December 14, 1992

His first instinct was to simply dive into the end-zone pile and pick and claw for the football. But then Danny Copeland saw the ball squirt free once again, and he snatched and cradled it and made the scoring play that finally brought the Washington Redskins all the way back in their thrilling 20-17 victory over the Dallas Cowboys this afternoon at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium. "More than anything, I was lucky to get it," said Copeland, a Redskins safety. His recovery of the second of two Dallas fumbles in the end zone on a single play with 3 minutes 14 seconds remaining turned a 17-13 Dallas lead into a 20-17 Washington edge. His effort provided the final bizarre, stunning and decisive play in a game with playoff implications and more that unfolded and finished as if it were, indeed, a post-season affair.

A plan for health care reform that is gathering momentum around the country has at its heart a little-known but politically explosive proposal: taxing the health benefits employers give their workers. Under current rules, workers do not pay taxes on health insurance provided by employers. And the employer can write off the cost, often thousands of dollars, from the company's taxable income.

The announcement Thursday that the Walt Disney Company had been awarded a National Hockey League franchise in Anaheim, Calif., immediately brought to mind images of Mickey, Minnie and Goofy strapping on shinguards and helmets and elbowing each other in the mouth. But behind the jokes and familiar cartoon characters is a series of shrewd decisions that say a lot about sports as a business, how merchandise is sold and how corporate executives try to build good will in their home communities, hoping for tax breaks and new roads. Encouraged by the Sharks Disney, which will pay a $50 million fee to enter the league, was no doubt encouraged by the San Jose Sharks, which joined the league last season and despite a dismal on-ice performance sold more merchandise than any other team in the league. Indeed, the Sharks finished second in all of professional sports -- in merchandise sold -- to the Chicago Bulls, the two-time National Basketball Association champions, who had $300 million in sales last year. The Sharks' merchandise sales, $150 million, were 27 percent of the league's total.

Blue skies returned to a storm-ravaged New York metropolitan area yesterday, but at least 112,000 homes had no power, surging tides again flooded coastal communities, and residents and public officials surveyed a monstrous toll of damage from two days of pounding by hurricane-like winds, rain and snow. The fierce storm, which caused six deaths and scores of injuries in the tri-state region and disrupted travel, business and countless lives, was gone, 500 miles out to sea by midafternoon, its trailing, weakening winds flicking final backhand insults at the twin forks of eastern Long Island.

With a toss of its imperial head and a clear-eyed look at where fashion is headed, Vogue will devote its entire April issue to clothes and other items that cost less than $500. The magazine, which is better known for showcasing designer clothes with price tags in the high four figures, says it is making a major fashion statement. "This is about style," said Anne Sutherland Fuchs, the publisher. "There has never been this much fashion at this price. We will make it chic by doing this."