August 20, 2006
OIL SPECULATION GAMES ARE HARDLY 'AMERICAN'
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amDear John: You said in last week's column, "Forget the excess-profits tax on oil companies. We should throw some speculators in jail."Please throw journalists like you in there, too. Don't...
NEW LABEL 'CRAZY' LIKE A FOX
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amThat the Gnarls Barkley single "Crazy" launched indy music label Downtown Records onto the scene is fitting - only lunatics would invest their own money in a startup record company...
AL-JAZEERA PLANS FALL U.S. DEBUT
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amThe Arab world's No. 1 cable news network is finally coming to America. The much-delayed launch of the English-language version of the controversial Al-Jazeera network is targeting its launch date...
MURDER BROS. BACK - GOTTI BOYS 'INC.' A NEW DEAL WITH UNIVERSAL
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amABOUT nine months after being cleared on money-laundering charges, The Murder Inc. boys are finally ready to launch their comeback. Rap music bosses Irv "Gotti" Lorenzo and his brother Chris,...
MONEY GRUBBERS - INSIDER: CHASE FOR M&A PROFITS CREATED BAD DEALS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amForget relationships - who needs 'em when there's so much money at stake? Certainly not investment banks, those money-hungry institutions whose role as a trusted company adviser applies only until...
A DATE WITH JUDY
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amRETURN with us now to Columbus Circle 1954, long, long before the Time Warner Center, even before the New York Coliseum (1956-2000) stood there. And on that very site -...
AGING RESPONSIBLE FOR EXCITING STUDIES
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amGRANDMASTERS are like quarterbacks: Their careers begin in their teenage years. They become stars by their early 20s. They reach their peak around 30. And by age 40, virtually all...
HARTLEY WORKING - MARTIN DONOVAN NEEDS HELP FROM INDIE CINEMA
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amWILL someone give this man a decent film role? As the male muse of director Hal Hartley, actor Martin Donovan uttered some of the most memorable lines in '90s indie...
SIMULKASTING - RAP'S MOST CREATIVE DUO ISSUES A FEATURE FILM AND CD
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amIF you don't understand the real-life relationship between OutKast principals Andre Benjamin (a k a Andre 3000) and partner Antwan Patton (a k a Big Boi), look no further than...
HOT LIST - WHAT WE'RE OBSESSED WITH THIS WEEK
August 20, 2006 | 4:00am1) The 'Beach' is back Gearing up to bring us more gossip page fodder, MTV's "Laguna Beach" is back for a third season. This time, brunettes rule and host Tessa...
'ANIMAL' INSTINCT - BROKEN LIZARD KNOWS WHERE THE BOYS ARE
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amIN the beginning, there was Bluto. For 23 years, John Belushi's character in 1978's "National Lampoon's Animal House" was the ultimate drunkenfratboy film icon. Then, in 2001, came Farva, the...
SORRY, BUT WE LIKE IT
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amPARIS HILTON "Paris" [***] (Three stars) Warner NOT to infringe on Paris Hilton's trademark word, but her self-titled CD is hot. If you didn't know the CD was by the...
'IDLEWILD': THE ALBUM
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amOUTKAST "Idlewild" [***] (Three stars) LaFace OUTKAST'S CD version of "Idlewild" defies pigeonholing - it's a soundtrack that includes a little music from the movie, a few songs merely inspired...
THIS WEEK'S DVDS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amPoseidon (Two-Disc Edition) [** 1/2] (Two and one-half stars) Warner, $34.98 Having made masterpieces with "Das Boot" and "The Perfect Storm," Wolfgang Peterson knows his way around disaster on the...
A NEW HOPE? - ALTERNATIVE CANCER TREATMENT HOLDS PROMISE
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amACCORDING to a chilling new statistic, 50 percent of all dogs and cats over age 10 will get cancer. It's a statistic I'm on intimate terms with: My 12-year-old dog,...
DELTA BLUES - KATRINA'S SURVIVORS SPEAK TO LEE
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amSPIKE LEE'S monster documentary on Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath debuts on HBO this week in all its four-part rage and splendor. But Lee is the first to admit that...
STARTING OVER - ROSIE O'DONNELL LEADS PACK OF WOMEN LOOKING FOR SECOND CHANCES
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amMEGAN Mullally, Rosie O' Donnell, and Rachael Ray have something to talk about this fall. * Megan Mullally (right), 47, of NBC's "Will & Grace," is swerving into a new...
IT'S 'LOST,'SET IN A BANK:TV'S NEW COPYCATS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amImitation is the sincerest form of flattery on TV this season, as several new series reach into the not-so-distant past to find not only inspiration but also their basic premise....
RAZOR WARS TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amONE of the toughest things about writing about TV is that the subject has become satire-proof. It's now difficult to poke fun at TV because there's nothing to exaggerate, nothing...
HOW SLEAZY SUGAR-DAD WANNABES 'SHOP' FOR SPICE GIRLS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amOne offered me a hefty monthly allowance, shopping sprees and cash. Another promised to pay the rent on an Upper East Side pad, buy me designer clothes and take me...
STATE PROBES WTC INSURERS' 'STALL' TACTICS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amALBANY - The state Insurance Department is investigating whether four major insurance companies are breaking state law by refusing to make the payouts needed to rebuild the World Trade Center...
WAKING 'REBOOTS' YOUR BRAIN
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amThe ordinary ritual of yawning and opening your eyes in the morning boots up the brain like a computer, research shows. The actions cause a release of nitric oxide, which...
BIG HONOR FOR 9/11 FIREFIGHTER
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amMike Cammarata (left), a Staten Island fireman killed on 9/11, was honored yesterday at the Little League World Series, where he had played 15 years ago. The Fire Academy student's...
LATEST IN DOGGY $TYLE; HIGH FASHION HITS CANINE COUTURE
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amPosh pooches will be soon be swimming in luxury, judging by the looks at yesterday's kickoff of the first Pet Fashion Week. Thelma here is decked out in a blue...
B'KLYN TEEN PEACEMAKER SLAIN
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amIt was the most tragic of ironies for two Brooklyn sisters, whose attempt to broker peace between warring youths ended up claiming the life of their brother. Erika Lewis, 26,...
NYPD DAILY BLOTTER
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amTHE BRONX *** Three thugs - at least one armed with a knife - attacked a man in Highbridge early yesterday, police sources said. The 21-year-old victim, whose name was...
PERV HAD EYES FOR ME: TEEN
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amA JonBenet Ramsey look-alike from Alabama says John Mark Karr targeted her in 2000 when he was substitute teacher in her hometown. Kaley Davidson, 17, a high school senior in...
WEAK $$ BITE FOR 'SNAKES'
August 20, 2006 | 4:00am"Snakes on a Plane" will likely slither into first place at the box office this weekend - but despite a summer of unprecedented hype, the serpent screamer couldn't rattle up...
'MURDER' INK: NOTES RAISING NEW DOUBT; HANDWRITING EXPERT NOT SO SURE IT'S KARR
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amThe devil will be in the details. As investigators pore over handwriting and DNA samples from JonBenet Ramsey slaying suspect John Mark Karr to see if they match up with...
BASEMENT BUTCHERY; S&M NIGHTMARE AT 'CHOP' HOUSE
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amA Long Islander suspected of dismembering and decapitating a neighbor in a "psycho-sexual" frenzy kept a sick collection of mutilated mannequins and sadomasochistic paraphernalia in his blood-soaked basement, authorities and...
ISRAEL'S BOLD ATTACK; COMMANDOS CHOKE ARMS FLOW TO LEB
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amJERUSALEM - Israeli commandos staged a dramatic surprise raid deep inside Lebanon early yesterday targeting what officials say is a continuing weapons flow from Syria and Iran to Hezbollah terrorists....
'HATED' BY LEZ GANG; STRAIGHT-BASH CLAIM
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amThe filmmaker who was allegedly beaten and stabbed by a group of angry lesbians in the West Village early Saturday called the incident "a hate crime against a straight man."...
FROM CRADLE TO THE GRAVE; BIZARRE KARR 'GIRL'-CRAZY LONG BEFORE JONBENET
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amThe pervy predator charged last week with the killing of 6-year-old JonBenet Ramsey cruised middle schools as a young man, meeting and marrying two child brides, Quientana, 13, and Lara...
HEARTBREAKER FOR S.I. HEROES - EXTRA-INNING SERIES LOSS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amWILLIAMSPORT, Pa. - "The Cardiac Kids" of Staten Island got a taste of their own medicine yesterday in the Little League World Series before a jam-packed crowd of 8,900 fans...
MOMENT OF TRUTH; ISLAMO-FASCIST TERROR COULD TRIGGER A BRUTAL WESTERN RESPONSE
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amWhere will it lead? Iraqi men wailing as they carry the coffin of a victim of ongoing bloodshed in Baghdad. It's not just Iraq, but the entire region whose future...
CHRISTINE PRESSES FOR POL PAY RAISES
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amELECTED officials who haven't had a raise in seven years may finally get one. Council Speaker Christine Quinn has suggested a $22,500- per-year raise - or 25 percent - for...
HEARTBREAKER FOR S.I. HEROES; FALL IN SERIES OPENER
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amWILLIAMSPORT, Pa. - "The Cardiac Kids" of Staten Island were down but not out after they dropped their first game in the Little League World Series. Before a crowd of...
PERV HAD EYES FOR ME: EX-STUDENT
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amA JonBenet Ramsey look-alike from Alabama says John Mark Karr targeted her in 2000 when he was substitute teacher in her hometown. Kaley Davidson, 17, a high school senior in...
GROUP ASKS THAT GREEN EXIT RACE
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amA quartet of Latino elected officials - most of them Andrew Cuomo backers - is calling on state attorney-general hopeful Mark Green to quit the race, charging that his squishy...
CEASE-FIRE BREACH; ISRAELIS ATTACK HEZBOLLAH SUPPLY LINE
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amJERUSALEM - Israeli commandos staged a dramatic surprise raid deep inside Lebanon early yesterday, a violation of the cease-fire agreement that could threaten to plunge the region back into war....
FATEFUL MEETING LED TO BIG BREAK
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amA chance meeting in Paris four years ago between a Boulder, Colo., journalist and the man suspected of killing JonBenet Ramsey set the wheels in motion for the stunning arrest...
FAN'S SCAM BUST; FAKE-OUT AT SHEA
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amA die-hard Amazins' fan took the team jingle "Meet the Mets" a little too far when he forged bogus press credentials to get into the clubhouse, authorities charge. Celebrity-hound and...
POLICE BUST A RHYMES; RAPPER ASSAULT RAP
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amBad boy Busta Rhymes has been busted once again. The multiplati num-selling rapper was hit with third- degree-assault charges late yesterday for allegedly helping to beat a man who had...
POLICE BUST A RHYMES; FACES ASSAULT RAP
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amBad boy Busta Rhymes has been busted once again. The multiplatinum-selling rapper was hit with third- degree-assault charges late yesterday for allegedly helping to beat a man who had accidentally...
SHOOTER GUNS DOWN 2 BX. MEN
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amTwo men were shot dead and a bystander was wounded yesterday when shots were fired in a crowded Bronx playground, cops said. The bullets started flying around 6:40 p.m. as...
HILL TOPPER; LEADS ALL DEMS IN NEW PREZ POLL
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amIt may not be all uphill for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton in a run for president. The former first lady - who already appears unbeatable in her re-election bid this...
PEACE MAKER SLAIN - THUG SHOOTS TEEN
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amIt was the most tragic of ironies for two Brooklyn sisters, whose attempt to broker peace between warring factions of local youths ended up claming the life of their own...
HONOR FOR 9/11 FIREFIGHTER
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amMike Cammarata (left), a Staten Island fireman killed on 9/11, was honored yesterday at the Little League World Series, where he had played 15 years ago. The Fire Academy student's...
BUBBA TURNS BIG 6-0 - LOW-KEY B-DAY
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amBill Clinton became a sexagenarian yesterday. The 42nd president spent his 60th birthday celebrating quietly with friends and family, said his spokesmen. The Web site of his charity, the Clinton...
'HATED' BY LEZ GANG - STRAIGHT-BASH CLAIM
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amThe filmmaker who was allegedly beaten and stabbed by a group of angry lesbians in the West Village early Saturday morning called the incident "a hate crime against a straight...
GET OUTTA TOWN! WANG VACATION HOLDING UP DIPIETRO NEGOTIATIONS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amTHOSE wondering how the contract negotiations between Rick DiPietro and Garth Snow will be affected by their past relationship as goaltending partners shouldn't bother wasting the energy on speculation. For...
TAP IN TO NEW BLOOD IN BULLPEN
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amA STRING of bullpens has been shaken up recently, resulting in new closers and new demotions. You're not getting any Mariano Riveras (these guys didn't get their jobs until the...
REPS FIGHT TO PROTECT BIGHT
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amA BILL was introduced in congress that will permanently protect the New York and New Jersey Bight from pollution caused by ocean dumping, discharging, mining and anything which poses a...
NOW, KASEY IS A HARD-CHARGER ; KAHNE LEARNING DODGE'S SECRETS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amThe sophomore slump swallowed Kasey Kahne last year. Inhaled him good. But this year's different. He leads the NASCAR Nextel Cup circuit in wins, poles and screeching female fans. The...
GIFT FROM DON HELPS GAMMONS GET WELL
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amFor a man who has made his living weaving words together, Peter Gammons had a tough time finding the right ones to describe yesterday. The 61-year-old ESPN broadcaster returned to...
SPOTLIGHT FINALLY FINDS UNDERWOOD
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amALBANY - When anyone asks E.J. Underwood where he was last year, he says, "in a coal- mining town in the mid dle of nowhere in eastern Kentucky." More precisely,...
PEDRO DOESN'T KNOW WHEN HE WILL RETURN
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amMET NOTES Pedro Martinez is eligible to come off the 15-day disabled list on Aug, 30, but he isn't promising he'll be ready to pitch by then. He said he'll...
WINNING IN A WALK-OVER
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amBOSTON - I've got the title for the book about these Yankees: Ball Four. They are opening up in the AL East one pitch off the outside corner after another....
GIVE YANKEES BOSTON PROPS; WALKOVER FOR BOMBERS AS LEAD STRETCHES TO 4½
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amYankees 13Red Sox 5 BOSTON - Former Combat Zone hookers didn't do as much walking as Yankee and Red Sox hitters did yesterday at Fenway Park. Randy Johnson and Josh...
DON'T ASK ME; PEDRO MAKES NO GUARANTEES ABOUT RETURN
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amMET NOTES Pedro Martinez is eligible to come off the 15-day disabled list on Aug. 30, but the Mets ace can't promise he will be ready to pitch by then....
'TRICK' TURF ENOUGH
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amSARATOGA SPRINGS -Intermittent rain began falling before first race, but track remained fast, harrowed, throughout day, and races stayed on turf labeled firm.FIRST RACE - They say turf horses run...
BIG UNIT GOES LONG
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amBOSTON - The numbers were not pretty, but Randy Johnson gave the Yankees just what they needed yesterday - an effective performance that lasted into the seventh inning. "It was...
'PINE' & DANDY; 'ISLAND' IS MISS ALABAMA
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amSARATOGA SPRINGS - There was a sense of deja vu at the finish of yesterday's 126th running of the Grade 1, $600,000 Alabama Stakes, the Old Spa's premier event for...
CANO SECOND TO NONE IN IMPORTANCE
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amBOSTON - Much has been made in Beantown of the Yankees adding Bobby Abreu at the trading deadline while Theo Epstein and the Red Sox stood idly by. But the...
TURNIN' ON THE JETS ; ROOKIES SHINE IN VICTORY OVER REDSKINS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amJets 27Redskins 14 WASHINGTON - Eric Mangini, in general not an easy man to please, left FedEx Field after last night's 27-14 Jets' win over the Redskins delighted by a...
A FREE PASS TO EAST TITLE
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amBOSTON - I've got the title for the book about these Yankees: Ball Four. They are opening up in the AL East one pitch off the outside corner after another....
FOR SOX, IT'S TIME FOR SOMETHIN' WILD
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amBOSTON - The Yankees could keep this assault going for weeks, for months, for years, and it's never going to erase what happened in 2004. They could keep slapping the...
BOMBERS SAWX IT TO WILD BECKETT
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amWith his bullpen in shambles, Boston manager Terry Francona was hoping Josh Beckett could give him nine innings yesterday. Beckett gave him nine walks instead. Beckett, acquired in the offseason...
ORTIZ: WE NEED HELP
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amDavid Ortiz said the Red Sox were in trouble before yesterday's 13-5 loss to the Yankees. Now? With the way its pitching looks, Boston is in freefall with a parachute...
SEE YA, SIDNEY!
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amYANKEE NOTES BOSTON - It was three and out for Sidney Ponson yesterday, when the Yankees designated the ineffective right-hander for assignment. The Yankees also optioned righty reliever Brian Bruney...
BOSS MUM ON LL FLAP
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amGeorge Steinbrenner declined yesterday to respond to remarks by Staten Island Little League President Bob Johnson saying the Yankees and Mets could have given the S.I. team more financial support...
RUSH HR. ARRIVES FOR JETS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amJET NOTES WASHINGTON - The Jets were obviously tired of hearing they can't run the ball. All week long, the Jets listened to how bad their rushing attack is. They...
GOLD GOTTEN, GYMNAST FORGOTTEN
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amPAUL Hamm. The name ring a bell? If it doesn't, it might have. Could have. Maybe even should have. Two years ago, Aug. 18, 2004, Hamm, an American at the...
SPIRIT OF '86 - LASTINGS LEADS WAY AS SERIES HEROES WATCH
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amMets 7Rockies 4 As the 1986 World Series champion Mets were introduced as part of the 20th anniversary celebration at Shea last night, Lastings Milledge relaxed, spellbound, on the black...
BOSOX: IT'S NOT OVER 'TIL WE SAY IT IS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amBOSTON - David Ortiz said the Red Sox were in trouble before yesterday's 13-5 loss to the Yankees. Now? Well, with the way its pitching looks, Boston is in freefall...
SEE YA, SIDNEY! PONSON DITCHED
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amYANKEE NOTES BOSTON - It was three and out for Sidney Ponson yesterday, when the Yankees designated the ineffective right-hander for assignment. The Yankees also optioned righty reliever Brian Bruney...
JOSH CAN'T FIND PLATE
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amWith his bullpen in shambles, Boston manager Terry Francona was hoping Josh Beckett could give him nine innings yesterday. Beckett gave him nine walks instead. Beckett, acquired in the offseason...
DARRYL 'INVOLVED IN MISSIONARY WORK'
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amAs Darryl Strawberry answered reporters' questions yesterday in a packed Shea media room, a fan's head poked out from behind a door and said, "Thanks, Darryl." The fan is better...
BACKMAN STILL UPSET ABOUT FIRING
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amWally Backman still seethes about being fired as the Diamondbacks manager in 2004 before he ever won or lost a game. "They [bleeped] me in Arizona," said Backman, sitting with...
DODGERBALL - L.A. IS BETTER THAN METS NOW AND IN FUTURE, NL GM CLAIMS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amTHE biggest threat to the Mets has the fewest homers in the NL, a 2006 dossier that includes 13 losses in 14 games to begin the second half and a...
METS '86 ROCKS - SERIES HEROES WATCH AMAZIN' RALLY
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amMETS 7 ROCKIES 4 Maybe in 2026, the Mets will celebrate another 20th anniversary of a World Series title. The most compelling reason to believe this Met club might have...
HALF WRIGHT- METS' ALL-STAR HAS STRUGGLED SINCE BREAK
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amAfter hitting .316 with 20 homers and 74 RBIs in 339 atbats before the All-Star break, David Wright batted only .274 with two homers and 14 RBIs in his first...
WEIR TO DONALD: I CAN RELATE
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amPGA NOTES MEDINAH, Ill. - Of all the players on the leader board, Mike Weir understands what Luke Donald will be going through today when he plays in the final...
NOT AMAZIN' ENOUGH - METS DON'T HONOR THEIR OWN AS OFTEN AS THEY SHOULD
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amThe 20-year anniversary salute to the 1986 Mets at Shea last night served as much a reminder of how rarely the organization honors its heritage as it was of that...
RIGHT ON DIMARC - BACK IN CONTENTION AFTER STRONG 3RD ROUND
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amPGA NOTES MEDINAH, Ill. - When the third round of the PGA Championship began yesterday, it didn't appear Chris DiMarco had much of a chance to win. He stood at...
WOODS, DONALD IN DEAD HEAT AFTER 3 ROUNDS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amMEDINAH, Ill. - Luke Donald played the best golf of his young career at Medinah Country Club yesterday. He'll have to play even better today if he's going to keep...
SOMETHING SPHINX - JETS BOSSES ARE FOOLING ONLY THEMSELVES, FANS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amLOOK, here's the honest-toGod truth: I don't care if Eric Mangini ever talks to me, ever returns one of my phone calls, ever lets one of his relatives talk to...
UNEASY RYDER - LEHMAN'S GOAL TO LOOSEN UP U.S. TEAM
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amMEDINAH - If there is one thing Tom Lehman wants his U.S. Team to do during the upcoming Ryder Cup in Dublin, Ireland, it's to loosen up and have fun....
TURNIN' ON THE JETS - ROOKIES SHINE IN VICTORY OVER REDSKINS
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amJETS 27 REDSKINS 14 WASHINGTON - As the Jets and Redskins played last night at FedEx Field, all eyes were on a quarterback named Patrick Ramsey, who not only was...
COLES' CASE - SKINS GAME IS STILL SPECIAL TO LAVERANUES
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amLANDOVER, Md. - Whenever a professional athlete says, "It's not about the money," be assured that it is, indeed, very much about the money. As well, whenever an athlete says,...
BUILD FROM GROUND UP
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amONE staple seems to ring true throughout fantasy football. It's almost immune to format variances. Different scoring systems and lineup requirements barely make a dent. It's impossible to dismiss: When...
WEIRD BUT TRUE
August 20, 2006 | 4:00amMichelangelo's canvas was the Sistine Chapel. In Gaithersburg, Md., they use toilets. Entries at this year's toilet-decorating contest at the 58th annual Montgomery County Agricultural Fair included the "Toilet Bowl,"...