Even before the Metropolitan Opera 's Saturday matinee of Mozart 's `` Magic Flute '' began , this family-friendly version of Julie Taymor 's 2004 production looked to be a huge success .

Children were everywhere , a rare sight at the venerable institution .

They were having pictures taken in front of the house , dashing up and down the stairs of the Grand Promenade and , before long , sitting up in their seats all over the auditorium .

Peter Gelb , the Met 's new general manager , whose multifaceted outreach efforts have already become a model for opera companies everywhere , has rightly stated that the major impediment to making this art form accessible to children is that most operas are simply too long .

So besides translating the text from German into English , the solution here was to cut the production , which normally lasts 3 hours 10 minutes , down to 100 minutes without an intermission .

Actually the matinee clocked in at close to two hours , but few of the children seemed to mind .

The audience was remarkably attentive and well behaved .

Of course one strict Met protocol -- if you leave the auditorium , you are not allowed re-entry until intermission -- was wisely ditched for the day , so children could take restroom breaks .

Shortening the score involved what must have been painstaking decisions .

The overture and several entire arias and ensembles were cut .

Other arias were abridged through some very deft trims .

Otherwise the Met went all out .

The cast was excellent , and James Levine conducted .

The very free English translation by the poet J . D . McClatchy was clever and singable .

Papageno , still without a girlfriend and miserable , asks forlornly : `` Is my face just one big puddle .

Are n't I cute enough to cuddle .

`` The Papageno , Nathan Gunn , was certainly cute enough .

This dynamic baritone exuded charm and cavorted about the stage like an acrobat .

At one point he tried to flee danger by scurrying up the side of a huge plastic tube he was trapped in , only to slide back down , landing with the floppy-limbed aplomb of a Charlie Chaplin .

He seemed the darling of every child in attendance -LRB- and the audience included Mr. Gunn 's five -RRB- .

The stupendous bass René Pape was Sarastro .

A lovely , clear-voiced lyric soprano , Ying Huang , in her debut role at the Met , was an alluring Pamina .

Matthew Polenzani brought his sweet tenor voice and wholesome appeal to Prince Tamino .

The agile coloratura soprano Erika Miklosa was a vocally fearless and aptly chilling Queen of the Night .

As the wicked Monostatos , the trim tenor Greg Fedderly was unrecognizable with his flabby , fake pot belly , which induced giggles every time he exposed it .

I am on record as being no fan of Ms. Taymor 's production , which to me is a mishmash of imagery , so cluttered with puppets , flying objects and fire-breathing statues that it overwhelms Mozart 's music .

But this show was not presented with me in mind .

So let me offer the reactions of three young attendees .

Amitav Mitra , my neighbor , who is 8 , came as my guest .

And Kira and Jonah Newmark , 9 and 7 , the children of friends , were also glad to share their critiques afterwards .

For Amitav , this was his first opera .

Though Jonah had seen opera videos at home with his sister , he too was trying the real thing for the first time .

Kira , a burgeoning opera buff , has attended , as she put it , `` real three-hour operas , '' most recently `` The Barber of Seville '' at the New York City Opera .

Not surprisingly Ms. Taymor 's fanciful sets , costumes and puppets won raves from this trio of critics .

But their most revealing comments were about the singing and the story .

The singing `` was loud , '' Amitav said .

Jonah added , `` It was too loud . ''

Kira more or less agreed .

I pressed them about this .

Today , when children hear amplified music everywhere , often channeled right into their ears through headphones , how could unamplified singing seem too loud .

Amitav clarified their reactions when he said that the singing was `` too loud for human voices , '' adding , `` I never thought voices could do that . ''

So their reaction was not a complaint about excessive volume , but rather an attempt to explain the awesome impression made by Ms. Miklosa 's dazzlingly high vocal flights as the Queen of the Night , or Mr. Pape 's unearthly powerful bass voice , or the amassed chorus in the temple scenes .

It takes a while for young opera neophytes to adjust to such mind-boggling voices , to realize that this strange , unamplified `` loudness '' is actually amazing .

The other common reaction concerned the story , which all three children enjoyed .

Kira , though , was struck by the gravity of Prince Tamino 's dilemma .

`` Tamino was a little too serious for me , '' she said , adding : `` He never does anything that 's funny .

He takes things seriously . ``

I think Mr. Levine , who conducted a glowing and elegant performance , would be pleased by Kira 's reaction .

Mr. Levine made certain that some of the opera 's most somber episodes were included , like the long scene in which the confused Tamino is confronted by the austere Speaker -LRB- David Pittsinger -RRB- , a stalwart member of Sarastro 's brotherhood , at the entrance to the temple .

Like most fairy tales `` The Magic Flute '' is a mysterious story of good and evil .

Naturally , Ms. Taymor 's production makes the opera 's monsters quite charming , like the puppet bears who are enchanted by Tamino 's magic flute .

And the boys singing the kindly Three Spirits -LRB- Bennett Kosma , Jesse Burnside Murray and Jacob A . Wade -RRB- are turned spectral and eerie , with their bodies painted white and Methuselah beards .

This `` Magic Flute '' was the first Met opera that was transmitted live in high-definition video to some 100 movie theaters around the world .

Ultimately the point of this technological outreach is to entice newcomers into attending opera performances .

The children I spoke with are likely to be back .

Summarizing his reactions to `` The Magic Flute , '' Jonah said , `` I do n't think it 's going to be the best opera I 'm going to go to in my life . ``

What he meant , explaining further , was , `` I 'm , like , going to go to others that will be even better . ``

MUSIC .

Summary: Julie Taymor family friendly production of Mozart 's The Magic Flute at Metropolitan Opera features libretto translated into English and has been cut from nearly four hours to less than two .

Summary: Is filled with puppets and elaborate costumes that appeal to children .

Summary: Production is part of Met general manager Peter Gelb 's initiative to expand opera audience .

Summary: Photos .


When it comes to spectacle , Hollywood enjoys nothing better than a nasty legal battle between two determined and egotistical adversaries : Bette Davis meets Joan Crawford , in a courtroom .

In the past such face-offs have featured prominent figures like the former Disney chairman Michael D . Eisner , the DreamWorks co-founder Jeffrey Katzenberg , the superagent Michael S . Ovitz , the humorist Art Buchwald and the actress-writer Joan Collins .

Many of them cringed to hear their private comments and inner thoughts offered up for public consumption .

And so may it go if the headline-making book publisher Judith Regan proceeds with a lawsuit her lawyers have threatened against the News Corporation , which owns HarperCollins , the publishing house that fired her in December after the O . J . Simpson book and television project imploded .

In an interview last week Ms. Regan 's lawyer , Bert Fields , said he was preparing to file a lawsuit for libel and wrongful termination against the News Corporation shortly after the New Year because of allegations that she had been fired after making anti-Semitic remarks during a heated phone conversation with a company lawyer .

`` My present thought is that we would sue not just for breach of contract but for libel , '' he said .

`` They issued false and defamatory statements about Judith .

This has been terribly destructive to her career , and I think the damages could be huge . ``

A News Corporation spokesman declined to comment officially because the matter involved an imminent lawsuit , but he provided what he said was the company view : the News Corporation was confident about its case and not worried that a third party , a temporary worker who was briefly Ms. Regan 's assistant , had emerged to support Ms. Regan 's account of the conversation that led to the dismissal .

`` We 're very confident that what we said is not false , `` said the company executive , who added that the News Corporation chairman , Rupert Murdoch , was taking an active interest in the matter .

`` But this seems to be heading more toward a public relations war than a litigation . ''

Well , naturally so .

In Hollywood battles a war of words often precedes legal formalities , and Mr. Fields has plenty of experience .

He has played legal counselor in headline-grabbing cases like Mr. Katzenberg versus the Walt Disney Company in the mid-1990s , and two Tom Cruise defamation cases , in Britain in 1998 and in California in 2003 , both over allegations that he was homosexual .

In those instances Mr. Katzenberg and Mr. Cruise got satisfaction , either financial or legal , although they had to suffer through headlines that , in Mr. Cruise 's case , repeated the unsupported allegations and , in Mr. Katzenberg 's case , unearthed a nasty remark about his diminutive height .

But a case involving Ms. Regan may well prove to be uglier and more prurient .

Legal scholars and prominent litigators said that proving libel is extremely difficult , but it opens the door to a public airing of the litigants ' private affairs .

`` Libel is a very , very high mountain of proof to climb , and you can get destroyed in the process , '' said Pierce O'Donnell , a leading litigator who successfully sued Paramount in the 1980s for Mr. Buchwald , who contended that the studio had stolen his screenplay idea in its movie `` Coming to America . ''

Ms. Regan , whose lively personal life is already well-worn fodder for tabloid gossip , will find lawyers poring over every off-color remark she may have made , Mr. O'Donnell said .

Former colleagues have already emerged to confirm that she was reprimanded in the past for making an anti-Semitic remark at work .

Mr. O'Donnell said : `` She will open herself up to every scurrilous allegation .

She will not enjoy one minute of this litigation .

They 'll hire a bulldog , and it 'll be a bloodletting . ``

Meanwhile HarperCollins , which owns ReganBooks , would probably face uncomfortable questions about why it tolerated Ms. Regan for so long if the company found her behavior so objectionable .

And executives would also have to submit to a detailed examination of their decision-making process in the Simpson project , a book titled `` If I Did It '' and a television interview conducted by Ms. Regan , which unleashed such a cascade of public outrage that both were canceled .

`` Everything that went on will get into evidence , '' Mr. Fields promised .

`` What really happened with that interview , what Jane Friedman , '' the president of HarperCollins and Ms. Regan 's former boss , `` is really like . ''

A significant issue for a jury , Mr. O'Donnell said , would be whether the accusations of anti-Semitism were merely a pretext for getting rid of the controversial publisher .

HarperCollins `` may say that this was the straw that broke the camel 's back , but the other side may say the straw was really the embarrassment over O . J . , `` he said .

The breach-of-contract matter might be considered a garden-variety case , except for the accusation of anti-Semitism .

With four years remaining on her contract , Ms. Regan would have been paid several million dollars had she not been fired for cause , a general term that usually includes behavior like dishonesty , failure to carry out orders or sexual harassment .

But the charge of anti-Semitism itself is not a clear-cut one for either side , legal experts said .

In its termination letter News Corporation did not specify the reason for Ms. Regan 's dismissal , though the company did later release its account of the allegedly anti-Semitic remarks to the news media .

Mr. Fields said he planned to argue that a HarperCollins lawyer , Mark Jackson , knew that Ms. Regan never said that a `` Jewish cabal '' was in league against her during that phone conversation .

`` He stated it , knowing it was false , '' Mr. Fields said .

`` These days people do n't want much to do with an anti-Semite or an anti-black person . ``

Others said it was more complicated .

`` It really is a he said-she said , '' said Alan R . Friedman , a leading New York entertainment lawyer .

`` Both sides have their reasons .

Both witnesses have reason to be less than objective .

And you have to show that it has an impact on her reputation .

Will this really change anyone 's opinion of Judith Regan , a ` Jewish cabal ' .

This is n't like denying that the Holocaust occurred .

That 's just a burden . ``

David R . Ginsburg , who is executive director of the entertainment law program at the University of California , Los Angeles , said that if a jury believed she made the remark , it would be a basis for firing .

`` Taking it in the abstract , it is damaging for a company to take no action while a senior executive purportedly makes anti-Semitic remarks , '' he said .

Several lawyers said they imagined that the matter would never have received this much attention if not for the furor over O . J . Simpson .

And they said they believed it would be settled quietly once the media noise died down because the negative implications for both sides were so great .

On the eve of the new year there were indications that a window might open toward conciliation .

Mr. Fields suggested an apology : `` In my view they should retract what they said .

If they did , it might limit the damages .

We 'd still sue for breach of contract , but we might not sue for libel . ``

The News Corporation executive said the company would prefer to settle the matter quietly .

`` We 'd like this to go away quickly , amicably and professionally , `` he said .

`` We 're not going to settle at any price .

We have a very strong case .

But having the winning case does n't mean you want to go to court . `` .

Summary: Judith Regan says she is preparing to file lawsuit against News Corp , Rupert Murdoch-owned media giant that owns Harper Collins publishing house , which fired her after O J Simpson book project imploded .

Summary: Regan 's lawyer Bert Fields says libel and wrongful termination suit is related to allegations that Regan had been fired after making anti-Semitic remarks during heated phone conversation with company lawyer .

Summary: News Corp declines to comment officially .

Summary: Photos .

Summary: Chart of other face-offs between famous names and large corporations .


Last year 's debut of Howard Stern 's radio show on Sirius Satellite Radio put the technology on the map , raising the public 's awareness of satellite radio and helping to boost significantly subscriber totals for Sirius and its larger rival , XM Satellite Radio .

Today , thanks in part to the outsize radio personality , the Stern Effect has increased Sirius 's base to about six million subscribers , up 80 percent from one year ago .

XM has increased its numbers by more than 30 percent , ending 2006 with 7.7 to 7.9 million customers .

`` There is a tendency to view satellite radio as if the glass is half empty , and that it is a failure or disappointment , '' said Craig Moffett , senior cable analyst for Sanford C . Bernstein .

`` In fact , nothing could be further from the truth , '' he said .

`` Satellite radio is growing faster than any consumer product except for the iPod . ''

But Sirius and XM shares have taken a battering on Wall Street , with prices for both off about 50 percent from their year-ago levels .

On Friday , Sirius closed at $ 3.54 , while XM ended the year at $ 14.45.

And now , the industry may be getting ready to try an even more dramatic third act -- a possible attempt to merge the two services .

The benefits of a merger have been promoted by the chief executive of Sirius , Mel Karmazin , for a number of months , and Sirius officials continue to say that a merger would be a good thing .

XM has not commented on the possibility , and neither company has said whether they have actually discussed the issue .

`` When you have two companies in the same industry , we have a similar cost structure .

Clearly , a merger makes sense from an investor 's point of view to reduce costs , and to have a better return , `` said David Frear , the chief financial officer for Sirius .

Both companies have continued to lose hundreds of millions of dollars because of marketing and other subscriber acquisition expenses .

During the year , XM sharply lowered its expectations for 2006 subscriber levels , from January 's predicted end-of-year total of 9 million to a maximum of 7.9 million .

-LRB- Sirius reduced its subscription projection by about 100,000 . -RRB-

Nate Davis , XM 's president , said his company believed that the slower-than-expected growth rate was of its own making and not a result of any market indifference .

`` We did not stimulate the market with new products , '' he said .

XM 's most talked-about receivers , the Pioneer Inno and Samsung Helix , were first announced one year ago .

Several new receiver models will be introduced later in 2007 .

In addition , production of some receivers was temporarily halted to stop a condition that was allowing satellite signals to be picked up by neighboring vehicles .

The hiccups typical of fledgling industries appear to be over .

Both companies have their programming lineups largely in place and a wide range of receivers available in retail stores .

In addition to Howard Stern , Sirius features personalities like Deepak Chopra , Judith Regan , Richard Simmons and Martha Stewart .

Sports programming includes N.B.A. , N.F.L. , and N.H.L. games .

Nascar programming begins this year .

XM has shows with hosts including Bob Dylan , Ellen Degeneres , `` Good Morning America '' personalities , and Oprah Winfrey .

XM broadcasts every Major League Baseball game as well as P.G.A. golf .

Yet the vast majority of programming remains duplicative .

Each company offers a wide variety of rock , pop , folk , and other musical genres , as well as the same news channels , which include the BBC , CNN , Fox , and MSNBC .

Sirius and XM each claim that their music channels are more compelling than the competition 's , but most casual listeners would be hard-pressed to tell the difference .

`` The services mirror each other tremendously , '' said Richard Doherty , an analyst with the Envisioneering Group , a research firm .

`` More people know that one service has Howard Stern than know which one has him . ''

Except for a relatively small handful of viewers looking for particular programs , consumers searching for a satellite service in a retail store often make their decision not on the merits of one over the other , but which one is more convenient to buy .

`` For the subscriber , it all comes down to which one of the two is closer to the cash register .

Customers can not tell the difference between the two services , `` Mr. Moffett said .

Customer choice will play an even smaller role in the coming years as both companies come to rely more on selling satellite radio as a factory-installed option on new cars , and less on receivers sold at retail stores .

Both companies have exclusive agreements with the automobile companies .

Customers typically get free service for a number of months , and then must pay $ 12.95 a month to continue listening .

XM has exclusive arrangements with General Motors , Honda , Hyundai , Nissan and Porsche .

Sirius has similar alliances with BMW , DaimlerChrysler , Ford , Kia and VW-Audi .

Today , about 63 percent of XM 's subscribers are buyers of new cars , and Sirius 's new subscribers are derived equally from new car and after-market sales .

As more cars are equipped with satellite radios , the new car market could grow to as high as 70 percent of sales in the next few years , Mr. Moffett said .

`` We see greater and greater demand in the car market , '' said Mr. Davis of XM .

`` And we think the used car market will be an opportunity to sell to new subscribers . ''

Used car subscribers incur no additional hardware costs if the receiver is already in place .

And if the companies were to merge and effectively double their subscriber base , the new company could reduce programming costs through increased negotiating clout , removal of duplicative channels and elimination of redundant employees .

Whether Sirius and XM attempt to merge , a number of variables that will determine the size of the industry 's success remain unknown .

They include the number of new cars that will be equipped with satellite radio receivers .

The percentage of new car owners who will subscribe after the free trial period ends .

And whether purchasers of used cars equipped with satellite radio will be more or less likely to subscribe than new car owners .

The business may also be vulnerable to subscription overload , Mr. Doherty said , if consumers find that monthly recurring expenses from cellphone bills , cable TV , and other services are too high .

Yet even if that is true , there is little doubt that the concept of satellite radio is no longer alien to consumers .

According to Sirius , 83 percent of consumers aged 18 to 55 are now aware of the technology .

Mr. Frear became personally cognizant of that when he tried to rent a car with a Sirius radio recently but found they were all taken .

`` Every year , satellite radio just sinks deeper and deeper into the public consciousness , '' he said .

Correction : January 16 , 2007 , Tuesday An article in Business Day on Jan . 1 about the increase in subscribers for Sirius Satellite Radio and its rival , XM Satellite Radio , misstated one news channel that is offered by both companies .

It is CNBC , not MSNBC .

Summary: Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio may try merger .

Summary: Benefits of merger have been promoted by Sirius chief executive Mel Karmazin and Sirius officials continue to say that merger would be good thing .

Summary: XM has not commented on possibility , and neither company has said whether they have actually discussed issue .

Summary: Graphs .

Summary: Photos .


The business of grain marketing has not been its usual sleepy self lately in Western Canada .

Plans by the government to strip the Canadian Wheat Board of its monopoly control over most of the country 's wheat and barley exports have provoked a fight that is pitting farmer against farmer and the agency against the government .

The wheat board , founded 75 years ago as part of a wave of cooperative ventures for improving farmers ' lives , is now one of the world 's largest grain traders , with annual sales of $ 4 billion to $ 6 billion .

The board is , in many respects , among the last of the cooperative projects that remains true to its original goals .

But those goals now have little in common with the open market philosophy of the minority Conservative government that came to power just under a year ago .

Shortly before Christmas , that clash resulted in an unusual cabinet order to fire the wheat board 's president , Adrian Measner .

The fate of the board will be eagerly awaited in the United States , where farm groups have unsuccessfully challenged the Canadian board 's monopoly .

Among the companies likely to move into Canada 's export market , if it is opened , are commercial grain traders like Cargill of Minneapolis and Archer Daniels Midland of Decatur , Ill .

`` There is absolutely no doubt that part of the reason the Conservative government is pushing as hard as it is pushing is , I suspect , that they are feeling pressure from the Americans , '' said Murray Fulton , an agriculture economist who directs a center for the study of cooperatives at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon .

The wheat board concept is simple .

In exchange for its monopoly over wheat destined for export from Canada 's three prairie provinces , as well as a small part of British Columbia , it pays every farmer the same average sale price .

Overall , Professor Fulton said , price averaging has provided most farmers with greater stability and higher prices than they would have obtained in an open market .

A study commissioned by the wheat board on barley prices released in December gives more specifics .

The report , by Richard S . Gray of the University of Saskatchewan , Andrew Schmitz of the University of Florida and Troy G . Schmitz at Arizona State University , concluded that farmers ' barley revenue from the wheat board was 59 million Canadian dollars higher from 1995 to 2004 than it would have been in an open market system .

Wheat board supporters argue that the board also helps farmers by negotiating terms with railways and ports .

The system seems to have supporters on the buyers ' side as well .

It provides a more uniform grading of grains than is available in the United States , for instance .

But averaging prices has a significant drawback for some farmers .

By definition , an average price is often lower than what individual farmers who live near the United States border could obtain by directly trucking their harvest south .

The province of Alberta , home to Prime Minister Stephen Harper , has long opposed the board for that reason , among others .

Chuck Strahl , the minister of agriculture , has repeatedly said that all he wants is to give farmers the choice of pooling their risk through the wheat board or going out on their own .

`` We are trying to get more marketing choice for farmers , '' he told the House of Commons in December .

`` We want to put more money in their pockets .

We want them to take advantage of their own expertise . ``

Professor Fulton argued in a separate study published last month that the wheat board can not survive in an open market .

Indeed , its history before it was granted a monopoly supports that idea .

The operation floundered as farmers chose the open market when prices were high , returning to the board only during hard times .

Mr. Strahl has not found it easy to end the board 's monopoly .

A 1998 law gave farmers control of the board by letting them directly elect 10 of its 15 directors , with the balance , including the president , being appointed by the government .

-LRB- Because the government guarantees the board 's finances , however , it retained the power to issue cabinet orders . -RRB-

The Conservatives , in the minority , have been unable to get any of the other parties to support changes in the wheat board .

An attempt earlier this year to amend the board 's legislation was resoundingly defeated by opposition parties .

And when five wheat board positions came up for election this fall , the government heavily promoted candidates who backed its plan .

Farmers , however , responded by electing four candidates who favor the current monopoly .

Now Mr. Strahl plans a vote on creating an open barley market early in 2007 .

But he has also made it clear that the government will not be bound by its results .

The level of support for the government 's open market plan is unclear .

Even Mr. Strahl said during recent committee testimony : `` I think I 've had 4,500 letters on wheat board issues since I 've been in office .

They are almost equally divided . ``

Mr. Measner , a 34-year veteran of the wheat board , had become something of a minor celebrity by rebuffing orders from Mr. Strahl and his staff to stop promoting the monopoly system and start backing the government 's plan .

Before his dismissal on Dec . 22 , Mr. Measner began a court challenge of a cabinet order requiring the board to support the government , arguing that it is unconstitutional and outside the government 's power over the board .

`` The government has a direction they 're taking the wheat board , and it does n't matter what people say or what people want , `` Mr. Measner said in an interview from his home after his firing .

`` My position is that it should be farmers making the decision . ''

Ken Ritter , a farmer from Saskatchewan who is the board 's chairman , said the legal challenge of the government 's orders will continue as will the board 's campaign to keep the current system .

`` This is very , very divisive , '' Mr. Ritter said .

`` This has gone on for 40 years . ''

Professor Fulton said that by firing Mr. Measner and attempting to gag the board , the government runs the danger of alienating even some of the farmers who back its open market position .

`` The view seems to be shifting , '' Professor Fulton said .

`` Even farmers who might support a change in the wheat board are saying , why do it this way . '' .

Summary: Plans by Canada to strip Canadian Wheat Board of its strict control of wheat and barley exports provokes fight between farmers and government .

Summary: Board , founded 75 years ago , pays all farmers average sale price over market value in exchange for monopoly .

Summary: Supporters say system helps farmers negotiate terms with buyers while critics say some living near United States border could potentially generate profits higher than average price .

Summary: Vote is planned on creating open market .

Summary: Photo .


In brand-new offices with a still-empty game room and enough space to triple their staff of nearly 30 , a trio of entrepreneurs is leading an Internet start-up with an improbable mission : to out-Google Google .

The three started Powerset , a company whose aim is to deliver better answers than any other search engine -- including Google -- by letting users type questions in plain English .

And they have made believers of Silicon Valley investors whose fortunes turn on identifying the next big thing .

`` There 's definitely a segment of the market that thinks we are crazy , `` said Charles Moldow , a partner at Foundation Capital , a venture capital firm that is Powerset 's principal financial backer .

`` In 2000 , some people thought Google was crazy . ''

Powerset is hardly alone .

Even as Google continues to outmaneuver its main search rivals , Yahoo and Microsoft , plenty of newcomers -- with names like hakia , ChaCha and Snap -- are trying to beat the company at its own game .

And Wikia Inc . , a company started by a founder of Wikipedia , plans to develop a search engine that , like the popular Web-based encyclopedia , would be built by a community of programmers and users .

These ambitious quests reflect the renewed optimism sweeping technology centers like Silicon Valley and fueling a nascent Internet boom .

It also shows how much the new Internet economy resembles a planetary system where everything and everyone orbits around search in general , and around Google in particular .

Silicon Valley is filled with start-ups whose main business proposition is to be bought by Google , or for that matter by Yahoo or Microsoft .

Countless other start-ups rely on Google as their primary driver of traffic or on Google 's powerful advertising system as their primary source of income .

Virtually all new companies compete with Google for scarce engineering talent .

And divining Google 's next move has become a fixation for scores of technology blogs and a favorite parlor game among technology investors .

`` There is way too much obsession with search , as if it were the end of the world , '' said Esther Dyson , a well-known technology investor and forecaster .

`` Google equals money equals search equals search advertising .

It all gets combined as if this is the last great business model . ``

It may not be the last great business model , but Google has proved that search linked to advertising is a very large and lucrative business , and everyone -- including Ms. Dyson , who invested a small sum in Powerset -- seems to want a piece of it .

Since the beginning of 2004 , venture capitalists have put nearly $ 350 million into no fewer than 79 start-ups that had something to do with Internet search , according to the National Venture Capital Association , an industry group .

An overwhelming majority are not trying to take Google head on , but rather are focusing on specialized slices of the search world , like searching for videos , blog postings or medical information .

Since Google 's stated mission is to organize all of the world 's information , they may still find themselves in the search giant 's cross hairs .

That is not necessarily bad , as being acquired by Google could be a financial bonanza for some of these entrepreneurs and investors .

But in the current boom , there is money even for those with the audacious goal of becoming a better Google .

Powerset recently received $ 12.5 million in financing .

Hakia , which like Powerset is trying to create a `` natural language '' search engine , got $ 16 million .

Another $ 16 million went to Snap , which has focused on presenting search results in a more compelling way and is experimenting with a new advertising model .

And ChaCha , which uses paid researchers that act as virtual reference librarians to provide answers to users ' queries , got $ 6.1 million .

Still , recent history suggests that gaining traction is going to be difficult .

Of dozens of search start-ups that were introduced in recent years , none had more than a 1 percent share of the United States search market in November , according to Nielsen NetRatings , a research firm that measures Internet traffic .

Amassing a large audience has proved to be a challenge even for those with a track record and resources .

Consider A9 , a search engine owned by Amazon.com that received positive reviews when it began in 2004 and was run by Udi Manber , a widely recognized search specialist .

Despite some innovative features and early successes , A9 has captured only a tiny share of the market .

Mr. Manber now works for Google , where he is vice president of engineering .

The setback apparently has not stopped Amazon or its chief executive , Jeffrey P . Bezos , from pursuing profits in search .

ChaCha said it counts an investment company owned by Mr. Bezos among its backers , and Amazon is an investor in Wikia .

An Amazon spokeswoman said Mr. Bezos does not comment about his personal investments .

Some start-ups are similarly bullish .

`` We expect to be one of the top three search engines , '' said Riza C . Berkan , the chief executive of hakia .

It is a bold claim , given that hakia 's technology is not yet ready for prime time , and Mr. Berkan readily concedes it will take time to perfect it .

The dream , however , is quintessential Silicon Valley .

`` It is hard for me to believe that anybody thinks they can take Google 's business from Google , `` said Randy Komisar , a venture capitalist who was once known as Silicon Valley 's `` virtual C.E.O. '' for his role as a mentor to scores of technology firms .

`` But to call the game over because Google has been such a success would be to deny history . ''

In some ways , the willingness of so many to make multimillion-dollar investments to take on Google and other search companies represents a startling change .

In the late 1990s , when Microsoft dominated the technology world , inventors and investors did everything they could to avoid competing with the software company .

Yet many of today 's search start-ups are putting themselves squarely in the path of the Google steamroller .

Most explain that decision in similar ways .

They say that Google 's dominance today is different from Microsoft 's in the late 90s when its operating system was a virtual monopoly and nearly impossible to break .

In the Internet search industry , `` you earn your right to be in business every day , page view after page view , click after click , '' said Barney Pell , a founder and the chief executive of Powerset , whose search service is not yet available .

They also say that the market for search simply is too large to resist .

Google , which , according to Nielsen , handles about half of all Internet searches in the United States , is valued at an astonishing $ 141 billion .

So , the reasoning goes , anyone who can grab even a small slice of the search market could be well rewarded .

`` You do n't need to be No . 1 to be worth billions of dollars , `` said Allen Morgan , a partner at Mayfield Fund , a venture capital firm that invested $ 10 million in Snap .

The company is also backed by Bill Gross , an Internet financier who pioneered the idea of linking ads and search results , only to see Google seize the powerful business model and improve on it .

Almost all of today 's search entrepreneurs also say that Google 's success lends credibility to their own long-shot quest .

When Lawrence Page and Sergey Brin first started tinkering with what would become Google , other search engines like AltaVista and Lycos and Excite were dominant .

But the companies that owned them were distracted by efforts to diversify their businesses , and they took their eye off the ball of Internetsearch and stopped innovating .

Some now say that search has not evolved much in years , and that Google is similarly distracted as it introduces new products like word processors , spreadsheets and online payment systems and expands into online video , social networking and other businesses .

`` The more Google starts to think about taking on Microsoft , the less it is a pure search play , and the more it opens the door for new innovations , '' said Mr. Moldow , the Foundation Capital partner .

`` That 's great for us . ``

But at the same time , Google , Yahoo and Microsoft have thousands of engineers , including some of the world 's top search specialists , working on improving their search results .

And they have spent billions building vast computer networks so they can respond instantly to the endless stream of queries from around the world .

Search `` is becoming an increasingly capital-intensive business , '' said Marissa Mayer , Google 's vice president for search .

That makes it harder for start-ups to catch up to the giants , she said .

That is not stopping entrepreneurs from betting that they can .

Powerset has search and natural-language experts among its two dozen employees , including former top engineers from Yahoo and a former chief linguist from Ask Jeeves , Ask.com' s predecessor .

They are the kind of people who could easily land jobs at Google or Microsoft or Yahoo .

Steve Newcomb , a Powerset founder and veteran of several successful start-ups , said his company could become the next Google .

Or , he said , if Google or someone else perfected natural-language search before Powerset , then his company would make a great acquisition for one of the other search companies .

`` We are a huge story no matter what , '' he said .

Ms. Dyson , the technology commentator and Powerset investor , captured the optimism more concisely and with less swagger .

`` I love Google , '' she said , `` but I love the march of history . '' .

Summary: Search-engine companies such as Powerset , hakia , ChaCha and Snap are trying to be next Google .

Summary: Wikia Inc , company started by founder of Wikipedia , plans to develop search engine that , like popular Web-based encyclopedia , would be built by community of programmers and users .

Summary: These ambitious quests reflect renewed optimism sweeping technology centers like Silicon Valley and fueling nascent Internet boom .

Summary: It also shows how much new Internet economy resembles planetary system where everything and everyone orbits around search in general , and around Google in particular .

Summary: Photo .


As the Jewel of the Seas , a luxury cruise ship owned by Royal Caribbean , steamed down the coast toward Bermuda in late October , there were plenty of distractions , including two Olympic-size pools , Latin dance lessons and Boozer Bingo .

But Birdie Jaworski was having none of it .

Ms. Jaworski , a single mother who sells Avon products in tiny Las Vegas , N.M. , instead spent much of her time inside the ship 's lounges and meeting rooms with other book enthusiasts , listening to authors like Elinor Lipman -LRB- `` My Latest Grievance '' -RRB- , Terri Jentz -LRB- `` Strange Piece of Paradise '' -RRB- , and Lynnette Khalfani -LRB- `` The Money Coach 's Guide to Your First Million `` -RRB- .

`` I was having so much fun hanging out with people with the same literary interests as me , '' said Ms. Jaworski , who runs a book club in her hometown and is herself an aspiring author .

Ms. Jaworski was one of about 150 book lovers aboard the ship for a five-day literary-themed cruise out of Boston .

Known as Book It to Bermuda , it is just the latest example of a growing genre of cruises that could be called Ship Lit .

Often sponsored by publishers , the cruises , aboard commercial liners , feature popular authors who give readings and seminars -- even knitting lessons -- to boatfuls of book lovers .

Ms. Jaworski was particularly impressed with a presentation by Ms. Jentz , whose book recounts a brutal attack she survived in Oregon 30 years ago , and subsequent journey back to the scene to investigate .

The seas were rough that day , according Ms. Jaworski , so Ms. Jentz delivered her presentation sitting down .

`` I enjoyed it , even though I was feeling a little queasy , '' said Ms. Jaworski .

For authors and their publishers , the cruises offer an opportunity to promote their books to a captive audience of hundreds of enthusiastic readers .

People tend to read a lot on cruises , and the profile of a typical Ship Lit cruise customer -- older and female -- is an especially good match for romance , health and fitness books , publishers say .

`` It 's become increasingly difficult to create and build a book and make it successful , `` says Keith Fox , president of McGraw-Hill Professional , the division of the McGraw-Hill Companies that published Ms. Khalfani 's financial advice book .

Literary cruises , he said , are `` an opportunity for us to get our authors in front of a demographic that loves books . ''

Authors say the environment makes for a special experience .

`` You get to connect with people in a way that you never would at a bookshop , '' Ms. Khalfani said .

`` I had people stopping me in the bathroom , in the spa .

I probably gave another three or four minisessions just sitting around talking shop . ``

The feeling was mutual .

`` Bermuda was stunning , but the authors made the cruise , '' says Julie Rogers , a self-described `` crazed reader '' from San Jose , Calif . , who was on the cruise .

The company that has done the most to promote Ship Lit , however , is Levy Home Entertainment , a book distributor with thousands of retail accounts , including Wal-Mart Stores , Target , and Kmart .

With the support of major publishers , Levy has organized two Authors at Sea cruises that each featured more than two dozen authors .

Mary Higgins Clark , Paul Levine , a mystery writer , and Arthur Frommer , a travel expert , have been headliners on the cruises , while Jackie Collins and Dean Koontz have lent their star power to bon voyage parties .

The next cruise is tentatively scheduled for 2008 .

Levy has long sought novel ways to spur sales of mass market paperbacks , which the company says account for a third of its sales , such as organizing bus tours and driving groups of authors from city to city to do signings .

The idea for a literary cruise grew out of that experience , says Pam Nelson , director of promotions for Levy .

Publishers say it is difficult to measure the direct impact of the cruises , but they say participating authors see an increase in sales .

Harlequin Enterprises sent a half dozen of its writers on the Authors at Sea cruise last spring .

Craig Swinwood , executive vice president for sales and marketing at Harlequin , notes that those authors , including Debbie Macomber and Carla Neggers , had record years .

Still , `` you could do five cities in that same week , '' on a regular book tour , he said .

Books by participating authors are sold onboard .

Levy sold about 2,500 books on its last cruise .

And the marketing starts months beforehand .

In Levy 's case , featured books are distributed with an Authors at Sea logo on the covers , and tucked inside each book is a coupon for $ 250 toward the price of the cruise .

But the real payoff may come from the word-of-mouth after vacationers return home , telling their friends and posting their thoughts on one of the many book-oriented Web sites and blogs .

`` These are not just readers .

These are power readers that can really drive trends in the book business , `` says John Lindsay , a vice president at Levy .

Indeed , the Internet has changed the dynamics of the book business in profound ways .

Ms. Macomber , who has written dozens of mass market novels , keeps in touch with her fans through her own Web site .

`` We 're used to being in that celestial cloud , `` she said .

`` Now authors are out there .

You have to be . ``

As a featured author on the Levy cruise , Ms. Macomber gave knitting lessons to attendees -LRB- knitting features prominently in her 2005 novel , `` A Good Yarn '' -RRB- .

After the cruise , she added the readers she had met to her mailing list , and many have left messages on her online guest book , she said .

Kate Duffy , editorial director of the Kensington Publishing Corporation -LRB- whose author , Beverly Barton , was on the last Levy cruise -RRB- , courts these readers , whom she affectionately calls `` the big mouths , '' sending them manuscripts and soliciting their opinions .

After attending the Authors at Sea trip , she said , `` I added 10 more big mouths to my list . ''

MEDIA .

Summary: Literary cruises give authors and their publishers opportunity to promote books to captive audience of enthusiastic readers .

Summary: Environment provides connection with readers that authors can not achieve through bookstore appearances or other events .

Summary: Cruises are becoming popular as it becomes icreasingly difficult to successfully market new books .

Summary: Photos d .


When Ban Ki-moon takes over as secretary general of the United Nations on Monday , he may quickly have to grapple with the crisis in Darfur , fighting in Somalia and the continuing strife in the Middle East .

But he will have to wait to enjoy one of the more glamorous trappings of his new post : the secretary general 's official residence on Sutton Place , the exclusive Manhattan enclave off the East River .

The General Assembly recently approved a $ 4.5 million renovation of the residence , a 14,000-square - foot neo-Georgian attached town house with four floors and a basement .

Until October , when the work is expected to be completed , Mr. Ban and his wife will sleep and entertain in a suite at the Waldorf-Astoria , where they have been living since November .

Choi Soung-ah , who has been serving as a spokeswoman during Mr. Ban 's transition , said that while he would have preferred to move directly into the Sutton Place residence , `` it 's just essential refurbishment that 's been pushed off for years . ``

`` He would rather , of course , be in the official residence and not living in a hotel where he ca n't really unpack his own things , his own belongings , `` Ms. Choi said .

`` There is such a thing as the official residence of the secretary general .

Of course that would be better , and it would be very convenient . ``

The residence was once home to Anne Morgan , the daughter of J . P . Morgan , the financier .

It was donated to the United Nations in 1972 and has not been significantly refurbished since 1950 , according to a September report prepared by the secretary general 's office .

The report estimated that the renovation effort would cost $ 4.49 million .

Of that , $ 650,900 would go toward security upgrades , including $ 137,700 for a digital video-recording system and additional cameras .

The price includes $ 200,000 to upgrade the kitchen , $ 100,000 to redo the restrooms and $ 2.1 million for a central heating , ventilation and air-conditioning system .

The upgrades that are not related to security total $ 255 per square foot .

The General Assembly also approved $ 202,500 for temporary accommodations for the incoming secretary general and his family .

Details in the report hint at the sort of domestic annoyances the departing secretary general , Kofi Annan , has dealt with since he took up the post in 1997 .

The house currently `` poses safety hazards '' and is prone to `` severe malfunctions , requiring increasingly frequent emergency repairs , '' the report says .

Specifically , it describes a `` technologically obsolete '' telecommunications system , an 85-year-old electrical wiring system unequipped to handle the phalanx of communications and security technology required by a modern world leader and an elevator that violates New York City 's safety code .

The building is heated with steam , which frequently leaks from `` heavily corroded '' pipes and fittings , the secretary general 's report says , damaging walls and furniture .

The high-powered fans that are used to address the leaks sometimes make matters worse , by overloading the electrical circuit and causing power failures .

The General Assembly has also approved a separate , extensive renovation of the United Nations headquarters , which is expected to cost $ 1.9 billion and take seven years .

In the meantime , Mr. Ban , the former South Korean foreign minister , will not have to wait to move into his new office , on the 38th floor of the gleaming Secretariat building .

He will do so starting Monday , but not a moment sooner , Ms. Choi said , noting , `` Kofi Annan is still the secretary general until the 31st of December . '' .

Summary: Ban Ki-moon , new secretary general of UN , will have to wait to enjoy one of more glamorous trappings of his new post : secretary general 's official residence on Sutton Place .

Summary: General Assembly recently approved $ 4.5 million renovation of residence .

Summary: Ban and his wife are staying at Waldorf-Astoria until Oct , when work is expected to be completed .


As a New Year 's deadline arrived , Russia 's natural gas monopoly , Gazprom , struck a deal early Monday to supply gas to Belarus for the next five years , averting a price dispute that threatened to disrupt supplies to Europe , the company said in a statement .

The agreement , reached as the Russian capital celebrated the New Year with rolling displays of fireworks , more than doubled the price that Belarus will pay for natural gas this year and raised it significantly in the years to come .

For Belarus , a close ally of Russia , the price of gas would rise to $ 100 per thousand cubic meters in 2007 , from $ 46 now , and increase steadily to the level paid by European countries by 2011 , the company said .

Gazprom , Russia 's largest company , succeeded in achieving , at least in part , what its officials had described as a central goal : ending subsidized supplies of energy to the countries of the former Soviet Union .

Belarus , led by its autocratic president , Aleksandr G . Lukashenko , has for years benefited from the comparatively inexpensive supply of natural gas , a vital part of its sclerotic economy , still mostly managed by the state .

The agreement headed off a shutdown of supplies to Belarus and beyond , avoiding the disruptions of last year , when the effects of a price dispute with Ukraine rippled throughout Europe and raised concerns about Russia 's reliability as an energy supplier .

Gazprom , closely allied to the Kremlin , threatened to cut off gas supplies again beginning Monday at 10 a.m. if Belarus did not agree to the higher prices .

At least 20 percent of Russian natural gas destined for Europe passes through Belarus , less than the amount that transits Ukraine but enough to raise new concerns in Europe .

The agreement was reached after months of negotiations -- and a final week of threats and counterthreats .

Belarus 's prime minister , Sergei S . Sidorsky , arrived in Moscow on Sunday for a last round of negotiations and announced the deal with Gazprom 's chairman , Aleksei B . Miller .

Mr. Miller had suggested that Belarus should ultimately pay the going market price , now roughly $ 260 per thousand cubic meters of gas .

The agreed price , $ 100 per thousand cubic meters , was less than the $ 105 that Gazprom had demanded in the past few days .

But under the deal announced on Monday , Gazprom , in keeping with its stated goals of expanding its export empire , will acquire 50 percent of Beltranzgaz , the Belarussian gas-transit monopoly that distributes gas through the country .

Mr. Lukashenko , whose rule has been described as the last dictatorship in Europe , had previously vowed never to give up control of those pipelines .

On Friday , he vowed that Belarussians would rather live in unheated dugouts than pay the higher prices that Gazprom was demanding .

`` All this means destruction of our relations , '' he said .

A statement by Mr. Sidorsky early Monday appeared to reflect his government 's unease with the agreement .

`` The Belarussian side , in a difficult atmosphere on the eve of the new year , signed an agreement on unfortunate terms , '' he said , according to Agence France-Presse .

Russia has long been the country 's most reliable partner , shielding it from efforts by Europe and the United States to isolate Mr. Lukashenko , who won re-election to a third term as president in balloting in March that was denounced as unfair .

But the negotiations suggested that Russia 's political priorities had been surpassed by Gazprom 's economic ones .

Summary: Russia 's natural gas monopoly , Gazprom , strikes deal to supply gas to Belarus for next five years , averting price dispute that threatened to disrupt supplies to Europe .

Summary: Agreement more than doubled price that Belarus will pay for natural gas in 2007 and raised it significantly in years to come .


City , state and federal agencies granted final approvals last month to a half-dozen wide-ranging projects in a political aligning of the stars that will promote New York City 's most ambitious economic development agenda in decades .

Approval or financing was given to a Second Avenue subway .

An extension of the Flushing Line to the Far West Side .

A spur to connect the Long Island Rail Road to Grand Central Terminal .

Financing for tens of thousands of apartments for low - and moderate-income residents .

The Atlantic Yards complex near Downtown Brooklyn , which includes a new home for the basketball Nets .

And even the bus-stop shelters and public toilets that New Yorkers and visitors have demanded for years .

Some of the approvals were prompted by legal deadlines and last-minute efforts by departing Pataki administration officials -- including Charles A . Gargano , the chairman of the Empire State Development Corporation .

Peter S . Kalikow , the chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority .

And the governor himself -- to stake out their legacy .

But two more enduring forces also converged : the beginning of the last 1,000 days of the Bloomberg administration , and a climate that some urban planners suggest signals at least a lull in the nearly half-century backlash against the bulldozer diplomacy of Robert Moses .

`` It 's a pretty amazing list , `` said Robert D . Yaro , the president of the Regional Plan Association , a group that studies transportation and development issues .

`` It 's the Bloomberg administration pushing hard .

There 's a pro-growth , long-range theme behind all this . ``

Kenneth T . Jackson , the Columbia University urban historian , said that Mr. Bloomberg 's speech in December outlining the challenges posed by a growing population `` signaled that New York had to fight for its place at the table , that real estate and commercial rents and housing prices are getting out of hand .

The only way the city can prosper is to make that more reasonable and the only way to do that is to increase the supply .

`` I think they 're beginning to move , `` Professor Jackson said .

In the months ahead , the Bloomberg administration 's development agenda includes rezoning in Harlem as well as in Jamaica and Willets Point in Queens .

The administration also wants to make another effort to gain approval for the transformation of the James A . Farley general post office building in Midtown Manhattan into a commuter rail hub called Moynihan Station -- one proposal that appears to be in political limbo .

`` After 9/11 , a spirit of cooperation -- not perfect -- prevailed that enabled people to aim farther than they had in decades , '' said Daniel L . Doctoroff , the deputy mayor for economic development , who was instrumental in winning many of the approvals .

`` The mayor really encouraged that kind of thinking -- repositioning New York City 's economy to compete with other cities in the 21st century . ``

Several of the approved projects still face court challenges .

Some others are bound to raise concerns over displacement and congestion .

And the promise of a Second Avenue subway has been dangled before skeptical New Yorkers for nearly 80 years .

But even if some projects are delayed , the others would change the city 's face and , arguably , help fend off competition from New Jersey and from other world capitals .

`` I think you probably would have to go back to the late 1930s to see anything like that , '' Mr. Doctoroff said .

`` I do n't think any mayor has had an agenda like this , not since La Guardia . ``

On Dec . 6 , the city sold $ 2 billion in bonds to extend the No . 7 subway line 1.1 miles west and then south from Times Square to 11th Avenue and 34th Street to help transform the largely fallow Far West Side .

On Dec . 18 , the federal government agreed to grant $ 2.6 billion to link Long Island Rail Road commuters directly to the East Side of Manhattan and $ 693 million for the Second Avenue subway from 96th to 63rd Streets .

On Dec . 19 , Mr. Pataki presided over the installation of the first two huge steel columns to mark the perimeter of the Freedom Tower at the World Trade Center site .

The same day , Mr. Bloomberg announced the installation of the first 24 of 3,300 bus-stop shelters by a company that will also replace 330 newsstands and install and operate 20 public toilets .

The `` street furniture '' will help pay for the city 's tourism campaign .

On Dec . 20 , the City Council , in a compromise supported by the mayor , voted to overhaul a tax break to induce developers to build tens of thousands of apartments for New Yorkers making less than 80 percent of the median household income , or $ 56,720 for a family of four .

That day , a state oversight board gave final approval to the $ 4 billion Atlantic Yards project , a mostly residential complex with a basketball arena , offices and retail space near Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues .

In addition , new stadiums are being built for the Yankees and the Mets .

Brad Lander , the director of the Pratt Center for Community Development , a planning group , said : `` My guess is , we are only just now settling into the general sense that the city 's growth and development are long-term trends , not a short-time , business-cycle flash . ``

Dick Dadey , the executive director of Citizens Union , said that the city , bolstered by a robust economy , was trying to meet pent-up demand .

`` Say what you want about the scope and size of development , '' he added , `` the projects that are being approved are more sensitive to the current communities and neighborhoods or to creating new ones -- like the new Downtown Brooklyn -- than Moses ever was . ''

Moreover , Mr. Dadey said , `` the community boards no longer have the sway they once did over stopping local projects , '' and some local groups are even supporting development -- `` trying to encourage it responsibly in ways that benefit a greater number of people . ''

In `` The Power Broker , '' Robert A . Caro in 1974 wrote that without the approval of Robert Moses , who oversaw virtually all public works in New York until he was eased out in 1968 , the city was `` utterly unable '' to build anything .

Mr. Caro said in an interview that he , too , was struck by the plethora of projects approved in December .

`` Does this alignment of stars show that this is may be a problem that democracy can solve .

`` he said .

`` For the first time in 40 years , I 'm hopeful . `` .

Summary: New York City , New York State and federal agencies grant final approval to half-dozen large projects that will transform some areas of city and help bring it competitively into 21st-Century .

Summary: Wide-ranging projects signal lull in climate of nearly 50-year backlash against ` bulldozer diplomacy ' of Robert Moses .

Summary: Developers are more sensitive to needs of communities and some communities welcome changes that can improve neighborhoods .

Summary: Photos .


For a half-century , he has been the center of a heartbreaking mystery , this boy of 4 or 5 who lies buried beneath a black granite stone in the shade of rhododendrons .

Visitors to his grave in Ivy Hill Cemetery here pray and leave toys , perhaps bestowing more love on this child than he ever had in his life , which was marked by sickness and hunger and ended in a beating .

The boy 's body , bruised and naked , was found in a cardboard box in a patch of woods off a dirt road on the city 's outskirts in February 1957 .

He was a symbol of child abuse at its worst .

Yet all these years later , he has no name .

William H . Kelly , a retired Philadelphia detective , and his friend Joseph McGillen , a retired investigator for the medical examiner 's office , visit the boy 's grave often .

`` My little friend , '' Mr. Kelly calls him .

The men , both 79 , dream of giving the boy an identity before they die .

Still officially an open homicide investigation , the case is `` one of the very few in which we ca n't say who it is , `` said Capt . Benjamin Naish , a Philadelphia police spokesman .

Elmer Palmer was the first officer on the scene that drizzly Feb . 26 , 1957 .

`` It looked like a doll , '' he recalled recently .

`` Then I saw it was n't a doll . ``

The boy 's hair had been cut , crudely , either just before or just after death , so his body was flecked with hairs .

Mr. Palmer , now 79 , was a young husband and father then .

He recalled shivering in his raincoat , thinking , `` What a shame . ''

At least this will be solved quickly , he thought .

`` They had so many leads . ''

But there were problems .

A college student had spotted the body on Feb . 25 , but did not call the police until the next day , after confiding in a priest .

Cold slows decomposition , so it was impossible to tell how long the boy had been dead .

An autopsy showed that the child had been beaten to death and that he had been ill and undernourished .

His baby teeth were intact , and he had apparently never been to a dentist .

His body bore several small scars that looked like surgical incisions .

Yet a survey of local doctors and hospitals turned up nothing .

Photographs of the boy 's face were printed in the newspapers , hung on storefronts and mailed with utility bills throughout Philadelphia and beyond .

Orphanages and other child-care institutions were checked .

Still nothing .

Detectives even dressed the corpse and photographed it in a sitting position , then distributed the pictures in the hope that the more `` lifelike '' appearance would jog someone 's memory .

A man 's corduroy cap found near the body was traced to an area store .

The owner recognized it from the strap the buyer had her sew on .

She recalled him as a man in his 20s who had come into the store alone .

There was nothing special about him .

He was never found .

The police traced the cardboard box to another store .

It was one of a dozen that had held bassinets sold from Dec . 3 , 1956 , to Feb . 16 , 1957 .

Investigators tracked down all but one buyer -- quite a feat , considering the store 's cash-only policy -- but found no link to the boy .

Among the many tips and theories : the boy was a refugee who came to America after the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 .

He was the son of wandering carnival workers , several of whose children had died under odd circumstances .

He was the son of an itinerant roofer who had worked in the Philadelphia area .

More than 11,000 Hungarian passports were checked .

The carnival workers were cleared .

The roofer was found , along with his son , safe and sound .

Finally , the boy was buried in a potter 's field , with detectives as pallbearers .

His grave was the only one with a stone , donated by a local monument maker .

Years went by .

The patch of woods was bulldozed for houses .

The dirt road became a busy street .

Investigators who had worked on the case acquired paunches and pensions .

But for all the big-city death and mayhem they had seen , they could not forget the little boy .

The Vidocq Society , a Philadelphia group composed largely of law enforcement professionals who investigate long-unsolved crimes , adopted the case .

Mr. Kelly and Mr. McGillen are members .

-LRB- The society is named after a famed 18th-century French detective , Eugène François Vidocq . -RRB-

Another member was Remington Bristow , an investigator in the medical examiner 's office who had been deeply affected by the case .

His own son had died in early childhood .

Mr. Bristow worked on the case practically full time , even in his retirement , spending thousands of dollars of his own to chase leads across the country .

He carried a death mask of the child in his briefcase .

Until his death in 1993 , Mr. Bristow theorized that the child was the son of an unmarried daughter of a couple who ran a foster home in an old mansion .

He even suggested that the child might have died accidentally .

The boy 's D.N.A. was obtained when the body was exhumed in 1998 and reburied in Ivy Hill , in a plot donated by the cemetery .

Those close to the case hold out hope that a match will turn up one day .

Mr. Kelly and Mr. McGillen say the key to the mystery may lie in the memory of a woman who grew up in Philadelphia and says that when she was a child her parents brought a boy home and kept him in the basement .

One day , the woman says , her mother battered the boy to death , then drove with her to the patch of woods to dispose of the body .

The woman told her story to Mr. Kelly and Mr. McGillen several years ago , in the presence of her psychiatrist .

She said she decided to come forward after a television reprise of the case , one of several in recent years .

`` We think she 's the real deal , `` Mr. McGillen said .

But William Fleisher , a former Philadelphia police officer and F.B.I. agent who is the president of the Vidocq Society , is not so sure .

`` Nothing she says has been proved , nothing she says has been disproved , '' said Mr. Fleisher , now a private investigator .

And if the boy remains without a name and the crime goes unpunished .

Sooner or later the killer will be `` in a place where there 's no appeal , `` Mr. McGillen said .

`` And I feel good about that . '' .

Summary: Bruised and naked body of unidentified boy , 4 or 5 , was found in patch of woods on outskirts of Philadelphia in February 1957 .

Summary: Autopsy showed that child had been beaten to death and that he had been ill and undernourished .

Summary: Vidocq Society , Philadelphia group composed largely of law enforcement professionals who investigate long-unsolved crimes , adopted case .

Summary: Yet all these years later , boy has no name .

Summary: William H Kelly , retired Philadelphia detective , and Joseph McGillen , retired investigator for medical examiner 's office , visit boy 's grave often .

Summary: They dream of giving him identity before they die .

Summary: Photos .


Darlene Bishop , the nationally renowned evangelical preacher , begins her book about how God cured the cancer afflicting one of her brothers with a Biblical verse : `` And the prayer of faith shall save the sick , and the Lord shall raise him up . ''

The book , `` Your Life Follows Your Words , '' is sold in the gift shop of Solid Rock Church , the 4,000-member congregation in Monroe , Ohio , where Ms. Bishop is a co-pastor .

She has promoted it on her television show , `` Sisters , '' which is modeled after ABC 's `` The View '' and is broadcast on four cable networks nationwide .

On her Web site , Ms. Bishop promises that the book reveals `` how God healed her of breast cancer '' and a brother of throat cancer .

Nowhere , though , does she mention , that the brother , Darrell Perry , a successful country music songwriter whom everyone called Wayne , died from the cancer a year and a half ago .

In a sworn deposition responding to two lawsuits filed by Mr. Perry 's four children , Ms. Bishop stated that no doctor ever diagnosed the breast cancer she referred to prominently in her book .

Instead , Ms. Bishop testified , she thought that she had cancer in 1986 and that it was cured .

`` She 's lying to people and exploiting my father for her own financial gain , `` Mr. Perry 's eldest son , Bryan Perry , 36 , said in an interview .

One lawsuit accuses Ms. Bishop of wrongful death because , it says , she convinced Mr. Perry to pray rather than to seek medical care .

The other accuses her of mismanaging and misusing his estate , which the Perry children say could be worth millions .

The estate case is to be argued in Butler County Probate Court on Friday .

Mr. Perry 's death at age 55 left some of country music 's most popular performers , including Toby Keith and Tim McGraw , without one of their most trusted and prolific writers .

Now the battle over who caused his death , who owns his assets and how best to interpret his legacy is dividing a once-close family whose members climbed from Appalachian poverty to prominence in the music industry and the evangelical movement .

Ms. Bishop would not answer questions about the suits .

On her Web site , she says that the allegations `` are complete lies '' and that she never discourages anyone from seeing doctors .

She also says she is a trustworthy steward of Mr. Perry 's estate , which , she said in the deposition , could be worth nothing after his many debts are paid .

Long before she gained fame as a preacher , Ms. Bishop was her family 's spiritual leader , Bryan Perry said .

One of Mr. Perry 's two former wives , Janet Perry-McCormick , said that he often sought the religious counsel of his older sister , whom he called Sissy , and that his children grew up attending her church .

`` I put my faith in Darlene , '' Bryan Perry said .

`` We all did .

We thought she was a holy , pure woman . ``

Wayne Perry fathered four children with three women , two of whom he married , his sons said .

He abandoned his family when Bryan was 2 to pursue his songwriting career , which produced such hits as `` A Woman 's Touch , `` recorded by Mr. Keith , and '' Not a Moment Too Soon , `` by Mr. McGraw .

He earned millions of dollars , said a music industry lawyer , Rush Hicks , who is advising the children .

After doctors diagnosed his throat cancer in December 2002 , Mr. Perry moved into Ms. Bishop 's mansion on her $ 2.6 million horse farm in Monroe to re-commit his life to God , his sons said .

According to Ms. Bishop 's book , when her brother arrived at her front door , he confirmed that he had cancer , and she replied , `` Let that be the last time those words ever come from your mouth . ''

In her deposition , Ms. Bishop said Mr. Perry had decided on his own to disregard doctors ' advice that he immediately begin chemotherapy and radiation treatments .

But Mr. Perry 's children contend that their aunt persuaded him to forgo medical treatment and rely on a process of faith healing that , Ms. Bishop wrote in her book , God had explained to her in a revelation .

`` He was laying in bed dying , and she had him convinced that he was healed , '' said Mr. Perry 's son Justin Jones , 28 , who lived in Ms. Bishop 's house for a year caring for his father .

As his throat tumors swelled to the size of tennis balls , Mr. Perry stopped eating , Mr. Jones said .

His weight dropped to 84 pounds .

He did consent to chemotherapy , Mr. Jones said , but only after the tumors had restricted his breathing to the point that he collapsed .

The chemotherapy shrank the tumors , Mr. Jones said , and his father began eating again .

In her book , Ms. Bishop describes her brother 's spiritual awakening and the improvement in his condition , but she does not mention his chemotherapy .

As Mr. Perry regained strength , he and Ms. Bishop went on a nationwide tour of evangelical churches , promoting Ms. Bishop 's book about his miraculous recovery , his children said .

Against his doctor 's advice , Mr. Perry stopped chemotherapy , Mr. Jones said .

On Oct . 13 , 2004 , an oncologist , Dr. Albert Malcolm , wrote a letter telling Mr. Perry that his cancer was terminal .

Mr. Perry forwarded the letter to Janet Perry-McCormick , his former wife , after writing across the top , `` Destroy this letter after you read it , '' and , `` Only you and Darlene know this . ''

The note is proof that Ms. Bishop knew her brother was dying but concealed it from the public while continuing to promote her book , Mr. Perry 's children said in interviews , but in her deposition , Ms. Bishop said she learned of Dr. Malcolm 's diagnosis after Mr. Perry died in May 2005 .

Mr. Perry 's death raised questions about the ownership of his royalties , his catalogs of songs and his `` hook book , '' which his children describe as a loose-leaf notebook stuffed with lyrics and musical riffs , most of which had not been recorded .

The children accused Ms. Bishop 's son Lawrence Bishop II , a musician , of recording two albums that contained a total of five songs copyrighted by Mr. Perry without paying royalties to his estate .

Copyrights are not strictly followed in the Christian country music business , Ms. Bishop said in her deposition .

She also said Mr. Perry 's notebook was missing .

Their father 's songs could be worth millions of dollars , the children said , but only if they can be marketed , an impossibility given no hook book and a dispute over song rights .

Ms. Bishop said Mr. Perry 's catalogs of songs belonged to the record companies that recorded and promoted them , not the family .

Also in dispute is Mr. Perry 's life insurance policy , worth $ 260,000 .

Ms. Bishop was named the policy 's sole beneficiary , but the children claim it was meant for them .

One point on which both sides agree is that Mr. Perry died believing he had been healed by God .

`` The only thing he told me , '' Ms. Perry-McCormick said , `` was , ' I 'm going to show Sissy that I can be healed just like she was . ' `` .

Summary: Darrell Perry , successful country music songwriter died from cancer year and half ago .

Summary: Perry 's four children have filed two lawsuits against their aunt , Darlene Bishop , renowned evangelical preacher .

Summary: One lawsuit accuses her of wrongful death , claiming that she convinced Perry to pray rather than to seek medical care .

Summary: Other accuses her of mismanaging and misusing his estate , which Perry children say could be worth millions .

Summary: Photos .


This college town received what it wanted when , during the 1980s and 90s , it sought to reverse the decline of its downtown and to create a more vibrant civic center that would draw people at night and on weekends .

Since then , thousands of young professionals , retirees and former suburbanites have moved to glistening condominium buildings in the shadow of the state Capitol 's dome and only a few blocks from the University of Wisconsin 's main campus .

And there is hardly a bad night for business near State Street , where university students and tourists pack restaurants and bars to capacity even on freezing weeknights .

But as downtown 's population and revelry have grown , so have overcrowding on the streets , vandalism and , most significantly , the police say , alcohol-related crime .

Mayor Dave Cieslewicz and other officials find themselves grappling with a problem that is a direct result of Madison 's successful transformation : how to tone down downtown .

As an urban issue , the downsizing of downtowns has little precedent because many cities , particularly in the Midwest , are struggling mightily to bring people back to their cores , not send them away .

Of course , many college towns deal with problems related to drinking .

In the Midwest alone , La Crosse , Wis . , and East Lansing and Ann Arbor , Mich . , are struggling with how to cope with the public mayhem often fueled by inebriated students .

In Madison , two Common Council members , convinced that much of what ails downtown can be traced to the proliferation of bars and restaurants known more for drinking than dining , introduced a plan intended to reduce the number of such establishments , and to restrict the approval of new liquor licenses .

The plan , which has the support of Mayor Cieslewicz -LRB- pronounced chess-LEV-ich -RRB- , is preliminary and does not detail , for example , how many or which places may be closed .

A final plan is expected to be ready for a Council vote in the spring .

That area of nearly one square mile -- between Lake Mendota , Lake Monona and Blair and Lake Streets -- has 120 places that serve only or mostly alcohol .

They have a capacity of more than 11,000 people , city officials said .

The proposal has its critics , many of whom call it nothing less than modern-day Prohibition , and an assault on personal freedom and the free market that flies in the face of Madison 's traditional liberalism and Wisconsin 's entrenched drinking culture .

Some Council members say they worry that limiting the number of bars will only increase the number of drinkers who turn to house parties and makeshift taverns , where binge drinking and bad behavior often go together but behind closed doors .

`` A lot of the activists on this issue revile alcohol , and their logic is equally fallacious as the original Prohibitionists ' , `` said Austin King , the president of the Common Council and a member of its Progressive caucus .

`` From a safety perspective , '' Mr. King said , `` I would much , much rather have young people drinking in the regulated environment of bars . ''

College students , not surprisingly , also oppose the plan .

`` A proportion of students drink irresponsibly , but the majority do n't , `` said Katrina Schleitwiler , 21 , a political science major at the University of Wisconsin .

`` This would just drive students into other places to drink and not affect the problem at all . ''

Although Ms. Schleitwiler acknowledged a spate of crimes around campus and downtown , she said she did not think alcohol abuse by students or anyone else was at its root .

`` Madison is becoming a big city with more crime , '' she said .

`` How different is that from any other city .

`` The police see things differently .

According to a recent police department analysis of attacks in which someone was injured downtown , about 75 percent of the victims and perpetrators were intoxicated .

The analysis also found that after midnight on Thursdays , Fridays and Saturdays , police officers , paramedics and firefighters often spent half to all of their working hours responding to alcohol-fueled fights and disorderly conduct .

Noise , public urination and vandalism are constant concerns .

The University of Wisconsin has tried many initiatives to curtail under-age drinking and older students ' overconsumption .

Most recently , the city and the college jointly paid for a municipal alcohol policy coordinator -- referred to as the `` bar czar '' -- to redouble those efforts .

`` Frankly , nothing has worked very well , and there 's still a culture of binge drinking , `` Mayor Cieslewicz said .

For the last five years , Madison , formerly a sleepy college town , has grown by about 2,500 people a year into a medium-size city with a population of about 230,000 .

In the last decade , 1,950 apartments -- rental and condominium units -- have been built downtown .

But the arrival of so many newcomers has produced a culture clash .

Stefanie Moritz , a retired librarian , moved with her husband from Phoenix into a downtown condominium about three years ago , drawn by pedestrian-friendly streets , a university job for her husband and the community 's progressive politics .

`` We decided that we definitely wanted to live downtown , so we could get rid of one of our cars , my husband could walk to work and we could enjoy the downtown experience , '' Ms. Moritz said .

`` The reality is a little bit different . ''

She said she quickly grew irritated at being awakened at 2:30 a.m. , when the noisy bar crowd usually begins to make its way home , dropping empty beer cans and other trash along the way .

One morning she woke to find that garbage had been torched and the flames had charred a tree .

`` I want to live downtown , but I also want a decent quality of life , '' Ms. Moritz said .

`` And I feel that that is being denied by the present level of alcohol use . ''

About 18 months ago , Ms. Moritz became active in a relatively new residents ' group , Capitol Neighborhoods , which is at the forefront of the push for stricter drinking rules .

Hawk Schenkel , the owner of one of the biggest restaurants on State Street , Hawk 's Bar and Grill , pointed out that residents who criticized the downtown scene had `` moved downtown in a university town . ''

`` Do they know where all the revenue comes from downtown , why we have a downtown that 's alive and worth being in .

`` Mr. Schenkel asked .

`` All that could change . ''

`` If the ordinance as written were to pass , my bar would automatically be worth at least $ 100,000 more , overnight , and it 's clear that I personally stand to gain financially , `` he said .

`` But I 'm against this on principle , and I do n't think it helps the problem .

My argument is that there are n't enough bars .

It 's the overcrowding that leads to violence . `` .

Summary: Madison , Wis , college town that sought to reverse decline of its downtown in 1980s and 1990s to draw people at night and on weekends , is now facing overcrowding on streets , vandalism and , most significantly , alcohol-related crime .

Summary: Officials are grappling with how to scale down downtown .

Summary: Map . Photo .


For Sunni Arabs here , the ugly reality of the new Iraq seemed to crystallize in a two-minute segment of Saddam Hussein 's hanging , filmed surreptitiously on a cellphone .

The video featured excited taunting of Mr. Hussein by hooded Shiite guards .

Passed around from cellphone to cellphone on Sunday , the images had echoes of the videos Sunni militants take of beheadings .

`` Yes , he was a dictator , but he was killed by a death squad , '' said a Sunni Arab woman in western Baghdad who was too afraid to give her name .

`` What 's the difference between him and them .

`` There was , of course , a difference .

Mr. Hussein was a brutal dictator , while the Shiite organizers of the execution are members of the popularly elected Iraqi government that the United States helped put in place as an attempt to implant a democracy .

It was supposed to be a formal and solemn proceeding carried out by a dispassionate state .

But the grainy recording of the execution 's cruel theater summed up what has become increasingly clear on the streets of the capital : that the Shiite-led government that assumed power in the American effort here is running the state under an undisguised sectarian banner .

The hanging was hasty .

Laws governing its timing were bypassed , and the guards charged with keeping order in the chamber instead disrupted it , shouting Shiite militia slogans .

It was a degrading end for a vicious leader , and an ominous beginning for the new Iraq .

The Bush administration has already scaled back its hopes for a democracy here .

But as the Iraqi government has become ever more set on protecting its Shiite constituency , often at the expense of the Sunni minority , the goal of stopping the sectarian war seems to be slipping out of reach .

`` We speak about the crimes of Saddam Hussein , but now here we are behaving in the same way , '' said Alaa Makki , a prominent Sunni politician .

`` We fear that nothing has been changed .

On the contrary , we feel it is going in a worse direction . ``

After the invasion , Sunni Arabs , bitter at losing their place , refused to take part in Iraq 's first elections , allowing Shiites and Kurds to sweep to power .

Americans here spent the following months persuading the Shiites to let the Sunnis back in .

The idea , at the time , was that involving Sunnis in politics would drain the insurgency of its violence .

Instead , the violence got worse , and in February , the long-abused Shiites struck back , using the force of the state ministries and agencies that they now control .

Now , American officials are pressing Iraqi leaders , both Sunni and Shiite , to reconcile and have made it a central demand for continued support of the Iraqi government .

But the prospects for mutual agreement seem ever more distant .

`` I ca n't think of any good reason for any level-minded person to be interested in reconciliation , `` one secular Sunni politician said .

That unwillingness , shared by most of the Shiite political elite , is a serious challenge to any new American strategy proposal that President Bush may announce soon .

Indeed , the Sunni political class is getting smaller .

Many of the Sunni politicians once ubiquitous during the broad discussions of the Iraqi Constitution two years ago are now gone .

Virtually none of the members of the Association of Muslim Scholars , a hard-line Sunni Arab religious group , are left in Iraq -- most of them have gone to Jordan and Syria .

Out of more than 50 members of the Baghdad council that runs the city , only one is Sunni .

The reason is that Shiites , who had been driven from their homes and relentlessly slaughtered by Sunni suicide bombers , are now pushing back .

The taunting during Mr. Hussein 's execution capped months of advances by Shiite militias , which have forced Sunnis farther back into western Baghdad .

But as the Shiites gain the upper hand , they also seem to be abandoning any hint of compromise .

The video , Sunnis said , was a startling symbol of that .

In the images , the guards taunt Mr. Hussein .

They damn him .

They cheer their Shiite heroes so persistently that one observer makes a remark about how the effort to rein in militias does not seem to be going well .

Immediately after they let him drop , in the midst of repeating a prayer , the voices rise in urgency and begin talking excitedly .

Then several others chime in , telling those present to step back from the body and to wait three minutes before touching it .

The video was particularly disturbing for Sunni Arabs , who accuse the government of willfully allowing militias to remain in the ranks of its security forces .

It left the impression that the government cared more for revenge than for justice , Sunnis said .

`` Either it 's terrible incompetence or it 's an act of revenge -- a vendetta , `` said Adnan Pachachi , a respected Sunni whose political career began long before Mr. Hussein took power .

`` That was the impression people had . ''

One of the problems was the timing .

The execution was rescheduled a number of times , as Iraqi officials raced through a checklist of requirements put forth by the Americans .

Two legal conditions -- that it not be held on a holiday and that the Iraqi president and his two deputies be given 30 days to sign off on the sentence first -- were ignored .

The fact was not lost on Sunni political leaders , including Mr. Makki , who said the execution was a step backward for the country .

`` This is a political mistake , '' he said .

`` We lost a lot with this . ''

To make matters worse , it fell just as the first day of the Id al-Adha holiday dawned for Sunnis -- a day before the Shiites ' observance was to begin .

Shiite politicians did not apologize and some even reveled in the timing .

That did a major disservice to reconciliation , many argued .

`` Why could n't they have waited for a few more days .

`` Mr. Pachachi said .

`` It was a deliberate insult to so many people .

It helped Saddam 's friends . ``

Yusra Abdul Aziz , a Sunni teacher in Mansour , had a blunter analysis : `` They changed him from a criminal into a martyr . ''

In a strange twist , Sunni insurgents did not seem to care .

Sunni Jihadist Web sites had virtually no messages about Mr. Hussein 's death , aside from two re-released statements , old debates by militant sheiks over whether he should be considered a martyr .

`` The feeling is that they do n't care about him , `` said Rita Katz , who runs the SITE Institute , a group that tracks militant Islamist Web sites .

For the more hard-line Sunni Arabs , the execution simply confirmed their view that joining the Shiite government could never work .

Sheik Hakam Abdullah al-Shahiri from the Obeid tribe in Kirkuk is an example .

`` Iraq is occupied now by the U.S. and Iran and a puppet government for both sides , '' he said .

`` With the execution of Saddam the Arab identity of Iraq and its unity have ended . ''

That has left moderate Sunnis -- those who still seek reconciliation -- to ponder the danger of a Shiite hegemony that seems too scarred from past abuses to govern lightly .

`` Governing a country should not be done by reflexes , '' Mr. Makki said .

`` It should be wisdom first .

A panoramic view . ``

`` Not behaving from one side , '' he added , `` like what we saw here . ''

THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ : NEWS ANALYSIS .

Summary: Saddam Hussein 's hanging was supposed to be formal and solemn proceeding carried out by dispassionate state , but recording of execution 's cruel theater summed up what has become increasingly clear on streets of Baghdad : that Shiite-led government that assumed power in US effort is running state under undisguised sectarian banner .

Summary: It was degrading end for vicious leader , and ominous beginning for new Iraq .

Summary: Photo .