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Collector
Lake Success, NY

Full time, entry or jr. level collector, auto and/or equip collection exp. preferred. Resume: fax 718-392-5427
attn: Ed Kaye/Eric Coolbaugh

About the Company: Advantage Funding is the leader in automotive and equipment lease financing, Lake Success, NY.

Friday, April 16, 2008

Headlines---

Classified Ads---Legal/Attorneys Available
    Choice Health sold to GE
        US Bancorp/Oliver-Allen “cut backs”
CitiCapital "absorbed" by the Borg
    CIT stock moves up
        "Housing Starts" Continue to fall, but
“Start your Own Leasing Company”
    Message from Brian Montgomery, NAELB
        Dan Pulcrano, Advisory Board member
Browser Wars
    1st Quarter MBS, ABS Evaporate
        CDO Ratings Still in the Spotlight
    Beige Book April Report
Lakeland Bancorp Reports 27% Increase
    Merrill Posts a Loss/Cuts 2,900 jobs
        Chapter and Worse: Biz Bankruptcies Soar
    Housing downturn hits upscale Dallas areas
Royal Bank of Scotland in fresh cash plea
    Welch rebuke to GE’s Immelt
        G.E.’s Shortfall Calls Credibility in ?
    Leasing broker: Dan Calabrese
News Briefs---
    You May have Missed---
        Sports Briefs---
"Gimme that Wine"
    Calendar Events
        Snapple Real Facts
Today's Top Event in History
    This Day in American History
        Spring Poem
    SuDoku
Daily Puzzle
    GasBuddy
        Provence, France-Vacation
News on Line---Internet Newspapers

######## surrounding the article denotes it is a “press release”

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Classified Ads---Legal/Attorneys Available

San Diego, CA
Experienced in-house corporate, equipment leasing and financial services attorney seeks position as managing or transactional counsel. Willing to relocate. Cell Phone: 760-533-4058;
Email: sandidq@msn.com

Birmingham, Alabama
The lawyers of Marks & Weinberg, P.C. have over 30 years experience in dealing with virtually every type of equipment financing and are recognized throughout the industry for prompt, practical solutions and exemplary service. They offer cost-conscious, effective lease enforcement and good counsel.
Email: Barry@leaselawyer.com
Website: www.leaselawyers.com
California, National: city: Riverside
Ellen Stern - get results, reasonable pricing; numerous industry contacts, nearly 30 yrs exp.in SoCal, 20 yrs equip.: CFL license specialist, documentation, work-outs, litigated collections, recoveries; deal-maker.
Email: leaselaw@msn.com | UAEL

Kenneth C. Greene
California
Hamrick & Evans, LLP, Universal City , LA; San Francisco Bay
Area, No.Calif. Call for free consultation (828)763-5292 or
(415) 806-2254, kgreene@hamricklaw.com

Connecticut, Southern New England: EVANS, FELDMAN & BOYER, LLC Collections, litigation, documentation, portfolio sales and financing, bankruptcy. We represent many of the national and local leasing companies doing business in this state. Past chairman EAEL legal committee. Competitive rates.
email: rcfeldman@snet.net     EAEL
Law Firm - Service, Dallas, TX. ELA
Mayer regularly practices in leasing, secured financing, project development and finance and corporate finance.
email: dmayer@pattonboggs.com
Website:
www.pattonboggs.com
Los Angeles, Statewide: CA.     "ELA" Aggressive creditors rights law firm specializing in equipment leasing handling collection matters on a contingency, fixed fee or hourly basis. email:RGarwacki@prodigy.net

Los Angeles -statewide: CA      "ELA "
Practice limited to collections, bankruptcy and problem accounts resolution. Decades of experience. 10-lawyer firm dedicated to serving you. Call Ronald Cohn, Esq. (818)591-2121 or Email: rrcohn@aol.com

Long Beach, CA
Wagner & Zielinski,  successfully representing lessees/ lessors.  Not a member of any leasing organization, therefore not beholden to special interests.  Richard Wagner
(562) 216-2952 www.wzlawyers.com

Long Beach CA.
Paul Bent -- 30 years experience in all forms of equipment leasing, secured lending, and asset based transactions, from analysis and deal structuring to contract negotiations to closing to private dispute resolution. (562) 426-1000
www.paulbent.com

National: Coston & Rademacher: Business attorneys serving the lease-finance industry since 1980. Transactional, documentation, corporate/finance, workouts, litigation, bankruptcy, portfolio management. Chicago-based national practice. Jim Coston, CLP (Members: UAEL, ELA, MAEL).
email: Jcoston@costonlaw.com
Website:www.costonlaw.com
St. Louis County, MO. - statewide:
Defend clients sued by Popular Leasing USA and other assignees of Norvergence rental agreements. Also register and collect foreign judgments. Ronald J. Eisenberg, Esq.
Email: reisenberg@sl-lawyers.com
Schultz & Little L.L.P. www.sl-lawyers.com

Westport, CT: We represent finance companies, banks, lessors, etc., in replevins/seizures, collections and bankruptcy matters in Connecticut and New York. Flat fee, contingency and hourly rates.
Email: rchinitz@replevinlawyer.com

For a full listing of all “job wanted” ads, please go to:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Classified/Jwanted/Jwanted.htm

Leasing Recruiters:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Recruits/index.htm

To place a free “job wanted” ad here, please go to:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Classified/Jwanted/Jwanted-post.htm

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

Choice Health sold to GE

“GE bought Choice Health Leasing this morning(Thursday).....this creates a potential conflict of interest.....Paterson Dental does a majority of its financing with GE and Sullivan Schein does a majority of its financing with Choice Health

“This would be similar to the Red Sox and Yankees sharing ownership, Minor league teams or Managers

“it wont work....Somebody is OUT......I predict Sullivan Schein moves their program to De Lage Landen.”

from a highly reliable source

For the record, Henry Schein Financial Services was unaware of the purchase until informed by Leasing News. Perhaps a reply is forthcoming, although they may wait to see what other funding suitors may approach them.

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

US Bancorp/Oliver-Allen “cut backs”

Leasing News has received many e-mails asking if we know about the cut backs and "problems" at US Bancorp/Oliver-Allen. Some of the comments we cannot repeat, but the subject was covered in our Wednesday edition of "Odds and Ends:"

"US Bancorp stopped sending us press releases when we identified Sal Maglietta when he was appointed to head the specialty group in Portland, Oregon, mostly from the old Oliver-Allen operation.
Reportedly six of his top sales left, who were doing 70% of the business, because of the changes in compensation. Other salesmen are unhappy. They told Leasing News they would like to leave as soon as some of their deals are completed.

"Located in Larkspur, California, Oliver-Allen started in 1973, when Marin County was the location for over a dozen leasing companies and funders. Oliver-Allen was one of the first companies to specialize in IT: leasing equipment for computer systems, networking, communications, PC connectivity, primarily to middle market clients.
They were sold in March, 2000 to US Bancorp."

http://www.leasingnews.org/#odds

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

CitiCapital "absorbed" by the Borg

Citigroup is selling assets to counter the subprime mortgage losses which resulted in a loss of $10 billion in their fourth quarter. The most recent is their “loosey goosey” CitiCapital, who have appeared in Leasing News for over five years with fraud and other problems, the latest "Operation Lease Fleece." The $13.4 billion in assets, 160,000 customers in North America and 1,400 workers were sold for an undisclosed amount to GE Capital. As with all the other companies GE Capital has purchased, they will be "absorbed" just as the Borg did when they invaded planets on Star Trek: the Next Generation.

The units being sold are healthcare, private-label equipment, material-handling, franchise, construction equipment, bankers leasing and the Canadian division. Citi said the deal is part of the company's plan to jettison "non-core" businesses to focus on the most profitable opportunities. It should be noted CitiCapital's tax-exempt finance business was not included in the sale.

Citibank is also pulling out of Northern Nevada after Wells Fargo Bank said Tuesday that it is acquiring all Citibank customers' business at seven branches in the region and two in the California foothills.

No terms of the acquisition were revealed, and if approved by regulators the deal is expected to be completed, with Citibank clients becoming Wells Fargo customers by the third quarter of 2008.

It also leaves an uncertain future for affected Citibank employees in two branches in Reno and one each in Sparks, Carson City, Yerington, Winnemucca and Elko, and Auburn and Grass Valley in California, who are not part of the acquisition. There are $500 million in deposits and
$60 million in loans. ( My daughter Ashley and her three boys live in Elko, Nevada. Kit Menkin.)

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

CIT stock moves up

The year-end financial statement and this quarter show very good commercial sales, margins, but the consumer side shows high student loan receivables and mortgage difficulties. The campaign to explain CIT’s viewpoint, short and long range plan appears to be working with investors.

Here is a thorough story on CIT reporting a loss from CFO.com:
http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/11074147/2/c_2984408?f=alerts

Here is the official CIT Group press release and the first quarter, 2008, financial statement file with the SEC (complete, not condensed:)
http://leasingnews.org/PDF/CIT_8-K.pdf

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

"Housing Starts" Continue to fall, but....

by Al Schuler
USDA Forest Service
aschuler@fs.fed.us

March housing starts fell 11.9%, to a 17 year low of 0.947 million (SAAR). The decrease in total starts was driven by weakness in the volatile multi - family sector which was down almost 25%. Single family starts were down 5.7% to 0.68 million (SAAR). Regionally, starts contracted in all regions:, down 8.5% in the Northeast; down 21.4% in the Mid West; off 12.6% in the South and down 5.7% in the West. Permits continue to slide, down 5.8% to 0.927 million (SAAR).

There are many headwinds facing the U.S. economy and housing will not get better until demand improves and that is going to be challenging for at least the rest of this year. Builders continue to cut back on starts to bring new home inventories down while foreclosures continue to increase and that adds to resale inventories.

Foreclosures are up 57% compared with last year at this time and analysts expect it to get worse in May and June when a wave of adjustable rate loans reset to higher rates. Although declining home prices and tougher lending standards are fueling foreclosures, the 2nd half of 2008 may be the trough (in foreclosures) as the majority of the “fragile loans” will have been worked through the system according to Rick Sharga, Realty Trac’s VP of marketing.

Fewer foreclosures would help reduce the inventory thereby slowing the decline in prices, and overall, this would greatly improve the demand / supply situation and provide a sound basis for a recovery, beginning perhaps sometime in 2009?

We are already seeing welcomed action by the Congress and the Administration - - higher loan and insurance limits for Freddie Mac, Fannie May, and other government agencies; potential tax breaks for 1st time buyers; the general tax rebate that will be mailed out beginning next month; and a host of other proposed programs to deal with foreclosures, the economy, and related issues.

We have a resilient economy, buttressed by its substantial diversity, and a versatile and capable workforce, and the fact that many of our corporations have lots of cash to weather the current downturn. In addition, the world economy is doing quite well – in fact Europe has a growing inflation problem – the result of strong demand. The U.S. economy will respond favorably to sound measures by our political leaders and cooperative efforts by the various central banks.

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

“Start your Own Leasing Company”

Mona James, CLP, who was the key person under the late founder Bob Baker's Wildwood Financial, has teamed up with several former key members of Advanta and Marlin Leasing to form Canyon Leasing, a "school" to develop more leasing brokers.

The headline on the web site says:

"Start you Own Leasing Company.”

$19,500 for "Three days of Intense Training at our corporate training center in southern New Jersey...With the exception of a computer, a phone and a fax, there is very little needed to open your lease broker business – no special equipment, no inventory, no shipping costs, no warehousing costs, and no employees."
http://www.canyonleasing.com

They also promise a Coaching Program:

"*Daily Phone calls for the first three weeks
*Phone call twice a week for the following 4 weeks
*Weekly "staff" meetings thereafter held every Monday morning”

http://www.canyonleasing.com

"Canyon will also provide you with continuing support in all aspects of your business to include individual transactions, selling processes such as vendor proposals and relationships with funding sources."
http://www.canyonleasing.com

“We have been greeted with enthusiastic response from potential customers and channel partners,” Albert Lindenberg, president, said.

“There is a very strong demand for a company that has the knowledge and experience to train individuals how to enter the leasing industry and build a strong platform for future growth,” added Mona James, vice-president/sales.

The management team:


Albert Lindenberg, President


Mona Janes, CLP, Vice-President/Sales


Gary Kester, Instructor


Michael Bennie, Instructor


Bill Waddell, Instructor


Marcel Gilbert, Instructor

All originally from Advanta Leasing with Kester, Bennie, Waddell, Gilbert also at Marlin Leasing and now at Latitude Leasing.


www.canyonleasing.com

“Small, independent equipment dealers are clearly underserved, “said Mike Bennie, who is one of the instructors and also is vice-president of Latitude Leasing. “They are frustrated by the level of service they receive from larger leasing companies that are driven by volume, yield and credit without regard for the actual needs of their customers.

“We feel that this offers the small independent leasing companies a significant opportunity and we are pleased to become part of the Canyon training program.”

The first training seminar is to be held in the near future, according to Al Lindenberg, President

Other Leasing Schools/Franchises:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Conscious-Top%20Stories/School-Franchisors.htm

Latitude Leasing:
http://www.leasingnews.org/archives/September%202007/09-10-07.htm#lel

Who else is joining Latitude:
http://www.leasingnews.org/archives/September%202007/09-10-07.htm#who

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

Leasing Industry Help Wanted

Collector


Collector
Lake Success, NY

Full time, entry or jr. level collector, auto and/or equip collection exp. preferred. Resume: fax 718-392-5427
attn: Ed Kaye/Eric Coolbaugh

About the Company: Advantage Funding is the leader in automotive and equipment lease financing, Lake Success, NY.

Document Processor


Documentation Processor

New York, NY.

Mid-Town New York office seeking Documentation Processor with approximately 3 years experience. Click here for details.

Send all resumes in confidence to: nkimani@easternfunding.com

Leasing Sales Representative


Leasing Sales Representative
Long Island, NY

Hiring experienced or new to business sales reps. Transactions in all states / all industries. Send resume to: info@sterlingcap.net or fax 631-414-7571.

About the Company: Sterling Capital Leasing, LLC is a national small ticket/middle market leasing company

Special Assets Workout Officer


Special Assets Workout Officer,
San Francisco, CA

5+ years collection experience work-out commercial accts. equip. finance/leasing-
click here for more info

About the Company: Bank of the West and its subsidiaries are equal opportunity/affirmative
action employers.

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

Message from Brian Montgomery, Now Past-President NAELB

Brian Montgomery, now immediate past president of the National Association of Equipment Leasing (NAELB), had some moving words at the Conference business luncheon in New Orleans, Louisiana. Originally intended for the members in the room at the time, Brian has given us permission to share it with Leasing News readers:

http://leasingnews.org/PDF/Closing_remarks_NAELB_Montgomery.pdf

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

Dan Pulcrano, Leasing News Advisory Board member


(photo by Dina Scoppettone (c) 2008)

Dan Pulcrano, Publisher
Metro Newspaper
Founder & CEO, Boulevards News Media

Dan Pulcrano is CEO and Executive Editor of the Silicon Valley-based Metro Newspapers group, a group of newspapers that includes Metro Silicon Valley, Metro Santa Cruz and the North Bay Bohemian. Between 1991 and 2001, Pulcrano oversaw the creation and sale of Metro's community newspaper publishing division, Silicon Valley Community Newspapers, which publishes weekly newspapers in the Silicon Valley Communities of Los Gatos, Saratoga, Campbell, Willow Glen, Sunnyvale and Cupertino.

Metro has been involved in launching several pioneering online services, including LiveWire (1993) and Virtual Valley Community Network (1994). A Metro division, Boulevards, operates a network of city sites, including San Francisco.com, Los Angeles.com and San Antonio.com, as well as MrMovieTimes.com, SFStation and Taxigrab.com. He recently launched Metroactive.com, an on line newspaper with the latest information on news, music, movies, and restaurants. He is also founding member of Associated Cities, a trade group for .com geodomain owners.

Dan Pulcrano joined the Leasing News Advisory Board on September 29, 2005.

A personal friend of Kit Menkin when Dan was editor and then publisher of the Los Gatos Weekly, he has helped raise money for ventures that Dan serves as president, and also serves on Dan’s board of directors. Almost twenty years ago Dan purchased the names of most US cities internet addresses, many which he has sold, but has kept many that he partners with Google.

"We ... had a 10-watt FM radio station at my high school. I covered board of education and borough council meetings, interviewed the governor, met Secretary of State Kissinger and talked my way into a Washington party with then-Vice President Ford. Being where the action is and getting to meet smart people was part of what attracted me to newspapering," he told DJ Journal, the Domain Industry News Magazine, in February, 2008.


Former Vice President Al Gore (far left) was
among the prominent figures Pulcrano (far right)
interviewed as a young reporter.

"While working in Santa Barbara on a summer break when I was 19, Jay Levin approached me and asked if I would help him start the LA Weekly. He was an entrepreneur and journalist who wrote about things that mattered but were ignored by mainstream media: independent film, punk rock, undiscovered comedians, emerging fashion districts like Melrose, the secret U.S. war against the Sandinistas. It became the fastest growing weekly ever launched, and had a transformative effect not only on Los Angeles, but on major sectors of the entertainment industry and the newspaper publishing industry as well. Working there was life changing for me too; from that point on I knew what I wanted to do," Pulcrano told DJ Journal.

Legendary Rolling Stone publisher Jann Wenner also inspired Pulcrano. " ... Jann was a founding investor in my publishing group and has remained incredibly supportive through the ups and downs of transforming it from a print company into a Web publisher at the epicenter of the Internet revolution, which has been a fun but hellish 15-year odyssey."


Legendary music industry icon Bill Graham (left)
chats with young reporter Dan Pulcrano.

A veteran of the LA Weekly and San Diego Reader startups, Pulcrano served as vice president and First Amendment chair of the Association of Alternative Newspapers, where he spearheaded opposition to the Communications Decency Act. Pulcrano has served as president of the California Free Press Association and board member of the Institute for Alternative Journalism. Pulcrano founded and served as first president of the San Jose Downtown Association, which has been heavily involved in shaping Silicon Valley's revitalized urban center, and chaired the city's parking commission. He also served as board president of the Hakone Foundation, which operates a Japanese garden and cultural center in Saratoga, California.

He is a graduate of the University of California, Santa Cruz, with a degree in Journalism and Newspaper Management.

A bachelor who works twenty hours a day, he also is very much involved in San Jose politics, plus very much enjoys the night life with backstage passes and special invites. He likes to travel to Mexico, the Caribbean islands, and has been to Cuba often as a journalist and a tourist. Despite this tempo, he continues to be on the leading edge on the World Wide Web, brilliant in grasping ideas, and as competent as the many internet technicians who work for his companies on World Wide Web concepts. He some how still finds time to write occasional editorials and features, and give advice to Leasing News.

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

Browser Wars

NetApplication states in their latest report, "Unless an innovation emerges that changes the nature of Internet Search, Google has won the Search Engine battle. Yahoo owned it, and for various reasons, Google owns it now.

The real question is will Yahoo's partnering with Google somehow stop the Microsoft acquisition? Yahoo seems to think that showing they can better monetize their traffic, they can then convince shareholders that the Microsoft offer is too low. However, Microsoft is on record saying that the real anti-trust issue comes to play if Google and Yahoo combine, and end up with roughly 90% of the search market share. This appears to be a legitimate complaint. And, if Microsoft follows through with a hostile take-over, shareholders will be left with a decision between a guaranteed offer for their shares, and the hope that Yahoo can raise shareholder value by partnering with Google.

Microsoft has given Yahoo a deadline to accept their offer before they take it directly to the shareholders, so this shouldn't take too long to play out.

Google yesterday reported a $5.19 billion First Quarter, signaling
growing confidence for 2008:
http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3741626/Google+Makes+Good.htm

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

1st Quarter MBS, ABS Evaporate

By Terry Peters
ABSnet.com

The volume of mortgage-backed security deals totaled $60.96 billion in the first quarter, down dramatically - nearly 78% - from $273.88 billion in the first quarter of 2007, according to Thomson Financial. Asset-backed securities were even farther down, more than 86%.

The figures are preliminary because the numbers are revised upward - often significantly - as additional deals are reported after the end of each quarter.

Bear Stearns & Co., whose near-bankruptcy recently rocked Wall Street, led the rankings of MBS underwriters in the first quarter with a 13.4% market share, compared with 7.8% in the first quarter of 2007. Deals managed by Bear Stearns totaled $8.16 billion, down from the $21.41 billion recorded a year earlier, according to the data.

Credit Suisse finished second in the rankings with a 12.9% market share, up from 7% a year earlier, while its volume totaled $7.86 billion, down from $19.1 billion.

Banc of America Securities LLC ranked third, with a market share of 12.8%, up from 5.2% in the first quarter of 2007, and its volume totaled $7.77 billion, down from $14.34 billion a year earlier.

Rounding out the top 10 for the quarter were Lehman Brothers, with a 7.8% market share; Barclays Capital, with 7.8%; JPMorgan, with 7.6%; RBS, with 6.9%; Deutsche Bank AG, with 6.3%; UBS, with 6.1%; and Merrill Lynch, with 5.5%.

The Thomson Financial data for underwriters of mortgage-backed debt are compiled for securities pools that are at least 50% backed by first-lien mortgages and at least 50% by mortgages with a principal balance of $300,000 or more.

The company also ranks managers of asset-backed securities, which include those backed by real estate-related debt such as second-lien loans, home-equity lines of credit, manufactured housing contracts and home improvement loans.

The volume of ABS deals was also down dramatically, totaling $54.74 billion in the first quarter, compared with the $323.34 billion recorded a year earlier, according to Thomson's numbers.

JPMorgan topped the ABS category with a 22.8% market share, up from 8.6% a year earlier. It was followed by Citi, with 21.7%; BoA Securities, with 15.9%; Barclays Capital, with 7.4%; and Lehman Brothers, with 5.9%.

The rest of the top 10 were Credit Suisse, with a 5.2% market share; Deutsche Bank, with 5.1%; RBS, with 4.3%; Wachovia Corp., with 4%; and Morgan Stanley, with 3.3%.

(c) 2008 National Mortgage News and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved. http://www.nationalmortgagenews.com/
http://www.sourcemedia.com/

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

CDO Ratings Still in the Spotlight: Single-Family Home Loan Defaults and Delinquencies Continue to Reverberate Through Financial Markets.

By Jessica Papini
ABSnet.com

Late payments and defaults within pools of bonds backed by single-family home loans are being felt within the collateralized debt obligations market, where rating agency downgrades are still wreaking havoc on investment banks and investors.

Downgrades of CDOs related to problems in the residential mortgage debt market are nothing new; they were seen last summer ahead of the August credit storm. But there has been a steady pace of rating agency activity in the first four months of this year, exceeding the downgrades of the first four months of 2007.

Standard & Poor's, for example, lowered ratings on 3,139 tranches from 724 US cash flow, hybrid, synthetic CDO transactions, worth $332.5 billion, this year. Additionally, 384 classes from 104 transactions are on CreditWatch negative, affecting $21.10 billion in securities. Most of the downgrades are from deals created between the first quarter of 2005 to the third quarter of 2007.

Analysts at rating agencies usually examine a CDO when a residential mortgage bond repackaged into a CDO is downgraded. "It is then funneled through to the CDO surveillance group, which examines all CDOs that have exposure to it," says a Standard & Poor's spokesman.

"Fitch Ratings' process involves placing a CDO on rating watch, notifying the investor community of its views, and then performing an analysis of the troublesome holdings, as well as the remainder of the portfolio," says Kevin Kendra, managing director in Fitch's structured credit group. "Then, the committee process starts. Findings are presented to the committee, and then they vote [on the security's rating]."

In February, Fitch conducted a global review of 430 structured finance CDOs with exposure to residential mortgage-backed securities. Fitch placed $97 billion of rated notes - 902 tranches from 197 transactions - on rating watch negative.

The rating actions have a ripple effect on the market and its investors, particularly those market participants who believed they were buying highly-rated and, therefore, safe investments.

The downgrades affect many aspects of the market. "Many buyers bought CDOs because of the high rate of return and never expected losses," says Edward O'Connell, partner at Jones Day.

The rating action also may force some investors to sell their holdings at a time when liquidity is poor. "It's difficult for investors, such as insurance companies, pension funds and other institutional investors, holding the paper because some are prohibited from holding CDOs below a certain rating level," says O'Connell.

Now they are stuck selling into a bad market. "Prices in the types of assets decayed much quicker than rating agencies downgraded," says Larry Levine of accounting firm RSM McGladrey.

The rating agency actions may also have an impact on Wall Street dealer firms that have held sizeable portfolios of higher-rated classes of CDOs. For example, Merrill Lynch held large quantities of senior classes of CDOs that, when they dropped in value, eroded the brokerage's balance sheet last fall.

Higher tranches typically don't offer as high a rate of return over lower tranches, and are more difficult to sell. Banks put them on their trading books if they can't sell them. "Now banks are realizing the CDOs are not safe if they have been downgraded," O'Connell says.

"Many CDO portfolios are going to have to be sold, and banks are going to lose a lot of cash because they were sold at the wrong time in the market," says Axel Perrin, senior analyst at Celent. He points out that if the banks were able to keep the CDOs on their portfolios the CDO investments might have ended up being profitable.

The downgrades are also adding to the liquidity problems in the market as "banks are holding more capital against the downgraded CDO, decreasing funds which could have been lent out," O'Connell said.

"Companies need to have a few consecutive positive earnings reports, the employment market needs to pick up, and once banks feel more confident, they will begin lending again," says Levine. The CDO downgrades, though, will likely cause further write downs by investment banks. "We haven't seen the bottom of this yet," says Perrin.

Meanwhile, there may be additional downgrades within the CDO market related to high-yield loans that were resold into CDOs. "Cash flow CDOs of high-yield loans have not been affected yet, but they may be the next in line. They [corporate borrowers] may have a hard time refinancing," O'Connell said. "It may be a domino effect."

jessica.papini@sourcemedia.com

(c) 2008 Investment Dealers' Digest and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
http://www.iddmagazine.com
http://www.sourcemedia.com

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

Beige Book April Report

Eight times a year the Federal Reserve issues its “Beige Report.”

Reports from the twelve Federal Reserve Districts indicate that economic conditions have weakened since the last report. Nine Districts noted slowing in the pace of economic activity, while the remaining three--Boston, Cleveland, and Richmond--described activity as mixed or steady.

Boston
www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2008/20080416/1.htm

New York
www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2008/20080416/2.htm

Philadelphia
www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2008/20080416/3.htm

Cleveland
www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2008/20080416/4.htm

Richmond
www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2008/20080416/5.htm

Atlanta
www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2008/20080416/6.htm

Chicago
www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2008/20080416/7.htm

St. Louis
www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2008/20080416/8.htm

Minneapolis
www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2008/20080416/9.htm

Kansas City
www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2008/20080416/10.htm

Dallas
www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2008/20080416/11.htm

San Francisco
www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2008/20080416/12.htm

Full Report:
http://www.federalreserve.gov/fomc/beigebook/2008/20080416/FullReport.htm

[headlines]

---------------------------------------------------------------

News Briefs----

Lakeland Bancorp Reports 27% Increase in First Quarter Earnings
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/080417/nyth014.html?.v=101

Merrill Posts a Loss and Plans to Cut 2,900 More Jobs
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/17/business/17cnd-merrill.html?hp

Chapter and Worse: Biz Bankruptcies Soar
http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/11043518?f=alerts

Housing downturn now hitting upscale Dallas areas
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/
041808dnbushousing.3aa861b.html

Royal Bank of Scotland in fresh cash plea
http://www.telegraph.co.uk:80/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2008/04/18/nrbs118.xml

Welch rebuke to GE’s Immelt
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/bfa77952-0bdd-11dd-9840-0000779fd2ac.html?nclick_check=1

G.E.’s Shortfall Calls Credibility Into Question
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/17/business/17electric.html?ref=business

Leasing broker helps firms get equipment: Dan Calabrese
http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080415/
BUSINESS03/804150318

Bank of America Plans to End Private Student Lending
http://www.bloomberg.com:80/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aITn_.6dC1o4&refer=home

Student loan trouble may threaten Sallie Mae lending ability
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-student-loans-sallie-mae-apr17,0,7041421.story

Fed auctions additional $25 billion in Treasury securities to big investment banks
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2004356194_webfed17.html

Dollar Falls to Record Against Euro as EU Inflation Quickens
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aJzDkL83KxiQ&refer=worldwide

eBay Profit Soars 22%
http://www.nypost.com/seven/04172008/business/ebays_profit_soars_22__106851.htm

Dell cuts sales gap with PC leader Hewlett
http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2008/04/17/dell_cuts_sales_gap
_with_pc_leader_hewlett/

Microsoft introduces revamped news search service
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2004354552_livesearch17.html

Lack of singer personalities concerns Cowell
http://www.variety.com/VE1117936818.html
http://www.ajc.com/search/content/shared-gen/ap/Recordings/TV_American_Idol.html

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You May have Missed---

S.F. Federal Reserve Bank chief sees mortgage and lending turmoil extending into 2009
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/04/16/business/NA-FIN-ECO-US-California
-Fed-Economy.php

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Sports Briefs----

Sharks take 3-2 series lead by beating Flames 4-3 in Game 5
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/04/16/sports/s163627D52.DTL

http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/nhl_experts/post/Celebrating-the-Most-Vicious-Hit-in-N
HL-History?urn=nhl,77015

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“Gimme that Wine”

Domaine Carneros receives Organic certification
http://intelligenttravel.typepad.com/it/2008/04/the-domaine-car.html

Insects in the Vineyard
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/17/WIG110195M.DTL

Simple food for complex wine: Rodney Strong Chardonnay
http://www1.pressdemocrat.com/article/20080416/LIFESTYLE/804160306/-1/
SPECIAL&THEMES=FOODWINE

Finger Lakes Wine Country, New York Announces the Release of the New 2008 Finger Lakes Wine Country
http://www.pr-usa.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=98605&Itemid=9

Red Sox wine is done while Yankee variety a hit
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/2008/04/01/2008-04-01_red_sox_
wine_is_done_while_yankee_variet.html

Pope to be honored with Sonoma wine (he's not there, but the wine is)
http://www1.pressdemocrat.com/article/20080415/NEWS/610587965/1033/
NEWS&template=kart

Taste Washington 2008, Washington State's Showcase Wine Event, Enjoys Most Successful Weekend in Its 11-Year History
http://www.marketwire.com/mw/release.do?id=844092

Wine Prices by vintage
http://www.winezap.com
http://www.wine-searcher.com/
US/International Wine Events
http://www.localwineevents.com/
Winery Atlas
http://www.carterhouse.com/atlas
Leasing News Wine & Spirits Page
http://two.leasingnews.org/Recommendations/wnensprts.htm
The London International Vintners Exchange (Liv-ex) is an electronic exchange for fine wine.
http://www.liv-ex.com/

[headlines]

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Calendar Events This Day

Denmark: Common Prayer Day
Public Holiday. The fourth Friday after Easter, known as “Store Bededag,” is a day for prayer and festivity.
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/da.html

International Amateur Radio Day.
Annual, international day recognizing the services and accomplishments of amateur radio operators in wireless technology, emergencies, and education.
www.arrl.org

Zimbabwe: Independence Day
National holiday commemorates the recognition by Great Britain of Zimbabwean independence on this day in 1980. Prior to this, the country had been the British colony of Southern Rhodesia.
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/zi.html

International Juggler's Day
http://holidayinsights.com/moreholidays/April/jugglersday.htm

National Cheese Soufflé Day

National Columnists Day
http://holidayinsights.com/moreholidays/April/columnistsday.htm

Pet Owners Independence Day
http://holidayinsights.com/moreholidays/April/petownerindependenceday.htm

Saint feast Days

http://www.catholic.org/saints/f_day/apr.php

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False eyelashes were invented by film director D.W. Griffith while he was making the 1916 epic, "Intolerance." He wanted actress Seena Owen to have lashes that brushed her cheeks.

[headlines]

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Today's Top Event in History

 1944 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: ``It's Love-Love-Love,'' Guy Lombardo & His Royal Canadians. It is one of Lombardo's 26 No. 1 pop songs. Lombardo's is the only dance band to ever sell more than 100 million records.

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This Day in American History

    1675--Birthday of Katen Tekakwitha - Mohawk- Algonquian religious. She was the first native American proposed for sainthood in the Roman Catholic Church. raised by an anti-Christian uncle after her parents died when she was four. When she was 19 she followed in her mother's footsteps and was baptized Christian. It is said she faced bigotry by Mohawks who opposed Christianity and saw it destroying their way of life. She was pius and refused to marry further separating her from the Indian culture. It is said she lived a "life of great spirituality and asceticism." After her death at age 24 miracles were attributed to her and in 1884 a plenary council of the Roman Catholic church, meeting in the U.S. petitioned Rome for her canonization. The move was seen as a step to influence Indians to accept the church that accepted them as well as to recognize miracles attriibuted to her. In 1943 she was "recognized as possessed of heroic virtue," but no further action has been taken for her canonization.
    1631 - English colony of Massachusetts Bay granted Puritans voting rights and John Winthrop was elected 1st governor of Massachusetts.
    1675-- Katen Tekakwitha - Mohawk- Algonquian, baptized this day. She was the first Native American proposed for sainthood in the Roman Catholic Church. Raised by an anti-Christian uncle after her parents died when she was four. When she was 19 she followed in her mother's footsteps and was baptized Christian. It is said she faced bigotry by Mohawks who opposed Christianity and saw it destroying their way of life. She was pious and refused to marry further separating her from the Indian culture. It is said she lived a "life of great spirituality and asceticism." After her death at age 24 miracles were attributed to her and in 1884 a plenary council of the Roman Catholic Church, meeting in the U.S. petitioned Rome for her canonization. The move was seen as a step to influence Indians to accept the church that accepted them as well as to recognize miracles attributed to her. In 1943 she was "recognized as possessed of heroic virtue," but no further action has been taken for her canonization.
    1775- Paul Revere, William Dawes and Samuel Prescott started at about 10pm, Eastern Time, to warn American patriots between Boston, Massachusetts and Concord, Massachusetts of the approaching British. Revere never completed the ride as he was captured by the British. The poem only remembers the one rider. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem about Paul Revere, published in 1861, was written to impress northerners during the Civil War of the necessity of fighting for liberty:
“One, if by land, and two, if by sea:
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm
Through every Middlesex village and farm
For the country fold to be up and to arm.”
From Richard Shenkman’s, “ I love Paul Revere whether he rode on Not:
President Harding worries about Paul Revere:
“Imagine for a moment in 1923, Al Capone is assembly an army of gun-toting henchmen in Chicago. (They will number 700 before he is through.) Cotton farmers in the South are sunk in depression. The Ku Klux Klan is on the rise. Newspaper headlines tell of corruption in the Veterans Bureau (the director has had to resign). Rumors in the capital hint of the coming Teapot Dome Scandal (Eventually two secretaries in the cabinet will go to jail, convicted of corruption.) But these are not the things that concern the president of the United Sates. What worries Warren Harding---touring the country on a campaign swing that will prove to be his last---is a recent attack on the legend of Paul Revere. An iconoclast had noted that Revere never completed the ride made famous by Longfellow. Before giving warning to Concord, Revere was discovered by the British and captured. They kept his horse, but released him, not knowing his mission, but wanting his horse as “tribute.” Dawes horse fell during the long and rough trip and could not finish. Harding, however, told the crowd he didn’t care. “I love the story of Paul Revere,” the president intoned in his most presidential-sounding voice, “whether he rode or not.” The fact is Paul Revere did ride, but it was Samuel Prescott who finished and actually made the warning known. The Minutemen were prepared for the British attack on April 19.
    1818 -- A regiment of Indians and blacks is defeated at the Battle of Suwanna, in Florida, ending the first Seminole War.
    1829--Birthday of Katherine Russell (Mother Mary Baptist), established homes in San Francisco for prostitutes, unemployed women, the aged and infirmed, and founder of St. Mary’s Hospital
in San Francisco. A House of Mercy for unemployed women opened in 1855, a Magdalene Asylum for prostitutes in 1861, and the home for the aged and infirmed in 1872. The daughter of a well-to-do family, she became a nun in her native Ireland. She headed a group of eight sisters sent to San Francisco to establish a convent and school. During a cholera epidemic her order worked with the city to care for dependent patients at a government hospital. Religious problems arose and Mother Mary purchased the building and named it St. Mary's Hospital, the first Catholic hospital on the Pacific coast. Under her direction the convent opened branches and hospitals in several California cities.
    1847 -- U.S. forces defeat Mexicans at Cerro Gordo in one of the bloodiest battle of the war, one of the turning points of the war. After purchasing all the land from France, the Southwest was seized in war with Mexico.
http://www.multied.com/mexican/cerramore.html
    1856-Senator J.B. Weller of California urged passage of a bill to authorize and facilitate the construction of a railroad and magnetic telegraph to the West.
    1857-birthday of Clarence Darrow, American attorney often associated with unpopular causes, from the Pullman strike in 1894 to the Scottsboro case in 1932, born at Kinsman, OH. At the Scopes trial, July 13, 1925, Darrow said: "I do not consider it an insult, but rather a compliment, to be called an agnostic. I do not pretend to know where many ignorant men are sure--that is all that agnosticism means."
    1864 -At Poison Springs, Arkansas, Confederate soldiers under the command of General Samuel Maxey capture a Union forage train and slaughter black troops escorting the expedition. The Battle of Poison Springs was part of broad Union offensive in the region of Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas. General Nathaniel Banks had led a Yankee force through Louisiana in March and April, but a defeat in northwestern Louisiana at the Battle of Mansfield on April 8 sent Banks in retreat. Union forces nearby in Arkansas were moving towards Banks' projected thrust into Texas with the intention of securing southwestern Arkansas for the Federals. Union General Frederick Steele occupied Camden, Arkansas, on April 15. Two days later, he sent Colonel John Williams and 1,100 of his 14,000-man force to gather 5,000 bushels of corn discovered west of Camden. The force arrived to find that Confederate marauders had destroyed half of the store, but the Yankees loaded the rest into some 200 wagons and prepared to return to Camden. On the way back Maxey and 3,600 Confederates intercepted them. Maxey placed General John Marmaduke in charge of the attack that ensued. Williams positioned part of his force, the 1st Kansas Colored Infantry, between the wagon train the Confederate lines. The regiment was the first black unit in the army, comprised primarily of ex-slaves. The determined soldiers of the 1st Kansas stopped the first two Rebel attacks, but they were running low on ammunition. A third assault overwhelmed the Kansans, and the rout was on. Williams gathered the remnants of his force and retreated from the abandoned wagons. More than 300 Yankee troops were killed, wounded, or captured, while the Confederates lost just 13 killed and 81 wounded. Most shocking was the Rebel treatment of the black troops. No black troops were captured, and those left wounded on the battlefield were brutally killed, scalped, and stripped. The Washington Telegraph, the major Confederate newspaper in Arkansas, justified the atrocity by declaring "We cannot treat Negroes taken in arms as prisoners of war without a destruction of social system for which we contend."
    1865 -Union General William Tecumseh Sherman and Confederate Joseph Johnston signed a broad political peace agreement at Durham Station, North Carolina. The agreement promised a general amnesty for all Southerners and pledged federal recognition of all Southern state governments after their officials took oath of allegiance to the US. The new administration reneged on this, Sherman was roundly criticized publicly in drawing up the agreement that former President Lincoln and General Grant had instructed him to negotiate. The agreement was rejected by President Andrew Johnson, and Sherman and Johnston were forced to reach a new agreement with terms virtually the same as those given Robert E. Lee.
    1880- Birthday of Samuel Earl “Wahoo Sam” Crawford, Wahoo, Nebraska.. Wahoo Sam played pro ball for 20 years with the Detroit Tigers, racking up a career batting average of .309. His record of 312 career triples still stands. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1957.
    1880 -a major tornado outbreak occurred from Arkansas to Michigan with 22 tornadoes rated F2 or greater. Three F4 tornadoes in Missouri did most of the killing with 68 people killed at Marshfield, Missouri. Another F4 tornado in Missouri was on the ground for 93 miles. 165 peopled were killed in this outbreak and over 500 were injured.
    1906-- Over 3, 000 lives were lost in the San Francisco earthquake, primarily due to the fire that practically destroyed San Francisco after a series of major earthquakes; some 10,000 acres were affected, as far as Mendocino, where farms near the coast actually fell into the ocean. While much damage was caused by the earthquake, it was the seventh Great Fire that burned for four days that contributed to the deaths. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of trapped persons died when South-of-Market tenements collapsed as the ground liquefied beneath them. The earthquake shock was felt from Coos Bay, Oregon, to Los Angeles, and as far east as central Nevada, an area of about 375,000 square miles, approximately half of which was in the Pacific Ocean. There were 135 aftershocks on April 18, and 22 on April 19.
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/apr18.html
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/big/0418.html
    1913-Birthday of American composer Kent Kennan, born Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Died: 1 November 2003 , Austin, TX
    1921-Birthday of Barbara Hale, U.S. actor best known for her TV portrayal of Perry Mason's dutiful secretary Della Street.
    1922--Birthday of calypso music pioneer Lord Kitchener, whose real name is Aldwyn Roberts. Died 2000.
http://www.calypsoworld.org/noflash/artists-20.htm
http://www.nalis.gov.tt/Biography/History_LORDKITCHENER_PeopleOfTheCentury.htm
    1923- More than 74,000 fans attended Opening Day festivities as the New York Yankees inaugurated their new stadium. Babe Ruth christened it with a game-winning three-run homer into the right-field bleachers. In his coverage of the game for the New York Evening Telegram sportswriter Fred Lieb described Yankee Stadium as “The House That Ruth Built,’ and the name stuck.
    1924 - Simon and Schuster, Inc. published the first "Crossword Puzzle Book".
    1925--the Woman's World Fair, in Chicago opened. The exhibits showed women's progress in major industries and professions and historians considered it as a landmark in the recognition of women's contribution to civilization.
    1927-- Canadian composer and pianist Marian Grudeff was born in Toronto. She and another Canadian, Ray Jessel, were engaged by producer Alexander H. Cohen to write songs for the musical "Baker Street," which premiered in Boston in December 1964. After revisions, the show opened in New York the following February. "Baker Street," based on the story of Sherlock Holmes, was called one of the best musicals of the 1960's.
    1929 - Red Nichols and his Five Pennies recorded the Glenn Miller arrangement of "Indiana" for Brunswick Records in New York City. Players included Benny Goodman, Gene Krupa and Jack Teagarden .
The movie “The Five Pennies”
http://www.redhotjazz.com/redn.html
    1932—birthday of gospel vocalist Rev. Cleophus Robinson, Canton, MS
    1934—birthday of vocalist Neal Kimble, New Orleans, LA
    1934-J. F. Cantrell opened the first Laundromat. He called it the”washateria” in Fort Worth, Texas. Four electric washing machines were rented by the hour to those who wished to do their laundry. Hot water and electricity were supplied, but users were obliged to furnish their own soap.
    1936-The singing cowboy, Gene Autry, records "Back in the Saddle Again."
    1938--singer Charlie Pride birthday
http://www.charleypride.com/
    1941-Sideny Bechet, playing six instruments, records “Blues of Bechet,” Victor 27485)
    1941—birthday of singer Wilson Pickett, Prattville, AL
http://www.rockhall.com/hof/inductee.asp?id=167
    1941-Mike Vickers, saxophone player and guitarist with the British group Manfred Mann, was born in Southampton, England. Leader Manfred Mann, whose real name is Manfred Lubowitz, immigrated to England from South Africa in the early 1960's. His group became part of the "British Invasion" of the North American record charts with such hits as "Do Wah Diddy Diddy," "Pretty Flamingo" and "Mighty Quinn." After the demise of his group, Manfred Mann formed another band called Chapter Three in 1969. In the following decade, this evolved into Manfred Mann's Earth Band, a heavy metal group.
    1942 - Birthday of Pete Gogolak (football: 1st soccer-style kicker in pro football: Buffalo Bills, NY Giants), Budapest, Hungry
    1942-The Toronto Maple Leafs completed the greatest comeback in Stanley Cup playoff history by defeating the Detroit Red Wings, 3-1, in Game 7 of the finals. The Leafs were down three games to none before they evened the series with 4-3, 9-3, and 3-0 victories.
    1942-16 B-25 airplanes of the 17th Bombardment Group,8th Air force, led by Colonel James Harold Doolittle, took off from he U.S. Hornet. Traveling low over the water, they dropped bombs on the cities of Tokyo, Kobe, and Nagoya, and then continued straight on until they ran out of fuel and crash-landed in the Chinese countryside. The raid took the Japanese military establishment by surprise and demonstrated for the first time the vulnerability of the Japanese home islands.
    1943 -- Traveling in a bomber, Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, the mastermind of the attack on Pearl Harbor, is shot down by American P-38 fighters.
    1944 - California experienced its worst hailstorm of record. Damage mounted to 2 million dollars as 2 consecutive storms devastated the Sacramento Valley destroying the fruit crop.
    1944 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: ``It's Love-Love-Love,'' Guy Lombardo & His Royal Canadians. It is one of Lombardo's 26 No. 1 pop songs. Lombardo's is the only dance band to ever sell more than 100 million records.
    1945-- *MERRELL, JOSEPH F. Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: Private, U.S. Army, Company I, 15th Infantry, 3d Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Lohe, Germany, 18 April 1945. Entered service at: Staten Island, N.Y. Birth: Staten Island, N.Y. G.O. No.: 21, 26 February 1946. Citation: He made a gallant, 1-man attack against vastly superior enemy forces near Lohe, Germany. His unit, attempting a quick conquest of hostile hill positions that would open the route to Nuremberg before the enemy could organize his defense of that city, was pinned down by brutal fire from rifles, machine pistols, and 2 heavy machineguns. Entirely on his own initiative, Pvt. Merrell began a single-handed assault. He ran 100 yards through concentrated fire, barely escaping death at each stride, and at pointblank range engaged 4 German machine pistolmen with his rifle, killing all of them while their bullets ripped his uniform. As he started forward again, his rifle was smashed by a sniper's bullet, leaving him armed only with 3 grenades. But he did not hesitate. He zigzagged 200 yards through a hail of bullets to within 10 yards of the first machinegun, where he hurled 2 grenades and then rushed the position ready to fight with his bare hands if necessary. In the emplacement he seized a Luger pistol and killed what Germans had survived the grenade blast. Rearmed, he crawled toward the second machinegun located 30 yards away, killing 4 Germans in camouflaged foxholes on the way, but himself receiving a critical wound in the abdomen. And yet he went on, staggering, bleeding, disregarding bullets which tore through the folds of his clothing and glanced off his helmet. He threw his last grenade into the machinegun nest and stumbled on to wipe out the crew. He had completed this self-appointed task when a machine pistol burst killed him instantly. In his spectacular 1-man attack Pvt. Merrell killed 6 Germans in the first machinegun emplacement, 7 in the next, and an additional 10 infantrymen who were astride his path to the weapons which would have decimated his unit had he not assumed the burden of the assault and stormed the enemy positions with utter fearlessness, intrepidity of the highest order, and a willingness to sacrifice his own life so that his comrades could go on to victory.
    1946 - Lead vocalist Skip Spence of Moby Grape is born in Windsor, Ontario.
    1950 -- The first transatlantic jet passenger trip is completed.
    1954-Birthday of American composer Robert Greenberg, born Brooklyn,New York.
    1956---Top Hits
Heartbreak Hotel/I Was the One - Elvis Presley
The Poor People of Paris - Les Baxter
Long Tall Sally - Little Richard
Blue Suede Shoes - Carl Perkins
    1957-Army reserve Lieutenant Buddy Knox whose "Party Doll" was a recent Number One, is called up for six months of active duty. Roulette Records' A&R team, Hugo Peretti and Luigi Creatore rush Knox to the studio to cut over 20 songs to ensure his career does not stall while he's in uniform. It does anyway.
    1959--Birthday of Susan Faludi - U.S. author and journalist. known especially for her exploration of the depiction of women by the news media. She won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for explanatory journalism. Her best known book is Backlash, the Undeclared War against Women. She worked for the New York Times, San Jose Mercury, Miami Herald among other newspapers and was managing editor of the Harvard Crimson when she attended that university.
    1960-Dr. William M. Chardack inserted a wire implant into the heart of Frank Henefelt, a cardiac patient, to test the invention by Dr. Chardack and engineer Wilson Greatbatch, both of Buffalo, NY, patented this day. The battery-powered pulse generator unit tested successfully and was implanted into Henefelt’s abdomen. He lived for 2.5 years with the device. Swedish doctors first implanted a similar device in 1958.
    1964---Top Hits
Can’t Buy Me Love - The Beatles
Twist and Shout - The Beatles
Suspicion - Terry Stafford
Understand Your Man - Johnny Cash
    1965 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: ``Game of Love,'' Wayne Fontana & the Mindbenders.
    1966 - 38th Annual Academy Awards celebration at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Los Angeles. Bob Hope was the host, for the sixth time. He received a gold medal, the Honorary Award for unique and distinguished service to the film industry and the Academy. Other award recipients included Shelley Winters for her Best Supporting Actress role in "A Patch of Blue"; Martin Balsam, Best Supporting Actor for his performance in "A Thousand Clowns". The Best Actor Oscar went to my former Latimer Road neighbor in the Pacific Palisades, Lee Marvin ("Cat Ballou"); and Julie Christie picked up the Best Actress Oscar ("Darling"). The Oscar for the Best Music/Song from a 1965 movie was "The Shadow of Your Smile" from "The Sandpiper" (Johnny Mandel-music, Paul Francis Webster-lyrics). It’s a good thing that the "Oscars" were being broadcast in color this night (the first time) because the Best Director and Best Picture winner was "The Sound of Music" (Robert Wise, producer and director).
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0149013.html
    1972---Top Hits
The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face - Roberta Flack
I Gotcha - Joe Tex
Rockin’ Robin - Michael Jackson
My Hang-Up is You - Freddie Hart
    1974 - James Brown, the ‘Godfather of Soul’, received a gold record this day for the single, "The Payback". Of the 44 hits that Brown would put on the charts over three decades, he received only one other gold record -- for "Get on the Good Foot - Part 1" in 1972. His biggest pop hits include: "I Got You (I Feel Good)" at number three in 1965, "Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag" at number eight in 1965, "It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World" at number eight in 1966, "I Got The Feelin’" at number six in 1968 and "Living in America" at number four in 1986. This song was featured in the Sylvester Stallone film, "Rocky IV". He has been in and out of jail for “Spousal Abuse” and other ailments, but started the singing-dance craze imitated by all those followed him in Rhythm n Blues, including Michael Jackson.
http://www.funky-stuff.com/jamesbrown/
    1975-James Benton Parsons was appointed chief justice of the Illinois Supreme Court by President John F. Kennedy. He is the first African-American chief justice of a state supreme court. Died June 9, 1993
    1975-Alice Cooper's first TV special, "Welcome to My Nightmare: The Making of a Record Album" airs.
    1977 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: ``Don't Leave Me This Way,'' Thelma Houston.
    1978 -- The U.S. Senate approves the transfer of the Panama Canal to Panama.
    1980---Top Hits
Another Brick in the Wall - Pink Floyd
Call Me - Blondie
Ride like the Wind - Christopher Cross
Honky Tonk Blues - Charley Pride
    1981-British progressive rock band Yes announces its break-up. During its 13-year career, the group became one of the world's most popular exponents of intricate, mystical, symphonic rock, despite the fact that they only had one big chart hit, "Roundabout." It went to #13 in 1972. Of course, they reunite on numerous occasions over the years.
    1983-- A suicide bomber kills U.S. Marines at the U.S. Embassy in Lebanon.
    1983 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: ``Come on Eileen,'' Dexys Midnight Runners.
    1985 - Tulane University abolished its 72-year-old basketball program, and shocked the college sports world with the announcement. The school said that charges of fixed games, drug use and payments to players contributed to the shutdown of the basketball program.
    1985-Wham's "Make It Big" LP is released in China, making it the first Western album to be released there.
    1987-The Philadelphia Phillies’ Mike Schmidt hit the 500th home run of his career with two outs in the sixth inning of a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. the Phillies rallied to win, 8-6. Schmidt finished his career with 548 homers, seventh on the all-time list at the time.
    1988-Miles Davis played at the San Francisco War Memorial Opera House view the Original Poster for this event at Wolfgang's Vault.
http://www.wolfgangsvault.com/
    1988---Top Hits
Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car - Billy Ocean
Devil Inside - INXS
Where Do Broken Hearts Go - Whitney Houston
I Wanna Dance with You - Eddie Rabbitt
    1990 - Heavy snow blanketed the west central valleys and southwest mountains of Colorado with up to 18 inches of snow. Nine cities from the Mid Mississippi Valley to the Middle Atlantic Coast Region reported record low temperatures for the date, including Fort Wayne IND with a reading of 23 degrees.
    1992 - Albums by Def Leppard, Bruce Springsteen and Wynonna debut in the top four spots on Billboard's pop album chart. The albums are Def Leppard's ``Adrenalize,'' Springsteen's ``Human Touch'' and ``Lucky Town'' and Wynonna's ``Wynonna.'' (Wynonna Judd launches her solo career with the album and drops her last name to distance herself from her success as half of the mother-daughter duo The Judds.)
    1998 - Country group Diamond Rio are inducted into the Grand Ole Opry. The band opens their performance with their first number one hit "Meet in the Middle.
    2001--The San Francisco Board of Supervisors committee approved a plan to give sex change benefits to city employees.
    2003-- In four barricaded cottages in conquered Baghdad, Iraq, US troops find $656 million in US currency, in $100 bills stacked inside galvanized aluminum boxes sealed with blue strapping tape and green seals stamped "Bank of Jordan." On 22 April 2003, in the same Baghdad neighborhood, US troops would find another $112 million, similarly packed, hidden in seven dog kennels.
    2004 - Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker opens a franchise of the popular restaurant chain Wahoo's Fish Taco in Norco, Calif.

NBA Finals Champions This Date
    1962 Boston Celtics
Stanley Cup Champions This Date
    1942 Toronto Maple Leafs
    1959 Montreal Canadiens
    1963 Toronto Maple Leafs

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Spring Poem

Mannahatta

by Walt Whitman

I was asking for something specific and perfect for my city,
Whereupon lo! upsprang the aboriginal name.
Now I see what there is in a name, a word, liquid, sane,
unruly, musical, self-sufficient,
I see that the word of my city is that word from of old,
Because I see that word nested in nests of water-bays,
superb,
Rich, hemm'd thick all around with sailships and
steamships, an island sixteen miles long, solid-founded,
Numberless crowded streets, high growths of iron, slender,
strong, light, splendidly uprising toward clear skies,
Tides swift and ample, well-loved by me, toward sundown,
The flowing sea-currents, the little islands, larger adjoining
islands, the heights, the villas,
The countless masts, the white shore-steamers, the lighters,
the ferry-boats, the black sea-steamers well-model'd,
The down-town streets, the jobbers' houses of business, the
houses of business of the ship-merchants and money-
brokers, the river-streets,
Immigrants arriving, fifteen or twenty thousand in a week,
The carts hauling goods, the manly race of drivers of horses,
the brown-faced sailors,
The summer air, the bright sun shining, and the sailing
clouds aloft,
The winter snows, the sleigh-bells, the broken ice in the
river, passing along up or down with the flood-tide or
ebb-tide,
The mechanics of the city, the masters, well-form'd,
beautiful-faced, looking you straight in the eyes,
Trottoirs throng'd, vehicles, Broadway, the women, the
shops and shows,
A million people--manners free and superb--open voices--
hospitality--the most courageous and friendly young
men,
City of hurried and sparkling waters! city of spires and masts!
City nested in bays! my city!

[headlines]

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SuDoku

The object is to insert the numbers in the boxes to satisfy only one condition: each row, column and 3x3 box must contain the digits 1 through 9 exactly once. What could be simpler?

http://leasingnews.org/Soduku/soduko-main.htm

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

Daily Puzzle

How to play:
http://www.setgame.com/set/puzzle_frame.htm

Refresh for current date:
http://www.setgame.com/set/puzzle_frame.htm

[headlines]

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http://www.gasbuddy.com/
http://www.gasbuddy.com/GB_Map_Gas_Prices.aspx
http://www.gasbuddy.com/GB_Mobile_Instructions.aspx

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

Provence, France-Vacation

http://le-monastier.site.voila.fr/

[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

News on Line---Internet Newspapers

San Jose, California

www.metroactive.com

--------------------------------

[headlines]

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