Clout: TV judge makes everyone pay

TELEVISION court shows are tricky - the guests can come off as both winners and losers once the cameras are rolling.

Just ask 2011 Republican mayoral candidate Karen Brown and her former campaign manager, Stuart London.

They appear in an episode of "Judge Judy" that airs Tuesday, arguing about the $825 that London said Brown owed him for compiling campaign-finance reports.

Judge Judy - former New York City Family Court Judge Judith Sheindlin - dished out disdain for the complaints London and Brown laid before her.

"I don't believe you," Sheindlin replied when Brown claimed that she promised to pay London only a "fair" rate, not the $75 per hour he claimed. "Evidently, neither did the voters in Philadelphia."

Brown gamely tried to plead her case but made the critical mistake of interrupting the judge.

"I want you to stop talking, Ms. Brown," the judge warned.

Sheindlin was just as harsh with London, admonishing him as having "some nerve" to ask for $75 per hour when he had little accounting experience. She even yelled at London for putting his hands in his pockets.

Sheindlin suggested it was more appropriate to pay London at an hourly rate similar to what he earns in two jobs, as a suburban newspaper sportswriter and as a lot attendant for the Philadelphia Parking Authority.

Tune in - the show airs in Philly on Fox 29 at 3 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. - to see the verdict.

Brown told us in mid-December, right after the episode was taped in Los Angeles, that London was awarded less than $200.

Not that she had to cut London a check. The show pays the winner's judgment, gives guests a small appearance fee and pays for their travel and expenses. Brown said that that meant a nice trip out to California for free.

The name Severino "Sevy" Verna jumped out at us while watching local filmmaker John Foy's "Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles."

Verna, who does not appear in the film, is a South Philly recluse who may be behind the odd tiles that have been embedded in asphalt in streets around Philadelphia, the country and the world.

He shares a name with the late husband of former City Council President Anna Verna.

"I wonder if it's his nephew, who I haven't seen in I don't know how long," the former Councilwoman told us when we asked about the film and the name.

She was right. Foy filmed one of three Toynbee tile enthusiasts calling the mother of the man suspected of placing the tiles, which often have this message:

"TOYNBEE IDEAS IN KUBRICK'S 2001 RESURRECT DEAD ON PLANET JUPITER."

The mother, who died in 2010, said in the film that her son denied involvement with the tiles.

She was the widow of Anna Verna's late brother-in-law, Carl.

Foy said he came across the connection to the Council president while working on the film but left it out because it wasn't relevant.

Need proof this is an election year for U.S. Sen. Bob Casey Jr.?

Well, he took a principled stand yesterday in defense of . . . the rights of Philadelphia Phillies fans to travel to the nation's capital to root against the Nationals.

Casey, in a letter to Nationals owner Theodore Lerner, decries a new team "gimmick" giving priority in home-game ticket sales to customers from Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia.

"The Phillies have some of the best fans in the world and they shouldn't be left out in the cold on tickets just because the Washington Nationals want a stronger home-field advantage," Casey wrote, sending a copy of the letter to Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig.

The Washington Post reported last week on the plan by the Nationals, quoting team Chief Operating Officer Andy Feffer as saying he was tired of the Phillies-fan invasion at his home games.

"Forget you, Philly," Feffer said in the Post. "This is our park, this is our town, these are our fans, and it's our time right now."

"Please note that effective February 2, 2012, the City of Philadelphia will require Right to Know Requests be submitted on or with the standard statewide form."

- New City Council President Darrell Clarke's staff, responding Monday to a Daily News request for the salary amount being paid to his new communications director, Jane Roh. We're still waiting for the information.

- Staff writer Jan Ransom

contributed to this report.