August 7, 2006

BUCK$ FOR BLOG: SOFTBANK PUTS $5M IN HUFF POST

A group led by venture capital firm Softbank is investing $5 million in the Huffington Post, an online news site and political blog owned by the pundit Arianna Huffington, The...

STUCK IN A JAM

THE musical magic that has made the Dave Matthews Band as much a part of summer as popsicles melted into a sticky mess at the first of its two Randalls...

B'WAY DARLINGS OF SKANK

ON Broadway, they're angels - Glinda the Good Witch of "Wicked" and Belle of "Beauty and the Beast." No wonder Kate Reinders and Sarah Litzsinger like to blow off a...

VENUE HAS GOOD INTENT

THE Big Apple's newest concert venue is an 85-year-old tent. But not just any tent - this one has stained glass windows, a velvet lining and an adjacent beer garden....

TROUBLED WALTERS - DOWN TO ONLY THREE CO-HOSTS, BARBARA WALTERS IS STRUGGLING TO KEEP 'THE FEW' FROM SINKING UNTIL HELP ARRIVES. SHE'S RUNNING OUT OF TIME.

FIRST, THERE ARE BARBARA'S STRANGE OUTBURSTS AND SUDDEN SEXUAL CONFESSIONS. WHO SUSPECTED THAT SHE WOULD EVER START TALKING ON TV ABOUT HER SEX LIFE! IS it me or is "The...

PRINCE-LY HALFTIME

Rock star Prince is finally coming out of his shell. First, he performed on the "American Idol" finale last May; now it appears he will be the headline act for...

YOUNG CBS STAR QUITS

MIKA Brzezinski, the striking, blonde CBS anchorwoman who appeared to be on the fast track, is leaving the network, according to authoritative reports. The 39-year-old daughter of former Carter White...

EMMY-BARRASSING - UPROAR AT BURSTYN'S 11-SECOND NOMINATION

AN Emmy nomination for a performance lasting ap proximately 11 seconds is puzzling Hollywood insiders and raising questions about how the TV Academy chooses its nominees. The recipient of this...

STARR REPORT

Sprague Grayden, the "best friend" on "Six Feet Under" (opposite Lauren Ambrose) and "Joan of Arcadia" (opposite Amber Tamblyn), has graduated to co- starring status opposite Skeet Ulrich and Ashley...

BEAUTY WITHOUT BORDERS - PRODUCT JUNKIES HORDE RARE FARE LIKE $320 EYE CREAM FROM JAPAN; LOOK FOR LUXE FROM ABROAD

AIN'T no river wide enough to separate a beauty junkie and her favorite face cream - not even if that river is the Atlantic Ocean. The true addict will spend...

RESCUED WTC COP EAGER TO MEET 'ONE OF MY ANGELS'

A cop rescued on 9/11 says he's dying to meet the mystery Marine who helped save his life. Port Authority Officers John McLoughlin and Will Jimeno were trapped under burning...

RICE: U.N BID BEST FIRST STEP TO PEACE

WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says a new U.N. resolution agreed to by the United States and France could bring a stop to the violence in the Middle...

BIKE-BY SHOTS WOUND COUPLE

A bicycle-riding gunman pedaled up to a couple sitting on a park bench on the Lower East Side early yesterday and shot them, cops and witnesses said. Monique Ratliff, 19,...

'PG' 9/11 EXHIBIT - MUSEUM BIGS PLAN 'SAFE' HALL FOR KIDS

The World Trade Center Memorial museum will include a special gallery designed to protect young kids from its more traumatic exhibits, The Post has learned. Museum planners have agreed on...

MAIL CALL: BIG CASH DRIVE FOR MEMORIAL

With the upcoming fifth anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks and the release this week of Oliver Stone's movie "World Trade Center," fund-raisers for Ground Zero's memorial are launching...

RACING 'BALLAD' HAS WILL TO WIN

Will Ferrell's "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby" took the checkered flag this weekend, topping all other movies in box-office sales, according to industry estimates. The NASCAR spoof sped...

BATS WHAT I'M READING: DUBYA

He's a boy of summer - at least in his choice of reading. As President Bush starts his vacation, the former Texas Ranger owner has just put down "Clemente," by...

MY HANDS ARE TIED: MIKE TELLS MA OF 'MOB-COP VICTIM'

Mayor Bloomberg feels for the heartbroken mother whose innocent son was allegedly murdered by the mob cops. He just can't do anything about it. "I can only imagine the heartache...

JOE HINTS DEM DOOM COULD BE THE END

Embattled Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman yesterday appeared to hint that he might bow out altogether if he loses tomorrow's bitter Democratic primary battle to upstart challenger Ned Lamont. While the...

JET-SKI TEEN'S BODY FOUND - WASHES UP JUST A BLOCK FROM HOME

The body of a 17-year-old boy feared drowned after a Jet Ski crash in June was found yesterday in the waters just a block from his Brooklyn house, leaving his...

DIRTY DISHERS - MORE CITY EATERIES FAIL HEALTH INSPECTIONS

The number of city eateries that flunked food inspections jumped 17 percent over the past year - with some famous and highly rated Big Apple restaurants landing on the dreaded...

NYPD DAILY BLOTTER

THE BRONX (lcf) * A Bronx man was killed yesterday when he lost control of his vehicle on the Hutchinson River Parkway, witnesses told police. William Phelan, 42, was going...

HEZBOLLAH IN LETHAL BLITZ - 200 ROCKETS KILL 15 ISRAELIS

JERUSALEM - Hezbollah unleashed a deadly barrage of 200 rockets on northern Israel yesterday, wiping out 12 reserve soldiers with a single missile at a kibbutz and killing three other...

MANHOLE BLAST SHOT SUV AT ME: FIREFIGHTER

A city firefighter is suing Con Ed, claiming he narrowly escaped death when a manhole cover exploded and sent an SUV flying onto him. Marc Kroenung, 33, believes he survived...

ORAL OP IS FATAL - HEALTHY TEEN DIES

A Brooklyn family is demanding answers as to why their healthy 18-year-old son went to NYU Medical Center for simple cosmetic surgery but died a day later from complications that...

JOE STICKS TO HIS GUNS IN 11TH-HOUR PLEA

Embattled Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman yesterday spoke directly to the Democratic voters angry at him for supporting the Iraq war - insisting he still believes it was right, but begging...

U.S. TROOPS JOIN IRAQI STREET FIGHT

WASHINGTON - American troops are being transferred to Baghdad to help Iraqi forces regain control of the streets amid worsening sectarian violence that U.S. generals fear is pushing the country...

BIKE-BY SHOTS HIT B'BALLER KIN

A cousin of NBA basketball star Theo Ratliff was shot in the head by a bicycle-riding gunman who pedaled up to her and a male companion as they sat on...

HEAT TOLL NOW AT 22

Two more city deaths have been blamed on last week's heat wave, the medical examiner said yesterday, bringing the toll to 22. An 80-year-old woman and a 56-year-old man were...

POLICE INFORMANT FOUND SLAIN

A confidential police informant who had recently helped cops make an arrest in Queens was found dead in his parked luxury car, authorities said yesterday. Cops are investigating whether the...

11 ARRESTED IN CHELSEA SWEEP

The police crackdown on rowdy patrons outside Chelsea nightclubs netted 11 people on drug and alcohol related charges over the last four days, cops said yesterday. The beefed-up patrols were...

N.Y.'S CHINA ROSE - 'IRON FIST' FIGHTS FOR THE POOR

As a young teacher in Chinatown fighting proposed budget cuts, Virginia Kee was known as "the iron fist in the velvet glove." "When I felt strongly about something, I would...

'YANK' PITCHES FOR RATNER

The owner of the Brooklyn-bound New Jersey Nets has drafted a behind-the-scenes Yankee all-star to lobby for his $4.2 billion NBA arena and residential complex - and he's paying Steinbrenner...

STRANDED SENATOR A DEAD MAN RUNNING

EAST HARTFORD, Conn. - Even the rain was a no-show. Sen. Joe Lieberman stood in the parking lot of Mickey's Oceanic Grill chatting with exactly two people - a supporter...

AILING B'KLYN HOSPITAL IN LINE FOR TRAN$FUSION

New York Methodist Hospital is negotiating to take over another Brooklyn health-care institution that finds itself on life support - cash-strapped Victory Memorial Hospital, The Post has learned. Victory Memorial's...

TAXED OUT OF N.Y. - TOP GOPER 'FLEEING SOUTH'

ALBANY - A prominent Manhattan Republican who worked for years to lower taxes in New York has sold his Upper East Side townhouse, closed his business office, and has decided...

GOP USES HATED HILL TO VILIFY DEM FOES

WASHINGTON - Republicans are invoking Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's name in races across the country in a bid to tar opponents by tying them to the former first lady. Clinton,...

FOR-CELL SIGN AT CITY HOSPS - $ FOR ROOF TOWERS

The city's public hospitals and nursing homes have raked in more than a half-million dollars by allowing cellphone providers to place towers on their roofs, The Post has learned. The...

BIKER IS 'HIT' TWICE - CITY BILLS PARAPLEGIC

A bike rider left paralyzed after being struck by the driver of then-Manhattan Borough President Virginia Fields will receive $6 million from the city - but still has to pay...

DOC IN 'COMP' CHAOS - PATIENTS IN LIMBO

Hundreds of injured employees are furious after the revelation that their workers'-compensation doctor was not properly licensed by the state's benefits system. The shocking discovery about Dr. Cheri Durden, 47,...

NEW FAMILY LEAVES U.S. FOR WAR-TORN 'HOMELAND'

JERUSALEM - Brooklyn-born Sammy Capuano and his family had "everything we wanted" in Florida: a great home in a great location - even within walking distance of good kosher restaurants....

FIERY HELL FOR B'KLYN BRAVEST

Firefighters battle a raging blaze as it engulfs the top floor of a Brooklyn apartment building yesterday. Nine firefighters, including this hero rescuer (right), were injured before the flames were...

FASO COUNTING ON PHANTOM$

INCREASINGLY desperate GOP gubernatorial candidate John Faso is urging potential contributors who don't want to be publicly associated with his long-shot campaign to make their donations to newly created "phantom...

THE 5TH ANNUAL LIBERTY MEDAL AWARDS - SALUTE OUR REAL HEROES

Many citizens of our great city are dedicated to helping others, without expectation of fame. We are seeking candidates for the fifth annual New York Post Liberty Medals, and we'd...

BACKUP SLINGER - TRIO VIES TO BE ELI'S RESERVE

ALBANY - After each throw, it would be understandable if Tim Hasselbeck immediately craned his neck one way to see if coach Tom Coughlin was nodding in approval, and then...

SHOCK RETURNS TO FIELD

GIANT NOTES ALBANY - The largest training camp crowd of the summer roared in approval yesterday morning after Jeremy Shockey leaped to haul in an Eli Manning pass. It's never...

JEFFRIES IN KNICKS' FOLD

The Knicks will add a defensive presence today when the Washington Wizards are expected to announce they are not matching the five-year, $30 million offer sheet presented to restricted free...

RACING HALL SET TO WELCOME TRIO

SARATOGA SPRINGS - Thank goodness for the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame's historical review committee. Meeting every other year to reconsider trainers, jockeys and horses that have...

REMARKABLE NEWS AS 'ARTIE' OFF BOARD

SARATOGA SPRINGS - Track was fast, turf firm, on gorgeous afternoon at Old Spa. In Grade 2, $150,000 Fourstardave going mile-and-sixteenth on inner turf, Javier Castellano, who's having very good...

EARNING THEIR PAY - REYES, WRIGHT BACK MAINE IN 8-1 ROUT

Mets 8 - Phillies 1 The long-term plan paid short-term dividends last night. Jose Reyes and David Wright, who signed contract extensions days apart, showed exactly why they're considered the...

ACHILLES KEEPS FLOYD OUT - WON'T RETURN UNTIL TOMORROW, AT EARLIEST

MET NOTES Yesterday afternoon in the Mets clubhouse, Cliff Floyd played video football against Lastings Milledge. It was the closest he was going to get to a field until at...

FORREST FIRE FACES REVIEW BY COMMISH

The chairman of the New York State Athletic Commission will review a tape of Saturday night's fight between junior middleweights Vernon Forrest and Ike Quartey, but yesterday said it's unlikely...

DEALS SHOW FANS THIS CLUB'S FOR REAL

GROUND has been broken on a new stadium in the Shea parking lot and, in the last week, the Mets made sure to put the cornerstones in place. At a...

GREEN GRINS ON BUS RIDE

JET NOTES To the victors go the spoils. The players from the Jets' victorious "green" team got a few extra benefits on their bus ride back to Long Island last...

CHAD IT UP - QB STELLAR ON 'GAME DAY'

The Jets played their first game of the 2006 season yesterday at Giants Stadium, where they left undefeated and with little doubt about who their starting quarterback will be on...

FLOYD REMAINS ON SHELF

MET NOTES Yesterday afternoon in the Mets clubhouse, Cliff Floyd played video football against Lastings Milledge. It was the closest he was going to get to a field until at...

EARNING THEIR PAY - REYES, WRIGHT BACK MAINE IN 8-1 WIN

Mets 8 - Phillies 1 The long-term plan paid short-term dividends last night. Jose Reyes and David Wright, who signed contract extensions days apart, showed exactly why they're considered the...

BOBBING & WEAVING - PLEASE STOP MAKING EXCUSES FOR ABREU

SO IF we're supposed to be the smartest fans in the world, how come we're always treated like morons? In the days preceding Bobby Abreu's trade to the Yankees, those...

BASHIN' BOMBERS ABUSE BIRDS

BALTIMORE - When a team slugs four homers in a game, chances are strong the blasts will score more than four runs. However, four Yankee homers produced just four runs...

WRIGHT TURN FOR JARET - YANKEES UP TWO ON SOX AFTER VICTORY

Yankees 6 - Orioles 1 BALTIMORE - Jaret Wright's heart is so big, you need a wheelbarrow to lug it around. No longer does his right arm turn baseballs into...

METS DO THE THE WRIGHT THING - DAVID GETS AMAZIN' $55 MILLION CONTRACT

No major-league player has ever been given more money after less service time than David Wright. And that, his agent Seth Levinson said yesterday, is good karma for the Mets....

OF WEIS AND MEN

SOUTH BEND, Ind. - There is one cold, hard, irrefutable truth about the Notre Dame football program: You either love it or hate it. Either you love the fact that...

BOBBY LAUDS DONNY BALLGAME

YANKEE NOTES BALTIMORE - Add Bobby Abreu to the list of Yankee hitters who adore Don Mattingly. According to Abreu, the hitting instructor is the reason the right fielder is...

WEIRD BUT TRUE

Robert Samson is expected to be in an upstate court this week after being cited for "sight obstruction" - because of a healthy crop of sunflowers near his driveway. "I...