterday in Congress that he told higher-ups that Saddam Hussein was diverting billions of dollars of supplies from the oil-for-food program - and was...

OPENING KNIGHT ; STARS OUT ON B'WAY TO LAUNCH 'SPAMALOT'

And now for something completely different - a hit. The lackluster Broadway season roared to life last night with the opening of "Spamalot," the eagerly awaited $12 million stage adaptation...

BIZARRE TWIST IN 'DUMPSTER' SLAY

An ex-con with a history of violence toward women is charged with killing and dismembering a recovering heroin addict he believed was having a lesbian affair with his estranged girlfriend,...

MARCH MADNESS; FDNY 'GREEN BERETS' BOYCOTT SUNNY ST. PATRICK'S PARADE

New York was struck by the luck of the Irish when glorious blue skies greeted a sea of green on Fifth Avenue yesterday - the first time the parade was...

SLAY-TRIAL 'SILENCER' GETS 15 YRS.

The Brooklyn man convicted of bribing three women to keep them from testifying in his brother's murder trial was sentenced to 15 years yesterday - despite words of praise from...

BRONX JHS PRINCIPAL AXED

The principal at one of The Bronx's most troubled middle schools has been fired, education officials said yesterday. Janet Sanderson took over the helm at JHS 113, also known as...

NIGHTMARE ON THE NO. 7

Hundreds of terrified subway riders were trapped for an hour aboard two No. 7 trains in a smoky East River tunnel yesterday. The two Queens-bound trains - carrying a total...

POLICE ID 'BUS STOP' TOT'S MOM

Detectives have tentatively identified a young Bronx woman as the mother who abandoned her cheerful 18-month-old toddler at a bus stop Tuesday - and they fanned out yesterday trying to...

CANINE'S SLAY A REAL 'SHAG'GY DOG STORY

It was the most unnatural of love triangles, involving a stock analyst, his girlfriend and her dog - a miniature collie with which the man had a twisted sexual fascination,...

FDNY CAPTAIN IN DWI BUST

A uniformed fire captain was charged with DWI yesterday after Port Authority detectives stopped his FDNY vehicle on Long Island, police said. Capt. Bruce Lindahl, 48, of North Merrick, was...

HOME-RUN HERO BATS A BIG ZERO; MCGWIRE DUCKS POLS ON STEROIDS

Baseball's subpoenaed superstars were grilled about steroids by Congress yesterday - and retired slugger Mark McGwire repeatedly ducked questions about whether he had bulked up with the banned muscle-building drugs....

JURY CONVICTS LYIN' KIM; FACES 20 YRS. FOR SHOOTOUT COVER-UP

Rapper Lil' Kim went from "Queen Bee" to "Queen Felon" yesterday when she was convicted of multiple counts of lying to a grand jury about a Hot 97 radio station...

SQUEEZE PLAY ON NATIONAL BASHTIME

BASEBALL has never shied from the adulation or the admiration. It has never tried to be anything less than an integral component of the national fabric. But that status comes...

LETTERMAN KIDNAP PLOT - $5M RANSOM FOR BABY SON

An ex-con was charged yesterday in a chilling plot to kidnap David Letterman's toddler son and nanny from the TV host's Montana ranch and hold them for $5 million ransom....

DOZEN MATTER ; MCCANTS LEADS 12-SEED PAST 'BAMA

CLEVELAND - Ed McCants' journey has been long and winding, from Marion (Ohio) to Northwestern; from his fight-prompted dismissal and transfer to Paris (Texas) Community College to his emergence at...

'DENTAL' KILLER A SUICIDE

The ex-con accused of fatally shooting his girlfriend in a dentist's waiting room last week blew his brains out in a Queens park last night, sources said. Michael Hicks, 51,...

SCHOOLS AND HOLIDAYS

The city Department of Education is urging principals not to give teachers Easter Monday off for religious reasons, saying it is "not an actual religious holiday." In its weekly e-mail...

THE LYIN' KIM GUILTY OF FIBBING TO GRAND JURY IN HOT 97 SHOOTOUT

Rapper Lil' Kim went from "Queen Bee" to "Queen Felon" yesterday when she was convicted of lying to a grand jury about a Hot 97 radio station shoot-up involving two...

STRAHAN BLOCKED; JUDGE BARS GIANT FROM HOME OVER WIFE-ABUSE CLAIM

Giants star Michael Strahan was barred from his own home yesterday by the judge in his domestic-violence case after his anguished wife made new charges of abuse and presented graphic...

MARTHA'S MUNCHIES ; GOES FOR CHINESE AFTER COURT

Martha Stewart celebrated St. Patrick's Day in court - and downing dumplings at a Chinese restaurant. The domestic diva and three male companions ordered the entire menu of dumplings at...

HOME-RUN HERO BATS A BIG ZERO MCGWIRE REFUSES TO COME CLEAN

Baseball's subpoenaed superstars were grilled about steroids by Congress yesterday - and retired slugger Mark McGwire repeatedly ducked questions about whether he had bulked up with the banned muscle-building drugs....

BUST IN 28G CHILD-CARE WELFARE $CAM

A school crossing guard was arrested yesterday for stealing thousands of dollars after she was caught collecting checks reimbursing her for fees she said she paid to a bogus baby...

FDNY BIG IN ST. PAT'S DWI BUST

A uniformed New York City fire captain driving an FDNY vehicle was arrested for DWI yesterday after two Port Authority officers stopped him on Long Island, cop said. Twenty-six-year veteran...

CLASSROOM EXTRA - WOMEN'S HISTORY EDITION - HEDDA AND LOUELLA - QUEENS OF GOSSIP

Long before The Post launched its world-famous Page Six, these two gossip mavens mastered the art "dish." We all love to read about our favorite stars - especially when they...

PAUL POWERS WAKE

CLEVELANDWake 70Tenn.-Chat. 54 CLEVELAND - During last Friday's first-round ACC loss to N.C. State, Wake Forest's Chris Paul had to sit on the bench and wonder if he could've prevented...

DAVIS GETS AX; O'BRIEN NEXT?

THIS isn't a particularly prosperous period for former Dayton disciples. Johnny Davis, who played for the Flyers from '73 to '76, was fired as Magic coach yesterday, hours after the...

LATE SLAM BY SALLY SAVES WVU

CLEVELANDW. Virginia 63Creighton CLEVELAND - Say this much for West Virginia: the Mountainers have a flair for the dramatic. Few games could top their heart-pounding run through the Big East...

METS CUT MCEWING

PORT ST. LUCIE - The Mets yesterday said goodbye to one of the most popular players in their recent history. The Mets released Joe McEwing yesterday, letting the utility player...

ABRAHAM WAY OFFSIDE

WHAT is John Abraham thinking? Fresh off the feel-good 2004 story he carved out for himself after a calamitous 2003 season that included a DWI car-wreck incident, missed playing time...

PEREZ NOT READY FOR LIVE TV

WHILE it initially went unknown to viewers, Sunday was likely a first in TV history. It was likely the first time that a golfer, in or close to the lead,...

ST. JOHN'S GAME HAUNTS WOLFPACK

NCAA NOTES WORCESTER - St. John's will be watching the NCAA tournament from home, but the Red Storm's presence is felt here. Earlier this season the Red Storm pulverized North...

'NOVA NO LOCKS VS. LOBOS

NASHVILLE - At long last, Jay Wright has brought Villanova to the NCAA Tournament after a journey he admits was more arduous than he imagined. "I thought the program was...

MUNDUS EDITORIAL IS REAL FISH STORY

THE New York Times editorial on Frank Mundus was so outrageous I nearly fell out of my chair reading it. One had to wonder if the author was doing p.r....

JINTS, PLAXICO RESUME TALKS

The on-again, off-again, supposedly dead-and-buried negotiations with Plaxico Burress are not only on again for the Giants, they're red-hot. The Giants - tired of Burress' extreme financial demands and less-than-exemplary...

GANSEY WAITED LONG TIME TO DANCE

CLEVELAND - Mike Gansey heard all the names, all the insults. Quitter. Traitor. And far worse. People who didn't know him, had never met him, heaping on equal parts bile...

WELCOME TO THE MAIN EVENT

Long overdue sign of spring as racing moves to Big A's main track today, nine days after originally planned but set back by weather. Races from six furlongs to mile...

NHL APPEARS READY TO PICK AT ITS SCABS

The NHL took another step on its well-plotted, inexorable path to scab hockey in 2005-06 by presenting two regressive hard-cap offers the NHLPA couldn't take seriously during a brief meeting...

CALHOUN'S HUSKIES NEED OLD BARK

WORCESTER - Has the Calhoun Formula, brewed and bottled in Storrs and sold to Fortune 500 companies throughout the Constitution State with a guarantee of increased profits, suddenly gone bad?...

RIVERA'S ELBOW ON THE MEND

YANKEE NOTES TAMPA - Mariano Rivera tested his right elbow with 17 minutes of catch in the soggy Legends Field outfield yesterday and said the hinge felt good. "It was...

DUKE GETS BIG BOOST

CHARLOTTE - Duke is whole again, and that can't be good news for the other teams in the NCAA Tournament. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski made it official yesterday when he...

KNICKS NOT DEAD YET

ATLANTA - The obituary to the Knicks' season should have been written following back-to-back, fourth-quarter Garden meltdowns against Seattle and Miami. No way the Knicks, 10 games below .500, deserve...

WARRICK FLIES HIGH FOR 'CUSE

WORCESTER - Hakim Warrick doesn't plan his dunks, name his dunks, or watch replays of them. In Syracuse, where the Orange are the only show in town, his exploits are...

BC BACK IN CONTROL

CLEVELAND - Coming into yesterday's NCAA Tourney opener, would Boston College show the fire it did in winning its first 20 games this season, or the malaise of splitting its...

BUSHWICK READY TO STATE ITS CASE

STATE HIGH SCHOOL HOOPS GLENS FALLS - Many of the teams vying for a title in the state Federation tournament that begins today are no strangers to the road. Kennedy,...

BUSHWICK'S READY TO STATE ITS CASE

H.S. HOOPS GLENS FALLS - Many of the teams vying for a title in the state Federation tournament that begins today are no strangers to the road. Kennedy, the PSAL...

GIANTS OK DEAL WITH BURRESS

The on-again, off-again, supposedly dead-and-buried negotiations with Plaxico Burress not only were resuscitated yesterday, they sprang to life with the Giants finally landing the best receiver left on the open...

BILAS DANCIN' AGAIN - ESPN-ER JOINS ENBERG IN CBS BOOTH

After a one-year hiatus, Jay Bilas will return to the NCAA Men's Tournament this year as a color analyst for CBS. Bilas will do color alongside Dick Enberg, a position...

5 QUESTIONS FOR BILLY PACKER

This week, NYP TV Sports' Mike Forde caught up with CBS' Billy Packer. This will be the 65-year-old Packer's 24th year of calling the NCAA Tournament for CBS, and his...

FORDE'S MEMO OF THE WEEK

To: ESPN From: Mike Forde Re: Dream Job CC: Paula Abdul Dear ESPN: We understand you want to jump on the American Idol hype, but sports reporting and analysis are...

THE CHASE IS ON - 'CUSE, UCONN ENTER TOURNEY TITLE-TESTED

TODAY Connecticut vs. Central Florida 2:45 p.m., CBS Syracuse vs. Vermont 7:10 p.m., CBS By MIKE FORDE All the teams that have even a remote chance of winning the NCAA...

LITTLE TO TAKE FROM THE PLAYERS' TESTIMONY

WASHINGTON - The parade of baseball all-stars began at 2:22 p.m. yesterday when Curt Schilling walked into Room 2154 of the Rayburn Building. Five minutes later, Rafael Palmeiro, Sammy Sosa,...

SAME OLD SCHILLING IN FRONT OF MIC

WASHINGTON - The media began filtering into the Rayburn Building 2½ hours before yesterday's Congressional hearing on steroids began, opening the hubbub on the hill that lasted late into the...

CURT, OTHERS CONTRIBUTE TO ... A CIRCUS ACT

Yesterday was Pick Your Poison Thursday, fielder's choice. On CBS at noon, it was the same old poison, the start of the Sweet 64, the usual, nothing-left-to-say corruption of higher...

CONGRESS: MIGHT BE TIME FOR BUD TO GO HOME

WASHINGTON - An 11-hour Congressional hearing was nearing its end yesterday when Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) called for baseball commissioner Bud Selig's job. "Maybe it's time for new leadership in...

MEEK MCGWIRE RUNS FROM TRUTH

WASHINGTON - Mark McGwire arrived smaller than we remembered yesterday and left even smaller. He didn't tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. He didn't tell...

MILD INTEREST FROM METS

PORT ST. LUCIE - Some said they wouldn't watch. Some couldn't resist. And so overall at Mets camp, the Congressional hearings generated mixed interest yesterday morning. "I'm not going to...

YANKEES FOCUS ON EVERYTHING BUT CONGRESS' SESSION

TAMPA - Jason Giambi worked his body instead of watching a congressional hearing he came very close to being a big part of. "No," Giambi said when asked if he...

POL: MIGHT BE TIME FOR SELIG TO GO

WASHINGTON - An 11-hour Congressional hearing was nearing its end yesterday when Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) called for baseball commissioner Bud Selig's job. "Maybe it's time for new leadership in...