Bruce Springsteen is giving fans an early glimpse into his forthcoming autobiography, Born to Run. [Pre-order it here.]

Springsteen shared the foreword to the book -- due on Sept. 27 -- on his website today (Aug. 16).

The opening lines begin with a bit of embellishment, with the musician writing that he hails from a "boardwalk town," aka Asbury Park, New Jersey (Springsteen grew up inland in Freehold).

The music legend details his decades-long career and look into his personal life behind-the-scenes in this visceral memoir.

"I come from a boardwalk town where almost everything is tinged with a bit of fraud," he writes. "So am I. By 20, no race-car-driving rebel, I was a guitar player on the streets of Asbury Park and already a member in good standing amongst those who 'lie' in service of the truth ...; artists, with a small 'a.' But I held four clean aces. I had youth, almost a decade of hard-core bar band experience, a good group of homegrown musicians who were attuned to my performance style and a story to tell."

See photos of Bruce Springsteen through the years:

Bruce Springsteen through the years

UNITED STATES - OCTOBER 11: REDBANK Photo of Bruce SPRINGSTEEN, Bruce Springsteen performing on stage - Born to Run Tour, 27 (Photo by Fin Costello/Redferns)

UNSPECIFIED - CIRCA 1970: Photo of Bruce Springsteen Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

Bruce Springsteen, Bruce Springsteen (Photo by Brian Rasic/Getty Images)

UNSPECIFIED - CIRCA 1973: Photo of Bruce Springsteen (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

UNSPECIFIED - CIRCA 1970: Photo of Bruce Springsteen (Photo by Richard McCaffrey/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

UNSPECIFIED - CIRCA 1970: Photo of Bruce Springsteen (Photo by Richard McCaffrey/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

American musician Bruce Springsteen plays at the Trenton War Memorial, Trenton, New Jersey, November 1974. (Photo by Allan Tannenbaum/Getty Images)

American musician Bruce Springsteen plays at the Trenton War Memorial, Trenton, New Jersey, November 1974. (Photo by Allan Tannenbaum/Getty Images)

Singer Bruce Springsteen walking down Sunset Strip with his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket, 1975. He is in Los Angeles to promote his album Born To Run. (Photo by Terry O'Neill/Getty Images)

Bruce Springsteen taking a break from the soundcheck at Alex Cooley's Electric Ballroom ***Exclusive*** (Photo by Tom Hill/WireImage)

Bruce Springsteen is seen in concert in New York's Madison Square Garden, Aug. 21, 1978. (AP Photo/Jim Pozarik)

American musician Bruce Springsteen plays at the Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, May 26, 1978. (Photo by Allan Tannenbaum/Getty Images)

Rock and roll musician Bruce Springsteen sings at New York's Madison Square Garden during a concert sponsored by Musicians United for Safe Energy (MUSE), Friday night, Sept. 22, 1979. Proceeds from the benefit are to support development of energy sources other than nuclear power. (AP Photo/Mike Derer)

NEW YORK, NY - CIRCA 1983: Bruce Springsteen circa 1983 in New York City. (Photo by Laura/IMAGES/Getty Images)

American rock singer and songwriter Bruce Springsteen stands onstage, holding an electric guitar at his side during a concert, 1980s. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

**FILE PHOTO**LANDOVER, MD - AUG. 25: Opening night of Bruce Springsteen's four sold-out concerts at the Capital Centre in Landover, MD on Aug. 25, 1984. (Photo by Lucian Perkins/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Bruce Springsteen, circa 1984 (Photo by SGranitz/WireImage)

10/02/1985: Bruce Springsteen performs during the last show of the 1985 'Born in the U.S.A. Tour'. (Photo by Bob Riha Jr/WireImage)

NEW YORK, NY - CIRCA 1984: Bruce Springsteen circa 1984 in New York City. (Photo by Robin Platzer/Images/Getty Images)

Bruce Springsteen performing at the CNE Stadium in Toronto, Canada on July 24, 1984. (Photo by Ebet Roberts/Redferns)

American Bruce Springsteen performs, on June 29, 1985 in La Courneuve, outside Paris. AFP PHOTO MICHEL GANGNE (Photo credit should read MICHEL GANGNE/AFP/Getty Images)

Rock Star Bruce Springsteen makes an all-out effort during live performance at Ullevi Soccer Stadium in Gothenburg, on Saturday evening, June 9, 1985 where some 64,000 fans enjoyed his music. (AP Photo/Peter Claesson)

Bruce Springsteen, Bruce Springsteen (Photo by Brian Rasic/Getty Images)

Sting, left and Bruce Springsteen meet the press at their arrival to Barcelona's airport, Sept 9. 1988. They will sing tomorrow at the Nou Camp Stadium in front of almost 90,000 persons in the concert "Human Rights Now!" organized by Amnesty International. (AP Photo/Amilcar De Leon)

American Bruce Springsteen performs, on October 10, 1988 during an Amnesty International concert Abidjan. AFP PHOTO (Photo credit should read STRINGER/AFP/Getty Images)

Rock music superstars Sting (L) and Bruce Springsteen perform together, on September 19, 1988 during the finale of the first US leg of the Amnesty International concert at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. The world wide tour is trying to bring attention to human rights abuses throughoutthe world. AFP PHOTO LUKE FRAZZA (Photo credit should read LUKE FRAZZA/AFP/Getty Images)

Bruce Springsteen holds his Oscar for Best Original Song for "Philadelphia", March 21, 1994 at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. (AP Photo)

LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 1: Singer Bruce Springsteen holds his four Grammy awards 01 March 1995 for Song of the Year, Best Male Rock Vocal Performance, Best Rock Song and Best Song Written specifically for a Motion Picture or Tv for his song 'Streets of Philadelphia.' (COLOR KEY: Awards are gold) (Photo credit should read DAN GROSHONG/AFP/Getty Images)

Bob Dylan is joined by Bruce Springsteen, right, during Dylan's set for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame benefit concert Saturday night, Sept. 2, 1995, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

Bruce Springsteen is shown in the undated photo released Monday, Oct. 16, 1995. (AP Photo/Pam Springsteen/ho)

ADVANCE FOR SUNDAY, NOV. 26--Bruce Springsteen plays solo acoustic guitar during a concert at the State Theater in New Brunswick, N.J., on Nov. 21, 1995, the release day for his new album, "The Ghost of Tom Joad." Springsteen performed selections from the album before an audience of 1,800 to benefit World Hunger Year.(AP Photo/Mike Derer)

Bruce Springsteen smiles outside the Royal Courts of Justice London Thursday, December 10, 1998, after winning a legal battle against the British company, Masquerade Music. The U.S. rock star took legal action against the company, which was trying to release an album of songs he wrote and recorded 26 years ago. (AP Photo/Danielle Smith)

Bruce Springsteen joins Jakob Dylan of the band "The Wallflowers" on stage at the MTV Video Music Awards at New York's Radio City Music Hall Thursday, Sept. 4, 1997. (AP Photo/Adam Nadel)

US rock star Bruce Springsteen performs on stage in the Hallenstadion in Zurich, Switzerland, Monday, April 26, 1999, in front of about 12,000 spectators. (AP Photo/KEYSTONE/Anita Maggi)

Bruce Springsteen performs with E Street band at the MCI Center in Washington, Saturday, Aug. 10, 2002. Springsteen performed songs from his new album "The Rising," which reunites the 52-year-old with the E Street Band and focuses on Sept. 11 and its aftermath. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)

Bruce Springsteen, left, sings with Little Steven at the Museum of Natural History in New York, Thursday, August 29, 2002. Springsteen and his E Street band opened the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards show and continued to play for about 90 minutes for the crowd at the museum. (AP Photo/Stephen Chernin)

Bruce Springsteen, left, sings with Steven Van Zandt as they open the first of 10 sold-out shows Tuesday, July 15, 2003, at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

Democratic Presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., and Bruce Springsteen greet the crowd at a rally at the Bayfront Park Amphitheater in Miami, Fla. Friday, Oct. 29, 2004. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Bruce Springsteen performs at a rally for Democratic Presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio Thursday, Oct. 28, 2004. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

** FILE ** Bruce Springsteen performs at a campaign rally for Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., in a Cleveland file photo from Nov. 1, 2004. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak, File)

Bruce Springsteen performs during the 2006 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in New Orleans, Sunday, April 30, 2006. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Bruce Springsteen, left, performs with his band on the NBC "Today" television program in New York's Rockefeller Center, Friday Sept. 28, 2007. Other band members are Steven Van Zandt and Patti Scialfa, Springsteen's wife. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

** FILE ** This is a Sept. 28, 2007 file photo of Bruce Springsteen on the NBC "Today" television program in New York's Rockefeller Center, Springsteen of Freehold, N.J., is among 15 famous New Jerseyans selected as the first inductees to the New Jersey Hall of Fame. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, file)

Bruce Springsteen performs in a concert Sunday night, July 27, 2008, at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

Bruce Springsteen performs to tens of thousands of people at a free outdoor concert in support of Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and in a push for voter registration, in downtown Philadelphia Saturday, Oct. 4, 2008. (AP Photo/Jacqueline Larma)

Before the arrival of Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and his wife Michelle, Bruce Springsteen performs at an outdoor rally in Cleveland, Ohio on Sunday, Nov. 2, 2008. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)

Mickey Rourke, left, poses with the actor drama award for âThe Wrestlerâ with Bruce Springsteen and his award for music and lyrics from the film backstage at the 66th Annual Golden Globe Awards on Sunday, Jan. 11, 2009, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Bruce Springsteen, center, performs during the halftime of the NFL Super Bowl XLIII football game between the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2009, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

** FILE ** In this Feb. 1, 2009 file photo, Bruce Springsteen, left, and Steven Van Zandt, of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, perform at halftime at the NFL Super Bowl XLIII football game between the Arizona Cardinals and Pittsburgh Steelers in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson, file)

US rock star Bruce Springsteen performs on stage at the Stade de Suisse stadium in Berne, Switzerland, Tuesday, June 30, 2009. (AP Photo/Keystone, Peter Klaunzer)

Bruce Springsteen surfs the crowd while performing with the E Street Band, Friday, Nov. 20, 2009, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Rob Carr)

Kennedy Center honorees Bruce Springsteen, right, Robert De Niro sit in the East Room of the White House in Washington Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Bruce Springsteen performs at the 54th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 12, 2012 in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles)

Bruce Springsteen, left, performs with Steven Van Zandt during their Wrecking Ball tour at TD Garden in Boston, Monday, March 26, 2012. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

Bruce Springsteen performs at Fenway Park in Boston, Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

Bruce Springsteen and drummer Max Weinberg perform at the Rogers Centre on Friday, August 24, 2012, in Toronto. (Photo by Arthur Mola/Invision/AP)

President Barack Obama, accompanied by singer Bruce Springsteen, waves as he arrive at a campaign event near the State Capitol Building in Madison, Wis., Monday, Nov. 5, 2012. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Honoree Bruce Springsteen is seen at the MusiCares Person of the Year tribute at the Los Angeles Convention Center on Friday Feb. 8, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Bruce Springsteen performs among fans during the Rock in Rio music festival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2013. The week long festival will feature a list of headliners including Muse, Justin Timberlake, Metallica, Bon Jovi, and Bruce Springsteen. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Bruce Springsteen performs during the USC Shoah Foundationâs 20th anniversary Ambassadors for Humanity gala in Los Angeles, Wednesday, May 7, 2014. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

Bruce Springsteen and U2 perform during the World AIDS Day (RED) concert In Times Square on Monday, Dec. 1, 2014 in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)

Bruce Springsteen performs at the 9th Annual Stand Up For Heroes event, presented by the New York Comedy Festival and The Bob Woodruff Foundation, at the Theater at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2015, in New York. (Photo by Greg Allen/Invision/AP)

Bruce Springsteen, center, performs with Patti Scialfa, right, and Stevie Van Zandt and the rest of the East Street Band in the first stop of his River Tour 16 concert on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2016, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 17: Bruce Springsteen Visits 'The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon' at Rockefeller Center on November 24, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Theo Wargo/NBC/Getty Images for 'The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon')

Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band perform in concert, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

That "lie," he maintains, is the artist's "magic trick" to create what he calls an "elusive, never completely believable 'us.'"

He also includes a "Rock 'N' Roll" survival kit, which includes "fame? ... love? ... admiration? ... attention? ... women? ... sex? ... and oh, yeah . .. a buck."

"Then...if you want to take it all the way out to the end of the night, a furious fire in the hole that just ...; don't ...; quit ...; burning," he writes.

Born to Run is now available for pre-order.

The book will be accompanied by the album Chapter and Verse. To order, click here.


Gabonese opposition candidate Jean Ping has declared himself president after a disputed election that triggered two days of post-election riots against President Ali Bongo.

Violence erupted across the Central African country on Wednesday following the announcement of a slim victory for Bongo, who was first elected in 2009 after the death of his father Omar, Gabon's president for 42 years.

But Ping says the poll on Saturday was a sham.

"I am the president," Ping told a news conference after being freed from his headquarters, which had earlier been surrounded by Gabonese security forces.

"The whole world knows who is the president of the republic: it's me, Jean Ping," he said. "Our country is moving toward chaos ... Peace can only occur if the truth of the ballot box is restored and respected."

Five people died in the ensuing unrest, Bongo's spokesman Alain-Claude Bilie By Nze said on Friday, and up to 1100 arrests had been made by Thursday, according to Gabon's interior minister.

Ping called upon the international community to intervene, but analysts said intervention from abroad was unlikely as was a widespread people power revolution to unseat Bongo.

"It looks like the result will stand," NKC African Economics' head of research, Francois Conradie, said. "But Bongo has lost legitimacy and will face an unruly labour environment for his next term," referring to possible strikes.

Traffic resumed on Libreville's wide waterfront avenues on Friday, occasionally veering to dodge litter or burnt tyres. Some shops reopened and residents queued to buy food.

Television stations, supermarkets, shops and homes were looted in Libreville on Wednesday and Thursday. Unrest broke out in other cities and in rural areas as well.

"I'm sad for my country because such things should never happen," National Assembly President Richard Auguste Onouviet said as he surveyed the damage at the parliament building, whose assembly hall was gutted by arson on Wednesday.

In some suburbs of the capital, residents said they had formed small self-defence groups against looters.

A group of Ping's supporters had been holed up inside his headquarters on Friday before being released, as demanded by French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, who said France was working with partners to find a quick solution to the crisis.

Ping, a former diplomat and African Union Commission chairman, is a lifelong insider to Gabonese politics who fathered two children with Omar Bongo's daughter, Pascaline, but later fell out with Ali Bongo and resigned from his party in 2014.

France, the United States and the European Union have urged the authorities to release individual polling station results, a request Bongo's spokesman rejected on Thursday.

France has had a military base in Gabon since independence in 1960 and 450 troops are stationed there, according to the French Defence Ministry.

Summary: Gabon's top opposition candidate Jean Ping has declared he is the rightful winner of the presidential election.


Michael Atkins (left) and Matthew Leveson. (Supplied) Read more at http://www.9news.com.au/national/2016/10/31/11/07/michael-atkins-takes-the-stand-for-first-time-in-matthew-leveson-inquest#UIXT2BJ7breZ1HU3.99

Missing man Matt Levenson was a "bit of a princess" and became unhappy when he didn't get his own way, his former boyfriend has told an inquest.

And that's why the 20-year-old disappeared - possibly to Thailand - after a drug-fuelled night out, Michael Atkins responded when asked why the young man would leave unexpectedly.

This was the much-awaited evidence of Mr Atkins, who in October 2009 was acquitted of Mr Leveson's murder.

He entered the witness box on Monday at a continuing NSW coronial inquest into the September, 2007 disappearance.

He spent the day being grilled after losing a legal challenge against being called to give evidence and may be cross-examined by Matthew's father, Mark, on Tuesday.

During his evidence on Monday, the inquest finally heard Mr Atkins' version of events.

Under questioning from counsel assisting Lester Fernandez, Mr Atkins - then 44 - said the pair left ARQ sometime between 2am and 3am on September 23, 2007, because Matt had taken too many drugs.

"He was pulling faces and scrunching (his) face," Mr Atkins said.

The men had taken the drug known as GBH and ecstasy and were partying hard but Mr Atkins said he decided to exit when he saw his boyfriend had developed "manky face" - which he said happens to those who consume too many drugs.

The men then drove home and went inside their Cronulla unit.

"We just did the normal things we did when we came home," he told the inquest, adding that his memories of that morning were a bit of a blur.

Questions then turned to what Mr Atkins thought may have happened to Mr Leveson, whom he has described as his greatest love.

"I'm not sure, really," he said repeatedly.

"I always thought that he went to Thailand. He just liked to travel."

Why Thailand, he was asked by Mr Fernandez.

"To start a new life ... like starting afresh," Mr Atkins said.

Again Mr Fernandez asked, why would he leave?

"He was bit of a princess and got the shits when he didn't get his own way," Mr Atkins said.

Several Leveson supporters, who had packed out Glebe Coroner's Court, scoffed as Mr Atkins gave evidence.

On September 25, Mr Atkins and Mr Leveson's parents, Mark and Faye, reported him missing after he failed to turn up for work.

"I thought he would be back the next week," Mr Atkins said.

"Always thought he would come back."

During earlier hearings, CCTV footage showed Mr Atkins buying a mattock and gaffer tape later on the last day on which Mr Leveson was seen alive.

Mr Fernandez told the inquest a hardware shop receipt for the purchase carried Mr Atkins' DNA and was found inside Mr Leveson's car, which was later discovered abandoned in the Sutherland area.

When asked if Mr Leveson was alive, Mr Atkins said he holds a "tiny hope" Mr Leveson will come back.

Summary: A man acquitted of his young partner's murder has told a NSW coronial inquest he holds a 'tiny hope' his boyfriend will come back after a nine-year absence.


Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered a new humanitarian pause in Syria's Aleppo, urging rebels to use it to leave the eastern, besieged districts.

The defence ministry says Putin has ordered that the aid corridors - which Russia had opened earlier - also be open on Friday, for longer hours, from 9am to 7pm, along with two new exit routes for the rebels to leave eastern Aleppo.

The ministry announced Putin's new gesture in a statement on Wednesday.

The statement says the exits will be open on Friday for both civilians and rebels "in order to prevent a senseless loss of life".

It also says the rebel offensive on the Syrian government-held districts in western Aleppo that was launched last week has failed to break through the siege.

Summary: Russia has urged Syrian rebels to use a new humanitarian pause to fighting to leave the besieged eastern districts of Aleppo.


A four-year-old boy died from internal bleeding after vomiting "green slime' and saying his stepdad had punched him in the stomach, a court has heard.

Tyrell Cobb was found unconscious at his Gold Coast home on May 24, 2009 and was later pronounced dead in hospital.

He had suffered 70 injuries, including a trauma to his abdomen which caused an "extensive" rupture to his intestine and internal bleeding.

Pathologist Dr Beng Beng Ong said the bruises and abrasions on his body were of "varying ages".

His mother Heidi Strbak, 33, and her ex-partner Matthew Scown, 33, are facing a committal hearing at Brisbane Magistrates Court charged with murder.

Tyrell died from internal bleeding and peritonitis - inflammation caused by an infection of the ruptured organ.

His uncle, Danial Allan, said he was "just not well" and "covered in bruises" on his head and arms the day before he died.

The following day he was "sluggish" and "throwing up green slime", he added.

Tyrell told his uncle on the day he died that "Matthew had punched him in the stomach" and showed Mr Allan a bruise above his genitals.

When he asked Strbak about Tyrell's injuries she said they "happened at kindy".

On another occasion Tyrell showed his grandmother, Diane Strbak, a bruise on his body and told her "Matt kicked me", the court heard.

Ms Strbak said: "I said why would he kick you and he said 'I wee on the carpet'."

Mr Allan claimed Strbak, his stepsister, was "stoned as a parrot all the time" and should be jailed for not noticing her son's injuries.

He added: "Someone should be locked up for it, if not one then both of them.

"Kids just don't die and throw up green s*** every day of the week do they?"

Scown was previously charged with murder but this was dropped in 2010 because of insufficient evidence.

Police reviewed the case years later after being made aware of the evidence Tyrell had told his uncle that Scown punched him.

Detective Sergeant Marcus Edwards said Strbak had been reluctant to talk to officers and did not appear to want the investigation reopened.

Summary: The mother and former stepfather of a four-year-old boy have appeared for a committal hearing in relation to his murder on the Gold Coast seven years ago.


WA Police have released the name of a woman found dead in a Bunbury house on the weekend.

The body of Tanya Leah Beattie, 41, was found on Saturday when police were called to a duplex on Ann Street, Eaton just after 8.30pm.

Her death is being treated as a possible homicide and police are asking for help to find out Ms Beattie's activities on Friday and Saturday.

A neighbour told the Bunbury Mail on Sunday the male resident "seemed quite angry" on Friday "and I could hear him smashing up things in his house".

"Usually there is a lot of very loud music playing during the day but yesterday was dead quiet, there was no movement of cars so I figured something was wrong," the neighbour told the Fairfax Regional Media publication.

Police said several reports were also received on Saturday night of a naked man behaving erratically on South Western Highway.

Summary: WA Police say Tanya Leah Beattie, 41, was the woman who was found dead in a Bunbury house on Saturday in what may have been a homicide.


An elderly man has died in hospital after his car ran off the road near Port Macquarie and hit a power pole.

Police say the 85-year-old was heading south in his sedan on Ocean Drive when he crashed just north of Lake Cathie, before 10am on Tuesday.

The driver, who was alone in the vehicle, was trapped until rescuers reached him.

The man was rushed to Port Macquarie Hospital in a critical condition but later died.

Summary: An elderly driver has died in hospital after his car crashed into a power pole near Port Macquarie.


Dec 7, 2016 4:51 PM EST Markets

NEW YORK - U.S. indexes surged to all-time highs on Wednesday, notching the market’s biggest gain since early November.

Investors are buying stocks that do well in times of faster economic growth, like technology and industrial companies, but they’re also snapping up stocks that pay large dividends. Drug companies are taking steep losses after President-elect Donald Trump said he wants to reduce drug prices.

The Dow surged 298 points, or 1.6 percent, to close at 19,549. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index climbed 29 points, or 1.3 percent, to 2,241. The Nasdaq composite gained 61 points, or 1.1 percent, to 5,395.

Those were record high closes for the Dow and S&P 500.

Transportation stocks reached all-time highs, which hasn’t happened in two years. Julian Emanuel, an equity strategist for UBS, said investors were pleased to see that record because they see it as a sign businesses will start spending more, which would bolster economic growth.

“The consumer has really been the engine of the economy,” he said. “The missing piece has been the corporate side, the industrial side.”

The Dow closed also closed at a record high on Tuesday, as did the Russell 2000, an index of smaller companies. The Russell recovered from an early loss to gain 9 points, or 0.7 percent. The S&P 500 set its latest record on Nov. 25.

Companies that stand to benefit from faster economic growth saw their stocks climb. Home improvement retailer Lowe’s rose $3.61, or 5 percent, to $76.07 and truck maker Paccar jumped $3.47, or 5.4 percent, to $67.90. Technology companies also outperformed the market. IBM rose $4.33, or 2.7 percent, to $164.68 and hard drive maker Western Digital climbed $5.64, or 8.8 percent, to $69.49 after it extended a patient licensing deal with Samsung.

By contrast, pharmaceutical firms took a hit after Mr. Trump was cited in an article in Time magazine saying that he wants to reduce drug prices. He did not say how his administration plans to do that. Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton campaigned on reducing drug prices, and drug company stocks had rallied since the election as investors felt that was less likely to happen under Trump.

The Nasdaq biotechnology index tumbled 2.7 percent, as those companies make costly medications and might stand to lose the most under tighter price regulations. Amgen lost $4.17, or 2.7 percent, to $140.94 and Vertex Pharmaceuticals sank $2.62, or 3.4 percent, to $75.50.

Bond yields have risen sharply this year but have slipped in the last few days. That’s helped stocks that are seen as bond substitutes, like real estate investment trusts. Their big dividends are attractive to investors who want income, so when bond yields fall, investors often turn to those stocks. Industrial real estate company Prologis rose $1.62, or 3.2 percent, to $52.32 and electricity and natural gas company Exelon added 44 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $33.49.

Benchmark U.S. crude lost $1.16, or 2.3 percent, to $49.77 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the international standard, slid 93 cents, or 1.7 percent, to $53 a barrel in London.

The dollar slipped to 113.71 yen from 114.05 yen. The euro rose to $1.0753 from $1.0715.

Wholesale gasoline lost 3 cents to $1.51 per gallon. Heating oil slipped 2 cents to $1.62 a gallon. Natural gas fell 3 cents to $3.60 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Gold rose $7.40 to $1,177.50 an ounce. Silver jumped 47 cents to $17.28 an ounce. Copper dipped 4 cents to $2.64 a pound.

Summary: Investors are snapping up technology and industrial stocks on expectations of stronger U.S. economic growth


The winner of the inaugural Hepworth prize for sculpture has pledged to share the £30,000 award with her fellow nominees.

Helen Marten, who is also nominated for December’s Turner prize, picked up the biennial award on Thursday at the Hepworth Wakefield gallery, where she told guests about her plan to split it with the Phyllida Barlow, Steven Claydon and David Medalla.

She then told BBC Radio 4’s Front Row: “To a certain extent I believe, as I said on stage, in the light of the world’s ever lengthening political shadow, that the art world has a responsibility, if not to suggest a provisional means forward, then at least show an egalitarian platform of democracy. I believe the hierarchical position of art prizes today is, to a certain extent, flawed. “I’m flattered to be there anyway and I would be very happy if they accept to share the prize amongst the four of us.”

While dividing the prize money means Marten would get £7,500, she said receiving a significantly smaller sum was not something she was concerned about – despite the high costs of creating art shows. “I’m lucky enough to be here and to be given a visible and audible platform to be doing what I’m doing,” she said, “and the fact that I’m supported by an enormously generous infrastructure of other artists, critics, curators, galleries, is enough for me.”

The organisers of the Hepworth prize said it was “entirely up to Marten” how she used the prize money. “We support her decision to split it between the artists and think it a gracious and generous suggestion,” they added.

The art critic Alastair Sooke, who was one of the judges of the prize, said Marten won because the judges felt that “in Helen Marten, we have one of the most exciting talents that’s emerged in recent years within British art … what I love about Helen’s work is it has a tremendous coherence, she manages to assimilate all these different unusual objects, so many of them, almost reflecting our up and down digital world.”

Marten, 31, who is originally from Macclesfield in Cheshire, studied at the Ruskin School of Fine Art, University of London and at Central Saint Martins in London.

The award comes in what is proving to be a successful year for the artist, who won critical praise for her show at the Serpentine in London. Other recent exhibitions include 2014’s Parrot Problems at the Fridericianum in Kassel, Germany, and Plank Salad at the Chisenhale gallery in London in 2012.

Her sculptures feature a large amount of materials used in odd and unexpected ways. Pieces on display at the Hepworth include steel, wood, a toy snake, tennis ball, cast bronze, wicker, leather, shell, fired clay, dried vegetables, cigarettes, milk cartons and cherry stones.

It took the judges about two hours to pick a winner. Simon Wallis, the gallery’s director and chair of the judging panel, said: “Frankly I would have enjoyed having a lot longer because the debates and arguments were fascinating.” He said there was something “fresh, exciting and new” about Marten’s work; she was an artist who was “one of the strongest and most singular voices working in British art today”.

He added: “We are seeing something that really does expand the boundaries of this protean art form that is sculpture.”

The Hepworth prize was set up to recognise a UK-based artist of any age and at any stage in their career who has made a significant contribution to the development of contemporary sculpture. It was created to celebrate the gallery’s fifth anniversary and is named after Barbara Hepworth, who was born and brought up in Wakefield, West Yorkshire.

Marten’s prize was presented by Christopher Bailey, the chief creative and chief executive officer of fashion brand Burberry, who said he was proud to have been part of the ceremony. “I am so excited for not only Helen Marten on winning the first ever Hepworth prize for sculpture, but also for the rest of the incredibly talented nominees. Their work on display at the Hepworth Wakefield is a shining example of their creativity and outstanding contribution to the development of contemporary sculpture in the UK.”

In sharing her prize, Marten follows in the footsteps of the American artist Theaster Gates, who last year pledged to share the £40,000 Artes Mundi prize with his nine fellow nominees.

Earlier this week, the human rights lawyer Philippe Sands, who won the Baillie Gifford prize for nonfiction, said he would donate his £30,000 prize money to a refugee charity. “Individuals make a difference at difficult times, and even in the face of adversity it is possible to make a mark … [these ideas] are under threat by the government in this country, they will be under threat from the next government in the United States and the book is a salutary reminder we must take absolutely nothing for granted,” Sands said in his acceptance speech.

Summary: Helen Marten says she will split her winnings with the three other nominees as ‘hierarchical position of art prizes is flawed’


Pam Grier in “Foxy Brown.”

Has there ever been a movie star quite like Pam Grier? Well, maybe two, and the very different ways they resemble her speaks to what makes Grier special.

But we’ll get to that.

Currently the subject of a retrospective at the Harvard Film Archive, Pam Grier, Superstar! — the exclamation mark definitely isn’t silent — she’ll be at the HFA this weekend for screenings of “Foxy Brown” (Oct. 7) and “Jackie Brown” (Oct. 8). The “Foxy Brown” screening will include an onstage conversation between Grier and Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr.

Now 67, Grier’s best known to younger audiences as Kit Porter, on Showtime’s “The L Word” (2004-09). But during her ’70s heyday, she was the queen of blaxploitation: gorgeous without quite being beautiful, naive but never innocent, often put upon but always indomitable.

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Standing 5 feet 8 inches, she somehow seemed a lot taller. And that’s without factoring in platform heels and a full-bloom Afro. Grier did something that comes naturally to movie stars but not even the most skilled actor can fake: she loomed.

On Oct. 6, Grier is being presented with a W.E.B. Du Bois Medal by Harvard’s Hutchins Center for African & African American Research. Other recipients this year include opera star Jessye Norman and Xerox CEO Ursula M. Burns, so Grier is in pretty heady company. Or should that be the other way around?

Billed as Pamela Grier, she made her debut in “Beyond the Valley of the Dolls” (1970), was fourth billed in “Women in Cages” (1971), and played Bernie Casey’s love interest in “Hit Man” (1972). Forget about the actual movies. Even their titles are blunt instruments. But with “Hit Man,” Grier had entered the world of blaxploitation, and the blunt instruments would take on a sociological and political complicatedness that remains striking four decades and more later.

Grier’s breakout came a year later, with the title role in “Coffy” (1973). Blaxploitation may have been radical in turning racial stereotypes upside down. It was anything but radical in its sexual politics. Except when Grier was onscreen. Just standing there, she was filmic feminism. Usually, she was doing a lot more than standing. Coffy is an operating room nurse who moonlights as a vigilante against drug dealers and pimps. Within five minutes, she’s blown away one of the former with a sawed-off shotgun blast to the head.

Part of the fascination blaxploitation offers is how it managed to be both so formulaic and full of surprises. The two biggest in “Coffy”? The white mobster who takes a very sinister shine to Coffy is played by Diane Arbus’s ex-husband, Allan. And going undercover, Grier’s character affects a Jamaican accent. Such an actorly touch is a reminder of the limitations of Grier’s range back then.

Blaxploitation is associated with ex-football players and the like, such as Casey and Fred Williamson. But it also featured such gifted actors as William Marshall, best known for playing Blacula, and Antonio Fargas, who specialized in cringing low lifes. One of them is the title character’s brother in “Foxy Brown” (1974).

As you might guess, Grier plays Foxy. Who else could live up to that name? Her sheer regality as an avenging angel in a floral pantsuit and stack heels is something to behold. (The greatest proof of Grier’s indomitability is her surviving the ’70s fashions she had to wear.) It’s one thing for a movie to feature killing and torture and rape and even a lesbian bar (with obligatory cat fight). But there’s castration, too. Foxy is a figure to be reckoned with.

Grier’s success inspired a copycat. Tamara Dobson, even taller than Grier, was Pepsi to her Coke. Dobson made two blaxploitations movies as Cleopatra Jones, a kind of secret agent/fashion model. One of the two actresses who recall Grier, Dobson makes you appreciate her all the more. Cleo is a figure of camp, unlike Foxy or (especially) Coffy. Grier’s characters have a desperation to them. Dobson’s in on the joke, even though she doesn’t realize the extent to which the joke is at her expense. No one ever laughs when Grier is on screen, even when she’s using a Jamaican accent, not unless she wants them to.

This is where the other comparison comes in. Look at the beaky nose and toothy smile. Pam Grier is Barbara Stanwyck reimagined and unleashed. Onscreen, both women are sexy and forthright, often beleaguered but always tough. “Death is too easy for you, bitch,” a bad guy sneers at Foxy. “I want you to suffer.” Grier’s characters, like Stanwyck’s, do tend to suffer. Unlike Stanwyck’s, they tend to prevail.

By the time of “Friday Foster” (1975), which screens on Nov. 11, blaxploitation was all but over. It was definitely over by “Greased Lightning” (1977), which screens on Halloween. Grier soldiered on during the ’80s and well into the ’90s, doing a lot of television and movies you likely haven’t heard of, let alone seen. And then Quentin Tarantino gave her the throne she deserved.

It’s “Jackie Brown” (1997). Jackie is no relation to Foxy, except that she is, since Grier plays her. Jackie’s a down-on-her-luck stewardess who gets nailed for money-running for gun dealer Samuel L. Jackson. She has to come up with a scheme to take care of both the law and Jackson, and, boy, does she ever. Stanwyck couldn’t have done it better.

The movie opens with a shot of Grier in profile, standing on a moving walkway at LAX. The shot lasts 73 seconds, an eternity in screen time, but you want it to go on forever. Clearly, Tarantino worships this woman. Just as clearly, she’s worthy of it. Of course she is. She’s Pam Grier.

At Harvard Film Archive, through Nov. 11. 617-495-4700, www.hcl.harvard.edu/hfa

Summary: The queen of ’70s blaxploitation is coming to Harvard.


Frazier Glenn Cross, the man accused of murder in the shootings of three people outside Jewish facilities in Kansas last week was, for all practical purposes, born at the age of 49.

The federal government gave him that name when he was released from prison in 1990, along with a new social security number and a new place to live, not far from the Missouri River in western Iowa.

The idea was to erase any connection to the man he had been before: Frazier Glenn Miller. White Nationalist leader. Spewer of hate. Federal informant.

"I joined the family in Sioux City, Iowa," Miller wrote later in his self-published autobiography. "I enrolled in truck driving school…and I've been trucking ever since. And I love it. After prison, the freedom of the open road is gloriously exhilarating."

THE KKK'S 1994 FIGHT TO GET ON CABLE TV

Less than three years earlier Miller had been a fugitive from justice, the subject of a nationwide manhunt after he had declared war on blacks and Jews, exhorting his thousands of followers to violently overthrow the very government that would soon become his protector.

"Let the blood of our enemies flood the streets, rivers and fields of the nation," Miller wrote. "[R]ise up and throw off the chains which bind us to the satanic, Jewish controlled and ruled federal government. Let the battle axes swing smoothly and the bullets wiss [sic] true."

In the early morning hours of April 30, 1987, more than three dozen federal and state law enforcement agents surrounded a mobile home in Ozark, Missouri. A van recently purchased by Miller in Louisiana had been spotted outside by an agent the day before.

A volley of tear gas was fired and then, just after 7 a.m, four men emerged and gave themselves up.

Among them was Miller, the founder of Carolina Knights of the Ku Klux Klan and the paramilitary White Patriot Party in North Carolina. The United States Marshals Service had issued a nationwide bulletin seeking Miller's arrest after he disappeared while appealing his conviction for criminal contempt.

KKK MEMBER CONVICTED IN 1963 MURDERS OF 4 GIRLS

A 1987 United States Marshals Service "wanted" poster shows Frazier Glenn Miller. (United States Marshals Service)

Agents recovered hand grenades, automatic rifles, pistols and flak jackets inside the trailer, according to FBI statements at the time. Explosives experts from nearby Fort Leonard Wood were called in to detonate a box containing about twenty pipe bombs.

The authorities also found a Xerox machine and about a thousand copies of Miller's "Declaration of War." During his 10 days on the run, Miller had mailed his typewritten call to arms to thousands of white nationalists, as well as members of Congress and dozens of media outlets.

"I realize fully that I will be caught quickly," Miller had written in his letter. "[B]ut I will die with contempt on my lips and with sword in my hand. My fate will either be assassination or the death penalty."

But faced with an array of charges that could have put him behind bars for 20 years or more, Miller's bombast was quickly reduced to a squeal. Within days of his arrest, he was signalling his willingness to make a deal.

"He stated that it was 'all a bluff that got out of hand,'" according to an FBI agent's notes, obtained by ABC News, of an interview with Miller a few weeks after his arrest. "[H]aving spent eight days in jail and having the opportunity to dry out from excessive alcohol consumption, he has learned to develop tolerance. He stated emphatically that he would never hurt anybody," the agent wrote in recounting Miller's statements.

Among those present for the initial interviews with Miller was then-federal prosecutor J. Douglas McCullough, now a judge on the North Carolina state court of appeals.

Steve Daniels, an anchor for ABC affiliate WTVD, interviewed McCullough this week in Raleigh.

"He tried to be a little bit self-serving," McCullough said of Miller during the interview. "Every defendant in those situations usually is at first. But he did open up about a lot of things about the White Patriot Party. He detailed a number of people that were involved in illegal activities that were his associates. And that's what we were looking for. "

In a series of ensuing interviews with federal and North Carolina investigators, Miller never denied his racist and anti-Semitic views, but claimed he had always denounced violence and illegal activity.

"Miller wanted nothing more to do with the movement," according to an FBI account of an interview in June of 1987. He was "willing to turn his back on it in order to return to his family. His problem in the past had been intolerance linked with excessive drinking."

A month later, in an interview with the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, during which he accused two of his former comrades of murder, he described his time on the run from the law as little more than a lark.

"I was on vacation, flirting with girls and drinking beer and going red-necking," Miller told the agents. "I love to go out and drink a beer with rednecks…do the Texas Two-Step. I'm a pretty good dancer by the way," he said.

In the course of their investigation, authorities also learned the stunning details of Miller's arrest a year earlier. Raleigh police officers had caught Miller in the back seat of a vehicle, in mid-act with a black male prostitute masquerading as a woman.

"It was pretty shocking," says McCullough, "because of his personal stances that he had taken and what he was now accused on engaging in."

McCullough says he has read the police report of the incident but declined to comment on the specifics. "I would rather not go into the details," he said. "They're rather salacious. I think the facts speak for themselves and people can draw their own conclusions about how incongruous that is."

Miller was not charged in connection with the prostitution arrest and no public record of the incident could be located. But in a recorded phone call with the Southern Poverty Law Center last fall, Miller claimed that he had lured the prostitute to the meeting with the intention of beating him.

Eventually, McCullough, the federal prosecutor, would approve a plea deal with Miller recommending a five-year prison sentence in exchange for his cooperation and testimony against his former compatriots. He would serve less than three years of that sentence at a prison in western New York.

"I am not certain that we got 100 percent of what we wanted," McCullough told WTVD. "He did testify in a couple of cases here in the eastern part of the state, or agreed to testify where the people plead guilty knowing he was going to testify."

In 1998, Miller was a key witness in a high-profile federal trial that charged more than a dozen white nationalists in an alleged conspiracy to levy war against the United States government. The Department of Justice had called it Operation Clean Sweep. Miller testified that he had received two payments totaling $200,000 from a leader of the alleged conspiracy, but in the end all of those accused were acquitted and, incredibly, one of the jurors later married one of the defendants.

"His testimony was extremely weak," says Leonard Zeskind, who tracked Miller's activities in the 1980's as research director for the Center for the Democratic Renewal, a civil rights group fighting Klan activities.

"I believe that Miller was essentially playing a game with the feds. And I don't think he had any intention of becoming a good witness. T he guy was a stone-to-the-bone Nazi," Zeskind says. "He never gave that up. I am on the record as saying the man should have died in prison."

But McCullough says that nothing would have changed what happened last week in Kansas. Even if he had refused to deal with Miller back in 1987, he would have spent no more than fifteen years in prison.

"We made the deal that we could make at the time and whether it's right or wrong, it's really kind of immaterial at this point," McCullough says. "Human beings are unpredictable. I don't think there is anybody who could know what he was capable of doing," he said of the shootings in Kansas. "I certainly never saw that in his personality. He was a blowhard who liked to be in front of a crowd. He liked to whip the crowd up and get the emotions running high."

Very little is known of the years Miller spent in Iowa and Nebraska living as Frazier Glenn Cross.

"He asked for protection from both the White Patriot Party people and blacks in prison because he had alienated both groups," says McCullough. "Obviously once he served his sentence he couldn't go back to where his old compatriots were because he would be at risk. So we had to put him somewhere safe."

It's clear that Cross eventually discarded his assumed identity provided by the federal government and resumed his life as the belligerent, unapologetic white supremacist, Frazier Glenn Miller.

And no one, it seems, could predict the tragic consequences that would follow.

(David Eulitt/The Kansas City Star/AP Photo)

Summary: Officials could have kept Frazier Glenn Cross imprisoned, but deal set him free.


A man has been charged with burglary offences following an extensive police investigation into burglaries in the Logan area, south of Brisbane, over the past three months.

Police allege the 34-year-old committed numerous burglaries in the Marsden, Browns Plains, and Crestmead areas from late September to December.

They say a large amount of property was stolen from the houses, including a Crestmead family’s Christmas presents on Christmas Day.

The Browns Plains man is due to appear in Southport Magistrates court today.

© Nine Digital Pty Ltd 2016


Mr. Skakel surrendered today to the Greenwich police, who charged him with murder. He posted a $500,000 bond, was released and left the station smiling. His lawyer, Michael Sherman, said Mr. Skakel was not guilty.

Today's arrest was a major break in a murder case that has long confounded local and state authorities and produced several books written by journalists and detectives lured here in hopes of unearthing the clues that would crack the case. None did, although a 1998 book written by Mark Fuhrman, the former Los Angeles police detective, named Mr. Skakel as the likely killer.

During the years of investigating, first by the Greenwich police and later by the state's attorney in Bridgeport, Mr. Skakel and his older brother, Thomas, emerged at the top of prosecutors' list of suspects. Both have denied any role in the crime, in which Miss Moxley was beaten and stabbed with a golf club wielded so powerfully that it shattered during the attack. Police later traced the club, a 6 iron, to a set owned by Ann Reynolds Skakel, the boys' mother. Mrs. Skakel, the sister-in-law of Ethel Kennedy, the widow of Robert F. Kennedy, had died two years earlier.

Michael Skakel lives in a gated complex in Hobe Sound, Fla., with his wife, young son and father, Rushton Skakel. Michael Skakel arrived in Greenwich by train this afternoon after learning last night that prosecutors planned to issue a warrant for his arrest.

''He's not guilty,'' his lawyer, Mr. Sherman, said this morning, adding that his client's spirits were good, all things considered. ''Everyone's been telling him this was going to happen for years.''

The prosecution of Mr. Skakel will begin later this month or in early February, when he may become the first 39-year-old defendant to appear in Stamford Juvenile Court. There, Judge Maureen Dennis will decide whether or not Mr. Skakel should be charged as an adult in Superior Court, prosecutors said.

What may keep Mr. Skakel's case in Juvenile Court, though, is a 1975 Connecticut law that required judges to find probable cause before moving any case involving a defendant age 14 to 16 to an adult court. But legal experts say that under the judicial philosophy of that time, juveniles were not typically tried for murder, but sent for rehabilitation.

Though the law has been revised to make the transfer of juvenile murder defendants automatic, a legal battle is sure to erupt about which version of the law will apply to Mr. Skakel.

If the case is kept in Juvenile Court, the court will probably have little power to punish him, said David Rosen, a lecturer at Yale University and a senior research associate at Yale Law School's Child Studies Center.

''The only way to punish him would be through a transfer to the Superior Court, but a transfer may not be a maneuver available to the prosecutor,'' depending on how the judge interprets the law, Mr. Rosen said in a telephone interview today. Under the law as it stood in 1975, he added, ''the only thing this guy can be prosecuted for is being a juvenile delinquent.''

Prosecutors, Mr. Rosen added, ''may be walking into a thicket that there is no way out of.''

Hugh F. Keefe, a criminal defense lawyer in New Haven, said prosecutors most likely would not have hunted down Mr. Skakel if they did not expect his case to be heard in Superior Court.

''The pressure's going to be on the judge to transfer him out of Juvenile Court and have him tried as an adult,'' he said. ''Mickey's job,'' he said, referring to Mr. Skakel's lawyer, ''is going to be to get the law that applied 25 years ago.''

As Mr. Skakel was surrendering to the police in Greenwich today, Dorthy Moxley, the mother of the slain girl, sat beaming next to a painting of Martha in the dining room of her New Jersey home.

Conceding her confusion over the legal complexities involved in trying Mr. Skakel, Mrs. Moxley said she was hoping for a trial, any trial. ''Wild horses couldn't keep me away,'' she said. Since yesterday, she said, when she first heard there was a new development in the case, she has been a bundle of nerves. ''When my husband died 12 years ago,'' she said, ''we thought there was no hope.''

Her son, John Moxley, Martha's older brother and now a commercial real estate specialist with the firm of Cushman & Wakefield, said, ''This will never be behind us, and it will always be part of the fabric of our lives.''

Martha Moxley, a popular girl who enjoyed swimming and tennis, was killed shortly after 10 p.m. on Oct. 30, 1975, the police said, after spending the evening with friends, including Thomas and Michael Skakel.

In the years after Miss Moxley's death, her family became convinced that one of the Skakel brothers was the killer, and repeatedly criticized the work of Greenwich police detectives as sluggish and ineffective.

Today's arrest and charges against Mr. Skakel revived a 24-year investigation that had lost steam after the Skakels and the Moxleys, once close neighbors, had ended their friendship, amid accusations and denials about the murder.

Mrs. Moxley and her husband moved to New Jersey. Thomas eventually moved to Massachusetts, where he lives with his wife and three children, said his lawyer, Emanuel Margolis.

Michael Skakel, an avid speed skier, moved to Cohasset, Mass., and worked with his cousin, Michael Kennedy, at Citizens Energy Corporation, a company that provided low-cost energy to the poor.

The case lay mostly dormant until 1998, when Mr. Fuhrman's book was published singling out Michael Skakel. The book asserted that he killed Miss Moxley in a jealous rage, supposedly after seeing her share a kiss with Thomas.

Shortly after that, the state's attorney in Bridgeport, Jonathan Benedict, asked that a grand jury investigate whether there was enough evidence to file charges against any of the suspects.

Today's murder charge is a result of a grand jury investigation into Miss Moxley's killing that began in June 1998. The sole grand jurist, Judge George N. Thim of Bridgeport Superior Court, found probable cause to issue today's arrest warrant for Mr. Skakel, Mr. Benedict said today. Judge Thim interviewed more than 50 witnesses, including former patients at the Elan school, a treatment center in Maine that Michael Skakel attended for alcoholism from 1978 to 1980. Those witnesses said Mr. Skakel had admitted killing Miss Moxley.

But in another strange aside to today's charges, Mr. Benedict refused to identify Mr. Skakel as the object of the arrest warrant, even though Mr. Sherman, Mr. Skakel's lawyer, had already said his client was traveling to Greenwich to be arrested.

Because Mr. Skakel was a juvenile at the time of the murder, prosecutors are still barred from officially revealing his identity or commenting on any aspect of the case, said Mr. Benedict.

''Until those rights are either waived or a court tells us otherwise, it is the obligation of my office to honor those rules,'' he said in a curt statement to a packed room of reporters and cameras at the Holiday Inn in Bridgeport this morning. Then Mr. Benedict stalked out of the room, followed by a frenzied mob of reporters seeking to know the next steps in the case.

Richard G. Lubin, a lawyer for Rushton Skakel, Mr. Skakel's father, said father and son, along with Michael Skakel's wife and their young son, had been living together in Florida for several years.

Mr. Lubin said that according to Rushton Skakel, Michael Skakel had grown increasingly certain that Connecticut prosecutors, under pressure to solve Miss Moxley's murder, would charge him with the crime. The elder Mr. Skakel, 74 and in declining health, remains convinced that his son is not guilty, Mr. Lubin said.

Others -- the prosecutors, reporters, book writers and private investigators who have wrestled with the details of the crime -- will be anxiously awaiting the decision about which court will eventually hear Mr. Skakel's case.

Timothy Dumas, author of the 1998 book ''A Wealth of Evil: The True Story of the Murder of Martha Moxley in America's Richest Community,'' came to Mr. Benedict's news conference today to be a part of the spectacle that the Moxley case has become in Connecticut.

''Even though everyone said this would come to pass,'' Mr. Dumas told a group of reporters, ''I'm still a little stunned by it, because it's been 24 years.''

Summary: Michael Skakel, nephew of Ethel Kennedy, is charged in 1975 murder of 15-year-old Martha Moxley, who was friend and neighbor in affluent section of Greenwich, Conn; he surrenders to Greenwich police, posts $500,000 bond and is released; 39-year-old defendant is charged as minor since he was 15 at time of killing; prosecutors will file motion to have him tried as adult; his arrest is major breakthrough in murder case that has long confounded local and state authorities and produced several books by journalists and detectives; during years of investigating, Skakel and older brother Thomas emerged as leading suspects; both have denied involvement in crime, in which Moxley was beaten and stabbed with golf club, traced to home of Skakel's mother who died two years earlier; photos (M)


NEWARK, May 5  David Blount impressed viewers at this week's televised mayoral debate with a calm demeanor that contrasted with the attack-dog style of the two men generally regarded as the leading candidates, Ronald L. Rice and Cory Booker.

In front of the cameras, Mr. Blount, 48, offered insightful comments about the city's gang problem and looked like a serious contender. Off screen, to many voters, he looks like a complete stranger.

Though Mr. Blount, a lifelong Newark resident, and head of a housing nonprofit group, insists that he is "fighting to win," the words don't sound too convincing in the construction trailer that doubles as his campaign headquarters. It sits on an empty lot between a bodega and a housing project on Norfolk Street in the Central Ward.

On Friday morning, Mr. Blount was joined in the sparsely decorated office by a single campaign worker, his son, David Blount Jr., 11, who said his father would be a "graceful mayor" if he wins the nonpartisan election on Tuesday largely because "he was nice to me when I was young."

In an interview, Mr. Blount said his effort was far more serious than that of the campaign's other little-known candidate, Nancy Rosenstock, a meatpacker and a Socialist, who usually answers questions with slogans like "the working man is taking it on the chin." But Mr. Blount acknowledged that success is unlikely.

He blamed a lack of money. Questioning the gap between the roughly $16,000 he has spent on his campaign with the $6 million raised by Mr. Booker, he said there was no way he could compete, and that as a result, voters would lose out.

"It creates a race where only the rich can play," he said. "You shouldn't have to be a member of the millionaires club to run for mayor in the city you grew up in."

That is especially true in Newark, he added, where 40 percent of the work force is without a full-time job.

Ms. Rosenstock agreed, saying in a Friday interview, "Every worker should be able to run for office, whether they have $6 million or $6."

Mr. Blount said that if he were elected, he would close the gap between politicians and the populace by helping entrepreneurs and capping campaign spending at $500,000 for each mayoral candidate.

Like Mr. Rice and Mr. Booker, he would reorganize the police force and fight crime if elected.

He wants to offer voters a candidate not beholden to the establishment, as he claims is the case with Mr. Rice, or "outside investors," his term for Mr. Booker's campaign contributors who live outside the city.

Mr. Blount also emphasized that unlike Mr. Rice and Mr. Booker, he was born and raised in Newark, growing up poor in the Central Ward. He said he returned to the city in 1979  after graduating from American International College in Springfield, Mass.  with the goal of helping the city recover from the 1967 riots.

"When I got back, a lot of the houses were still burned out," Mr. Blount said. "I was looking for ways to bring things back."

He bought and ran a deli and grocery store from 1983 to 1989. He now lives in the North Ward with his wife and son, and has worked as an account manager at Sprint for 10 years.

His said his most visible civic achievement came after plans were presented in 1994 for a $64 million office building that threatened to displace poor residents in the Central Ward. After founding a group called the University Heights Science Park Residents, he negotiated for the construction of 11 two- and three-family homes near the office site. Those homes now stand a few blocks from Mr. Blount's headquarters.

The modest office, however, clearly illustrates his struggle. On one hand, its mere existence suggests that he is doing better than Ms. Rosenstock, who runs her campaign out of her East Ward home and seems content to be a self-declared "working-class alternative" and the first Socialist mayoral candidate on the ballot since 1978.

On the other hand, the temporary nature of the headquarters shows that it can be easily rolled away the day after the election.

On Friday, visitors were few, and those who did arrive were not impassioned supporters.

Pernell Johnson, one of three men who came by, said he hoped to work for Mr. Blount because "he's real, he's about the people." But when asked if he planned to volunteer without compensation, he looked askance. "Well," he said, "we'll see what happens."

Summary: David Blount impressed viewers in a televised debate in the race for Newark mayor  but off-screen, he looked like a complete stranger.


BY ALEV AKTAR DAILY NEWS FASHION AND BEAUTY EDITOR

Thursday, February 14th 2002, 2:25AM

There have always been young designers, but today's crop is more precocious than ever. Just how dewy-eyed are they? Some still live with their parents.

That's the case with Zac Posen, a 21-year-old tailoring whiz who shares his parents' SoHo loft. Their living room-cum-atelier is filled with bolts of fabric, mannequins, sketches, racks of clothing and a small army of helpers who stitch and iron. The results of that labor were unveiled Tuesday night at Zac's first star-studded Fashion Week runway show.

Other fresh-faced designers have to get up for school in the morning.

Jessie Della Femina, 16, sets her alarm clock for 7:25 so she's not late for early-morning meetings with her teachers at Spence. When class lets out at 3:15 p.m., she zips down to her showroom in the Garment District to pick fabrics and examine samples for her signature line, before rushing uptown again for dinner and homework.

And they're all fighting to be taken seriously in the business.

Stacey Bendet, 24, and Rebecca Winn, 25, are so bubbly and adorable that it's hard to think of them as anything but fun-loving kids. But despite their tender ages, they are focused and professional, especially when discussing Alice & Olivia, their pants line.

These young designers all have well-to-do parents, friends in high places, burning ambition, a strong work ethic and a flair for self-promotion. They also share a certain insouciance.

"They bring freshness," said Ed Burstell, vice president and general manager of Henri Bendel, which carries a number of young designers, including Jessie and Zac. "They bring ideas that sometimes you wouldn't see for a while."

These newcomers face similar challenges, but their merchandise and approaches to business could not be more different.

Zac has lots of advice for young fashion designers, ranging from "never believe in trends" to "learn to compromise" to "develop good people skills." All of it is sound.

That, combined with raw talent, is why he already has achieved so much - against all odds.

As a child, Zac was severely dyslexic and suffered from attention-deficit disorder. "I really couldn't read," he says matter-of-factly. He became fascinated with theater and began building elaborate dolls based on She-ra Princess of Power, the cartoon character. He produced plays with them at home.

In his teenage years, he paraded through the streets wearing extravagant getups, watching the public's response. "I would have antlers," says Zac, a fine-boned beauty with thick black hair. "I wore muffs to school. I think there are designers in SoHo who copied me."

At 16, he interned with the late Richard Martin at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute. "He was giving a lecture to 40-year-old women at the Met and I stepped in. I started explaining how I saw references to art," says Zac. "Afterward, he came up and asked me if I wanted to apprentice. I did everything - researching at the private library, cataloguing, making wigs for shows."

He also studied Madeleine Vionnet's couture seaming. "I love seams and finding new ones that can support the body. And I have tons of invented cuts; I never place a dart where I'm told it should be placed."

After studying briefly at Parsons and interning at Nicole Miller, Zac moved to London in 1999 to attend the prestigious Central Saint Martins fashion school. It was during this time that his elaborately crafted leather dress, held together with more than 1,000 hooks and eyes, won the V&A prize. It was exhibited at London's prestigious Victoria & Albert Museum for a year, and will remain in the permanent collection.

Last year, he won a $20,000 Ecco Domani Foundation Award for Young Designers. He is using the money to put on his show.

Since his return from England, Zac has been building a ready-to-wear business out of his parents' home. His father, Stephen, a well-known artist, and his mother, Susan, a mergers and acquisitions lawyer, have always encouraged his creativity. They support his venture by lending their time, their living room and, though their son doesn't like to admit it, their money to help pay the bills. Even his sister, Alexandra, pitches in.

The collection he showed on Tuesday celebrates feminine strength and beauty. "It's all about the server and the served, and different kinds of power in the workplace," says Zac.

He tried on all the samples, just to make sure that everything moved well. "I have a tiny waist," he explained. "I'm 21."

"We call them our good butt pants," said Stacey and Rebecca, almost in unison. "It's hard to find nonstretch, great-fitting, cool pants. Girls are constantly looking for ones that look good."

Just about everyone should be able to find a pair of Alice & Olivia pants that flatter. There are three styles - each low-waisted and flair-legged with waistbands lined in contrasting material - and more than 20 festive fabric combos, including astrology, palm tree and sailboat prints, as well as their trademark stripes. Stacey wears hers so tight she can barely sit down, but a relaxed fit looks good, too.

The designing duo fell into slacks almost by accident. After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania, both worked in New York - Stacey founded a fashion, beauty and entertainment development Web site, byappointmentsonly.com, and Rebecca managed consumer product accounts at Grey Advertising. When they wanted one-of-a-kind pants, they asked their tailor to whip them up in striped cotton.

Their designs created such a stir that, with a little help from their parents (Stacey's dad owns a Manhattan textile and embroidery company and her mom is a history teacher, while Rebecca's father is a real-estate developer in Boston), they were soon selling them at Intermix, the fashion chain. They named the brand after their moms. Rebecca's beloved late mother was named Alice, and Stacey's is Olivia.

In October, they staged their first fashion show - a topless extravaganza at the Russian Tea Room with a celebrity-heavy front row. "We didn't want to draw attention away from the pants," said Rebecca, explaining why the models paraded down the runway wearing only pants (they shielded their bosoms with bouquets of flowers). "My mom was working backstage, making sure that everybody had her nipples covered," adds Stacey with a giggle.

Stacey and Rebecca also asked famous artists, including Peter Beard and Maurizio Zuluaga, to decorate pants for the show, and the custom pairs were auctioned off, raising close to $10,000 for charity.

Today, the girls sell their pants at Barneys New York and Fred Segal, among other places, and have recruited advisers from major ready-to-wear houses. They plan on adding maternity pants and men's trousers. ("Pregnant women still want to be funky, and men come up to us on the street and say, 'Where did you get your pants?'" explains Stacey.)

The girls aim to brand one item at a time - a strategy that has a certain precedent in the fashion industry. "Ralph Lauren started doing just ties, Donna Karan was known for bodysuits, Diane von Furstenberg started with the wrap dress," says Stacey. "We've taken a signature piece to the extreme."

What is Jessie Della Femina's advice for wanna-be designers? "Start young," she says.

Easy for her to say - she introduced her signature line at 15, an age when most teens are rebelling against their parents.

But this Spence sophomore scarcely has time to disagree with adman Jerry Della Femina and Metro TV's Judy Licht. Between developing her fashion line, working as an editor on Spence's school paper and serving in the school's Red Door Club organizing tours for parents of future students, she's booked as solid as a CEO.

She owes her penchant for colorful clothes to her mom - and the strict Spence dress code. "I love clothes, but my mother always picked mine out," says Jessie. "I wasn't allowed to wear spandex and hot pink and sparkles. I did not want to get into my royal blue peacoat and my little pretty corduroy dresses - I just wanted to dress like Barbie.

"And at school, I have to wear a gray pleated skirt and any top I want. Kindergarten through fifth grade, I had to wear a plaid jumper with a white-collared shirt. I have the school to thank!"

Today, the clothes she designs are as fun and bright as Barbie's, but more chic. "I like a mix of color, hippie Indian style and preppie," says Jessie. "It's like a combination of Michael Kors and Tracey Feith."

For summer, she's showing short lace skirts, lace-edge linen dresses and sequin-trimmed seersucker pieces. "I thought these were hysterical!" says Jessie, pointing to a pair of sparkly seersucker hot pants. "It's so fun and old and WASP-y."

The slender, blond teen fell into fashion two summers ago, when she took some sketches to a seamstress who stitched them up. Her older sister, Jodi, started wearing them, and there was immediate interest.

Jessie held her first trunk show at her parents' waterfront house in East Hampton and made $6,000. She donated all the proceeds to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, because her best friend suffers from the disease, and has earmarked a percentage of all future sales for the foundation.

Then she won first prize in Henri Bendel's "Open See" talent search. Now she has a showroom and a business manager, sells her line at Henri Bendel and 40 other stores nationwide and has secured financial backing.

Jessie might be building a national business, but she hasn't forgotten her make-it-up-as-you-go beginnings. "I remember sitting in the house the night before my fashion show with my best friend and my mother and two other friends, and we were, like, 'Gee, if you saw this in a store, what would you pay?' We were completely in the dark, but that's what made it so much fun.'"

Summary: New kids on the block Meet four fashion pros. Average age: 22 Fashion's youngest & brightest By alev aktar daily news fashion and beauty editor T here have always been young designers, but today's crop is more precocious than ever. Just how dewy-eyed are they? Some still live with their parents. ssssssssssssssss That's the case with Zac Posen, a 21-year-old tailoring whiz who shares his parents' SoHo loft. Their living room-cum-atelier is filled with bolts of


By DON SINGLETON DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Sunday, May 4th 2003, 8:50AM

The Connecticut mansion that Mike Tyson once called home is for sale at the bargain price of $4.75 million.

Doesn't sound like a bargain?

Well, it's reduced from $25 million. And calling it a mansion doesn't really do the place justice.

The estate in Farmington has 18 bedrooms, for example. And 38 bathrooms.

It also has seven kitchens, a 3,500-square-foot nightclub, a theater, indoor pool and racquetball court, two grand staircases - and an eight-car garage.

It's billed as the biggest house in Connecticut, on 17 gated acres protected by video cameras.

The location is about 20 miles west of Hartford, and 113 miles northeast of midtown Manhattan. But the neighborhood isn't exactly the Hamptons; Farmington is mostly a residential community, with some farming and some light industry, with the median house price there at $270,000 in 2002.

More than he could chew?

When Tyson picked it up in 1996, he paid a mere $3 million. One year later, he put it back on the market for $25 million, Realty Times reported in November 1997.

Among the improvements Tyson made on the property were the large theater and the 1,500-square-foot gym.

"Gluttony . . . Sheer Gluttony," was the headline on the Realty Times account.

In recent years, Iron Mike and his second wife, Monica Turner, kept dropping the price but could not find a buyer.

Tyson lost the 61-room house to Turner, a pediatric resident at Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington, in the divorce that ended their five-year marriage in January.

Tyson also agreed to give Turner custody of their two children, Rayna, 6, and Amir, 5, who live with her in a $4 million home in Potomac, Md., which Turner also won in the divorce settlement, along with $6.5 million from Tyson's future earnings. That rises to $9 million if Tyson doesn't pay on time.

At the time, Turner's attorney, Sanford Ain, said Turner was "pleased with the settlement" and "ready to get on with her life."

The Farmington house is listed for sale by Century 21 Clemens & Sons. Proprietor Curt Clemens said he has shown the property to several prospective buyers, and he is upbeat about a sale even though the top purchase price for a Farmington home to date is "about $2.5 million."

Tyson now lives in relatively less spectacular accommodations in Las Vegas, kept company by a pet white tiger or two.

Graphic: Wanna live like Mike?

Location: 17-acre property in Farmington, Conn.

Bathrooms: 24 full and 14 half baths

Kitchens: 7 Fireplaces: 5 Garage: 8 bays

Other features: 3,500-square-foot nightclub with dance floor, 20-screen video wall, DJ station, bar, 1,500-square-foot health club, racquetball court, indoor pool, elevator and 1-acre pond and waterfall


Jul 12th 2011, 11:02 by D.S. | BUENOS AIRES

ON THE thin roster of candidates hoping to run against Cristina Fernández de Kirchner in her bid for re-election as Argentina’s president this year, one of the most promising was Mauricio Macri. The son of a wealthy businessman and the former president of Boca Juniors, the country’s most popular football club, Mr Macri was reasonably well-known nationwide even before he was elected mayor of Buenos Aires in 2007. The city’s economy has prospered during his time in office, and he was able to establish a new municipal police force, ending the city’s dependence on federal officers. With his conservative ally, Francisco de Narváez, barred from running for president because he was born abroad to foreign parents, Mr Macri looked like the right’s best shot to take on Ms Fernández.

To the disappointment of his conservative backers, however, Mr Macri has always been politically cautious. In keeping with his family’s business tradition, he is thought to enjoy governing far more than campaigning. Moreover, PRO, the conservative alliance he co-founded in 2005, has made few inroads outside the Buenos Aires area. And Ms Fernández’s popularity has soared since Néstor Kirchner, her husband and predecessor as president, died of a heart attack last October. Rather than offering himself up as a sacrificial lamb to Ms Fernández, Mr Macri announced in May that he would run for a second term as mayor instead.

The president was in no mood to concede continued control of the capital to Mr Macri, with whom she has repeatedly sparred in office, often hindering co-operation between the federal and municipal governments. Just as in 2007, she tapped Daniel Filmus, a former education minister, to run for mayor. Mr Filmus is one of the most moderate and professionally accomplished members of Ms Fernández’s entourage, making him a good fit for the capital’s educated and cosmopolitan electorate. Mr Filmus hammered Mr Macri for abusing his power, noting that the head of the city’s new police force, Jorge Palacios, is being prosecuted for illegal phone tapping. He also criticised the mayor for failing to reduce crime and poverty, and for delays in the expansion of the city’s underground train system.

Nonetheless, Mr Macri’s decision to abandon the presidential race was vindicated on July 10th, when he breezed through the first round of the mayoral election. The incumbent took 47% of the vote, just short of the absolute majority he needed to avoid a run-off. Mr Filmus took 28% and Fernando “Pino” Solanas, a left-wing filmmaker, finished third with 13%. Barring a major upset, Mr Macri now looks set to coast to victory in the second round on July 31st.

Does Mr Macri’s success bode poorly for Ms Fernández’s chances in October? Not necessarily. The wealthy city of Buenos Aires has long been hostile to her Peronist party (unlike its heavily populated working-class suburbs, which are the Peronists’ stronghold). Ms Fernández shrugged off Mr Macri’s victory over Mr Filmus in 2007 and won the presidential election easily. And because Mr Macri’s father, Franco Macri, is seen by many on the left as a symbol of ill-gotten gains for his dealings with Argentina’s 1976-83 dictatorship, the mayor’s continued presence on the national stage may help to rile up the president’s supporters (even though the elder Mr Macri has in fact supported the Kirchners’ government). Much to the opposition’s dismay, the status quo seems just as likely to continue in the Casa Rosada, the presidential palace, as it does in the mayor’s offices just across Buenos Aires’s central plaza.


From left: Anna Berglund, Hugh Hefner and Shera Bechard

Hugh Hefner's New Year's resolution may be to

, but when it comes to another holiday, the

mogul is all about being in love.

"I'm a romantic, and Valentine's Day is the holiday for the romantics," Hefner, 85, tells PEOPLE. "Love and attraction between the sexes makes the world go 'round. Some people think religion is the civilizing force, but I think love is the civilizing force."

Tuesdays at the Playboy Mansion are typically reserved for game nights consisting of Dominos and cards, but Hefner is making an exception this week in honor of the holiday, at the request of his girlfriends Shera Berchard and Anna Berglund.

"We're going out to dinner," he says. We're going to eat Italian. We're going to Valentino [restaurant in Santa Monica, Calif.]"

After the meal, the real fun begins. Hefner says he's most looking forward to giving his leading ladies their presents.

"I have some very nice little heart-shaped packages with some lingerie and candy and stuff like that," he says. "It's not like Christmas. It's not extremely expensive, but they're sentimental gifts."

Lacey undergarments make the perfect gifts, according to Hefner.

"My favorite thing – and the most natural thing – to give on Valentine's Day is lingerie," he says. "[I like] just any lingerie that makes a woman look beautiful and doesn't get in the way."

Summary: "Any lingerie that makes a woman look beautiful" will do, says the Playboy founder


Sep 8th 2012, 18:48 by S.B. | BOGOTÁ

IN 1998, the last time the Colombian government started a peace process with the FARC guerrillas, there was no agenda for the talks. Andrés Pastrana, the president, had ceded an area of the country the size of Switzerland to the guerrillas as a stage for the negotiations. But it took months for the two sides to agree merely on a rambling 100-point platform for discussion. The talks then dragged on with no discernible progress, as both the government the FARC prepared for fighting to resume. They broke down at last in 2002.

The peace process that Juan Manuel Santos, the current president, and the FARC officially announced on September 4th couldn’t be more different. In what appears to be the most serious effort to achieve peace to date, negotiators will begin peace talks in Oslo with a streamlined five-point agenda, probably on October 8th. For the first time, it will include the issues of demobilization and “reintegration of the FARC into civilian life.” If progress is made, it will be made quickly: Mr Santos said the talks would be “measured in months, not years.”

There will be no safe haven for the guerrillas and no pre-requisite of a ceasefire, although the FARC have said they will propose an immediate truce once the talks begin. Mr Santos has been reluctant to seek an immediate end to hostilities, because in the past the FARC have used such reprieves to regroup their forces. The president has vowed that operations against the guerrillas will continue unabated while the talks continue. The day after the announcement, the air force killed 15 FARC members in a bombing raid, including a close aide of Rodrigo “Timochenko” Londoño, the FARC’s leader. Despite Mr Santos’ aversion to an immediate halt to combat, doing so would probably shore up support from public opinion for the negotiations.

Mr Santos largely has his predecessor to thank for reaching this point. During the government of Álvaro Uribe, in which Mr Santos served as defence minister, the Colombian army severely weakened the guerrillas. They are returning to the table in a far less haughty position that in the past. However, Mr Santos is being careful not to repeat the hubris of Mr Uribe, who declared imminent victory over the FARC on many occasions.

The two sides could still find themselves far apart on central issues. Drug trafficking will be treated more as a social problem than as the principal source of funding for the FARC, which the United States State Department has called the world’s largest cocaine cartel. Marcos Calarcá, a FARC spokesman, recently declared that the group “has nothing to do with drug trafficking”, a denial that could make it hard to agree on how to dismantle their drug business.

Another thorny topic is the legal treatment of the guerrillas. The agenda mentions the victims of the conflict and the need for truth, but conspicuously does not address whether FARC members will be made to pay for their crimes, including kidnapping and massacres. A recent constitutional amendment established a system of transitional justice, which could leave open the door to possible amnesties and pardons.

Mr Santos appears to be betting his political career on the talks. He has made it clear that he wants to be remembered as the “peace president”. If the talks go well and a peace deal is signed or imminent within a year and a half, he is almost assured re-election. But if the process drags on with little progress, it would likely mark his political demise.

Summary: IN 1998, the last time the Colombian government started a peace process with the FARC guerrillas, there was no agenda for the talks. Andrés Pastrana, the president,...


Ahhhh which one is the clone?! Everyone has a twin somewhere out there, when will you meet yours? posted on March 15, 2013 at 5:03pm EDT

I know, right? Now tell your friends!

26 People Who Came Face To Face With Their...

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29,177 Views · Tagged: doppelgangers, lol, lookalikes, museums, pictures, weird

Nice Work! Thanks For Contributing!

Don't forget to share! Want to add another one?

I've always looked uncannily like Saint Barbara, but I can pass as basically any female saint. I have a weak chin and small mouth.

Supposedly I have a lot of them but I have yet to meet one. Freaky though.

While funny, isn't it a bit racist to compare Ceelo to a CA raisin?? lol maybe?

Forget Dr. John Stangel, #19 is Barney's true doppleganger. I refuse to believe that guy isn't NPH.

my doppelganger and i went to high school together. we were in the same unitarian universalist youth group together. i would sometimes get asked out by people who thought i was her and i wonder if the same thing happened to her. she had a fight with her girlfriend — who had the same name as my mom, which was weird — and her gf kissed me once to get back at her. /csb

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NEW YORK — The parent company of Lord & Taylor bought Saks Inc. Monday in a $2.4 billion deal that creates a North American behemoth of upscale shopping.

The acquisition by Hudson’s Bay Co., Canada’s biggest department store chain, combines three store brands — Hudson’s Bay, Lord & Taylor, and Saks Fifth Avenue — with 320 stores.

During a conference call with investors, Hudson’s Bay chief executive Richard Baker said the goal is to bring Saks luxury brand into Canada. The company plans to open seven Saks Fifth Avenue stores and 25 Off Fifth outlet stores in Canada, while creating a Saks website targeting Canadians. The company also plans to renovate Saks stores and to make the brand more ‘‘luxurious.’’

Hudson’s Bay is making a play for luxury at a time when shoppers still appear to be willing to shell out money for posh handbags and clothing despite economic challenges. Global luxury sales, including higher-end jewelry and clothes, rose 10 percent to $281.96 billion last year, according to the latest study from Bain & Co. In North America, luxury sales were up an estimated 12 percent to $81.33 billion.

Still, Saks has lagged behind its peers, Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom. After getting battered by the Great Recession, Saks discounted heavily to bring shoppers back. That move hurt the chain’s image.

Saks since has returned to selling clothes and other merchandise at full price and focused on closing unprofitable stores. But its sales haven’t rebounded quickly.

In the latest fiscal year, Saks reported annual revenue of $3.15 billion, up more than 4 percent from the previous year but still below the $3.28 billion in the year ended in January 2008. Saks’ net income fell nearly 16 percent to $62.8 million in the latest year.

Belus Capital Markets analyst Brian Sozzi said that Saks shopping experience isn’t as inviting as that of Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus. For example, Nordstrom has been providing services such as allowing shoppers to check out in fitting rooms using sales associates’ hand-held gadgets. And Neiman Marcus, which didn’t suffer during the Great Recession, has a long-held reputation for coddling its affluent shoppers through its loyalty programs.

‘‘There has been a lot of promise in terms of potential but Saks hasn’t lived up to the hype,’’ Sozzi said.

Still, Hudson’s Bay sees promise in Saks. Hudson’s Bay will pay $16 per share for Saks, a 5 percent premium over the company’s Friday closing price of $15.31. The companies put the deal’s total value at about $2.9 billion including debt.

Saks’ stock jumped more than 4 percent, or 64 cents to $15.95 in Monday trading. Shares are up 48 percent for the year to date.

The acquisition will marry two storied retailers. Hudson’s Bay was founded in 1670 as a trading firm for furs and other goods. It is considered the oldest company in operation in North America.

The company has seen steady revenue increases. For the fiscal year ended Jan. 28, 2012, revenue rose 5.9 percent to $3.94 billion. The company had a loss of $43.4 million from the year-ago profit of $1.40 billion as results were dragged down by one-time costs.

Founded in 1924 by Horace Saks and Bernard Gimbel, Saks’ flagship store on Fifth Avenue in New York City is a landmark of retailing and sits on some of the most valuable real estate in the world. The company employs about 15,000 people across 41 stores. Saks will continue to run as a separate company under Hudson’s Bay.

Summary: NEW YORK — Saks Inc. agreed to sell itself to Hudson’s Bay Co., the Canadian parent of upscale retailer Lord & Taylor, for about $2.4 billion in a deal that will bring luxury to more North American locales. The acquisition combines three department-store brands — Hudson’s Bay, Lord & Taylor, and Saks Fifth Avenue — and creates a North American upscale retailing behemoth with 320 stores in some of the biggest and most populous cities in the United Statse and Canada. Lord & Taylor and Hudson’s Bay, Canada’s biggest department store chain, both cater to well-heeled shoppers who can afford $98 Free People blouses and $250 Coach handbags. Saks customers, on the other hand, are more affluent and can shell out $800 for Christian Louboutin heels or a couple of thousand dollars for Gucci handbags.


In last year's season opener against the 49ers, the Packers' starting running back was then-29-year-old Cedric Benson, who had been signed four weeks earlier and is currently out of the NFL.

In last year's divisional playoff meeting against the 49ers, the Packers' starting running back was DuJuan Harris, who had been signed to their practice squad in late October and had a dubious claim to fame: Before joining Green Bay, Harris spent a week working as a car salesman in Jacksonville, Fla.

Any guesses on what position the Packers upgraded in the offseason?

After ranking 20th in the NFL in rushing yards per game (106.4) and 22nd in yards per attempt (3.9), Green Bay spent two its first five draft picks on running backs. In the second round, the Packers selected Alabama's Eddie Lacy before grabbing UCLA's Johnathan Franklin two rounds later.

Now, entering Sunday's season opener against the 49ers, Green Bay will find out if its new-look running attack can provide its Aaron Rodgers-led offense with some balance. In two losses against San Francisco last season, the Packers passed on 73 percent of their offensive plays (83 of 113).

"I think any time you go play a game you want to have some semblance of balance," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. "I feel good about our backs and the direction we're going to attempt to go with our offense."

Green Bay hopes Lacy, a 5-foot-11, 230-pound bruiser with some shiftiness, can provide the ingredient that helped other teams topple the 49ers last year.

In 2012, San Francisco went 10-1 in the regular season when it allowed fewer than 100 rushing yards, and 1-3-1 when opponents topped the century mark. The teams that beat the 49ers - the Vikings, Giants, Rams and Seahawks - each had a 1,000-yard back: Adrian Peterson (2,097 yards), Ahmad Bradshaw (1,015), Steven Jackson (1,042) and Marshawn Lynch (1,590), respectively.

So Green Bay will obviously go the ground, right?

The 49ers have their doubts, given the presence of Rodgers, the 2011 NFL MVP who signed a five-year, $110 million contract extension in the offseason. The Packers have proved, quite recently, that an elite quarterback can make up for a middling rushing attack. In 2010, they won the Super Bowl despite ranking 24th in the NFL in rushing. Of course, they had Rodgers, whose 104.9 passer rating is the best in NFL history.

"We know they have added some running backs," inside linebacker Patrick Willis said. "But, again, they have a $100 million quarterback. They're going to want him to throw the ball. ... I'm sure they're not going to get too far away from what they do and that's pass."

A one-dimensional attack, however, would allow outside linebackers Aldon Smith and Ahmad Brooks to pass rush with abandon against two untested Packers offensive tackles. Rookie left tackle David Bakhtiari, 21, is a fourth-round pick, and right tackle Don Barclay, 24, is a former undrafted free agent who started four games as a rookie in 2012.

Still, Willis isn't the only 49er expecting a heavy dose of Rodgers, not Green Bay's revamped backfield.

"That's their guy," defensive tackle Ray McDonald said. "He's one of the best players in the league. They just gave him a bunch of money, so they're going to want the ball in his hands a lot. So we expect him to sling the ball around."

Eric Branch is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: ebranch@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Eric_Branch

Summary: In last year's season opener against the 49ers, the Packers' starting running back was then-29-year-old Cedric Benson, who had been signed four weeks earlier and is currently out of the NFL.  In last year's divisional playoff meeting against the 49ers, the Packers' starting running back was DuJuan Harris, who had been signed to their practice squad in late October and had a dubious claim to fame:  After ranking 20th in the NFL in rushing yards per game (106.4) and 22nd in yards per attempt (3.9), Green Bay spent two its first five draft picks on running backs.  The 49ers have their doubts, given the presence of Rodgers, the 2011 NFL MVP who signed a five-year, $110 million contract extension in the offseason.  Rookie left tackle David Bakhtiari, 21, is a fourth-round pick, and right tackle Don Barclay, 24, is a former undrafted free agent who started four games as a rookie in 2012.