Picasso goes cheap at charity auction

An art lover in the United States scored the bargain of the year when he picked up a million-dollar drawing by Pablo Picasso online for a mere 100 euros ($140) last Wednesday. Jeffrey Gonano, 25, says he had been looking for a picture to hang on his living room wall when he read a news article about L'Homme au Gibus (Man with Opera Hat), raffled by Sotheby's in Paris. "I was looking for art and I thought I might as well," the project manager at a fire sprinkler firm was quoted as saying. His winning ticket number, 747815 - picked by a computer system on Wednesday - was one of 50,000 put up for sale online at 100 euros each to raise funds for an association working to preserve the ancient city of Tyre in Lebanon. The small drawing dates from 1914, during the artist's Cubist phase.

Wedding guest marries jilted bride

A guest at a wedding in India got more than he bargained for when he ended up marrying the bride. The Times of India reported last week that the 30-year-old man's good fortune began when the original groom walked off angrily following an argument with the bride's family last Monday, just two days before the nuptials were due to take place. He failed to return as expected on Tuesday and could not be found, with the wedding scheduled for the following day. News of the disaster spread quickly across the town, leaving the family fearful for the bride's future. The guest, a relative of the bride, then stepped in and offered to marry her in what the Times called "a kind gesture". The family was "relieved" when the wedding took place on schedule.

Man found in guitar case

A man found lying half-naked in a guitar case near farmland in Oklahoma had spent hours in the case to keep warm after falling into an icy pond while getting lost on a walk. Zackery Aders, 31, set off on a 42-km trek between Gore and Checotah when he lost his way. When he was walking on an icy pond, the surface suddenly gave way and Aders realized that he would have to take off his now-soaking wet clothes. He then climbed into his guitar case to keep warm, as the temperature plunged. Farm owners nearby were checking on their cattle when they found him in only his boxer shorts and "unable to speak", Muskogee County sheriff Charles Pearson says. Aders was treated at a local hospital before being released with non-life-threatening injuries.

Gilligan's Island set for big screen

The much-loved 1960s TV show Gilligan's Island is set to make a comeback on the silver screen. Warner Bros has announced it aims to make a feature film based on the comedy series about a group of castaways shipwrecked on an uncharted island. It will be fashioned as a star vessel for Book Of Mormon's Josh Gad, who will also co-write the script. The original series starred Bob Denver as Gilligan and featured a catchy theme song. Alan Hale Jr and Jim Backus also starred as The Skipper and millionaire Howell respectively.

Actress tells Facebook fans of illness

Emmy-winning actress Kristen Johnston has taken to Facebook to tell fans she has been diagnosed with "a rare autoimmune disorder". Johnston, who starred in the TV comedy 3rd Rock From the Sun, said she knew that there was something seriously wrong when she found herself "almost completely unable to move". After four months and 17 doctors, The Exes star was diagnosed with the illness. Sharing the news in a post on her Facebook page last Tuesday, the 46-year-old actress revealed that she's been "really, really sick" since early September, suffering from full body muscle weakness that made even walking difficult, "stairs impossible and I even need a neck brace to hold my head up".

Distracted woman walks off pier

A tourist in Australia became so engrossed in browsing her Facebook page on her cellphone while walking in Melbourne that she unknowingly stepped off a pier and landed in the water. Witnesses told police officers they had seen the woman walking along the St. Kilda pier with her cellphone at about 11:30 pm last Tuesday when she took a wrong step and plunged into Port Phillip Bay. The woman was fished from the water about 22 meters from the pier, still clutching her phone, police said. The woman was taken to a local hospital to be checked out before being released.

Great train robber dies

English criminal Ronnie Biggs, known for his role in Britain's 1963 Great Train Robbery, died in London last Wednesday, aged 84. Biggs made world headlines for his part in the heist, which netted the equivalent of $91 million today, and then escaping from Wandsworth Prison in 1965. He initially fled to Australia before eventually making his way to Brazil, where he lived for many years beyond the reach of British justice. He was free for 35 years before voluntarily returning to England in poor health in 2001. He was immediately arrested and imprisoned. Biggs was released from prison four years ago on compassionate grounds because of ill health. He had suffered several strokes. Biggs was one of a 15-strong gang of robbers led by Bruce Reynolds who attacked a Royal Mail train heading between Glasgow and London in the early hours of Aug 8, 1963, switching the signals and tricking the driver into stopping in the darkness. It is not known how Biggs died.

-Agencies

(China Daily 12/22/2013 page4)