PATH to resume weekend World Trade Center service

NEWARK — PATH trains are about to resume service on a line that has been out of service on weekends since Superstorm Sandy.

Port Authority officials say starting Friday, weekend service to and from the World Trade Center will up and running.

Officials had been waiting for a shipment of replacement parts necessary to restoring service on the line.

Salt water flooded the Hoboken tunnels during Sandy, shorting out electrical system and corroding equipment.

Officials say many of the parts were decades old and replacements had to come from a third-party manufacturer.

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Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf to be buried at West Point today

WEST POINT — Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf, the no-nonsense Desert Storm commander famously nicknamed "Stormin' Norman," will be buried at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

A memorial service for Schwarzkopf will be held at the academy's chapel Thursday afternoon and his remains will be buried afterward at the cemetery on the grounds of the storied military institution.

Schwarzkopf commanded the US-led international coalition that drove Saddam Hussein's forces out of Kuwait in 1991. He was 78 when he died in Tampa on Dec. 27 of complications from pneumonia.

AP

Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf in 1991

Schwarzkopf graduated from West Point in 1956 and later served two tours in Vietnam, first as an adviser to South Vietnamese paratroops and later as a battalion commander in the US Army's Americal Division. While many disillusioned career officers left the military after the war, Schwarzkopf stayed to helped usher in institutional reforms. He was named commander in chief of US Central Command at Tampa's MacDill Air Force Base in 1988.

The general's "Stormin' Norman" nickname became popular in the lead-up to Operation Desert Storm, the six-week aerial campaign that climaxed with a massive ground offensive Feb. 24-28, 1991. Iraqis were routed from Kuwait in 100 hours before US officials called a halt.

Schwarzkopf spent his retirement years in Tampa. While he campaigned for President George W. Bush in 2000, Schwarzkopf maintained a low profile in the public debate over the second Gulf War against Iraq.

Schwarzkopf will be buried near his father, Col. H. Norman Schwarzkopf, the founder and commander of the New Jersey State Police. The academy cemetery also holds the remains of such notable military figures as Gen. William Westmoreland, Lt. Col. George Custer and 1st Lt. Laura Walker, who became the first female graduate killed in action when she died in 2005 in Afghanistan.

Schwarzkopf and his wife, Brenda, had three children: Cynthia, Jessica and Christian.

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Princess Diana's glamorous dresses up for auction

AP

John Travolta dances with Princess Diana at a 1985 White House dinner.

LONDON — If dresses could talk, this dark navy, figure-hugging velvet number would have the best stories to tell.

Princess Diana wore it on state visits, at royal banquets and most memorably to a gala dinner at the White House in 1985, when she took to the dance floor with Hollywood star John Travolta.

The Victor Edelstein gown will go under the hammer at a vintage fashion auction in London in March, along with nine other of Diana's lavish evening dresses. In total, Kerry Taylor Auctions say the sale is expected to raise more than 800,000 pounds ($1.2 million.)

The dresses, all in the signature 1980s look — padded shoulders, puffed sleeves, crushed velvet — are snapshots in the princess's glamorous, jet-setting life.

The sale is set for March 19.

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Sears' fourth-quarter loss narrows as company reduces expenses

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Sears posted a smaller loss in the fourth quarter as it reduced its inventory and expenses while sales at its namesake stores rose slightly.

The retailer's stock climbed more than 3 percent in premarket trading on Thursday.

The company that also owns the Kmart store chain lost $489 million, or $4.61 per share, for the period ended Feb. 2. That compares with a loss of $2.4 billion, or $22.63 per share, a year earlier.

Excluding certain items, earnings from continuing operations were $1.12 per share.

Revenue fell 2 percent to $12.26 billion from $12.48 billion. Sears said this was mostly due to the separation of its Sears Hometown and Outlet businesses; the impact of having fewer Kmart and Sears stores in operation and lower revenue from stores open at least a year. This was somewhat offset by having an extra week in the period.

Revenue at US stores open at least a year dropped 1.6 percent in the quarter.

This metric is a key gauge of a retailer's health because it excludes results from stores recently opened or closed.

Revenue at domestic Sears stores open at least a year edged up 0.8 percent, helped by strength in the clothing, home appliance and home categories. The figure dropped 3.7 percent for Kmart locations and fell 3.8 percent for Sears Canada.

A good part of the drag on results was softness in consumer electronics. Removing this category, total revenue at US stores open at least a year dipped 0.2 percent while Sears rose 2.4 percent and Kmart declined 2.5 percent.

Like many retailers, Sears Holdings Corp. saw growth in its online business, with sales climbing 25 percent.

Edward Lampert, chairman and CEO of the Hoffman Estates, Ill., company, said in a statement that Sears has invested significantly in its online operations as well as its rewards program and the technology needed to support the two initiatives.

Total costs and expenses declined to $12.88 billion from $13.18 billion.

Merchandise inventories at quarter's end were $7.6 billion compared with $8.4 billion a year earlier. Domestic inventory dropped $895 million to $6.8 billion.

Chief Financial Officer Rob Schriesheim said that Sears anticipates lowering its 2013 peak domestic inventory by $500 million from the $8.6 billion level at the end of the third quarter of 2012.

Total debt at quarter's end was $3.1 billion. This is down from $3.5 billion in the prior-year period.

Shares of Sears gained $1.53, or 3.2 percent, to $49 two hours before the market open.

For the full year, Sears lost $930 million, or $8.78 per share. In the prior year it lost $3.14 billion, or $29.40 per share.

The company's adjusted loss from continuing operations was $2.03 per share.

Annual revenue fell 4 percent to $39.85 billion from $41.57 billion.

Sears has more than 2,500 stores in the U.S. and Canada.

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Wendy's fourth-quarter net income climbs, revenue improves

DUBLIN, Ohio — Wendy's, which is pushing ahead with a transformation effort, says that its fiscal fourth-quarter net income grew more than six-fold partly because of a larger tax benefit.

The Dublin, Ohio company's reinvention comes at a time when people are increasingly eating at fast-casual chains such as Panera Bread Co., which offers food that's perceived to be higher quality for slightly higher prices.

For the period ended Dec. 30, Wendy's Co. earned $26.4 million, or 7 cents per share. That's up sharply from $4 million, or 1 cent per share, a year ago. Analysts expected 8 cents per share.

Revenue increased 2 percent to $629.9 million. Analysts expected revenue of $630 million.

Wendy's reaffirmed its 2013 forecast for adjusted earnings between 18 cents and 20 cents per share. Wall Street predicts 18 cents per share.

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Felton hit: Block of ages

No one needed a degree in logic, nuclear physics or even animal husbandry to figure where the ball was going for Golden State with roughly a minute and a half left last night and the game tied. Stephen Curry had 54 points. Every other Warrior had 51. Figure it was going to Curry.

The Knicks, especially Raymond Felton, surely did.

"Everybody was yelling it out," said Felton, who came up with the biggest play of the game, blocking Curry before the Knicks went on to a thrilling 109-105 triumph at the Garden. "We ran that play at shootaround so we knew it was coming. Tyson [Chandler] was calling it out. The coaches were calling it out."

Heck, most of the folks in the 19,033 sellout were calling it out.

"Ray came up with a big play getting the block," Carmelo Anthony said.

After Felton made like Dikembe Mutombo, Curry said at was a moment he would like to have back. Off the block, the Knicks came down and got a J.R. Smith jumper for the lead they never relinquished. The Warriors didn't score again.

"It was a crunch-time shot, I tried to get open, he played good D," Curry said. "I had an angle on him to get the shot up and he stayed right there with me. Guys are going to make defensive plays. ... You can't do nothing about it. You'd like to have that one back, try to get a shot on the rim at least, but credit to him he played good defense."

fred.kerber@nypost.com

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Chandler grabs 28 rebounds in ‘W’

On any normal night, Tyson Chandler might have been the first and the last player discussed regarding the Knicks' victory at the Garden.

But seeing an opponent — seeing anybody — score 54 points will sort of divert the conversation.

So Chandler's spectacular, career-high total of 28 rebounds, the second highest number in the league this season, sort of got overshadowed by Stephen Curry's 54-point nuclear detonation for the Warriors.

Yes, Chandler did not have to contend with Warrior All-Star power forward David Lee, the team's best rebounder who was suspended for one game by the NBA for his part in Tuesday night's brawl against the Pacers, and center Andrew Bogut is still hurt.

Paul J. Bereswill

MY BALL! Tyson Chandler grabs one of his 28 rebounds in the Knicks' 109-105 victory over the Warriors last night at the Garden.

Nevertheless, Chandler's effort was impressive.

"Unbelievable," Knicks coach Mike Woodson said. "I thought he was the difference in the game in terms of our defense. He got everything off the glass."

Actually, there were like two or three rebounds he let others get. Or so it seemed. But none of that mattered to Chandler.

"I just wanted to win obviously," said Chandler who also scored 16 points and became the first Knick since Charles Oakley (1998) with 15 rebounds in a first half when he took 17 before halftime. "I was trying to make sure to limit them to one shot."

Which he did. Lots. Chandler had 10 offensive rebounds and 18 on the defensive end.

"I'm just chasing rebounds. You kind of get in a rhythm out there, but I never know [how many]," Chandler said..

"I go into every game just trying to figure out how I can make an impact for my team," the All-Star center said. "Maybe I could have gotten to 30 if my team could have quieted Steph down a little bit."

fred.kerber@nypost.com

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Beatty signs 5-year, $38.75M contract to remain with Giants

The allure of hitting the open market did nothing to entice Will Beatty. The 27-year old left tackle opted to stay put, and Wednesday signed a five-year, $38.75 million contract to remain with the Giants and avoid becoming an unrestricted free agent.

"If it's a money issue, that temptation would come in," Beatty said. "But having this be my home team, I really didn't want to go into free agency. This is the team that wanted me from college. This is the team that gave me my first chance. This team went to the Super Bowl.I saw so many great moments with this team and there are still so many more to come."

Bill Kostroun

ALWAYS A GIANT: Big Blue left tackle Will Beatty did not test the free-agent market, saying the Giants were "the team that gave me my first chance."

This seems to be a deal that works for both sides. Beatty received a signing bonus of $12.5 million and $19 million of the contract is guaranteed. His average of $7.75 million per year, though, is certainly in line with what starting left tackles are paid in the NFL and, after a slow start to his career, the Giants consider Beatty to be a player on the rise.

"We believe he is one of the ascending left tackles in the NFL," general manager Jerry Reese said.

Beatty may not be a franchise left tackle, but he's athletic and a solid pass protector, something that is of great interest to the Giants on Eli Manning's blind side. The 2009 second-round draft pick from UConn also displayed impeccable timing, as he played in all 16 games in 2012, starting 15 games to prove his durability in the final year of his contract. Beatty started the first 10 games for the 2011 Super Bowl team before suffering a detached retina that curtailed his season.

One caveat with Beatty: His back. He missed most of the preseason and training camp last summer dealing with severe back spasms, an ailment that can arise again. Beatty must be diligent with his stretching and strengthening regime in order to make sure the back issue does not flare up. He also was penalty-prone last season, as he was called for 11 of them, including eight holding penalties.

Beatty has played in 50 games with 31 starts — 26 at left tackle, four at right tackle and one as an extra tight end.

"I thought I improved last year, playing the entire season," Beatty said. "I want to get back on the field and keep ascending, keep rising. The sky's the limit for me.I know there is still a lot more out there. I haven't tapped into all of my potential yet. I'm looking forward to performing and growing each year."

The offensive line was a high priority for the Giants. They also want to re-sign left guard Kevin Boothe, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent. The team must make a decision on David Diehl, likely the starting right tackle. Diehl's 2013 salary of $4.8 million and salary cap hit of nearly $6.9 million might have to be adjusted in order for him to remain on the roster for an 11th season with the Giants.

Beatty was a huge hurdle for the Giants to vault, but there remains plenty of work to be done, because they still have 17 unrestricted free agents and four restricted free agents — including receiver Victor Cruz — to sort through before the March 12 start of free agency.

Bennett: Giants don't want me

Tight end Martellus Bennett wants to return to the Giants after a productive first season (55 receptions, 626 yards, five touchdowns) but it appears he is headed toward free agency.

A frequent poster on Twitter, Bennett expressed pessimism about re-signing with the Giants yesterday

"Not feeling the love,'' Bennett wrote in a series of tweets. "They have other priorities that come before little ole me. I'm just a small piece of what they're trying to do there. I've come to the conclusion that we are just temporary investments to the owners. Value money and growth over players. just like any business. Employees aren't as valuable as we use to be. Everyone needs a job. Lol."

The approach to Bennett is in keeping with the way the Giants are handling the majority of their 17 remaining unrestricted free agents — making modest offers to re-sign their own players. The team has expressed an interest in bringing back safety Kenny Phillips but, according to a source, it is not enough of an offer to prompt Phillips to sign right now and he is headed to the open market on March 12.

paul.schwartz@nypost.com

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Rory, Tiger to clash again

A year ago, Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods sent an electrical charge into the 2012 golf season and in doing so the two sowed the seeds for a personal rivalry for the ages.

McIlroy was en route to winning the Honda Classic and seizing the world's No. 1 ranking. And to get there, he had to overcome Woods, who was in hot pursuit.

McIlroy won the tournament, but he had to stave off a furious final-round 62 by Woods to do it. It was the lowest final-round score of Woods' brilliant career. When it was a over, McIlroy said he felt it fitting and symbolic he had to overcome Woods to get to No. 1.

Getty Images

HOLE IN HIS GAME: Rory McIlroy, the world's No. 1 ranked golfer, has struggled this year after a switch to new clubs, and has seen his friend and rival Tiger Woods, No. 2 in the world, close the gap between the two in the rankings.

Beginning with Thursday's Honda Classic opening round at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. — a mere 10-minute drive away from their respective homes — McIlroy, who still owns that No. 1 ranking, and Woods, who is No. 2, will go at it again.

Woods tees off at 7:25 a.m with Dustin Johnson and Martin Kaymer, while McIlroy tees off at 12:25 p.m. with Ernie Els and Mark Wilson.

And the world will be watching.

On Sunday, with no one watching but Ahmad Rashad, Woods and McIlroy played a friendly 36 holes with Rashad at Woods' club, the Medalist, in Hobe Sound, Fla. where each won an 18-hole match.

"He moved down here and we figured, 'Let's get a game sometime,' '' Woods said yesterday. "We were kind of hoping it wouldn't be that Sunday, but we were both free, so we went out and played, played a quick 36.

"He's a friend of mine ... and he just happens to be the No. 1 player in the world,'' Woods said of McIlroy.

It's a fascinating dynamic to see Woods, always a cold-blooded killer in golf slacks, so friendly with the player who should be his fiercest rival, because Woods is hell-bent on taking that No. 1 ranking back from McIlroy.

Woods already has a win this year (the Farmers Insurance Classic at Torrey Pines in January) and has closed the gap on McIlroy's hold on the top spot.

McIlroy has not yet hit any stride with his game this year, entering today having played only three competitive tournament rounds, thanks to a missed cut in Abu Dhabi (where Woods also missed the cut) and being eliminated in the first round of the WGC-Accenture Match Play last week in Arizona (where Woods was also bounced in the first round).

So, as much attention as there is on McIlroy to see if he can successfully defend his Honda Classic title, there is as much outside focus on whether he can make a cut for the first time this year.

McIlroy, too, is facing the heavy scrutiny from is ballyhooed equipment change from Titleist, which he used to reach No. 1, to Nike, which is paying him a reported $15 to $20 million per year.

To date — albeit a small sample set because he has not played a lot — McIlroy hasn't looked good swinging the Swoosh logo. Until he does, McIlroy will be faced with questions about his comfort level with the new sticks.

"It's more about how I'm swinging the club,'' McIlroy said. "It's still an adjustment period.''

Interestingly, Woods defended McIlroy, saying, "I think Rory's doing a fantastic job. There are a few guys who have done that [changed equipment] and had lot of success and a few stories of guys who have not done well. Rory is going through [a] process. We talked about it a little bit, and it is a process.''

As for that No. 1 ranking — the elephant in the room — Woods is working his way back with a quiet confidence.

While he was playing the 11th hole in Wednesday's pro-am, a fan said to him, "Tiger, you're going to be No. 1 again. It starts this week.''

Woods turned to the fan and said with a smile, "You got it.''

This, indeed, has potential to be a compelling week. Perhaps, like a year ago, there will be a seismic shift in the game involving McIlroy and Woods.

mark.cannizzaro@nypost.com

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Euro sharpshooter adjusts to NBA

Mirza Teletovic is used to being a leading man on the basketball court, something he has been for his entire career before coming to the NBA — as the star of the Bosnian national team and throughout a prolific career in Europe.

So it should be expected the adjustment from being a player who averaged more than 30 minutes a game in Euroleague play each of the past three years — and who scored over 20 points a game in that competition last year — to being a bit player in a new country and on a new team has been trying at times.

"I just have to find the fun in basketball again," Teletovic said recently. "Not think about it too much, and just have fun."

NBAE/Getty Images

Mirza Teletovic

For a shooter like Teletovic, thinking too much is dangerous. The best shooters turn their jump shots into a mechanical process, something they do without a thought going through their minds. That is why they spend countless hours putting up one shot after another in an attempt to perfect their shooting strokes, in order to take as much thought out of the process as possible.

"Sometimes I just start thinking too much," Teletovic said. "I think about the mistakes I make, because I'm not a young guy and I've played a long time and I know basketball, so you start thinking about mistakes."

But thinking about things can be hard for a player like Teletovic to avoid, particularly when he is spending large portions of most games on the bench, only to come in for a few minutes and be expected to start hitting shots.

That's the situation Teletovic has found himself in several times recently, as Nets interim coach P.J. Carlesimo has put him in the game in the fourth quarter after sitting him for the first three. That happened in Tuesday's win in New Orleans, when Carlesimo inserted Teletovic into the game for a couple minutes midway through the fourth quarter.

"I put him in there in a tough situation," Carlesimo said, before going on to add he had hoped to play Teletovic more against the Hornets, but didn't like the matchup against New Orleans' backup big men Ryan Anderson and Jason Smith.

Carlesimo has given Teletovic more of a chance since taking over for Avery Johnson in late December. Teletovic has played in 22 of the past 30 games and averaged nearly 10 minutes a game. But even with the increase in playing time, it still has been fairly sporadic, leaving Teletovic wondering when — or if — he's going to see the floor each night.

"I just want to play hard and help guys out and after a couple minutes you start to feel comfortable," Teletovic said. "After not playing for five or six games, then you get in and play, it's an adjustment."

But when he does get in and play, he has proven he is capable of knocking down shots, which was his reputation when he was signed for the mini mid-level exception last summer. Since Carlesimo took over, Teletovic has knocked down 36 percent of his shots from downtown, which he credits to getting wide-open looks thanks to the attention his teammates get from their opponents.

"This team has a lot of guys who drive and have to be double-teamed," Teletovic said. "So you get a lot of wide-open shots without doing anything. You just stand there and wait for the ball. Between Brook [Lopez] and [Deron Williams and Joe [Johnson], and then C.J. [Watson] who can drive and kick, you just have to knock down the shots."

tbontemps@nypost.com

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Murder-suicide suspected: 2 missing boys, grandmother found dead inside car in Conn.

PRESTON, Conn. — Two young Connecticut boys who were taken from their daycare by their grandmother Tuesday afternoon were found dead hours later in a parked car along with her — and police reportedly suspect the granny killed the children and then herself.

State police said the bodies of 6-month-old Ashton and 2-year-old Alton Perry and their grandmother, Debra Denison, 47, were found Tuesday night in Preston. The New Haven Register newspaper quotes state police as saying it appears the deaths were the result of murder-suicide.

Authorities said Denison had picked up Ashton and Alton from their daycare in Danielson at about 2:30 p.m. Tuesday and could not be located. State police then issued an Amber Alert.

At about 9:30 p.m. troopers received a report of a suspicious vehicle parked near Lake of Isles, in a secluded area in the eastern part of the state.The two boys and their grandmother were pronounced dead at the scene.

Family members told WFSB-TV that Alton turned 2 years old on Tuesday and that a party had been planned for him. They said Denison was to pick up the boys from daycare and bring them home so Alton's presents could be opened.

The family said Denison suffered from bipolar disorder and had a history of mental issues.

The state medical examiner's office is to conduct an autopsy to determine the manner and cause of death.

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Shark kills man in New Zealand

AP

Police in inflatable rubber boats shoot at a shark off Muriwai Beach near Auckland, New Zealand.

AUCKLAND, New Zealand — A shark possibly 14 feet long killed a swimmer near a popular New Zealand beach on Wednesday, then disappeared after police attempting to save the man fired gunshots at the enormous predator.

Muriwai Beach near Auckland was closed after the fatal attack, one of only about a dozen in New Zealand in the past 180 years.

Pio Mose, who was fishing at the beach, told The New Zealand Herald he saw the swimmer struggle against the "huge" shark. He told the man to swim to the rocks, but it was too late.

AP

Police comfort a woman believed to be a family member of a man attacked by a shark at Muriwai Beach near Auckland, New Zealand

"All of a sudden there was blood everywhere," Mose said. "... I was shaking, scared, panicked."

Police Inspector Shawn Rutene said in a statement that the swimmer, was about 650 feet offshore when the shark attacked. He said police went out in inflatable surf-lifesaving boats and shot at the shark, which they estimate was 12 to 14 feet long.

"It rolled over and disappeared," Rutene said, without saying whether police are certain that they killed the creature.

Police recovered the body of the swimmer. The Herald reported that he was Adam Strange, a 46-year-old television and short film director, and that his family issued a statement expressing their shock and requesting privacy.

About 200 people had been enjoying the beach during the Southern Hemisphere summer at the time of the attack. Police said Muriwai and other beaches nearby have been closed until further notice.

Police did not say what species of shark was involved in the attack. Clinton Duffy, a shark expert with the Department of Conservation, said New Zealand is a hotspot for great white sharks, and other potentially lethal species also inhabit the waters.

Attacks are rare. Duffy estimated that only 12 to 14 people have been killed by sharks in New Zealand since record-keeping began in the 1830s.

"There are much lower levels of shark attacks here than in Australia," he said. "It's possibly a function of how many people are in the water" in New Zealand's cooler climate.

He said that during the Southern Hemisphere summer, sharks often come in closer to shore to feed and to give birth, although that doesn't necessarily equate to a greater risk of attack.

"Ninety-nine percent of the time they ignore people," he said. "Sometimes, people get bitten."

Around the world, sharks attacked humans 80 times last year, and seven people were killed, according to the University of Florida's International Shark Attack File. The death toll was lower than it was in 2011 but higher than the average of 4.4 from 2001 to 2010.

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In sendoff, Pope Benedict XVI recalls 'joy' of papacy, and difficulties

EPA

Clutching his spectacles in one hand, Pope Benedict XVI waves to tens of thousands of pilgrims and well-wishers ahead of his final weekly Wednesday General Audience of his tenure at St. Peter's Square.

VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI basked in an emotional sendoff Wednesday from a massive crowd at his final general audience in St. Peter's Square, recalling moments of "joy and light" during his papacy but also times of difficulty when "it seemed like the Lord was sleeping."

An estimated 150,000 people, many toting banners saying "Grazie!" ("Thank you!"), jammed the piazza to bid Benedict farewell and hear his final speech as pontiff. In this appointment — which he has kept each week for eight years to teach the world about the Catholic faith — Benedict gave deep thanks to his flock for respecting his decision to retire.

AFP/Getty Images

Pope Benedict XVI waves as he leaves in his papamobile at the end of his last weekly audience today in Vatican City.

Benedict clearly enjoyed the crowds, taking a long victory lap around the square in an open-sided car and stopping to kiss and bless half a dozen children handed to him by his secretary. A total of 70 cardinals, some tearful, sat in solemn attendance.

But Benedict made a quick exit, foregoing the typical meet-and-greet session that follows the audience; the Vatican has said there were simply too many people who would have wanted to say goodbye.

Given the historic moment, Benedict also changed course and didn't produce his typical professorial Wednesday catechism lesson. Rather, he made his final public appearance in St. Peter's a personal one, explaining once again why he was becoming the first pope in 600 years to resign and urging the faithful to pray for his successor.

"To love the church means also to have the courage to take difficult, painful decisions, always keeping the good of the church in mind, not oneself," Benedict said to thundering applause.

He noted that a pope has no privacy: "He belongs always and forever to everyone, to the whole church." But the pope promised that in retirement he would not be returning to private life — instead taking on a new experience of service to the church through prayer.

He recalled that when he was elected pope on April 19, 2005, he questioned if God truly wanted it. "It's a great burden that you've placed on my shoulders," he recalled telling God.

During his eight years as pope, Benedict said, "I have had moments of joy and light, but also moments that haven't been easy ... moments of turbulent seas and rough winds, as has occurred in the history of the church when it seemed like the Lord was sleeping."

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New Yorkers in favor of woman for mayor: poll

New Yorkers say they're ready for a woman mayor.

They're not as ready to have another business executive calling the shots at City Hall.

Those were the findings of a Quinnipiac University poll released today that asked voters to rate race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation and a business resume as factors in the mayoral race.

On just about every count, New Yorkers described themselves as open-minded and unbiased.

A female candidate? Twenty-seven percent said they'd be "enthusiastic" about her and 64 percent said they'd be "comfortable with" a woman contender.

WireImage

Christine Quinn is the only woman in the NYC mayoral race.

An African-American candidate drew comparable numbers of 18 and 71 percent. An Hispanic candidate was at 17 and 72 percent. An Asian pulled 15 and 72 percent.

A gay or a lesbian candidate was at the 15 and 63 percent mark.

The biggest falloff came when the question turned to a hypothetical "business executive candidate." That registered only 10 percent on the enthusiasm meter and 47 percent in the "comfortable with" category.

"They're true to one stereotype of a super-liberal city -- only being a business executive draws significant negative votes in a mayoral candidate," said pollster Maurice Carroll.

The only woman in the mayoral race is City Council Speaker Christine Quinn. She's also the only openly gay candidate.

The poll conducted Feb. 20-25 didn't show much movement in the Democratic primary field.

Quinn maintained her lead at 37 percent; Public Advocate Bill deBlasio moved up to 14 percent, followed by former Comptroller Bill Thompson at 11 percent and Comptroller John Liu at 9. Former City Councilman Sal Albanese got the brush off and wasn't included.

The Republican field remained an enigma to most voters, with 66 percent saying they hadn't heard enough about frontrunner Joe Lhota to form an opinion. The other four Republicans had "don't know enough" rates ranging from 81 to 93 percent.

Plans to increase taxes on the wealthy, which are being promoted by deBlasio and Liu, were popular. Fifty-five percent said they were more likely to vote for a candidate taking such a position, 17 percent said less likely and 26 percent said it wouldn't matter either way.

Unless the state Legislature switches the primary elections from September to June, there's still more than enough time for major shifts.

The poll surveyed 1,017 voters, including 655 Democrats.

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Budweiser maker AB InBev reports lower fourth-quarter profit, says Corona deal 'remains subject to challenge'

AMSTERDAM — Anheuser-Busch InBev NV, the world's largest brewer, says its profits fell 4.9 percent in the fourth quarter, due to changes in financing costs.

Net profit was $1.76 billion (€1.35 billion), down from $1.85 billion in the same period a year ago, as exchange rate-linked losses in the fourth quarter of 2012 and gains on derivatives in the fourth quarter of 2011 caused a combined $400 million downward swing.

Revenues rose 8.8 percent to $10.3 billion, due to price hikes, and operating profit rose 10.7 percent, thanks to cost-cutting, the company said.

The Leuven, Belgium-based maker of Budweiser, Bud Light, Stella Artois and Beck's said it expects weak first quarter volumes in the United States, its most profitable market, as consumers there have less disposable income and weather is worse than a year ago.

But the company said that volumes had grown in the US in 2012 for the first time since 2008 and "market share is showing signs of stabilizing."

InBev also expects "softness" in Brazil, where it has a 68.5 percent market share with brands Skol, Brahma and Antarctica, due to an early carnival and wet weather.

Volumes in China, the company's third-largest market, grew 1.9 percent and gained market share in the fourth quarter, with Budweiser the best-selling "premium" beer in the country. InBev expects better growth in China this year.

More than half of Budweiser sales now take place outside the US, the company said.

InBev didn't outline whether it expects to increase profits in 2013, saying only it expects its revenue per gallon sold to increase faster than the rate of inflation, and costs to rise "in the mid-single digits."

Shares fell 1.3 percent to €68.85 in early trading in Brussels.

AB InBev has been attempting since June to take over the half of Corona maker Grupo Modelo it doesn't already own for $20.1 billion, but the deal was challenged by the US Department of Justice over concerns it would make the company too dominant in the US.

In response, InBev announced a side-deal this month to sell the rights to market Corona in the US to smaller competitor Constellation Brands, hoping that would appease regulators. For now the deal "remains subject to the existing challenge," InBev said Wednesday.

The company's US subsidiary, Anheuser-Busch of St. Louis, Missouri, is facing a lawsuit from consumers who on Tuesday accused it of watering down its beers, including Budweiser and Michelob, so that they carry a lower alcohol percentage than their label suggests.

"Our beers are in full compliance with all alcohol labeling laws. We proudly adhere to the highest standards in brewing our beers, which have made them the best-selling in the US and the world," said Peter Kraemer, vice-president of brewing and supply, in a statement.

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Rangers’ Kreider looking to overcome early-season struggles

Chris Kreider's introduction into the NHL last spring read like a Hollywood script. His rookie year has been more like a reality television show.

Less than two weeks after leading Boston College to an NCAA title, he scored the game-winning goal in Game 6 of the first-round playoff series against the Senators, and would go on to score five times in a memorable postseason.

Kreider, however, has struggled to replicate that magic this season, managing just a goal and an assist in 11 games. He has been sent down to the Connecticut Whale of the AHL, seen his ice time diminish, suffered from a bone chip in his right ankle and there is a chance the 21-year-old, fresh-faced Bostonian can go back down to the minors.

"It's just as hard as I thought it was going to be," he said Tuesday before the Rangers fell to the Jets, 4-3, their second straight loss. "It's a simple game, it's still hockey, but simple doesn't mean easy. It's very difficult and it requires a ridiculous amount of effort. I'm learning to provide that effort every single night, every single day."

Since returning to the Rangers following a brief stint with the Connecticut Whale, Kreider's production and ice time hasn't increased — he replayed just 4:33 and had a -1 rating Tuesday night — yet there are positive signs. He feels he has improved in his own end and is better at protecting the puck when its on his stick. Rangers coach John Tortorella, who said Kreider "hasn't done anything really good" when he was sent down initially, has seen him getting stronger on the puck and more active on the forecheck.

"The next step is sustaining, coming up with pucks," Tortorella said. "Chris is getting there, but he's still not coming up with pucks. That's the next part. It's all parts of the game we're trying to work on with him."

Given the choice, Kreider would prefer to stay on Broadway, however much playing time he receives. He's learning something new every day from a variety of veterans and feels he is picking up the game slowly but surely.

"You control what you can control," he said. "You want to play within yourself. You get in trouble when you try to do stuff that's not a staple of your game, so I think continuing to move my feet and focusing on that, good things will happen."

"I'm always ready to have a breakout [game]," Kreider added. "Everyone's looking for that next big game where they can make an impact and help the team win. That's the only mentality you have."

zbraziller@nypost.com

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Some positive signs for undermanned Rangers’ defense

The Rangers weren't a beaten team Tuesday night, they were a hopeful one. They lost for the second straight time, 4-3 to the Jets, but they were pleased with their play after digging themselves a two-goal hole.

At the top of the list was the work of the patchwork defensive corps, which was integral to the three-goal output — the Rangers' highest output since Feb. 14 — and in shutting down Winnipeg over the final 20 minutes.

"I thought we grew. We made more plays," said defenseman Marc Staal, who logged an enormous 24:38 of ice time. "I thought we were more confident with the puck, more patient. Guys were going tape to tape, buzzing around the net."

The Jets' fourth goal, an Evander Kane wrist shot from the right circle, was a soft one, which Henrik Lundqvist later said he has to stop. After a free-for-all in the Blueshirts zone in the second period — when Winnipeg scored three of their four goals and took advantage of breakdowns and missed assignments — the Jets managed just six shots on goal in the third, a credit to the Rangers' desperate and relentless attack, but also a credit to the team's blue-liners, who were without key pieces Michael Del Zotto (lower body injury) and Ryan McDonagh (undisclosed injury).

"I got to watch the tape," Rangers coach John Tortorella said, when asked about his defensemen's performance. "There was some running around, there was some struggling. I got to go watch the tape and we'll go from there."

Said Staal: "Those are two big pieces obviously back there, but I thought [Steve Eminger] played a great game, Gillie [Matt Gilroy] played a great game. The guys who came in played well for us. I don't think [the loss] had anything to do with that."

Eminger, a recent Connecticut Whale call-up, performed well in his return to Broadway after a three-week minor-league conditioning stint, assisting on Ryan Callahan's goal, the Rangers' first. Gilroy picked up extra time in that final period and was solid. Defenseman Anton Stralman nearly led the comeback, scoring once and setting up another goal in the third.

"I thought the guys who got more minutes played pretty well," Lundqvist said. "We didn't change that much of our game."

***

Tortorella praised the play of rookie left wing J.T. Miller but also raised concern about fellow youngsters Chris Kreider and Brandon Mashinter. The two received a combined 8:03 of ice team, putting added pressure on the Rangers' other forwards.

"Chris and Mash, it's a tough spot for them," he said. "Chris and Mash, it was a bit of struggle there a couple of times. That's going to happen when you have some injuries and you have the kids. I really worry about putting them in a spot they're not ready for yet."

zbraziller@nypost.com

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$100,000 in solar equipment swiped from Brooklyn Bridge Park

Eco-unfriendly thieves stole more than $100,000 in solar equipment donated to power vehicles and equipment in Brooklyn Bridge Park, The Post has learned.

The pilfered equipment — which includes 24 solar panels and 30 storage-cell batteries — was gifted to the 85-acre waterfront area in 2011 by Red Hook-based green-energy company Beautiful Earth Group.

"Obviously we're shocked by this," said company CEO Lex Heslin. "It hurts because we put a lot of time and money into this, but it seems someone had a strong motivation to move all this stuff."

The equipment was reported stolen Feb. 19, but park officials told cops they were last seen on Jan. 20, law enforcement sources said.

The charging station was set up at decommissioned steel shipping containers by Pier 1 near Furman Street in Brooklyn Heights. It was used to power the park's large fleet of electric vehicles, and officials hoped to soon use it to power private vehicles and park patrons' cell phones and laptops.

With a hotel and housing complex soon set to break ground there, park officials were planning to relocate the equipment to the other side of the park on Atlantic Avenue near Pier 6.

A portable classroom that Beautiful Earth Group also donated for public environmental lessons wasn't stolen and will be moved to Pier 6.

Police believe the burglar used a truck and ladder to pull off the heist since the equipment taken was very heavy, sources said.

When cops investigated, they didn't find damage usually associated with a break-in. The gate the equipment was stored behind was locked and not damaged.

Brooklyn Bridge Park spokeswoman Teresa Gonzalez said the "only effect" the crime will have "on park operations is that we will no longer be able to charge our electric vehicles from an off-the-grid" solar-charging station and will instead have to rely on "electricity that runs to our buildings."

Heslin said Beautiful Earth Group is waiting to hear back from park officials to see if the city was insured for the donated equipment that was stolen. He hopes to eventually operate the charging station at the park again.

The company's charging station had been entirely powered by 24 photovoltaic panels on the roof of the shipping containers, which caught the sun's rays throughout the day and stored them as electricity in battery packs for 24/7, on-demand use.

With production of 5.6 kilowatts, the station stored enough energy to power a small home.

"This is one of the biggest thefts in a city park in a very long time, " said Cobble Hill activist Judi Francis. "I think people were given a false sense of security because the city said this park will be safer because there's housing inside and a large security force."

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Rising rapper brings it ‘home’

He's a proud Compton kid to be sure, but last night, as Kendrick Lamar played the first of two shows in one evening at Roseland Ballroom, the rapper ingratiated himself with the crowd in a way that would have made the casual observer swear he was born and raised an East Coaster.

"This is like my second home," beamed the 25-year-old, and he made continued attempts to prove his love for New York City by coaxing the 3,000 fans to out-scream their Californian counterparts and even tossing in a mid-set solo version of "F--kin' Problems" by rising Harlem star A$AP Rocky.

There may have been a hint of Lamar employing such standard devices to get the crowd on his side, but when playing live, the spirit of the East Coast pervades his sound, too.

On stage, the frequently laid-back flows of last year's gangsta-rap chronicle "good kid, m.A.A.d city" give way to a much harder-edged delivery.

The smell of weed inside the venue was strong enough to floor an elephant, but Lamar seemed immune as he spat out the rhymes to tracks such as "Look Out For Detox" with a speed that seemed to defy physics, and a booming tone that sounded as serious as a heart attack. Definitely not material for the softies.

His recent mainstream success has caught many off guard, but Lamar's command of events showed the newcomers that his is no overnight success.

Rather, it's something that he has worked on quietly and diligently for years. His shift to and from a capella segments was masterful, and watching him orchestrate the audience into singing "Backstreet Freestyle" and the Lady Gaga collaboration "Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe" hinted at an arena-sized future.

And yet, for one someone with so much prowess and so many prospects, Lamar is unusually — and refreshingly — humble in his attitude. "Thanks to y'all, 'good kid, m.A.A.d city' is on its way to being motherf--kin' platinum," he exclaimed toward the show's end with an excitement that was almost endearing.

A million sales is certainly an achievement for a debut album, but if he continues turning in these kinds of performances, he's going to need a real second home in which to put all his platinum discs. May we suggest a nice little place in downtown Manhattan, Kendrick? We'd love to have you here for real.

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Murder-suicide suspected: 2 missing boys, grandmother found dead inside car in Conn.

PRESTON, Conn. — Two young Connecticut boys who were taken from their daycare by their grandmother Tuesday afternoon were found dead hours later in a parked car along with her — and police reportedly suspect the granny killed the children and then herself.

State police said the bodies of 6-month-old Ashton and 2-year-old Alton Perry and their grandmother, Debra Denison, 47, were found Tuesday night in Preston. The New Haven Register newspaper quotes state police as saying it appears the deaths were the result of murder-suicide.

Authorities said Denison had picked up Ashton and Alton from their daycare in Danielson at about 2:30 p.m. Tuesday and could not be located. State police then issued an Amber Alert.

At about 9:30 p.m. troopers received a report of a suspicious vehicle parked near Lake of Isles, in a secluded area in the eastern part of the state.The two boys and their grandmother were pronounced dead at the scene.

Family members told WFSB-TV that Alton turned 2 years old on Tuesday and that a party had been planned for him. They said Denison was to pick up the boys from daycare and bring them home so Alton's presents could be opened.

The family said Denison suffered from bipolar disorder and had a history of mental issues.

The state medical examiner's office is to conduct an autopsy to determine the manner and cause of death.

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Edwin leads Seton Hall over Villanova 66-65

NEWARK — Fuquan Edwin scored 18 points, including a 3-pointer with 8.9 seconds left, to give Seton Hall a 66-65 victory over Villanova Monday night.

The victory snapped the Pirates' (14-15, 3-13 Big East) nine-game losing streak and was just the second win in their last 15 tries.

The loss snapped a three-game winning streak for Villanova (18-11, 9-7), as the Wildcats suffered a crushing blow as they try to secure an NCAA tournament bid.

With 13 seconds left, Edwin hit two free throws to draw the Pirates to within 65-63, then Tom Maayan made a steal and fed Edwin, who drained a 3-pointer that gave the Pirates the lead at 66-65 with 8.9 seconds left.

Villanova tried to get off a final shot, but Ryan Arcidiacono's fade away at the buzzer fell short, giving the Pirates the unlikely victory.

Aaron Cosby scored a game-high 21 points for the Pirates. He also had six assists and five rebounds. Kyle Smyth had 12 points, all from long range. Brian Oliver added 11 off the bench.

JayVaughn Pinkston fouled out with 15 points. Mouphtaou Yarou had 14 points, including a clutch baseline jumper with 22 seconds left, and grabbed 15 rebounds. Darrun Hilliard fouled out with 11 points, but hit a huge 3-pointer that gave the Wildcats a 63-58 lead with under a minute to play.

Using its outside shooting prowess to its advantage, the Pirates were able to go into halftime tied at 32-32.

Seton Hall's biggest lead was at 20-14 with 8:32 remaining on a 3-pointer from Smyth, his fourth from behind the arc in the first half.

The Wildcats then went on a 10-0 run to take a 24-20 lead on two free throws from Arcidiacono with 4 minutes left. Arcidiacono scored the last four points of the run.

Brian Oliver hit the first of his two 3-pointers that enabled the Pirates to regain the lead, 25-24. Teams traded the lead three more times in the half.

Cosby hit two free throws to take a 32-30 advantage with 33 seconds left, then Arcidiacono hit two free throws that tied the game at the half.

Incredibly, Seton Hall had nine field goals in the first half and eight came from 3-point range. They went the first 17 minutes of the first half without a 2-point field goal.

Cosby opened the second half with back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Pirates a 38-36 edge with 17:09 remaining. From there, the Pirates hit 11 field goals, 10 of which were from 3-point range.

Arciadiacono nailed a corner 3-pointer with one second left on the shot clock to tie the game at 43-43 with 14:20 left.

Yarou scored two straight baskets down low to give Villanova a 49-45 lead with 10:40 remaining.

Oliver hit a 3-pointer that gave Seton Hall a 53-51 lead, but the Wildcats scored seven straight points to take a 58-53 with lead 5:32 left on a three-point play from Pinkston.

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City marks 20th anniversary of WTC bombing

AP

The names of the six people killed in the 1993 terrorist bombing of the World Trade Center.

Today marks the 20th anniversary of the first terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.

A noontime ceremony is planned to honor the six people who died in the 1993 blast in an underground garage below one of the twin towers. More than 1,000 people were injured.

The attack was the first dramatic demonstration that "terrorism is theater and New York is the biggest stage," said Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly.

The ceremony was being held at the 9/11 memorial that honors more than 2,700 people who died in the 2001 terrorist attack at the World Trade Center.

A moment of silence will be observed at 12:18 p.m., the time when a truck bomb was detonated below the north tower.

Six Islamic extremists were convicted of carrying out the bombing, including mastermind Ramzi Yousef.

At first, officials assumed the explosion on a chilly day was an accident.

The initial report to police that day called it an apparent transformer explosion at the trade center.

Kelly raced to the scene, where the bomb planted in a parked Ryder van had left a crater half the size of a football field in the trade center garage, causing more than a half-billion dollars in damage.

"I remember seeing this tremendous sea of first-responder vehicles ... and smoke was coming out," said Kelly, who was on his first stint as police commissioner.

The trade center stood in the darkness that night for the first time since it opened in 1973.

It was only the next day, after a utility mishap was ruled out, that authorities "started to come to the conclusion it was bomb," Kelly said.

Investigators then found a vehicle identification number on a piece of the blown-up van that they traced to Mohammed Salameh, who had rented the van.

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Horror as hot air balloon catches fire and crashes in Egypt, killing at least 18 tourists

LUXOR, Egypt — A hot air balloon flying over Egypt's ancient city of Luxor caught fire and crashed into a sugar cane field on Tuesday, killing at least 18 foreign tourists, a security official said.

It was one of the worst accidents involving tourists in Egypt and likely to push the key tourism industry deeper into recession.

The casualties included French, British, Belgian, Hungarian, Japanese nationals and nine tourists from Hong Kong, Luxor Governor Ezzat Saad told reporters.

Three survivors of the crash — two British tourists and one Egyptian — were taken to a local hospital. Egypt's civil aviation minister, Wael el-Maadawi, suspended hot air balloon flights and flew to Luxor to lead the investigation into the crash.

According to the Egyptian security official, the balloon carrying at least 20 tourists was flying over Luxor early Tuesday when it caught fire, which triggered an explosion in its gas canister, then plunged at least 1,000 feet from the sky.

The balloon crashed into a sugar cane field outside al-Dhabaa village just west of Luxor, 320 miles south of Cairo, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media.

REUTERS

Police and rescue officials check the wreckage of a hot air balloon that crashed in Luxor, Egypt, killing at least 18 foreigners.

Bodies of the dead tourists were scattered across the field around the remnants of the balloon. An Associated Press reporter at the crash site counted eight bodies as they were put into body bags and taken away. The security official said all 18 bodies have been recovered.

The security official said foul play has been ruled out. He also said initial reports of 19 dead were revised to 18 as confusion is common in the aftermath of such accidents.

An official with the state prosecutor's office said initial findings show that the accident occurred when the pilot's landing cable was caught around a helium tube. He spoke anonymously because the investigation is ongoing.

The head of Japan Travel Bureau's Egypt branch, Atsushi Imaeda, confirmed that four Japanese died in the crash. He said two were a couple in their 60s from Tokyo. Details on the other two were not immediately available.

In Hong Kong, a travel agency said nine of the tourists that were aboard the balloon were natives of the semiautonomous Chinese city. There was a "very big chance that all nine have perished," said Raymond Ng, a spokesman for the agency. The nine, he said, included five women and four men from three families.

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Pope Benedict to be called 'emeritus pope,' will wear white but loses signature red shoes

VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI will be known as "emeritus pope" in his retirement and will continue to wear a white cassock, the Vatican announced Tuesday.

The pope's title and what he would wear has been a major question ever since Benedict stunned the world and announced he would resign on Thursday, the first pontiff to do so in 600 years.

The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said Benedict himself had made the decision in consultation with others.

Benedict decided he would be called "Your Holiness Benedict XVI" and either emeritus pope or emeritus Roman pontiff, Lombardi said.

ZUMAPRESS.com

Pope Benedict XVI

While he will no longer wear his trademark red shoes, Benedict has taken a liking to a pair of hand-crafted brown loafers made for him by artisans in Leon, Mexico, and presented to him during his 2012 visit. He will wear those in retirement, Lombardi said.

Lombardi also elaborated on the College of Cardinals meetings that will take place after the papacy becomes vacant — crucial gatherings in which cardinals will discuss the problems facing the church and set a date for the start of the conclave to elect Benedict's successor.

The first meeting isn't now expected until March 4, Lombardi said, since the official convocation to cardinals to come to Rome will only go out on March 1 — the first day of what's known as the "sede vacante," or the vacancy between papacies.

In all 115 cardinals under the age of 80 are expected in Rome for the conclave to vote on who should become the next pope; 2 other eligible cardinals have already said they are not coming, one from Britain and another from Indonesia. Cardinals who are 80 and older can join the College meetings but are not part of the conclave and can't vote.

Benedict on Monday gave the cardinals the go-ahead to move up the start date of the conclave — tossing out the traditional 15-day waiting period. But the cardinals won't actually set a date for the conclave until they begin meeting officially on March 4.

Lombardi also further described Benedict's final 48 hours as pope: On Tuesday, he was packing, arranging for documents to be sent to the various archives at the Vatican and separating out the personal papers he will take with him into retirement.

On Wednesday, Benedict will hold his final public general audience in St. Peter's Square at which 50,000 tickets have already been requested. He won't greet visiting prelates or VIPs as he normally does at the end but will greet some visiting political leaders — from San Marino, Andorra and his native Bavaria — privately afterwards.

On Thursday, the pope meets with his cardinals in the morning and then flies by helicopter at 5 p.m. to Castel Gandolfo, the papal residence south of Rome. He will greet parishioners there from the palazzo's loggia (balcony) — his final public act as pope.

And at 8 p.m., the exact time at which his retirement becomes official, the Swiss Guards standing outside the doors of the palazzo at Castel Gandolfo will go inside, their service protecting the head of the Catholic Church now finished.

Benedict's personal security will be assured by Vatican police, Lombardi said.

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NYPD: Bags believed to hold human remains

Police say bags found on a Bronx street are believed to hold human body parts.

The discovery was made around 5 a.m. Tuesday in the Melrose neighborhood.

According to WABC a witness told police that someone in a vehicle had dropped a bag into a trash pile.

The NYPD said remains were found in more than one bag.

The contents are being analyzed.

G.N. Miller

A bag was found today that was believed to contain body parts.

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Affrunti at Turf Paradise Graded Entries

FIRST-6f; $9,000; cl($10,000); 4up

2-Champsville	2-1	1-Red Pirate	8-1
4-Cactus Breeze	4-1	3-To Terataki	9-2
6-Draw Two Buck	3-1	5-Woodpulp	6-1

---

SECOND-6f; $5,500; cl($3,500); 4up; (f&m)

7-Crystal Coast	3-1	3-Brite Navy	8-1
4-La Frambuesa	9-2	5-Love Ya ByeBye	8-1
2-Likable Lady	7-2	6-SheanaMalaen	5-2
1-Mbettermbeter	6-1

---

THIRD-6f; $6,200; str stk; 4up

Wells Wanderers Stakes

7-Tiger Cat	7-2	3-Don'tStopRidin'	6-1
5-Just Say It	9-2	4-DeSoLngCwby	10-1
2-ElusiveMoment	4-1	6-Contreve	6-1
1-A LastingPeace	5-2

---

FOURTH-6f; $12,500; cl($16,000); 3YO

1-ListenYouFol	5-2	2-Lewiston	2-1
1a-Mo Rock	5-2	3-MeHmbreMny	12-1
5-MyLtleTweety	10-1	4-Resist	4-1
7-Bubba'sMyNme	8-1	6-El Cazador	6-1

---

a-Coupled

FIFTH-7 1/2f(T); $13,000; alw; 4up

1-Free Beer	5-2	4-Cooke'sFrmTny	6-1
2-Lee Creek	5-1	6-Tobiah'sJrney	12-1
5-ExcessveYdeler	7-2	7-OurMagicCople	8-1
3-Quick Score	20-1	8-Dr. Hudson	9-2

---

SIXTH-5f; $5,500; cl($3,000); 4up; (f&m)

6-DenimndDmnds	2-1	3-Shemya Reef	8-1
4-FantabulousMQ	3-1	5-Chmree'sBrbe	12-1
2-Ariat Gold	6-1	7-Berry Valid	10-1
1-Gonging Wild	7-2	8-Meet Anzi	10-1

---

SEVENTH-1m; $5,700; cl($3,000); 4up

1-Buck's Dance	8-1	6-Perfectionism	12-1
4-Tenatious Spirit	9-2	7-No Reverse	10-1
5-Flying Jack	4-1	8-Moose Lake	5-1
2-Dry Gold	15-1	9-Diamond Touch	5-2
3-Iron Justice	15-1

---

EIGHTH-7 1/2f(T); $15,500; alw opt clm; 4up; (f&m)

1-Wine Thief	5-2	6-AmberGtEven	12-1
7-Foolish Temper	6-1	8-UnlochtheFury	10-1
2-Mundy	4-1	9-Coconino	9-2
3-She's a Hit	8-1	10-Clodhopper	10-1
4-Ebony N Ice	6-1	1a-MssCmnctn	5-2
5-Sweetsmerwe	10-1

---

a-Coupled

NINTH-6f; $5,500; cl($3,000); 4up

8-Da Boss	4-1	3-Mr. Chuck	20-1
1-LookfrAnswers	5-1	4-Some KindaBoy	8-1
5-Frenzo	9-2	6-Mayor Marv	7-2
2-Jiddaw	15-1	7-Brady BlueEyes	5-2

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Today's Sports on the Air

Baseball 1 p.m. Exh: Yankees at Phillies MLBN Basketball 7 p.m. Indiana at Minnesota ESPN 7 p.m. Memphis at Xavier ESPN2 7 p.m. Auburn at Alabama ESPNU 8 p.m. Cleveland at Chicago NBATV 8 p.m. Nets at Hornets YES, WFAN 660 AM,
101.9 FM 9 p.m. Florida at Tennessee ESPN 9 p.m. Nebraska at Wisconsin Big Ten 9 p.m. Wake Forest at Florida State ESPNU Hockey 7 p.m. Jets at Rangers MSG, ESPN 98.7 FM 7:30 p.m. Bruins at Islanders NBCSN, WRHU 1130 AM Soccer 6 p.m. CONCACAF U-20 Quarterfinal FSC 9 p.m. CONCACAF U-20 Quarterfinal FSC Horse Racing 12:25 p.m. Parx Ch. 71 7:10 p.m. Yonkers Ch. 71

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Edwin leads Seton Hall over Villanova 66-65

NEWARK — Fuquan Edwin scored 18 points, including a 3-pointer with 8.9 seconds left, to give Seton Hall a 66-65 victory over Villanova Monday night.

The victory snapped the Pirates' (14-15, 3-13 Big East) nine-game losing streak and was just the second win in their last 15 tries.

The loss snapped a three-game winning streak for Villanova (18-11, 9-7), as the Wildcats suffered a crushing blow as they try to secure an NCAA tournament bid.

With 13 seconds left, Edwin hit two free throws to draw the Pirates to within 65-63, then Tom Maayan made a steal and fed Edwin, who drained a 3-pointer that gave the Pirates the lead at 66-65 with 8.9 seconds left.

Villanova tried to get off a final shot, but Ryan Arcidiacono's fade away at the buzzer fell short, giving the Pirates the unlikely victory.

Aaron Cosby scored a game-high 21 points for the Pirates. He also had six assists and five rebounds. Kyle Smyth had 12 points, all from long range. Brian Oliver added 11 off the bench.

JayVaughn Pinkston fouled out with 15 points. Mouphtaou Yarou had 14 points, including a clutch baseline jumper with 22 seconds left, and grabbed 15 rebounds. Darrun Hilliard fouled out with 11 points, but hit a huge 3-pointer that gave the Wildcats a 63-58 lead with under a minute to play.

Using its outside shooting prowess to its advantage, the Pirates were able to go into halftime tied at 32-32.

Seton Hall's biggest lead was at 20-14 with 8:32 remaining on a 3-pointer from Smyth, his fourth from behind the arc in the first half.

The Wildcats then went on a 10-0 run to take a 24-20 lead on two free throws from Arcidiacono with 4 minutes left. Arcidiacono scored the last four points of the run.

Brian Oliver hit the first of his two 3-pointers that enabled the Pirates to regain the lead, 25-24. Teams traded the lead three more times in the half.

Cosby hit two free throws to take a 32-30 advantage with 33 seconds left, then Arcidiacono hit two free throws that tied the game at the half.

Incredibly, Seton Hall had nine field goals in the first half and eight came from 3-point range. They went the first 17 minutes of the first half without a 2-point field goal.

Cosby opened the second half with back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Pirates a 38-36 edge with 17:09 remaining. From there, the Pirates hit 11 field goals, 10 of which were from 3-point range.

Arciadiacono nailed a corner 3-pointer with one second left on the shot clock to tie the game at 43-43 with 14:20 left.

Yarou scored two straight baskets down low to give Villanova a 49-45 lead with 10:40 remaining.

Oliver hit a 3-pointer that gave Seton Hall a 53-51 lead, but the Wildcats scored seven straight points to take a 58-53 with lead 5:32 left on a three-point play from Pinkston.

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Horror as hot air balloon catches fire in Egypt, killing 18 foreigners

LUXOR, Egypt — A hot air balloon flying over Egypt's ancient city of Luxor caught fire and crashed into a sugar cane field on Tuesday, killing at least 18 foreign tourists, a security official said.

It was one of the worst accidents involving tourists in Egypt and likely to push the key tourism industry deeper into recession. The casualties included French, British, Japanese nationals and nine tourists from Hong Kong, the official said.

Three survivors of the crash — two tourists and one Egyptian — were taken to a local hospital.

According to the Egyptian security official, the balloon carrying at least 20 tourists was flying over Luxor when it caught fire, which triggered an explosion in its gas canister, then plunged at least 300 meters (1,000 feet) from the sky.

It crashed into a sugar cane field outside al-Dhabaa village just west of Luxor, 320 miles south of Cairo, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media.

Bodies of the dead tourists were scattered across the field around the remnants of the balloon. An Associated Press reporter at the crash site counted eight bodies as they were put into body bags and taken away. The security official said all 18 bodies have been recovered.

The official said foul play has been ruled out. He also said initial reports of 19 dead were revised to 18 as confusion is common in the aftermath of such accidents.

In Hong Kong, a travel agency said nine of the tourists that were aboard the balloon were natives of the semiautonomous Chinese city. It did not say whether all nine were killed. The information was posted on the agency's website.

In Paris, a diplomatic official said French tourists were among those involved in the accident, but would give no details on how many, or whether French citizens were among those killed.

Speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to be publicly named according to government policy, the official said French authorities were working with their Egyptian counterparts to clarify what happened. French media reports said 2 French tourists were among the dead but the official wouldn't confirm that.

Hot air ballooning, usually at sunrise over the famed Karnak and Luxor temples as well as the Valley of the Kings, is a popular pastime for tourists visiting Luxor.

The site of the accident has seen past crashes. In 2009, 16 tourists were injured when their balloon struck a cellphone transmission tower. A year earlier, seven tourists were injured in a similar crash.

Egypt's tourism industry has been decimated since the 18-day uprising in 2011 against autocrat leader Hosni Mubarak and the political turmoil that followed and continues to this day.

Luxor's hotels are currently about 25 percent full in what is supposed to be the peak of the winter season.

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Straw, Franco: Ya gotta believe in Mets

Forget the four straight fourth-place finishes. According to Darryl Strawberry, this year's Mets shouldn't get caught up with the fact three other teams — the Nationals, Braves and Phillies — are projected to finish above them in the NL East.

"The Mets have to say to themselves, 'We're just as good as anybody else.' The team has to look at themselves, create an identity, and not let other teams bully them," Strawberry, the 50-year-old former Mets slugger, said before an exclusive ticket pre-sale for Citi cardholders at Bryant Park yesterday morning.

PHOTOS: METS SPRING TRAINING

Joining Strawberry at the promotion was John Franco, who touted the team's strong starting pitching as hope for success. Now 52, Franco — like many others — is optimistic the duo of Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler can turn into a force for years to come.

"From what I've seen, both are very competitive,'' said Franco, who pitched 14 of his 20 major league seasons for the Mets. "Harvey is a potential ace of the future, and I like everything that I've seen with Wheeler so far. He has a nice delivery and hides the ball well. I think they have a good, bright future with the Mets."

While the team projects to have a strong starting rotation, the big question mark with the Mets focuses on the rest of the team as a whole.

When asked to assess how the Mets would perform this season, Strawberry said, "It depends on how the everyday players perform.

"You need your regulars to stay healthy and consistent,'' he said. "Preparation and learning to hit in the clutch is key. They won 74 games last season, and if you hit in the clutch consistently, you can add another 12-13 wins."

Health and consistency, Franco said, is needed from day one for first baseman Ike Davis, who, after being hampered by valley fever in spring training, got off to a brutal start in 2012. His batting average did not crack .200 for good until June 30.

Franco is convinced Davis will bounce back, saying, "You know what you're going to get from David Wright — a .300 [batting average] and 25-30 home runs."

Both Franco and Strawberry agreed if the Mets are to have success in 2013, it has to be a team effort.

"You can't put your finger on one individual guy,'' Franco said. "Everybody has to perform to their capability.''

While it appears the Mets are ticketed for a fifth consecutive fourth-place finish, Franco said don't write them off.

"Nobody gave the Orioles or Athletics a chance at this time last year,'' he said. "You never know what's going to happen. Baseball's a funny game. If the Mets can just compete and stay healthy, you never know."

jdemarzo@nypost.com

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‘Queen’ for a day OK: rev.

Church leaders irked by a group of cross-dressers staging a racy brunch show next to their Midtown house of worship say it's not such a drag after all.

The Rev. Richard Baker of St. Malachy's Catholic Church on 49th Street stepped back from his demands that Lillie's restaurant stop the show, sources said, in a peacemaking conference call in which he agreed to go along with their "Breakfast at Epiphany's" brunch and the cross-dressers agreed to cancel their protest outside the church.

Epiphany Get Paid, the drag queen who planned the protest, sang at the brunch as planned yesterday.

"It was a misunderstanding," she said.

Staffers from City Council Speaker Christine Quinn's office mediated the conference call.

Baker didn't return requests for comment by press time.

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Lohan case is stalled

Three months after Lindsay Lohan was arrested for allegedly punching fortune teller Tiffany Mitchell in a Chelsea club, prosecutors have yet to draft a criminal complaint or set a court date, The Post has learned.

"Enough is enough," Lohan lawyer Mark Jay Heller griped. "It's apparent they have no case."

Mitchell's lawyer, Gloria Allred, said, "To my knowledge, this case is still under investigation."

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WATCH: Celebs galore in Jimmy Kimmel's 'Movie: The Movie: 2V'

ABC

Jimmy Kimmel and Jessica Chastain appear in "Movie: The Movie: 2V."

When in doubt, out-sex the opposition.

Gratuitous celebrity cameos don't hurt, either.

Those are the overriding themes of "Movie: The Movie: 2V," a seven-minute trailer presented on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" following Sunday's Academy Awards.

Last year's original "Movie: The Movie," which garnered 20 million YouTube views, involves an asteroid threatening the earth. This time it's an army of sexy zombies, vampires, mummies and even Leprechauns – a sexpocalypse, if you will.

"2V" shows a crack team of superheroes uniting to fight the hoard, Avengers-style. Actress Jessica Chastain provided intelligence. Kimmel channeled his inner Fury with two (two!) eye-patches, but it wasn't enough to get the attention of Madame President (Oprah Winfrey, too busy to take Jimmy's call).

"She's probably busy … with the network, the country and everything," Kimmel said to Chastain.

"Yeah."

Gerard Butler embodied the "Taken" role, threatening the enemy in phone snipes and later using a flame-thrower with a baby strapped to his chest.

After watching his parents get shot, getting splashed with acid and bitten by a radioactive cocktail shrimp, John Krasinski turned into "The Shrimp," a shrimp-human hybrid that fights evil.

Bradley Cooper appeared, children in hand, as an inspirational teacher at a low-income public school.

"I'm not giving up on these kids," the teacher said, at which point one of the children spit in his face.

"Gonna take more than that," he responded.

Kerry Washington showed off her talents - taking off her glasses, letting down her hair and turning "super hot."

Chris Rock voiced a skateboarding CGI gopher who, as Kimmel described it, has "the voice of a black person, obviously written by a white person."

So the team – gophers, teachers, shrimp and all – fought the sexy beasts. Singer Bruno Mars joined the squad, preaching a message of love, trying to subdue the zombies with a serenade.

"Baby it's the love that we share," he sang before the crowd tackled him, turning him into a zombie himself, his lips blackened, his face puffy.

"Wassup?" Zombie Bruno Mars said, still a charmer in his undead state.

ABC

"Movie: The Movie: 2V" features an army of sexy vampires, zombies and mummies.

Similarly to the original, "2V" features a plethora of irreverent celebrity cameos that neither furthered the trailer's plot or served any inherent purpose other than to showcase stars in ridiculous circumstances.

Rachel Weisz appeared as a woman aroused and horrified by the creatures.

Bryan Cranston made a cameo as an armless piano-playing savant. Topher Grace was a smooth-talking Leprechaun. Salma Hayek played a nurse – and her dying male patient – in a "blatant attempt to win an Academy Award."

Kimmel 'adversary' Matt Damon even got in on the action, eating a big, imaginary sandwich in a motion-capture suit (Faster! Faster!) until he realized what his gestures looked like, and then he scowled and walked away, tricked again.

But through all the sandwich-eating and piano face-plants, the gang figured out a solution.

"Release the Tatum," Kimmel said, and a giant-sized Channing Tatum emerged, his midsection glowing, his hips emitting beams of energy.

Samuel L. Jackson was on hand to deliver the final attack – sending a giant Jenga tower onto the creeps, raising his arms in celebration, the enemy defeated by board game blocks and a trove of celebrities doing comical things.

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'Great Gatsby' on list for next year's awards

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Leonardo DiCaprio will play the title role in director Baz Luhrmann's highly anticipated, delayed — and 3D(!) — adaptation of "The Great Gatsby."

The Red Carpet at Hollywood's Dolby Theater -- formerly the Kodak -- hasn't even been rolled up, but Hollywood is already buzzing about next year's Oscar race.

Prognosticating this far out is not for the faint of heart, as some possible contenders have yet to lock down release dates or even U.S. distributors. At this point in 2012, I had already seen "Beasts of the Southern Wild'' and loved it, but was as surprised as anyone else that it ended up as a Best Picture nominee.

LAWRENCE FLOORED BY BEST ACTRESS WIN

PHOTOS: OSCARS RED CARPET LOOKS

FIRST LADY REVEALS BEST PICTURE WINNER

BEST ACTRESS BASKS IN GLOW

'ARGO' VICTORY A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION

NEUTRAL COLORS ALL THE RAGE ON OSCARS RED CARPET

A year ago, we had every reason to expect Baz Luhrmann's 3-D remake of "The Great Gatsby,'' with Leonardo DiCaprio in the title role, would be arriving for Christmas and Oscar season. Then it was postponed to May, setting off the usual negative speculation -- but hey, the same thing happened to Baz' "Moulin Rouge,'' and that ended up with a Best Picture nomination after all.

On last year's morning after, hardly anyone had heard of Ben Affleck's "Argo.'' Instead, we were guessing whether the reclusive Terrence Malick's "To the Wonder,'' starring Affleck, would arrive in time for the current Oscar race. It will also hit theaters in May after its awards chances were declared dead on arrival at September's Toronto International Film Festival.

So now we wonder when the suddenly prolific Malick will be delivering either of the two other mysterious films he has in postproduction -- "Knight of Cups'' with Christian Bale and Natalie Portman, and an untitled film with Ryan Gosling and Rooney Mara. And whether either one is Oscar caliber, or will be getting a 2013 release.

Here, in no particular order, are a selection of films on the horizon that would seem to be contenders based on the talents involved and genres historically favored by Oscars (especially bio-pics):

CAPTAIN PHILLIPS -- Two-time Best Actor winner Tom Hanks, who hasn't been nominated since "Cast Away,'' whiffed again last year with "Cloud Atlas,'' where he was snubbed for five different roles. He tries again in the title role, a cargo ship captain, in this fact-based drama based on a 2009 Somali pirate hijacking and directed by Paul Greengrass ("United 93'').

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NJ town wants to use 'Jersey Shore' $$ for seawall

Getty Images

A worker closes the gate of the Fun Town Pier that was damaged by Hurricane Sandy in Seaside Heights.

SEASIDE HEIGHTS, NJ — The town that hosted MTV's "Jersey Shore" wants to leave a lasting legacy with money raised by the show's cast.

Officials in Seaside Heights want to use $1 million from a November benefit by the reality show members to build a seawall to protect the boardwalk.

Snooki, Pauly D and the rest of the "Jersey Shore" cast spent a lot of time partying on the boardwalk in the four summers the show was filmed in Seaside Heights.

Borough administrator John Camera tells The Asbury Park Press that the wall could cost between $1 million and $2 million. He says Seaside Heights can't use FEMA money for the wall because it is a new project. Using the money from the "Jersey Shore" benefit would reduce the burden taxpayers.

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Lohan case is stalled

Three months after Lindsay Lohan was arrested for allegedly punching fortune teller Tiffany Mitchell in a Chelsea club, prosecutors have yet to draft a criminal complaint or set a court date, The Post has learned.

"Enough is enough," Lohan lawyer Mark Jay Heller griped. "It's apparent they have no case."

Mitchell's lawyer, Gloria Allred, said, "To my knowledge, this case is still under investigation."

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‘Queen’ for a day OK: rev.

Church leaders irked by a group of cross-dressers staging a racy brunch show next to their Midtown house of worship say it's not such a drag after all.

The Rev. Richard Baker of St. Malachy's Catholic Church on 49th Street stepped back from his demands that Lillie's restaurant stop the show, sources said, in a peacemaking conference call in which he agreed to go along with their "Breakfast at Epiphany's" brunch and the cross-dressers agreed to cancel their protest outside the church.

Epiphany Get Paid, the drag queen who planned the protest, sang at the brunch as planned yesterday.

"It was a misunderstanding," she said.

Staffers from City Council Speaker Christine Quinn's office mediated the conference call.

Baker didn't return requests for comment by press time.

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DC killing off Batman’s 'Boy Wonder' Damian Wayne in new comic book

Damian Wayne — the son of Bruce Wayne and the latest hero to assume the mantle of Robin — has a heart-to-heart with fellow superhero Nightwing before his final, and ultimately fatal, battle in the pages of "Batman Incorporated" No. 8, out Wednesday.

Robin the Boy Wonder, Batman's aide-de-camp, will be killed battling a brutal enemy in a comic book published Wednesday.

The shocking demise of the Dark Knight's sidekick will first appear in issue No. 8 of the offshoot title "Batman Incorporated," but the aftermath of his death will ripple throughout the DC Comics universe, the publisher confirmed exclusively to The Post.

"He saves the world. He does his job as Robin," writer Grant Morrison said. "He dies an absolute hero."

Robin — a k a Damian Wayne, the 10-year-old son of Bruce Wayne — is slain fighting a hulking assassin who happens to be, in true comic-book form, a "brother" cloned from his genetic material.

And — SPOILER ALERT ! — unlike all the times he has swooped in at the last minute, Batman arrives too late to save his protégé.

A number of heroes have filled the role of Robin over the decades, including the first and best known, Dick Grayson, introduced in 1940.

PHOTOS: ROBIN THROUGH THE YEARS

The latest Robin, however, was the brilliant and caustic Damian, the illegitimate son of billionaire Bruce Wayne and Talia, the beautiful daughter of one of his deadliest enemies, Ra's al Ghul.

Morrison, one of the industry's top talents, brings an adult perspective to the grim tale.

Robin's death, he said, will illustrate how parents lose sight of their kids when they fight.

"It's all about the family and the family going to hell," said Morrison, who threw in elements of his own parents' divorce. "The two adults in the story are both culpable. The kid's the good guy."

Morrison, who brought Damian to the forefront in 2006, said he had created a full arc for the character, who grew from a violent, fledgling assassin to a selfless leader.

"What we did was turn this little monster into a superhero," he said. "He's a little brat, but he's a super-brat."

Damian isn't the first Robin to die, but he's the first to die at the height of his popularity with fans.

In 1988, a few years after Grayson moved on, the next Robin — the disliked, surly Jason Todd — was slain by the Joker after an infamous phone poll let fans choose whether the teen should be killed off.

Todd was resurrected in 2005.

So who knows if Damian will stay dead, or if a new Boy (or perhaps Girl) Wonder will take his place.

Noted Morrison: "You can never say never in a comic book . . . Batman will ultimately always have a partner."

Batman Incorporated No. 8 preview by New York Post

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WATCH: Jimmy Kimmel's 'Movie: The Movie: 2V'

ABC

Jimmy Kimmel and Jessica Chastain appear in "Movie: The Movie: 2V."

When in doubt, out-sex the opposition.

Gratuitous celebrity cameos don't hurt, either.

Those are the overriding themes of "Movie: The Movie: 2V," a seven-minute trailer presented on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" following Sunday's Academy Awards.

Last year's original "Movie: The Movie," which garnered 20 million YouTube views, involves an asteroid threatening the earth. This time it's an army of sexy zombies, vampires, mummies and even Leprechauns - a sexpocalypse, if you will.

"2V" shows a crack team of superheroes uniting to fight the hoard, Avengers-style. Actress Jessica Chastain provided intelligence. Kimmel channeled his inner Fury with two (two!) eye-patches, but it wasn't enough to get the attention of Madame President (Oprah Winfrey, too busy to take Jimmy's call).

"She's probably busy … at work, the country and everything," Kimmel said to Chastain.

"Yeah."

Gerard Butler personified the "Taken" role, threatening the enemy in phone snipes and later using a flame-thrower with a baby strapped to his chest.

John Krasinski watched his parents get shot, got splashed with acid and bitten by a radioactive cocktail shrimp before turning into "The Shrimp," a shrimp-human hybrid that fights evil.

Bradley Cooper played an inspirational teacher at a low-income public school.

"I'm not giving up on these kids," the teacher said, at which point one of the children spit in his face.

"Gonna take more than that," he responded.

Chris Rock voiced a skateboarding CGI gopher who, as Kimmel described it, has "the voice of a black person, obviously written by a white person."

So the team – gophers, teachers, shrimp and all – fought the sexy beasts. Singer Bruno Mars joined the squad, preaching a message of love, trying to subdue the zombies with a serenade.

"Baby it's the love that we share," he sang before the crowd tackled him, turning him into a zombie himself, his lips blackened, his face puffy.

"Wassup?" Zombie Bruno Mars said, still a charmer in his undead state.

ABC

"Movie: The Movie: 2V" features an army of sexy vampires, zombies and mummies.

Similarly to the original, "2V" features a plethora of irreverent celebrity cameos that neither furthered the trailer's plot or served any inherent purpose other than to showcase stars in ridiculous circumstances.

Rachel Weisz appeared as a woman aroused and horrified by the creatures.

Bryan Cranston made a cameo as an armless piano-playing savant. Topher Grace was a Leprechaun. Salma Hayek played a nurse – and her dying male patient – in a "blatant attempt to win an Academy Award."

Kimmel 'adversary' Matt Damon even got in on the action, eating a big, imaginary sandwich in a motion-capture suit (Faster! Faster!) until he realized what his gestures looked like, and then he scowled and walked away, tricked again.

But through all the sandwich-eating and piano face-plants, the gang figured out a solution.

"Release the Tatum," Kimmel said, and a giant-sized Channing Tatum emerged, his midsection glowing, his hips emitting beams of energy.

Samuel L. Jackson was on hand to deliver the final attack – sending a giant Jenga tower onto the creeps, raising his arms in celebration, the enemy defeated by board game blocks and a trove of celebrities doing comical things.

18.18 | 0 komentar | Read More

VIDEO: Firefighters take down maniac hacking at wife with cleaver in Chinatown

Two heroic city firefighters pounced on a cleaver-wielding maniac yesterday as he hacked his terrified wife, authorities said.

The bloody attack, outside Fong's Trading at 74 Canal St. in Chinatown, was captured on chilling security video.

Firefighters José Ortiz and James Trainor, who work across the street at Engine Co. 9, Ladder Co. 6, said they first heard the couple screaming at each other and tussling at 10:24 a.m.

"While we were working on the rigs getting ready for our day tour, I saw a man dragging a woman who was crying and screaming down the street," said Ortiz, 51, an 18-year FDNY veteran. "Once I got closer, the man starts hacking at the woman. He hits her six, eight, maybe 10 times. So, we [he and Trainor] bum-rush him and get him against the fence."

CHILLING: Video shows how firefighter José Ortiz helped restrain a man who allegedly savaged his wife yesterday with a meat cleaver.

Gabriella Bass

José Ortiz

The graphic video appears to show the 28-year-old husband, whom cops identified as Ming Guang Huang, repeatedly striking his 24-year-old wife with the cleaver and her struggling to get away as the firefighters rush over.

As Ortiz and Trainor reach the woman, identified by police as Jinyia You, her attacker tosses her aside like a rag doll.

The two firefighters then jump on the attacker and hold him until cops arrive. He's cuffed on the ground, with the cleaver lying next to him.

Ortiz recalled crying out, "Help the lady!" as he and Trainor disarmed the suspect.

But the woman was already running down the street, leaving her thick, wedge shoes — and clumps of bloody hair — behind.

That's when a third firefighter, Shane Clarke, jumped into action.

"I went inside the [fire]house and grabbed a trauma bag" and chased her, Clarke said.

"She was afraid . . . She has a cut on her head and several wounds on her abdomen. She had six to eight cuts, one deep one on the back of her head. That was the one we were most concerned about."

Clarke and two neighborhood cops on patrol finally caught up with her at Division and Eldridge streets, witnesses said.

They calmed her down, administered first aid and called paramedics, according to witnesses.

The woman was listed in critical condition last night at Bellevue Hospital but is expected to survive, officials said.

She suffered several serious defensive wounds on her arms, according to law-enforcement sources.

"She was running down the street screaming, 'Help!' " said witness José Mendez, 56, a local building super.

Before cops and Clarke could reach the woman, she had briefly ducked into a small noodle shop at 13B Eldridge St. as she ran away, witnesses said.

After coming out again, she traveled another half-block before she stopped for Clarke and the officers.

"She was barefoot and went into the restaurant and then ran back out," Mendez said. "There was blood on the window. They cleaned it up right away. It was pretty weird."

Additional reporting by Larry Celona, Wilson Dizard, Kevin Sheehan and David K. Li

kirstan.conley@nypost.com

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Strong, silent types

A look back at some of Q&A's subjects who embrace the art of brevity:

Derek Jeter (July 5, 2009)

Q: Can you envision yourself playing another position for the Yankees than shortstop?

A: Can I envision? No.

Q: What if they asked you?

A: You're speaking in all hypotheticals.

Q: I know.

A: I can't answer that question.

Q: What's your key to stealing bases?

A: If you think you can make it, run. If you don't, stay.

Hakeem Nicks (Sept. 8 2009)

Q: Describe Hakeem Nicks off the field.

A: Laid-back ... calm ... don't say much. I ain't gonna say I stay to myself, but just a laid-back person.

Q: Now describe Hakeem Nicks on the field.

A: Totally opposite from what I am off the field (smiles).

Q: As soon as you put the uniform on, what happens?

A: I'm a different person (smiles).

Yogi Berra (Sept. 19, 2008)

Q: When you were catching, who was the best guy to talk to at home plate?

A: Ted Williams I could talk with. Ted used to get mad at me.

Q: What would you say to him?

A: "Where you going fishin'?"

Q: You did it to distract him?

A: No, I didn't do it to distract him. Just to find out what he does during the winter.

Q; What did Ted Williams say to you?

A: He said, "Shut up."

Q: What did you say?

A; I said, "If you don't talk to me, I'll never talk to you again."

Q: What has it been like being Yogi Berra?

A: I really don't know, I couldn't tell you.

Pedro Martinez (Sept. 19, 2008)

Q: Describe what it's like pitching at this time of year at Yankee Stadium.

A: It's just a regular game.

Q: How about the atmosphere at Yankee Stadium?

A: Don't mean a thing to me.

Q: What's the funniest thing a fan has said to you at Yankee Stadium?

A: Nothing funny. Everything is rude.

Q: When you're on the mound, describe your mentality, your mindset.

A: I can't do that.

Q: Why?

A: 'Cause I'm not giving you tips.

Q: Do you pitch in a controlled rage, would you say?

A: What is this, a psychology test? I'm not commenting about that.

Sebastian Telfar (Sept. 19, 2008)

Q: Are you going to get a new car with your new riches?

A: Not right now, but I'm pretty sure sometime I will.

Q: Any other plans for your money?

A: Get my mother a nice house.

Q: Where?

A: Wherever she wants to move.

Q: The best thing about Coney Island?

A: There's a basketball court on every block.

Q: The worst thing about Coney Island?

A: It's cold, 'cause we're close to the water.

Q; Describe the Cyclone for people who haven't been on it.

A: It's a roller coaster (laughs). It goes fast, and it goes up and down, does a lot of turns.

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