| SPITZER 'GAG' REFLEX
Gov. Spitzer's administration silenced two more top figures in the dirty- tricks scandal - using a highly unusual maneuver that prevented Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's investigators from questioning them, The Post has found. Peter Pope, the governor's close friend and "policy director" who once headed Attorney General Spitzer's criminal division, and Sean Patrick Maloney, the governor's No. 2 administrator, were secretly named "special counsels," even though neither is on the governor's legal staff, sources said. The two were dispatched to "debrief" and coach two central figures in the alleged conspiracy to have the State Police collect damaging information on Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno - Spitzer's chief-of-staff, Richard Baum, and now-suspended communications director, Darren Dopp - as they prepared to answer questions from Cuomo's probers.
'Vantage Point' Snags Box Office Crown
Audiences really love it when they get a summer-style popcorn movie at a time of the year when they don't expect it," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box office tracker Media By Numbers. The studio said "Vantage Point" appealed to a broad audience — 52 percent of moviegoers were male and half were under age 30. "It's fresh with lots of twists and turns. Audiences become very invested in it," said Rory Bruer, Sony president of distribution. The only other new release to crack the top 10 was the Jack Black comedy "Be Kind Rewind," which took in $4.1 million and was tied at No. 7 with "Juno." The Fox Searchlight pregnancy comedy has rung up $130 million since opening 12 weeks ago. Paramount Vantage's oil saga "There Will Be Blood" moved up two slots to No.
Megan's a wonder girl
MEGA model Megan Gale is rapt to be spending her first Australia Day long weekend in Melbourne with her comedian boyfriend Andy Lee. "The good things about Melbourne are food, sporting events and music, so I’m hoping to tick off all three this weekend," Gale says. Surrounded by objects synonymous with Australia and sporting some of the country’s top designers, Gale said she felt enormously proud to be an Aussie. Gallery: Click here to see pictures of Megan Gale's Australia Day fashion shoot "I think Australia Day is about embracing the Australian spirit and our history, as well as looking forward to our future," she says. "It’s also an opportunity to capitalise on being social and enjoying lots of food, and usually there’s a fair bit of drinking involved as well." Very happy with Lee, Gale says she and the radio star laughed at recent women’s magazine reports that the glamour pair had married.
Evernham will take a break after nearly burning out
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. | Ray Evernham's reputation has been that of the ultimate hands-on guy in auto racing. His preference has been to sweat the big stuff, medium stuff and small stuff.</p><p>Delegating? Just not Evernham's style.</p><p>But over the last several months, Evernham painfully discovered that his style came with a danger. The crew chief who led Jeff Gordon to three points championships and two Daytona 500 victories, Evernham then went on to lead Dodge's return to NASCAR. During that time, he discovered that trying to do everything can lead to emotional incineration.</p><p>Evernham will tell you that he nearly suffered a personal burnout last season.</p><p>When this year's Speed Weeks began, it was a made-over Evernham who showed up at Daytona.
Groups unite to undo Comcast transfer restrictions
A number of consumer groups and legal scholars have united to petition the FCC over Comcast's bandwidth policies, the Associated Press reports. The news organization recently uncovered that Comcast has been sabotaging BitTorrent traffic, slowing it down or preventing it from functioning at all. Consumers Union, Media Access Project, the Consumer Federation of America and professors from Yale, Harvard and Stanford's law schools have come forward, asking the FCC to label Comcast in violation of government policy; two more groups, Free Press and Public Knowledge, are asking for a $195,000 fine per affected subscriber. An executive VP with Comcast, David Cohen, has responded by saying that FCC policies acknowledge a need to control network traffic. The company has in the past admitted to "delaying" BitTorrent traffic, but insists it is unavoidable, since even a small number of file sharers can slow an entire network.
Former NBA player helps police nab suspect
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - The families of former NFL defensive back Anthony Newman and former NBA guard Terrell Brandon were the victims of an extortion attempt, the Portland Police Bureau said. Bobby Hayes, 41, was charged with theft by extortion and attempted theft by extortion. Police suspect he wrote threatening letters demanding $10,000 from the families of Newman and Brandon, according to court papers. One of the letters arrived early last week at the home of Newman's 65-year-old mother. It was addressed to "NFL Mom." "U don't know me, but I know U," it read. "I want 10K in cash in a black bag set next to your garage door Friday night. If you tell the police and try to be a hero you will be responsible for the murder of your whole family." Brandon, meanwhile, took matters into his own hands.
Victoria Derbyshire Blog
However, I was never able to visit Old Trafford, Anfield or Stamford Bridge when Town were in the Premier League as the grounds only ever offered a handful (4,5,6) of away disabled supporters places, which, quite rightly went to the fans who regularly travelled away. Considering that Ipswich have a smaller ground (30,311) they consistantly offer a good number of tickets to away disabled fans- and so they should as ITFC can cater for 300 fans with all manner of disabilities and as a result ITFC has a very high proportion of disabled fans. In short, if the clubs are prepared to offer the facilities AND the trained staff to steward the areas, disabled supporters and their families will come. With regards to Man U, My friend tried to get a ticket for her and her son who is a wheelchair user and season ticket holder at ITFC while on their annual holiday in October and despite the fact they HAD spare seats for the game they were only prepared to sell her the tickets IF her son joined the fan club (about £40) they also live in Suffolk and only go north once a year.
Song's a howling success
We're pumped on the song going international and obviously expect Snoop Dogg to appear in the video with a couple of his `Poochie Mamas','' DraftFCB Creative Alex Dyer said. Lwindi Ellis, DraftFCB's PR Director, said the song was played to various dog breeds to ensure the concept was valid. "A series of focus groups were carried out with a range of dogs, from pit bulls to chihuahuas,'' she said. "The responses were mostly positive with tails wagging, ears pricked and considerable barking.'' It is not the only selective sound going around. Thanks to another new concept, teenagers are also being subjected to annoying sounds that are inaudible to people over 25. Called a Mosquito, the unit produces a painful high-frequency noise and can be installed at the entrances of shops, residences and car parks.
Law forces county to rethink ROP programs
The county's program is just one of four in the state with an adult population of more than 40 percent, according to Holloway. One way ROPs are trying to reduce that population is by working with local community colleges and other education providers to have them pick up the vocational programs for the older students, Holloway said. At the same time, she said, the legislation will allow high schools to offer additional ROP courses. That prospect excites Carlmont High School Principal Andrea Jenoff and ROP biotechnology students at the Belmont campus. "I think it's great for us," Jenoff said. "It helps build new programs." The school could add another biotech class, a Web-animation course and an after-school program, she said. Biotech students say they enjoy learning through real-world projects.
|
