August 2, 2005

"Most poets are shiftless, no-account fools," says August Kleinzahler, who finds himself on the cusp of respectability in the cliquish world of poetry.

Even as the good news keeps rolling in for Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg -- rising approval ratings, higher student test scores, increasing support from Democrats and labor leaders -- there is one worrisome cloud looming on the horizon. It is the prospect that Fernando Ferrer could win the Democratic primary outright, giving the party a nominee unbloodied by a divisive runoff and significantly enhancing the chances for a Democratic victory in November.

The five Priore children were kicking, pinching and screaming at one another on television. The decibel level rose even further when Joe Priore, their father, shouted for them to stop and then proceeded to spank them, assembly-line style. ''The screaming, the yelling -- this is not a happy home,'' said Nina Priore, their mother, her hand shaking.

Article on Fan-Tan, film treatment-turned-novel about South Seas pirates that was co-written by Marlon Brando and Donald Cammell; Alfred A Knopf plans to publish novel, edited by film historian David Thomson, who also wrote final chapter and afterword; photo (M)

Jeremy Eichler reviews new productions of Mozart operas Mitridate, Re di Ponte and Die Zauberflote at Salzburg Festival; photos (M)

Pres Bush installs John R Bolton as ambassador to United Nations, making recess appointment over strong Democratic objections that he is abusing power and undermining credibility of United States; notes US has gone for more than six months without ambassador to UN; this is first time since UN's founding in 1945 that US has filled that post using recess appointment; it follows five-month standoff between White House and Senate Democrats, who held up Bolton's confirmation over accusations that he manipulated intelligence to conform to his hawkish ideology and had bullied subordinates; senior administration officials say they fear Bolton might be seen as weakened with recess appointment after months of battering in Congress; Bush was reportedly determined to stand up to Congress and make show of force on Bolton; Bolton is sworn into office shortly after announcement; he will remain in job until end of current Congress in late 2006, when he could be renominated; photos of other recess appointees in last two administrations (M)

Six weeks after more than 1,000 immigrants marched down Main Street to demand respect from the mayor, he is taking steps to stop their sometimes raucous volleyball games, which officials say are occasions for illegal enterprise. The evening games, a passion among Danbury's growing population of Ecuadorean immigrants, sometimes draw more than 100 people to backyards in otherwise quiet residential neighborhoods. After a nighttime sweep by code enforcement officers on July 23, city workers issued cease-and-desist orders for seven properties.

Democrats and Republicans on Monday began a fierce attack on Gov. George E. Pataki's decision to veto a bill that would make the so-called morning-after pill available without a prescription and raised doubts about whether the legislation could be revived. The criticism came a day after aides to Mr. Pataki said he would oppose the measure because it did not include any provisions that would prevent minors from having access to the drug. Mr. Pataki's aides said the governor would reconsider the measure if the Legislature made amendments to the bill that addressed his concerns.

U.S. Envoy to Iraq Discusses Plan for Troop Pullout The new American ambassador to Iraq, Zalmay Khalilzad, outlined the process for gradually withdrawing American troops from some Iraq cities and replacing them with Iraqis. He also urged members of the Iraqi constitutional drafting committee to set aside differences and strike a deal. PAGE A6 A Winged Violin, All Aflutter The male club-winged manakin is the only bird known to sing with its wings. To attract females, the male of the species waves its wings over its back, producing a loud, clear tone that sounds like a violin. SCIENCE TIMES, PAGE F3 On Second Chirp The debate on whether the ivorybilled woodpecker is extinct has gone back and forth, but even the most skeptical ornithologists now agree that newly presented evidence shows that at least two of the birds are living in Arkansas. PAGE A14 Marlon Brando, Novelist More than a year after Marlon Brandos death, details of his life continue to emerge. The latest discovery is ''Fan-Tan,'' a novel he cowrote about pirates in the South Seas. THE ARTS, PAGE E1 Oil Price at a Record High The price of oil rose to a record of more than $62 a barrel as news of King Fahd's death raised concern about Middle East instability. The market was already unsettled by evidence of a lack of refinery capacity to meet the world's growing energy needs. Crude oil futures in New York closed at $61.57 a barrel, up $1, after rising 2.9 percent earlier to $62.30 a barrel. BUSINESS DAY, PAGE C1 Rell to Close Juvenile Center Gov. M. Jodi Rell will close the $57 million Connecticut juvenile detention and training center that figured in the fall of her predecessor, John G. Rowland. Many corrections experts said the Connecticut Juvenile Training School in Middletown reflected an obsolete approach before it opened. PAGE B7

King Fahd bin Abdel Aziz al-Saud, Saudi Arabia's monarch, dies at age 82 after long illness, ending 23-year reign; he oversaw one of country's greatest periods of growth while underwriting spread of fiercely conservative Islam abroad; his death marks end of decade-long transition of power that began when he suffered debilitating stroke in 1995 and put his half-brother, Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdel Aziz, in control of country; Abdullah, 81, becomes sixth monarch; transition of power occurs with few surprises; rise of Prince Sultan bin Abdel Aziz al-Saud, long-serving minister of defense and aviation, as crown prince, also proceeds as planned, leaving little in way of uncertainty; Saudi Arabia is one of America's most strategically important allies; Saudi officials say they expect that relations with US might grow even closer, because new king has warm relationship with Pres Bush; Fahd's reign recalled (L)

SOME New Yorkers have been heard muttering that the race for mayor is not terribly interesting, but how can they say that? What is not fascinating about an event like the city comptroller's endorsement yesterday of the front-runner for the Democratic nomination? Hold on. Stifle that yawn.

Some doctors question benefits and costs of implantable defibrillators that were implanted in 135,000 heart patients in US in 2004 at cost of $20,000 to $35,000 each; do not dispute that devices save lives of many patients, but say they are being implanted in many other patients who may not need them because they are either too well or too sick; say that manufacturers--Guidant Corp, Medtronic and St Jude Medical--have used variety of strategies to keep device prices high and that doctors and patients have no incentive to consider price; Medicare's decision to expand types of heart patients who qualify to receive units could lift number of implants by hundreds of thousands a year; defibrillator-related costs to both Medicare and private insurers are expected to reach $10 billion in just two years; photos; drawing; table; graph (L)