A prep course for the month-long World Cup soccer tournament, a worldwide pheno

derful judge , '' Ramallo said . `` Justice has been done . And now I hope to go

 on . '' She had been accused of driving under the influence of alcohol , punish

able by up to 30 days in jail and a $ 300 fine . She displayed little emotion , 

barely even a smile , as the charge was dismissed . Unlike Ramallo , most allege

d drunk drivers opt to forgo trials , avoiding heavy legal bills by agreeing to 

plea bargains , or by admitting guilt and hoping for leniency . `` She 's a very

 principled woman , '' said Ramallo 's attorney , John Perazich . `` She felt st

rongly that she wanted to fight this case , and fortunately she has the wherewit

hal to do it . '' She emerged from District of Columbia Superior Court after her

 trial and found a small swarm of reporters and cameras blocking the path to her

 limousine , which was double-parked nearby , her chauffeur out and waiting . ``

 What do you think of the police ? '' a reporter shouted . `` Ahh , no comment .

 '' Okay , then what 's up with your personal life ? How come you 're suddenly u

sing your maiden name , Ramallo ? Does it have to do with Cooke 's recent claim 

that your marriage isn't legally valid , that you weren't properly divorced from

 your previous husband ? `` He 's a wonderful man . '' ( Despite Cooke 's pronou

ncement , the two have been seen together recently in public . ) `` What about P

atrick ? Are you still seeing Patrick ? '' Patrick Wermer was , as police put it

 , `` the male subject '' in the Georgetown incident , a chap in his mid-twentie

s whom acquaintances said was a regular nightclub companion of Ramallo 's , at l

east until Sept. 15 , when the two began to argue and Ramallo wound up with the 

Jag keys , prompting Wermer to mount the car 's hood , claiming the Jag belonged

 to him . `` He 's my friend , '' Ramallo said . Finally someone in her group sa

id , `` Thank you , '' ending the briefing , and Ramallo was ushered to the limo

 . She said , `` Ciao ! '' Perazich said Ramallo had planned to testify in her n

on-jury trial , which began Tuesday . But it turned out she didn't have to . Sen

ior Judge Nicholas Nunzio , granting Perazich 's motion , dismissed the charge m

inutes after the prosecution had rested its case . The evidence against Ramallo 

wasn't strong enough to warrant a defense , the judge said . Police said that af

ter ordering Ramallo out of the Jaguar , they noticed her eyes were watery , her

 breath smelled of alcohol and her gait was unsteady . At first , she wouldn't s

ubmit to a breath test , Perazich said . Later , after she changed her mind abou

t the test , the attorney said , police wouldn't allow her to take one , citing 

her initial refusal . `` Next time somebody 's driving a car in Georgetown and h

as someone spread-eagle on the hood , I 'll be the first person called , '' Pera

zich said outside the courthouse , smiling at his victory . `` I 'm sure there '

ll be numerous calls . I 'll probably have to get an unlisted number . ''

 NEW YORK An underground economy of World Cup merchandise stretching from leathe

r factories in Pakistan to print shops and retail stores in New York City is cut

ting into profits of more than 300 companies with rights to sell official produc

ts . Three weeks before the games begin , unlicensed T-shirts , bumper stickers 

, key rings , soccer balls , shawls , posters , caps and sun visors are selling 

rapidly . Industry experts predict these goods , many bearing the trademarked Wo

rld Cup mascot a cartoon dog named Striker and protected logos will reap as much

 as $ 150 million worldwide . This includes an estimated take of $ 45 million in

 the United States , a projected 15 percent of official sales , making the event

 one of the largest in the history of what is known as ambush marketing . `` It 

's a real octopus-type of problem , '' said Tammy Bloom , legal counsel at Time 

Warner Sports Merchandising , the company that licenses official products for th

e World Cup and tracks violators . `` On the street , it is easy to stop one ven

dor , but there are 25 other merchants buying the same thing from the same perso

n . It 's a very big global problem . '' The quadrennial soccer tournament , whi

ch will be held for the first time in the United States beginning next month , i

s the biggest single-sport event in the world . Twenty-four countries will compe

te at nine U.S. stadiums . Despite the gray market in unofficial goods , World C

up organizers estimate that $ 300 million in official merchandise will be sold i

n the United States this year and $ 1 billion worldwide . Karen Raugust , execut

ive editor of The Licensing Letter , a New York City-based industry newsletter ,

 said gray-market goods typically bring in 15 percent of official sales . In the

 United States , she said , that should put bootleg World Cup merchandise in the

 same league as counterfeit Major League Baseball products . This concerns execu

tives at many of the 302 companies that will spend as much as $ 50 million for l

icenses to sell official World Cup items around the world . Under terms of their

 licenses , the companies , including 95 with rights to market in the United Sta

tes , can use the mascot , the World Cup logo a red and white flag with a flying

 blue soccer ball and the words `` World Cup USA '94 '' on their products . `` I

t 's frustrating , '' said Fred Malamud , director of marketing at Starline , a 

New York City company that owns rights to sell action posters of U.S. players . 

`` I know , you know and everybody knows there are knockoffs at little corner st

ores all over the place , but we don't have people out there looking for the stu

ff . That 's up to the licensing people at Time Warner . '' So far , Bloom said 

, Time Warner has taken legal action against 105 manufacturers , wholesalers or 

retailers to stop them from selling counterfeit and other unofficial goods . Blo

om said that Time Warner , which gets most of its tips from licensed companies t

hat hear about the gray-marketeers from distributors , plans to crack down by jo

ining private investigators and local and state police and federal marshals to s

eize goods as the World Cup nears . Still , a Newsday investigation of the bootl

eg market operating here shows that illegal merchandise , some of which is smugg

led into the country from South Korea , Pakistan , Taiwan , China , Mexico and C

olombia , is being sold throughout New York City . Stopping stores from selling 

rip-off items involves a legal process that starts with Time Warner sending the 

merchants a cease-and-desist order . If they don't comply with the terms of the 

order , more steps can be taken , but Bloom said most cases are settled within w

eeks before reaching court . ( Optional add end ) There is no accurate way to de

termine the dollar value of unofficial goods smuggled into the United States , s

ay industry experts . In April , U.S. . Customs agents in Miami seized a shipmen

t of sweatshirts and T-shirts featuring the ball-and-flag logo and tags depictin

g Striker with `` World Cup USA '94 Official Licensed Product '' printed below .

 The goods , exported from South Korea and intended for a distributor in Guayaqu

il , Ecaudor , are now in a Customs warehouse and , according to agency policy ,

 will ultimately be destroyed . Other goods directly turned over to World Cup or

ganizers will be given to charities after the official product licenses expire n

ext year . One company outside the reach of the World Cup cops is Golden Sunshin

e Inc. , a wholesaler based in Anaheim , Calif. Golden Sunshine sells embroidere

d patches for $ 1.25 each that show the name of a country over a soccer ball and

 the year 1994 . These multicolored patches , imported from Taiwan and sewn on b

aseball caps , shirts and jackets , do not violate any laws . Although the compa

ny uses the official World Cup logo on some of its brochures , that only makes t

he brochures unlawful , not the products , Bloom said . `` That 's real ambush m

arketing . These patches are selling like wildfire and appearing all over the wo

rld , '' Bloom said . `` We can't do a thing about it . They followed the rules 

of the game . ''

 POOLE , England The strains of Glenn Miller 's `` In the Mood '' waft from an o

ld radio under the canvas tent decked out as a field kitchen , with tin plates a

nd cups on G.I. tables , and a server dressed in a blue boiler suit , her hair s

wathed in a makeshift turban . The kitchen re-creates the scene on D-day , June 

6 , 1944 , in this Dorset port city from which thousands of American troops sail

ed for France 50 years ago . The prices , however , are up-to-date 75 cents for 

a cup of tea ; $ 2 for a ham sandwich . In nearby St. James Church , an old Amer

ican flag hangs from the choir balcony ; the 48-star ensign was a gift from the 

U.S. Coast Guard flotilla , known as the `` St. Bernards of Normandy , '' which 

shuttled on rescue missions between Poole and France . Twenty-five miles west , 

in Weymouth , an impromptu museum of U.S. . Army memorabilia has been set up in 

a shopping arcade , a selection of military items to mark the 50th anniversary t

hat could keep the interested visitor occupied for an hour or so . Outside , a U

.S. olive-drab jeep and a staff car , manned by locals wearing period U.S. . Arm

y uniforms , tool around the port . Sitting in a pub is Mike Wall , 79 , a grizz

led , bright-eyed American D-day veteran who married a Weymouth girl and settled

 there permanently . `` My wife found me a great place here , '' said Wall , onc

e a medic with the 1st Infantry Division . `` I 've been living happily ever aft

er . '' In the months before D-day , Americans seemed to be everywhere in southe

rn England : the troops who would land on the beaches of Normandy ; the supply c

orps to back them up ; the sailors to ferry them across the English Channel ; th

e airmen to support them from above . All in all , more than a million and a hal

f Yanks made their way through the southern counties of Hampshire , Dorset and D

evon . They were joined by an equal number of British and Canadian servicemen . 

The Channel ports of Portsmouth , Southampton , Gosport , Weymouth , Portland an

d Poole were the main embarkation points for the invasion . In the initial D-day

 landings , 156,000 troops took part . By the end of the invasion July 3 , not q

uite one month later , 1 million troops had been put ashore . Now , as the 50th 

anniversary of the greatest amphibious landing in history looms , local resident

s are bracing for a new flood of outsiders . Counting on the nostalgia that sout

hern England 's towns , villages and bases will evoke among invasion veterans an

d their families , local tourism officials expect to lure back this summer about

 350,000 visitors , many of them from the United States and Canada . Hotels , pu

bs , museums , exhibitions , resorts , transport companies all hope to capitaliz

e on the commemoration . Portsmouth alone expects 70,000 visitors on June 4 and 

5 to watch Queen Elizabeth II , on board the royal yacht Britannia , review the 

fleet with President Clinton , kings , queens and politicians and then sail as p

art of a massive flotilla for the Normandy coast to take part in ceremonies June

 6 . U.S. warships will pay courtesy calls to the Channel ports of southern Engl

and between June 2 and 5 . Local organizers are supported by the Ministry of Def

ense and veterans associations , which are helping with military events , as wel

l as the Department of National Heritage , which is underwriting some less marti

al observances . In British Prime Minister John Major 's words , the 50th annive

rsary is `` a huge national event . '' `` D-day was not just about those who too

k part on the day , '' Major said . `` It was made possible by the effort and sa

crifice of men and women throughout the forces , throughout industry and through

out our nation . '' Major decreed that church bells `` from St. Paul 's Cathedra

l to the smallest rural parish '' would peal on the eve of D-day 's anniversary 

. But the prime minister 's efforts to make the anniversary a national occasion 

have not been without controversy . Veterans complained about the carnival natur

e of some of the events . As a result , the observances have been muted and made

 less triumphal . And some events a Spam-frying contest to recall wartime ration

s , for instance were summarily dropped . The national Tourism Board has publish

ed and circulated a detailed guide to about 350 commemorative events in southern

 England and Normandy ; there are about 500 events nationally . Dozens of other 

brochures have been prepared focusing on various aspects of the D-day observance

s and history ; for example , `` Americans in Dorset , '' the story of U.S. forc

es based there during the invasion buildup . Tourism officials are not shy about

 promoting their attractions . `` Selling the South '' has become the D-day anni

versary slogan for the Southern Tourist Board , which has established a full-tim

e D-day coordinator in New York and a national information hot line in Britain .

 `` We hope to realize an extra $ 9 million in tourism revenue from the commemor

ation , '' said Peter Smith of the tourist board . `` We hope spending by Americ

an and Canadian visitors alone will top $ 3 million . '' ( Begin optional trim )

 The variety of exhibits and observances is staggering . Here is a small samplin

g : Sightseeing flights in a DC-3 over former bases or Normandy from Bournemouth

 . Radio D-day in Poole and Christchurch , which will broadcast for 12 hours a d

ay , re-creating wartime news bulletins and music . A parade , church service an

d wreath-laying at the American memorial in Portland . A display in Lyme Regis a

bout the memories of U.S. troops who trained in the town . The largest display o

f wartime vehicles ever assembled 1,100 tanks , trucks , jeeps , motorcycles , e

ven a locomotive in Portsmouth . A display at Southwick House in Southwick , whi

ch served as the forward headquarters for the commanders of `` Operation Overlor

d , '' as the invasion was formally known : American Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower a

nd British Gen. Bernard Law Montgomery . ( End optional trim ) Meanwhile , BBC-T

V is tooling up for its biggest outside broadcasting operation since the wedding

 of the Prince and Princess of Wales in 1981 . The anniversary events in the Cha

nnel and Normandy will receive 13 hours of live coverage . About 55 cameras will

 be positioned in Portsmouth for the opening commemorative services on June 4 an

d 5 . And the Channel crossing will be transmitted from the pitching decks of sh

ips carrying dignitaries and veterans to Sea King helicopters above and thence t

o the nation 's television sets . Such has been the mounting interest in the eve

nts and memorabilia of 50 years ago that groups such as the Southern Tourist Boa

rd are preparing to gear up all over again for next year 's 50th anniversary of 

Victory in Europe Day .

 For its sheer audacity , Rupert Murdoch 's lightning raid of the CBS affiliate 

base this week was a corporate coup of the first magnitude . It is the more so b

ecause he pulled it off so cheaply and because it comes so soon after he snatche

d rights to the National Football League at a price so high he very nearly accom

plished the perverse miracle of televising professional football at a loss . And

 , of course , it comes only four years after a brush with bankruptcy so close t

hat on cold days Murdoch must still feel the hot breath of the wolves who were r

eady to liquidate his empire until an obscure bank in Pittsburgh , one of the sm

allest of his legion of creditors , at the last minute agreed to roll over its m

inuscule chunk of his indebtedness . If , 20 years ago , you 'd been asked to na

me the most unassailable corporate oligarchy in America , you 'd probably have s

aid CBS , NBC and ABC . The nation had three commercial television networks not 

one , not two , not five because , well , they got there first , had a lock on b

roadcasting licenses in the richest markets , enjoyed a pervasive influence in C

ongress , at the Federal Communications Commission and within a succession of pr

esidencies , and generated an unending and highly predictable stream of profits 

for their shareholders . Risk didn't exist to the extent that the networks ran a

 race in which the worst that could happen was to come in a profitable third . P

eople in the industry still fondly remember the glory days of expense accounts s

o generous that everybody could imagine they were living close to scales that to

day are reserved for a smaller but richer band of glamour generators in a war fo

r ratings that has lost a lot of its depth . Anyway , who would have imagined th

at the first successful challenge to this system , this citadel of power , this 

inherently American arrangement , this fixture in American living rooms as cultu

rally ubiquitous and seemingly permanent as the nation 's sofas , floor lamps an

d wing chairs , would be an Australian capitalist with an apparently admirable f

amily life , mildly reactionary political leanings , impeccable taste in vulgari

ty , an alarming disposition to borrow money in volumes his competitors wouldn't

 dare contemplate , and a record of not overly caring about the enemies he makes

 . The thing about Murdoch that confuses most of his critics and infuriates his 

most vitriolic disparagers is that he doesn't serve them with platters of the so

rt of buffoonery that make Donald Trump or Ross Perot targets that loom to their

 tormentors like the broad side of a barn . He is well spoken in his public utte

rances . He does not crave the artificial respectability that could easily have 

been arranged by Margaret Thatcher sending him to the House of Lords . He will ,

 unself-consciously , arrange to become a U.S. citizen as easily as young Wall S

treet lawyers go to Brooks Brothers in slavish imitation of their senior partner

s . But he does not ask us to believe anything of him that doesn't ring true , h

owever bloodless . Besides , those people who have for 40 years dreamed that the

 television might mature into something resembling the diversity , originality a

nd cultural richness of the printed world , have , perhaps , been asking too muc

h of a medium that requires less human concentration and a shorter attention spa

n than a pinball machine .

 By Lee Hockstader ( c ) 1994 , The Washington Post VLADIVOSTOK , Russia Rising 

on craggy , fog-shrouded hills from Golden Horn Bay , Vladivostok is like a carn

ival mirror 's distorted image of Russia itself : distended in its lawlessness ,

 misery and disorientation , but also in its gaudy new wealth and commercial pro

mise . This is the capital of Russia 's Rough and Ready East , a port city seven

 times zones and 5,700 miles from Moscow that has been as thoroughly transformed

 as any spot in the former empire in the 2 years since the Soviet Union 's demis

e . It is in Vladivistok , farther east than any major city in mainland Asia , t

hat Alexander Solzhenitsyn , Russia 's greatest living writer , will arrive Frid

ay like some latter-day Rip Van Winkle after 20 years ' exile in the West . Here

 he will have his first glimpse of Russia 's kaleidoscopic transition to free-ma

rket capitalism in all its raucous , lurid , hopeful colors . `` We 're like a d

ecaying organism , beset by parasites , '' said Yuri Didenko , director of Vladi

vostok 's huge fishing fleet , one of the world 's largest . But after railing a

t Moscow 's callousness and Russia 's lost dignity , he captured the tough optim

ism of the place by concluding : `` I 'm upbeat . The geography of Vladivostok a

llows us to hope it will be a center for business for East Asia and the Pacific 

Rim . '' Founded in 1860 to block China 's expansion to the Sea of Japan , Vladi

vostok ( the name means `` Possess the East '' ) boomed after the Trans-Siberian

 Railway linked it with Moscow in 1903 . As the home of the Soviet Pacific Fleet

 , Vladivostok was a closed military camp after World War II , forbidden not onl

y to foreigners who might spy on the bristling warships and weaponry but even to

 Soviet citizens without special permission . Coddled by subsidies from Moscow a

nd anchored by the navy , military factories and the fishing fleet , the city gl

ided along in splendid isolation but for a 1975 summit between President Gerald 

R. Ford and Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev . Since it was opened officially to th

e outside world Jan. 1 , 1992 , Vladivostok has made up for lost time , turning 

to the outside world with a vengeance . As Moscow 's influence wanes , Seattle a

nd Seoul are the new points of reference for Vladivostok 's hustling traders . C

oca-Cola is selling big , tripling forecast sales and leaving distributors plead

ing for more . U.S. Peace Corps volunteers are offering seminars on commercial b

anking , Italians are building a new airport , Australians operate the best rest

aurant in town , and Chinese workmen recently refurbished a $ 220-a-night hotel 

. Hundreds of joint ventures with Japanese , South Korean , Chinese and American

 firms are underway , jockeying for market share and the chance of future profit

s . Flights are planned or already operating to link the city with Alaska and Ja

pan . And in a red-brick church atop a hill , an American Catholic priest is hea

ring confessions in a room that for decades was a Communist Party archive for to

p-secret documents , complete with electronic sensors on the windows to thwart b

reak-ins . Signs of new money are everywhere , from the stylishly dressed women 

downtown to the swanky new apartment buildings on the outskirts , where luxury d

uplex condominiums are on sale at $ 80 a square foot . Thousands of white Japane

se sedans the tax-free booty of returning merchant sailors , who sell them at a 

quick profit clog the narrow streets in epic rush hours . But , having thrown of

f the yoke of communist control so abruptly , the city is beset by outsized econ