Feud between New York Republican gubernatorial hopeful William F Weld and Alfonse M D'Amato dates to 1996; Weld claims D'Amato gave him $750,000 for his Massachusetts senatorial campaign against John Kerry and told Weld to distance himself from Robert S Mueller III, who oversaw federal fraud investigation of D'Amato's brother Armand in early 1990's; D'Amato denies encounter took place, saying he met Weld recently; newspaper accounts indicate that D'Amato introduced Weld at 1996 fund-raiser in Washington; D'Amato has been praising Democratic gubernatorial front-runner Eliot Spitzer; photos; chart (M)

D'Amato and Weld Locked in G.O.P. Feud

New York Yankees pitcher Randy Johnson looks to record another good season in his second with Yankees, despite turning 42 years old; photos (M)

Working Hard to Do His Best, Again

Lucent Technologies, the phone equipment maker that became a symbol of last decade's boom-and-bust cycle in telecommunications, is in negotiations to be acquired by Alcatel of France for about $12.6 billion, people close to the discussions said last night.      The two companies confirmed the talks last night in a statement, saying they were ''engaged in discussions about a potential merger of equals.''  

Talks for Lucent May Signal End for 90's Symbol

General Motors sold a 78 percent stake in its commercial mortgage business, one part of its vast financing division, to an investor group on Thursday, the latest move in the struggling automaker's efforts to raise cash. The deal includes $1.5 billion in cash and the repayment of about $7.3 billion in intercompany loans.     The sale came a day after G.M. announced a landmark deal with the United Automobile Workers union that will offer buyouts to all 113,000 of its hourly workers in the United States.  

G.M. Sells Big Stake in Loan Unit

Former Georgetown University star player Victor Page discusses crime-ridden life that helped keep him from NBA; photos (M)

Without Bad Luck, He'd Have No Luck at All

A multinational military force rescued two Canadians and a Briton held hostage in Iraq for nearly four months by a shadowy guerrilla group. Page A8.  

3 Hostages Rescued in Iraq

AN hour or so into what feels like eons of stage time, one wise, scared little hobbit manages to express the feelings of multitudes. ''This place is too dim and tree-ish for me,'' mutters a round-ish, twee-ish creature named Pippin, groping through a shadowy forest in the second act of the very expensive, largely incomprehensible musical version of ''The Lord of the Rings,'' which opened Thursday at the Princess of Wales Theater here.     You speak not the half of it, O cherub-cheeked lad of Middle Earth. The production in which you exist so perilously is indeed a murky, labyrinthine wood from which no one emerges with head unmuddled, eyes unblurred or eardrums unrattled. Everyone and everything winds up lost in this $25 million adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien's cult-inspiring trilogy of fantasy novels. That includes plot, character and the patience of most ordinary theatergoers.  

Tolkien's 'Lord of the Rings,' Staged by Matthew Warchus in Toronto

New York Fire Patrol, underwritten by insurance industry, may be reaching end of its 200-year existence; patrol, which preceded Fire Department, responds to fires to salvage property and limit damage at commercial blazes; insurance industry is questioning whether efforts result in meaningful savings; photos (M)

After 200 Years, the Fire Patrol's Time May Be Up

Under questioning by defense lawyers, Enron's former treasurer backed away on Thursday from statements that Jeffrey K. Skilling had supported a controversial off-the-books transaction as a way to skirt accounting rules, and admitted to other weaknesses in his earlier testimony.     But Ben F. Glisan Jr., the last high-level manager expected to testify for the government in the criminal trial of Mr. Skilling, a former Enron chief executive, and the company's founder, Kenneth L. Lay, continued to insist that the Raptors financing vehicle he designed had no economic value. Instead, Mr. Glisan said, the Raptors was really an accounting artifice that won plaudits from Mr. Skilling and Mr. Lay for its ability to help Enron avoid reporting hundreds of millions of dollars in losses.  

Testimony on Enron Weakened a Day Later

Ginia Bellafante Critic's Notebook on introduction of AOL Television, online television network that allows viewers to watch episodes from long list of series for free; network focuses on programming no longer in syndication and in some cases unavailable on DVD; photos (M)

AOL Television Offers Shows We've Left Far Behind

Wal-Mart, says the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, is a ''generous and thoughtful'' partner that has helped recover 140 missing children. Maybe so, but the liberal group Americans for Democratic Action argues that Wal-Mart is ''socially irresponsible'' for skimping on employee wages.     A dispute over a new store? Not exactly. Instead, these two groups -- and an eclectic collection of 69 more -- have signed up to testify before federal regulators deciding, of all things, whether Wal-Mart can open a bank.  

A Show of Hands on Wal-Mart

Ten residents of Monroe Township, NJ, and two residents of Stamford, Conn, are killed when bus in Chile plunges down mountainside; survivors say bus driver swerved to avoid truck, but Chilean prosecutor says driver may have fallen asleep at wheel; photos; map (M)

Bus Plunge That Killed 12 in Chile Echoes in New York Area

Everything — plot, character and the audience's patience — winds up lost in this very expensive, largely incomprehensible musical.

A half-hour before a midnight deadline, the developer Larry A. Silverstein strode into the conference room on the 15th floor of the Port Authority's Park Avenue offices, took off his coat and gulped down two cups of coffee, ready for the next round of talks about the future of ground zero.      State officials and Port Authority executives said later that they thought the late-night session on March 14 would complete the grueling negotiations that had dragged on for months, including 18 hours of bargaining earlier that day.  

Master of Slow and Deliberate at Ground Zero

If the Democrats have their way, the 2006 Congressional elections will be the revenge of the mommy party.     Democratic women are running major campaigns in nearly half of the two dozen most competitive House races where their party hopes to pick up enough Republican seats to regain control of the House. Democratic strategists are betting that the voters' unrest and hunger for change -- reflected consistently in public opinion polls -- create the perfect conditions for their party's female candidates this year.  

Women Wage Key Campaigns for Democrats

The melting snow of the Sierra Nevada fell away from the airman inch by inch. He lay facedown, his hair thick and blond atop a crushed head.      Last October, two hikers on the Darwin Glacier in California spotted a piece of cloth, moved closer and found him. His arms were spread as if in free fall. The parachute pack on his back read ''U.S. Army,'' and it was unopened.  

Military Lab Puts Name on a Long-Lost Airman

UCLA defeats Gonzaga University, 73-71, in regional semifinals of men's NCAA tournament; photos (M)s

Looking Done, U.C.L.A. Comes Back

The American Red Cross, the largest recipient of donations after Hurricane Katrina, is investigating wide ranging accusations of impropriety among volunteers after the disaster.     John F. McGuire, the interim president and chief executive of the Red Cross, and Senator Charles E. Grassley, the Iowa Republican who is chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, said some of the actions might have been criminal.  

Red Cross Sifting Internal Charges Over Katrina Aid

A screenwriter and his lawyer talk on the phone. They are in the heat of legal battle with a big-time producer over the profits from a hit movie. The lawyer says which of their arguments he thinks are strongest and how much he thinks their opponents will agree to pay in a settlement.     Unbeknownst to both of them, Anthony Pellicano is listening in, and taking notes, court filings say.  

Evidence of Wiretaps Used in Suit

Clyde Haberman NYC column on plans by Durst Organization, which created National Debt Clock in 1989, to accommodate extra digit when debt hits $10 trillion, expected in 2009 when Pres Bush leaves office (M)

We Will Bury You, in Debt

SO you've been cooped up in your apartment all winter like a crazy person. O.K., maybe this winter wasn't so bad. In Maine, people played golf in January. In shorts. There was no ice for ice-fishing on Lake George. The sap ran early in New Hampshire. And in New York City, despite a record 26.9-inch snowfall in February, silk dresses outsold wool scarves at the Intermix boutique in the Flatiron district. Nationwide, it was the fifth-warmest winter on record, and fourth-warmest for New York City, according to the National Climatic Data Center.      Still, it was dark when you left work. Meeting friends required more effort, especially during that transit strike. Bicycles collected dust, along with running sneakers, tennis rackets and surfboards. The corner deli seemed farther, while Mondays seemed closer. And the last time you strolled through Central Park, your fur coat was still in storage, the radiator didn't clank, and the leaves were just beginning to turn.  

Twenty Spring Breaks

Louisiana State University defeats Duke University, 62-54, in men's NCAA tournament Round of 16; photos (M)

Two Freshmen and a Baby Leave Duke Wailing

What do John A. Gotti; Cendant's former chief executive, Walter A. Forbes; and Frank P. Quattrone, the former investment banker, all have in common?     As vastly different as those three cases are, they may all be threepeats, with each facing the prospect of a third trial in federal court.  

To Some, Need for Third Trial of Ex-Banker Isn't Evident

In a bid that could help partly restore Germany's historic prominence in the pharmaceutical industry, the drug and chemical giant Bayer yesterday announced a nearly $20 billion offer for its smaller rival, Schering, topping a $17.9 billion offer by Merck of Germany.     Bayer, a 143-year-old company best known as the inventor of aspirin, said it would pay 86 euros ($103) a share in cash for Schering, which last week rebuffed an offer of 77 euros ($92) a share by Merck. Schering and Merck are German companies not related to the American drug giants Schering-Plough and Merck & Company.  

Schering Gets Bid From Bayer

FOR the past decade, the Belgian brothers Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne have been building one of the most passionately engaged bodies of work in contemporary cinema. Characterized by an insistently moving camera, their films move fast even when the brothers do not. Since the release of their breakthrough film ''La Promesse'' in 1996, they have made just three other fiction titles: ''Rosetta,'' ''The Son'' and now ''L'Enfant'' (''The Child''), stories about men and women engaged in a struggle -- for money, shelter, a break in the fence, a way into the world -- that is inscribed on the very surface of their restlessly beautiful images.      Like the Dardennes' other recent films, ''L'Enfant'' takes place in an industrial town far from the tourist cathedrals and squares. The story opens with Sonia (Déborah François), a pretty young blonde with a newborn son, Jimmy, in tow. Dressed in a mini and boots, clutching the infant awkwardly in her arms like an unexpected gift, Sonia is anxiously searching for the man we soon learn is her boyfriend, Bruno (Jérémie Renier, the young hero of ''La Promesse''). When she finds him, he greets her warmly but barely registers the mewling bundle in her arms. For this penny-ante thief, who lives by his wits and willingly plays Fagin to two very young accomplices, a baby, even one he sired, has no meaning because it serves no purpose.  

'L'Enfant' ('The Child') Shows a Thief Who Eventually Finds Redemption

Rudra Srichandra Rajasingham was a Sri Lankan police officer and diplomat. He was the Inspector General of Police and Sri Lankan Ambassador to Indonesia.

March 24, 2006

Headlines from March 24, 2006

D'Amato and Weld Locked in G.O.P. Feud

Working Hard to Do His Best, Again

Talks for Lucent May Signal End for 90's Symbol

G.M. Sells Big Stake in Loan Unit

Without Bad Luck, He'd Have No Luck at All

Billboard 200

Reality Check

Back To Bedlam

High School Musical

Youth

In My Own Words

Notable Deaths

Historical Context for March 24, 2006