Names

The nation's highest court ruled that a married couple -- Ms. Thalheim and Mr. Kunz-Hallstein -- cannot become Mr. & Mrs. Thalheim-Kunz-Hallstein, upholding a 1993 law that draws the line at a maximum of two last names. The Munich couple, whose first names were not released, challenged the law after they married. They argued they wanted to share a surname, while each maintaining professional names.

Hollywood Undead: Two photo captions accompanying an article in Sunday's Calendar section about the band Hollywood Undead misspelled two band members' names. Jorel Decker's last name was given as Deckyr, and Jordon Terrell's first name was given as Jordan.

The marriage proposal was tongue-twistingly tender: Molly Antos' boyfriend hand-painted a pair of shoes with the words "Marry Me Molly" and set them in the window of a boutique for her to discover as they strolled by. Despite the amorous alliteration, Antos is not inclined to become Molly Morey when she marries Dan Morey next year. "I sort of think it sounds like a butter company," says Antos, who plans to use the name Molly Antos Morey. Antos' compromise has become a popular choice for brides, as studies show women are still overwhelmingly opting to take their husbands' last names either completely or in some variation.

Re "No reward for bad behavior," Column, Sept. 19 Loved Sandy Banks' column. Did you notice that all the whiners have last names beginning with "W"? I think I've got it figured out. Because their names come near the end of the alphabet, they were always given the seats at the back of the room. Think of the need to overachieve, whine and make themselves known. I know: I married a "W." Nancy Wright Pasadena :: Banks called Kanye West a genius (twice) in the column.

Venezuelan astronomers led by physicist Ignacio Ferrin have named a Kuiper Belt object on the fringes of the solar system after Huya, the rain god in Venezuela's indigenous Wayuu culture. The frozen clump of rock, known as 2000 EB173, was discovered in March 2000 in the Kuiper Belt, a ring of icy debris that orbits the sun beyond Neptune. It takes 256 years to make one revolution. Under guidelines set by the International Astronomical Union, such an object must be named after a mythological god.

Monterey Park-based Kajima Construction Services has been renamed KCS West as part of a move to make the builder more autonomous from parent Kajima Group USA Co., company officials said. Among the projects KCS West is building are two high-rise residential towers in downtown Los Angeles and a 12-story Embassy Suites hotel in Glendale. Elmond K. Wan is president of the new construction company.

A man and a woman were found fatally shot Monday in the bedroom of their Whittier apartment in what police said was a possible murder-suicide. A relative of the victims called police early that afternoon to report a domestic dispute at the apartment in the 7600 block of Newlin Avenue, said Lt. Wyatt Powell of the Whittier Police Department. The names of the deceased have not been released. -- Ari Bloomekatz

For 60 years, Al Langer was an iconic presence at the corner of 7th and Alvarado streets. Since 1947, his Langer's Delicatessen-Restaurant has been known as one of the city's best delis -- and an enduring symbol of stubborn stability amid a constantly changing neighborhood and city. On Thursday, the city officially renamed the intersection outside the deli Langer's Square, in honor of the deceased restaurateur.

Detroit Democratic Mayor Kwame M. Kilpatrick named a new chief of staff a day after the woman who previously held the post resigned amid allegations that she and the mayor had lied under oath about an affair. Kandia Milton, who has served as deputy chief of staff, was appointed to Christine Beatty's job, Kilpatrick announced in a written statement. The mayor's office also said he planned to address the city for the first time since the scandal broke, with an address tonight from his church.

A chain of retail stores in Britain has withdrawn the sale of beds named Lolita and designed for 6-year-old girls after furious parents pointed out that the name was synonymous with sexually active pre-teens. Woolworths said staff administering the website selling the beds were not aware of the connection to "Lolita," the 1955 novel by Vladimir Nabokov, about a man who becomes sexually involved with a 12-year-old girl.