Prince to Build Mile-High Skyscraper ... Somewhere

A Saudi billionaire wants to put up a mile-high skyscraper—he's just not sure where. But Prince Alwaleed bin Talal isn't about to go begging municipalities for permission. Instead, he wants the big cities of the world—New York, London, and Shanghai are among those he mentioned—to woo him...

Fashion's Dolce, Gabbana Sentenced to Jail

Celebrities from Madonna to Kate Moss wear Dolce & Gabbana, so one would think Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana are doing pretty well. Not today. A Milan court convicted the pair of tax evasion and sentenced them to one year and eight months in jail. The jail sentences are suspended,...

Men's Wearhouse Boots Gravelly-Voiced Founder

"George Zimmer" may not be a household name, but his is a household voice. Zimmer is the guy who's been saying, "You're gonna like the way you look. I guarantee it" in Men's Wearhouse commercials for the past 28 years. In addition to being the company's gravelly-voiced spokesperson, he was...

Staffers: Bank of America Gave Us Gift Cards for Lying

Bank of America told employees to lie to and cheat homeowners looking for help under the government's Home Affordable Modification Program , and rewarded those employees for kicking people out of their homes, staffers allege in sworn statements attached to a recently filed lawsuit. Here are some of the most outrageous...

Chrysler Recalls 2.7M Jeeps

Chrysler avoided a showdown with government safety regulators today, agreeing to recall 2.7 million older Jeep Grand Cherokee and Liberty SUVs that could be at risk of a fuel tank fire. Earlier this month, the company defiantly refused the government's request to recall the Jeeps. But Chrysler now says...

It's About Time We Started Paying Interns

The unpaid Black Swan interns who sued Fox Searchlight over having to perform menial tasks like making coffee won their case last week: A federal judge ruled that not paying the interns was a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. It's about time, writes Cullen Seltzer on Slate . In...

McDonald's Worker Sues: Payment Method 'Unfair'

A Pennsylvania woman who says a McDonald's franchise told her she could only be paid via a fee-laden debit card has launched a class-action suit. Single mother Natalie Gunshannon says she went to a lawyer after the restaurant refused to pay her by check or direct deposit, insisting that she...

Wealth Isn't Helping the US Anymore

Normally, when Americans' net worth goes up—say, because the value of their house or their stocks goes up—they spend more money, stimulating the economy. Economists call it the "wealth effect," and it might just have suffered an untimely death as a concept, observes Robert Samuelson at the Washington...

Netflix to Become DreamWorks' TV Network

Netflix made another big splash in its original content push today, announcing a deal with DreamWorks that will see the animation studio create 300 hours worth of original TV shows for the streaming service. The shows will be "inspired" by DreamWorks' existing properties, so get ready for shows based on...

Snoozing Bank Worker Mistakenly Transfers $300M

The latest in the annals of office screw-ups: A weary German bank worker was in the process of transferring 62.40 euros when he fell asleep for a (very expensive) "instant," reports the AFP . In his unconscious state he pushed the number 2 key, leading him to instead transfer 222,...

Man of Steel Nabs No. 1 June Open Ever

Man of Steel may not have rocked critics' worlds but someone forgot to tell moviegoers, who stormed theaters and pushed the latest Superman to the best June opening ever, with $125.1 million. While the Hollywood Reporter notes that that figure includes $12 million from Thursday night Walmart screenings, the...

Hey, Dad: You're Worth $23,344

While most fathers may consider themselves priceless, it turns out you can attach a dollar-value to Dad. And sorry, guys, it's lower than Mom's. Insure.com crunched the numbers associated with the tasks involved in daddy-duty, and came up with a figure of $23,344 a year. Bloomberg explains that...

Meet Warren Buffett's Righthand Woman, Age 28

Prepare to feel inadequate. Tracy Britt is 28 years old. She grew up on a farm in Kansas. And she's one of Warren Buffett's top lieutenants. Four years after she was hired fresh out of Harvard Business School to be Buffett's financial assistant, she is now the chairman of four...

Meet America's 'Worst Charities'

Charity or scam? The 50 worst charities identified in a joint investigation between the Center for Investigative Reporting , the Tampa Bay Times , and CNN , look an awfully lot like the latter. Take their grand prize winner for worst charity, Kids Wish Network. Less than 3% of the millions it raises...

Look Out, Boeing: Airbus A350 Takes 1st Flight

The Airbus A350's maiden flight ended with a safe landing today, setting the stage for intensifying competition with US rival Boeing in the long-haul wide-body aircraft market. Airspace at the airport in the southern French city of Toulouse, where Airbus has its headquarters, closed for both take-off and landing. The...

Boston Woman Pays $560K for 2 Parking Spots

Parking is such a precious commodity in Boston that one woman was willing to pay $560,000 for two off-street spaces near her home. Lisa Blumenthal won the spots in the city's Back Bay neighborhood during an on-site IRS auction yesterday. The IRS had seized the spots from a man...

Microsoft to Open Mini-Stores in Best Buy

Microsoft has unveiled plans for "store-within-a-store" sections in Best Buy stores, becoming the latest major consumer electronics maker to acknowledge advantages of the brick-and-mortar format. The sections will begin opening this month and offer Windows-based PCs, tablets, Xbox, and accessories, as well as trained staff to explain Windows 8 to...

Snapchat's Biggest Fans: Teens and ... Bankers?

It's the happening social media app that swept through high schools across the country, and now it's coming for … Wall Street? Yes, financiers are going absolutely nuts for Snapchat, the service that lets you send photos, with messages attached, that will self-destruct soon after they arrive, sources tell New...

Spielberg, Lucas: Movie Industry in Big Trouble

George Lucas and Steven Spielberg think the movie industry is headed for a catastrophic implosion that will change entertainment as we know it. At a USC School of Cinematic Arts panel, the Indiana Jones collaborators sketched a future worthy of a disaster flick, blaming the coming doom on the industry's...

Oops: Man Sells Wife's $23K Wedding Ring for $10

Husbands, there's a lesson for you in Eric Cloutier's very big mistake: Never sell anything at a garage sale without first checking with your wife. The California man offloaded a watch box he thought was empty at a June 1 community garage sale for $10. Little did he know his...

College Grads: Both Record High and 'Distressingly Low'

The number of American college graduates has been surging in recent years to a record high—which is probably a fair bit lower than you'd expect. As of last year, 33.5% of Americans aged 25 to 29 had at least a bachelor's degree, according to federal data. That's up...

Time Warner Bribes Partners to Keep Shows Offline

Cable companies must be terrified of cord-cutters, because they're playing hardball to try to keep shows offline. Time Warner and other "pay-TV operators" are offering media companies higher payments if they'll keep their content off of web video services, and even threatening to drop networks that don't fall in line,...

Mystery Woman Picks Up Whole Restaurant's Tab

Plant City, Florida, is abuzz over a random act of kindness—possibly at the hands of the biggest solo lottery winner in US history. A woman who apparently looked like 84-year-old Gloria MacKenzie had an early-bird dinner at BuddyFreddy's on Sunday, leaving the restaurant with her two companions around 4pm....

US Sues BMW, Says Criminal Checks Were Discriminating

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has filed a lawsuit against BMW for using criminal background checks to screen out employees—a practice, it says, which put 70 black employees out of a job, the Washington Post reports. The background, as per an EEOC press release : A BMW plant in South...

NSA Mess Boosts Sales of One Book 6,021%

All the furor about real-life Big Brother-esque surveillance has a lot of people reaching for the fictional version. As of this morning, Amazon sales of George Orwell's 1984 had jumped 6,021% in 24 hours, NPR reports. The dystopian classic is now No. 164 on the online bookseller's charts. Current...

Booz Allen: Snowden Is Fired, Didn't Make $200K

If nothing else, you can certainly say it wasn't a moment too soon. Resoundingly slamming the barn door after a certain pony fled to Hong Kong, Booz Allen has fired Edward Snowden , the company announced in a one-sentence statement today. "Snowden, who had a salary at the rate of $122,...

Dole Gets Buyout Offer From Own 90-Year-Old CEO

David Murdock is 90 years old, but if he gets his way, it will be awfully hard for anyone to force him into retirement. The Dole Food CEO is offering to buy the company he works for outright for $12 a share, in a deal that values the company at...

Lululemon CEO Quits, Stock Does Downward Dog

Yoga-wear maker Lululemon's CEO Christine Day has abruptly announced her departure from the firm, surprising analysts and spooking investors. Day—who has presided over soaring growth in her five years at the firm—told the board she was tired of working 18- to 20-hour days and she would prefer to...

Broke Drivers Are Renting ... Tires?

Can't afford to buy new set of wheels for your car? Now you can rent them. The latest sign of America's troubled economic times is the booming tire-rental business, reports the LA Times . Although the tires cost far more in the long run—one couple says it's paying triple the...

Deutsche Bank Opens 200-Ton Gold Vault

Big gold-dealing Deutsche Bank has opened a 200-ton gold vault in Singapore, a move that reflects the city-state's rising status as a tax haven to rival the likes of Switzerland, Quartz reports. "Gold has traditionally been stored in London, Zurich and New York, but there is a serious shift in...