Alberto Fujimori put in cattle class

Lima: First, President Alberto Fujimori had to fly in coach class. Then an American Airlines employee searched his luggage for contraband...

Lima: First, President Alberto Fujimori had to fly in coach class. Then an American Airlines employee searched his luggage for contraband. 8220;It seems impertinent, unacceptable to me that a common employee of American Airlines searched my baggage,8221; Fujimori told mediapersons on Wednesday. 8220;What they should be doing is looking into whether American Airlines employees are smuggling drugs.8221;

The Peruvian President complained he was bumped to economy class, despite having a first-class ticket for a flight from Kansas city to Dallas last weekend. The President, however, did not say in which airport his bags were searched.

Japanese nobel8217; for american artistes

NEW YORK: Jazz pianist Oscar Peterson and choreographer Pina Bausch are among the five recipients of the 1999 Praemium Imperiale, considered to be Japan8217;s Nobel prize for the arts. The three others honoured in a ceremony at Lincoln Center on Wednesday are painter Anselm Kiefer, sculptor Louise Bourgeois and architect Fumihiko Maki.

8220;I haveto say thank you not only on my behalf but on behalf of the music I represent- jazz,8221; said Peterson, 74, the son of a Canadian railroad worker. The Praemium Imperiale will officially be presented to the recipients along with 121,00 each at an awards ceremony in Tokyo on October 28.

Ricky Martin8217;s got Manhattan in a jam

NEW YORK: Ricky Martin8217;s got Rockefeller Center in an uproar. The Manhattan office complex handed out maps to workers showing ways to avoid the thousands of frenzied fans expected for the singer8217;s appearance on Friday on the Today show. The Latin music sensation was scheduled to perform outside NBC8217;s Today studio at 8 am local time.

The viewing area holds about 1,200 people, but police were braced for thousands more and warned that they might have to close some streets. Martin, 27, is enjoying the wild success of his debut English-language CD, simply titled Ricky Martin. Its first single, Livin8217; La Vida Loca, which means living the crazy life, is topping the charts.

WinonaRyder8217;s home goes for A song

LOS ANGELES: Winona Ryder sold her former home in Beverly Hills for about 900,000, or about 100,000 below the market price, The Los Angeles Times reported on Thursday. The buyer is a former Seinfeld writer whom the paper didn8217;t identify.

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Built in 1926, the 2,000-square-foot, 185.80 sq. meters Spanish-style home has three bedrooms, limestone floors and a fireplace. Ryder bought and restored the house in 1996.

The star of the upcoming film Girl Interrupted purchased a nearby home last year for 2.5 million.

Michael Jackson to sing in Sydney

SYDNEY: Pop superstar Michael Jackson will kick off the new millennium with a New Year8217;s Eve concert at Sydney8217;s new Olympic stadium, a report here said on Friday.

Jackson, who was married here, is being brought back to Australia by Sydney promoter Kevin Jacobsen, The Daily Telegraph said. 8220;Sydney is really the first major city, so to speak, in the world to bring in the new millennium,8221; Jacobsen said. 8220;Michaelloves Sydney and it will be a worldwide event.8221; Ticket prices have not been finalised yet.