when i type:
" ./mysql -uroot -p mysql"

i get:
Enter password:
ERROR 1045: Access denied for user: 'root@localhost' (Using password: YES)

what fixed it was
doing this:

" ./mysqladmin -u root password [type a password here]"

then i log on doing this:

"./mysql -uroot -p"

from there i can finally log on and create databases... this is using the latest osx update (10.2.6) and the latest version of mysql (4.0.14-standard)

good luck