Spanish firm Puig, owner of couture labels Nina Ricci and Paco Rabanne, said Tuesday it had taken a majority stake in French fashion house Jean Paul Gaultier, whose namesake creator retains artistic control.

Puig paid 16 million euros ($24 million) for Hermes' 45 percent stake while the flamboyant 59-year-old couturier, who owned 55 percent stake in his own brand, also sold an unspecified stake.

French fashion legend Pierre Cardin is ready to sell his group and will seek one billion Euros (1.4 billion dollars), he said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal published Tuesday.

"I want to sell it now," Cardin, 88, told the U.S. business daily. "I know I won't be here in a few years and the business needs to continue."

It is only a matter of time before Osama bin Laden's killing by crack U.S. forces is made into a Hollywood film -- and one Oscar-winning director could be ahead of the game, reports said Monday.

Kathryn Bigelow, who won an Academy Award for her 2008 film "The Hurt Locker," was already working on a movie about the Al Qaeda leader's death -- which she could still re-think after Sunday's covert operation in Pakistan.

Cirque du Soleil and Michael Jackson's estate unveiled plans Wednesday for a permanent show honoring the pop icon at a Las Vegas casino resort, including items from his Neverland Ranch.

While the permanent show won't open until early 2013, the dance company will also bring its Michael Jackson "The Immortal" world tour to the US gambling mecca's Mandalay Bay resort and casino this December, they said.

As Indian director Onir applied the final touches to his new movie "I Am", he paused to pay tribute to the 400 people who responded to his Facebook campaign to help finance the project.

"Thank you all for being a part of 'I Am'," Bollywood's only openly gay filmmaker wrote on his Facebook page. "I am because you are."

On a sultry afternoon in Washington's Chinatown, dozens of teenage girls tried on silk and satin evening dresses, chose glittery bling and handbags to match, and walked out without paying.

And it was all perfectly legal.

A disgruntled fan Monday emerged as the prime suspect behind a mystery explosion at the Russian equivalent of "Big Brother", which claims to be the world's longest-running television reality show.

The blast early Sunday morning rocked the grounds where "Dom-2" (House-2) is filmed, wounding a security guard. Police later uncovered another more powerful device on the premises which was then made safe.

Libyan rebel fighter Jaad Jumaa Hashmi cranks up the volume on his pickup truck's stereo when he heads into battle against Moammar Gadhafi's forces.

He looks for inspiration from a growing cadre of amateur rappers whose powerful songs have helped define the revolution.

David Beckham, Elton John and Mr. Bean actor Rowan Atkinson will mingle with dozens of royal guests at Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding, according to an official guest list released Saturday that includes one uncomfortable presence — the Bahraini crown prince accused of a brutal crackdown on protesters.

St. James's Palace also released the seating plan at Westminster Abbey, which showed that relatives of William's mother Princess Diana are sitting across the aisle from the royal family, joining the Middletons in an exception to the traditional division of a church into a bride's side and groom's side.

Kenyan artist Michael Soi followed the recent arrival of the post-poll violence suspects at the International Court in The Hague with interest -- he had painted that very scene three years ago.

"The Hague Express" in charcoal and acrylic, is one of three huge canvasses piled up in the container that serves as Soi's studio.