SYDNEY (Reuters) – Floodwater rose across a vast area in Australia's northeast on Friday, inundating 22 towns, forcing 200,000 residents out of their homes, and closing a major sugar export port.
HAGERSTOWN, Md. – Agathe von Trapp, a member of the musical family whose escape from Nazi-occupied Austria was the basis for "The Sound of Music," has died, a longtime friend said Wednesday.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – New claims for unemployment benefits dropped more than expected last week to their lowest level in more than two years, suggesting the labor market recovery was gaining strength.
LONDON (Reuters) – OPEC output has risen slightly in December as Nigerian supply increased, a Reuters survey found on Thursday, indicating the group has yet to boost production substantially in response to prices at a 26-month high.
ABIDJAN (Reuters) – A delegation of three West African presidents who met incumbent Ivory Coast leader Laurent Gbagbo on Tuesday to deliver an ultimatum to step down or face force left saying more meetings were needed.
PHILADELPHIA – Considering everything else the Minnesota Vikings have endured this season, it was silly to think two extra days sitting around a hotel room would bring 'em down.
SAN ANTONIO – Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili were on the bench before the final horn, and not because of their bad shooting nights. That's how easy it was for the San Antonio Spurs.
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) – While controversy swirls around Fox's new game show "The Million Dollar Money Drop" after two contestants lost $800,000 despite answering a question correctly, the show's host says many people are missing the point: the duo legitimately lost the game on the next question anyway.
BALTIMORE – Darth Vader proclaiming he's Luke Skywalker's father, John Travolta preening in his underwear and an early 20th-century deaf activist communicating in sign language are among the images that will be preserved by the Library of Congress as part of its National Film Registry.
