Mike Wallace

NEW YORK -- Publisher Farrar, Straus and Giroux had a good day yesterday, winning two awards in the Pulitzer Prize arts categories: in fiction for "The Hours," a novel by Michael Cunningham, and non-fiction for "Annals of the Former World" by John McPhee."

"Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898," by Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace. Oxford University Press. 1,416 pages. $49.95."American Metropolis: A History of New York City," by George Lankevich. New York University Press. 282 pages. $55. This was a year of celebration for New York City - the centennial of the consolidation of the five boroughs into what originally was known as Greater New York. But the year has passed without a ripple. The success of the union of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and the Bronx is taken so for granted, it seems, that its 100th birthday was about as exciting as the arrival of the next A train.

National Rifle Association top gun Charlton Heston has Mike Wallace in his sights, and Wallace doesn't understand why.Wallace's profile of Heston will run Sunday on "60 Minutes." In Heston's column in the January issue of Guns & Ammo, he says the segment will probably follow "60's" "pattern of character assassination" and "SWAT-team journalism." Wallace, Heston writes, will do his best to "ambush" him. Only one problem,Wallace says. Heston hasn't seen the story."It's hilarious," says Wallace, en route to Chicago.

Christmas Eve 1993: Barbara Barclay, who is jobless, receives bad news in the mail. Sobbing, she rides to her sister's house.Her sister, who has heard Barbara weep almost daily for the past six months, says, "You should take this." She holds out a green-and-cream capsule."I remember looking at it and thinking, 'It can't be this easy; something this small can't take care of something so big,' " she said.Nov. 3, 1998: Barbara is sitting at her dining-room table in Cypress, Calif. The only thing blue about her is her appearance - blue jeans, bright blue eyes, blue nails.

Just about any night, Spalding coach Rick Carlson would not be happy after hearing word of a Severna Park loss.Last night was the one exception.Capping a solid opening weekend of soccer, his Cavaliers got the best of the Severna Park team he once played midfield for -- coming away with a 2-1 win in the final game of the Spalding Tournament.On Friday, the Cavaliers opened their season with a 6-0 win over St. Mary's, but they clearly saved the best for last.Junior forward Brian Medej's goal with 10 minutes left in the second half gave the Cavaliers a 2-0 lead and proved to be the game-winner after Severna Park junior Joe Weidman scored moments later.

Fox tonight offers your last chance this season to watch modern-day blood-suckers do their thing -- literally."The Gordon Elliott Show" (9 a.m.-10 a.m., WMAR, Channel 2) Dedicated Playboy readers already know what traffic reporter Joy Pons looks like, but ever want to get a peek at the rest of the Rouse & Company morning crew? Here's your chance, as Steve Rouse, Linda Sherman, Tom Davis and Pons share today's duties as hosts, as the big winners in Elliott's "Job Switch" competition."Ellen" (8 p.m.-8: 30 p.m., WMAR, Channel 2)

Can't get enough of those wacky Windsors? Think the current brood, Andrew and Fergie, Charles and Diana, et al., have a monopoly on the dysfunctional-royals franchise? Then check out public television tonight and be entertained, enlightened and informed."Ellen" (8 p.m.-8: 30 p.m., WMAR, Channel 2) -- Ellen tries on her best friend's engagement ring, then can't get it off her finger. Hilarity ensues. ABC."Dateline NBC" (9 p.m.-10 p.m., WBAL, Channel 11) -- Correspondent Keith Morrison interviews Aaron Spelling, that paragon of television excellence responsible for "Charlie's Angels," "The Love Boat," "Melrose Place," "Beverly Hills, 90210," "Fantasy Island" and "Savannah."

Most of the action tonight is on cable, but CBS has a notable way to attack the competition: Make it brief, as in the broadcast TV premiere of 1993's "The Pelican Brief.""Ellen" (8 p.m.-8: 30 p.m., WMAR, Channel 2) -- On this week's Thanksgiving episode of "Ellen," the turkey comes out -- of the oven, that is. Meanwhile, guess who's coming to dinner? A homeless man, played by "SCTV" veteran Joe Flaherty. ABC."The Pelican Brief" (8 p.m.-11 p.m., WJZ, Channel 13) -- Julia Roberts and Denzel Washington are very good as the noble leads in this John Grisham thriller, but don't downplay the performances or impact of the supporting cast, especially John Lithgow and John Heard.

A NEW POLL reports that most journalists describe themselves as ''liberal,'' and most of them voted for Bill Clinton. This is said to prove that the news you get in newspapers and on television is ''biased.''Maybe a little bit. A reporter's outlook and opinions do affect what questions get asked and what details seem important. But our bosses who own the papers and TV networks are mostly conservative, and they hire us anyway. Maybe they have confidence in our impartiality. Besides, most news is what it is. An airplane crashed, and 200 people perished.

Fifteen former major-league baseball players will participate in the Frederick Keys' third annual Old-Timers Game on Saturday at 6 p.m. at Grove Stadium.The players include former Orioles Dick Hall, John O'Donoghue (Keys pitching coach) and John Stefero. Also playing will be University of Maryland coach Tom Bradley, Orioles minor-league hitting instructor Wally Moon and Orioles instructor Reid Nichols, plus Bill Butler, Chuck Hinton, Rick Keeton, Don Loun, Pedro Sierra, Mark Smith, Jim Spencer, Mike Wallace and John Wockenfuss.

You know you have to buy Jose Canseco's new book, Vindicated, if only to keep the characters and their plot lines straight. So ... Mike Wallace was hitting on Canseco's wife at the gym? Alex Rodriguez was yelling, "Ow, that hurts" when Canseco stuck the needle in his butt? Who was this "Max" guy again? But there's a much bigger reason for America to pay close attention to the sequel to Juiced. Because America was absolutely dead-on certain that Canseco's first steroid confessional/tell-all, from 2005, was as big a piece of fiction as Harry Potter -- and America was dead-on wrong.

Call it Zenith envy. You invite friends over for the big game, but you know your TV doesn't measure up to the Zenith or the Sony or the Hitachi down the block. Yet you naively forge ahead, convinced your guests would never be so superficial about your Super Bowl party, confident that your company alone is enough of a draw. Yeah, and Tom Brady does his own makeup. So this is where my wife and I found ourselves just a couple of weeks ago. "How big is your TV?" the friends likely were thinking.

If Roger Clemens is bluffing, he shouldn't ever pitch again. He should be taking his act to the World Series of Poker. Whenever someone is hauled into court - whether it's a real courtroom or the court of public opinion - you generally get an initial denial. "I plead not guilty, your honor." Then the system works things out. But in Clemens' case, the seven-time Cy Young Award winner is making an all-out frontal assault on allegations in the Mitchell Report that he used steroids and human growth hormone.

Mike Wallace has been a correspondent for CBS' 60 Minutes for the past four decades and more recently has taken on a reduced role, with the weekly news show now describing him as a correspondent emeritus. So, in some respects, Wallace, 89, will be coming off the bench when he interviews Roger Clemens about his link to steroids and human growth hormone for a segment that is scheduled to be broadcast Jan. 6. In a telephone interview Monday, Wallace - who last interviewed Clemens for 60 Minutes in 2001 - said representatives for the pitcher had reached out to producers of the show in the hope that Wallace would agree to interview him. "When we went down there to profile him, we went to his home, I watched him exercise, I watched him work out, and he became my friend," Wallace said.

CBS newsman's wife talks of disease's toll on others The man who faced down presidents, mobsters, despots and stars was strangely withdrawn. He hesitated to enter a restaurant for fear of what people would think. He resisted social engagements. If the woman he loved suggested that he get up in the morning, he would tell her to mind her own business. He argued, criticized and complained. "It was like there was some huge, thick cloud over everything," she said, looking back on the autumn of 1984.

Mike Wallace, a pioneering figure of American broadcasting whose on-air persona at 60 Minutes came to represent the press as watchdog of those in power, said yesterday that he will retire as a regular correspondent at the end of the current TV season in May. CBS announced that Wallace, who will turn 88 on May 9, will remain affiliated with the most successful program in the history of network television as correspondent emeritus, though it was vague as...

TALLADEGA, Ala. - Jimmie Johnson, the first rookie to lead the NASCAR Winston Cup standings, inherited the pole yesterday for tomorrow's EA Sports 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Rain washed out qualifying, and Johnson automatically received the top starting spot by virtue of his lead in the standings. "Starting up front should allow us to get strung out and to hopefully get away and avoid having the big group that we've seen in the past," he said. Mark Martin, who trails Johnson by 11 points, will be alongside the rookie on the front row. Lineup 1. (48)

Brothers Kenny and Mike Wallace are making the most of their opportunities to show they can be just as competitive as their admired older brother. Rusty Wallace, of course, has the 1989 Winston Cup title to hang his hat on. Kenny, now driving for Dale Earnhardt Inc. while driver Steve Park recovers from a severe concussion, has four top-20 finishes (including sixth at treacherous Talladega, Ala.), since joining the team in September. He took the pole for today's Pop Secret 400 at North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham, N.C. Mike, meanwhile, has replaced Jeremy Mayfield, also on an interim basis, on the same Penske team for which Rusty, 45, first competed in Winston Cup in 1980.

CBS has former Defense Secretary William S. Cohen, while NBC boasts former Army general and anti-drug czar Barry McCaffrey. CNN relies on retired Air Force Gen. Don Shepperd and former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Wesley Clark. The list of notables goes on, news division by news division. In calmer times, these people are known as sources, the kind of informed observers who can shed light on noteworthy developments. During a crisis, they are transformed into paid consultants. But the distinction is not always readily apparent.

Today No. 8 Broadneck (9-0) at No. 6 Annapolis (8-1) Time: 7:15 p.m. Outlook: This game has everything - two excellent teams and two excellent coaching staffs each looking to be playing next week at home in postseason. The Panthers need this win more than the Bruins, who have clinched a berth in the Class 4A playoffs but not a home game, and the incentive is there to spoil Broadneck's perfect season as the latter did to them last year. Going into this game, each team is the leader in its respective region and the third seed overall if the playoffs were to begin today.