Painted into corner: Curtis Publishing Co. Inc., the owner of Norman Rockwell's "Bottom of the 6th" that depicts three umpires looking skyward as first raindrops fall, is steaming over the use of the classic illustration in the TV series "The Bronx is Burning." So much so, that our good friends at The Associated Press report that it has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Manhattan seeking to stop ESPN Inc. from rebroadcasting the series about the 1977 New York Yankees until it withdraws use of the picture. We are left to wonder if this is what is meant by over-exposure.

Dare we repeat it: NBC-TV's late night talk show host, Jay Leno, weighed in on Roger Clemens' latest controversy involving an alleged affair that started when the girl was 15 years old, "Apparently, Roger Clemens has been playing in the minors." Wish we had said that first.