New data: Child abuse drops for 5th straight year
Reports of child abuse and neglect have dropped nationwide for the fifth consecutive year, and abuse-related child fatalities also are at a five-year ...

Susan Sarandon expands ping pong empire to L.A.
Ping pong is having a moment, thanks in no small part to Susan Sarandon. The Oscar-winning actress and self-described "ping pong propagandist" ...

Wiz Khalifa readies music, marriage, fatherhood
Rapper Wiz Khalifa says preparation for becoming a first-time father and husband has helped put him in a more mature musical state of mind. But that ...

Review: 'Any Day' is beautifully etched drama
Depictions of custody battles have become a cinematic staple, but few register with the heartfelt emotion of "Any Day Now." This 1970s Los Angeles-set ...

Uruguay's lower house approves gay marriage law
Lawmakers in taboo-breaking Uruguay voted to legalize gay marriage late Tuesday night, approving a single law governing marriage for heterosexuals and ...
British government to legalize same-sex marriage
The British government announced Tuesday that it will introduce a bill next year legalizing gay marriage — but banning the Church of England from ...

There arose such a clatter over pipe-free Santa
Santa has kicked the habit in time for Christmas. No, not the sugar plum habit, or his fur-wearing habit, or his penchant for romping recklessly ...

Government investigating makers of cellphone apps
The government is investigating whether software companies that make cellphone apps violated the privacy rights of children by quietly collecting ...

Minn. gay couple in '71 marriage case still united
When Jack Baker proposed to Michael McConnell that they join their lives together as a couple, in March 1967, McConnell accepted with a condition that ...

Gay couples in Wash. start taking wedding vows
Keith Bacon and Corianton Hale wore dress shirts as they recited their vows at Seattle City Hall, as the city hosted more than 100 weddings on the ...

Same-sex couples in Wash. state start wedding vows
Scores of same-sex couples crowded Seattle City Hall for a day of wedding ceremonies on Sunday, the first day they could marry after the state's ...

Same-sex weddings in Wash. to begin on Sunday
Two retired military women who fought for the rights of gays in the military were among the hundreds of couples who received their marriage licenses ...

Okee Dokee Brothers ride the river to a Grammy nod
For a musical duo that have known each other since they were 3 years old, there's something extra special about landing a Grammy nomination for Best ...

NJ teen wants Easy-Bake Oven to appeal to boys
Four-year-old Gavyn Boscio loves to cook and asked for an Easy-Bake Oven for Christmas. But when his big sister went to buy one, she discovered to her ...
Chilean court fines motel for discrimination
A court in Chile has slapped a fine on a motel that banned entry to a gay couple in the first ruling associated with a new-antidiscrimination law.

Gay Washington state couples get marriage licenses
Hundreds of same-sex couples across Washington state started picking up marriage licenses Thursday as a voter-approved law legalizing gay marriage ...

Gregoire signs Wash. gay marriage law
Gov. Chris Gregoire has signed into law a measure that legalizes same-sex marriage in Washington state, which now joins several other states that ...

Review: DJ Baba Brinkman mixes Darwin and dating
Here's some advice you wouldn't expect before a theater outing: Don't turn off your cell phone at Baba Brinkman's new off-Broadway show "Ingenious ...

Amazon launches Kindle content service for kids
Amazon is launching a subscription service for children's games, videos and books aimed at getting more kids to use its Kindle Fire tablet devices.

Gay marriage before Supreme Court? Cases weighed
The running fight over gay marriage is shifting from the ballot box to the Supreme Court. Three weeks after voters backed same-sex marriage in three ...

War rips apart families, neighbors in Syria
BEIRUT — It's at night that worries over her children hit the matriarch of the Khayyat family hardest, tormenting her as she tries to sleep. Four of ...

Kenya village pairs AIDS orphans with grandparents
There are no middle-aged people in Nyumbani. They all died years ago, before this village of hope in Kenya began. Only the young and old live here.

Mayim Bialik files to end 9-year marriage in LA
Court records show Mayim Bialik filed for divorce from her husband of nine years on the same day she announced the couple's split in a blog post.

Awareness, enforcement help reduce child sex abuse
Increased public awareness of how child predators operate, along with better law enforcement and policies to protect children, may be helping to ...

After mostly silence, Jill Kelley defends herself
Jill Kelley wants the world to know that she didn't do anything wrong when she befriended top military brass. The Tampa socialite at the center of a ...