In Iowa, the farm community is being severely hurt by low prices. Hog farmers in particular complain that meatpacking-industry mergers have created giant processors who use their buying power to drive down prices further. To help farmers–and perhaps not coincidentally Gore–the Agriculture Department will soon launch an investigation of possible antitrust violations by the processors. Farmers don’t dominate the caucuses, but most Iowans share their concerns.
Meanwhile, Bradley is getting an unsolicited boost from his former colleagues, the New York Knicks. The team recently sent season-ticket holders free copies of his best-selling basketball book, “Values of the Game.” A team spokesman says the gift was not politically motivated. A Bradley spokeswoman says there’s “no election message” in the book.
HILLARY WATCH’She’s Doing Her Homework'
Word leaked last week that Bill Clinton was hinting his wife’s decision on a New York Senate bid may be imminent. Not so fast, caution friends of Mrs. Clinton. “[Hillary’s] doing her homework,” says one confidant. She wants to be scrupulous about following campaign-finance rules. Advisers say she’s looking into the legal issues raised by a run from the White House and mulling the need to form an exploratory committee to avoid any appearance of impropriety. Meanwhile, she’s getting conflicting advice. Clinton loyalist James Carville and Liz Moynihan, wife of retiring Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, are cautioning against a bid. But California Sen. Barbara Boxer, New York Rep. Charles Rangel and longtime friend Harold Ickes are encouraging her to run. “Even if she decided yes right now,” says a friend, “there would be no announcement until the fall.”
MONEYSonny’s Son?
Sonny Bono died without a will, so by law his assets go to his widow, Mary, and his children. Trouble is, it’s not clear how many kids he left behind. A California man says he’s Bono’s natural son and he’s ready to take a DNA test to prove it. Sources close to the case say Mary Bono’s lawyers will ask the coroner this week for a sample of Sonny’s blood to determine whether the estate will be split among four offspring–Christy (by his first wife), Chastity (by Cher), Chesare and Chianna (by Mary)–or five.
MOVIESCameron: How About ‘Titanic 2’?
Titanic" director James Cameron, erstwhile King of the World, is still dithering about what his next directing gig will be. Sony Pictures won a four-way battle for the rights to the movie Cameron most wants to make: a screen version of the “Spiderman” comic books. But Cameron’s beloved Spidey–he wrote the script years ago–may have to wait. Twentieth Century Fox, the studio behind “Titanic,” says Cameron owes them a picture. Arnold Schwarzenegger, desperate for a box-office kill, is pushing hard to lock the director into “Terminator 3,” but the studio is still wrangling for the rights to that script. Cameron keeps busy producing movies for others to direct, and late last year he agreed to make a pilot and a mini-series, both with sci-fi themes, for Fox Broadcasting.
GAMESScrabble Nation
The scramble for Scrabble is on. Hasbro sold 2 million boards last year and added an addictive e-mail version. “When my department started playing, all productivity stopped,” says Nickelodeon’s Kevin Fitzpatrick. Hollywood screen-writers have Scrabble clubs, and Gen-Xers prefer it to TV. Schoolkids are hooked, too–a Springfield, Mass., school replaced the spelling bee with a Scrabble tourney. Why the triple-score interest now? “It’s like a drug,” says Scrabble spokesman John Williams.
THE BUZZBringing Up Baby–To Honor and Obey
Debate swirls over Gary and Anne Marie Ezzo’s “Babywise” parenting books. They say you should ignore baby’s crying, feed on a schedule (not on demand) and slap an infant’s hand if she’s impolite. With parents all mixed up, what’s the Babywise buzz?
Hug Away! ‘Attachment theory’ says never ignore crying: you can create autismlike symptoms
Babywise = Parenthappy Feeding skeds let you sleep the night, have a life, unlike ‘child-centered theories
Bible Babies The fundamentalist Ezzos have said tots are born with a ‘sin nature’ that must be cured
Spanks for the Memories The Babywiseguys swear by pain as motivation. Dr. Spock found spanking highly illogical
Babywise: Pound Foolish? Tykes on strict feeding skeds can fall scarily underweight
VITAL STATSBrush Up Your Shakespeare
Memo to H’wood: while some 54 percent of Americans went to the movies in the past six months, the fastest-growing audience is upscale boomers with little tolerance for teen sex or blood. Translation: stick with the Bard. MICHAEL J. WEISS
STYLEIverson Has Hot Hair
What a difference a do makes. In the Jordan era, clean-shaven pates like Michael’s were the cutting edge in the NBA. When the Philadelphia ‘76ers’ Allen Iverson debuted his signature cornrows as an NBA rookie two years ago, he rattled some sportswriters already wary of Iverson’s arrest record, his in-your-face attitude and his droopy hip-hop shorts. This year Iverson, who leads the league in scoring, sports the leading hairdo as well. The Knicks’ Latrell Sprewell, Portland’s Rasheed Wallace, Indiana’s Sam Perkins and Clipper Keith Closs are a few who have also adopted the look. But Iverson’s locks are still the envy of the league: he travels with his own hairdresser, who rebraids his hair every few days when he’s on the road.
PUBLISHING… And Finally, It Became a Book
TRANSITIONMusic to Live For
The century’s most famous classical prodigy, violinist Yehudi Menuhin became a celebrity at the age of 11, performing at Carnegie Hall. Last week Menuhin died in Berlin at 82. The location was poignant: in 1947 he became the first Jewish musician to play with the Berlin Philharmonic after World War II. Menuhin, who had also performed for the newly liberated inmates of Bergen-Belsen, said he had hoped to perform “as a Jew who might keep alive German guilt and repentance, and as a musician offering something to live for.”
CONVENTIONAL WISDOMElectoral Disfunction Edition
As Campaign 2000 warms up, former candidate Bob Dole has his eye on being America’s first First husband. And he’s really trying to make sure he’ll be a “good one.” C.W. George W. + Wakes up on home plate, and the CW thinks hit a home run. Liddy + Smart, novel and about as spontaneous as a Disney World animatron. Gore - Suffering from VP syndrome: Crushed in early matchups. P.S.:Call Jenny Craig. Bradley = Still a long shot, but gets to go one-on-one with Al. P.S.: Try some flashy street moves. Lamar - Good news: Chucks plaid shirt. Bad news: Plaid shirt was best part of campaign. Buchanan = Pitchfork Pat ready to lock’n’load again. Everybody duck!
