Lampert plans to be a new kind of merchant

He's been a big-time investor in the retail sector for more than 15 years and was chairman of Kmart after it emerged from bankruptcy about a decade ago. A few years later, he paired it with once-dominant Sears.Yet even as Eddie Lampert is poised next month to add the role of chief executive to that of chairman at retail giant Sears Holdings, he's...

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Brown's Chicken killings: 20 years ago today

Seven people were found shot to death at Brown's Chicken & Pasta in Palatine on Jan. 8, 1993. Juan Luna and James Degorski...

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Disney joins JAKKS, LA billionaire to bring toys to life

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Walt Disney toys are sold around the world. Now, children can find them in the cloud as well.The media giant is teaming up with toy company JAKKS Pacific and Patrick Soon-Shiong, Los Angeles’ wealthiest person, on a new line of toys – with a nifty technological twist designed to link the goodies that kids lug home from the store with Disney’s stable of well-known animated characters.“DreamPlay“,...

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Puppy Bowl is back – now with hedgehogs

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – Are you ready for some necessary ruff-ness? Good, because Puppy Bowl IX is officially a go.Animal Planet has confirmed that its cherished annual tradition, Puppy Bowl, is back on for another round of gridiron thrills and canine cuteness.This year’s Puppy Bowl will take place February 3 – for those who don’t follow non-puppy sports, that’s Super Bowl Sunday – from 3 to 5...

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Really?: The Claim: Sugar-Free Gum Helps Prevent Cavities

Really?Anahad O’Connor tackles health myths.THE FACTSCleans and protects teeth. Helps prevent cavities. So say the most popular brands of sugar-free gum. But do their claims stand up to scrutiny?Many brands contain an additive called xylitol, a natural sweetener known to fight cavity-causing bacteria. In practice, though, it’s not clear that xylitol has much impact. Some research suggests that while...

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Sears CEO D'Ambrosio to step down

Sears Holdings Corp. said Monday night that Chief Executive Officer Louis D'Ambrosio will step down Feb. 2, due to family health...

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House drops assault weapon ban plan, may tackle pension reform

The clock is ticking for Illinois lawmakers to come to an agreement on the pension crisis. CBS 2's Courtney Gousman reports. ...

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Kuwaiti journalist jailed for Twitter ‘insults’

KUWAIT CITY (AP) — A Kuwait newspaper says an online journalist has been sentenced to two years in prison for posts deemed “insulting” to the Gulf nation’s ruler — the second such ruling this week.The decision reflects a widening social media crackdown across the Gulf Arab states to quell perceived political dissent.Kuwait’s pro-government Al Watan newspaper reported Monday that Ayyad al-Harbi, a...

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Sony, BMG in joint bid for Parlophone, EMI labels – FT

TOKYO (Reuters) – Sony Corp is joining with BMG to bid for Parlophone and other EMI labels on sale by Universal Music, reuniting Sony and Bertelsmann four years after they ended their music joint venture, the Financial Times said on Monday.Vivendi-owned Universal is being forced to sell Parlophone – EMI’s oldest active label with artists including Coldplay and Pet Shop Boys – to satisfy regulators’...

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Recipes for Health: Sicilian Pasta With Cauliflower

Andrew Scrivani for The New York TimesEvery once in a while I revisit the cuisine of a particular part of the world (usually it is located somewhere in the Mediterranean). This week I landed in Sicily. I was nosing around my cookbooks for some cauliflower recipes and opened my friend and colleague Clifford A. Wright’s very first cookbook, “Cucina Pariso: The Heavenly Food of Sicily.” The cuisine of...

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