Can't Wait for a Good Read

Maddie Jones, 5, and Julian Anton, 2, look on as Damian Anton, 7, reads from his new book near the children's book tent today at the Westport Public Library annual book sale. Dave Matlow for WestportNow

Westport Arts Festival Draws Crowds

Westport's Main Street was turned into a pedestrial mall today for the Westport Arts Festival sponsored by the Downtown Merchants Association. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Main Street Art

Visitors to today's Westport Arts Festival on Main Street take in one of the exhibits. The show runs through Sunday. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Emily Laux for WestportNow.com

Top Performers

Bob Knoebel, Westport YMCA race director, (l) congratulates Frisk Driscoll, 17, of Westport, and Keenan Koss, 16, of Fairfield for being the top male and female finishers in today's Point to Point swim at Compo Beach. Driscoll finished in 16:20 and Koss in 17:24. Full results available HERE. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Everyone into the Water

Swimmers set off in today's 26th annual Point to Point swim at Compo Beach. Frisk Driscoll, 17, a Staples High School senior, turned in the best time of 16:20. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Congratulations to the Winner

Staples senior Frisk Driscoll, 17, receives congratulations after completing today's Point to Point swim with the best time of 16:20. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Ideal Conditions for Swimming

Swimmers said conditions were ideal for today's 26th annual Point to Point swim at Compo Beach. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Marking their Friendship

In order to stay together in today's Compo Beach Point to Point swim, three friends wrote identifying marks on their swim caps. Shown are (l to r) Amy Salce, 13, of Westport, Tara Dugan, 13, of Wilton, and Katelin Overton, 12, of Fairfield. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Rush is On as Book Sale Opens

A shopper runs through the aisles of today’s Westport Public Library book sale as the event got underway. (CLICK PHOTO TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Book Lovers Line Up

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More than 150 people were lined up today waiting for the opening of the Westport Public Library annual book sale on Jesup Green. (CLICK PHOTO TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Saturday, July 17, 2004

9 a.m. - 6 p.m. Jesup Green - Westport Public Library book sale
9 a.m. - 6 p.m. Main Street - Westport Arts Festival
10 a.m. - Compo Beach - 26th annual Point to Point swim
10 a.m. .- 5 p.m. - Westport Historical Society - Ultimate Sale

Martha Stewart on her Web Site: "Please Keep (My) Company Alive"

In a message to fans posted on her Web site, Westport's Martha Stewart today called her sentencing "horrendous" but not unexpected. She appealed to her supporters to help keep her Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia company alive.

The letter echoed remarks she made to reporters on the steps of a New York courthouse following her sentencing.

"The sentencing decision in my case is in. As horrendous as it is, it was not unexpected and I am not afraid of what the future holds," Stewart said.

"I will get through what the court requires and return to my work just as soon as I can. In the meantime, my attorneys will pursue a vigorous appeal."

She said she wanted her fans to know "how deeply saddened I am by the entire matter, and in particular by the damaging impact it has had on so many innocent people."

Stewart said many people have asked her what they can do to help at this juncture.

"If I can ask just one thing of the public that has benefited for many years from my work and the creative output of my company, it would be to continue to support Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, regardless of what happens to me," she said.

"Remember, please, that this was a personal matter that, because of the power of the press and the persistence of the government, spilled over onto an uninvolved company, harming all the people who labor so very hard, doing such admirable work.

"Please keep the company alive and our employees doing the jobs they love."

Stewart said visitors to her Web site may wish to review a personal video statement she recorded as well as a letter she wrote to U.S. District Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum.

"As always, you have my thanks for your support and my promise to do my best to keep you informed as events continue to unfold," she said.

Text of Martha Stewart Letter to Judge

In a four-page letter written from her Westport home on the eve of her sentencing, Martha Stewart told U.S. District Judge Miriam Goldman Cederbaum "my hopes that my life will not be completely destroyed lie entirely in your hands."

The text of the letter:

Dear Judge Cedarbaum:

We have never had the opportunity to speak one on one, you and I, despite the fact that I sat before you for five weeks. I am sorry that the legal system is such that even when a person's life is at stake - and for me that means my professional and personal life, not my physical being - the constraints prohibit conversation, communication, true understanding and complete disclosure of every aspect of the situation. I am not a lawyer, I am not skilled in legal processes, I am not even knowledgeable about many legal terms and legal procedures. I am still, after two and a half years of legal maneuverings and countless hours of preparation and trial time, abysmally confused and ill prepared for what is described to me as the next step in this process.

I am a 62 year old woman, a graduate of the excellent Nutley, New Jersey public school system and Barnard College. I have had an amazing professional life and several exciting careers, and I am grateful for that. I have a lovely family and a beautiful, upright, intelligent daughter (also a graduate of Barnard College), and I feel blessed and proud.

For more than a decade I have been building a wonderful company around a core of essential beliefs that are centered on home, family values and traditions, holidays, celebrations, weddings, children, gardening, collecting, home-making, teaching and learning. I have spent most of my professional life creating, writing, researching, and thinking on the highest possible level about quality of life, about giving, about providing, so that millions of people, from all economic strata, can enjoy beauty, good quality, well made products, and impeccably researched information about many hundreds of subjects which can lead to a better life and more rewarding family lifestyle.

I have been so fortunate to have collected around me a large and vital group of like-minded, wonderfully creative and highly motivated colleagues who also wished to fashion and build a company devoted to promoting these same values. By 2002 Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia was a young, highly respected public company, with more than 650 employees, a group of extraordinary strategic partners, and a future filled with hope and great potential for growth. The company was fast growing, well run, well managed, and without debt and it was productively creating how-to information and consumer products centered on my original ideas.

I was often chided for being a "perfectionist" by my competitors, peers and the press, but the way we looked at our business was that we were "teachers" and what we taught had to be based in fact, truth and "highest standards of perfection", a phrase I adopted from the American Poultry Association's handbook, The Standard of Perfection. I have also been accused of being arrogant (as lately as this week on page 11 of the government's answer to our request for downward departure), and I apologize for that. Perhaps, in my enthusiasm and in my quest for jobs well and quickly done I did not always take time to pat backs, or offer thanks for good work. 1 have been extra hard on myself and my work ethic and performance and I sometimes forgot that others need a bit more praise than I remembered to give. I am sorry for that and I wish I could always be polite, humble, respectful and patient. That said, many of the talented people who started my company with me still work with me, and many have been at my side. For more than fifteen years. One of the two original producers of our one hour daily television show, Carolyn Kelly, was buried this past Tuesday, a victim of a cancerous brain tumor. She was just 43 and the mother of three young children. The other original producer spoke proudly at the funeral of their joint contributions and their helping to shape the vision, with me, of a pioneering, Emmy award winning, and how-to television show. Carolyn's death put my problems in perspective: she could no longer hope, no longer create. I could.

As a child I was drawn to me novels of Willa Gather, Upton Sinclair, Dostoevsky and Gogol. I loved Gather's "My Antonia" and decided early on that even if I could not be a pioneer in a true "Westward Ho!" manner, I could attempt to forge new territories for American business. I knew what American homemakers needed and wanted, because I listened. Moreover, I was one of them, and very serious about the subject matter. I was not afraid to be curious, not hesitant to try new things. My books, all written after I turned 40, filled giant voids. They were widely read and the ideas within were happily emulated.

My vacations have never been restful sojourns, but always information gathering expeditions. Oftentimes I would take friends and children with me so they, too, could experience the wonders of the exotic, the beauties of nature, and the hunt for new ideas. My frequent trips to Japan resulted in the creation of a viable and wonderful omnimedia business in Japan. My trips to the Galapagos, to Egypt, India, Africa, Mexico, Brazil, Panama and Peru have afforded me and the company with myriad product ideas, countless columns for our publications, and masses of materials for cookbooks and articles, and even flower sources for Marthasflowers.com.

Because I intend to appeal the verdict, it is inappropriate for me to discuss the facts of my case in this letter but it is very important for me to inform you that I never intended to harm anyone and I am dreadfully sorry that the perception of my conduct has caused my family, my friends and especially my beloved company so much damage.

And here we come, of course, to the conundrum, the problem, the Kafkaesque confusion. What to do?

The problem is yours, but it is also mine. For you there are difficult decisions to make, complicated problems to solve, vast challenges to meet. For me, there are your conclusions to accept and consequences to deal with. And with all such massive decision making and problem solving come further challenges.

I ask that in judging me you consider all the good that I have done, all the contributions I have made and the intense suffering that has accompanied every single moment of the past two and a half years. I seek the opportunity to continue serving my community in a positive manner, to attempt to repair the damage that has been done and to get on with what I have always considered was a good, worthwhile and exemplary life.

My heart goes out to you; my prayers are with you, and my hopes that my life will not be completely destroyed lie entirely in your hands.

Respectfully and most sincerely,

Martha Stewart

Martha Stewart Letter to Judge: "I Never Intended to Harm Anyone"

In a four-page letter written from her Westport home on the eve of her sentencing, Martha Stewart told U.S. District Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum she "never intended to harm anyone and I am dreadfully sorry that the perception of my conduct has caused my family, my friends and especially my beloved company so much damage." WestportNow.com photo

New Look for Westport Skyline

Westport's downtown skyline took on a new look today as a New York television station hoisted a satellite antenna over Main Street to broadcast Westport reaction to Martha Stewart's sentencing. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

AP: Westport Martha Stewart Reaction Mixed

Reaction to Martha Stewart's sentencing today in her hometown of Westport was mixed, according to AP reporter John Christoffersen.

In a Westport-datelined dispatch, he wrote:

"Martha Stewart is not the most popular figure in the shoreline town where she began the catering business that would eventually turn her into America's most famous homemaking expert.

"But while some described her as a cold or unpleasant neighbor, few said they were happy to see her sentenced to prison on Friday.

"Susan Weinberg was disappointed when she heard Stewart was sentenced to five months in federal prison and five months of house arrest for lying about a stock sale. Weinberg said she didn't think any jail time was appropriate.

"'I think they made an example of her,' Weinberg said. 'I'm expecting the five months she is under house arrest, we're going to see amazing things from Martha Stewart. This is not going to bury Martha Stewart.'

The AP writer also quoted Kay Nudelman who he said was shopping for luggage at a store occasionally visited by Stewart. She said she had little sympathy for Stewart and called the sentence a "slap on the wrist."

"When does all this dishonesty stop?," Nudelman said. "It's typical of her with her sense of entitlement. She thinks she can do things her way."

In a later update of the story, the AP said: "Martha Stewart helped give this prosperous town cachet as she built a local catering business into an empire showcasing domestic perfection, but a few years ago she threatened to move out, saying Westport had lost its charm.

"Stewart bought an estate in Bedford, N.Y., but kept a home and her TV studio here."

The AP reported that "Stewart's criticism in 2000 that Westport had become a 'more elitist, and much less charming' place to live did not endear her to a town that is also home to actor Paul Newman, singer Michael Bolton and other celebrities and business executives."

"She's not the hometown hero," Cristin Marandino, executive editor of Westport Magazine, told The AP "I don't get the sense it's one of our own being taken away. If it were Paul Newman it would be a different story."

The story said, "For years, Stewart has built a dual reputation in this town. To some, she is a revered symbol of the good life; to others, a pompous and unpleasant neighbor.

"On Friday, some viewed her sentence as reasonable or too lenient, while others in town say Stewart was made a scapegoat."

All Quiet at Martha Stewart's Westport Home

A car belonging to a private security firm sits outside Martha Stewart's Westport home today. Stewart told a New York court at her sentencing that she planned to serve her five months home detention at her Bedford, N.Y. home. Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com

Text of Stewart Statement: "I Have Been Choked and Almost Suffocated"

Text of Martha Stewart's statement outside the courthouse after she was sentenced today:

Today is a shameful day. It's shameful for me, and for my family, and for my beloved company, and for all of its employees and partners. What was a small personal matter came over the - became over the last two years an almost fatal circus event of unprecedented proportions.

I have been choked and almost suffocated to death during that time, all the while more concerned about the well-being of others than for myself, more hurt for them and for their losses than for my own, more worried for their futures than the future of Martha Stewart the person.

More than 200 people have lost their jobs at my company as a result of this situation. I want them to know how very, very sorry I am for them and their families.

I would like to thank everybody who stood by me, who wished me well, waved to me on the street like these lovely people over here, smiled at me, called me, wrote to me. We received thousands of support letters, and more than 170,000 e-mails to marthatalks.com, and I appreciate each and every one of those pieces of correspondence. I really feel good about it.

Perhaps all of you out there can continue to show your support by subscribing to our magazine, by buying our products, by encouraging our advertisers to come back in full-force to our magazines.

Our magazines are great. They deserve your support, and whatever happened to me personally shouldn't have any effect whatsoever on the great company Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. And I don't want to use this as a sales pitch for my company, but we love that company, we've worked so hard on that company, and we really think it merits great attention from the American public.

And I'll be back. I will be back. Whatever I have to do in the next few months, I hope the months go by quickly. I'm used to all kinds of hard work, as you know, and I'm not afraid. I'm not afraid whatsoever. I'm just very very sorry that it's come to this, that a small personal matter has been able to be blown out of all proportion, and with such venom and such gore, I mean it's just terrible.

We are going to appeal so I'm not going to talk about the case. ... I want to thank Bob Morvillo and his whole team for doing the very best job they could do in defending me."

TV Reporters Seek Westport Reaction to Stewart Sentencing

CNN reporter Alina Cho (red jacket) prepares for her live report from Westport's Main Street outside Oscar's Delicatessen today on Westport reaction to the Martha Stewart sentencing. WABC-TV also set up on Main Street for reaction. WestportNow.com photo

Farrell: "I Think the Sentence Was Reasonable"

Today's sentencing of Westport's Martha Stewart kept many Westporters glued to their televisions. Westport First Selectwoman Diane G. Farrell watches coverage in her Town Hall office. Farrell said, "Given the circumstances, I think the sentence was reasonable. It was very deferential of the judge to allow the appeals process to run its course before she actually has to serve time."WestportNow.com photo

Martha Stewart Gets Five Months in Prison, Five Months Home Detention

Westport's Martha Stewart today was sentenced to five months in prison, five months of home detention and a $30,000 fine for lying to federal authorities investigating her sale of stock in a friend's company.
Westport's Martha Stewart addresses reporters after her sentencing. CNN/WestportNow.com photo

Just before her sentence was pronounced, Stewart asked the judge to "remember all the good I have done."

"Today is a shameful day. It's shameful for me, for my family and for my company," she said.

Stewart told the court she would serve her home detention at her Westchester County home in Bedford, N.Y.

Her lawyer asked that she not have to wear an electronic monitoring device, but the judge denied the request.

Her lawyer also asked that she be allowed to serve her prison time in Danbury. The judge said she would pass on the request to the Bureau of Prisons.

Meanwhile, Stewart's lawyers said she would be appealing the sentence. Some legal experts said it could be sometime in 2005 before Stewart actually sees the inside of a prison.

After the sentencing, Stewart made a statement from the courthouse steps, thanking supporters and expressing regret for the harm done to her company employees.

She said during her ordeal, she had been "choked and almost suffocated to death" in a circus-like atmosphere. She said 200 of her employees had lost their jobs because of her case.

"I will be back...I'm not afraid, I'm not afraid whatsoever," Stewart said. "I'm just very, very sorry it's come to this."

Stewart had faced up to 16 months in jail for lying to investigators probing her Dec. 27, 2001, sale of nearly 4,000 shares of ImClone Systems Inc. stock.

U.S. District Judge Miriam Cedarbaum rejected Stewart's bid to avoid prison. Stewart sought to serve her sentence in community service helping underprivileged women launch their own businesses.

Stewart, 62, and her former Merrill Lynch & Co. broker, Peter Bacanovic, 42, were convicted March 5 of obstructing justice.

At an afternoon session, Bacanovic was sentenced to the same sentence as Stewart -- five years in prison and five months home confinement. He was given a $4,000 fine.

Getting Ready

Westport Public Library book sale volunteers Lucie MacArthur, 15, of Westport (r ), and her friend, Laurel Hanbel, 15, of Hampstead, N.H., get the children's section in order before Saturday's opening day. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Westport in Spotlight Today as Martha Stewart is Sentenced

If things downtown weren't busy enough already today with preparations for the weekend arts festival and library book sale, today's sentencing of Westport's Martha Stewart was almost certain to add a mix of out-of-town reporters looking for reaction in her hometown.

Stewart, convicted of lying about her ImClone stock sale, could receive up to 16 months in prison when she is sentenced at 10 a.m. in a New York courtroom.

After Stewart and her stockbroker, Peter Bacanovic, were found guilty March 5, Westport was inundated with television satellite trucks and news crews seeking local reaction. CNN set up at Oscar's Deli and even broadcast from there the entire next day. (See WestportNow March 5, 2004).

With better weather than in March, it should be an easier time for reporters seeking Westport reaction today and Saturday -- they'll just have to stay out of the way of booklovers and artistst vying for the always tight summer parking spots.

Friday, July 16, 2004

9:30 p.m. - Town Hall Room 201 - Commission for Senior Services
7:30 p.m. - Long Lots Elementary School - Music Theatre of Connecticut summer campers rehearse the musical,"Godspell," for public performance
8 p.m. - Levitt Pavilion - ETA band
8 p.m. - Saugatuck Congregational Church - South Shore Music presents Konstantin Soukhovetski, pianist

Farrell Places Deputy Assessor on Administrative Leave

The controversy over Westport's postponed property revaluation took a new turn today with First Selectwoman Diane G. Farrell confirming that she had placed Deputy Assessor Kevin Murowsky on administrative leave.

"He has been placed on administrative leave," Farrell told WestportNow in response to a question. She said she could not provide any additional details.

Farrell spoke after rumors swept Town Hall that Murowsky had been barred from his office and at least one person said that he had been seen earlier in the week in the company of police officers.

Murowsky, who lives outsiide of Westport, was not available for comment.

A police source said Murowsky had not been arrested but that an investigation was underway.

Additional details of the investigation would be forthcoming next week, the source said.

Murowsky had taken over as acting assessor following Farrell's March 4 announcement that she was seeking a one-year delay in implementing the town's property assessment and had placed Assessor Glen Werfelman on a 30-day leave of absence.

The state subsequently authorized municipalities to postpone their revaluations for up to three years and Werfelman retired effective May 1.

Farrell acted after it became known that there was a backlog of 1,700 building permits going back to 1998 that had not been added to the tax rolls by the assessor's office.

There had also been complaints that the preliminary reval figures were unfair – either too high or too low.

Murowsky worked as the acting assessor until the June 21 arrival of the town's new assessor, William Gaffney, who had previously worked in Milford.

In recent weeks, it had become known that both Werfelman and Murowsky had worked in off-hours in Weston helping that town clean up its permit backlog.

Weston First Selectwoman Woody Bliss has said he hired the men with Westport's permission.

Murowsky has made no secret that he has been working long hours at Town Hall – including nights and weekends – in recent weeks in an effort to clean up the permit backlog in the assessor's office.

UPDATE: Shays Raised $456,513 in 2Q, Emily's List Endorses Farrell

Rep. Christopher Shays raised $456,513.64 in the second quarter and has $657,115.59 cash on hand for his race against Westport Democratic First Selectwoman Diane G. Farrell, according to a campaign filing today.

Farrell raised $350,388.62 in the April 1-June 30 period and had $587,644.09 on hand at quarter's end, according to her campaign filing with the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

Earlier, Shays campaign manager Michael Sohn told WestportNow that the report being filed with the FEC today showed the veteran Republican lawmaker raised more than $360,000 in the second quarter and had just over $655,000 cash on hand as of June 30.

Reached after the filing appeared on the FEC Web site, Sohn explained that today's filing -- which showed contributions of $362,728 -- covered only the period from April 21 to June 30.

This added to an earlier filing for the period of April 1 to April 20, which showed $93,785.64 in contributions, brings the quarterly total to $456.513.64.

Sohn said Shays so far in this campaign has raised more than $1 million and was on track to surpass his previous high of $1,041,299 raised in 2000.

"This by far will be more than Chris has ever raised," he said.

Farrell’s campaign announced earlier this week that she had raised more than $350,000 in the April 1-June 30 period and had approximately $600,000 on hand.

That figure includes today's April 21-June 30 filing of $320,878.62 as well as an earlier filing that showed $29,510 collected in the April 1-20 period.

She had raised $371,500 in the first quarter compared to $249,442 raised by Shays.

Meanwhile, Farrell's campaign announced today that she has received a potentially lucrative endorsement from the Democratic Emily’s List group.

The endorsement had earlier been reported by today's Hartford Courant.

“I am honored to accept the endorsement of Emilys List,” Farrell said in a statement.

“The people of the 4th District are concerned about the direction our country is headed and they are ready for a congresswoman who represents their interests and their priorities.

"The support of Emily's List members will help me to get my message out to the people of this region.”

The Courant said the Shays-Farrell race was attracting national attention.

“A Connecticut congressional race that many expected to be a given for the incumbent is increasingly becoming one of the nation's most watched and best funded of the election season,” the newspaper said in a Washington-datelined report.

It quoted Amy Walter, who tracks congressional races for Cook's Political Report, as saying, "It's (the 4th Congressional District race) become almost a bellwether in Washington."

"It's getting unprecedented attention, especially given Shays is a longtime incumbent who's never had a close race."

The Courant, in reporting the Emily's List endorsement, said the financially influential political group supports Democratic female candidates who are abortion-rights advocates.

The group is primarily a fund-raising organization with about 90,000 members nationwide who write checks to the candidates the group backs, according to the newspaper.

It endorses only a fraction of the candidates running, so the support can be substantial. In 2002, the group said it disbursed $9.7 million to candidates.

This year, Farrell is one of 17 the group is backing, and will join three to seven other candidates in a featured mailing at the end of the summer, the Courant said.

"She's running an amazing campaign," said Emily's List political director Karen White. "We support pro-choice, Democratic women, but we also look at viability."

Sohn, Shays campaign manager, dismissed the significance, saying, "It should come as no surprise," the newspaper said.

He ticked off several of Shays' major endorsements, such as the League of Conservation Voters and Human Rights Campaign. He said the money race "will not change the way Christopher is campaigning. He always campaigns hard."

Republicans this year have acknowledged the potential vulnerability for Shays by recently suggesting that Republican political action committees support him, the report said.

But a National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman said Wednesday that the group does not consider his seat in serious trouble.

"In order for the Democrats to make it look plausible [that] they can win back the House, they have to say that every district is plausible for them," said Chris Paulitz.

Walter, too, said Shays "is still a tough guy to beat."

However, the outcome might turn on district attitudes that transcend the race, she said.

The Democrats are hoping that a wave of anti-Bush sentiment in the Northeast will help sweep their party into congressional seats. "It's one of the seats I'll be watching to get a sense of the political climate," Walter said.

Martha Stewart Reportedly Selling NY Duplex in Advance of Sentencing

Westport's Martha Stewart is reportedly unloading some property a day before she faces her sentencing, according to a published report today.

The New York Post reported that Stewart signed a contract to sell her West Village luxury duplex condominium for about $7 million, less than the $8 million she wanted when it was first listed back in 2002.

The report quoted a real estate source as saying that she "wanted to get as much of her [financial] house in order before Friday," when Stewart will finally be sentenced for lying to federal investigators about her sale of ImClone Systems stock in late 2001.

The deluxe 15-story doorman building features an upscale health club, a 24-hour concierge, a wine cellar, a planned restaurant, and extra security for its high-profile residents, the Post said, and has maintenance costs of about $8,823 month.

Stewart had planned to move into the 3,600-square-foot space but decided against it after the ImClone scandal gained momentum

According to the Post, the building's other celebrity residents include actress Nicole Kidman and designer Calvin Klein,

Stewart's other properties include her home in Westport, a farm in Bedford, N.Y. in Westchester County, the former Edsel Ford estate in Seal Harbor, Maine, a Fifth Avenue pied-a-terre and a summer home on Lily Pond Lane in East Hampton, the report said.

Stewart's spokeswoman, Susan Magrino, declined to comment on the transaction, the Post said.

In the past few weeks, Stewart has dumped $4.36 million of her company's stock — the first time she's cashed out any of her own shares since she founded the good-living firm, the paper said.

Stewart and former Merrill Lynch broker Peter Bacanovic were convicted March 5 on four felony counts each of obstructing justice and making false statements related to Stewart's suspicious sale of ImClone Systems stock in late 2001.

New York federal judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum, who has twice delayed this hearing, will sentence Stewart Friday morning, and then Bacanovic in the afternoon.

Despite her personal woes, the New York Times reported that Stewart has kept a high profile, making appearances at the Manhattan premiere of "Fahrenheit 9/11" and at other celebrity hotspots including the Four Seasons hotel in Manhattan.

"She isn't hiding in her bunker, and she isn't going out in some sort of false exuberance," the paper quoted Richard Feigen, a Manhattan art dealer who escorted Stewart to the "Fahrenheit" premiere, as saying. "She's strong, and looking at things as positively as possible."

Reading to Zoe

Four-year-old Michael reads his book to Zoe, a 14-month -old labrador, and her owner Cindy Menegay at the Westport Public Library's "Reading to Rover" program. By reading aloud to the volunteer dogs, children develop confidence and strengthen their reading skills. Zoe is a puppy in training for Guiding Eyes for the Blind, which meets in Westport. All of the reading volunteer dogs and their people are certified pet therapy teams. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Julia Mally for WestportNow.com

Thursday, July 15, 2004

7 p.m. - Town Hall Room 309 - Sherwood Mill Pond Advisory Committee
7:30 p.m. - Town Hall Auditorium - Planning & Zoning Commission
8 p.m. - Levitt Pavilion - Mark Verselli, impressionist

Westport Property Transfers July 6-9, 2004

Property transfers as reported by the Town Clerk's office for the period July 6-9, 2004:

Kathleen A. Buckley to Pamela Owens-Kennedy, 8B Cross Highway, $455,000.

Claudio Souza to Kevin J. Gumpper Trust, 11 Fragrant Pines Court, $480,000.

Joy Cooper Yinger to Louis H. and Susan P. Cozzi, 22 St. John Place, $561,000.

Susan I. Rosen to Cendant Mobility Financial Corp., 57 Sylvan Road West, $1,279,000.

Amy Ringer to Peter & Diane Plaut, 216 Bayberry Lane, $2,280,000.

John Tierney Richard Brickacek to Russell Thomas and Debra Jane Libby, 2 Indian Point Lane, $1,150,000.

Barry M. and Carol S. Haber to Joseph R. and Melissa R. Signorile, 17 Bobwhite Drive, $1,139,000.

Anielia D. Zepko to John Maletos, 43 Sturges Highway, $847,000.

Mary Ryan Foss-Skeftesvik to Mark and Mersene Norbom, 107 North Ave., $2,245,000.

John R. Williamson to Sirva Relocation LLC, 15 Compo Hill Ave., $1,326,000.

Sirva Relocation LLC to Daniel C. and Christina Seale, 15 Compo Hill Ave., $1,326,000.

Lucille and Edward Bock to Marc C. and Sharon E. Litvinoff, 10 River Knoll, $1,470,000.

Phyllis Harrison Renshaw to Harish P. Kumar, 468 Main St., $745,000.

Christopher J. and Emily J. England to Peter J. Dunphy, 17 Wakeman Place, $1,563,000.

Matthew G. Landa to N S H E Water Valley LLC, 4 Buena Vista Drive, $900,000.

Deborah G. and Brett S. Greenburg to Erick Matlick Alice Scharf-Matlick, 10 Clover Lane, $1,187,000.

Biggest Book Sale Yet

With only three days to go before the weekend Westport Public Library annual book sale, volunteers were busy with last minute preparations today. About 60,000 books will be on sale, according to organizers, the biggest sale yet. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Weston State Rep. John Stripp Praises Rell

State Rep. John E. Stripp told a meeting of the Westport Kiwanis Club today that Gov. M. Jodi Rell will be "one heck of a good governor" because she is "systematic, analytic, and thoughtful" and can rally support from Republicans as well as Democrats.
State Rep. John E. Stripp: Jodi Rell will be "one heck of a good governor." WestportNow.com photo

Stripp, whose 135th District covers Weston as well as portions of Easton and Redding, said he has known Rell since her days as a fellow legislator representing Brookfield.

"She has an uncanny sense of where the 'yes' votes and the 'nay' votes are even before anyone presses a button," said Stripp, a Republican who also serves as an assistant house minority leader. "Having that is important."

Stripp, who is a former member and chair of Weston's Board of Finance as well as a former Weston selectman, said Rell has a record of reaching out and sharing her successes with others.

"She shares the glory with her entire team," he said. "She is not a 'me, me, me' person. She is going to be one heck of a good governor."

The lawmaker described Connecticut's new chief executive as "systematic, analytic, thoughtful, fair-minded and a middle-of-the-road moderate."

"One danger of this is that you get both sides shooting at you sometimes, but she can handle it," Stripp said.

He said given the scandals involving former Gov. John Rowland, it is imperative that Rell "overtighten" on ethics. "The problem is compliance – she needs to concentrate on that."

Stripp said he had a suggestion for Rell – that she appoint as co-executive directors of the state's Ethics Commission the two legislators who headed the legislature's special panel investigating Rowland – Rep. Arthur O'Neill, a Republican, and Rep. John Wayne Fox, a Democrat.

"I think the state Ethics Commission could use a fresh start," he said.

About 20 Kiwanis Club members attended today's luncheon at the Veterans of Foreign Wars post on Riverside Avenue.

Asked by one audience member whether he expected Rell to seek election as governor in 2006, Stripp said she has a 50-50 chance of winning and that polls show the only Democrat who can beat her is state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal.

Stripp was critical of former Senate majority leader Kevin Sullivan, a Democrat who became lieutenant governor when Rell was elevated to governor.

He said Sullivan ought to "stop sniping and work together" with Rell "for the good of Connecticut."

Stormy Weather

A storm whipped up the seas off of Westport's Burying Hill Beach Tuesday and left almost two inches of rain over the area. Showers and thunderstorms are predicted for this afternoon. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Emily Laux for WestportNow.com

Wednesday, July 14, 2004

10:30 a.m. - Town Hall Room 102 - International Hospitality Committee
2 p.m. - 21 Imperial Ave. - Center for Senior Activities Policy & Planning Board
5 p.m. - Town Hall Room 309 - Board of Selectmen
7 p.m. - Levitt Pavilion - "Mr. Fish and Lisa Lou"

Newman Debuts in Playhouse Production of "Trumbo"

Westport's Paul Newman debuted tonight in the title role in "Trumbo," the Westport Country Playhouse production performed at The Ridgefield Playhouse. "Trumbo" is about Dalton Trumbo, the blacklisted screenwriter and novelist, and the loss of his freedom of speech. In a discussion with the audience afterward, Newman said he sees people today having a fear of being called unpatriotic if they speak up about Iraq, the balance of trade, and other issues. "The fear factor really bothers me," he said. Photo shows the audience leaving the theater. No cameras were allowed inside. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo

Tents Are Up for Library Book Sale

Jesup Green took on a circus look today with tents set up for this weekend’s Westport Public Library annual book sale. WestportNow.com photo