Formerly dismissed as satellite ventures, four major Balanchine-driven companies are encroaching upon City Ballet's territory.

For Balanchine Fans, There's Verve Beyond City Ballet

Thomas Hampson's singing was hardy and involving on Tuesday night at Gilder Lehrman Hall, a new space for chamber music, recitals, lectures and readings.

A Big Voice Inaugurates a Smallish Concert Hall

LeBron James let the ball roll off his fingertips and the layup dropped in with 9-tenths of a second left, lifting the Cavaliers to a victory.

James Gives Cavs the Final Pull in a Tug of War

The Ultra Mobile PC aims to bridge the size gulf between a palmtop and a laptop, but winds up inheriting the worst aspects of each.

A Big Question Unanswered by a Tiny PC

Nathaniel Philbrick has written a work of revisionist history about what are supposed to be some of the best-known events in this country's past.

Pilgrims and Indians, the Forgotten Years

Restoration efforts are taking hold in Grozny, Chechnya, a city largely destroyed by years of fighting between Russia and Chechen separatists.

Signs of Renewal Emerge From Chechnya's Ruins

A federal jury's rejection of the death penalty for Zacarias Moussaoui seemed to surprise most people in the courtroom.

Moussaoui Given Life Term by Jury Over Link to 9/11

Some blacks bristle at the comparison between the civil rights movement and recent immigrant demonstrations.

Growing Unease for Some Blacks on Immigration

Some doctors consider computerized lists showing which doctors are prescribing what drugs an intrusion. 

Doctors Object to Gathering of Drug Data

When the theme of the exhibition is "AngloMania," the British turnout is part of the picture. So is their instinct for mussing things up.

Anna's Party: Silk, Satin and Pub Grub

When Electronic Arts announces its lineup for the E3 convention, you might think that football stadiums and quasi-modern war zones are the only places gamers know how to have fun.

A Limited New Lineup From Electronic Arts, the Video Game Giant

Wal-Mart is sending a strong signal that it no longer intends to do business as usual by placing its advertising account in review.

Wal-Mart on the Hunt for an Extreme Makeover

Executives were optimistic about increasing growth in the cable business, citing the introduction of residential telephone and other digital services.

Cable Helps Time Warner Endure AOL

With Barry Bonds a few powerful swings away from passing Babe Ruth's hallowed total of 714 home runs, Major League Baseball officials are tiptoeing beside his accomplishments.

Bonds Stung by Ball, Not Selig's Absence

A new sinus therapy is being hailed by some as a major breakthrough, but there is virtually no scientific evidence that the procedure works.

Too Soon to Breathe Easy?

Two decades after Woody Allen and Mia Farrow defied convention by living apart, researchers are seeing a surge in long-term, two-home relationships. 

Home Alone Together

In Newark, Cory Booker has consistently had to rebut the notion that he is a self-aggrandizing interloper.

Newark Candidate Runs Against His Own Fame

One of the many pleasures of bloggingheads.tv is watching two skilled rhetoricians who rarely let loose the clamps on their assiduously framed arguments.

Watching Rigorous Talk on a He Said, He Said Blog

The sudden popularity of skinny jeans is most remarkable because they are skinny to an extreme. Some are even hard to put your foot through.

A New Size for Denim: Extra Tight

The top three soft-drink companies said that they would start removing sweetened drinks from schools.

Bottlers Agree to a School Ban on Sweet Drinks

 Bill on Lobbying Passes by a Sliver in the House  The House narrowly passed a bill intended to restore public trust in Congress by reshaping the relationship between lawmakers and lobbyists. But Democrats denounced the bill, and 20 Republicans voted against it.    PAGE A19    Bolivia Plans Energy Audits  In taking over the oil and gas sector, Bolivia plans to scour the books at foreign companies, and officials threatened to seize assets if contracts are not renegotiated.    PAGE A13    Questions on Flu Planning  Officials said they welcomed the government's plan for dealing with a flu outbreak, but some questioned how it would be financed.    PAGE A20    Raytheon Docks Chief's Pay  Raytheon's board is withholding almost $1 million from the chief executive, who failed to give credit for material in a book he wrote.    PAGE C1    U.N. Urged to Bar Iran Arms  Britain and France circulated a draft Security Council resolution demanding that Iran give up nuclear efforts that the West believes are aimed at making bombs.    PAGE A11    New York Wants More DNA  A push to require all convicted criminals in New York to submit their DNA to a central database is gathering steam in Albany.    PAGE B1    A $95 Million Picasso  Picasso's ''Dora Maar With Cat'' sold at Sotheby's for $95.2 million, the second-highest price ever paid for a painting at auction.    PAGE B4  

INSIDE

Fashion trend toward skinny jeans has reached extreme proportions with some wearers joking that cut of pants can cut-off circulation; designers discuss denim culture and how celebrities, designers and fashion history are fueling trend; photos (M)

Even at night the fresh sounds rise above one of the most ruined cities on earth. They are the thumps of hammers and mallets, and the rumbles of diesel engines. Lights glow inside the shells of broken buildings, where masons are at work.     For years spring has reliably meant renewed fighting here in the capital of Chechnya. But after more than a decade of war, banditry and stubborn disorder, a noticeably different spring campaign has gained momentum with the Caucasus thaw.  

Wal-Mart Stores is sending its strongest signal yet that it no longer intends to do business as usual, by placing its advertising account in review.     Word of the review, Wal-Mart's first in more than 30 years, comes after months of significant changes to the retailer's longtime marketing approaches. The move underscores Wal-Mart's eagerness to broaden its appeal to upscale shoppers as the chain's revenue growth at stores open for more than a year has lagged its smaller and hipper rival, Target.  

Some doctors hail it as a major breakthrough that offers hope to many of the nation's 37 million sinusitis sufferers. A new procedure opens the sinuses without invasive surgery, allowing patients to breathe easier and resume normal activity within a day.      The procedure, called balloon sinuplasty, can cost thousands of dollars and has been performed on about 500 patients since November 2004. It has received glowing coverage in local and national news media. Doctors like to tell patients they are the first in their area to offer the procedure.  

May 4, 2006

Headlines from May 4, 2006

For Balanchine Fans, There's Verve Beyond City Ballet

A Big Voice Inaugurates a Smallish Concert Hall

James Gives Cavs the Final Pull in a Tug of War

A Big Question Unanswered by a Tiny PC

Pilgrims and Indians, the Forgotten Years

Billboard 200

Me And My Gang

NOW 21

High School Musical

White Trash With Money

King

Historical Context for May 4, 2006