Notebook

By Tam Gray, Jodie Morse, Michele Orecklin, Bill Saporito, Neang Seng, Joel Stein and Deborah Wells

WINNERS & LOSERS

[WINNERS]

PLATO CACHERIS & JACOB STEIN Forget what it means to Clinton and Starr: it's a big victory for D.C.'s great old pros

ORLANDO HERNANDEZ Six months after fleeing Cuba, pitches Yanks over Tampa. Make way for the TV movie

THE GALOOB TOY COMPANY Geri Halliwell heads for has-beenhood, but the Ginger Spice doll's a collector's item

[& LOSERS]

DON OHLMEYER NBC exec nixes Norm Macdonald movie ads. Feuding's fun, but not with stockholders' money

SIDNEY BLUMENTHAL The insider's worst fear: the White House decides he has no secrets worth hiding

THE GRATEFUL DEAD Old concert tapes go on sale on QVC. What's next? A zirconium bong?

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAL!

Ole, ole, ole, ole! It's World Cup time again. Here's the scoop on the U.S. team and a few contenders, plus a telling comment to drop around the water cooler. (Follow the games at www.time.com/worldcup

STARS

U.S. Eric Wynalda, Claudio Reyna, Kasey Keller

GERMANY Oliver Bierhoff, Jurgen Klinsmann, Lothar Matthaus

BRAZIL Roberto Carlos, Ronaldo, Dunga, Leonardo

FRANCE Laurent Blanc, Zinedine Zidane, Lilian Thuram

THE REPORT

[U.S.] A great goalie and speed to burn. Scoring could be a problem.

[GERMANY] They're "robots," says a U.S. player. Damn good ones too.

[BRAZIL] More talent than they know what to do with. Not playing well together.

[FRANCE] Dream midfield leads a very strong side. But the French hate to win.

YOUR LINE

[U.S.] "The 3-6-1 formation will create lots of space, but I really worry about our finishing."

[GERMANY] "If they're crazy enough to play Klinsie over Ollie, our guys could surprise them."

[BRAZIL] "Contain Ronaldo? I don't think so. And they can still play 'the beautiful game.'"

[FRANCE] "Zidane's a real genius with Juve, but he won't have Inzaghi and Del Piero up front."

ADVERTISING

BET YOU CAN'T EAT EVEN ONE In Thailand a potato-chip company ran ads showing a sour Fuhrer turning into a happy Charlie Chaplin after munching a chip. Not surprisingly, aghast consumers soon forced the ads off the air and the backs of tuk-tuks.

LIFE VS. ART

A REAL TRUMAN? Internet provocateur Jenni Ringley keeps a camera running in her apartment so subscribers can watch her 24 hours a day www.jennicam.org) We asked her to see The Truman Show and compare her life with his: "The parallels are with the audience. The people who watch me are concerned for my welfare and want to know how I'm feeling. Some e-mail me that I look sad and say I should just turn the camera off for a few days and be by myself."

NUMBERS

$40 million: Amount spent by Al Checchi on his unsuccessful bid to be the Democratic nominee for California Governor

$59: Amount he spent per vote received

$16 million: Amount spent by Jane Harman on her unsuccessful bid

$24: Amount she spent per vote received

$9 million: Amount spent by Gray Davis on his successful bid to be the nominee

$5: Amount he spent per vote received

$4 million: Estimated combined amount spent by the three Republicans and two Democrats who ran in the Iowa gubernatorial primary

224: Members of Congress who voted last week in favor of a constitutional amendment allowing prayer in public places (it failed to pass by 61 votes)

18, 8, 18: Members of Congress present on the House floor for opening prayer on the three days preceding the vote

Sources: New York Times, Associated Press, Des Moines Register, Washington Post