Boat Show may block Miami’s 2016 Super Bowl bid

This winter, the biggest NFL match-up in South Florida might be Super Bowl versus Boat Show.

As South Florida readies a bid for the 2016 Super Bowl, it must contend with a major potential conflict on the tourism calendar. The National Football League may move the Super Bowl to Presidents’ Day weekend, already home to the five-day Miami International Boat Show since the 1940s.

It’s a significant enough conflict that, in the past, local tourism officials have declined to pursue a Super Bowl if it fell on boat show weekend. But this time around they may have no choice. For the first time, the NFL is requiring that potential host cities agree to a Presidents’ Day weekend Super Bowl if they want to pursue the big game at all, said two people who have seen the NFL request for Super Bowl bids.

The NFL “invited South Florida [to bid] knowing there was going to be an issue with Presidents’ Day weekend and the boat show,” said Nicki Grossman, Broward’s tourism director. “In the past, South Florida has not responded to a Super Bowl date that included Presidents’ Day weekend. This package is different.”

South Florida vies with New Orleans as the top Super Bowl host, with government and tourism leaders touting the game as both a boon to the economy and a publicity bonanza. But the notion of accommodating both Super Bowl and boat show — not to mention a major arts festival in Coconut Grove — strikes some top tourism officials as a bad idea.

“There is not sufficient hotel inventory available in Miami that weekend to host a Super Bowl,” said William Talbert, president of the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau. “We have taken a close look at that weekend, and it’s not physically possible in Miami to host Super Bowl during the Presidents’ Day weekend because of the boat show and the Coconut Grove Arts Festival. The hotel inventory is all being used for these two great events.”

His comments are at odds with the region’s top Super Bowl organizer and reflect the burden that the boat show may be to South Florida’s Super Bowl hopes for 2016 and 2017. The NFL invited Miami and San Francisco to bid for the 2016 Super Bowl by April 1, with the loser vying with Houston for the 2017 game. Talbert said the bid package states both decisions will be made in May.

For now, South Florida’s Super Bowl organizers face a largely hypothetical challenge, because the current NFL schedule has the Super Bowl occurring two weeks before Presidents’ Day weekend. The bid requirements for the ’16 and ’17 Super Bowls include three consecutive weekends as possibilities for the game, with the latest falling on the Presidents’ Day holiday.

Still, possible logistical hurdles may combine with political obstacles if the Miami Dolphins resume their push for a tax-funded renovation of Sun Life Stadium, the Super Bowl’s South Florida home.

Last year, the Dolphins proposed that Broward and Miami-Dade counties subsidize a $225 million renovation at Sun Life as a way to keep the region competitive for Super Bowls and other large events. The renovation includes a partial roof that would prevent the kind of drenching Super Bowl spectators suffered in 2007 when a rare February downpour hit Miami Gardens.

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Remembering the rhythm: Fans celebrate life of Jaco Pastorius

Tammy Goss is sitting on a park bench in a small patch of green wedged between Dixie Highway and the FEC railroad tracks. Staring down from the southeast wall of the corner community center is a huge blue-toned mural of a man’s face, his fingers curled around an electric bass guitar. She knows his name.

“Jaco Pastorius, I think,” said Goss, 45.

But that’s all she really knows about John Francis Pastorius III.

“I don’t remember him," admitted Goss, as she drags on a cigarette. “I guess he was before my time or something. So I’m not really sure what he did."

Johnny Boston says he hangs out in the park nearly everyday. He’s seen Pastorius’ name on a sign.

"And that’s who that dude is?" asks Boston, 57. “I didn’t know he was a musician."

Pastorius’ lightning-fast fingering and use of harmonics elevated the electric bass guitar from rhythm section pulse to a virtuoso’s instrument. He toured with jazz fusion band Weather Report and Joni Mitchell and won two Grammy nominations for his own debut album in 1977.

Unfamiliar to many but beloved by a solid group of devotees spanning generations and musical genres, Pastorius will have a tribute concert from 7 to 10 p.m. Saturday marking the 25th year since his death. The concert, “A Tribute to Jaco,” will take place at Jaco Pastorius Park, 4000 N. Dixie Hwy. in Oakland Park.

The namesake park is a good start but much more is deserved, said Oakland Park resident Robert Rutherford, who in 2005 started a petition drive to name the seven-acre park near the railroad tracks after his musical hero.

“I think it could be a catalyst to more things in the future," said Rutherford, who is now throwing all his energy behind another grass-roots effort: a petition drive for a Jaco Pastorius commemorative postage stamp.

The spirit of Pastorius lives through devotees such as the four members of the Miami progressive metal band Neolythyc. All are 17 years old, born nearly a decade after Pastorius’ death. The band is among performers scheduled for Saturday’s concert.

Neolythyc bass player Jerry Caceres refers to Pastorius as "one of the old homies from down the block."

"He’s my dawg!” said Caceres, who sports a long mane of Jaco-ish hair. “He took a lot of trumpet leads, like in the be-bop days, and played it on the bass. And that’s amazing. To have that kind of speed."

In the late ’60’s, at just about the same age as the kids in Neolythyc, Pastorius was playing every gig he could get in South Florida, and earning the chops that would make him the most influential jazz fusion bass player of his time. Over a relatively short recording career, he managed to leave behind a huge body of work. But the guys in Neolythyc are unanimous when asked about their favorite Pastorius composition, Portrait of Tracy, recorded in 1976.

In Pastorius’ musical prime, the bi-polar disorder that plagued him all his life began to quell his incandescent talent. The illness often revealed itself in irrational behavior that left his fellow musicians baffled.

After struggling for years with the illness, the trail-blazing musician who performed with jazz fusion giants Pat Metheny and Herbie Hancock ended up homeless on the streets of Fort Lauderdale.

In September 1987, after trying to force his way into a Wilton Manors nightclub, Pastorius was beaten by the bouncer on duty. He died nine days later, Sept. 21, at age 35.

But Rutherford said Pastorius was more magic than tragic. And he hears that in the music.

"I can picture flocks of ibis flying in the morning or in the evening back to roost,” Rutherford said. “You know, it’s going to be different for everyone how they interpret these songs. But the place and his music are so intertwined, they’re inseparable."

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George Clooney on Ben Affleck's Campaign for Sexiest Man Alive

George Clooney and Ben Affleck have both directed big budget Hollywood movies and during a recent roundtable discussion, they revealed their thoughts on directing themselves as actors.

In this sneak peek of The Envelope Directors Roundtable sponsored by the Los Angeles Times, Affleck points out that contrary to popular belief, there are only a handful of examples of directors acting in their own films.

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Affleck's latest combo film is the box office hit Argo, but in 2010 he took the acting-directing plunge on the crime thriller The Town. "I don't have any great wisdom about that," he said when asked by a moderator how he approached the dual role. "You know, for me it's about shooting enough footage that I have to work with in the cutting room."

The question is also posed whether Affleck consulted Clooney -- who had directed Good Night, and Good Luck in 2005 -- for advice. "Ben and I... when we first started talking, mostly he was campaigning at the time for Sexiest Man Alive," Clooney joked. "And he wanted some tips -- I worked with him," he continued, adding also that he also "worked with Matt (Damon), who also got it (Sexiest Man Alive)."

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George did have some serious remarks on acting in the same movies he directs. "I will say this about directing yourself, there is this weird thing that happens -- which is, you try desperately not to do more takes on yourself than you do on other actors. Because you just feel like such a schmuck if you do it," he said. "So you have to have this understanding with the actors that you're going to break that rule."

Watch the video to also hear George give his thoughts on Affleck's performance as actor-director in Argo.

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'Devil' made firebug burn elderly woman to death

The evil firebug who burned an elderly woman to death in her elevator last year now claims he takes directions from the devil.

Jerome Isaac, 48, was set to be sentenced today for the horrific murder of Dolores Gillespie, 73 – but then the judge revealed his hellish hallucinations.

Isaac said he “hears voices” and “the devil tells him what to do” to Probation Department officials, said Justice Vincent Del Giudice – who postponed the sentencing so Isaac could undergo a psyche evaluation.

"I want to know if he’s making this up, malingering — or if he is actually delusional," Del Giudice said.

The decision upset the victim's daughter, who burst into tears after hearing that sentencing would be delayed.

"It's just not fair. They already know he's not crazy. The sentencing shouldn't have been delayed," said Sheila Hillsman, the daughter of the victim.

Gillespie, a generous, churchgoing woman, hired Isaac for odd jobs but had to fire him after he stole from her. Isaac was so angry he ambushed her in her elevator in December, spraying gasoline onto the helpless woman.

He then used a barbeque lighter to set her alight, and then – as her screams echoed through the building – threw a Molotov cocktail on her.

Isaac faced a sentence of 50 years to life for his heinous crime.

jsaul@nypost.com

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Saying thank you to your boss can pay dividends

This season for counting blessings had barely begun when high-profile Miami event planner Karla Dascal got a message from her company’s controller, Raul Duran. He’d sent to her a text that read, at least in part, “Thank you for the opportunity to work and earn a living. I am so grateful.”

Dascal actually receives communication from Duran expressing the same sentiment all year long. And she’s certain that among all her employees it’s Duran’s appreciation — and not incidentally his positive outlook — that makes him absolutely indispensible to her company.

“Gratitude is one of the most powerful things,” says Dascal. “The three problems we all feel are ‘I’m not worthy, I’m not good enough, I’m not competent.’ But gratitude has the power to change everything.”

That’s why researchers are now saying that — like Duran — we should all be showing plenty of appreciation to our supervisors during the holiday season and beyond. It won’t just advance our relationships but can even improve how bosses view our on-the-job performance. With any luck, better work will bring bigger paychecks.

Thing is, if your feelings of gratitude are to be effective, you’ll have to actually express them — and in a way that doesn’t make everyone around you cringe because you’re brownnosing. (Ah, ha.) And it gets trickier: Feelings of appreciation are practically impossible to fake. But experts who reveal the psychology behind it all say once you adapt the right the mentality, the money may follow.

“We found that saying ‘thank you’ works because it makes a boss feel, ‘What I’m doing is worthy and makes a positive difference,’ ” says Yeri Cho, a researcher at the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California. “Bosses have a lot of power but that doesn’t mean they always feel competent. And there’s a tendency in those cases for the boss to act in self-defense — sometimes they even denigrate their employees. Gratitude reduces those tendencies.”

She found this out by pulling over 180 subjects into a lab and assigning them the job of supervising make-believe — they didn’t know that — subordinates named Taylor, who would be assembling a table. The Taylors “drafted” a work plan for their supervisors to evaluate and send back. The supervisors, in return, got a note from Taylor saying either, “Dear Supervisor, I received your feedback. Best, Taylor” or a nearly identical message that included the phrase “Thank you for your feedback.” Later, some of those supervisors got a message from the examiner — who could be considered, say, a CEO or a client — telling them their competence level fell below the average.

Even so, it was the supervisors who had received the ‘thank you’ from their subordinates that then rated those employees as being more competent and more intelligent.

“Bosses mistreat employees when they feel insecure, even if they have power that’s coming from their role as a boss,” says Cho. “But saying ‘thank you’ mitigates that.”

It’s tough to say exactly how or why gratitude changes our physiological and mental states, says Dr. Suzanne Lechner, an assistant professor of psychiatry and psychology at the University of Miami’s Miller School of Medicine, because the research is in its infancy. But there’s good reason to assume that — like other positive feelings — both giving and receiving appreciation balances our levels cortisol, the stress hormone.

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Keys man gets prison for illegal lobster harvest

KEY WEST --
(AP) — A Florida Keys man has been sentenced to more than a year in federal prison for illegally harvesting spiny lobsters from artificial underwater habitats.

The 16-month sentence was imposed Wednesday on Manuel Ravelo Jr., 40, of Big Coppitt Key. Ravelo had earlier pleaded guilty to illegally harvesting lobsters from about August 2007 to March 2009.

As part of his plea, Ravelo removed 200 artificial lobster habitat sites he had used in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. It is illegal to use artificial habitats to harvest spiny lobsters, and it is also illegal to alter the seabed of the Keys marine sanctuary. The sanctuary covers about 2,800 square miles.

Authorities say Ravelo made about $390,000 in the scheme, which also involved two wholesale lobster dealers in Key West.

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A 'Home Improvement' Reunion on 'Last Man Standing'

Fans of the hit '90s show Home Improvement have another reason to tune into Tim Allen's current ABC sitcom Last Man Standing -- Allen's former Home Improvement BFF Richard Karn (who played Al) is set to guest star!

Karn will play Bill, a "gruff good old boy" and the Outdoor Man's (Allen's outdoor sporting goods store in Denver, Colorado) original architect, TV Line is reporting. In the episode, Bill gets dumbfounded when he learns he may be losing the account to a young, attractive woman -- who he assumes got the job because of her good looks.

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The episode is set to air in early 2013.

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And clearly, it's a good time to be a '90s television fan. It was announced Monday that Ben Savage and Danielle Fishel of Boy Meets World fame, will be reprising their roles in the beloved show's new spinoff, Girl Meets World.

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No verdict in model castration-slay trial

A Manhattan jury has begun deliberations in a grotesque, boy toy-on-sugar-daddy mutilation murder.

Jurors got the case in the mid-afternoon today, and deliberated for less than two hours before breaking for the day at 4:45 p.m.

Tomorrow is expected to be their first full day of weighing the fate of handsome young Portuguese underwear model Renato Seabra, 22, who admits he bludgeoned, then castrated alive, his lover, Carlos Castro, 65, in their Times Square hotel room as they vacationed together away from their native Portugal in February of 2011.

Seabra lawyers say Seabra had suffered a sudden-onset mental breakdown, and did not know his actions were wrong when he bashed Castro in the head with the hotel room computer monitor, gashed his face with a corkscrew, strangled the older man, stomped on his head wearing two successive pairs of sneakers, and then castrated the still-breathing, but likely unconscious victim with the same corkscrew.

Doctors had confirmed in the hours after the gruesome killing that Seabra was manic, grandiose, disorganized, and otherwise mentally ill. But prosecutor Maxine Rosenthal concluded her summations today by urging jurors not to be fooled by these findings, which she said could simply be "the results of having just brutally killed someone."

Sure, Seabra seemed agitated and stressed, and had racing thoughts, and was not making sense, the prosecutor told the six-woman, six-man panel. But "What," she asked, "could be more stressful than committing a murder?"

Seabra faces a maximum of 25 years to life if convicted of murder, and an indeterminate term in a locked mental health facility if found not guilty of murder by reason of mental disease or defect.

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Miami-Dade pending home sales spiked in October

Despite a dearth of homes and condos on the market in Miami-Dade County, pending sales rose 67 percent in October with 4,172 residential properties going under contract compared with 2,488 a year earlier, according to the Miami Association of Realtors.

The number of pending sales rose 18 percent in October from September.

In a statement, Martha Pomares, chairman of the board of the Miami Association of Realtors, said “The Miami real estate market is poised for another record year that would suprass the all-time sales record set in 2011. Strong demand persists despite the shortage of housing inventory, and listings are increasingly selling at a more rapid pace, driving in significant price appreciation.’’

With strong demand and little on the market, properties are selling for closer to their asking price and sellers aren’t inclined to offer discounts. For October, single-family homes in Miami-Dade sold at 95 percent of the original listing price, while condos went for 97.1 percent of original listing price on average, the Miami Realtors said. In October 2011, single family homes fetched 91 percent of listing price on average and condos got 93.6 percent of listing price.

Pending sales are a forward indicator based on the number of contracts signed over a given period.

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