Etc...

It's not easy being green

In Ashburton, New Zealand, police were summoned to the freight yard of a seed company because of one of the most unusual accidents in recent history . It seems a shipping container had opened and was spilling its contents. But the mishap wasn't accidental. Three bored teenagers had sneaked onto the premises and used a cigarette lighter to burn through plastic ties securing the doors. Alas, one of them was directly in the way when the doors sprung and he became buried to his chest in ... peas. He couldn't be freed until a forklift was brought to the scene. Yes, there was a price to pay for the adventure: damages of $145 - half the value of the damaged produce - and 200 hours of community service.

The world famous Cannes Film Festival began its 11-day run on the French Riviera last week with 21 films competing for the top award, the Palmes D'Or. Sometimes it's presented to Hollywood-style blockbusters, other times to artsy international films. Last year the politically charged American documentary "Fahrenheit 911" made off with the major prize, which is selected by a nine-member jury. This year's winner will be announced at the May 21 closing ceremony. American films honored with the Palmes D'or, the year they won, and the film's director:

"Marty" 1955 Delbert Mann
"MASH" 1970 Robert Altman
"Scarecrow"* 1973 Jerry Schatzberg
"The Conversation" 1974 Francis Ford Coppola
"Taxi Driver" 1976 Martin Scorsese
"Apocalypse Now"* 1979 Francis Ford Coppola
"All That Jazz"* 1980 Bob Fosse
"Missing"* 1982 Costa-Gavras
"Barton Fink" 1991 Ethan and Joel Coen
"Pulp Fiction" 1994 Quentin Tarantino
"Fahrenheit 9/11" 2004 Michael Moore * = co-winner