The next time you head to a Web site that translates text from one language to another for free, keep in mind that these literal resources usually provide only the gist of the words. Consider the funny case of the wily Mexican song “La Bamba.”Its lyrics:Para bailar la BambaPara bailar la BambaSe necesita una poca […]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – The way Laura Ingalls Wilder used music to help weave her stories of life on the American frontier struck a chord with Dale Cockrell as he and his son read the “Little House” series nearly a decade ago.Now, the Vanderbilt University professor has his own record label, Pa’s Fiddle Recordings, and […]

To a mad genius like David Milch, the phrase surf’s up has very little to do with water.With Milch’s Western, “Deadwood,” riding off into the sunset, his new HBO project, “John From Cincinnati,” is about a seriously whacked surfing family in California, the Yosts.A mysterious stranger (Austin Nichols) – who may or may not be […]

Mrs. C.M. Lunt, Davis street’s Steamed Apple Pudding: Pare, quarter and core one pint of apples and put in a pudding dish. Make a batter with one-half pint sour milk, one-half teaspoon soda, one-half tablespoon butter, flour enough to make quite stiff. Pour over the apples and steam an hour.Cream of carrot soup has an […]

How did one of December’s most charming YouTube hits, a short film combining “A Charlie Brown Christmas” with “Scrubs,” come to be? As with so many popular online videos, boredom was the catalyst.“I’ve worked on a bunch of television shows and to be honest, I became rather bored with doing the same old blooper reel” […]

SANTA MONICA, Calif. (AP) – Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s broken leg was put back together with wires and screws Tuesday, and the “Terminator” star should make a full recovery, though he will probably be on crutches during his inauguration next week, officials aid.The 59-year-old former bodybuilder broke his right thigh bone over the holiday weekend while […]

MILWAUKEE (AP) – Maybe it was home-state spirit. The man whose rags-to-riches story is told in the movie “The Pursuit of Happyness” spent its opening night speaking at a company party in Wisconsin.Michael Riggs, the CEO of JHT Holdings Inc., in Kenosha, said he arranged through a talent agency for Chris Gardner to be the […]

The cat belonging to George Otis Turner of Gardiner has the distinction of catching the fifth Purple Gallinule, a southern bird, ever captured in Maine. The bird was not mutilated by the cat, and Mr. Turner took it to Prof. Powers who identified it and will have it mounted. The bird is about the size […]

NEW YORK – Children left behind when their mother or father or sometimes both are sent away to fight are the hidden casualties of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.A PBS special airing two days after Christmas with advice on how families can hold together during wartime separations is both a practical guide and window […]

NEW YORK (AP) – Frank Stanton, a broadcasting pioneer and CBS president for 26 years who helped turn its TV operation into the “Tiffany network” and built CBS News into a respected information source, has died. He was 98.Stanton died in his sleep at his Boston home on Sunday, said longtime friend Elisabeth Allison.“He took […]