About one in 20 U. S. adults have such poor English skills that they can't read a newspaper, understand the directions on a bottle of pills or, in many cases, carry on a basic conversation. The findings come from a new federal survey that offers the first peek in more than a decade at the USA's "non-literate" adult population.

Groundbreaking comedian Richard Pryor, whose stand-up routines about race, sex and life made him a modern day icon, is dead. He was 65. Pryor died after being rushed to a hospital from his home shortly after 8 a. m. Pryor had suffered from multiple sclerosis, a disease of the nervous system.

Fred Lawrence didn't even know what file sharing was before the film industry accused him of illegally downloading movies. The 67-year old was served papers by the Motion Picture Association of America, which is seeking $600,000 in damages for four movies illegally downloaded through the Internet file-sharing service iMesh.

A Wisconsin grandfather is being sued by the Motion Picture Association of America, after his grandson downloaded four movies through an Internet file-sharing service. Fred Lawrence said his grandson did not know what he was doing was illegal. Lawrence said he does not even know what file sharing was until he found out he was being sued for as much as $600,000. The MPAA later offered to settle with Lawrence for $4,000, but Lawrence is retired and on a fixed income. He said he can't afford $4,000 any more than he can afford $1,000,000. Lawrence said he cannot afford to pay the $4,000 even in installments.

A gorilla at Zoo Atlanta has given birth to twins which marks only the sixth time it's occurred in a North American zoo since 1966. Zoo officials say Kuchi, a 21-year-old female western lowland gorilla, became a proud mother to twins on Monday. The proud Papa is Taz, whose lineage continues with the newest silverback offspring of Zoo Atlanta.