Brad Pitt tweets to Chinese that he's coming

BEIJING (AP) — Brad Pitt is now on China's version of Twitter, and his mysterious first tweet has drawn thousands of comments.The actor's verified Sina Weibo account sent the message Monday: "It is the truth. Yup, I'm coming." That was forwarded more than 31,000 times and netted over 14,000 comments, many expressing surprise. He gathered more than 100,000 followers.The IMDb.com movie website says...

Read More..

Tehran Is Choked by Annual Buildup of Air Pollution

TEHRAN — Already battered by international threats against their nation’s nuclear program, sanctions and a broken economy, Iranians living here in the capital are now trying to cope with what has become an annual pollution peril: a yellowish haze that engulfs Tehran this time of year. For nearly a week, officials here and in other large cities have been calling on residents to remain indoors...

Read More..

Bank of America reaches $3.6 billion settlement with Fannie Mae

Bank of America has reached a settlement with Fannie Mae on residential mortgage loans sold by the bank and its Countrywide...

Read More..

Reality shows may put crews too close to cutting edge

Monica Martino had filmed tornadoes in the Midwest, ship collisions in the Antarctic and crab fishermen in Alaska's Bering Sea....

Read More..

Barnes & Noble sells fewer Nooks, retail revenue falls

(Reuters) – Barnes & Noble Inc’s Nook unit reported weak holiday season numbers on Thursday as it sold fewer e-readers and tablets at its own stores, and its e-books sales growth slowed, raising questions about the future of its digital business.The Nook, launched in 2009 to compete with Amazon.com Inc‘s market-leading Kindle, has been the cornerstone of Barnes & Noble‘s strategy to counter...

Read More..

French actor Depardieu gets Russian passport

MOSCOW (AP) — The day after receiving his new Russian passport from President Vladimir Putin, French actor Gerard Depardieu flew Sunday to the provincial town of Saransk, where he was greeted as a local hero and offered an apartment for free.Depardieu had sought Russian citizenship as part of his battle against a proposed super tax on millionaires in France.Putin granted his request last week and...

Read More..

Despite New Health Law, Some See Sharp Rise in Premiums

Health insurance companies across the country are seeking and winning double-digit increases in premiums for some customers, even though one of the biggest objectives of the Obama administration’s health care law was to stem the rapid rise in insurance costs for consumers. Bob Chamberlin/Los Angeles TimesDave Jones, the California insurance commissioner, said some insurance companies...

Read More..

Reality shows may put crews too close to cutting edge

Monica Martino had filmed tornadoes in the Midwest, ship collisions in the Antarctic and crab fishermen in Alaska's Bering Sea....

Read More..

Dumped Christmas trees are a gift for Lake Havasu fish

The ghosts of Christmas past can be found in some unusual places. The bottom of Lake Havasu, for instance.There, thousands of...

Read More..

Cricketer Herath alive and bowling despite death rumors

SYDNEY (Reuters) – As Mark Twain might have said, rumors of the death of Sri Lankan spinner Rangana Herath which spread like wildfire across social media late on Friday proved to be greatly exaggerated.Far from lying in a Sydney morgue alongside former test bowler Chaminda Vaas after perishing in a car crash as the reports had suggested, Herath was very much alive when he pitched up for work at the...

Read More..