A Company Plans to Market Illiquid Assets

Abstract: SAN FRANCISCO — Founders of start-ups and the venture capitalists who finance them have two ways to get their money out of the company: sell it to another company or sell shares to the public. The market for initial public offerings has dried up and companies are not being very acquisitive these days. In the first three months of 2009, only 56 companies were sold, half the number of a year ago, and none went public. What if they had another option? SecondMarket , which operates markets for trading illiquid assets online, is creating a marketplace for trading shares of private companies. It puts investors together with shareholders and collects a fee, which will be 2 percent from each side for the private company market. Typically, venture-backed start-ups are sold or go public within five to seven years, but lately it is taking longer. As the exits are delayed, venture capitalists who are unable to cash out cannot return money to their investors or devote time and money to new companies. Some employees inside the start-ups, being paid low salaries, get impatient for a payday. The exit drought “is one of the greatest tragedies of our time,” said David Weild IV, a former vice chairman of Nasdaq and a senior consultant to SecondMarket. “The source of U.S. innovation and competitiveness and job creation has been failed by the capital markets.” SecondMarket, originally called Restricted Stock Partners, was founded in 2004 by Barry E. Silbert, 32, a former investment banker who specialized in financial restructurings, including the Enron bankruptcy. He hatched the idea for a marketplace for illiquid assets after creditors awarded shares of debtor companies by bankruptcy courts approached him looking to sell these shares. The company operates seven other markets for illiquid assets, including ones for restricted public equities and bankruptcy claims. This month it started a market for banks to unload troubled assets, including mortgage-backed securities and collateralized debt obligations . The founders of SecondMarket say that in the last several months they have been getting an increasing number of calls from shareholders, including employees, founders and investors, who want to sell their stakes in tech start-ups, including Facebook, Twitter, Glam Media, LinkedIn and Tesla Motors. The company believes there is a demand because it has privately brokered about 50 trades. The creation of a vibrant market in unregistered securities of private companies that reveal scant financial information has its doubters. “This will not be a third exit, not in the near term,” said Roger Ehrenberg, a former investment banker and hedge fund chief executive who now runs IA Capital Partners, his angel investment fund. “Just like we’ve seen a very limited or nonexistent I.P.O. market, it stands to reason that these buyers would be the same kinds of investors, so I’m not at all convinced that the demand side is even there.” For one thing, it could be a thin market, on both sides of the trade. The Securities and Exchange Commission allows the trading of unregistered securities, but only for select investors. The new market will be open only to accredited investors and qualified institutional buyers, which the S.E.C. defines as financially sophisticated enough to invest in high-risk securities about which there is little public information. These include individuals whose net worth exceeds $1 million and institutions that manage at least $100 million in securities. Even if individual shareholders and venture capitalists do trade on the exchange, it will be hard for it to grow, Mr. Ehrenberg said. There is only a small universe of such wealthy, risk-tolerant investors, he said, and companies are limited to 500 shareholders before they have to file with the S.E.C. as if they were public. “For this market to really develop real liquidity, that rule needs to be changed, but right now, the government needs to do the exact opposite,” Mr. Ehrenberg said. “They don’t want more people to buy illiquid, unregistered investments — they want maximum transparency.” As in the public markets, investors will determine how much a company is worth, but with much less information than they have for public companies. SecondMarket will gather public data for buyers and sellers, and companies can choose to submit detailed information that buyers can see. But it is unlikely that many private companies will reveal much data. Although the securities are unregistered, fraud may not be a big worry. SecondMarket says it verifies with the company and its lawyers before any shares change hands. “There is no risk that investors wire money and don’t own the stock or the company doesn’t exist,” Mr. Silbert said. The public nature of the market may also serve to discourage swindlers. There have been other efforts to create exchanges in which investors can trade shares of private companies, including Nasdaq Portal Alliance and smaller efforts like XChange and Nyppex. SecondMarket thinks it has an advantage because it has successfully created markets in other illiquid asset classes — it says it has 3,000 investors and has completed $1.5 billion in transactions — and because it has a staff of 100 that handles research and legal issues. Because of the exit drought, the need has become more acute, they say, and many venture capitalists agree. “Entrepreneurs won’t start companies and investors won’t invest in them if there is no path to liquidity on the company stock,” said Fred Wilson, a partner at Union Square Ventures, which has invested in Twitter and Boxee. “A secondary market for private company stock can fill the gap that the lack of an I.P.O. market has created.” Still, some venture capitalists question whether there is a need for such a market. “As an exit option for V.C.’s, I have some very healthy skepticism on it,” said Theresia Gouw Ranzetta, a partner at Accel, which has invested in Facebook and Glam Media. “Quality companies are already going to perceive that they have opportunities for more traditional exits and more traditional I.P.O.’s.”

Venture Capital
Initial Public Offerings
SecondMarket
Start-ups


It’s Halloween: U.S. Warns on Toxic Teeth

Abstract: WASHINGTON, Oct. 31 (AP) — The Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a late recall on Wednesday, warning shoppers that fake Halloween teeth sold by the tens of thousands over the last year contained excessive amounts of lead. The $2 packages, marketed as Ugly Teeth, were the latest in a long line of Chinese-made toys and novelty items recalled because of lead content. The commission announced the recall on Halloween, in a late-morning press release. The agency said that since January 2006, retailers had sold about 43,000 eight-piece packages of the party favors. There were no immediate reports of illness. Amscan of Elmsford, N.Y., imported the fake teeth. A message left with the company was not immediately returned. A spokesman for the commission, Scott Wolfson, declined to say when it learned of the potential risk other than that it took “a matter of days” to negotiate the recall. CBS News reported Monday that a chemistry professor at Ashland University in Ohio had tipped off the consumer agency about the joke teeth after testing a variety of Halloween items for lead content. Paint on the teeth contained 100 times the allowable level of lead, according to CBS. The Consumer Product Safety Commission also announced Wednesday that Toys “R” Us had recalled about 16,000 Chinese-made Elite Operations toys because of lead contamination. The military-style toys are being recalled because their surface paints contain excessive levels of lead, which can be toxic for young children. Under current regulations, children’s products found to have more than 0.06 percent lead accessible to users are subject to recall. Wednesday’s recall included four Elite Operations toy sets: the Command Patrol Center, the Barracuda Helicopter, the Super Rigs set and a three-pack of eight-inch figures. No other Elite Operations toys are included in the recall. The toys were sold at Toys “R” Us stores around the country and on toysrus.com from July to October. This was the second recall of lead-tainted children’s products by Toys “R” Us in October. On Oct. 4, the company recalled about 15,000 room décor sets because surface paint on the back of the decorating kits’ mirrors contained high levels of lead.

Consumer Product Safety Commission
Recalls and Bans of Products
Halloween
Hazardous and Toxic Substances
Consumer Protection
Lead


Dysfunction at a Charity That Relies on Council Largess

Abstract: Hiram Monserrate, a city councilman from Queens, has supplied more than $400,000 in city funds in recent years to a nonprofit agency that has been run by some of his closest aides and whose financial records have devolved into what its current director calls “a mess.” The organization, Libre, which offers a wide array of programs and services for the Latino community, has not filed a tax return for the past two years. It has never registered as a charity with the state attorney general’s office, as required. And its director says unpaid bills and poor record-keeping grew so problematic that he had to all but shutter Libre last year. “Libre is a mess,” said Rodolfo Herrera, the director. “I don’t think it’s a mess because they were stealing money. I think it’s because they didn’t know what to do with paper.” The millions of dollars that council members dole out to community groups each year rarely received attention until last month, when it was revealed that the Council had been using the names of fictitious groups to park money that it could later spend without going through the normal budget review process. Now a spectrum of analysts, from auditors for the city comptroller to federal investigators to lawyers for the city’s Department of Investigation, are scrutinizing just what kinds of programs City Council members are financing with the discretionary funds they control. Libre, whose name stands for Latino Initiative for Better Resources and Empowerment Inc., has not been identified as the subject of any special review. But it resembles, in its close ties to Mr. Monserrate, other organizations that have drawn scrutiny. Mr. Monserrate, a former city police officer, negotiated the lease for Libre’s former office, according to the building’s superintendent, and one of the group’s former top executives says he was directly recruited for the job by the councilman. In recent years, its four principals included two women who worked as Mr. Monserrate’s chief of staff and his director of constituent services. P. Wayne Mahlke, Mr. Monserrate’s legislative and budget director, said the councilman had no control of Libre and had believed that its finances and tax filings were “in full compliance.” “The council member knows Libre provided services to the community and has been a strong organization,” Mr. Mahlke said. “Yes, they went through some difficulties, but that was all their own internal difficulties.” Libre has told city officials that it provides recreation and education programs, assistance to immigrants and job training for people in Queens. A more detailed picture of the organization’s activities was unavailable because Mr. Herrera said he was not directly involved in program services and other staff members did not return calls. Neighbors of Libre’s former office in Corona, Queens, said that the office was seldom crowded and that staff members generally seemed to be involved in dispensing advice on how to reach government agencies. Libre has also served as something of a clearinghouse for city funds. Mr. Monserrate’s office said Libre dispensed a third of the money it received to other organizations that the councilman had deemed worthy of support, like the Corona Basketball League and the Colombian Parade Committee. City Council officials said Friday that they knew the names of all the organizations that were the ultimate recipients of such “pass-through” appropriations. The Council speaker, Christine C. Quinn , and the city’s Law Department made efforts last year to increase the monitoring of pass-through funds, which have been used for more than a decade. But Council officials said they relied primarily on the city agencies that actually expend the money, under contract, to make any background checks on recipient groups. The checks can be cursory, however, as was made clear in an indictment last month. The indictment accused two aides of Councilman Kendall Stewart of Brooklyn of embezzling $145,000 from a nonprofit group they ran. Prosecutors said in the indictment that officials at the city’s Department for the Aging had initially denied Mr. Stewart’s request to give money to the group, the Donna Reid Memorial Education Fund, after noticing that it was based at the home of his chief of staff. But a subsequent request was approved by the Department of Youth and Community Development. Until November, Libre operated out of a two-story building on National Street in Corona, where neighbors said the organization sometimes held evening English classes but generally opened for only part of the day and rarely had more than three people working. The building’s superintendent, Ismail Gaiby, said the office grew more crowded when Libre sponsored voter registration drives, which he said were often attended by Mr. Monserrate. “There were a lot of people coming in and out,” said Mr. Gaiby, who also works at an Islamic book company and meat store on the block. “They would go out in the street and register the voters.” Mr. Gaiby said Mr. Monserrate, accompanied by another man, personally negotiated Libre’s $1,100-a-month rent in April 2005 and delivered the security deposit, but Mr. Mahlke said the councilman “does not recall having any participation” in that process. Libre was incorporated in July 2003, but it has filed only one tax return, which covered the fiscal year ending June 30, 2005. That return showed revenues of $49,750 and expenses of about $25,000, made up mostly of $19,200 in rent and utilities and $3,520 for printing. The return said the group provided “street activities, including music and cultural enrichment for youth and adults,” and “back-to-school equipment and activities for young adults.” It listed Yoselin Genao, who was Mr. Monserrate’s director of constituent services, as the contact for Libre. The return listed Julissa Ferreras as chairwoman of Libre’s board of directors, and indicated it was an unpaid position. City records indicate that during the time period covered by the tax return, Ms. Ferreras was also serving as Mr. Monserrate’s chief of staff, a post she did not leave until August 2005. Ms. Ferreras returned to work as Mr. Monserrate’s chief of staff last September. In an interview on April 18, Mr. Monserrate gave an account that differed from what the records indicate. He said Ms. Ferreras had not held positions in his Council office and at Libre at the same time. He said that she took the position with the nonprofit only after ending her first stretch with the Council, and that he had required her to leave Libre last year when she returned to work for his office. Ms. Ferreras, Ms. Genao and Mr. Herrera’s computer services company have also been paid for work on Mr. Monserrate’s political campaigns, records show. The bookkeeping issues with Libre surfaced last fall, according to Mr. Herrera, who said Ms. Ferreras recognized that there was trouble with Libre’s books. Javier Cardenas, who was executive director at the time, left shortly after, and Libre began to search for a new director. Mr. Cardenas could not be reached for comment, and Ms. Ferreras did not return calls. Efforts to find a new leader for the organization last October put Mr. Monserrate in touch with Herman Mendoza, who now runs a community outreach program in Corona, Mr. Mendoza said. “He offered me the position” of executive director, Mr. Mendoza said. “I was working for an insurance company, and he said, ‘Hey, there’s an offer if you want to work, since you do a lot of work with the community.’ ” But Mr. Mendoza said he found that he was Libre’s only staffer and left after three weeks. “They couldn’t pay me a salary, so I had to get another job quick,” he said. “I guess there was no funding.” Mr. Herrera, who had been Libre’s treasurer since its inception, said Ms. Ferreras asked him to take over as director in November. He immediately moved Libre into the small office in Jackson Heights where he runs two other firms, a Colombian radio station and a nonprofit organization, Latin Technologies, that offers technology training. Latin Technologies has received $120,000 in city funds since 2004, most of it in discretionary awards from Mr. Monserrate. In a telephone interview on Friday from Colombia, where he was visiting, Mr. Herrera said he planned to file Libre’s delinquent tax returns by the end of May. He said Libre’s only existing city contract called for it to distribute $32,000 of a $40,000 award to other community groups. Mr. Herrera said he was unable to access Libre’s records because he was out of the country. Though he was the treasurer during the years in question, he said he did not monitor the books, a job that he said fell to Mr. Cardenas. “All we’ve been doing is paying bills from the past,” Mr. Herrera said. “Libre doesn’t have employees. We are just cleaning up Libre debt.”

Monserrate Hiram
City Councils
Nonprofit Organizations
Queens (NYC)
Frauds and Swindling
Hispanic-Americans
Quinn Christine C


Aviation Industry Offers Ideas to Help Passengers

Abstract: WASHINGTON — Aviation executives are sharing a list of steps they can take to make passengers’ lives a little easier the next time a blizzard, a hurricane or another event strands planes on the ground. Those steps are measures like making sure airports know the location of all available air stairs, the stairs that can be driven up to a plane on the tarmac, and ordering airport shops to stock diapers, baby formula, simple medicines and food. More than 100 officials from airports and airlines met for two days last week in the Washington area to brainstorm, compare techniques and make a list of suggestions that they could send on to a task force being formed by the Transportation Department. The task force is part of a push the Bush administration began last fall to show its concern about flight delays. The group has not yet begun its work. Even so, aviation executives wanted to get out ahead of any strongly worded advice from the task force. Some airports may be able to say they have made the preparations before the task force has done its work, though the effects will not be clear until the next emergency. “In the old days, when you had very low load factors and bad weather, we could get everybody home that night,” said James M. Crites, executive vice president of operations at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. “You’d get home late, but you’d get home.” Now, he said, planes are so full that people can be stranded overnight. But, he said, the airlines and the airports can “help each other, look over each other’s shoulder and provide assistance.” Mr. Crites helped organize the workshop, called “Passenger Care During Irregular Operations.” The group defined “irregular operations” as times when passengers needed help. Passengers have been stuck for hours in planes on the tarmac in many instances in recent years. In late December 2006, a storm forced American Airlines to divert 130 airplanes from Dallas/Fort Worth. Sixty-seven American Airlines flights were stuck on the tarmac for three hours or more. Last February, 21 JetBlue planes were stranded at Kennedy Airport in a snowstorm. But even smaller events now have the potential to make life extremely uncomfortable for passengers because airplanes are so full that if one flight is canceled, there are few or no seats available on later flights. One problem in a crisis is that an airport is likely to have more planes than gates, officials said. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which oversees New York area airports, has made a list of all the lifts that could be used to take handicapped passengers off planes not parked at gates, officials said. Another step is to catalog spots where cargo planes normally park, so that in a pinch passenger planes could use those locations. Airports could also keep an inventory of buses, including the buses that ordinarily shuttle airport employees to remote parking lots, officials said. Dick Marchi, the senior adviser for policy at the Airports Council International’s North American branch, said airports can order shops to stock basic items and help the shops to stay open late if people are stranded. “Senior concession management is very much interested in meeting these needs,” Mr. Marchi said. “But they’ve been trapped into a routine where the shift person on the floor says, ‘We close at 10 o’clock.’ ” With proper preparation, airport concessions can make money while meeting vital needs, he added. Airports can help the carriers by providing extra chaperones for unaccompanied minors, Mr. Marchi said. The airports may also have to help by providing areas for pets to relieve themselves. The Transportation Security Administration and the consumer affairs office of the Transportation Department joined the sessions last week, along with consumer advocates. The group plans to produce a report for members of the Airports Council International and others in related industries. It appeared that all of the steps it was recommending could be taken without any government permission. Strandings at airports have touched a nerve with the public. A federal government Web site is collecting postings from passengers: “There is NO reason people should be detained against their will,” even in an airplane, said one, posted under the name Richard Neilsen. It continues: “At no time should anyone be detained on the tarmac for longer than 15 minutes for any reason.” Passengers are not always left to fend for themselves. Last Aug. 17, the captain of a Delta flight from Phoenix to Kennedy International, diverted to Syracuse by weather, radioed ahead and had pizza delivered to the gate area for the passengers.

Airports
Weather
Executives and Management
Transportation Department
American Airlines
JetBlue Airways


Banned Substances Claim an Outsize Role in Athletics in India

Abstract: PATIALA, India — The crumbling Old Moti Bagh Palace houses the National Institute of Sports, the training ground for India’s best athletes. One sweltering spring afternoon, the sprinter Ashwini Akkunji ran laps around its sprawling grounds, past broken fountains, a murky pool and monkeys that occasionally charged people with bared teeth. She and the palace, once home to Patiala’s royal family, had seen better days. A gold medalist in the 4x400-meter relay and the 400 hurdles at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, Akkunji was a national hero and inspired awe in other athletes here. But eight months after those victories, Akkunji and five of her relay teammates tested positive for steroids and were suspended from competition for two years. Athletes around the world have had their careers marred by doping, but Indian athletes, with easy access to legal steroids and limited knowledge about their consequences, lead the world in suspensions for performance-enhancing drug use. Nearly 500 have tested positive for banned substances since 2009, when India’s National Anti-Doping Agency , known as NADA, became fully functional. In 2012 alone, 178 Indians were barred from competition. Russia has had the second-highest number of suspensions, with more than 260 athletes barred since 2009. At the same time, Russia, with a population of 143 million, has had great international athletic success, and India, a nation of 1.2 billion, has underperformed. India has won only 26 medals in the 113 years it has competed in the Olympic Games. Russia has earned 482 Olympic medals since it began competing as the Russian Federation in the 1994 Winter Games. “India cannot provide proper nutrition, training or medical care for its national athletes,” said Dr. Mohan Chandran, president of the Indian Federation of Sports Medicine . “So, of course, we are decades behind in our knowledge on doping.” But John Fahey, the president of the World Anti-Doping Agency, said India had come a long way in its efforts to catch up with international standards. The increase in testing and the enforcement of WADA rules could be one reason so many athletes are caught. They learn to cut corners early, said Rehan Khan, a steroid supplier in New Delhi for more than 20 years. “Some of my biggest clients are the coaches of junior athletes,” Khan said. “Most of my clients understand what they are buying. They know they will get fast results, so it is worth the risks. If they don’t buy from me, they can just as easily order the steroids online.” The salaries of coaches who train junior and national athletes are often dependent on the performance of their charges. Some of these coaches are not familiar with increasingly stringent doping tests; others believe that the drugs’ effect is worth the gamble. “Whether it is a junior meet or university meet, you see syringes all over the track,” said Ashwini Nachappa, a former track star who is the president of Clean Sports India, an organization that fights corruption in athletics. “Nobody has given it a thought. The onus lies in the training center to start education programs and start randomly testing the kids so that there is fear.” She said the Indian government should also stop hiring coaches from former Soviet bloc countries that have a long history of using performance-enhancing drugs. A Way Out of Poverty Most Indian athletes do not expect million dollar contracts or lucrative sponsorships. Careers in medicine or engineering are more respected. Yet for the tens of thousands who come from impoverished backgrounds and vie for positions on national teams, successful performances can ensure government jobs that will provide financial security for them and their families. Akhil Kumar, a boxer who competed in the 2004 and 2008 Olympics, said he felt like a test animal at the National Institute of Sports. His coaches and doctors, he said, did not have the resources and experience to help him with injuries and often made his situation worse. “I know about doping because I have been in this sport for a long time and have educated myself,” said Kumar, 32, who is aiming for a comeback in the 2016 Olympics and works as a police officer, a common government job for athletes. “The only way the next generation of athletes is going to have that knowledge is if they take it upon themselves to get educated, and people like me reach back and teach them.” Chandran, who is also a member of NADA’s disciplinary board, said the agency needed to do more to inform athletes about the risks of taking steroids because they are responsible for what they put in their bodies. But many Indians do not have the resources to research the contents of their supplements or to have them tested. “In India we are taught to never question the authority of our coaches, who are the center of our lives,” the track star Akkunji said. Akkunji, whose suspension ended in July, is competing internationally and aiming for the 2016 Olympics. She and her teammates contended that they never knowingly took steroids. Akkunji said their Ukrainian coach had given them tainted nutritional supplements. Dr. Laxman Singh Ranawat, the executive director of the National Institute of Sports until he retired in October, defended its training methods while acknowledging, “There may be a few cases of doping in India, but those athletes were given the drugs by their foreign coaches.” Less than a mile from Ranawat’s office, the streets are lined with billboards showing bodybuilders flexing their muscles. They advertise steroids, available at pharmacies across India, where there is virtually no regulation of over-the-counter drugs. The most common drug Indians test positive for is norandrosterone , a steroid that has been prohibited in sports for more than 30 years, according to The British Journal of Sports Medicine. A month’s supply of banned substances can cost as little as $5 to $10, and some pills are only 25 cents, said Raj Makhija, the chief executive of Smart Brands in New Delhi, one of India’s few suppliers of authentic health food supplements. Nutritional supplements from abroad are subject to high import taxes. Makhija said that imported whey protein and recovery drinks could cost $60 to $150 a month, depending on the brand and serving sizes, and that a lack of regulation had led to the rampant sale of counterfeit products. One of the athletes Makhija sponsors is Yogeshwar Dutt, an Olympic bronze medalist in men’s 60-kilogram freestyle wrestling at the 2012 London Games. “You know if you take steroids, you can put on muscle and get a good performance fast,” Dutt said as other wrestlers crowded into his room to talk with Makhija at a training camp in Haryana. “A lot of young athletes take the easy route. Unless they are sponsored like we are, it would be difficult for them to even afford quality supplements.” Pushing for Change Cheema Palwinder, a former Asian Games champion weight lifter, knows the challenges of being an athlete in India. Now obese with painful joints, he looks a decade older than his 33 years. “In my day there was not so much testing,” said Palwinder, the superintendent of police in Punjab, where he presides over a dusty agricultural town with fields full of tractors and bullock carts. “When I was competing on the international level, I learned about steroids from athletes who came from countries with more sophisticated doping programs. They showed me what drugs would stay in my system and which ones would quickly flush out.” Palwinder said he was trying to educate coaches, athletes and their parents about the effects of performance-enhancing drugs. But given the magnitude of the problem, he said, it is probably a losing battle. Rajkumar Merathia, a boxing coach at the National Institute of Sports, is more hopeful. “Sports in India is much better than it was 20 years ago,” Merathia said as he shouted commands to a teenage girl who traded bloody noses with her male opponent on a grass field. “We are starting athletes out younger, and we are winning more medals than we used to.” The Sports Authority of India, part of a government ministry, supports tens of thousands of athletes with a minimal full-time permanent staff: three sports medicine doctors, six physiotherapists, three physiologists, two psychologists and one nutritionist, Chandran said by email. Even the best athletes feel shortchanged. Om Prakash Singh was dejected and depressed after placing 19th in the shot-put at the London Olympics. He returned to the National Institute of Sports, which offered limited medical care. “It’s so difficult to adjust to training in India after training in Europe and the United States,” Singh, 26, said after a workout as he folded his 6-foot-7-inch, 304-pound body into a blue plastic barrel filled with ice water. “Look at our facilities. If someone offered you steroids and said you would not get caught, wouldn’t you take them too?”


Once Again, September Is the Phillies’ Favorite Time of Year

Abstract: PHILADELPHIA — It is nice to have options, in your wardrobe and your pitching staff. Just ask Ruben Amaro, the general manager of the Philadelphia Phillies . Amaro has a World Series championship ring from 2008 and a National League ring from last season. These days he wears the N.L. ring , because the Phillies somehow win more often when he does. “I’m very superstitious,” said Amaro, who nonetheless tempted fate with his boldest off-season move. Amaro traded Cliff Lee, who earned the Phillies’ two World Series victories last fall, rankling a fan base that has sold out Citizens Bank Park 114 games in a row. As he shipped out Lee, who has bounced from Seattle to Texas this season, Amaro simultaneously acquired Roy Halladay , the former Toronto All-Star who faces the Mets at Citi Field on Friday. But the deals were bittersweet, because the Phillies could have had two aces and settled for one. “That was a tough thing,” center fielder Shane Victorino said. “But everybody’s forgotten. I mean, people remember it, but it’s gone by the wayside because Roy’s done a great job for us — both Roys.” The Phillies have the best record in the league, at 81-60, and with not one ace, but three — Halladay, the leading candidate for the N.L. Cy Young Award; Roy Oswalt, who is 5-1 with a 2.30 earned run average in eight starts since being traded from Houston; and Cole Hamels, who has a 25-inning scoreless streak. The three-ace formula does not always lead to a title; the Atlanta Braves won just one with Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz, and the Oakland Athletics never won a playoff series with Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder and Barry Zito. But the Phillies, in theory, should be strongest in an area that had been troublesome. “Do I feel vindicated? I never felt that maligned about it,” Amaro said. “You try to do your business the best you can. You always have reasons to try to do things. Sometimes they work out and sometimes they don’t. We were fortunate to be in a position this year to still be hanging around enough to add on.” It has been an unsteady ascent for the Phillies, who have won 11 of 14 but trailed the Braves by seven games on July 22. Six everyday players, three starters and six relievers have been on the disabled list. Shortstop Jimmy Rollins left Wednesday’s game with right hamstring tightness, and closer Brad Lidge was unavailable with a sore elbow. All things considered, though, the Phillies are healthy enough, and appear to have found their annual late-summer groove. Starting in 2007, when they overtook the Mets for the N.L. East title, the Phillies have a .630 winning percentage in September, second only to the Yankees. “I definitely feel like we’ve got a good run in us,” Manager Charlie Manuel said. “I feel like we can play better than we have at any point this year, because we have all our players back. We’re solid. We’re more equipped to do that.” Oswalt, who starts Sunday, has not been to the postseason since 2005, when he teamed with Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte to lift Houston to its only World Series. Approving a trade to the Phillies, for a package led by starter J. A. Happ, was his chance to get back. “I’d match up Halladay against anybody in the big leagues, and you’d have the upper hand most of the time,” Oswalt said. “Same way with Cole. His velocity’s back up this year and he’s throwing the ball really well. I said it from Day 1, they remind me so much of Roger and Andy in ’05. They kind of feed off each other and push each other even more.” Oswalt is signed for next season with a club option for 2012. Hamels is also under the Phillies’ control through 2012, and Halladay through 2014. Lee, who missed his last start with lower back soreness, has a 4.69 E.R.A. for Texas and will be a free agent after the season. Except right fielder Jayson Werth, the Phillies have signed all of their core position players to long-term contracts. That would seem to be a good thing, though only Victorino is under 30 years old. “I don’t know if it’s good or bad,” Amaro said. “We think that they’re talented enough to help us continue the trend of winning baseball here. But at some point, everybody’s replaceable; people get older and less productive. You have to be aware of that, and hopefully guys continue to be productive. While they’re gambles, we hope at least they’re reasonable gambles.” According to Baseball-Reference.com , the Phillies’ hitters have the oldest average age in the league, at nearly 32 years old. Hamels, especially, has been a victim of their unsteady production, with the fourth-lowest run support in the majors before Wednesday’s win. But Hamels, who is 10-10 with a season-low 3.06 E.R.A., said the team seemed to come alive last Thursday in a game at Colorado , erupting for nine runs in the seventh inning of a comeback victory. It showed, essentially, that the Phillies were still the Phillies. “That’s the confidence you need to have, especially going into the last few weeks, knowing you can put runs on the board whether it’s early or late, if you’re down or if you’re up,” Hamels said. “We do know how to put it in fifth gear, especially when September rolls around.” They did it again against Florida on Tuesday, losing a lead with a sloppy eighth inning and then immediately rallying to go ahead. Victorino, who had already homered, singled with two outs, stole second and scored on a single by Placido Polanco. In a blowout win the next night, Ryan Howard drove in six and hit his 250th career homer . It came in his 855th career game, the fewest ever needed for a player to reach that milestone. Howard usually takes off at this time of year, with his best production (a career 1.114 OPS) in the last month of the season. “September just happens to be September,” said Howard, who signed a five-year, $125 million contract extension in April. “It’s one of those things you know coming down the stretch that every game counts. I’m just trying to do what I can.” Wednesday’s game was the Phillies’ 24th in 23 days, before a day off on Thursday. That gave Rollins and Lidge a chance to rest their injuries, but others had mixed feelings. “I want to keep playing,” Victorino said. “I don’t want to stop now.” But isn’t he tired after all those games without a break? “I feel wonderful, brother,” Victorino said. “We’re playing baseball. How do you feel?” Most other teams, the Mets included, are probably weary these days. The Phillies, as usual, are just getting started.

Baseball
Philadelphia Phillies
Lee Cliff
Halladay Roy
Victorino Shane


Impatient Leaders Call on Zimbabwe to Form a Joint Government

Abstract: JOHANNESBURG — Southern African leaders called Monday for political rivals in Zimbabwe to share control of the crucial ministry that oversees the police and to form a joint government immediately, but the opposition flatly rejected the proposal as unworkable and unfair. Impatient with a crisis that has dragged on for more than seven months since disputed elections in March, the regional leaders sought to force a resolution of the deadlocked power-sharing talks between Zimbabwe’s president, Robert Mugabe , and the opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai , in a marathon day of jawboning on Sunday. “We cannot afford to postpone the formation of an inclusive government because there is a dispute over who gets the Ministry of Home Affairs,” said Tomaz A. Salomão, executive secretary of the Southern African Development Community, or S.A.D.C., a 15-nation regional bloc, at a midnight news conference. But if regional leaders had hoped to press Mr. Tsvangirai to settle for shared control of the Home Ministry and a police force that human rights groups say turned a blind eye to vicious attacks on his supporters, it did not work. Mr. Tsvangirai, who surpassed Mr. Mugabe in the March elections and quit a runoff because of state-sponsored attacks on his supporters, accused the regional leaders of lacking the courage to look Mr. Mugabe in the eye and insist on an equitable sharing of ministries. Mr. Tsvangirai, who seemed somber and discouraged, said his party, the Movement for Democratic Change, “is shocked and saddened that the S.A.D.C. summit has failed to tackle these issues.” There is now no obvious next step to end the political crisis in Zimbabwe, a country afflicted by worsening hunger and one of the most extreme cases of hyperinflation in world history. Mr. Tsvangirai said he would turn to the African Union for further help, but it had asked the southern African regional bloc to take the lead in mediation. The southern African leaders sought to resolve the crisis on Sunday in a marathon of talking. After rejecting their unequivocal directive on the crisis, Mr. Tsvangirai is likely to find himself increasingly isolated. Mr. Mugabe left the summit meeting without commenting, but Mr. Salomão said he had agreed to the bloc’s proposal. The group’s insistence on the immediate formation of a government, and Mr. Tsvangirai’s refusal to accept its terms, may embolden Mr. Mugabe, who has held power for the past 28 years, to go ahead and form a government on his own. A communiqué released by the group after the meeting directed that an “inclusive government be formed forthwith in Zimbabwe.” But a government that excluded Mr. Tsvangirai would not win the infusion of foreign aid and investment that economists and political analysts say is essential to rebuilding Zimbabwe’s shattered economy. Arthur Mutambara, who leads a small opposition faction that was also part of the talks, said Monday morning at a news conference that the deal S.A.D.C. had offered was the best the opposition would get. He warned, “This is the end of the road if we’re not careful.”

Zimbabwe
Politics and Government
Southern African Development Community
Mugabe Robert
Tsvangirai Morgan


Tiny Birds, Big Drama: Inside the World of the Birdmen of Queens

Abstract: Ray Harinarain cut the lusty Hellcat engine of his Dodge Challenger and gently lifted his birdcage from the front seat. Mr. Harinarain, a heating and air-conditioner repairman from Brooklyn, joined a procession of middle-aged men in fedoras and flat caps, cradling wood poles and cages the size of large shoe boxes, streaming into a pocket-size park in Richmond Hill, Queens, on a recent Sunday morning. The cages were blanketed in white coverlets, some trimmed with lace. Inside each one was a delicate songbird: a chestnut-bellied seed finch native to the northern parts of South America and the Caribbean. Sundays are race days, though the events are not really races but speed-singing contests. Two cages each containing a male finch, whose fierce calls are triggered by an instinctive desire to woo females and defend turf, are hung on a pole about an inch apart. The birds are judged on the number of songs they sing. The first to reach 50 wins. Ostensibly, it’s a battle of the birds. But there is just as much grandstanding by their male handlers. Many hail from Guyana, with others from Trinidad, Suriname and Brazil, places where amateurs and professionals line grassy roadsides and town squares, vying for trophies, cash prizes and prestige at tournaments or impromptu matches. Owning a champion, which can be worth as much as a car, also has cachet. Even well-known soccer players have acquired them as status symbols. But as the finches migrated with their human wards to North American cities, where it is more common to see someone walking a cat than a bird, the hobby has attracted unwanted attention from federal law enforcement. Although it is much gentler than cockfighting, the sport has a seedy side. Customs agents at John F. Kennedy International Airport began uncovering birds zipped into suitcase linings, sometimes stuffed in toilet paper rolls, or tucked inside socks, pantyhose, or specially tailored pants. The discoveries prompted agents at the United StatesFish and Wildlife Service’s Office of Law Enforcement to start what would become an eight-year investigation, nicknamed Operation G-Bird, that focused on the illegal smuggling of these prized competitors. The chestnut-bellied seed finch ( Oryzoborus angolensis ) is not considered an endangered species. But transporting the birds without proper paperwork and under inhumane conditions violates, among other laws, the Lacey Act, which combats illegal trafficking in fauna and flora. The Guyanese government began issuing permits for the legal export of birds in recent years, but importing birds on the books to the United States is an expensive and time-consuming process that requires approval from multiple federal agencies, hiring licensed bird brokers and paying government fees. A mandatory 30-day quarantine is also stressful on birds and can undermine their training. Video Ray Harinarain has been involved in finch singing competitions since emigrating from Guyana in the 1980s. Today, the sport is flourishing in pockets of New York City. Credit Credit Bryan Thomas for The New York Times Birds “are not the same after they go through quarantine,” said one man, whose name was redacted in a report by the federal investigators. Getting caught can result in a fine of several thousand dollars, as well as criminal charges. But enthusiasts and career smugglers said it was worth the risk. And demand for these featherweight champions has apparently not diminished. For decades, the epicenter of New York’s racing scene has been Phil “Scooter” Rizzuto Park , which the men still refer to by its old name, Smokey Oval. In between the handball court and the baseball diamond, the men erect a patchwork of wood and metal cages perched on car tops, benches, hanging on telephone poles or wooden stakes planted in the ground. In recent years, the mood there has become tense with a pervasive fear that undercover agents and informants lurk with binoculars and hidden cameras. MR. HARINARAIN, KNOWN AS “BUSH,” wears a gold, flat-braided chain with a bird charm. He presides as an unofficial spokesman for the birdmen, at times to the chagrin of his peers who are reluctant to expose their passion to criticism. After emigrating from Berbice, Guyana, in 1987, he began tending to the birds belonging to the elder statesmen in the park. When he could afford his own finches, he began organizing competitions, eventually succeeding the older generation. “I control the birds now,” he said. Federal agents have visited Mr. Harinarain’s home in Cypress Hills, where he lives with his wife and 43 birds that chirp from almost every corner, including the bathroom. The more valuable ones are monitored with webcams streamed to his iPhone. And each week, he spends about $100 and about an hour every other day inspecting their feathers and toes, scooping 10 varieties of seed into their trays, dropping liquid vitamins into feeding tubes and filling plastic cups with water so they can “take a shower.” His garage is crammed with bird trophies and dozens of dangling empty cages. He was among the first in New York City to breed the finches, called “towa towa” in Guyana. But it was a tedious and difficult process, so now he imports them from Brazil, which has an organized industry of breeders. From a filing cabinet, he pulled out the birth certificate of one of the birds, a blue sheet of paper with a diagram resembling a family tree. Like racehorses, the male songbirds are bred for their pedigrees, he explained. “Most of the guys don’t want to talk because they have illegal birds,” he said. “Mine are legit.” Image Top, a birth certificate for one of Mr. Harinarain’s birds; below, hair curlers stuffed with finches that were confiscated by the authorities. Credit Bryan Thomas for The New York Times; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Mr. Harinarain said he understood that the agents were “just trying to do their job,” especially to catch men “doing illegal stuff.” But he said, “I hope they’re not trying to prosecute all of us who are trying to do the right thing.” During Operation G-Bird, agents monitored online finch forums and talked to informants in Subway restaurants and McDonald’s parking lots. The investigation, which concluded last year, resulted in a 230-page dossier, which was obtained by The New York Times under the Freedom of Information Act. The agents reported that smugglers sometimes sedated the finches with rum or kept them awake with spotlights before they were lowered, wings pressed in a straitjacket position, into enclosure devices. These were often improvised from cardboard tubes or plastic hair curlers that would not trigger airport metal detectors. One smuggler camouflaged his avian cargo inside boxes labeled “sugar cakes.” The report, which redacted the names of the birds, said that the suspect was “breathing heavily” and that his “eyes nearly popped out” of his head when his bag went through an X-ray machine. One of his three finches tried to escape when the agent opened it; another was dead. In Guyana, the finches are trapped with sticks coated with a glue-like gum, nets or cages, and are sold at markets or pet stores for as little as $5. But their value skyrockets in the United States, where a male finch might sell for from $500 to $10,000, depending on its pedigree and track record, according to the report. Money is also made on flipping birds after they have been trained. Females, which are used only for breeding, are worth considerably less. Image Sanjay Lalman, who calls himself the "Bird King of the Bronx," with Legend, one of about 30 finches he owns. Credit Brian Harkin for The New York Times Bribing officials at the airport in Guyana is included in the cost of doing business. In one instance detailed in the report, a constable took a smuggler’s bag while he passed through security and delivered it to the gate 30 minutes before takeoff. While some people are smuggling the birds for themselves, others are bird mules hired for the job. They can sometimes make almost $15,000 for a single flight, transporting as many as 90 birds at a time, depending on how many birds survive the trip, according to the report. Operation G-Bird resulted in multiple arrests and in jail time for at least one of the traffickers . In all, about 150 songbirds were confiscated. It is not known how many eluded the dragnet. Even after Operation G-Bird, Ryan Bessey, a square-jawed special agent with the Fish and Wildlife Service, said his office still handled several cases a year. Smuggling, however, is not the only illegal activity among some of the birdmen. “I liken it to horse racing in our culture,” Special Agent Bessey said. “A lot of money is made both in the sale of the animal and bets and side bets.” WHEN ASKED IF PRIVATE WAGERS were part of the thrill, a few men at the park reluctantly said yes. Most insisted that they competed only for bragging rights and the adrenaline rush. The winner might buy butter rolls and coffee or a case of beer, or might collect a trophy topped with a golden bird. What keeps them coming back, they all said, are the fraternity, tradition and the chance to transcend their workaday lives. In the winter, the men rent space indoors. But as soon as the weather warms, the company of regulars heads to Smokey Oval. “It’s a macho thing,” Mr. Harinarain said. “Our wives hate this, that we’ve got to wake up early in the morning and leave them.” Image It's not uncommon for men to gather for impromptu roadside races, like this one in Georgetown, Guyana, in 2003. Credit Cullen Hanks At the park, the men swap training tips, vitamins, antibiotics and even birds. They pass along job leads or trade services. The perimeter has become a de facto market. A coconut seller hawks fresh juice from a van, and the men open up their S.U.V.s to sell specially designed splash guards for cages and bird seed imported from Guyana, or plucked from the side of the Van Wyck Expressway. Suresh, a Guyanese man with a tidy mustache who was not comfortable giving his last name for reasons he did not specify, described the race days as a balm for his life. “All the job stress and all the things you go through, you come here, you talk to the guys,” he said. “You don’t talk nothing about the jobs.” Their wives complain that they spend more time and attention on their birds than on their families. One man said he didn’t have room in his life for both a girlfriend and 31 birds. Suresh, who said he kept a finch above the bed, said his wife thought he was a “fanatic,” which he denied. When they married, he said, “she knew the deal.” “It takes a lot to get the birds to do what they do,” he said. “You’ve got to be with the birds to understand them.” Coaching is a craft. Some men acclimate their tropical pets to the rumble and flash of the city by taking them for evening drives or on their subway commutes. They bring them to the park to breathe fresh air and socialize with other birds. This also inures them to crowds, which can be intimidating or distracting to the high-strung creatures. The men hold warm-up matches, called “ramping,” to see which birds are ready to compete. And they play YouTube clips and Bollywood songs from their phones to inspire the short, “jabbing” songs that the Guyanese men prefer. Image Depending on the country, chestnut-bellied seed finches are called towa towa, bullfinches, picolet or curio. Credit Bryan Thomas for The New York Times Hamma Ram, a parking attendant at La Guardia Airport and third-generation birder, described his mornings at the park as his “most important church.” But he, like others, fears that their meeting spot is in jeopardy. Once last summer, he said, police officers threatened to confiscate their birds if they did not vacate the park. The Irish and Italian complexion of Richmond Hill changed in the 1960s, with an influx of Guyanese immigrants, many of South Asian descent. And now, the middle-class neighborhood is home to one of the world’s largest Sikh populations outside India . But the two groups of diaspora Indians are not ethnic soul mates. One of the birdmen, who like many is of Indo-Caribbean heritage, said the Punjabi Sikhs "look down at us as slaves" and lodged complaints at community meetings and to the local precinct about their presence in the park. “Look how we assemble: no smoking, no drinking, no gambling,” Mr. Ram said. “Why just chase Guyanese people with the birds? Why not chase the people with the cats and dogs?” IT WAS A FRESH 63 DEGREES that Sunday morning for one of the first races of the season. There is no formal league, but Mr. Harinarain has formed the “A Team” with two other men who, combined, have a deep bench of talent. Morris Ramsaywack, a trim, muscular construction worker from Guyana, with thin streaks of facial hair that frame his cheeks like racing stripes, is a member. He brought a 6-year-old Brazilian finch for that day’s race. The birds flitted from wooden perches at the bottom of the cages to the side to the top and back down, making the circuit in about a second, with broad tail feathers and wings flicking the metal bars. Image Preparing for a race at Phil (Scooter) Rizzuto Park. Credit Brian Harkin for The New York Times “They’re, like, cursing each other out,” Mr. Harinarain said. “When we have them in a cage, they can’t grab each other, so they sing against each other.” Some swear by the practice of keeping a female at home, to juice up champions. But like boxers before a big fight, the birds are kept out of female earshot before a competition so they don’t lose their “vitality.” At 8 a.m., a trilling cacophony drowned out the dull hum of idling Long Island Rail Road trains at the depot across the street. Spectators formed a circle around the cages. In the crowd, one man licked his lips. Another widened his stance and crossed his arms. Another wiped the edges of his mouth with his fingers. Deep creases formed between their brows. Two camera phones were rolling. The din of a bouncing basketball and squeals from a swing set receded as the men homed in on the shrill “pee peow peow.” Without ceremony or even the wave of a hand, the judge counted “one two three” as Mr. Ramsaywack’s bird trilled. The other bird, and judge, were silent. “It must be the weather,” one man said. The five-and-a-half-minute race was a shutout. Mr. Ramsaywack shook Mr. Harinarain’s hand. “He told me he was ready,” he said about his bird, “He come to do his work.”

Birds
Animal Abuse
Richmond Hill Queens
Smuggling
Guyanese-Americans
Guyana
Fish and Wildlife Service
Ray Harinarain


Things to Do on Long Island, Sept. 18 to 25, 2015

Abstract: A guide to cultural and recreational events on Long Island. Items for the calendar should be sent at least three weeks in advance to lical@nytimes.com. Comedy BROOKVILLE Tilles Center for the Performing Arts Whoopi Goldberg. Oct. 3 at 8 p.m. $48 to $111. Tilles Center for the Performing Arts, 720 Northern Boulevard. tillescenter.org; 516-299-3100. LEVITTOWN Governor’s Comedy Club Bonnie McFarlane. Sept. 18 and 19. $17. Nick DiPaolo. Sept. 25 and 26. $25. Lavell Crawford. Oct. 2 and 3. $32.00. Governor’s Comedy Club, 90 Division Avenue. 516-731-3358; govs.com. PORT WASHINGTON Landmark on Main Street Colin Quinn. Sept. 25 at 8 p.m. $35 to $45. Caroline Rhea, with Talia Reese and others. Oct. 3, 8 to 10 p.m. $35 to $55. Landmark on Main Street, 232 Main Street. landmarkonmainstreet.org; 631-839-1942. WESTHAMPTON BEACH Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center Craig Ferguson. Sept. 25 at 8 p.m. $85 to $110. Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center, 76 Main Street. 631-288-1500; whbpac.org. Film GARDEN CITY Adelphi University Performing Arts Center “L’Elisir d’Amore,” Gaetano Donizetti’s opera, directed by Rolando Villazón. Sept. 27 at 2 p.m. $5 to $20. Adelphi University Performing Arts Center, 1 South Avenue. 516-877-4000; aupac.adelphi.edu. GLEN COVE North Shore Historical Museum “The Great Gatsby” (1974), starring Robert Redford and Mia Farrow. Sept. 25 at 7 p.m. $10 and $15. North Shore Historical Museum, 140 Glen Street. 516-801-1191; northshorehistoricalmuseum.org. HUNTINGTON Cinema Arts Center “Niagara” (1953), starring Marilyn Monroe. Sept. 21 at 7:30 p.m. $10 and $15. Cinema Arts Center, 423 Park Avenue. 631-423-7611; cinemaartscentre.org. PATCHOGUE The Plaza Cinema and Media Arts Center Opera in Cinema: “Don Pasquale,” by Gaetano Donizetti. Sept. 19 at 10:30 a.m. and Sept. 24 at 6:30 p.m. $11 and $15. The Plaza Cinema and Media Arts Center, 20 Terry Street. 631-438-0083. ROSLYN HARBOR Nassau County Museum of Art “Edgar Degas: Of Dandies, Ballerinas and Women Ironing,” half-hour film. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 11 a.m., noon, 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.; Sundays, 11 a.m. and noon. Through Nov. 8. Nassau County Museum of Art, 1 Museum Drive. 516-484-9337; nassaumuseum.org. For Children BRIDGEHAMPTON South Fork Natural History Museum and Nature Center The Air We Breathe, hands-on activities exploring molecules. Sept. 19 at 2 p.m. South Fork Natural History Museum and Nature Center, 377 Bridgehampton/Sag Harbor Turnpike. 631-537-9735; sofo.org. BROOKVILLE Tilles Center for the Performing Arts “Sesame Street Live: Make a New Friend.” Sept. 25 through 27. $25 to $106. Tilles Center for the Performing Arts, 720 Northern Boulevard. tillescenter.org; 516-299-3100. GARDEN CITY Long Island Children’s Museum “Music and Movement,” a singalong with instruments to choose from. Sept. 23, 11:30 a.m. to noon. $3 with museum admission, $12 and $13. “Terrific Textiles,” mini textile patterns to create with felt. Sept. 26, 2 to 4 p.m. Free with museum admission, $12 and $13. Long Island Children’s Museum, 11 Davis Avenue. 516-224-5800; licm.org. ROSLYN HARBOR Nassau County Museum of Art “A Day of Construction: Imagine, Design, Build,” participate in design and construction projects. Sept. 27, 1 to 4 p.m. $8 with museum admission, $4 to $10. Nassau County Museum of Art, 1 Museum Drive. nassaumuseum.org; 516-484-9337. WESTBURY NYCB Theater at Westbury The Wiggles. Sept. 25 at 7 p.m. $48 to $237. NYCB Theater at Westbury, 960 Brush Hollow Road. livenation.com; 800-745-3000. Music and Dance AMAGANSETT Stephen Talkhouse Elliott Murphy, rock. Sept. 18 at 8 p.m. $25. Revel in Dimes, rock. Sept. 18 at 10 p.m. $10. Stephen Talkhouse, 161 Main Street. stephentalkhouse.com; 631-267-3117. BAY SHORE Y.M.C.A. Boulton Center for the Performing Arts Popa Chubby, blues. Sept. 18 at 8 p.m. $25 and $30. James Maddock, singer and songwriter. Sept. 19 at 8 p.m. $30. Chris Smithe, folk. Sept. 25 at 8 p.m. $30. Y.M.C.A. Boulton Center for the Performing Arts, 37 West Main Street. 631-969-1101; boultoncenter.org. BROOKVILLE Tilles Center for the Performing Arts New York Philharmonic. Oct. 2 at 8 p.m. $57 to $111. Tilles Center for the Performing Arts, 720 Northern Boulevard. 516-299-3100; tillescenter.org. COLD SPRING HARBOR Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Mei Rui, pianist. Oct. 2 at 6 p.m. $20. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, 1 Bungtown Road. 516-367-8455; cshl.edu. DIX HILLS Five Towns College Performing Arts Center Letz Zep, Led Zeppelin tribute band. Sept. 25 at 7:30 p.m. $25 to $35. “Shades of Grey,” tribute to Joel Grey. Sept. 27 at 2 p.m. $30. Five Towns College Performing Arts Center, 305 North Service Road. 631-656-2148; dhpac.org. FREEPORT Freeport Memorial Library Canta Libre Chamber Ensemble, works by Marcel Grandjany, Astor Piazzolla, Alberto Ginastera and others. Sept. 20, 2:30 to 4 p.m. Free. Freeport Memorial Library, 144 West Merrick Road. 516-379-3274; freeportlibrary.info; cantalibre.org. GARDEN CITY Adelphi University Performing Arts Center Kris Allen, singer and songwriter. Sept. 18 at 7:30 p.m. $40 and $45. Adelphi University Performing Arts Center, 1 South Avenue. 516-877-4000; aupac.adelphi.edu. HUNTINGTON The Paramount Almost Queen, Queen tribute band, and Unforgettable Fire, U2 tribute band. Sept. 25 at 8 p.m. $15 to $35. Oogee Wawa, rock. Sept. 26 at 8 p.m. $10 to $25. The Paramount, 370 New York Avenue. 631-673-7300; paramountny.com. MANHASSET The Congregational Church of Manhasset “Let’s Fall in Love,” tribute to Cole Porter by the chancel choir and soloists. Sept. 27 at 3 p.m. $15. The Congregational Church of Manhasset, 1845 Northern Boulevard. uccmanhasset.org; 516-627-4911. PATCHOGUE Patchogue Theater for the Performing Arts Bacon Brothers, rock. Sept. 26 at 8 p.m. $45 to $85. Terry Lee Goffee and Josie Waverly, Johnny Cash and Patsy Cline tribute show. Oct. 3 at 8 p.m. $21.58 to $48.08. “Made in America,” the Atlantic Wind Symphony, featuring American composers. Oct. 4 at 3 p.m. $13.10 to $29. Patchogue Theater for the Performing Arts, 71 East Main Street. 631-207-1313; patchoguetheatre.com. RIVERHEAD Riverhead Free Library Mambo Loco, Afro-Cuban. Oct. 4, 2 to 4 p.m. Free. Riverhead Free Library, 330 Court Street. river.suffolk.lib.ny.us; 631-727-3228. SAG HARBOR Bay Street Theater Joe Delia and Thieves, blues. Sept. 18 at 8 p.m. $20. Judy Carmichael, pianist. Sept. 19 at 8 p.m. $45 to $75. Bay Street Theater, Main and Bay Streets. baystreet.org; 631-725-9500. STONY BROOK University Cafe, Stony Brook University Parsonsfield, indie roots. Sept. 20 at 7 p.m. $20 and $25. Jon Brooks, folk, and Pat Wictor, blues and folk guitarist. Oct. 4 at 2 p.m. $20 and $25. University Cafe, Stony Brook University, 100 Nicolls Road. 631-632-1093; universitycafe.org. WESTBURY NYCB Theater at Westbury Charlie Daniels Band and the Marshall Tucker Band, country. Sept. 19 at 8 p.m. $86 to $167. NYCB Theater at Westbury, 960 Brush Hollow Road. 800-745-3000; livenation.com. WESTHAMPTON BEACH Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center Jonny Lang, blues. Oct. 3 at 8 p.m. $80 to $120. Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center, 76 Main Street. 631-288-1500; whbpac.org. Outdoors BRIDGEHAMPTON South Fork Natural History Museum and Nature Center Fungi and Lichen: A Symbiotic Relationship, with Dr. Tamson Yeh. Sept. 19 at 11 a.m. South Fork Natural History Museum and Nature Center, 377 Bridgehampton/Sag Harbor Turnpike. 631-537-9735; sofo.org. COLD SPRING HARBOR Cold Spring Harbor Whaling Museum SeaFaire, celebration of Long Island’s maritime heritage with sea chanteys and traditional crafts. Sept. 27, noon to 3 p.m. $6; children, $5. Cold Spring Harbor Whaling Museum, 301 Main Street. cshwhalingmuseum.org; 631-367-3418. FRANKLIN SQUARE Plattduestche Park “Ompahfest,” German-American festival with live music, German cuisine, beer, dancing, imported goods, raffles and activities for children. Sept. 20 at 11 a.m. $10. Plattduestche Park, 1132 Hempstead Turnpike. Spoken Word BOHEMIA Connetquot Public Library “The Irish Potato Famine and Immigration to America,” lecture by Tom O’Reilly. Sept. 23, 7 to 8:30 p.m. Free. Connetquot Public Library, 760 Ocean Avenue. 631-567-5079; connetquotlibrary.org. EAST HAMPTON East Hampton Library “Tales From the Heart of Our Sea,” discussion with Bruce Collins, co-chairman of the East Hampton Library’s Long Island collection, with new whaling acquisitions. Sept. 19, 4:30 p.m. Free. East Hampton Library, 159 Main Street. easthamptonlibrary.org; 631-324-0222. EAST HAMPTON Guild Hall Panel discussion, “Roy Lichtenstein: Between Sea and Sky,” with Avis Berman, art historian. Sept. 19 at 3 p.m. Free. Guild Hall, 158 Main Street. guildhall.org; 631-324-4050. EAST WILLISTON Community Church of East Williston “The German Settlements of 19th-Century Long Island,” talk by Dr. Paul D. van Wie of Molloy College. Sept. 20 at 2 p.m. Free. Community Church of East Williston, 45 East Williston Avenue. ccew.org; 516-742-9690. SAG HARBOR Canio’s Books Reading by Jill Bialosky from her novel “The Prize,” and discussion. Sept. 19 at 5 p.m. Free. Canio’s Books, 290 Main Street. 631-725-4926; caniosbooks.com. Theater EAST ISLIP Bayway Arts Center “Fatal Attraction,” 1985 drama by Bernard Slade. Through Sept. 27. $18 and $20. Bayway Arts Center, 265 East Main Street. broadhollow.org; 631-581-2700. Image Sag Harbor “Dawning” (2015), acrylic on canvas by Andrea Kowch, is in the solo show “Across a Rural Skyline” through Sept. 28 at Richard J. Demato Fine Arts Gallery, 90 Main Street. For further information: 631-725-1161; rjdgallery.com. Credit Gary Mamay ELMONT BroadHollow Theater “I Do! I Do!,” musical by Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt. Through Sept. 20. $23 and $25. BroadHollow Theater, 700 Hempstead Turnpike. 516-775-4420; broadhollow.org. LINDENHURST Studio Theater “Lie of Omission,” drama by Cheryl Navo. Through Sept. 20. $25. Studio Theater, 141 South Wellwood Avenue. 631-226-8400; studiotheatreli.com. MERRICK Merrick Theater and Center for the Arts “The Heiress,” drama. Through Sept. 27. $21. Merrick Theater and Center for the Arts, 2222 Hewlett Avenue. 516-868-6400; merrick-theatre.com. NORTHPORT John W. Engeman Theater at Northport “West Side Story,” musical. Through Nov. 8. $69 to $74. John W. Engeman Theater at Northport, 250 Main Street. 631-261-2900; engemantheater.com. OAKDALE CM Performing Arts Center “Bonnie and Clyde,” musical by Frank Wildhorn, Don Black and Ivan Menchell. Through Sept. 27. $20 to $29. CM Performing Arts Center, 931 Montauk Highway. 631-218-2810; cmpac.com. SMITHTOWN Smithtown Center for the Performing Arts “Arsenic and Old Lace,” comedy by Joseph Kesserling. Through Oct. 4. $35. Smithtown Center for the Performing Arts, 2 East Main Street. 631-724-3700; smithtownpac.org. Museums and Galleries BRIDGEHAMPTON Silas Marder Gallery Recent work by Mica Marder, including drawings, paintings and sculpture. Through Oct. 17. Thursdays through Mondays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Silas Marder Gallery, 120 Snake Hollow Road. 631-702-2306; silasmarder.com. CUTCHOGUE Alex Ferrone Photography Gallery “Calm Before the Storm,” photographic exhibition of works by Christine Matthäi and Dalton Portella. Through Sept. 27. Alex Ferrone Photography Gallery, 25425 Main Road. alexferronegallery.com; 631-734-8545. DIX HILLS Jeanie Tengelsen Gallery The Art League of Long Island, instructors’ exhibition. Through Sept. 20. Mondays through Fridays, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Jeanie Tengelsen Gallery, 107 East Deer Park Road. artleagueli.org; 631-462-5400. EAST HAMPTON Ashawagh Hall “Mostly Abstract,” group show featuring multimedia abstract works. Sept. 26, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Sept. 27, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Ashawagh Hall, 780 Springs Fireplace Road. 631-324-5671; ashawagh-hall.org. EAST HAMPTON Guild Hall “Roy Lichtenstein: Between Sea and Sky,” contemporary works. Through Oct. 12. Suggested donation, $7. Fridays and Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Guild Hall, 158 Main Street. 631-324-4050; guildhall.org. EAST HAMPTON The Drawing Room Works by Costantino Nivola, featuring sculptures and bas reliefs. Through Oct. 26. Free. Works by Antonio Asis, featuring gouaches on paperboard. Through Oct. 26. Free. Mondays, Fridays, Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Drawing Room, 66 Newtown Lane. 631-324-5016; drawingroom-gallery.com. GARDEN CITY Ruth S. Harley University Center Gallery, Adelphi University Paintings by Richmond Lewis. Through Sept. 22. Mondays through Fridays, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Ruth S. Harley University Center Gallery, Adelphi University, 1 South Avenue. 516-877-3126; adelphi.edu/artmuseum. GLEN COVE Hersh Fine Art at the Long Island Academy of Fine Art Selected works by Cornelia Hernes, Stephen Bauman and Steve Forster. Sept. 19 through Nov. 30. Hersh Fine Art at the Long Island Academy of Fine Art, 14 Glen Street. 516-590-4324; hershfineart.com. GLEN COVE Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center “Scenes of Horror: A Photo History of the Armenian Genocide,” film, text and photos. Through Sept. 30. Suggested donation, $10. Mondays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, noon to 4 p.m. Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center, 100 Crescent Beach Road. 516-571-8040; holocaust-nassau.org. HEMPSTEAD Hofstra University Museum “Enduring Images,” works from Hofstra University Museum’s collection related to historic events. Through Jan. 31. “Doug Hilson: Urbanscapes,” paintings and drawings. Through Dec. 11. Daily, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Hofstra University Museum, Hofstra University. 516-463-5672; hofstra.edu/museum. HOLBROOK Sachem Public Library “Chasing Jazz: The Art of Vincent James Quatroche.” Through Sept. 30. Sachem Public Library, 150 Holbrook Road. 631-588-5024; sachemlibrary.org. HUNTINGTON Fotofoto Gallery “What Lies Beneath,” works by Patricia Colombraro. Through Sept. 26. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Fridays, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Fotofoto Gallery, 14 West Carver Street. 631-549-0448; fotofotogallery.org. HUNTINGTON Heckscher Museum of Art “James Rosenquist: Tripartite Prints.” Through Nov. 22. “Graphic Appeal: Modern Prints From the Collection.” Through Nov. 29. Wednesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Heckscher Museum of Art, 2 Prime Avenue. 631-351-3250; heckscher.org. HUNTINGTON STATION South Huntington Public Library Paintings by R. J. T. Haynes. Through Oct. 7. Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Wednesdays, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, 1 to 5 p.m. South Huntington Public Library, 145 Pidgeon Hill Road. 631-549-4411; shpl.info. JAMESPORT Jedediah Hawkins Inn Barn Gallery “Rain or Shine,” paintings by Max Moran. Through Sept. 20. Fridays, 5 to 8 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, 1 to 7 p.m. Jedediah Hawkins Inn Barn Gallery, 400 South Jamesport Avenue. 631-722-2900. JAMESPORT Rosalie Dimon Gallery, Jamesport Manor Inn Paintings by Jerry Schwabe and photographs by Steven Schreiber. Through Oct. 28. Wednesdays through Mondays, noon to 10 p.m. Rosalie Dimon Gallery, Jamesport Manor Inn, 370 Manor Road. jamesportmanorinn.com; 631-722-0500. MANHASSET The Art Guild of Port Washington “Ordinary Made Extraordinary: The Art of Still Life,” group show with works by Alan Richards, Caryn Coville, Piper Lyman, James Lumpp and more. 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Through Sept. 27. The Art Guild of Port Washington, 200 Port Washington Boulevard. theartguild.org; 516-304-5797. NORTHPORT Haven Gallery “Catharsis,” paintings and drawings by Kate Zambrano. Through Sept. 24. Haven Group Show, 16 multidisciplinary artists. Through Sept. 24. Haven Gallery, 155 Main Street. 631-757-0500; havenartgallery.com. OYSTER BAY Collector Car Showcase “The American Hot Rod,” exhibition. Through Oct. 31. $5 to $10; children under 7, free. Collector Car Showcase, 85 Pine Hollow Road (Route 106). 516-802-5297; collectorcs.com. OYSTER BAY Oyster Bay Historical Society “Light Over Water: Oyster Bay Harbor Scenes,” paintings, watercolors and drawings by Kirk Larsen. Sept. 26 through Dec. 23. Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Sundays, 1 to 4 p.m. Oyster Bay Historical Society, 20 Summit Street. 516-922-5032; oysterbayhistorical.org. QUOGUE Quogue Library Art Gallery “Fulvio Massi: On the Wall,” acrylic, pastel, graphite and paper on canvas. Through Sept. 28. Sundays and Mondays, noon to 5 p.m.; Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Quogue Library Art Gallery, 90 Quogue Street. quoguelibrary.org; 631-653-4224. RIVERHEAD Thirty West Main “August Abstracts,” group show. Through Oct. 29. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thirty West Main, 30 West Main Street. 631-727-0900; eastendarts.org. RIVERHEAD Suffolk County Historical Society “From Shore to Shore Exhibit: Boatbuilders and Boatyards of Long Island.” Through Sept. 19. $5; members, free. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. Suffolk County Historical Society, 300 West Main Street. suffolkcountyhistoricalsociety.org; 631-727-2881. ROSLYN HARBOR Nassau County Museum of Art “The Moderns,” selections from the Saltzman family collection and Long Island Collects Modern Art. “Posters of the Russian Revolution: 1917-1921.” “Frank Olt: New Works.” Through Nov. 8. $4 to $10; children 4 and under and members, free. Nassau County Museum of Art, 1 Museum Drive. 516-484-9337. nassaumuseum.org. SAG HARBOR Richard J. Demato Fine Arts Gallery “Across a Rural Skyline,” paintings by Andrea Kowch. Through Sept. 28. Sundays through Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Friday and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Richard J. Demato Fine Arts Gallery, 90 Main Street. rjdgallery.com; 631-725-1161. SAG HARBOR Dodds & Eder Home “Nature’s End,” group show. Wednesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dodds & Eder Home, 11 Bridge Street. zeigerarts.com; 917-239-0493. SAG HARBOR Sag Harbor Whaling Museum “Barbara Hadden and Michael Butler: Our Town,” paintings. Through Oct. 15. $2 to $6. Mondays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sag Harbor Whaling Museum, 200 Main Street. 631-725-0770; sagharborwhalingmuseum.org. SETAUKET Gallery North “The Art of Math,” multimedia works inspired by mathematics. Through Sept. 25. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Gallery North, 90 North Country Road. 631-751-2676; gallerynorth.org. SHOREHAM North Shore Public Library “All Things Sacred,” abstract paintings of wild animals by Christopher. Through Sept. 29. North Shore Public Library, 250 Route 25A. northshorepubliclibrary.org; 631-929-4488. SOUTHAMPTON Southampton Cultural Center Southampton Artist Association Labor Day Member Show. Through Sept. 30. Annual Juried Art Exhibition, with works by John Bell, Sara Douglas, James Slezak and others. Through Oct. 3. Mondays through Saturday, 11 a. m. to 3 p.m. Southampton Cultural Center, 25 Pond Lane. 631-287-4377; southamptonculturalcenter.org. SOUTHAMPTON Southampton Town Hall Abstract works by Mike Meehan, Dave Kornrumpf, Jim Wightman and Jim Witker. Through Sept. 30. Southampton Town Hall, 116 Hampton Road. 631-324-9612. SOUTHOLD Cosden-Price Gallery in the Reichert Family Center “Country Barns,” paintings by North Fork artists. Thursdays through Saturdays, 1 to 4 p.m. Cosden-Price Gallery in the Reichert Family Center, 54127 Main Road. 631-765-5500. ST. JAMES Mills Pond House Gallery “Finely Crafted,” works by members of Long Island Craft Guild. Through Oct. 3. Mondays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 4 p.m. Mills Pond House Gallery, 660 Route 25A. stacarts.org; 631-862-6575. STONY BROOK Charles B. Wang Center “Origami Heaven,” works by eight artists. Through Dec. 31. “Reality Override,” mixed-media works by Ren Zi. Through Dec. 31. “Explore History: Objects From Asia,” rotating collaborative exhibition examining Asian and Asian-American material culture. Through Dec. 31. Free. Mondays through Fridays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., or by appointment. Charles B. Wang Center, Stony Brook University. thewangcenter.org; 631-632-4400. STONY BROOK Long Island Museum of American Art, History and Carriages “Gilding the Coasts: Art and Design of Long Island’s Great Estates,” group show. Through Oct. 25. $3.50 to $9; members and children under 6, free. “Beth Levine: The First Lady of Shoes,” footwear, photographs, paintings and more. Through Jan. 3. $3.50 to $9; members and children under 6, free. Thursdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Long Island Museum of American Art, History and Carriages, 1200 Route 25A. longislandmuseum.org; 631-751-0066. STONY BROOK Simons Center for Geometry and Physics at Stony Brook University “Manfred Mohr: Pioneer of Algorithmic Art,” Simons Center Gallery. Through Nov. 12. Simons Center for Geometry and Physics at Stony Brook University, 100 Nicolls Road. 631-632-2800.


A Righteous Recipe for Longevity

Abstract: With bullets whizzing over his head in the Battle of the Bulge, Daniel Bukantz dug his foxhole and hunkered down because, as he freely admits, “I was scared.” At that moment, he had no guarantee he would ever get home, much less become a four-time Olympic fencer and five-time Olympic judge, or that he would live to be 90, which he will reach Tuesday. At the end of World War II, he was an American captain sweeping through Germany, liberating the survivors of the death camps. The woman he would marry had barely survived Auschwitz and was being held in a place known as Goat Town. To this day, Alice Ellenbogen Bukantz maintains: “When his division came through, we were in the same place on the same day. I always thank him on Veterans Day and tell him how I saw this handsome captain.” In actuality, they did not meet for a decade, after he had become an Olympian and a dentist, part of what Tom Brokaw has called the greatest generation. What is his recipe for living to 90? “Marry a Hungarian,” Bukantz said the other day while Alice was out of earshot — his regular suggestion that there has never been a dull moment. “My son has a lot of his mother,” Bukantz said. “Very determined.” The son, Jeff, was not the fencer his father was, but won two gold medals at the Maccabiah Games, refereed at two Olympics and was captain of the 2004 United States team that produced a gold by Mariel Zagunis, the first in fencing by an American in a century. And Jeff Bukantz remains in awe of his father. “He was the cream of the crop,” the son said. “And I was a jerk.”  Jeff would do nearly anything to win a match. One day after he had badgered the referee, a reporter called him “the McEnroe of fencing,” which was fine, except that John McEnroe from Douglaston had that marvelous touch while Jeff Bukantz from Forest Hills did not. A fellow fencer, Stacey Johnson, warned Jeff to wise up or he would never go anywhere in the fencing hierarchy, and for some reason he listened to her. Bukantz, an electric energy broker in Livingston, N.J., wrote a book, “Closing the Distance,” published in 2006, using a fencing term to describe the gap between him and his father’s illustrious career. Daniel Bukantz grew up in the Bronx, on the Grand Concourse, playing all the American sports. One day, a couple of friends said they had taken up fencing. “We kidded them because it had a ladylike reputation,” Bukantz said by telephone from Sarasota, Fla. “We tried it — and couldn’t move for four days. But after that, we became adept.” After fencing at City College, Bukantz lost two Olympiads to the war, just as more famous athletes did, knowing things could have turned out much worse. Bukantz was a five-time American champion but never won an Olympic medal. At Melbourne, Australia, in 1956, the entire United States foil team was Jewish, with Bukantz, Albert Axelrod, Harold Goldsmith, Nathaniel Lubell and Byron Krieger. At the world championships in Philadelphia in 1958, that nucleus almost pulled off one of the great upsets, losing to the Soviet Union, 9-7, as Bukantz won all four of his matches and Axelrod three. “All I could think of on that day was that two Jews from City College almost single-handedly beat the best team in the world,” Bukantz said. Nearly 44, he entered a major international event in 1961 and drew Jean-Claude Magnan of France, exactly half his age and soon to win two world titles. “I figured I was out, so I had a good steak dinner,” Bukantz said, omitting the part about the bottle of good red wine. In the match, he lulled his younger opponent into attacking his middle-aged midsection, producing a gigantic upset. After that, Bukantz concentrated on refereeing. At the 1964 Summer Games in Tokyo, there was a men’s sabre semifinal between a Soviet and a Pole. “The Poles hated the Russians,” he said. “The Russians said the only referee they would accept was Bukantz. I was apprehensive. What if I had to make a close call?”  He said the Soviets’ demand for the Jewish referee from the United States remains the crowning honor of his career. By then, he was married to Alice, who had lived in a part of Hungary that is now Slovakia. Her parents and 87 other relatives died in the Holocaust, but she got to New York — sanctuary city, and proud of it — in 1947, determined to make the most of the life inexplicably gifted to her. They were introduced by another dentist, Mark Grossman — “my former friend,” Daniel Bukantz says every time he tells the story. In fact, they get together in Florida, five decades later. Alice Bukantz still describes her husband as the dashing captain who helped liberate an insane world, an image worth more than any Olympic medal.


Bay’s First Homer Helps Extend Mets’ Streak

Abstract: In the first game of a successful doubleheader Tuesday against the Los Angeles Dodgers , Johan Santana was what he usually has been: a determined, focused competitor who overcame adversity. In the second game, Oliver Perez also was what he often has been: an inconsistent, undependable enigma who unraveled rapidly and left a mess for others to clean up. In the first game at blustery Citi Field, Santana (3-1) struggled early but extended the Mets ’ winning streak to five games with six shutout innings in a 4-0 victory. “I battled through it, inning after inning, out after out,” Santana said. In the second game, Perez squandered a three-run lead, was pulled by Manager Jerry Manuel after walking his third batter of the fourth inning and did not figure in the decision as the Mets rallied for a 10-5 victory. “He made the right decision to take me out,” Perez said. The sweep extended the Mets’ winning streak to six games. The Mets (12-9) have won eight of nine and they quietly moved into first place in the National League East when the Phillies lost, 6-2, in San Francisco. Powering the Mets in the second game was the previously slumping David Wright, who had three hits and drove in four runs, three of them on a bases-loaded triple in the sixth inning. “I’m glad I can finally contribute,” said Wright, who also had a hit in the first game and raised his batting average from .222 to .261. In the fifth inning of Game 2, Wright put the Mets ahead to stay with a single for his 1,000th career hit. The rookie Ike Davis drove home three runs in the second game, two on a double. The winning pitcher was Hisanori Takahashi (2-1), his second consecutive win in his second consecutive appearance in long relief. Last Friday, he got the victory after John Maine left in the fourth inning with an injury. Takahashi, 35, is a rookie in the major leagues but a 10-year veteran in Japan, mostly as a starter. Manuel said Takahashi has earned consideration for a starting assignment, but said he wanted to continue with Perez, at least for the time being. “We need Ollie to get it right,” Manuel said. “We need Ollie to figure it out.” Takahashi throws left-handed, as do three other starters in the Mets’ five-man rotation (Santana, Perez and Jon Niese). Maine, a right-hander, will start Wednesday afternoon’s series finale. Takahashi worked three and a third innings and gave up one run and two hits. He struck out five. “You can’t comprehend how valuable that is,” Wright said. Despite their recent success — owing mostly to excellent pitching and defense — the Mets started Tuesday’s doubleheader with the lowest batting average in the National League at .230. They got some encouragement in that area from both Wright and Jason Bay, who hit his first home run in Game 1 and tripled home a run in Game 2. “We were waiting for this,” Santana said of Bay’s home run. “It was great to see him smiling.” Both games were played in chilly temperatures and swirling winds. Because the first game began at 4:10 p.m., the stands were almost empty at the start. At the conclusion of the second game, most seats again were empty. Santana compared the atmosphere to that of a spring training game in Florida. “It felt like we were in Port St. Lucie,” Santana said. “Over all, it was a crazy day. That wasn’t fun at all. That was a weird day.” But he took pleasure in the result and said, as a team, that the Mets “are all motivated. “Definitely, we’re competing for sure,” he said. “We’re having fun.” Wright said the Mets’ 70-92 record last season might have helped bond some of the players. “I like the personality we have in here,” Wright said. “I like the attitude. Everybody’s clicked. Everybody’s meshed.” Wright scored what proved to be the winning run in the first game in the second inning on a bases-loaded wild pitch by starter Hiroki Kuroda (2-1). After Bay’s home run made the score 2-0 in the fourth, Luis Castillo added a two-run single with the bases loaded in the seventh. Bay joined the Mets as a free agent from Boston. He started the season poorly but went 5 for 9 last weekend against Atlanta. His average has risen to .267. Santana was wild early, walking the bases loaded in the second inning. He threw 100 pitches in the first five innings and finished with 115 pitches and six strikeouts. “I didn’t feel like I threw that many pitches,” Santana said. He said the wind caused his four-seam fastballs to cut more than he wanted and his two-seamers to sink too much. But he prevailed, unlike Perez. Santana tried to help Perez during spring training, Manuel said. “Johan did all he could do to help Ollie, especially with mechanics and that type of thing,” Manuel said. “In that sense, he has been some sort of mentor to him.” Between games on Tuesday, Santana said: “Ollie knows he has to go out there and try to help our team. That’s what he has been doing lately.”

Santana Johan
Bay Jason
New York Mets
Baseball
Los Angeles Dodgers


Jimmie Johnson Wins Shelby American at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

Abstract: LAS VEGAS (AP) — Jimmie Johnson needed luck to win a week ago at Auto Club Speedway in California. At Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday, in a city of chance, he needed no help at all to win the Shelby American Nascar Sprint Cup race. Johnson reeled in his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon, who had dominated the race, to win for the second consecutive week. He took four tires on the final pit stop, chased Gordon for 17 laps, then finally sailed past his Hendrick Motorsports teammate with 17 laps to go to wrap up the win. “No luck involved in that one, my friend,” his crew chief, Chad Knaus, told Johnson. The victory was the 49th of Johnson’s career and his fourth at the Las Vegas track. Gordon led 218 of the 267 laps while searching for his first victory in almost a year. He was out front when Kevin Conway’s spin brought out the final caution, and he debated his pitting strategy with his crew chief, Steve Letarte. The call was made at the last second for Gordon to come in, and Letarte changed just two tires to get Gordon back on the track before his competition. Knaus called for four tires, a decision that put Johnson fourth for the restart. Clint Bowyer, who did not pit, restarted as the leader with 34 laps to go. Gordon and Johnson immediately split him to move back to the front. Gordon held the top spot for 17 trips around the track, but he fretted several times as Johnson looked both inside and out. “Not much we can do about those four tires,” Gordon told his crew. “We’ll give it everything we’ve got.” Letarte replied: “I’m with you. Just do the best you can. Make it hard for him either way.” Gordon tried to hold off Johnson, but Johnson scooted past with 17 laps to go. He quickly pulled away, and Gordon faded to third, unable to hold off Kevin Harvick, who finished second to Johnson for the second consecutive week. “If we won the race, we’d look like geniuses — Steve would have,” Gordon said. “The fact that we lost the race, now Chad looks like a genius. I talked to Steve briefly after the race. He’s pretty upset, obviously. I think he just felt like more people were going to take two tires. Shoot, we were thinking for a split second to stay out. “I felt like we needed to come in and get some tires, but I felt like two tires was the right call, too.” Harvick said his Richard Childress Racing team had nothing to prove to Johnson. “We can run with them, and they know it,” he said. The roles were reversed a week ago in California, when a timely caution put Johnson in the lead. He had Harvick chasing him over the final laps, and Harvick appeared poised to take the win until he brushed the wall late. That victory frustrated some drivers who have grown tired of Johnson’s four-year reign as the Cup champion. “When you’re a good team, like last week, people were talking about, ‘Man, look how lucky they are,’ ” Gordon said of Johnson. “That’s not luck. You do everything you can as a team right, and when everything is clicking, good things happen.” But Gordon, for the first time maybe since his classic 2007 battle with Johnson for the championship, said he thought his team could keep pace with Johnson, his onetime protégé. “I’m disappointed, but at the same time, you know, we haven’t dominated like this in a very, very long time,” he said. “I’m very really excited about this race team. I think we’ve got more of what we showed today that, that we’re going to show a lot more.” Mark Martin finished fourth to give Hendrick three cars in the top 10. Matt Kenseth was fifth, followed by Joey Logano, Tony Stewart, Bowyer, Kasey Kahne and Greg Biffle.

Johnson Jimmie
Automobile Racing
National Assn of Stock Car Auto Racing


Donald Trump Gets Rock Star Greeting in Iowa

Abstract: AMES, Iowa — It probably made sense on paper: invite presidential candidates to visit the Iowa Republican Party’s tent in the parking lot before the big Iowa vs. Iowa State football game on Saturday. What planners did not anticipate was the portable mob scene that characterizes the candidacy of Donald J. Trump. Arriving more than an hour late, Mr. Trump offered a speech of less than a minute on the state party’s stage. But that was beside the point, as star-struck supporters greeted him like a stadium rocker during a sprawling tailgate party before kickoff. “Donald, you rock!” a young man shouted as Mr. Trump, encircled by a security team, walked through a parking lot. Another man fought his way into the mob and said, “Donald, I’m wearing your hat!” “Shook his hand. I shook his hand!” a burly student shouted to two friends, sounding faint with excitement. Three other Republican candidates not named Trump also glad-handed and posed for selfies among the tailgating football fans before the game. But their receptions were of a different order. Rarely has the contrast between a conventional politician and the celebrity candidacy of Mr. Trump seemed clearer. Who’s Winning the Presidential Campaign? History suggests that each party’s eventual nominee will emerge from 2015 in one of the top two or three positions, as measured by endorsements, fund-raising and polling. Many Iowa Republicans expected Mr. Trump’s lead in the primary race to be fleeting. On Friday night, a seasoned party activist compared him to “the bad boy you date over the summer before returning to college.” Instead, Mr. Trump continues to dominate Iowa polls as summer turns to fall. A Quinnipiac University poll of Iowa last week showed he is the first choice of all age groups of Republicans, including young people, who predominated outside Jack Trice Stadium, where the Iowa State Cyclones hosted the Iowa Hawkeyes. “We’re killing everybody in the polls,” Mr. Trump said in brief remarks from the stage. He wore a new “Make America Great Again” hat, this one in camouflage. He wished people luck with whichever team they supported, stepped down and began the walk back to his S.U.V., a knot of students and others pressing close. Though he said nothing about the issues of the day, the audience seemed satisfied. “It was pretty cool; we got to see him,” said Braiden Loreno, a sophomore. “I’m definitely voting for him.” The crowd of several hundred had waited more than an hour for Mr. Trump. They had chanted “Don-ald! Don-ald!” Cheers went up several times over false sightings. A sign read: “The Trump Will Set You Free.” (It was countered by a protester’s sign: “Mr. Hate, Leave My State.”) At 2:30, the appointed hour for Mr. Trump to speak, a candidate appeared and the crowd parted to reveal. ... Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin, running late. There was no applause for Mr. Walker, who for months had led in the polls in Iowa, but whose popularity in the Quinnipiac poll was measured at 3 percent. In brief remarks, Mr. Walker promised to “wreak havoc on Washington,” as he had in Wisconsin when he faced down thousands of pro-union protesters. Mr. Walker’s abbreviated version of his stump speech also included a veiled swipe at Mr. Trump. “It takes more than just talk,” he said. “It takes action. Actions speak louder than words.” Earlier, Senators Marco Rubio of Florida and Rand Paul of Kentucky worked the tailgaters, not all of whom were thrilled to have a presidential candidate and his entourage interfering with their meat grilling, beer drinking and game playing. “Come on, bro, this is a tailgate,” Dionne Harden, an Iowa State fan, protested as Mr. Rubio walked in front of him just as he was about to toss a bean bag. In a tent sponsored by the Iowa Corn Growers Association, Mr. Rubio faced a different kind of challenge when he was pressed on whether he supported federal support for ethanol. “As I’ve said before, I understand if people made an investment in something, you’re not going to just take it away from them,” Mr. Rubio told a group of farmers. “But eventually I do believe these energy resources have to be self-sustaining.” Jerry Mohr, a farmer who is chairman of the growers association, called Mr. Rubio’s position disappointing. Image Senator Marco Rubio of Florida at a tailgate party outside Jack Trice Stadium in Ames, Iowa, on Saturday. Credit Scott Morgan for The New York Times Mr. Rubio made a better impression on Evan Monson, an Iowa State junior, who praised him for hanging out at the Sigma Pi fraternity tailgate party. “Rubio was pretty cool,” he said. Mr. Paul had also spoken free-market truth to the corn industry in Iowa. He visited the growers’ tent and strolled the parking lots with a more manageable level of attention than Mr. Trump. Offered a beer, Mr. Paul pleaded that he had to fly to St. Louis later to present a Homemakers Award to his mother at a gathering of the Eagle Forum, the conservative group founded by Phyllis Schlafly. Scott Scheidel, an insurance broker, called out to Mr. Paul. “You’re my man. Come over to my tailgate, I’ll give you the microphone,” he said. Mr. Paul greeted him but moved on. Another fan, Keven Malec, who had driven from Illinois to visit a daughter at Iowa State, offered Mr. Paul a choice of two sandwiches he was grilling. “We’ve got a Cyclone and we’ve got a Hawkeye,” he said. “I don’t want to take sides, but the Hawkeye tastes like chicken.” But it was Mr. Trump who dominated the show. At a rally earlier in the day, Mr. Trump had criticized Ben Carson, the retired surgeon who has surged in Iowa polls to claim second place, for being too mild-mannered to occupy the Oval Office. “I don’t think Ben has the energy,” Mr. Trump said. “Ben is a nice man, but when you’re negotiating against China and you’re negotiating against these Japanese guys that are going to come against you in waves, and they think we’re all a bunch of jerks because our leaders are so stupid and so incompetent and so inept, we need people that are really smart, that have tremendous deal-making skills and that have great, great energy.” His visit to the Ames tailgate scene, though short, was memorable. After his remarks, he made his way through the parking lot, then climbed into a waiting black Suburban. He rolled down his window, and as he shot out his arm to wave goodbye, a diamond cuff link sparkled in the sun.

2016 Presidential Election
Donald Trump
Iowa
Republicans
Marco Rubio
Scott Walker
Rand Paul