News In Brief
WE CAN'T SPEND THIS!
The armed and hooded robbers who burst into a post office in central Athens clearly had privileged information: that they'd find two mailbags containing a small fortune in drachmas, Greece's currency. Sure enough, there were two bags, which they grabbed and fled with. Imagine their surprise, then, when they stopped to count the loot and instead of the expected $546,400 found hundreds of final exams from students on the island of Zakynthos that had been on their way to the Education Ministry. Alas, the exams now will have to be repeated.
WE'LL BE EXPECTING YOU
Speaking of academic affairs, it seems mistakes were made in New York also. Reports say 28,440 residents of the Big Apple received an automated telephone message from city Chancellor Harold Levy indicating they must attend summer school or be held back a grade. The problem: All were wrong. In fact, some of the calls reached people whose children graduated more than two decades ago.
Hitchcock, Speilberg films rated among 'most thrilling'
"Psycho," the slasher drama that has scared many generations of moviegoers with its famous shower scene, tops the American Film Institute's new list of 100 most thrilling productions. In fact, nine of "Psycho" director Alfred Hitchcock's classics placed on the list. Six others were by Steven Spielberg, whose "Jaws" ranked No. 2. Films were selected by 1,800 directors, actors, studio executives, and critics from 400 nominees. AFI's Top 10:
1. "Psycho" 1960
2. "Jaws" 1975
3. "The Exorcist" 1973
4. "North by Northwest" 1959
5. "The Silence of the Lambs" 1991
6. "Alien" 1979
7. "The Birds" 1963
8. "The French Connection" 1971
9. "Rosemary's Baby" 1968
10. "Raiders of the Lost Ark" 1981
- Associated Press
(c) Copyright 2001. The Christian Science Monitor