December 25, 2012
Knicks fall to Lakers as Melo has quiet fourth quarter
LOS ANGELES - The Lakers owned the fourth quarter, Carmelo Anthony disappeared late and Mike D’Antoni’s club stole Christmas from the Knicks. In a duel with Anthony at the electric...
Affleck won't run for Kerry's Senate seat
BOSTON -- Ben Affleck is taking his name off the list of possible candidates for U.S. Sen. John Kerry's seat, which would be open if the Democratic senator from Massachusetts...
Nets' December struggles continue with Christmas loss to Celtics
Santa brought the Nets a hi-def TV appointment, sleek monochrome uniforms, an alarm clock (with snooze button) and a Kevin Garnett dartboard. Brooklyn's nationally-televised noon Christmas Day showcase went from...
Upstate NY madman left chilling suicide note before luring firefighters to death; cops say another body found
A homicidal maniac -- bent to “do what I like doing best: killing people" -- left a chilling suicide note before torching his neighborhood and murdering two firefighters, police revealed...
Pope decries slaughter of 'defenseless' Syrians
VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI wished Christmas peace to the world Tuesday, decrying the slaughter of the "defenseless" in Syria, urging Israelis and Palestinians to find the courage to...
Charles Durning, king of character actors, dies in NYC
LOS ANGELES — Charles Durning grew up in poverty, lost five of his nine siblings to disease, barely lived through D-Day and was taken prisoner at the Battle of the...
Three things to watch for in Nets-Celtics
After getting a win Sunday against Philadelphia, the Nets entertain the Celtics in a noon Christmas Day matinee at Barclays Center.Here are three things to keep an eye on as...
STARTING FIVE: America's best freshman, Red Storm's upset loss, Big 10's dominance
Every week during the season, New York Post reporters Zach Braziller and Anthony Sulla-Heffinger go one-on-one over the latest hot topics in college basketball.This week, they talk Ben McLemore, Jabari...
REVIEW: Skullcandy PLYR 2 gaming headset
Skullcandy, known mostly for their non-gaming headphones, has broken into the gaming headset market with their new SLYR and PLYR 2 models.The headphones, which are compatible with PlayStation 3, Xbox...
Washington trying to follow Blue-print
PHILADELPHIA — This year’s Redskins look at last year’s Giants and ask: “Why not us?” Fresh off a 27-20 win at Philadelphia on Sunday, Washington is certainly doing a fine...
Giants ask for lot of help — and some answers
You think this is bad? Eli Manning can think of an even worse scenario for the Giants. That’s hard to fathom, as the road to the playoffs for Manning’s team...
A long shot, but Eli & Co. could get gifts they need
This is a day for Christmas jeer, a day to assail them as New York Football Midgets for defending their Super Bowl crown with so little pride and fight and...
Business briefs
Marts fear cliffThe stock markets, which closed early yesterday, fell amid concern Congress will fail to act in time to avoid the fiscal cliff. Markets are closed today for the...
Holiday flicks could make 2012 a record-breaker
For Hollywood, it’s the most wonderful time of the year. The major movie studios are counting on a blockbuster Christmas Day — which traditionally kicks off one of their most...
Beleaguered Herbalife seeks energy boost
Herbalife, the nutritional supplement company under siege in the wake of scathing remarks by activist investor Bill Ackman, is gearing up for a counterattack. The company — which Ackman blasted...
Yule be glad you waited to shop
Look around your Christmas gathering today and spot the person who showed up without gifts. Now decide whether this person is: 1) a cheapskate 2) too busy and important for...
Peace amid strife: Dolan Yule message
It’s here in the Nick of time. Timothy Cardinal Dolan touted the hopeful message of Christmas yesterday as a much-needed respite from a string of recent tragedies that have socked...
It’s a rainy ‘season’ in Big Apple
Hope Santa got you an umbrella — you’ll need it today and tomorrow. The Big Apple is expected to wake up to “maybe a little bit of rain,” but probably...
Bishop welcomes ‘state of Palestine’
Addressing an audience of thousands packing Manger Square in Bethlehem to hear his pre-Christmas homily, Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal, the senior Roman Catholic bishop in the Holy Land, yesterday urged...
NYPD Daily Blotter
Manhattan***A school-safety agent was arrested in lower Manhattan for making threatening phone calls to a woman, authorities said. Douglas Parks, 64, was busted at 10:40 p.m. Sunday and taken to...
Queens cries for Sandy hero
Rockaway residents rescued by a daring surfer during Hurricane Sandy are now grieving over the tragic drowning of the young man, who risked his life doing “what he thought was...
Boss made me a sex toy
This toy story is X-rated. A fired Upper East Side toy-store manager is suing her former boss, alleging he forced her into a kinky quid pro quo — having “rough”...
Bronx livery murderer convicted
A Bronx gunman who mortally wounded a livery driver, sending the car crashing into a wall, was found guilty of murder yesterday. Francisco Santos, 22, lowered his head when the...
Death mark made capo a mob rat
A Bonanno captain decided to become a government informant against the crime family’s boss after the FBI warned him a contract was out on him, according to court documents. Nicholas...
Pistol shell on JFK jet
A pistol shell casing was found on a JetBlue plane from Puerto Rico at JFK Airport Sunday, sources told The Post yesterday.The Transportation Security Administration was told, but declined to...
Kerik-case trial shock: One bro guilty, other not
The Bronx jury that convicted a friend of jailed former Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik on Friday stunned the courtroom yesterday by acquitting the pal’s business-partner brother. Frank DiTommaso shook his...
‘Poor me’ pol is denied legal aid
Taxpayers just received a holiday gift from a federal judge, while an embattled city politician was left with a lump of coal. Assemblyman William Boyland Jr. (D-Brooklyn) had been asking...
Port strike looming
The typical holiday calm at the region’s ports has been replaced by a series of emergency strategy sessions as officials try to determine exactly how to handle a longshoremen strike...
Hope for $andy bill
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats believe they have the votes to approve a $60.4 billion Hurricane Sandy disaster-relief bill by the end of the week.The bill cleared a major hurdle last...
Brooklyn has a cow
A baby dairy bull is the first born at the Prospect Park Zoo.Zoo officials say the newborn calf — whose mother is a shorthorn milking cow and father a Randall...
New York, new year, new laws
ALBANY — New state laws banning the sale of electronic cigarettes to minors and giving businesses new tax exemptions for installing solar-energy systems are set to take effect next week.In...
Poll: 77% of US Christian
Nearly eight in 10 Americans consider themselves Christians, according to a new Gallup survey.Among the 77 percent who identified themselves as part of the Christian faith, 52 percent said they...
Broom & bust at spa
Forget the clean getaway.A housekeeper at a posh Midtown spa — part of a chain that caters to such stars as Oprah Winfrey and Madonna — helped cops nail four...
Russell has case of the bends
Russell Simmons’ young gal pal is at his back and call. The zen-loving hip-hop mogul’s much younger German model girlfriend, Hana Nitsche, performs a balancing act on his back yesterday...
Psycho smashed grandma to death
The gunman who carried out yesterday’s senseless assault on volunteer firefighters near Rochester is no stranger to violence — he beat his 92-year-old grandmother to death. Rose Spengler was found...
Fire trap: Upstate madman sets blaze to lure responders — then kills two
A madman yesterday set his home ablaze to lure volunteer firefighters to the scene — then methodically shot four of them, killing two, before blowing his brains out, authorities said....
WWII hero ID’d for NJ burial
The remains of one of eight US soldiers killed in a World War II plane crash in the French-Italian Alps have been identified via DNA and will be buried in...
Taxi tiff is in the fast lane
The high-stakes battle over outer-borough taxis is headed directly to the state’s highest court.Officials said yesterday that the Court of Appeals has agreed to hear the city’s argument that it...
Two pet pooches pilfered
Two adorable dogs were stolen from their masters in separate incidents — with one still missing, leaving his 7-year-old owner heartbroken for Christmas. Marley (pictured), little Mia Bendrat’s Cavalier King...
Marshal dies
An FDNY marshal died last night after suffering a heart attack and crashing his truck into a tree just a few blocks from his Queens home, sources said.Martin McHale, 50,...
Now pay up, Tawana
Start watching your pennies, Tawana. Twenty-five years after a teenage Tawana Brawley falsely dragged his name through the mud as a gang-raping, kidnapping racist, it’s payback time for Steven Pagones,...
TV slob ‘Oscar’ is dead
Jack Klugman, best known as the messy, cigar-chomping New York sportswriter Oscar Madison in TV’s “The Odd Couple,’’ died yesterday at age 90. The actor had been ailing but was...
Alone together: Grieving dad at Jesse’s grave
No father should have to spend Christmas Eve in a cemetery. But it was the only place Neil Heslin could be with his 6-year-old son, who was among the 20...
Ex-NRA fave Gilly in switch
WASHINGTON — Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand vigorously championed Americans’ right to carry high-powered guns — before she turned against them. Since the Newtown massacre, the senator has been at the forefront...
Comfort and joy in Newtown
One by one, the minivans rolled into the parking lot, booster seats in the back filled with bright-eyed, eager children. The little girls wore angel costumes with golden wings, shiny...
From the Gospel according to Luke, chapter 2, verses 1 through 20:
And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. (And this taxing was first made...
Ducking accountability: Hillary’s Benghazi role
The Issue: The State Department’s new report on Benghazi, citing administrative and security failures. *** The independent report on Benghazi is in, and guess what — neither Secretary of State...
A firm footing
Some opponents of concrete boardwalks claimed that wood and concrete sections of the Rockaway Beach boardwalk survived Superstorm Sandy equally well in areas with jetties (“They Wood Not! OK for...
Two-faith weddings
In all the excitement over Princess Kate’s pregnancy, Windsors-watchers may have missed some other important news: Members of the royal family will soon be allowed to marry Catholics. All 16...
The genius of ‘White Christmas’
America’s classic Christmas song was written by a Jewish immigrant. Born in Russia with the name Israel Baline, he was the genius songwriter we know as Irving Berlin. He wrote...
‘Parental’ viewer discretion advised
Regrettably arriving too late for The Post’s annual Turkey Awards, the geezers-know-best comedy “Parental Guidance” kicks off with a mean-spirited joke about an overweight woman and heads downhill from there....
Tomorrow’s Aqueduct Entries
All horses appear in post position orderFIRST-1m&70y; $40,000; cl($30,000); 3up PN Horse, Wt.JockeyLast 3TrainerOdds1 Budge Man(L),119E Castro5-6-3Englehrt12-12 Equivocation(L),121J Alvarado6-6-4Ferraro15-13 Irish Lion(L),121RDomingz10-4-3Rodrigez3-14 Pleasantfriday(L),118CVelasquz12-4-1Rice4-15 RomncngthGld(L),120R Maragh1-1-5Englehart2-16 Lindell A. C.(L),114W Garcia4-2-2Persaud10-17 Sumo(L),121I Ortiz,...
Parx Racing Charts
December 24th, 2012 Clear And Fast.©2012 Equibase. All Rights ReservedFIRST-5 1/2f; $19,000; cl($7,500); 3up; (f&m)Off: 12:26. Good. angled out, ralliedTime: 22.31, 47.62, 1:.58, 1:07.37.Trainer: Ramon MoyaWinner: GR/RO F, 4, by...
Holiday jeer from NHL
Canceler-in-chief Gary Bettman has delivered a “Bah Humbug” holiday greeting to NHL fans, players, employees and those individuals dependent upon the league for large portions of their respective incomes by...
Home Team Lineups
TODAYDec. 25WEDDec. 26THUDec. 27FRIDec. 28SATDec. 29SUNDec. 30MONDec. 31KnicksL.A. Lakers 3:00 ABC ESPN 98.7 FMPhx. 9:00 MSG ESPNNO GAMESac. 10:00 MSG ESPNNO GAMENO GAMENO GAMENetsBostonNoon YES/ESPN WFAN 660 AM/101.9 FMMil.8:00YESWFANNO GAMEChar....
The Post Line
NFLSundayFavoriteOpeningCurrent(O/U)UnderdogBILLS33 1/2(41)JetsGIANTS9 1/29 1/2(46 1/2)EaglesPATRIOTS1110 1/2(49 1/2)DolphinsBENGALS33(42)RavensSTEELERSOFFOFF(OFF)BrownsCOLTSOFFOFF(OFF)TexansTITANS5 1/24(42)JaguarsREDSKINS3 1/23(50)CowboysBears33(44 1/2)LIONSPackers33(46 1/2)VIKINGSFALCONSOFFOFF(OFF)BuccaneersSAINTS44 1/2(54)PanthersBRONCOS1616(42)ChiefsCHARGERSOFFOFF(OFF)Raiders49ERS1515(38 1/2)CardinalsSEAHAWKS1010(40)RamsCleveland/Pittsburgh/Oakland QBs questionableIndianapolis may rest players for the playoffsAtlanta may rest players for the playoffsHome team in CAPSNCAA...
Today's Sports on the Air
BasketballNoonCeltics at Nets YES, ESPN, WFAN (660 AM/101.9 FM)3 p.m.Knicks at Lakers ABC, ESPN (98.7 FM)4:30 p.m.Diamond Head Classic, 5th Place Game: Mississippi vs. Hawaii ESPNU5:30 p.m.Thunder at Heat ABC7:30...
SMU flips Fresno in Hawaii Bowl
Southern Methodist coach June Jones walked out of Aloha Stadium with another win last night, thanks largely to a disruptive performance by defensive end Margus Hunt that set the tone...
Sports Shorts
OBIT: Daniel Fratto, 19 Daniel Fratto, a 2010 HOPE Week honoree, passed away Sunday at the age of 19, the Yankees announced yesterday. Fratto, who battled extreme physical challenges as...
Pagano returns to lead Colts’ playoff charge
INDIANAPOLIS — Chuck Pagano stepped to the podium yesterday, hugged his team owner, thanked his family for its support and wiped a tear from his eye. He might, finally, turn...
Peterson expects to play vs. Packers
Adrian Peterson is dealing with an abdominal injury, but should be ready to help the Vikings (9-6) in their bid to earn a wild-card playoff spot with a victory over...
Manningham tears ACL
SAN FRANCISCO — Wide receiver Mario Manningham is done for the season after tearing the ACL and PCL in his left knee during Sunday night’s 42-13 loss to the Seahawks,...
Banged-up Kris, Nets on cold streak
When the Nets last faced the Celtics, they were playing their best basketball of the season. Their victory in Boston on Nov. 28 came at the end of a stretch...
With legacy in mind, LeBron won’t let up
MIAMI — Pat Riley has a theory why LeBron James’ journey to basketball’s mountaintop took so long. Growth, he said, takes time. “I always use the analogy of the Chinese...
Nets' big men Lopez, Blatche set to form duo
The changes that began with benching Kris Humphries and inserting Keith Bogans into the lineup for Sunday’s win over the 76ers won’t end there. Nets coach Avery Johnson hinted at...
Showtime for Melo-Kobe as Knicks take on Lakers
LOS ANGELES — Yeah, it’s big. Just ask Carmelo Anthony, who used that word five times when asked about today’s Christmas Day showdown at Staples Center. The Knicks will don...
Knicks' White may take flight in dunk contest
LOS ANGELES — He was nicknamed “Flight White’’ and “Flight 75’’ in college because of his leaping and dunking ability. Now that he’s back in the NBA after an Italian...
Brewer’s scoring rut paves way for Iman
LOS ANGELES — There isn’t a greater team player in the NBA than the Knicks’ Ronnie Brewer, his former Bulls teammates will attest. That will be put to the test...
Time for Ryan to stop lyin’
With the playoffs weeks removed from reality, the Jets still have time to deliver their beleaguered fans a proper Christmas gift, and no last-minute mall shopping is required. The Jets...
Jets coach sidesteps ‘wild’ Tebow drama
Jets coach Rex Ryan put on his dancing shoes yesterday during a 20-minute conference call with reporters. Ryan avoided answering directly whether quarterback Tim Tebow refused to play in the...
Jets searching for Tannenbaum replacement: report
The Jets are already searching for general manager Mike Tannenbaum’s replacement, according to a report, but he still may stick around. CBS reported yesterday the Jets have begun reaching out...
Giants' Osi points fingers, calls for overhaul
There will be changes following this season for the Giants because there always are, especially after a team fails to live up to expectations. Osi Umenyiora after 10 years with...
Giant task vs. Eagles: Stop Vick!
The Giants’ paper-thin hopes of making the playoffs one year after winning the Super Bowl rest on beating the Eagles in the regular season finale and then receiving a ton...
Your guide to festive, post-present TV
You can count on chestnuts of a different kind today if you’re going to hunker down and watch some TV. With Christmas Day in full swing, here are some of...
48 Hours on Grand Cayman
Looking for a quick escape to a paradise of clear turquoise waters, white-sand beaches and picture-perfect weather? Leave Thursday morning at 7 a.m. on JetBlue from JFK International Airport and...
A Tasty New Year
Bean there, done that If you love coffee and enjoy a little “agri” in your tourism, check out the coffee courses at Belcampo Belize, a sustainably managed eco-lodge in Punta...
Bah-hungry! Get in the spirit with a Victorian feast inspired by 'A Christmas Carol'
A warm glow emanates from a fireplace on the second floor of a cozy town house as heavy plates heaped with buttery mashed potatoes, honey-braised chestnuts and tender poularde are...
Weird but true
You don’t have to be born again to find Jesus. Just get a GPS. A New York company called Brickhouse Security will implant tracking devices in Jesus figures displayed in...
Royally gifted Obekpa journeys to St. John’s
Ever since Hakeem Olajuwon and Manute Bol captivated the nation with their larger-than-life tales of life in Africa and their basketball prowess, curiosity has followed every big man from that...
George H.W. Bush in hospital for Christmas
HOUSTON — Former President George H.W. Bush will spend Christmas with his wife and other family members in a Houston hospital after developing a fever and weakness following a monthlong,...