January 2, 2009
MANNING VOTED AP'S MVP
Peyton Manning took a different approach to earning a record-tying third Associated Press NFL Most Valuable Player award. The Indianapolis Colts quarterback got hurt, struggled when he came back, then...
WALL STREET ENJOYS UPBEAT START TO 2009
Wall Street started the new year with a big rally Friday, as investors, brushing aside a disappointing report on manufacturing, sent the Dow Jones industrials up more than 250 points...
JOHN TRAVOLTA'S SON FOUND DEAD
John Travolta's 16-year-old son, Jett, died today while the family was vacationing in the Bahamas, police said. The boy's body was discovered by his caretaker, Jeff Michael Kathrain, at around...
Yeah, yeah, yeah: "Pretty Woman"
What better way to belatedly ring in the New Year than with the music of Grammy-winning Roy Orbison?Harmonix and MTV Games have announced that they're adding six of Orbison's songs...
BUS MATRON FIRED
The bus matron who abandoned a mentally disabled Manhattan man on a bus, allowing him to spend 19 harrowing hours shivering and trapped alone on New Year's Eve, was fired...
NBA WON'T TAKE ACTION CARTER, OFFICIAL
The NBA has decided to take no further action against either Vince Carter or official Derrick Stafford following their New Years Eve on-court incident. The league did confirm that Stafford...
NBA confirms Stafford called Vince Carter "boy'': Won't suspend ref, VC
By BRIAN LEWISThe NBA isn't taking any further action against either Vince Carter or official Derrick Stafford after their New Years Eve on-court incident. The league did confirm that Stafford...
The Next Winter Classic
Now that two Original Six teams have competed in a Winter Classic, which was arguably a better contest than the inaugural fixture between Buffalo and Pittsburgh last year, the NHL...
Classic
I could not have imagined a better sports spectacle yesterday afternoon than an outdoor game between the Chicago Blackhawks and Detroit Red Wings. Forget college football. My alma mater was...
Jets search could take a while
When the dust settled after Eric Mangini's firing Monday the first question was: Who do the Jets go after? Well four days later we've been through a bunch of names...
Earhart, Missing No Longer
But first Earhart turns up in the perkier person of Amy Adams in big Fox's May tentpole "Night the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian.''
RICE: HAMAS HOLDING GAZA HOSTAGE
WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice accused the militant Hamas organization of holding the people of Gaza hostage Friday and said the United States continues to seek a "durable...
ISRAEL FEARS HAMAS MISSLES COULD HIT NUKE FACILITY
There were growing fears in Israel last night that Hamas missiles could threaten its top-secret nuclear facility at Dimona. Rocket attacks from Gaza have forced Israelis to flee in ever...
Marbury actually Minnesota-bound
By MARC BERMANIt's good to be back after a week-long blog hiatus and report Stephon Marbury is on a plane to Minnesota as we write to visit cousin Sebastian Telfair...
BROOKLYN BAND TO PLAY INAUGURATION
The Brooklyn Steppers, a Bedford-Stuyvesant marching band, have been practicing hard the past couple of weeks. They have good reason to be a little more meticulous. The Steppers will perform...
Jets not interviewing Tucker
We reported this morning the Jets would be interviewing Browns' defensive coordinator Mel Tucker. That does not appear to be the case, though. A sourced told us yesterday that Tucker...
9 MUSLIM PASSENGERS REMOVED FROM JET
WASHINGTON - Nine Muslim passengers were kicked off a flight from Washington, D.C., to Florida after other passengers reported hearing a suspicious remark about airplane security. AirTran Airways spokesman Tad...
ISRAEL TARGETS HAMAS WEAPONS, HOMES
Israel bombed a mosque it said was used to store weapons and destroyed the homes of more than a dozen Hamas operatives Friday, but under international pressure, the government allowed...
3 UP: BOSOX HITTER SEARCH, MANNY AND LOWE
Checking in from vacation once more. I figured it was a new year, so I would offer a new post. It also gives me a chance to tell those that...
O/U RICO
Rico finished the year on a down note, going 4-12 (2-1 Best Bets) on the over/unders. The final record is 121-129-6 (29-21-1) The league finished 10 overs and 6 unders,...
JOE PUBLIC
Are you with the majority or the minority? As you plan your weekend wagering, take a look at the public's betting action in Las Vegas and offshore on this week's...
MS. CHARLEEN
Tomorrow: Cardinals (Over), Chargers (Under). Sunday: Dolphins (Over), Eagles (Over).
TIM SULLIVAN
Tomorrow: Cardinals (Under), Chargers (Under). Sunday: Dolphins (Under), Eagles (Under).
STEPH MAY BE BOSTON-BOUND
He still has to finagle a break from the Knicks, but indications are banished point guard Stephon Marbury will wind up with the Celtics, according to a report on ESPN.com....
REEL MODEL FOR MADOFF PRANK
The pranksters who stole a statue from superscammer Bernard Madoff's Florida estate may have been inspired by a movie about young leftist radicals who kidnap and murder a tycoon. Madoff's...
LI BOY, 14, FOUND DEAD ON ICY EVE
A 14-year-old Long Island boy died on a quiet suburban street early yesterday, and authorities are investigating whether he froze to death after celebrating New Year's Eve with pals. When...
HONDO'S TIED FOR THE LEAD
It's a brand-new ballgame, folks. Sure, Wimbish, Blezow and Ms. Charleen walked off with the Bettor's Guide hardware (MC in the Women's Divisions) in the pre-postseason events, but that was...
'CAT TAKES LIKING TO CARDS & VIKINGS
The winner of multiple major handicapping championships against world-class competition, The Wildcat returns. Including the 1997-2007 seasons in The Post, Cat's 13-year-record in print stands at 354-295 (54.5 percent) against...
KINGS OF THE ROAD
THE first game on the Wild-Card Weekend docket is intriguing because it features two teams that aren't usually still playing come playoff time. The Falcons (11-5) are favored on the...
WEEKEND HOT PICKS IN ENTERTAINMENT
STONE AGE Jazz - January 2 Can you really go wrong seeing a band called Funkasaurus Rex? Using two saxes, a trumpet, a guitar and a drum, this quintet mixes...
TITLE TILT A HEISMAN SHOWDOWN
Sam Bradford edged out Tim Tebow for the Heisman Trophy. On Thursday night, Tebow has a chance to prove the voters wrong. That's when Tebow's Florida Gators face Bradford's Oklahoma...
EASY DOES IT
HONESTLY, how likely is it that you'll follow through on your New Year's resolution? That's what we thought. So, to boost your chances of success, try to find something that...
YOU SAY YOU WANT A RESOLUTION
HERE we go again - time to lose weight, go green and save money. And don't forget, you also have to quit smoking, break up with your toxic boyfriend and...
DOMINANT USC ROLLS OVER PENN ST., JOEPA
PASADENA, Calif. - Southern California made a strong case of its own to be No. 1. Mark Sanchez passed for 413 yards and four touchdowns, USC dominated on defense and...
PREVIEWS
"BECKY SHAW": A newlywed couple tries to fix up their romantically challenged friends in Gina Gionfriddo's new dark comedy. Second Stage Theatre, 307 W. 43rd St.; 212-246-4422. Opens Thursday.
GOD BLESS YOU
The Church of the Holy Cross needed a miracle, and New York Post readers provided it by opening their hearts and wallets to raise almost $700,000 for the financially crippled...
BEAMER'S BOYS DANCE PAST BEARCATS
MIAMI - The opening moments were filled with just about every problem Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer feared his team would have against Cincinnati. It was merely a blip. Nearly...
HUSKERS' QB SPARKS BIG RALLY
JACKSONVILLE - Nebraska quarterback Joe Ganz was sprawled out on the ground, trainers huddled around him, teammates, coaches and fans wondering whether he would be able to continue playing. Ganz...
SECOND-'STAFF' SURGE BOOSTS GEORGIA TO VICTORY
Matthew Stafford gave the type of performance in the Capital One Bowl that would make a fitting finale to his excellent Georgia career. Whether this was his last game with...
SEPT. 11 CONDOM-NATION
A German entrepreneur has taken bad taste to new heights - applying for a federal trademark to use the Freedom Tower to market a line of condoms. The request now...
MILITARY INAUGURAL BALL
President-elect Barack Obama will host a Commander in Chief's Ball during his inauguration, with military personnel, their spouses, and those wounded fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan as guests. "It is...
REPORT FAULTS LI WAL-MART
Rope lines, tickets and walkie-talkies could help control frenzied bargain-hunters, police said in a report issued after a Wal-Mart worker was killed in a Black Friday stampede. Retailers and police...
PATERSON OPPOSES SENATE CARETAKER
ALBANY - Gov. Paterson yesterday roundly rejected the idea of appointing a caretaker to fill Hillary Rodham Clinton's soon-to-be vacant Senate seat - all but ruling out the prospect that...
HAVE $8M CAR, 'WILL' TRAVEL
When an eccentric uncle left them a dingy old garage in his will, his nieces and nephews never imagined they'd struck it rich. But among the vehicles and junk parked...
NY'S 'ROUGH' RIDERS
The triple shot of skyrocketing fares, state fees and city property taxes has left straphangers so frustrated, they're already thinking of ways to cut the "comforts" of their commute to...
BUS FREEZE ORDEAL
An unthinking school-bus matron forced a cerebral-palsy victim to spend 19 frigid hours shivering and trapped in his seat because she left early to go to church, sources said last...
QUICK FIX FOR ZUNES
The music's back! One day after Microsoft Zune players froze up because of a leap-year glitch, many were functioning properly yesterday as the new non-leap year began. But a few...
SWEEPING UP AFTER THE PARTY
New York's Strongest swept to victory yesterday, cleaning up tons of confetti, noisemakers and party hats left by a million Times Square revelers. The New Year's cleanup last year totaled...
APPLE'S 1ST BABY IS LATE BLOOMER
Baby New Year wanted to make sure that the awful year 2008 was done and gone before she came along yesterday. The first baby of the year in New York...
INDIA BLASTS KILL AT LEAST 5
GAUHATI, India - Three bombs exploded in India's restive northeast yesterday, killing at least five people and wounding 50, about an hour before the nation's top security official arrived in...
KINGS OF THE CHILL
The deep freeze couldn't stop roughly 800 chill seekers from ringing in the new year with a frigid dip in the ocean off Brooklyn yesterday. A clear, blue sky and...
US HANDS KEY ZONE TO IRAQIS
BAGHDAD - The United States yesterday formally transferred control of the Green Zone to Iraqi authorities in two ceremonies that also handed back Saddam Hussein's former palace. Prime Minister Nouri...
HE'S ALMOST BULLETPROOF
Maybe the liquor numbed the pain. A 35-year-old man who complained of a tummy ache after drinking at a Queens bar told cops that he had no idea he had...
HAPPY #*%! NEW YEAR TO YOU, TOO!
Comedienne Kathy Griffin may be doomed to life on CNN's S-list after answering a heckler with a shrieking, vulgar tirade during the network's live New Year's Eve broadcast. "Screw you,"...
NY - 400 YRS. LATER
The new year brings anniversary galas in the form of a yearlong series of events commemorating 400 years of history on the Hudson River, New York Harbor and Lake Champlain....
NYPD DAILY BLOTTER
Staten Island A family dispute turned violent in Heartland Village when a man was arrested for allegedly hitting his brother-in-law in the head with a metal pipe and smashing his...
NUTTIEST NEWS OF A CRAZY '08
After another year of scouring the Earth for the wacky, The Post is proud to present the 30 best of Weird but True items of 2008.PHOTOS: Nuttiest News Of 2008...
BLOOMY'S DEAR OLD MOM 100
Mayor Bloomberg's leading lady is hitting a milestone today. Charlotte Bloomberg, the mayor's mother, turns 100 years old today, and the mayor plans to spend the day with her in...
HAMPTONS WINE MOGUL KILLED
A beloved Hamptons entrepreneur and vineyard owner died when he was struck by a boat while swimming in South America, The Post has learned. Christian Wolffer, 70, the spry, bon-vivant...
SUNNY SETS ON RUDY
Rudy Giuliani's longtime spokeswoman, Sunny Mindel, is leaving his consulting firm. Mindel, who was Giuliani's mouthpiece during his tumultuous divorce, his 2000 US Senate run and in the years after...
FATHER OF PELL GRANTS DEAD AT 90
NEWPORT, RI - Claiborne Pell, the quirky blueblood who represented blue-collar Rhode Island in the US Senate for 36 years and was the force behind a grant program that has...
BLOWN TO HELL
A 1-ton Israeli bomb took out a fanatical Hamas chieftain yesterday, a day after he vowed to launch terrorist rockets "even deeper" into Israel. Nizar Rayyan, 49, was the highest-ranking...
MYSTERY GREAT WESTLAKE DIES
Donald Westlake, a prolific author considered one of the most successful and versatile mystery writers in the United States, has died. He was 75. Westlake reportedly collapsed from an apparent...
BIG SSSCARE IN QUEENS
Cops last night seized a 7-foot python that had slithered from its cage in a Queens apartment where its owner was visiting. David Fennell, 28, of 80-20 Parsons Blvd., was...
ISLAND RESCUE
A man stranded in a Long Island lagoon has been rescued. Charlie Sirico went to Fishers Island on Wednesday and was about to leave when he saw his boat floating...
FILM
IFC CENTER: Daily through Thursday at 2 and 7:15 p.m., Steven Soderbergh's four-hour "Che: Special Roadshow Edition" (2008) screens with a collector's program given out at each showing. 323 Sixth...
DANCE
CITY CENTER: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater performs multiple original works as it celebrates its 50th anniversary season, with the accompaniment of Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center...
CABARET
METROPOLITAN ROOM: Folk and rock crooner Meg Flather sings cabaret songs Sunday at 7 p.m. 34 W. 22nd St.; 212-206-0440. OAK ROOM: Opera-trained cabaret singer Wesla Whitfield performs her show...
CLASSICAL
AMATO OPERA HOUSE:Franz Lehar's "The Merry Widow" is performed tonight and tomorrow night at 7:30 and Sunday at 2:30 p.m. 319 Bowery; 866-811-4111. AVERY FISHER HALL: The New York Philharmonic...
JAZZ
BLUE NOTE: Trumpeter Chris Botti leads his quintet through Sunday at 8 and 10:30 p.m. Blue Note, 131 W. Third St.; 212-475-8592. IRIDIUM: Grammy-winning fusion guitarist Mike Stern and his...
POP, ROCK, FOLK
GREGG ALLMAN: The ramblin' man often associated with the Allman Brothers Band plays solo tomorrow night at 8 at the Blender Theater at Gramercy, 127 E. 23rd St.; 212-307-7171. THE...
OFF-BROADWAY
"THE ATHEIST:" ** 1/2 Campbell Scott delivers a compelling performance in this unconvincing solo drama about an unscrupulous journalist. Barrow Street Theatre, 27 Barrow St.; 212-243-6262. "BACK BACK BACK": **...
BUSINESS BRIEFS
Fund buyers US households own ing shares of mutual funds rose to 52.5 mil lion, or 45 percent, from 50.6 million, or 43.6 percent, a year earlier, the Investment Company...
BOFA, WELLS MERGERS TRANSFORM BANKING
Bank of America Corp. completed its purchase of Merrill Lynch & Co. and Wells Fargo & Co. finished buying Wachovia Corp., the latest sea changes in a transformed banking industry...
FORECASTING FEAR
When it comes to the annual Wall Street guessing game, even the market's best predictors aren't making any bets about 2009. Indeed, after many of Wall Street's best and brightest...
HEALTH-CARE HORROR
HEALTH care, says the man most concerned with that 17 percent of America's economy, can be "a nation-ruining issue." As Michael Leavitt ends four years as secretary of health and...
CAROLINE'S BIG PROBLEM: HER SPEECH, YOU KNOW?
I could care less what music Caroline Kennedy has on her iPod or anything about her marriage, and I already know where she stands on the issues ("Q&A With Caroline...
AFTER A HORRIBLE 2008, THE AWARD GOES TO. . .
WHAT a long, strange year it was. Office buildings worth $1,500 a foot on Jan. 1, 2008, might be worth less than half of that now - and that's assuming...
FLOWERS SOWS SEEDS
Billionaire bank investor J. Christopher Flowers is closing in on the one thing that's eluded him for a year: the purchase of a distressed financial institution. Flowers, who runs an...
MCKINNEY'S TROUBLED WATERS
Israel's navy gave ex-Rep. Cynthia McKinney and her fellow self-de scribed "peace" activists a surprise kick in the bow this week, turning away their photo-op of a boat trip, which...
SHELLY'S SLY SCHOOL TALK
Assembly Speaker Shelly Silver, who may well decide whether City Hall continues to control New York City schools, says he doesn't want to "go back" to a system of patronage-laden...
GRACE IN TRANSITION
The White House has announced that President Bush will be hosting Presi dent-elect Obama and former Presidents Carter, Bush and Clinton at a pre-inauguration private luncheon. It's the latest in...
IT'S EASY TO SWALLOW
EVERYBODY in Paris is doing it, poet Prunier tells kept woman Magda in Puccini's "La Rondine," performed on New Year's Eve at the Metropolitan Opera for the first time since...
'DIRTY SEXY' IS WASHED UP
PUT a fork in "Dirty Sexy Money." Blair Underwood, who plays Simon Elder on the show, says he has been told not to return to work anytime - which means...
'IDOLS' TRY AGAIN
JUST when you thought every possible reality show combination of humans in a house had been done - bachelors, bachelorettes, celebrities, cafones, addicts, bad girls, egomaniacs, exhibitionists, apprentices, low-brow wannabes,...
NOT MUCH TO CHEW ON IN 'LUNCH'
RICHARD Nixon's infamous declaration that we wouldn't have him "to kick around anymore" must ring true by now for George W. Bush. But just before he leaves office, he's getting...
BACK FROM THE DEAD
THE big secret of "Lost" is finally out. After four years, the mystery of "Lost" is revealed in the first few minutes of this season's much-anticipated fifth season debut, Jan....
FROM RUSSIA, WITH SADISM
THE new movie year gets off to a shocking start with "Cargo 200," a wicked black comedy from Russia. It is directed by the well-known (among cineastes) Aleksei Balabanov ("Brother,"...
JUDGE CAN'T BE IN THE MIDDLE
IN case you were won dering, new "American Idol" judge Kara DioGuardi has been permanently assigned a seat between Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul. But it wasn't easy trying to...
BROADWAY
"AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY":*** A largely new cast, led by the redoubtable Estelle Parsons, has taken over in Tracy Letts' Pulitzer Prize winner. But this eviscerating melodrama remains as gripping and...
MEDIA ENABLED CHARLES
CHARLES Barkley's DUI arrest this week is the latest in a series of testimonials to media that relentlessly and mindlessly pander rather than risk accusations of being un-cool, or even...
CARNEY WANTS THAT 'SUPER' FEELING
PLACEMENT is almost everything, kickers will tell you. Life tells you, too. While watching the Giants win Super Bowl XLII from his home in San Diego, John Carney thought of...
KEY FOR BOLTS: CHARGE PEYTON
SAN DIEGO - Ron Rivera was talking about Peyton Manning with both admiration and frustration when the reality of being an NFL defensive coordinator in the playoffs caught up with...
ROOKIE COACHES SHARE ROAD TO SUCCESS
Jack Harbaugh knew long ago that his son would make an excellent NFL coach. The only question was whether John Harbaugh would ever get the chance to prove his father...
MT. CARTER COULD ERUPT TONIGHT
It's not going away just yet. The NBA will investigate what happened in Detroit, where Vince Carter was ejected Wednesday on two technicals by referee Derrick Stafford. Carter's teammates said...
MCNABB SMILING, EAGER AFTER LONG ORDEAL
Donovan McNabb watched the Eagles play their last playoff game like most fans, sitting in front of a television, cheering and chomping on food. McNabb was sidelined by a knee...
FALCS-CARDS A GAME OF RUSHIN' ROULETTE
GLENDALE, Ariz. - The Falcons can run away with a wild-card victory over Arizona tomorrow, if regular-season history means anything. The Falcons, led by Michael Turner, have one of the...
D'ANTONI D-LIGHTED WITH AL OFF BENCH
At least with his starting lineup, coach Mike D'Antoni's priority is a team that's better defensively. The Knicks coach indicated yesterday that the same lineup that started Tuesday night's game...
JETS TARGET SPAGS
One of the first calls that Jet management made, only hours after firing Eric Mangini on Monday, was to the crosstown rival Giants. It did not take long for the...
BARKLEY: PERP OUT OF CONTROL
TO Charles Barkley's credit, his capacity for audacity and proclivity for stupidity are unrivaled in NBA annals. Granted, that covers tons of tainted territory, but Sir Chump tilts the scale...
A REAL COLD BLAST
CHICAGO - The atmosphere was electric. Bundled-up fans got a chance to extend their New Year's Eve parties and watch hockey in a venerable stadium where baseball usually fills the...
DEVS' DILEMMA NOT ALL THAT BAD
It could be a major temptation for Lou Lamoriello, but at the March 4 trade deadline he'll likely pass on picking up a significant piece of loot. He'll probably have...
ISLES LOOKING FOR FOCUS OUT WEST
The Islanders haven't won a game on the road in more than a month, a 4-3 shootout victory in Montreal on Nov. 24, and not surprisingly, they're doing their best...
SPORTS SHORTS
NCAA HOOPS: Nova stumbles Jerel McNeal scored 24 points and Marquette opened Big East play with an upset, beating No. 15 Villanova 79-72 in Milwaukee yesterday. McNeal's 3-pointer with 3:55...
5 QUESTIONS FOR BRIAN BILLICK
BRIAN Billick, Super Bowl- winning coach with the Ravens and now a Fox NFL analyst, is among the names being discussed as teams look to fill head-coaching vacancies. He talked...
CLASSIC BATTLE ENDS COTTON BOWL'S RUN IN DALLAS
DALLAS - When J. Curtis Sanford sat in the stands of the Rose Bowl in 1936, the Dallas oilman thought his city should also have a New Year's Day game....
TIDE'S OUT FOR SWEET SUGAR WIN
Alabama's tiny collection of seniors has endured a coaching change, three seasons with at least six losses and the worry that maybe their tenure would be something Crimson Tide fans...
JOHNNIES LOOK TO STORM BACK VS. IRISH
The St. John's Red Storm were livid after a 21-point loss at Providence Wednesday night in the Big East opener for both schools. They were so angry when they arrived...
COMIC KATHY LASHES OUT AT HECKLER ON CNN
Comedienne Kathy Griffin may be doomed to life on CNN's S-list after answering a heckler with a shrieking, vulgar tirade during the network's live New Year's Eve broadcast. "Screw you,"...