December 2, 2002
BLACK FRIDAY BINGE BRINGS EARLY HOLIDAY CHEER
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amThey came, they saw, they shopped. And while consumers happily helped retailers ring up higher sales on the first weekend of this year's holiday shopping season, it remains to be...
TECHIE LAYOFFS TO BRING OFFICE BLUES
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amWidespread firings of techies in the workplace in coming months is expected give rise to more office rage and frustration. A new report says nearly one-third of companies polled plan...
IT'S PAYBACK TIME - REGULATORS TARGET STREET PROS' POCKETBOOKS
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amRegulators are set to reach into the pockets of the Wall Street stars who rode the 1990s bull market to riches. When the global settlement to reform corrupt stock research...
SPIELBERG'S 'TAKEN' STARTS UNUSUAL 10-NIGHT RUN - TOUCHED BY AN ALIEN
December 2, 2002 | 5:00am"Steven Spielberg Presents Taken" [ ] Tonight at 9 p.m. on SCI FI ------ WHEN I took this job, made a sacred vow that I would - to the best...
HANK'S FOR NOTHIN' - HE'S HIS OWN MAN - AN ANGRY ONE, TOO
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amHANK III, as Shelton Hank Williams III prefers to be called, is mad enough to skip the Grand Ole Opry's 50th anniversary tribute to his legendary granddaddy. He's also mad...
HOLIDAY TRADITION ALL IT'S CRACKED UP TO BE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amTHE NUTCRACKERNew York City Ballet at New York State Theater, Lincoln Center. (212) 870-5570. Season runs through March 2. ----- THANKSGIVING is over, Hanukkah is already with us and in...
THE BOY BEHIND COURT TV'S BIG MOVIE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amAS far as the cops in Escondido, Calif. are concerned, 14-year old Michael Crowe stabbed his 12-year-old sister Stephanie to death on a dark January night in 1998. Cops who...
TAKING CABLE TO NEW HIKES - WHY YOUR BILLS KEEP GOING UP
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amTHE consumer group better known for testing toaster ovens and SUVs is taking on the cable industry. After an investigation, Consumer's Union, the nation's largest consumer group and the organization...
STARR REPORT
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amMorning glory: 'Fox & Friends' closes in on million mark Fox News Channel's "Fox & Friends" continues to grow by leaps and bounds. It's not only closing in on 1...
A GIFT FOR SHOPPING: THREE CHIC PROS' TIPS FOR HOLIDAY BUYING TRIPS
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amGIFT-BUYING doesn't have to be a pain - especially when you've got shopping experts on your side. Here, three of New York's savviest retail professionals share their secrets for buying...
HOW TO GET WHAT YOU WANT - FOR A CHANGE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amTIRED of getting a scarf or an ill-fitting negligee every holiday? Getting your man to buy you what you want - without handing him the shopping list - can be...
RAP OF LUXURY READOUT: HIP-HOP WORLD DUMPS GOLD TEETH FOR HARRY WINSTON
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amKANGOL hats and Adidas shell-toe sneakers will always be hip-hop staples, but big baggy pants and gold teeth have been shoved to the back of the well-dressed rapper's closet. The...
'WRONG MEN' IN SLAY CASE SUE FOR $60M
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amTwo men who served 13 years for a murder they did not commit are heading back into court tomorrow - suing the state for $30 million apiece as compensation for...
BUS GUNMAN'S LIMP EXCUSE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amA Brooklyn bandit who spent 10 years in jail for hijacking a bus bound for Atlantic City admits he committed the crime because he was "sexually inadequate." "The inability to...
COLLEGE FLAP OVER SNUB TO HISTORY PROF
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amCity University officials are investigating why Brooklyn College denied promotion and tenure to a popular and nationally recognized history professor - a decision that critics call "academic terrorism." CUNY Chancellor...
THE AUTHOR WHOSE INFLAMMATORY BOOK TOPPED FRANCE'S BEST-SELLER LIST WITH HIS CLAIM THAT NO PLANE CRASHED INTO THE PENTAGON ON SEPT. 11 PLANS TO VISIT THE UNITED STATES
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amThe author whose inflammatory book topped France's best-seller list with his claim that no plane crashed into the Pentagon on Sept. 11 plans to visit the United States next month...
HEVESI: WE'RE IN A BAD $TATE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amSTATE Comptroller-Elect Alan Hevesi, in a grim assessment of New York's fiscal situation, says huge spending cuts, painful tax hikes and massive new borrowing may all be necessary to balance...
SAUDIS IN NEW $HAME - EMBASSY FUNNELED 400G TO OSAMA 'CHARITY'
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amWASHINGTON - The FBI is investigating a payment from the Saudi Embassy in Washington to an Islamic charity that has been identified by the Bush administration as one of the...
MASS. GIRL OK AFTER 'KIDNAP' DRAMA
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amIt was a late - but very happy - Thanksgiving for Mike and Cindy Costello, who were reunited with their niece Saturday night after the 11-year-old had been kidnapped from...
THANK YOU, BIG APPLE - BRICK-BASH VICTIM HAILS N.Y. FROM TEXAS HOME
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amNicole Barrett will never forget New York - not because of the violent Midtown brick attack that left her near-dead three years ago, but because of the "enormous generosity" of...
WEIRD BUT TRUE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amA British hospital has given "alternative medicine" a whole new meaning, by hiring a clairvoyant to boost staff morale. Aside from free fortune-telling sessions, doctors and nurses at the Calderdale...
CHUCK CALLS ON FEDS TO END N.Y.'S 'IDENTITY' CRISIS
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amCalling New York City the identity-theft capital of America, Sen. Charles Schumer yesterday made a plea to the Federal Trade Commission to establish new guidelines to put a dent in...
JUST CALL TODAY'S TEENAGERS GENERATION V - FOR 'VIRGIN'
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amHere's some news sure to have moms and dads jumping for joy - our kids are having much less sex than a decade ago. In fact, the number of high-school...
'MEGA' MAN MR. THRIFTY WITH $165M
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amThe New Jersey man who last July won $165 million in Mega Millions cash - the largest single-ticket payout ever - is still playing the lottery. Even today, four months...
CITY'S HOPPING WITH SHOPPING
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amManhattan merchants had a lot to be thankful for this weekend, as crowds of shoppers kept their cash registers ringing. Thanksgiving this year came only 26 days before Christmas -...
YOU PAY FOR NEW 7 WTC, BUT IT'S ALL SECRET
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amDeveloper Larry Silverstein recently unveiled plans for a new 7 World Trade Center office tower - but city officials are refusing to lift the veil on a secretive process that...
COPS FIRE BULLETPROOF VEST MAKER
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amThe NYPD is shopping for new bulletproof vests for its officers after tests showed that about 1,000 vests were flawed, an official said yesterday. The police bought 20,000 vests from...
NEW 'JOGGER' TWIST - SILENT WITNESSES TO 'GANG' ATTACK BACK VERDICTS
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amTwo teens who witnessed - but did not participate in - the horrific Central Park jogger attack told cops and prosecutors they saw the woman gang-raped, The Post has learned....
COP-SLAY BRO CALLS FOR PSYCH TESTING
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amWhen Tina Williams was gunned down by crazed Toms River, N.J., cop Edward Lutes last April, it scarred her brother's life - and he's been on a crusade ever since....
BX. MAN SLAIN FOR HIS JACKET
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amA brutal mugger shot and killed a Bronx man yesterday when he refused to hand over his leather jacket - saying he worked too hard to give it to the...
TERROR 2 DODGE DEATH - BAIL OUT OF CAR MOMENTS BEFORE ISRAELI AIRSTRIKE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amJERUSALEM - Two hunted leaders of the militant terror group Islamic Jihad narrowly escaped death yesterday by jumping out of their car moments before it was obliterated by Israeli missiles,...
BOND BROKEN: HARRY TAKES BACK TOP SPOT
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amHarry Potter pulled a neat trick on James Bond over the weekend, magically knocking the famed secret agent out of the top spot to reclaim his place as the No....
RAPE VICTIM'S HELP NEEDED
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amDetectives are hoping the victim of a horrific gang rape in a Brooklyn park will be able to help them come up with at least partial sketches of her attackers....
NYPD DAILY BLOTTER
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amTHE BRONX * Cops stopped a school safety officer at a street checkpoint yesterday and discovered she was driving with a suspended license and without insurance, authorities said. Jeanette Bonner...
PRISONER SLIPS CUFFS IN B'KLYN
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amA man arrested in the theft of school equipment escaped from a Brooklyn station house yesterday - but was on the loose only five hours before he was recaptured, police...
KENYA BOMB TIED TO AL QAEDA-SOMALI PLOT
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amAmerican lawmakers and Israeli officials have said last week's terror attacks in Kenya appear to be the work of al Qaeda - and a related, Somali-based terror group is also...
I GET LATTE HELP FROM THIS DRUG
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amHELLO, my name is Gersh and I'm a drug addict. And, apparently, it's the best thing that ever happened to me. The drug is caffeine. And, according to a new...
HEALTH SCARE AT SENIOR HOME
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amDozens of elderly residents at a Queens assisted-living home came down with flu-like symptoms yesterday, and 17 were hospitalized. Residents, many of whom are in their 80s, were treated throughout...
LETHAL ALLIED AIRSTRIKE - U.S. AND BRIT JETS POUND OIL PLANT IN 'NO FLY' FUROR
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amWASHINGTON - As U.N. inspectors searched an Iraqi crop-dusting factory yesterday, American and British jets bombed an oil-processing plant in the country's southern corner. At least four people were killed...
SHANIA HINTS THE SONG IS OVER
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amMidriff-baring songbird Shania Twain is singing a shocking tune: She doesn't care if she ever performs again. The 37-year-old country singer's new album, "Up," has soared to No. 1 on...
SUSPENDED BREAST DOC A BOOB: STATE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amAn Upper East Side plastic surgeon has been suspended for having an affair with one of his breast-implant patients, the state Department of Health said. Dr. Michael George Ashkar, 65,...
BLAZE DE-FLOWERS DI'S EX-BUTLER
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amBig-mouthed butler Paul Burrell is distraught and angry after thugs torched his flower shop early yesterday. Police said a passer-by spotted flames coming out of Paul Burrell Flowers & Gifts...
COP OR CAPO? COURT TO DECIDE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amA 19-year NYPD veteran accused of tipping off his mobster cousin and helping him hide evidence of a Mafia hit goes on trial today in Manhattan Federal Court. Detective Michael...
CON ED TERROR SHOCK - IGNORES POLICE PLEA TO UPGRADE SECURITY AT ASTORIA PLANT
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amMore than a year after cops urged Con Ed to implement a series of anti-terror measures at the city's largest power plant, most of their recommendations have been ignored, The...
WTC PET PROJECT - DOCS STUDYING HERO DOGS FOR HEALTH WOES
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amNew studies on Ground Zero search and rescue dogs could shed light on whether dangerous toxins were harmful to animals and humans alike. So far, rumors about the failing health...
THE LAST HERO - NO RITES YET FOR 9/11 FIREFIGHTER; GRIEVING KIN WAIT TO BURY LAST 9/11 HERO
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amThey're the only family of a firefighter killed at the World Trade Center that hasn't buried or memorialized their loved one. Dee and Vincent Ragusa, of Bergen Beach, Brooklyn, spent...
FREED 'LIFERS' SET FOR PAYBACK DAY
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amThey were the wrong men - and they lost 13 years doing hard time for a murder they didn't commit. And when a judge finally tossed their convictions, Anthony Faison...
DI'S FORMER BUTLER GETS DE-FLOWERED BY BLAZE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amBig-mouthed butler Paul Burrell is distraught and angry after thugs torched his flower shop early yesterday. Police said a passerby spotted flames coming out of Paul Burrell Flowers & Gifts...
DEADLY 'NO FLY' FIREBALL: JETS BOMB OIL PLANT AS INSPECTORS EYE CHEM SITE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amWASHINGTON - As U.N. inspectors visited an Iraqi crop-dusting factory, U.S. and British fighter planes yesterday bombed an oil processing plant in the country's southern corner. At least four people...
LETHAL ALLIED AIRSTRIKE : U.S. AND BRIT JETS POUND OIL PLANT IN 'NO FLY' FUROR
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amWASHINGTON - As U.N. inspectors searched an Iraqi crop-dusting factory yesterday, American and British jets bombed an oil-processing plant in the country's southern corner. At least four people were killed...
INTO THE MADHOUSE - RUNNING RAIDERS' GAUNTLET DOESN'T DAUNT GANG GREEN
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amOAKLAND - At about 7 p.m. Eastern time tonight, the chartered buses bringing the Jets from their team hotel to the Coliseum, where they'll play the Raiders, will roll into...
HALL STILL GETS KICK FROM GAME-WINNING BOOT
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amJET NOTES OAKLAND - Almost a year ago, John Hall ran out of Network Associates Coliseum as a hero, having propelled the Jets into the playoffs by booting a 53-yard...
FRIESEN LINE'S HOT
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amPHILADELPHIA - Eureka! Finally, one Devil understands. "I have to score goals," Jeff Friesen said, stepping forward to take the job so often assigned to the nebulous "team," the job...
DON: WARD NOT READY TO START
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amDon Chaney has already had a season's worth of decisions to make, but with Charlie Ward finally able to play, the coach will likely be faced with another. "It's never...
PAV DOES WHAT HE DOES BEST
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amRangers 4 - Lightning 3 He has been branded a selfish player during his previous stops in Vancouver and Florida, a goal-scoring machine interested in scoring goals and little else,...
DORSEY ON HEISMAN: I DON'T REALLY CARE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amI MADE a promise to myself this season that I didn't keep. I vowed not to become an unofficial flack for the Heisman Trophy by writing about it every week....
IMUS RAUNCH AMBUSHES KIDS
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amWHAT do you suppose would happen if, completely by chance, one early afternoon, you ran into Don Imus's wife and young son on the street - and then ambushed them...
FASSEL FOLLIES ADD AMMO TO FIRING SQUAD
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amTHE players were good, loyal soldiers later on, serving as human shields for their general, but it was a waste of energy. By then, Jim Fassel already had made certain...
JINT PLAYOFF HOPES FASSEL-IZED - BIG BLUE PAYS THE PRICE FOR JIM'S BLUNDER
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amThe end of the road for the Giants came not with a whimper, not with a thud, but with an emotion far more disturbing. "Yeah, honestly it did feel helpless...
ERRATIC TIKI FAILS TO FINISH
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amTiki Barber looked like Armando Benitez in a big game yesterday. He was given the ball with a chance to close out a Giants win, but couldn't do it. With...
BARROW SUFFERS 'MILD' CONCUSSION
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amGIANT NOTES As bad as the Giants were yesterday on defense in their 32-29 overtime loss to the Titans, things could get worse. Micheal Barrow, their starting middle linebacker, left...
GIANTS 'D' IS FEEBLE IN CLUTCH
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amThe script rarely calls for the Giants' offense to get big games from Amani Toomer, Ron Dixon and Jeremy Shockey, a fine performance from Kerry Collins despite a stiff wind,...
ANY QUARTERBACK WILL DO - EAGLE 'D' MAKES IT EASY FOR FEELEY
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amPHILADELPHIA - The Eagles, three games up with four to play, have the NFC East in a bag that is much deeper than how far down they have to reach...
STORM OVER SJU LETTER
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amThe parents of Rachel Seager, the St. John's coed who allegedly was assaulted and harassed by Red Storm basketball player Grady Reynolds, told The Post yesterday they are losing patience...
SUDDENLY, INJURIES PILE UP
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amNET NOTES SEATTLE - Kerry Kittles joined Dikembe Mutombo on the sidelines here last night. Kittles experienced soreness and stiffness in his bruised left knee so the Nets decided to...
MCNAIR PUTS HURT ON JINTS
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amYou can't really blame Jason Sehorn for being a non-believer. Titans quarterback Steve McNair - allegedly playing with strained ribs, turf toe and a bruised shin - nimbly deconstructed the...
NET TRIP ENDS ON FOUL NOTE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amSEATTLE - Every defeat on the Nets' West Coast road trip was winnable. None more so than this one. The Nets seemed to have control during the endgame. They had...
GIMPY MCNAIR DAZZLES JINTS
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amYou can't really blame Jason Sehorn for being a non-believer. Titans quarterback Steve McNair - allegedly playing with strained ribs, turf toe and a bruised shin - nimbly deconstructed the...
ANY QUARTERBACK WILL DO : EAGLE 'D' MAKES IT EASY FOR FEELEY
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amEagles 10 Rams 3 PHILADELPHIA - The Eagles, three games up with four to play, have the NFC East in a bag that is far deeper than how far down...
JEFF REBOUNDS WITH VENGEANCE
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amSEATTLE - Challenge made. Challenge accepted. Task completed. After the Nets' early-season rebounding mastery went the way of the dinosaur, Nets coach Byron Scott issued a challenge to his team...
RED STORM'S NEW WORLD
December 2, 2002 | 5:00amPrior to St. John's season-opening win over Stony Brook last Tuesday, forward Grady Reynolds offered an amusing account of his first thoughts of New York City. "It was like another...