more images

Damien Hirst swaps pickled sharks for paintbrush with new show at London’s Wallace Collection

LONDON — Damien Hirst has made a fortune and become an art-world brand by peering at life’s dark side.

More than 20 years after Fossey film, Sigourney Weaver still committed to gorilla preservation

ATLANTA — Actress Sigourney Weaver said Saturday that orphaned gorillas desperately need a permanent rescue and rehabilitation center that’s currently being built in the Congo.

Actor Benicio del Toro calls for Puerto Rico gov’t to halt planned monkey-breeding center

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Benicio del Toro is asking Puerto Rico to halt a planned monkey-breeding facility, arguing the primates would suffer “extreme animal abuse.”

Da Vinci’s forgotten sculptures, other rare works make first US appearance at Atlanta museum

ATLANTA — Leonardo da Vinci once spent nearly two decades creating a 26-foot sculpture of a horse to honor a royal Italian family, only to have the plaster masterpiece destroyed by French soldiers.

Erin go llama: Escaped circus animals bring Dublin’s major highway to a three-ring standstill

DUBLIN — Dublin’s traffic is often snarled, but this could be the first time llamas are to blame.

Escapism makes its comeback as exotic looks at NY Fashion Week create a virtual vacation

NEW YORK — Designers at New York Fashion Week, faced with a grim national mood, looked for a solution far, far away.

Giraffe in movies, Toys R Us commercials dies unexpectedly at Boston zoo

BOSTON — A giraffe that starred in a series of TV commercials for Toys R Us and appeared in Jim Carrey’s movie “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” has died at a Boston zoo.

Cirque du Soleil founder uses $35M trip to issue water ecology statement from space station

STAR CITY, Russia — The next paying traveler to the international space station wants to use his $35 million trip to highlight concerns about the world’s water supply.

Cirque du Soleil founder hopes the world will hear him read from space

STAR CITY, Russia — The founder of Cirque du Soleil said Thursday he’ll be taking some reading material to the International Space Station this month. Not that he’s worried about being bored, but he wants to read it to the denizens of Earth.

For sale: Luxury NYC duplex where Madoff fraud came crashing down; Fla. estate also available

NEW YORK — It’s where Bernard Madoff broke down and confessed to his massive fraud, frantically wrote checks for millions of dollars as the scheme unraveled and appeared in a bathrobe to greet the FBI agents who arrested him.

France’s Annaud to direct adaptation of best-selling Chinese novel ‘Wolf Totem’

HONG KONG — The French director of “Seven Years in Tibet,” Jean-Jacques Annaud, will direct an adaptation of the best-selling Chinese novel “Wolf Totem” — the story of the relationship between Mongolian nomads and wolves seen by some as a critique of Communist rule.

Modest Mouse video directed by Heath Ledger debuts online

LOS ANGELES — Heath Ledger’s latest directorial work has been released.

Faux-memoir by Tarzan’s chimp pal Cheeta among contenders for literature’s prestigious Booker

LONDON — The purported autobiography of a movie-star chimpanzee is among the contenders for Britain’s most prestigious literary award.

Movie Review: Shrinking action to rodent size, ‘G-Force’ is a pest

“G-Force” has been billed as producer Jerry Bruckheimer’s first foray into animation, which suggests his live-action films contain something resembling “reality” and “humans.”

Meatless in Paris: Vegetarian eating in the land of foie gras

PARIS — Cote de boeuf, foie gras, escargot. French cuisine is hardly the stuff of vegetarians’ dreams.

‘Biggest and best’ fireworks show promised in NYC as Independence Day celebrated around US

NEW YORK — The Fourth of July weekend is shaping up as a celebration for Americans watching fireworks around the country — and for three elephants and a turtle.

Not much of a contest: Elephants beat humans 505-143 in Coney Island bun-eating throwdown

NEW YORK — They called it a bun-eating competition, but it wasn’t much of a contest.

Spanish Renaissance armor, portraits on view together for first time at National Gallery

WASHINGTON — During the first three centuries of American history — from the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the new world, through the years that revolutionaries struggled for independence for the fledgling United States — Spain was already one of the word’s great empires.

Movie review: ‘Ice Age’ sequel is OK for kids, a ‘yawn of the dinosaurs’ tale for adults

There’s more action and cuddly creatures for kids to love in “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” than in the animated franchise’s first two installments.

Sprint Nextel agrees to stop using apes in ads after complaint from PETA, Anjelica Huston

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Sprint Nextel Corp. said Thursday it will no longer use great apes in its advertisements after animal rights activists complained about an ad by the wireless provider that features a chimpanzee.

‘American Idol’ rat pack: Allen, Lambert, other finalists prepare for nationwide tour

BURBANK, Calif. — In a small, unadorned studio far removed from cameras, spotlights and songs ending with an instant review, the top 10 “American Idol” finalists are getting ready for a nationwide tour.

Robert Indiana’s EAT sign to be displayed after 44-year hiatus as part of new exhibit

VINALHAVEN, Maine — Robert Indiana never saw his oversized EAT sign illuminated after it went up at the New York World’s Fair in 1964. A day after being turned on, the sign with its hundreds of light bulbs was turned off because it was attracting hungry tourists who thought it was a restaurant, not a piece of art.

Janes’ Addiction front man Perry Farrell tears calf muscle at Atlanta show, taken to hospital

ATLANTA — Jane’s Addiction lead singer Perry Farrell is recovering from a torn calf muscle he suffered on stage at a concert in Atlanta.