November 12, 2005

Democrats Delivered Victory on Detainee Measure Democrats who had voted previously to bar abusive treatment of detainees provided the margin of victory for a measure that would deny prisoners at Guantánamo Bay the right to challenge their detentions in court. PAGE A11 Oman Embassy Attacked In Iraq, and 2 Are Killed Gunmen sprayed the Omani Embassy in Baghdad, killing an Iraqi guard and a Sudanese worker and wounding four others, officials said. The American military reported the deaths of five members of the armed services, including one from the Marine operation near Iraq's border with Syria. PAGE A8 Pact on German Coalition Germany's major political parties announced final agreement on a coalition with Angela Merkel as the next chancellor, but many compromises had been made and political goals abandoned in six difficult weeks of negotiations. PAGE A3 Moving Ahead After a Storm For one woman who grew up in the Ninth Ward in New Orleans and had returned there just months before Hurricane Katrina hit, a desire to get on with life means planting some new roots in Houston. PAGE A9 Management Theorist Dies Peter F. Drucker, the economist whose innovative theories on management included giving workers more control over their environment, was 95. PAGE A13 Music of the Years Gone By They danced on stage and screen; now in their 80's, they are still dancing, though mainly for themselves. A visit with Marge and Donald: About New York by Dan Barry. PAGE B1 THIS WEEKEND Hollywood Goes to War Theaters are awash in war films. The annual Movie Issue examines how an actor prepares to play a soldier, what war documentaries show that feature films cannot, and what these films say about us. MAGAZINE Winter in the Snow A special issue: The joys of skiing, snowboarding and sledding -- during and après. Where to go in 2006, with reports from Salt Lake City, Stowe, Austria, Sweden, Bulgaria and Antarctica. TRAVEL The Future of Global Pop Psychoanalysis, Renaissance iconography and torrid dance moves all play a part in the gleeful ambitions of the Colombian pop star Shakira. ARTS & LEISURE

Larry Brown had simplified his offense and shortened his rotation, all in an effort to finally record his first victory with the Knicks. That anticipated moment was 66 seconds away late Friday night, but Brown and his team were again denied satisfaction despite playing their best game of the season. Adonal Foyle gave the Golden State Warriors an 85-84 lead with a layup in the final minute, and Malik Rose -- who had played just a half-dozen minutes in Brown's new, shorter rotation -- missed an 11-footer with 33.9 seconds left. Baron Davis stripped a driving Jamal Crawford in the lane in the final seconds, and the Warriors held on for an 86-84 victory.

IN his classic ''Stormy Monday Blues,'' T-Bone Walker sang, ''Yes, the eagle flies on Friday, and Saturday I go out to play.'' If the Philadelphia Eagles have their way, Terrell Owens will neither fly nor play for the rest of this season. In a move to simultaneously shut down and shut out a receiver who was once their savior, the Eagles suspended Owens for the maximum four games and announced that they would deactivate him after that. They want to ensure that Owens does not fly as an Eagle and does not flee, either.

Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, a Harvard-educated economist and former World Bank official who waged a fierce presidential campaign against the soccer star George Weah, emerged victorious on Friday in her quest to lead war-torn Liberia and become the first woman elected head of state in modern African history. ''Everything is on our side,'' said Morris Dukuly, a spokesman for Ms. Johnson-Sirleaf. ''The voters have chosen a new and brighter future.''

THEY have the room for an hour. Marge slips into silvery pumps, while Donald shuffles in soft-shoe anticipation. She rises, ready. He presses ''play.'' Sweet ''Stardust'' fills the air, courtesy of the late Artie Shaw and his orchestra. Marge and Donald begin to dance a dance of their own design, with spins, kicks, and glorious sweeps of graceful limbs.