April 21, 2005

MORGAN STANLEY LOSES 8 TRADERS

Morgan Stanley chief Phil Purcell got hit yesterday with his first big group defection of troops - adding new pressures to calls for his resignation. A team of eight equity...

SONG SELLING 'MILE HIGH' JEANS TO FILL ITS SEATS

Delta's Song airline and Henri Bendel are putting some style in their version of the Mile High club. As part of a two-week-long event to kick off Song's new nonstop...

SUNDAY TURNING INTO 'DESPERATE' FACEOFF

In the Sunday night television ratings war, the battle lines are being drawn between men and women. After 35 years, ABC passed on football in favor of "Desperate Housewives," which...

DOUBLECLICK DEAL - HELLMAN & FRIEDMAN BIDS FOR ONLINE AD GIANT

DoubleClick, the one-time darling of dot-com advertising, is nearing an agreement to be sold to Hellman & Friedman in a potential deal that could be worth around $1.2 billion, The...

SHOCK EXCHANGE - SURPRISE DEAL MAKES NYSE PUBLIC, ELECTRONIC

The New York Stock Exchange is going public. Under pressure from aggressive competing markets around the world, the Big Board announced an historic deal, merging with an electronic stock exchange,...

LANDMARK MERGER IS END OF ERA ON WALL ST.

A Wall Street tradition since 1792 is coming to a close with the end of the venerable "seat" on the New York Stock Exchange. The historic exchange with its marbled...

INVESTORS WON'T SEE TOO MANY CHANGES

While the move by the New York Stock Exchange to merge with publicly traded Archipelago Holdings will be the biggest change in the 212-year history of the exchange, investors will...

BROKER ARRAIGNED ON FRAUD

Brian R. Mitchell, the Forest Hills broker accused of stealing $10 million from a client, was arraigned yesterday in Brooklyn federal court after federal agents arrested him and charged him...

TWX, COMCAST CABLE BID OK'D

A bankruptcy court judge in New York yesterday approved an $18 billion joint bid from Time Warner and Comcast for bankrupt cable operator Adelphia, according to a source close to...

STOCK MARKET IS SCARY PLACE TO BE

TRY finding an expert back in early January who thought the stock market wasn't going to do well in 2005. Now that everyone was so wrong, try finding anyone who...

LANDMARK MERGER IS END OF AN ERA ON WALL STREET

A Wall Street tradition since 1792 is coming to a close with the end of the venerable "seat" on the New York Stock Exchange. The historic exchange with its marbled...

'GMA' RATTLED 'TODAY' CAGE

KATIE Couric's fiery off-air demeanor and slipping ratings were the catalysts for the ouster of "Today" executive producer Tom Touchet, sources say. Touchet's predecessor, Jeff Wald, who helmed the popular...

GARBAGE RECYCLED - RADIO POP YIELDS TO RAW ROCK ONSTAGE

LIKE parallel lines, Garbage's live music and what it creates in the studio are close but never meet. At the Hammerstein Ballroom Tuesday, the difference couldn't have been more conspicuous,...

TEXTING UNDER THE INFLUENCE - HIGH-TECH HANGOVERS HAUNT GADGET GEEKS; CALL IT TUI - TEXTING UNDER THE INFLUENCE

WHEN Colin drank too many birthday shots on an empty stomach at an East Village bar, he blacked out and two friends carried him home. What could have been just...

SCHOOL'S OUT: 'IDOL' TEACH BOOTED

THE song has ended for Anwar Robinson. The 25-year-old teacher from East Orange, N.J., was booted off last night's live edition of "American Idol" - leaving only six contestants on...

STARR REPORT

Martha takes the fall CBS' decision to delay its Martha Stewart movie, originally scheduled to air May 25, has more to do with timing than with a frenetic shooting schedule....

WILD MAN OF WALL ST. - YOU CAN'T FLIP PAST THE ANGRY ANALYST

WHY is Jim Cramer on his feet for the entire hour of his CNBC show "Mad Money"? Because he has no chair, he said yesterday. "I didn't have a chair...

PAULA: 'I'M NOT ON ANYTHING'

'AMERICAN Idol" judge Paula Abdul, who's been described as "loopy" on this season's show, wants America to know she's clean and sober. "Drugs? I'm not addicted to pills of any...

ON THE HOU$E - RENOVATION SHOWS FIND CREATIVE TAX LOOPHOLES

Never look a gift house in the mouth? Think again. People who've had their houses renovated on popular shows such as "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" have been finding themselves with...

'CHITTY' CAR IS THE STAR

NEVER perform with animals or small children, warned W.C. Fields. To which might now be added "and flying cars." The car is the star of "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang," the...

ON THE WATERFRONT - WILLIAMSBURG WARRIORS PARTY ON, BUT MUDDLE MESSAGE TO THE IN-CROWD

IF hipsters throw a rally, but no one knows what it's for, does it make an impact? On Tuesday night, the Williamsburg Warriors - a coalition founded by residents Eve...

PACINO GETS HIS GAME ON

SAY hello to my little friend!" When techno-freaks hear that classic line repeated in the upcoming "Scarface" video game, it will have all the heft, authority and drugged-out insanity of...

'CHIVALRY SLAY' SUSPECT ON TRIAL IN BX. DAD'S DEATH

A 21-year-old Bronx man is on trial for allegedly killing a father of three who failed to hold a door open for an elderly woman. Raymond Ramirez is charged with...

POST HONORS WINS RADIO

They've given us the world for 40 years, so we gave them a piece of history. WINS is celebrating its 40th anniversary as an all-news station, and The Post has...

WEIRD BUT TRUE

A 90-year-old Maine woman raced into action when a bobcat entered her back yard and snatched her beloved pussycat, Smudge. Feisty Mildred Luce, of Wyman Township, grabbed the beast and...

SHARPTON'S THIR$TY PALS - BUGGED DUO SAID HE'D THROW WEIGHT AROUND TO GET THEM PEPSI 'BILLIONS'

WASHINGTON - Two accused con men who raised big bucks for the Rev. Al Sharpton's presidential campaign were hoping he could get them access to "billions" in PepsiCo funds -...

FATS MAY RETARD CANCER

Moms who eat certain types of fatty foods while pregnant and while nursing may dramatically reduce their daughters' risk of breast cancer later in life, a study reveals. Scientists at...

FEDS WANT FERRY CAPT. HIT HARD

Prosecutors want a federal judge to hit disgraced Staten Island Ferry pilot Richard Smith with an extra-heavy prison term for manslaughter because of his "extraordinary" recklessness and the "highly unusual...

FEDS 'NET ONLINE RX RING

A Queens couple were among 20 people nabbed by the feds in a global crackdown on lucrative Internet pharmacies that allegedly count teenagers and addicts among their customers for illegal...

TELEVISION FOR TYCOONS - 'APPRENTICE' TOPS LIST OF RICH'S FAVORITES

The Donald must be so proud. Donald Trump's third season of "The Apprentice" is the most watched TV show among his peers - the rich, according to a new study...

CHARGES DROPPED VS. TEACHERS

Authorities yesterday dropped disorderly-conduct charges against two teachers who challenged cops when they handcuffed students in a brawl at a Bronx high school. Tickets that an irate sergeant had issued...

NYPD DAILY BLOTTER

THE BRONX * Police are seeking information about the death of a Morris Heights father-of-two who disappeared three weeks ago. Police yesterday identified Vernal Colin Scott (above) through dental records...

CELEBS BOO$T HOLLYWOOD HILL

WASHINGTON - Hotshot celebrities like Donald Trump and Barbra Streisand have lined up behind Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, forking over big bucks for her campaign war chest. The Donald ponied...

CANDIDATES GET 'AIR' PERKS

Candidates for local office will soon get a chance to make their pitches to voters on TV - for free. The city is opening up its cable outlet, Channel 74,...

HI-TECH TRASH CANS FOR QNS.

Fifty of the world's most modern garbage cans will soon be chomping on trash on Queens street corners. A nonprofit environmental group has purchased the solar-powered compacting trash cans -...

BRO FEARS FOR POPE - TOO OLD FOR JOB, HE SAYS

Pope Benedict XVI's older brother said yesterday he's very unhappy the prelate was elected pontiff - because he's too old for the daunting job. "I am very concerned," said the...

'HARD-LINER' WILL WORK TO PROMOTE UNITY

On the first day of his reign, Pope Benedict XVI moved swiftly yesterday to soften his image as a hard-line enforcer of church orthodoxy, vowing to continue dialogue within the...

CON MAN ADMITS FAKE COP CHARITY

A scammer pleaded guilty to collecting funds for a phony police organization, impersonating a federal cop and distributing counterfeit shields and parking placards to convicted felons, sources said yesterday. Scott...

HILL BACK PLAYING IN 'LEFT' FIELD

OOPS. The Hillary Meter is wobbling back to the left - and less electable - side as potential 2008 presidential wannabe Sen. Rodham Hillary Clinton tries to protect her liberal...

CASE VS. COOKIE DAD CRUMBLES

A Long Island dad who was busted for helping his daughter sell a batch of Girl Scout cookies in Brooklyn last month was free to hawk them at will after...

AMY BATTLES HUBBY - HE CALLS COPS ON 'L.I. LOLITA'

Amy Fisher's middle-aged husband dropped a dime on the former "Long Island Lolita," phoning police because she became loud and abusive in an argument over her 17-year-old stepson, sources told...

WEINER 'TRIPS' OVER HIS TAX JAB AT FREDDY

Rep. Anthony Weiner came under fire yesterday for charging that Fernando Ferrer's tax plan would drive jobs to Hyderabad - after it turned out Weiner once visited the Indian city,...

HEAVEN AND EL - HIGH LINE DESIGNS GIVE GLIMPSE OF GREEN PEACE

A cluster of trees stands 30 feet above the street; glass staircases lead past polished steel girders; concrete slabs rub against native grasses and wildflowers. New Yorkers got their first...

JACKO MADE US KEEP KID A CAPTIVE: GUARD

SANTA MARIA, Calif. - One of Michael Jackson's former gatekeepers turned the screws on the child-loving King of Pop yesterday - testifying about a warning posted in a guard house...

CITY'S $8 MIL GOOF - TOO MANY 0'S ON CHECK

Who's checking the checks? A couple of misplaced commas on a check issued by the City Comptroller's Office nearly wound up costing taxpayers more than $8 million - and the...

MEGA MILLIONS POOL PALS SUE CO-WORKER FOR LOTTO 'LARCENY'

A Manhattan judge has frozen the lottery winnings of a man his colleagues claim is a lotto louse. John Piccolo won $175,000 playing Mega Millions last November - with a...

SPOOKY QUEENS CEMETERY BUST

A bloodied man was busted running from a Queens cemetery carrying a pilfered urn and a section of an $80,000 stained-glass window under his arm, police said yesterday. The spooky...

HAT TRICK - 3RD TEACH IN SEX SCANDAL; 3RD TEACH SEX BUST

A Brooklyn middle-school teacher - a married motherof three - was arrested yesterday on sex-abuse charges, becoming the third female educator nabbed in a week for alleged shenanigans with male...

JUDGING JENNINGS - THE CITY COUNCIL COPS OUT

AS drama, it rivaled the best of Broadway. And if righteous indignation is your cup of tea, then the City Council chamber yesterday - where Councilman Allan Jennings was accused...

MAN NABBED FOR BRUTAL '95 RAPE

A Bronx man's past came back to haunt him yesterday when DNA samples led to his arrest 10 years after a brutal rape - and less than four months before...

FLA. SET TO POP.-TOP N.Y.

New York may be the Empire State - but it's an empire that's crumbling in the face of Florida sunshine. Flocks of snowbirds are braving alligators, hurricanes and hanging chads...

POLICE PAYOFF PROBE - DVD BUSTERS EYED

Two NYPD veterans are being investigated by Internal Affairs for allegedly accepting payoffs from the motion-picture industry to arrest vendors of pirated DVDs, law-enforcement sources told The Post. One officer,...

COUNCIL CONDEMNS ALLAN IN SEX-HARASS

The City Council yesterday censured and punished Councilman Allan Jennings for abusing female staffers - the most severe sanction it has ever meted out against a member. After an emotional,...

2ND 'LEGION DEATH' PROBE

State authorities are investigating the death of a second patient at New York-Presbyterian Hospital to determine if Legionnaires' disease was a factor. The Health Department, which is looking into the...

2 MORE BOYS ACCUSE B'KLYN REV.

Two teenage boys came forward yesterday to claim they were sexually assaulted by a Brooklyn pastor who is already charged with sodomizing a 13-year-old boy, police said yesterday. The latest...

OIL PROBERS QUIT OVER KOFI BREAK

WASHINGTON - Two top investigators of the scandal-scarred U.N. oil-for-food program have resigned in protest because of the probe's alleged kid-glove treatment of Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Sources close to the...

'HANG' DAD JAILED - 'I HOPE THEY NEVER LET YOU OUT,' JUDGE TELLS TOT KILLER

A judge angrily sentenced a Queens man to 22 years to life in prison yesterday for hanging his 2-year-old son, and brushed aside a last-ditch effort by the killer to...

10G EACH FOR SCHOLAR DUO

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but 17-year-old Brooklyn photographer Kathleen Ching cashed her snapshots in for a cool $10,000. The Abraham Lincoln HS senior was one...

SHARPTON SAYS HE WON'T BACK FERRER

It looks as if the Rev. Al Sharpton, who endorsed Fernando Ferrer for mayor in 2001, is looking for a new candidate in this year's race. In an interview on...

ATM CRIME WAVE

Lower Manhattan has been hit by a new wave of ATM thefts - with at least 16 cash machines being ripped off in only the first three months of the...

'KNIFE-WIELD' TEACHER BUSTED

A city schoolteacher was busted in lower Manhattan for carrying two illegal knives, police said. Robert Walker, 53, was spotted Tuesday night carrying a gravity knife on Essex Street. A...

TOT IN HORROR PLUNGE - SURVIVES 5-STORY FALL

A 4-year-old boy was clinging to life last night after miraculously surviving a five-story fall from his Bronx apartment by clutching a pillow, police said. Anashul Rahman had accidentally locked...

2 MORE SUE BAD NEWS IN STIFF TIFF

The Daily News was hit with two new lawsuits yesterday, including a $1.2 million action claiming that the Scratch n' Stiff contest is nothing more than a fraud. Former readers...

TO THE RESCUE - MACAULAY WILL TESTIFY FOR HIS OLD PAL JACKO: REPORT

SANTA MARIA, Calif. - Former child actor Macaulay Culkin reportedly will testify on Michael Jackson's behalf in the singer's child-molestation trial. The "Home Alone" star - who said last month...

WEINER 'TRIPS' OVER HIS TAX BLAST AT FREDDY

Rep. Anthony Weiner came under fire yesterday for charging that Fernando Ferrer's tax plan would drive jobs to Hyderabad - after it turned out Weiner once visited that Indian city,...

MOONLIGHTING COP ARRESTED

An 11-year NYPD veteran was busted yesterday for claiming he was a cop on assignment while moonlighting off-duty as a private investigator. Michael Rosato, 42, who is assigned to the...

NINJA THIEVES STRIKE AGAIN

Long Island's masked ninja jewel thieves, who invade homes in the poshest neighborhoods to steal gems and cash, have struck for the fourth time this year. At 2 a.m. yesterday,...

N.J. GEN. MAY HEAD JOINT CHIEFS

A Brooklyn-born Marine general is expected to be chosen by President Bush to be the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, officials said. Peter Pace, 59, a Naval...

HUDDLING WITH HATE - POLS LET ANTI-SEMITE OFF HOOK AGAIN

LESS than two weeks after Lenora Fulani exploded a bombshell on New York 1 by insisting that there was nothing anti-Semitic in describing Jews as "mass murderers of people of...

BABE'S FAMOUS HOUSE

Yankee Stadium is affectionately known as "The House That Ruth Built." Read about the history of the world's most famous stadium. The Yankees have never been shy about spending money....

10G EACH FOR SCHOLARSHIP DUO

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but 17-year-old Brooklyn photographer Kathleen Ching cashed her snapshots in for a cool $10,000. The Abraham Lincoln HS senior was one...

ATM SMASH & CASH - DOWNTOWN CRIME WAVE

Lower Manhattan has been hit by a new wave of ATM thefts - with at least 16 cash machines being ripped off in only the first three months of the...

'CHECK' THIS OUT- CITY BLUNDER ADDS $8M TO PAYOUT

Who's checking the checks? A couple of misplaced commas on a check issued by the City Comptroller's Office nearly wound up costing taxpayers more than $8 million - and the...

RJ GETS CLEARANCE TO PRACTICE

NET NOTES BOSTON - At least Richard Jefferson didn't do all his rehab and work to sit and watch the playoffs this season. Because of his teammates, Jefferson will play...

ELEMENTS TAKES STRETCH BATTLE

Sorry to hear about passing of oldtime racetracker Robert W. Jeans, who died this week at 82. Former groom for Hall-of-Fame trainers Eddie Neloy and Allen Jerkens, Jeans rubbed such...

'CATOMINE' RETIRED

Sweet Catomine, last year's 2-year-old filly champion who's been mired in controversy since finishing fifth as the even-money favorite in the April 9 Santa Anita Derby, has been retired, owner...

MORE DELAY OF GAME - GARY & NHL CRONIES STILL BARGAINING IN BAD FAITH

HERE's how Tuesday's meeting between the NHL and NHLPA ended: With Boston owner Jeremy Jacobs, who wouldn't know how to spell "Cup," if spotted the "C" and the "p" (and...

NHL DROPS SCAB THREAT

Instead of dropping the Big One, the NHL disarmed it, a hopeful bombshell in itself. Meeting in midtown yesterday, the Board of Governors surprisingly shelved for summer the threat of...

HAGGERTY AWARD GOES TO ST. PETE'S CLARK

There's one trivia question Keydren Clark can answer in less time than it takes the 5-foot-9 guard from Harlem to flick off one of his laser beam 3's. Ask Clark,...

STOTT NOT FAZED BY MOUND WOES

TORONTO - To many, George Steinbrenner's statement Sunday was aimed at Joe Torre's coaching staff more than the players or the manager. Since the starting pitching hasn't come close to...

FINAL DEGRADATION - ABYSMAL SEASON COMES TO END

The Knicks were the NBA's best-dressed team, thanks to Isiah Thomas' edict on jackets and ties being worn to the arena and on team flights. "That's about all we can...

REST TEST FOR PEDRO - FIRST START OF YEAR ON FOUR-DAY BREAK

MIAMI - There have been a lot of firsts for Pedro Martinez this season. First start as a Met. First win as a Met. First Shea Stadium start as a...

STEPH: I DON'T NEED THE POINT

Stephon Marbury sat all but a fraction of a second of the fourth quarter in the Knicks' penultimate game of the season, a tilt they lost 92-91 in Chicago Tuesday...

BENSON SAYS HE'S ON COURSE FOR RETURN

MET NOTES MIAMI - Kris Benson believes the strained right pec that's kept him on the shelf all season is behind him. Benson has been long-tossing, and long-tossed again yesterday...

JOE: BOSS ISN'T MELLOWING OUT

YANKEE NOTES TORONTO - Joe Torre hasn't heard from George Steinbrenner since The Boss expressed his disgust with the Yankees this past Sunday. However, the way Steinbrenner reacted to the...

SHEFF GETS A WALK

TORONTO - Gary Sheffield knew he wasn't at fault last Thursday night in Fenway Park when a fan reached over the right-field fence and hit Sheffield in the left jaw...

BIG BLUE EYEING GREEN

Eric Green knows he won't be the first one of the group selected, says that's a mistake and is eager to prove wrong any team that needs a cornerback and...

TORRE: BOSS ISN'T MELLOW

YANKEE NOTES TORONTO - Joe Torre hasn't heard from George Steinbrenner since The Boss voiced his disgust with the Yankees this past Sunday. However, the way Steinbrenner reacted to the...

JETS LAND JOLLEY FOR 1ST-ROUNDER

The Jets last night went back to a draft philosophy they executed with success last season: Rather than draft a player at a position of need and hope he works...

KING CARL - PAVANO TAMES JAYS TO WIN FIRST AS YANK

Yankees 11 - Blue Jays 2 TORONTO - Randy Johnson received the most money among the three new faces in the Yankees' rotation. However, Jaret Wright and Carl Pavano are...

FINAL PARTING GIFT - WIZ SIT STARS LATE, KNICKS RALLY TO WIN FINALE

Knicks 113 - Wizards 105 As Herb Williams made what likely was his final walk to his post-game press conference as Knick coach, Isiah Thomas gave him a big bearhug,...

GR-EIGHT! NETS ARE GOING TO PLAYOFFS - CARTER (37) TORCHES CELTS; HEAT NEXT

Nets 102 - Celtics 93 BOSTON - This was the capsule version of the entire Nets season. Awful start. A surge. Another slip. Some signs of life. Vince Carter and...

FRANK'S TROOPS EARN NEW LIFE

BOSTON - It's a good thing Doc Rivers is a man of his word or the Nets might have the same seat for the upcoming NBA playoffs that you and...

BOMBERS BLACK & BLUE

YANKEE NOTES TORONTO - Bernie Williams doesn't expect his left knee to keep him out of the lineup tonight. However, Ruben Sierra isn't likely to be as fortunate. Williams and...

NETS IN LINE FOR BREAK IN BEANTOWN

BOSTON - The Nets faced the kind of game last night in Boston that sports fans crave: the 82nd game of an 82-game season where a playoff berth is at...

JEFFERSON WILL SUIT UP SHOULD NETS ADVANCE

NET NOTES BOSTON - Now all they had to do was get into the playoffs. Richard Jefferson passed his exam and strength test for his surgically repaired left wrist yesterday...

PEDRO FACING REST TEST

MET NOTES MIAMI - For the first time this season, Pedro Martinez will pitch tonight on normal rest. Martinez has made three starts so far, but if you throw out...

BACK TO EARTH - HEILMAN FOLLOWS 1-HIT GEM WITH DOG

Marlins 9 - Mets 2 MIAMI - He faced the same opponent. The similarities end there. Five days after delivering the finest pitching performance of his career - a complete-game...

SHOOTING FOR A PLAYOFF PAYOFF - KIDD, CARTER POSITIONED JERSEY FOR POSTSEASON

BOSTON - They were repeatedly written off - and at times, rightfully so. As recently as their last defeat, eight nights ago at Indiana, the Nets were given all the...

SHEFF WALKS - NO ACTION AGAINST GARY AFTER FENWAY INCIDENT

TORONTO - In his heart Gary Sheffield knew he wasn't at fault last Thursday night in Fenway Park when a fan reached over the right-field fence and hit Sheffield in...

FINAL PARTING GIFT

Knicks 113 - Wizards 105 As Herb Williams made what likely was his final walk to his post-game press conference as Knick coach, Isiah Thomas gave him a big bearhug,...

GIANTS MAY SHOP AT CORNER MARKET - BIG BLUE TAKES GOOD LOOK AT GREEN

Eric Green knows he won't be the first one of the group selected, says that's a mistake and is eager to prove wrong any team that needs a cornerback and...

HERM: BAKER HAS THE GOODS

The Jets either truly believe Chris Baker can smoothly step in as the starting tight end, or they're really persistent fibbers. A day after Jets GM Terry Bradway said that...