The Philadelphia Daily News (Philadelphia, PA) articles from April 2001

The Philadelphia Daily News (Philadelphia, PA) archives from April 2001

Coming this month: new from Janet Jackson, Bruce Springsteen.
April 2, 2001... Byline: Jonathan Takiff April is awash in new music from Janet Jackson, double disc sets by Bruce Springsteen and Ani Di Franco, great roots rock by the Tractors, the expanding visions of G-Love and KRS-One, final recordings by Kirsty...

Witherspoon continues battle vs. father time.
April 2, 2001... Byline: Bernard Fernandez ATLANTIC CITY _ Tim Witherspoon had gasped through the final four rounds, as might be expected of a 43-year-old heavyweight, but he and his handlers saw nothing but positives in the two-time former world...

Philadelphia Daily News Plugged In Column.
April 3, 2001... Byline: Jonathan Takiff Apr. 3--GETTING IN THE GAME: Do you like the looks, light weight and rugged portability of MP3 music players? But don't want to deal with the computer downloading necessary to move music files into these new...

Owner's brother out he's taped taking cash from Iverson's pants.
April 3, 2001... Byline: Phil Jasner and Edward Moran PHILADELPHIA _ Players were surprised and disappointed. Management was discouraged. The Croce family was rocked. That was the end result when the 76ers gave physical conditioning coach John...

Mike Dunleavy picks the right time to be hero.
April 3, 2001... Byline: John Smallwood MINNEAPOLIS _ It was late in the first half of Monday night's NCAA championship game, and after making his first shot, Duke sophomore guard/forward Mike Dunleavy had missed badly on his next five. Blue Devils...

Hamed: `Just fight the best opponents'.
April 3, 2001... Byline: Bernard Fernandez "Prince" Naseem Hamed once held the IBF featherweight championship, but relinquished it after one defense. He held the WBO 126-pound title much longer, for 14 defenses over 5 { years, but gave that up, too, rather...

MP3 unplugged: Get the music without the modem.
April 3, 2001... Byline: Jonathan Takiff THE GIZMO: Samsung S-P2450 Wingo tabletop stereo system with companion MP3 player, $399. GETTING IN THE GAME: Do you like the looks, light weight and rugged portability of MP3 music players? But don't want to...

With strike looming, reality fatigue is setting in.
April 3, 2001... Byline: Ellen Gray About halfway into the premiere of Fox's "Boot Camp" last week, I wimped out. Too much yelling, too much whining, too little sand and sun. I made it about as far as the first washout, the woman who meant to get...

Very difficult to sympathize with Strawberry.
April 4, 2001... Byline: Sam Donnellon PHILADELPHIA _ "They should have left him where they found him," a friend of mine said after Darryl Strawberry, missing from his rehab center for four days, was found. "I'm sick of Darryl Strawberry." He is...

Mike Schmidt still needs baseball.
April 4, 2001... Byline: Bill Conlin MIAMI _ The best player in Phillies history threw out the first ball in Pro Player Stadium. The best third baseman in baseball history threw out the first ball as a guest of the Florida Marlins, who lost to his old...

Phillies defeat Marlins for 2-0 start.
April 4, 2001... Byline: Paul Hagen MIAMI _ When it dawned on Larry Bowa that Brian L. Hunter was going to try to score from second on Doug Glanville's fly ball to deep center, his first reaction was consternation. After all, it was the seventh inning, the...

Phillies not hitting but winning.
April 4, 2001... Byline: Paul Hagen MIAMI _ Shortstop Jimmy Rollins is hitless. Second baseman Marlon Anderson is batting .111. Leftfielder Pat Burrell, who might be the linchpin to the whole lineup, has struck out six times in eight at-bats. ...

Eddie Griffin headed to NBA.
April 4, 2001... Byline: Ted Silary PHILADELPHIA _ One thing about timetables: They're subject to change. Eddie Griffin could tell you a little something about that, seeing as how his timetable has changed dramatically. Griffin, a 6-9, 220-pound...

Sixers routed by Raptors.
April 4, 2001... Byline: Phil Jasner TORONTO _ The most popular item among 76ers fans all over the Philadelphia region Tuesday night had to be the TV remote control. It's a reasonable assumption that the vast majority of them did the one thing the...

Ugly situation with Pat Croce's brother being fired for theft.
April 4, 2001... Byline: Phil Jasner TORONTO _ Now we know why Pat Croce hurriedly changed his plans Jan. 12 and rushed to Washington, where the 76ers were visiting the Wizards. He felt a deep need to apologize to Allen Iverson. That was the final...

Oakley hits Sixers' Hill in the head over alleged back debts.
April 4, 2001... Byline: Phil Jasner TORONTO _ Charles Oakley must have thought it was worth more than $80,000 and a one-game suspension to fire a couple of basketballs at the 76ers' Tyrone Hill as the Toronto Raptors arrived Tuesday morning at the Air...

St. Joseph's dismisses Gaitley.
April 4, 2001... Byline: Edward Moran PHILADELPHIA _ The news vans lined up in front of Stephanie Gaitley's Havertown home and reporters made their way to a back-yard basketball court painted St. Joseph's University crimson and gray. As this was happening,...

Tiger elevates the golfing game.
April 4, 2001... Byline: Rich Hofmann AUGUSTA, Ga. _ Tiger Woods talked to reporters Tuesday at the Masters, on the eve of his historic quest. If he wins this week, Woods will hold all four of golf's major championships simultaneously. It hurts your head...

Grand Debate about the Grand Slam.
April 4, 2001... Byline: Mike Kern AUGUSTA, Ga. _ So, if the golfer formerly known as Eldrick Woods wins his fourth consecutive major championship this week at the place where Tigermania officially burst into overdrive four years ago, will it go into the...

Sharrers believed to be the first black referee in NHL.
April 4, 2001... Byline: Les Bowen PHILADELPHIA _ It might have been a first. Probably was a first. But an NHL spokesman said he wasn't sure, and Jay Sharrers, who might be in the best position to know, said he wasn't certain, either. ...

Flyers fall to Panthers.
April 4, 2001... Byline: Les Bowen PHILADELPHIA _ One goal a game. That has been the Flyers' ration in the three games they've played without Keith Primeau. Once so far - Saturday against Detroit - a single goal has been enough to win. After...

Philadelphia Daily News Business Buzz Column.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Harriet Lessy Apr. 4--DEPOT IS BUILDING A NEW HOME: There's plenty of action going on in West Philly these days with talk that a major retailer is seriously looking at 48th and Market as a site for a new store. If all goes as...

Citigroup Spends Money to Try to Kill Philadelphia Predatory-Lending Bill.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Paul D. Davies Apr. 5--With nearly $78 billion in revenues last year and 230,000 employees in 101 countries, Citigroup would seem to have more to worry about than City Council's expected vote today on a bill to curb predatory...

Philadelphia Council Members Hounded by Lobbyists to Kill Lending Bill.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Paul D. Davies Apr. 5--Last-minute lobbying by banks and lenders to kill the predatory lending bill intensified yesterday, as Councilwoman Marian Tasco held a pep rally in City Hall to shore up support for the measure. Council...

Bucks County, Pa., Employees Shocked by Details of Mortgage Firm's Collapse.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Earni Young Apr. 4--None of the dozen local people who was thrown out of work when a multimillion-dollar mortgage swindle collapsed is likely to be a fan of the movies "Blonde Angel" or "Sexual Healing." But Kelly Jaye, star...

Philadelphia-Area Restaurants Begin to See Shortage of Baby Back Ribs.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Leon Taylor Apr. 4--Everybody likes to pig out at a back-yard barbecue. But the way things are going, there might be a lot less hog on the hibachi this summer. Europe's recent outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease and the...

Philadelphia-Area Transit Authority, Union Agree on Contract.
April 5, 2001... Byline: April Adamson Apr. 2--Negotiators for SEPTA and its suburban Victory Division union reached what one transit authority negotiator yesterday described as a "win-win" tentative contract agreement, averting a possible strike. The...

Philadelphia-Area Riders Rail against Transit System's Possible Fare Increase.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Francesca Chapman Apr. 4--A $2 base fare for SEPTA riders? Don't get them started. "I think that's ridiculous for the poor service we get," Northeast Philadelphia resident Tashawn Smith sputtered yesterday. "If they were...

Philadelphia-Area Transit Agency Mulls Rate-Hike Proposals.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Chris Brennan Apr. 5--For years, SEPTA has touted a long-running consultant's study of the agency's fares as an example of efforts to be efficient. So how much of a role is that consultant's report playing in plans for a fare...

Philadelphia-Area Transit System Considers $2 Base Fare.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Chris Brennan Apr. 4--SEPTA is considering raising its base fare from $1.60 to $2 and the cost of tokens from $1.15 to $1.30 or $1.40, sources familiar with the fare increases told the Daily News yesterday. That would once...

Taylor, Perez, Oropesa share a common bond.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Bill Conlin MIAMI _ Tony Taylor was on the field at 3:39 p.m., running a fielding drill with veteran infielder Andy Fox. On Tuesday, the Marlins coach was out early to work on bunting. He is 65, going on 45. Taylor was hitting...

Phillies defeat Marlins.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Paul Hagen MIAMI _ It's just three games. Or is it? A year ago, after the third game of the season, the atmosphere in the Phillies' clubhouse at Bank One Ballpark in Phoenix was funereal. Not only had they just been swept...

Bruiser coming to Drexel.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Bill Fleischman PHILADELPHIA _ Drexel is welcoming James "Bruiser" Flint back to Philadelphia Thursday. Flint, a former player at St. Joseph's University and Episcopal Academy, will be introduced as the Dragons' men's...

Temple's Kevin Lyde going pro.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Mike Kern PHILADELPHIA _ Temple center Kevin Lyde is expected to announce Thursday afternoon that he is giving up his final season of eligibility to enter the NBA draft, according to sources familiar with the situation. After...

Sixers shut down the 57-point man.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Phil Jasner AUBURN HILLS, Mich. _ Overnight, Jerry Stackhouse went from the sublime to something he decided "would cost way too much money" to talk about. The Detroit Pistons star - who began his NBA career with the 76ers in...

Sixers defeat Pistons without Iverson, Hill, McKie.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Phil Jasner AUBURN HILLS, Mich. _ The evening began with a piece of netting high in the rafters of the Palace of Auburn Hills flicking against the hot lighting system, bursting into flames and fluttering to the floor just after the...

Dale Jr. in a growth mode, and other notes.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Bill Fleischman PHILADELPHIA _ Tragedies can bring out the best or worst in people. In Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s case, it's the best. Following the death of his father in the Daytona500, Dale Jr. hasn't missed a race. He also has...

HEADLINE HERE.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Paul Domowitch PHILADELPHIA _ Bernard Williams had it all, and then he had nothing. He had fame and fortune and a sky's-the-limit football career. And then he threw it all away. "I was young and dumb," Williams said. "Not...

Hootie making Masters changes.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Rich Hofmann AUGUSTA, Ga. _ The barbarians are at the gates, bearing titanium spears and frightful white missiles. The green jackets, defenders of the faith (and of par), are about to make their stand. Evolution is on the...

We're still waiting for Phil Mickelson.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Mike Kern AUGUSTA, Ga. _ Phil Mickelson is the second-ranked golfer in the world, which is like being second to UCLA during John Wooden's reign. If you aren't sure who's No.1, then you really need to get out more. Right now...

Flyers out of sync.
April 5, 2001... Byline: Les Bowen PHILADELPHIA _ In the Flyers' locker room after practice Wednesday, the message was patience and understanding, players talking about how hard it is for teammates coming off long injury absences to be sharp and in sync....

Philadelphia Councilman Investigates Airport Parking Contract.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Joseph R. Daughen Apr. 6--Councilman Jim Kenney wants to know if Rosenbluth International, the Philadelphia-based travel giant, was squeezed out of an airport contract it held for four years because it failed to donate money to...

Philadelphia City Council Votes Unanimously for Anti-Predatory Lending Bill.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Paul D. Davies Apr. 6--Chalk one up for the little guy. In an historic stand against the powerful bank lobby and Mayor Street, City Council voted, 16-0 yesterday in favor of a bill intended to stop high-cost predatory lending....

Philadelphia Transit System Plans to Raise Base Fare to Almost $2.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Chris Brennan Apr. 6--Few businesses raise prices and then say they did it to get customers to buy more. But that is what SEPTA proposes when it raises its base fare from $1.60 to $1.90, tokens from $1.15 to $1.30 and transfers...

Philadelphia Utility Disputes Money-Saving Recommendations with State Board.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Mark McDonald Apr. 6--You could almost hear the trumpets in the background: PGW can save $68 million a year if it adopts the state Public Utility Commission audit recommendations. But PGW says that the PUC has misread its own...

Phillies find new life.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Bob Cooney PHILADELPHIA _ Think Philadelphia fans are starved for a championship? You should have seen the reception Phillies manager Larry Bowa received when he arrived home Thursday night. The Phillies are off to a 3-0...

Phillies come home a winner.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Paul Hagen PHILADELPHIA _ Larry Bowa walked into the Phillies' clubhouse at Veterans Stadium and the memories came flooding back. About the meeting Paul Owens, The Pope, called when he was manager and got so mad in the middle of a...

Marketing and sports recounted in new book.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Stan Hochman PHILADELPHIA _ Bill Veeck was going to buy the bedraggled Phillies and stock the team with Negro League stars. This was 1943, when baseball was white as snow. Branch Rickey was thinking about integrating baseball in...

Bruiser Flint named Drexel coach.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Bill Fleischman PHILADELPHIA _ James "Bruiser" Flint knew the way to Drexel long before he was officially welcomed as the men's basketball coach Thursday. "I used to take the 34 trolley from 58th Street, get off and come here...

LaSalle names Billy Hahn head coach.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Dana Pennett O'Neil PHILADELPHIA _ Twelve years ago, after he was let go by Ohio University, Billy Hahn went for a job interview at the University of Maryland. Gary Williams added Hahn to his staff on one day and Hahn started...

Lyde, Bradley among those testing NBA waters, maybe mistakenly.
April 6, 2001... Byline: John Smallwood PHILADELPHIA _ History says Kevin Lyde is making a mistake if he thinks leaving Temple University after his junior year will make him a first-round pick in this year's NBA draft. The three previous players who...

Michael Bradley turning pro.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Dick Jerardi Michael Bradley's news conference Friday morning at Villanova will not contain any shocking news. He's going to declare for the NBA draft. What Bradley says beyond that, however, could be interesting. It is well...

NBA referees need to go to school, too, and other notes.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Phil Jasner PHILADELPHIA _ It was so long ago, it sometimes feels as if it were in another life. But my (ital) Inquirer (end ital) colleague Chuck Newman - a former NBA referee - and I once officiated a Drexel intrasquad...

Sixers hurting big time.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Phil Jasner PHILADELPHIA _ The plan is for Eric Snow, the 76ers' starting point guard, to sit out five days, allowing healing time for his painful right ankle. That's what Dr. Jack McPhilemy, the team's orthopedic specialist, told...

Eagles may miss Monday Night Football because of Phillies.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Marcus Hayes PHILADELPHIA _ First, the Phillies held up the Eagles' new stadium proposal with indecision over a location of their ballpark. Now, they're keeping the Birds off "Monday Night Football," according to an NFL source....

Bandanna rule ruffles union feathers, and other notes.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Paul Domowitch PHILADELPHIA _ The NFL owners' decision last week to outlaw the wearing of bandannas and stocking caps during games has ruffled some union feathers. NFL Players Association chief Gene Upshaw is upset that the...

For Tiger, Friday will tell.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Rich Hofmann AUGUSTA, Ga. _ Tiger Woods had just sprayed his tee shot among the trees to the right side of the first fairway, the ball nestled in pine straw, and now he was walking disgustedly in that direction. You could stand...

DiMarco leads Masters after first day.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Mike Kern AUGUSTA, Ga. _ At the Masters, experience always has been as mandatory as dogwoods and pimento cheese sandwiches. Until you've negotiated Amen Corner, left an approach shot on the three-putt side of a hole or misread...

One last tee time for Byron Nelson.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Mike Kern AUGUSTA, Ga. _ Before Byron Nelson made the familiar drive down Magnolia Lane earlier this week, he had hit all of eight golf shots this year. So on Wednesday he took out a new driver and hit a couple more. But at age 89,...

Flyers fall to Canadiens.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Les Bowen MONTREAL _ The Flyers managed to salvage a point this time, which could come in handy as they face the final weekend of the regular season and a pitched battle for home ice in the playoffs. But that was about the only...

Flyers just couldn't work it out.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Les Bowen MONTREAL _ For once, passes clicked the way they were supposed to for the Flyers. Simon Gagne entered the zone and passed slickly to Daymond Langkow, who dropped the puck back to Flyers captain Eric Desjardins, alone...

CBS beefing up on The Masters.
April 6, 2001... Byline: Bill Fleischman PHILADELPHIA _ If Tiger Woods wins the Masters, it won't matter to CBS Sports analyst David Feherty whether the public regards the conquest as a Grand Slam. "He's going to be the defending champion of virtually...

Is `Survivor' honcho setting a trap for suspense?
April 6, 2001... Byline: Ellen Gray "There's a hole in the bucket, dear Liza, dear Liza, There's a hole in the bucket, dear Liza, a hole." _Jamaican folk song X X X The water buckets used in Thursday's fire-and-water immunity challenge...

Philadelphia Dumps Partnership with Troubled Community Development Group.
April 9, 2001... Byline: Earni Young Apr. 9--The city has dumped Cecil B. Moore Avenue Community Development Corp. from its partnership in the federally funded home-ownership zone in North Philadelphia. CDC has been overwhelmed with financial and...

Crazed Lunatic Attacks Liberty Bell with Sledgehammer.
April 9, 2001... Apr. 7--The Liberty Bell suffered a few more scars to go along with its famous crack yesterday when a self-described wanderer from Nebraska attacked the national treasure with a small sledgehammer. Mitchell A. Guilliatt, a balding, bearded...

Philadelphia Unions Infuriated by City's Bargaining Tactics.
April 9, 2001... Byline: Dave Davies Apr. 9--When city negotiators met the four large municipal unions in labor talks last year, reporters were often struck by the size of the city delegation. No wonder. Besides experts from the finance, personnel...

Chef's table: Osso Buco; Homestyle Hummus.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Jim Coleman and Candace Hagan Q. I have tried to make osso buco at home and it just doesn't turn out like when I have it in a restaurant. What cut should I use and why is my version tough? _ Angela A. A: Nothing will get an...

Phillies defeat Cubs.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Paul Hagen PHILADELPHIA _ Larry Bowa gathered his pitchers around him. This was serious. Since the decision had been made to carry an extra arm, the bench would be short until further notice. The manager's eyes swept the room, then...

Stargell remembered as PNC Park opens in Pittsburgh.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Sam Donnellon PITTSBURGH _ A day of raw emotion finally had wound down. Lloyd McClendon looked spent. Bob Boone was toast, too. The city of Pittsburgh had gone to bed with thoughts of a summer's day in a beautiful, new...

Phillies defeat Marlins despite the rain.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Paul Hagen PHILADELPHIA _ This time, bad weather was good for the Phillies. With the Florida Marlins leading by two going into the bottom of the seventh Monday night, the skies above Veterans Stadium opened, the rain began to...

Don't call Larry Bowa the quick-hook manager.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Paul Hagen PHILADELPHIA _ Call Larry Bowa the unhappy hooker. The Phillies' manager, clearly unsettled by the observation that he's had a quick hook with his starting pitchers during the first week of the season, showed up at...

Telemaco set to start for Phillies.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Paul Hagen PHILADELPHIA _ It was one year ago that Amaury Telemaco's career reached a turning point. Of course, he didn't know that at the time. On April 10, 2000, pitching in relief in front of 47,115 during the home...

Stargell remembered as special player, special person.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Sam Donnellon PITTSBURGH _ The statue was unveiled Saturday. The idea had been to have Willie Stargell present for a ceremony, maybe even do it a day or two after the new ballpark opened, when the day would belong to "Pops," just...

To Phillies, Stargell was one of a kind.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Bernard Fernandez PHILADELPHIA _ There are home runs and there are (ital) home runs (end ital), the kind that are so long and majestic, they are viewed in amazement by even other major leaguers. Pittsburgh Pirates Hall of Famer...

Sixers defeat Celtics.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Phil Jasner PHILADELPHIA _ No banner was raised to the rafters of the First Union Center Monday night, but the 76ers saw one in their mind's eye. All they did was secure the best record in the NBA's Eastern Conference and the No. 1...

Sixers hope to retrieve some of walking wounded.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Phil Jasner PHILADELPHIA _ It is a secondary, albeit intriguing, subplot as the 76ers drive toward securing the best record in the NBA's Eastern Conference. It involves second-year backup center Todd MacCulloch having played a...

Sixers' players expect apology from thieving John Croce.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Phil Jasner PHILADELPHIA _ Sorry. That's the word the 76ers' George Lynch and Aaron McKie hope to hear from John Croce, the physical conditioning coach who was forced to resign after being caught on videotape taking money from...

Despite injuries, Sixers plant a top seed.
April 10, 2001... Byline: John Smallwood PHILADELPHIA _ Larry Brown probably swallowed his heart for an instant. With Allen Iverson back in the lineup after missing two games with a bruised tailbone and Aaron McKie back after missing five games with a...

Hopkins favored over Holmes.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Bernard Fernandez PHILADELPHIA _ Bernard Hopkins is angry, which is not surprising since the most important fight of his career to date is only four days away and rage fuels "The Executioner's" fire. But what might surprise some is...

Tiger Woods covers the superlatives.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Rich Hofmann AUGUSTA, Ga. _ Wilt Chamberlain. Rod Laver. Babe Ruth. Mark McGwire. Jesse Owens. Carl Lewis. Bobby Jones. Ben Hogan. Jack Nicklaus. Secretariat. Muhammad Ali. Michael Jordan. Joe DiMaggio. Tiger Woods. And the...

Duval's next shot comes at the U.S. Open.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Mike Kern AUGUSTA, Ga. _ David Duval began his postmortem Sunday by pointing out, correctly, that he had been here before. Had the tailors at Augusta National Golf Club checking his jacket size, just in case. He was in position to...

Tiger Woods majors in history at Masters.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Mike Kern AUGUSTA, Ga. _ This time it had nothing to do with sociology. This was strictly about golf. Yet the images will remain just as vivid. For generations to come. Four years ago, a young man of color signaled the...

Mickelson close but no title.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Rich Hofmann AUGUSTA, Ga. _ As the dramatic foil, along with David Duval, in one of the great Masters tournaments ever, Phil Mickelson knew he could take some pride, but only some. As a great player who still has not won a...

LeClair, Flyers still working on deal.
April 10, 2001... Byline: Edward Moran BUFFALO _ As the Flyers prepare to head into the playoffs this week, general manager Bob Clarke will try to get contract talks with star power forward John LeClair back on track. Clarke said Sunday that he has been...