October 29, 2002

MAJOR FINANCIAL FIRMS ARE JUST TOO BIG TO PROSECUTE

ARE financial institutions too big to prosecute? Back in the 1980s, investors in struggling banks like Continental Illinois had their concerns eased by the fact that these institutions were considered...

VILLAGE VOICE SHOUTS DOWN NAMESAKE FROM CAPE COD

The Village Voice wants to shut down all other Voices. The onetime defender of the downtrodden has filed a lawsuit demanding that the tiny Cape Cod Voice "cease and desist"...

MODELL'S SCORES ON 'DEUCE'

MODELL'S Sporting Goods is coming to the "new" 42nd Street. The New York-based retailer, which has long been prowling Times Square locations, is in advanced talks to take over the...

DAILY NEWS' HANCOCK DIGS UP FOR GRABS

The curvacious, tan building at 450 W. 33rd St. that is home to Mort Zuckerman's Daily News and US News & World Report is on the block, and could fetch...

TROPHY UPS ANTE FOR EISNER'S ANGELS

Finally, something went right for Disney. When the Disney-owned Anaheim Angels clinched their first-ever World Series title Sunday night, company chief Michael Eisner - clad in a Mickey Mouse T-shirt...

SCARED SHOP-LESS - IN 'ZERO-BONUS' YEAR, WALL STREETERS SHUT WALLETS

With Wall Street under siege from regulators and economic forces, bankers and brokers are running so scared that they're shutting their wallets and sending a shiver through the New York...

MS. SCRAPS FALL ISSUE, SEARCHES FOR EDITOR

Ms., the feminist icon, is beset by woes far deeper than just the search for a new editor-in-chief, The Post has learned. The magazine's fall issue that was to hit...

MORGAN STAND-OFF - STREET RESOLUTION STYMIED BY MORGAN STANLEY

Morgan Stanley is shaping up as a major stumbling block to a settlement of Wall Street's troubles with the nation's regulators, sources tell The Post. The white shoe firm is...

CITI'S WEILL IS GRILLED - NASD QUESTIONS HIS DEALINGS WITH AT&T

Regulators put Citigroup's Sandy Weill on the hot seat, grilling him about circumstances behind a suspicious upgrade of AT&T by the bank's former high-flying telecom analyst, sources told The Post....

VIVENDI NEAR DEAL TO SELL PUBLISHER HOUGHTON

Vivendi Universal SA is nearing a deal to sell Houghton Mifflin to a team of buyout firms led by Thomas H. Lee Partners and Blackstone Group for more than $1.7...

COME TO THE CARNIVAL

The newly launched Carnival Legend has lots of "fun ship" atmosphere, but also a host of eye-grabbing public spaces that distinguish it from its sister ships. In keeping with its...

WHY '24' IS GENIUS ... AND JULIA ROBERTS LOOKS LIKE A NUT JOB

"24" [ ] Tonight at 9p.m. on Fox ------ FOUR things become clear in the opening seconds of "24" (and when you're talking "real time," every second counts). One: Jack...

GRIPPED BY 'STRIPPED'

* CHRISTINA AGUILERA "Stripped" [] RCA The real genie in the bottle that Christina Aguilera lets out on her new album "Stripped" is part blues mama, part gangsta girl -...

STARR REPORT

'Hannity & Colmes' unseats King Fox News Channel's "Hannity & Colmes" (Sean Hannity, Alan Colmes) has beaten CNN's "Larry King Live" in head-to-head competition (9-10 p.m.) for the first time...

WE WUZ CHEATED, WAIL 'ALIAS' FANS

DEVOTED "Alias" fans are outraged over ABC's last-minute decision to air a repeat of the show on Sunday night - opposite Game 7 of the World Series - after promising...

NEW 'IDOL' JUDGE: I'D NEVER SEEN THE SHOW

ANGIE Martinez, the newest judge on "American Idol," had never seen the hit reality show until last week. Martinez, a hip-hop artist and nighttime DJ on radio station Hot 97,...

7'S LUCKY FOR ANGELS AND FOX

SUNDAY'S Game 7 of the World Series was the season's most-watched program - as nearly 58 million people watched the Anaheim Angels win their first-ever world championship. While the Anaheim-San...

BRING BACK BRYANT! HE WAS NEVER THIS BORING

I WOULD describe CBS's newly revamped "Early Show" as lifeless, but I wouldn't want to insult the dead. Suffice it to say that the network's new morning show, unveiled yesterday,...

JUSTIN & MOM BLAB TO BABS

POP star Justin Timberlake just moved up one giant step on the ladder of fame. Barbara Walters is dedicating a full hour to the former *NSYNC singer and teen heartthrob...

4 DAYS, 900 ACTS

BACK in full effect for the 22nd year, CMJ brings the usual overwhelming assortment of 900 bands to 50 clubs in Manhattan and Brooklyn. In Sunday's Post, we pointed out...

WHERE TO? NEW YORKERS ON THE MOVE

Maki Kawakita, 28 Manhattan - "My last vacation was six months ago to South Beach. I stayed with some friends. Next month I'm going to Paris for gallery shows. My...

$1M 'PEN'SION - BRIBE JUDGE WILL COLLECT 97G A YEAR IN SLAMMER

A disgraced former judge yesterday was sentenced to three to nine years in prison - where he could collect close to $1 million from his taxpayer-paid pension while he serves...

JAZZ GREAT HAMPTON DIED IN DEBT

Jazz legend Lionel Hampton died broke - with a tax bill exceeding his assets, his estate's lawyer said yesterday. Hampton's estate has assets worth $159,942.60 - but owes more than...

METROCARD CLEARS SUSPECT

A man wrongly accused in a Queens robbery found out yesterday that a MetroCard can not only get you on a bus or subway - it can get you out...

WEIRD BUT TRUE

An Illinois sicko has been charged with microwaving his girlfriend's dog. Cops say Everette Howze, 41, of Springfield - jealous of the amount of attention his girlfriend was giving her...

ARIEL'S GOV'T ON BRINK

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's coalition government faces collapse tomorrow because of a bitter dispute over financing Jewish settlers. Sharon's "national unity" government holds 80 of the 120 parliamentary seats,...

'SOPRANO' $INGS PRAISES OF FDNY

Tony Soprano wants Mayor Bloomberg to make New York firefighters an offer they won't refuse. James Gandolfini, of HBO's "The Sopranos," is among several stars in a new radio and...

RUSSIA'S WAY NOT FOR U.S.

HERE'S the difference between the American way of combating terrorism and the way taken by other nations: When American troops captured al Qaeda combatants in Afghanistan, the hundreds of fighters...

GAMBLING DOESN'T PAY FOR CROOKED ASSESSOR

A corrupt tax assessor who helped cheat New York out of $160 million said yesterday he resorted to taking bribes because he was a lousy gambler. Paul Sopot, 56, who...

JAILBIRD LIZZIE A FEARFUL SHUT-IN

Lizzie Grubman doesn't mix with the riffraff at the Suffolk County Jail - and she even gets room service. The p.r. princess is spending her entire sentence in protective custody...

SEPT. 11 SCULPTOR STOLE MY 'WOMAN,' ARTIST SAYS

SHOULD "Tumbling Woman" be renamed "Plundered Woman"? New controversy is erupting over Eric Fischl's infamous sculpture of a woman plunging to her death from the World Trade Center, a month...

FEDS PETITIONED IN JOGGER CASE

A group of black city cops is demanding a meeting with the feds to discuss Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau's handling of the explosive Central Park jogger case. One Hundred...

CARL BLASTS GOV AS A LOT OF 'NOTHING'

Carl McCall yesterday pumped up his attacks on Gov. Pataki, unleashing a new ad accusing the governor of standing "for nothing" - as well as "mediocrity, failure, even corruption." In...

RUDY'S GAY ROOMIES AT ISSUE IN S.C. RACE

WASHINGTON - The Democratic Senate candidate in South Carolina has taken a swipe at Rudy Giuliani's decision to shack up with two gay men after he moved out of Gracie...

POL'S 'GRAVE' CHARGES - FOE: LAUTENBERG EXPLOITS DEATHS

WASHINGTON - Underdog New Jersey Senate contender Doug Forrester yesterday released a statement charging that Democratic rival Frank Lautenberg "shamelessly politicizes deaths of innocents" like Sen. Paul Wellstone. Forrester campaign...

CITY CRIME SLASHED - BUT U.S. TOTALS JUMP FOR 1ST TIME SINCE '91

Powered by double-digit drops in murders and assaults, New York City is bucking the national crime rate, which rose last year for the first time in more than a decade,...

WRITER FINGERS ARTSY 'RIPPER'

A best-selling mystery writer claims to have finally unmasked the identity of legendary serial killer Jack the Ripper - the mystery murderer of prostitutes in 19th-century London who was never...

SCHOOL'S 'HIGH' ANXIETY - OPPOSES NEW TOWER DOWNTOWN

Fearing more terrorist attacks, parents and educators have spoken out against construction of a 32-story corporate tower next to an elementary school near Ground Zero. "Putting an office tower next...

FEDS PLAN TO 'BOMB-PROOF' N.Y. OFFICE

Windows at 26 Federal Plaza in lower Manhattan are being treated to make them shatterproof in case of an explosion, The Post has learned. "It's a bomb-preventive device," a law-enforcement...

MEX KIDNAP OVER - SONY BIG MOTTOLA'S KIN FREED FOR $1M RANSOM

The second kidnapped sister-in-law of Sony Music head Tony Mottola has been freed in Mexico, apparently after a $1 million ransom was paid. Ernestina Sodi was released over the weekend,...

BIG CHILL AS BLOOMBERG DECLARES HIRING FREEZE

The Bloomberg administration, warning of a serious drop in tax revenues, yesterday instituted crushing new cuts on city agencies and imposed a strict hiring freeze. The mayor's Office of Management...

MAYOR SET TO STRIKE DEAL ON 'LIVING WAGE'

Mayor Bloomberg and the City Council are nearing a compromise on the controversial "living wage" bill, which would slash costs to the financially strapped city, The Post has learned. The...

FUROR OVER DEM'S LETTER

The battle for a Manhattan state Senate seat turned nasty yesterday, with Republican Andrew Eristoff's campaign manager accusing Democratic incumbent Liz Krueger of forgery, dirty tricks and, possibly, mail fraud....

'KILLERS' RELAXED WITH A STEAM

SILVER SPRING, Md. - Hours after allegedly gunning down a bus driver in cold blood, John Allen Muhammad and his junior sidekick calmly strode into a local YMCA - grinning...

U.N.'S BLIX: USE BIG STIX TO NIX IRAQI TRIX

WASHINGTON - President Bush yesterday picked up some surprise help in prodding the U.N. Security Council to get tough on Iraq, as the chief U.N. weapons inspectors said it's good...

SCHIZO SON SMOTHERS HIS MOM IN QNS.: COPS

A mentally ill Queens man who believed that his mother was out to poison him suffocated her yesterday, police sources said. After killing his mom, Robert Jean-Lord, 24, then took...

'SEX' & THE KIDDIE - FIRST-TIME MA SARAH DELIVERS BABY DAVID

Sarah Jessica Parker is one sexy mama now. The "Sex and the City" siren gave birth to a bouncing baby boy in the wee hours yesterday morning at Lenox Hill...

JEB PULLING AHEAD IN FLA.

WASHINGTON - President Bush's brother Jeb appears to be firming up his lead for re-election as Florida governor by tarring challenger Bill McBride as a tax-and-spend Democrat, according to the...

MOB RAT CHOSE KIN OVER 'FAMILY'

Looking like a retired accountant but speaking like Marlon Brando in "The Godfather," former Mafia street boss Joseph "Little Joe" Defede told a jury yesterday he decided to break his...

PUBLIC BOO$T FOR PRIVATE SCHOOLS OK'D

State education officials are considering pumping more money into parochial and private schools after state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer concluded it's legal to do so. State schools Chancellor Robert Bennett...

GOV'T WILL PUSH FOR ONE TRIAL

WASHINGTON - Justice Department officials are trying to broker a deal that will result in one big sniper trial, instead of as many as eight. While the legal jockeying was...

KEITEL'S EX-LOVER: HARVEY'S A HORROR

The mother of Harvey Keitel's love child told yesterday how the hot-shot actor played a real-life louse - callously two-timing her when she was seven-months pregnant. Lisa Karmazin, who's seeking...

LAWYER QUITS OVER 'BARETTA' STAR'S BIG YAP

LOS ANGELES - The lawyer for actor and accused killer Robert Blake abruptly quit the case yesterday, saying his client has a self-destructive need to be on television. In a...

ICE-T ACTS COOL WITH HIS 'BABY'

Ice-T didn't exactly melt in Manhattan Family Court yesterday when he came face to face with the infant he allegedly fathered. "He didn't even look at the baby," said would-be...

ANTI-SADDAM WEB WARRIORS HACK IRAQ

Maybe they've mastered weapons of mass destruction - but Saddam Hussein's minions couldn't make his official Web site hack-proof. Some e-mails to Saddam were revealed yesterday by Wired News, which...

GOP JUMPS GUN WITH MONDALE DEBATE DARE

WASHINGTON - Republicans yesterday challenged former Vice President Walter Mondale to five debates in Minnesota's race for U.S. Senate - without waiting for him to formally replace the late Sen....

RUDY FLICK IN CANADA FUROR

With the city's economy going south, producers of a movie about ex-Mayor Giuliani are heading north, all the way to Montreal. In an in-your-face move, the big shots behind the...

GAS CLOUD KILLS 4 IN N.J. HOME

A tight-knit churchgoing family of four who lived a decades-long suburban dream life in New Jersey died together in a cloud of carbon monoxide, investigators said yesterday. Joseph and Patricia...

ROOTIN' RUDY JOINS PATAKI ON STUMP

Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani yesterday swept across the campaign trail with Gov. Pataki, greeting voters from Grand Central Terminal to the Staten Island Ferry. The GOP power couple wowed New...

WINONA'S 'THEFT' KIT - SCISSORS, BAG LET HER BUY 1, STEAL 4: DA

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. - Actress Winona Ryder went to a posh Beverly Hills department store armed with a stealing kit - and then gave herself a sticky-fingered five-for-one discount, prosecutors...

SLAIN SAMARITAN: 'DON'T HURT ME'

A young Philadelphia mother thought she was going on joy ride to New York City - but instead witnessed the coldblooded murder of a good Samaritan who came to the...

SNIPER TERROR PROBE - FEDS EYE NORTHWEST MILITANTS

Federal agents are investigating whether accused Beltway sniper John Allen Muhammad had ties to terrorist groups in the Pacific Northwest, sources told The Post yesterday. They want to know whether...

CLASSROOM EXTRA - OLYMPIC EDITION

ABSTRACT: LET THE GAMES BEGIN - This week's Classroom Extra takes a look at New York City's bid to host the 2012 Summer Olympic Games and how you can help...

TRAGIC TRUTH OF SPACE DOG

In a revelation that will horrify animal lovers, new evidence shows that famed Russian space dog Laika - the first living creature to orbit the Earth - died in panic...

SNIPER TERROR PROBE: FEDS EYE NORTHWEST MILITANTS

Federal agents are investigating whether accused Beltway sniper John Allen Muhammad had ties to terrorist groups active in the Pacific Northwest, sources told The Post yesterday. They want to know...

ICE-T ACTS ALL COOL WITH HIS 'BABY'

Ice-T didn't exactly melt in Manhattan family court yesterday when he came face to face with the infant he allegedly fathered. "He didn't even look at the baby," said would-be...

SEX IS A REAL PAIN FOR MEN

Men are more likely than women to be telling the truth when they say: "Not tonight, dear, I've got a headache." That's the surprising conclusion of German doctors who found...

ROOTIN' RUDY JOINS PATAKI ON CAMPAIGN TRAIL

Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani yesterday swept across the campaign trail with Gov. Pataki, greeting voters from Grand Central Terminal to the Staten Island ferry. The GOP power couple wowed New...

WINONA'S 'THEFT' KIT: SCISSORS, BAG LET HER BUY 1, STEAL 4: DA

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. - Actress Winona Ryder went to a posh Beverly Hills department store armed with a stealing kit - and then gave herself a sticky-fingered five-for-one discount, prosecutors...

'SOPRANO' SINGS PRAI$ES OF FDNY

Tony Soprano wants Mayor Bloomberg to make New York firefighters an offer they won't refuse. "The Sopranos" actor James Gandolfini is among several stars in a new radio and television...

TOP 10 SENATE RACES

Here are the top Senate races that will decide which party controls the U.S. Senate MINNESOTA (now D): Democrat: Walter Mondale? Ex-veep may replace the late Paul Wellstone Republican: Norm...

JET SET: MIKE FLIES POLS TO BERMUDA FOR GOLF - AND BUDGET TALKS

ALBANY - Mayor Bloomberg has whisked the state Legislature's two most powerful leaders to his posh Bermuda hideaway for some serious golf - and even more serious talk about his...

PHILADELPHIA FLOP - GIANT SEASON REELING AFTER UGLY LOSS

Eagles 17 - Giants 3 PHILADELPHIA - Two weeks, for this? The Giants hadn't played or lost a game in 15 days and when they hit the field last night...

HALOS SHOW WORLD RIGHT WAY TO PLAY

ANAHEIM - There's no crying in baseball. Not any more. Not after the Angels won the 2002 World Series. There are no more sob stories, no more excuses. No more...

PLAYING BY HALVES

JET REPORT CARDQUARTERBACKS: C+ Chad Pennington (19-26, 183 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) played well but he wasn't able to spark and move the team when it needed him most...

YANKS MUST SILENCE THE THUNDERSTIX

GEORGE Steinbrenner has to do everything in his power to beat back the powerful menace the Angels have created. No, not Troy Glaus & Co., this is much more significant....

NETS HAVE NOTHING BUT PRAISE FOR KIDD

He passes. He scores. He rebounds. He defends. But Jason Kidd's strongest attribute for the Nets is not any measurable quality. His greatest strength is his leadership. "Incredible. He just...

DOLAN: WE WILL STILL BE COMPETITIVE

Let's go out on a limb here and say that the Knicks don't reach the playoffs this season. Which club employees are going to take the hit? To hear Jim...

ISLES' IZZY WAKING UP

Let's see Brad Isbister play the way he did Saturday against the Flyers on a consistent basis. Because if you turned your televisions off or left the Coliseum in a...

DEVILS SURVEY TRADE MART

The wise deal from strength, and with his Devils owning the NHL's best record, sources say Lou Lamoriello is being No Fool. Banished-and-back center Mike Danton is the focus of...

'I'M RIGHT CHOICE' - NEW MET BOSS HOWE OK WITH BEING 2ND THOUGHT

There was no other conceivable way to spin it, so Art Howe admitted to it. Although he donned a blue and orange Mets cap yesterday afternoon and held up a...

HALL DIDN'T GET BLOCKED FG HIGH ENOUGH

JET NOTES Upon further review, John Hall's 44-yard field- goal attempt to tie Sunday's game that was blocked with 16 seconds remaining was low. After film review yesterday, Herman Edwards...

ABRAHAM RIPS JETS COACHES - CLEARS AIR AFTER MEETING WITH HERM

Losing always breeds unsightly controversy, something the Jets have hardly been unaccustomed to in their sordid history of foibles and follies. It has been awhile, however, since a player pointed...

PROBE $2.5M 'HIT' ON BREEDERS' CUP PICK 6

The New York State Racing and Wagering Board (NYSRWB) has launched an investigation into last Saturday's Breeders' Cup Pick 6 after learning that all six winning tickets, worth over $2.5...

PHILLIPS FATE IN HOWE'S HANDS

Make no mistake about it, GM Steve Phillips' future employment with the Mets is up to the new manager, Art Howe. Howe is Phillips' choice. Fred Wilpon and his son,...

A WORK OF ART WITH REAL VALUE

TURNS out, the Mets were smart not to wait for Dusty Baker. Not the manager it appeared with a five-run lead and nine outs to go, he has resumed being...

NO FINE FOR METS IN ART PURSUIT

Contrary to published reports, a major league source said the Mets probably won't receive a fine for their distracting managerial pursuit during the World Series. Mets owner Fred Wilpon spoke...

RICE'S ALLEYNE PICKS RUTGERS

Shagari Alleyne has a sense of humor much like that of former St. Raymond's star Julius Hodge. Now he just hopes to have as much success as Hodge has had...

THREE YANKS FILE

Robin Ventura, Ramiro Mendoza and John Vander Wal filed for free agency yesterday, the first day they were eligible to do so. Roger Clemens will file for free agency as...

LINDROS & BURE POWER RANGERS

OVERTIME: Rangers 3 - Coyotes 2 Listen, there isn't anyone who isn't aware that the Rangers are structurally flawed, $75 million payroll or not. But even allowing for the absence...

JEREMY GETS RUDE WELCOME FROM VET

GIANT NOTES PHILADELPHIA - Jeremy Shockey talked a better game than he played. The rookie tight end, who unnecessarily fueled a fire last week when he dubbed the Eagles secondary...

SHOCKEY'S GAME CAN'T MATCH TALK

GIANT NOTES PHILADELPHIA - Jeremy Shockey talked a better game than he played. The rookie tight end, who unnecessarily fueled a fire last week when he dubbed the Eagles secondary...

BIG BLUE BRACED FOR VET CRAZIES

GIANT NOTES PHILADELPHIA - When Micheal Barrow signed with the Giants prior to the 2000 season, he was offered an immediate piece of advice that he recalled recently while contemplating...

TURNING THE CORNER - WILLS TAKE GIANT STEPS

PHILADELPHIA - Anyone wondering about the mental makeup of Will Peterson would have found his reaction to a key play last season revealing. As a rookie cornerback, Peterson was the...

TROTS NOT HOT TO MATCH LINES

He has been reluctant to reveal even a hint of his strategic philosophy, but Bryan Trottier yesterday morning admitted what's been obvious the first couple of weeks of the season...

NETS SHALL RISE IN THE EAST: BUT CHAMPS WILL GET PLENTY OF RUN FROM REST OF PACK

The 2002-03 NBA season opens for real tonight. Realize what that means? Players can no longer spend quality time with their summer chums. You know them as Nick Nolte and...