The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA) articles from October 2000

The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA) archives from October 2000

Philadelphia-Based Auto-Parts Retailer Closes 38 Stores, Cutting 1,500 Jobs.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Harold Brubaker Oct. 31--Pep Boys -- Manny, Moe & Jack, the Philadelphia auto-parts retailer, said yesterday it closed 38 unprofitable stores and two distribution centers, eliminating about 1,500 jobs. The cuts affected 5.4...

The Philadelphia Inquirer Loose Change Column.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Joseph N. DiStefano Oct. 31--For the past 15 years, bank technologist Bipin Shah has believed he could build a system to rival Visa and the other payment networks that shuttle money from Americans' bank accounts to stores and...

The Philadelphia Inquirer Personal Finance Column.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Jeff Brown Oct. 31--Section 529 plans, as I said Sunday, offer an appealing way to invest for college while deferring taxes, much as you would with a 401(k) or IRA. But readers raised some good questions: What if you put...

Investors Discuss Whether to Buy, Sell or Hold General Electric.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Miriam Hill Oct. 31--Turn on a light switch, grab a sandwich from the refrigerator, click on the television set, and watch old images of Neil Armstrong's first steps on the moon. Hop a plane to Washington, and check out the...

Philadelphia-Area Transit Officials Mull Restoration of Passenger Rail Line.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Zlati Meyer Oct. 31--SEPTA officials, politicians and area business owners gathered last night to discuss the possibility of restoring the Quakertown-Stony Creek passenger rail line, which would run from Norristown to Shelly,...

Looming Turnpike Strike Means Lower Fares for Pennsylvanians.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Bill Ordine Oct. 31--The Pennsylvania Turnpike will remain open even if union workers, including toll collectors, strike at midnight, officials said yesterday. In fact, a strike would mean temporarily lower tolls for most...

Late-night TV pioneer, songwriter, comic Steve Allen dies at 78.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Michael D. Schaffer Steve Allen, the godfather of late-night television, died Monday night of an apparent heart attack at the home of his son, Bill, in Encino, Calif. He was 78. Before Jack Paar and Johnny Carson, before Leno...

Black history begins to get its due at historic monuments.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Melia Bowie GETTYSBURG, Pa. _ Every few weekends, a spirit from a forgotten past roams the Civil War battlefield here. In hoop skirts and crown hat, she beckons visitors to put down their tour books and follow her into the...

Samoan used to being underdog.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Jay Searcy PHILADELPHIA _ You will have to excuse little Samoa for the next few days. Its most famous athlete stands at the threshold of greatness, and the very thought of it has the South Pacific islanders a bit giddy. Their...

Personal briefing.
October 31, 2000... In your faith: Looking for a guide to spiritual enlightenment? That's what a new magazine for men called "Stuff" claims to be. Enlightening headlines on the cover of its November issue include: "Build Your Own Sex Bomb! Turn Any Good...

Front lines of Mideast crisis extend into cyberspace.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Barbara Demick JERUSALEM _ Avi Hai glides his mouse to click on the Web site for Hezbollah, the ferociously anti-Israeli Islamic movement based in Lebanon. A message flashes up on his computer screen noting that the site is...

Bertlesmann AG to drop suit, work with Napster on new service.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Reid Kanaley PHILADELPHIA _ A major recording label changed its tune Tuesday in the battle over Napster Inc., the popular online song-sharing service. Bertelsmann AG, a German media giant, said it intends to drop its...

Comedy erupts in volcanic Robert De Niro.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Desmond Ryan Being in a scene with Robert De Niro is seldom a laughing matter. Just ask the guy lying dead in the car trunk in "GoodFellas" or one of the pugs on the business end of Jake LaMotta's punches in "Raging Bull." But...

Once again, it's not the popular vote, it's the Electoral College.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Larry Eichel At a Bush rally the other day, an otherwise well-informed Republican voter asked me what happens if George W. wins the popular vote but Al Gore comes away with a majority of electoral votes. Would Bush be able to...

Casey cleared by N.J. grand jury.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Ray Parrillo A grand jury in Hudson County, N.J., Tuesday voted to clear of criminal charges Penn State quarterback Rashard Casey, who in May was accused of assaulting an off-duty police officer outside a dance club in his...

Philadelphia to get another HQ with FMC split.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Harold Brubaker PHILADELPHIA _ FMC Corp., the big Chicago chemical and machinery company, said Tuesday it will split in two _ with its $2 billion chemicals business to be headquartered in Philadelphia. That business has been...

Bringing art to Vegas adds a touch of class.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Bill Ordine Las Vegas has spent much of the last decade undoing its image as a tacky wasteland of overindulgence. Well, you can still subject most of your senses, digestive system and bank account to assault 24 hours a day _ but...

Flyers hurting heading into game with Devils.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Tim Panaccio PHILADELPHIA _ Just when the Philadelphia Flyers were about to get on the New Jersey Turnpike and head up to the Meadowlands to meet the Devils, they were felled with two more injuries. The latest injuries came...

New video releases for children.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Barry Zukerman CASPER'S HAUNTED CHRISTMAS (Universal, '00) $19.98 80 mins. Voices by Kathleen Barr, Brendon Ryan Barrett, Ian James Corlett. Everyone's favorite friendly ghost gets into trouble when he can't bring himself to...

Salk's attempt at AIDS vaccine didn't work, clinical trial shows.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Huntly Collins PHILADELPHIA _ A highly publicized experimental AIDS vaccine developed by Jonas Salk has failed to prevent disease progression in people already infected with the virus, researchers said. Their finding was...

Nader's traders? A swap meet of voters.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Eugene Kiely Relying on Internet know-how and a lot of trust, some voters who are torn between Ralph Nader and Al Gore think they've found a way to help both. They call it vote-swapping. Here's how it works: Nader...

Names in the news.
October 31, 2000... J.K. Rowling's success has splashed onto an unknown Irish writer who has signed a deal worth almost $1.5 million for his kids' book about leprechauns and a Harry Potter-like anti-hero. Eoin Colfer's "Artemis Fowl," described as ""Die Hard...

Panel probing rights abuses in Nigeria hindered by unrepentant military chiefs.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Andrew Maykuth ABUJA, Nigeria _ A commission investigating abuses by Nigeria's past dictatorships began holding public hearings last week, but the much-heralded panel immediately ran up against unrepentant military authorities....

Israeli-Palestinian clash is spiraling toward a guerrilla war.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Trudy Rubin GAZA _ It was a quiet, rainy morning in Gaza. The kids were making Molotovs rather than throwing them. Right after I crossed into the Gaza Strip from Israel, a group of Palestinian teens approached my car and...

A cheaper choice on European rail passes.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Donald D. Groff Add to the boggling array of European rail passes a new one: the Eurail Selectpass, which allows rail and ferry passage in any three bordering countries that fall under the 17-country Eurailpass program. The...

Lauer does his best Lopez impression.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Gail Shister Matt Lauer loved the sexy gown, but the heels were killing him. As part of "Today's" seven-year Halloween costume tradition, co-nchor Lauer stunned the Rockefeller Plaza crowd Tuesday when he stepped out of a...

Turn to a good book for specific business travel advice.
October 31, 2000... Byline: Tom Belden Every once in a while, this column may not be able to supply all the help and advice you need about business travel. That's when it's time to take a look at guidebooks, in bookstores or over the Internet, that are...

HEADLINE HERE.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Sandy Bauers Pub date: 29.10.2000 Sent by: HARRINM from workstation PNI3160 Books-Audio-Review Audio Books Reviewed by Sandy Bauers Richard Berendzen is going backward. While most books begin their...

Heat heads into season of uncertainty.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Ashley McGeachy MIAMI _ In his beautifully tailored olive suit and wire-rimmed glasses, he looked like a corporate executive. Put a clipboard in his hand and he could have been a tall, young NBA assistant coach. But Alonzo...

Groove or rut for Sixers?
October 30, 2000... Byline: Bill Lyon PHILADELPHIA _ The 76ers have found a groove. But it is in danger of becoming a rut. Since their rise from abject ineptitude to respectability, the Sixers have been repeating like radishes: winning season,...

76ers waive Jermaine Jackson.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Stephen A. Smith PHILADELPHIA _ Jermaine Jackson, the 6-foot-5 guard signed as a free agent on Aug. 17, was the last player the 76ers waived before Tuesday night's NBA opener against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden....

Great expectations for 76ers.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Stephen A. Smith PHILADELPHIA _ Larry Brown stood courtside Monday, praising the professionalism and effort of his star player. Minutes later, Allen Iverson sat a few feet away, applauding the coach's most recent acquisition and...

The Author: Venise Berry.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Thomas J. Brady When Venise Berry set out to write "All of Me: A Voluptuous Tale" (E.P. Dutton, $23.95), the story of an African American TV newswoman struggling with her weight and self-esteem, she certainly was heeding the old...

`This Craft of Verse,' by Jorge Luis Borges; Edited by Calin-Andrei Mihailescu; Harvard University Press (154 pages, $22.95).
October 30, 2000... Byline: Carlin Romano If any writer could publish from the grave, you'd expect it to be Borges: master fabulist, patron of paradox, imaginative rebel, gentle tour guide to life's labyrinths. By a kind of librarian's magic, long-lost...

Celebrity Biography Roundup: Jewel and Karen Duffy.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Jennifer Weiner Time now for another Celebrity Biography Roundup (our motto: "We read this stuff so you don't have to.") It's been a busy season for big stars and their little, invisible ghostwriters. Liz Smith came out _...

Bizarre, exotic tale examines centuries-old mystery.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Sandy Bauers Imagine a time when a maid could get fired just for doing what her boss asks: put on a pair of pearl earrings and pose for a painting. Odd, to be sure, but a firing offense? Evidently, if it's the 1600s in...

Personal briefing.
October 30, 2000... The last of the yuppies: Yuppies, your 15 minutes _ OK, 15 years _ of fame are coming to an end. The phrase "young urban professionals," which became yuppies in popular parlance, was coined during the greed-is-good mid-1980s. At the peak...

Gore's scattershot message letting Bush add new battlegrounds.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Larry Eichel CHARLESTON, W.Va. _ Nothing says more about the condition of Al Gore's presidential campaign than the fact that he felt compelled to come to West Virginia with little more than a week to go before Election Day. ...

Eagles look ahead after dismal defeat.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Jerry Brewer PHILADELPHIA _ Eagles coach Andy Reid plodded through the postmortem yesterday, trying to answer unanswerable questions and pondering scenarios that were nonfactors in Sunday's 24-7 loss to the New York Giants. ...

Names in the news.
October 30, 2000... Madonna, 42, will wed Guy Ritchie, 32, at a Scottish Highlands castle in a December ceremony that will include the christening of their baby, Rocco, a Brit tab reports. The Star said yesterday that a Beverly Hills jeweler has already...

529 college-saving plans have advantage over tax-efficient funds.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Jeff Brown Section 529 plans offer an appealing way to invest for college while deferring taxes, much as you would with a 401(k) or IRA. But readers raise some good questions: What if you put money into one state's 529 plan...

Worse storm in a decade batters Britain, Europe.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Andrea Gerlin LONDON_Torrential rains and high winds left much of southern Britain and northern France in shambles yesterday and halted trains, planes and English Channel ferries. At least eight people were killed. The storms...

Food news and notes.
October 30, 2000... A brand new kind of beef The Oregon Cattlemen's Association is putting together a plan to market a branded product _ as in brand name, not branding irons _ called Oregon Trail Beef. Starting around the first of the year, the group hopes...

Delaney to star as criminal defense attorney in new Bochco drama.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Gail Shister After being surrounded by boys in real life as well as TV, Kim Delaney is about to break out of the pack. Delaney, tough-talking Detective Diane Russell on "NYPD Blue" since May `95, will leave Steven Bochco's...

Born in Philadelphia, UNICEF trick-or-treat campaign turns 50.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Huntly Collins Newspapers PHILADELPHIA _ The Rev. Clyde Allison and his wife, Mary Emma, were taken aback by the piles of goodies their children brought back to their Hatboro, Pa., home one Halloween in the late 1940s. ...

Remembering a Marine too young to drive, let alone die.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Melanie D. Scott PHILADELPHIA _ On June 7, 1969, Marine Pfc. Dan Bullock was killed in a firefight at An Hoa Combat Base in what was then South Vietnam. According to battle reports, Bullock and his unit were posted along the...

Cinnaminson, Pa., Biotech Company Researches AIDS Virus.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Lauren Mayk Oct. 30--CINNAMINSON, Pa. -- Sometimes, research on one of the world's deadliest diseases is done in high-tech university laboratories and funded by the deep pockets of philanthropists and government agencies. ...

Owner of Camden, N.J., Baseball Team Unfazed by Project Failures.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Ewart Rouse Oct. 30--Standing amid construction of the 6,425-seat baseball stadium for the Camden Riversharks, Stephen R. Shilling had every reason to be nervous. After all, look at what has happened since Gov. Whitman broke...

The Philadelphia Inquirer Business People Column.
October 30, 2000... Oct. 30--When George K. Burke Jr. left the hospital supply company where he had worked for 27 years, he wanted to try something new. Last week, Burke, 48, took over as president and chief executive of Sharp Corp., a 900-employee...

The Philadelphia Inquirer Andrew Cassel Column.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Andrew Cassel Oct. 30--Anthony Santomero has an advanced degree in macroeconomics, taught finance at the Wharton School for years, and is a recognized expert in the structure and behavior of financial institutions. So...

Closing of Independent Conshohocken, Pa., Drugstores Angers Customers.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Melia Bowie Oct. 30--CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa. -- Eight years ago, when hometown boy Roy Mascio realized his dream of owning a small drugstore that had served this working-class community since 1919, his neighbors poured in, offering...

FBI Arrests Delaware Securities Dealer for Fraud.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Joseph N. DiStefano Oct. 30--Would you invest a big chunk of your life savings with a 23-year-old Wharton School dropout with a taste for fancy cars and big houses? A Delaware dentist did. So did his wife's hairdresser, and a...

The Philadelphia Inquirer Gambling Column.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Bill Ordine Oct. 30--Art exhibits, European spas and haute retail shops have helped change the image of casinos as being merely smoky dens of booze and hard-core gambling. Still, no one has ever accused a gambling resort of...

NBA Punishes Owner of Minnesota Timberwolves.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Aron Kahn Oct. 30--Glen Taylor's instincts always were sharp, like a wolf's. He built a $2 billion printing empire on a foundation of intuition, business smarts and ethical conduct, and gave a pretty piece to charity. He was Mr....

The Philadelphia Inquirer Real Estate Notes Column.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Mike Placentra Oct. 30--1760 MARKET ST. BUILDING SOLD: A partnership called 18th & Market Street Associates L.P. has purchased a 14-story, 124,000-square-foot office building at 1760 Market St., Philadelphia, from Brandywine...

Firms Offer Plans for Haverford, Pa., Hospital Site.
October 30, 2000... Byline: Mark Stroh Oct. 30--HAVERFORD, Pa. -- It was a small incision, but it marked a big step toward the township's eventual development of the Haverford State Hospital site. Using a long silver letter opener, Township Manager...

The Philadelphia Inquirer Automotive Queries Column.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Al Haas Oct. 29--QUESTION: I saw a little sport-utility vehicle with four-wheel drive made by Kia. It was just right for our needs, and had a nice price on it -- if it is a good, reliable car. Is it a reliable car? Will it hold...

The Philadelphia Inquirer Business Travel Column.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Tom Belden Oct. 29--Many companies allow employees to fly up in the roomy business class section of an airplane on long international trips. If you have ever made a business trip to Asia, Europe or Latin America and needed to...

The Philadelphia Inquirer Cars Column.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Al Haas Oct. 29--The evolution of the sport-utility vehicle is now entering its tertiary phase. First, midsize utes such as the Ford Explorer and Jeep Grand Cherokee took center stage. Then, the brutes such as the full-size...

The Philadelphia Inquirer Loose Change Column.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Joseph N. DiStefano Oct. 29--HIGH-TECHNOLOGY INSURANCE: A PREMIUM BET? Companies get insurance to make sure construction projects are finished on time and on budget. So shouldn't they get it for expensive technology projects,...

The Philadelphia Inquirer Personal Finance Column.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Jeff Brown Oct. 29--Having trouble choosing between A and B? Don't flip a coin -- buy both. For some parents and grandparents, this may be the best way to handle the choice between the conservative prepaid "Section 529"...

The Philadelphia Inquirer Homenotes Column.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Alan J. Heavens Oct. 29--WORRIED ABOUT A RECESSION? Robert Van Order, chief economist for Freddie Mac, says a slowdown that even approximates a recession isn't likely "any time soon." Real growth in gross domestic...

Pharmaceutical Company Chief Sees Merger as Partnership.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Susan Warner Oct. 29--Their companies tried to merge two years ago. But after that deal fell apart, two executives, one from each camp, continued to meet for secret dinners on the Main Line and in Europe. Now the merger of...

Comcast, ABC Dispute Philadelphia Sports Channel.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Patricia Horn Oct. 29--It is one of the Philadelphia region's favorite sports destinations, a cable channel that carries the Flyers and 76ers games and averages tens of thousands of viewers even when the Phillies are on. But...

Philadelphia Mayor, NFL Chief Discuss Stadium Status.
October 29, 2000... Oct. 29--NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue met for an hour with Mayor Street yesterday in an effort to pressure the city to finish a deal for new stadiums as the deadline approaches with little visible progress. The two men, in a joint...

Capsules for Atlantic Division.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Stephen A. Smith ATLANTIC DIVISION: PHILADELPHIA 76ERS: Last season: 49-33 (third in division). Lost to Indiana in Eastern Conference semifinals. Coach: Larry Brown (fourth season with 76ers, 108-106; 732-586 in 17...

Capsules for Central Division.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Stephen A. Smith CENTRAL DIVISION: CHARLOTTE HORNETS: Last season: 49-33 (second in division). Lost to 76ers in first round of playoffs. Coach: Paul Silas (third season with Hornets, 71-46; 149-214 in five NBA...

Capsules for Midwest Division.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Stephen. A. Smith Midwest Division SAN ANTONIO SPURS: Last season: 53-29 (second in division). Lost to Phoenix in first round of playoffs. Coach: Gregg Popovich (fifth season, 163-115). Projected starting...

Capsules for Pacific Division.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Stephen A. Smith Pacific Division: LOS ANGELES LAKERS: Last season: 67-15 (first in division). Defeated Indiana in NBA Finals. Coach: Phil Jackson (second season with Lakers, 67-15; 612-208 in 10 NBA seasons). ...

Sixers face cutdown time as season looms.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Stephen A. Smith PHILADELPHIA _ Pepe Sanchez, Jermaine Jackson, Ademola Okulaja. To most 76ers fans, they are extras used for scrimmages, the players called on to prepare the regulars for games that count. By 6 o'clock Monday...

In far West, only Hawaii remains virtual sure thing for Gore.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Nita Lelyveld LOS ANGELES _ California is a big, big state, with the nation's biggest chunk of electoral votes. For months now, Vice President Gore had a big, big lead here, surprising no one. But now, while California's 54...

Inconsistent Eagles fall to Giants.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Jerry Brewer EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. _ Harken back to Week 2 in the NFL, when the Eagles went from pickle-juice-enhanced Cowboys beaters to a painfully mortal team whose every inadequacy was exposed by the New York Giants. When...

Andy Reid second-guessed on play-calling.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Jerry Brewer EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. _ Andy Reid sneered. Someone had asked the Eagles' coach about a sequence of plays near the end of the first half of Sunday's 24-7 loss to the New York Giants. The Eagles had the ball...

Eagles' Game 9 in review.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Ron Reid EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. _ In a fitful performance that delivered all the entertainment value of your average presidential debate, the Eagles started the second half of their 68th season with their eighth consecutive loss...

Eagles sputter on offense.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Phil Sheridan EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. _ The Eagles' offense on Sunday had the same problem as a drunken uncle at a wedding reception: no rhythm. Eagles receivers dropped, by coach Andy Reid's count, nine passes. Quarterback...

Eagles play the role of bumblers.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Bill Lyon EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. _ When the Eagles play the Giants, it's like ordering the chef's surprise. You know agita and indigestion will be kicking in soon. So you didn't really expect the Eagles to win Sunday. But...

Recapping Sunday's games.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Joe Juliano PHILADELPHIA _ Week 9 of the NFL season answered the questions about how the hangover from their epic "Monday Night Football game would affect the Miami Dolphins and the New York Jets, and how Bud Carson's return...

McNabb appears vulnerable for first time in weeks.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Claire Smith EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. _ The Eagles had hoped that the days of the nine dropped passes were over. They were looking only for improvement from the receivers, not the regressive performance they got on Sunday. But...

Flyers and Capitals skate to 1-1 tie.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Tim Panaccio PHILADELPHIA _ Under most circumstances, the Flyers could play a lethargic game and eke out a victory with their potent power play. But playing without Mark Recchi, the quarterback last season, and John LeClair,...

Lieberman is having time of his life.
October 29, 2000... Byline: Stephen Seplow Joe Lieberman told this story Tuesday at a Nashville dinner for longtime, well-heeled supporters of Al Gore: One night, as Gore was addressing a Jewish audience, someone shouted out, "You're talking "tochlis!" ...

Expect big changes in the Big Apple.
October 28, 2000... Byline: Jim Salisbury PHILADELPHIA _ Neither team is going to go through a purge the way the Florida Marlins did after winning the 1997 World Series or the San Diego Padres did after winning the 1998 National League pennant. But both...

Here's expecting Lakers to be in a repeat mode, and other NBA predictions.
October 28, 2000... Byline: Stephen A. Smith PHILADELPHIA _ As tears slipped from his eyes while he was hugging his mother after Game 6 of last June's NBA Finals, Shaquille O'Neal was finally allowed to relax. After enduring growing skepticism over whether...

Oklahoma rips Nebraska.
October 28, 2000... Byline: Mike Jensen NORMAN, Okla. _ The ball had already hit him at least once, maybe twice. It had hit Andre Woolfolk's leg and bounced up in the air. The Oklahoma Sooners flanker was on the ground when he finally stuck out his left arm...

Late kick lifts Nittany Lions past Hoosiers.
October 28, 2000... Byline: Ray Parrillo INDIANAPOLIS _ In a game that matched the remarkable athleticism of quarterbacks Antwaan Randle El of Indiana and Rashard Casey of Penn State, the result was decided by something less dazzling than acrobatic runs and...