Latest Pen Stories

By Robert Osborne NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - A deep bow to all Academy Award nominees as of 5:30 a.m. Pacific time Tuesday. Enjoy the day, the attention, the pats on the back. It's something that doesn't happen often -- unless your name is Streep, Nicholson or Dench. And do keep in mind those gloriously talented people who did great work but never received a single Oscar nomination in their entire careers, including such heavyweights as Edward G. Robinson (think "Key Largo,"...

PARIS -- It started as an answer to leaky pens carried by American soldiers during World War Two, was perfected and made popular by an Italian-born baron and has written its way into history as the world's biggest-selling pen.More than half a century after honing a cheap version of the ballpoint pen, Bic, the French firm which built an empire out of making things to be thrown away, said Thursday it had sold its 100 billionth -- 100,000,000,000th --- disposable ballpoint.The group started...

MEXICO CITY (AP) -- The population of Monarch butterflies has suffered a drastic decline, but Mexico - where deforestation has long devastated Monarch wintering grounds - is now blaming the United States and Canada. Mexico's Environment Department said on Wednesday that 75 percent fewer Monarch butterflies have appeared in 2004 compared to previous years. It blamed cold weather and intensive farming - including genetically modified crops - in areas of the United States and Canada where the...