By TAMARA LUSH
Associated Press Writer
MIAMI (AP) – Mexican authorities suspended their search Tuesday for a U.S. woman who apparently fell from a ship balcony during a Christmas week cruise.
The woman’s family believes she might have jumped overboard, but the FBI is still investigating whether someone pushed her.
The U.S. Coast Guard called off its search Monday [...]
By RACHID AOULI
Associated Press Writer
PARIS (AP) – Ted Lapidus, the fashion designer who redefined chic with the 1960s unisex look, has died in France. He was 79.
President Nicolas Sarkozy, in an homage to the designer, said Lapidus “democratized French elegance and classicism” and “made fashion accessible to men and women in the street.”
Lapidus died of [...]
TEHRAN (Reuters) – A prominent Iranian-Canadian blogger has been detained and his case is being investigated, Iran’s judiciary said on Tuesday in the first official public confirmation about his whereabouts.
Hossein Derakhshan, nicknamed the “Blogfather” for his role in pioneering a blogging revolution in Iran, last updated his blog in October and Canadian media reports, quoting [...]
By MIN LEE
AP Entertainment Writer
HONG KONG (AP) – Jackie Chan and other prominent Hong Kong filmmakers have joined a key mainland Chinese film association, a sign of the growing integration of the two movie industries.
The 54-year-old action star was voted vice chairman of the China Film Association in elections over the weekend, the group said [...]
By JAKE COYLE
AP Entertainment Writer
NEW YORK (AP) – After the reasonably strong box office performance of “Valkyrie” over the weekend, skeptics were robbed of the chance to declare “Flop!”
The Tom Cruise WWII thriller earned $21.5 million over the weekend, with a four-day haul of $30 million since it opened on Christmas Day.
That was a solid [...]
By TIM PARADIS
AP Business Writer
NEW YORK (AP) – Investors nearing the end of a brutal 2008 made some modest bets Tuesday, pointing Wall Street toward a higher open. The market was awaiting a reading on consumer confidence during December.
With many traders away for the holidays, stocks have shown small moves in light volume in recent [...]
NEW YORK (AP) – A Manhattan bankruptcy judge will hear a request by the trustee overseeing the liquidation of Bernard Madoff’s investment firm for a $28 million transfer to cover expenses.
A hearing on trustee Irving Picard’s request is scheduled for Tuesday. The trustee outlined the terms of an agreement reached with the Bank of New [...]
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – South Korea’s benchmark stock index rose slightly Tuesday, but still closed out its worst year since 2000.
The South Korean won had its biggest annual drop against the dollar since the 1997 Asian financial crisis.
The Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 6.88 points, or 0.6 percent, to finish 2008 at 1,124.47.
The [...]
By NATALIYA VASILYEVA
AP Business Writer
MOSCOW (AP) – Russia’s Gazprom said Monday its net profit almost tripled in the second quarter of 2008 as the world’s largest gas producer reaped earnings from record commodity prices before the global economic crisis took hold.
But the numbers offer limited comfort with the company’s stock down 71 percent this year [...]
By JEFF WILSON
Associated Press Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) – Four years after a stroke, celebrated U.S. TV host Dick Clark is relishing the prospect of another New Year’s Eve celebration, determined to appear for his 36th year in Times Square. And he’s hardly surprised by the current state of the music industry he helped build – [...]
