Paris

If you haven't yet seen the critically acclaimed romantic drama “Before Midnight” consider some binge watching of the “Befores” that came before. “Before Midnight” is only the latest creative collaboration by  director Richard Linklater and the movie's stars Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke. A ll three had a hand in writing these candid films. I did, and I have to say it was quite something to see it all of a piece. Begin, of course, with Celine (Delpy) and Jesse's (Hawke)

When Andre Schiffrin was fired in 1990 as editor in chief of Pantheon Books, it was regarded as a loud shot in the war between commercialism and quality in American publishing. There were protests by noted authors, including Studs Terkel and Kurt Vonnegut, and op-ed pieces that painted a pessimistic view of the industry. In response, Schiffrin's bosses pointed out that Pantheon had lost $3 million in his last year at the helm. His ouster ended a nearly three-decade career at the prestigious imprint, where he had worked with such writers as Jean-Paul Sartre, Marguerite Duras and Gunter Grass.

From the looks of it, things were going pretty well for the Orange County singer known as Robb “TaLLLLL” University. His band, Lights Over Paris, was touring the country. Their album “Turn off the Lights” appeared on the Billboard Heatseeker Albums chart. The rapper Game recorded a verse of one of their songs and appeared in the music video. But earlier this year, the illusion began to crack.   In January, University (whose real name is Robert Mawhinney) was charged in Los Angeles federal court with making false statements to obtain millions in loans in order to fund his musical career and a lavish lifestyle.

Ah, Paris. The food. The art. The sights. The hotel bill. It was the little matter of finding a place to stay that kept an international vacation off our radar, especially in wake of a recession that had put a king-size crimp in our international travel plans. As we discussed a European getaway, we realized that a hotel stay for my wife, Nancy, our daughter, Hannah, and me would cost us as much as our airline tickets. I had read about house exchanges, but Nancy was hesitant to let strangers into our home, despite my continuing campaign about the savings.

During a recent visit to Paris I made my first pilgrimage to a Disney theme park outside the United States.  For years I have been reading about the majestic beauty of the Magic Kingdom-style park at Disneyland Paris, the dysfunctional violation of all things Disney that is Walt Disney Studios next door and the promise of what the future holds for both parks. TOP 10: Disneyland Paris | Walt Disney Studios So let's step back for a moment and take a long, hard look at what's right, wrong and next at the two theme parks serving as Disney's European outpost in France.

THE BEST WAY TO PARIS From LAX, Air France and Air Tahiti Nui offer nonstop service to Paris, and Delta, American, KLM, Lufthansa, British, Continental and US Airways offer connecting service (change of plane). Restricted round-trip fares begin at $416, excluding taxes and fees. Pierre Hermé, 72 Rue Bonaparte, Paris; 011-33-1-43-54-47-77, http://www.pierreherme.com . Open 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Sundays-Fridays; 10 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Saturdays. Café Lenôtre, 10 Avenue des Champs Elysées, Paris; 011-33-1-42-65-85-10, http://www.lenotre.com . Open noon-10 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays.

Like cats after the cream, Parisians are flocking to a new cafe whose centerpiece is not food but felines. Le Café des Chats , which opened a little more than two weeks ago in the 3 rd arrondissement in the heart of the City of Light, was an instant hit and has been reluctantly turning away those who arrive without reservations. The attraction, besides an elegant but simple menu that last weekend featured a 20-euro ($27) menu that included freshly squeezed orange juice and eggs scrambled with chanterelle mushrooms, are the furry denizens (10 females, two males)

This post has been corrected. See below for details. The gavel came down on 70 sacred Hopi Indian masks at the Drouot auction house in Paris on Friday, generating $1.2 million for the owners and auctioneers - and anger and emotional cries from protesters who said it was a sacrilege that violated tribal rights and the Hopi religion. The Associated Press reported that the auction proceeded after a French court rejected requests from the Hopi tribe and U.S. government to stop the sale; in its ruling, the court said that U.S. laws governing the sale of Native American religious objects are not applicable in France.

Colette draws them to Paris Susan Spano has done it again! What a great article on Colette ["Chez Colette," May 30]. It made me want to rush to the local bookstore and then catch a plane to Paris, taking along a book bag. I plan to take Spano's story along on my next trip to the City of Light. It will be a great guide. Richard Mason, Redondo Beach Thank Susan Spano for the fascinating article about Colette's life in Paris. For more than one reason, it made me eager to return to Paris.

Bake a little, eat a little and learn a lot about food, wine and French pastries in a class for English speakers offered by Paris-based Le Foodist. Participants learn the basics of authentic pastry skills in baking sessions that are part storytelling, part tasting and part technique. Sweet Stories at Le Foodist starts with the task of preparing pate-a-choux, the pastry used in eclairs, cream-puffs and the like. From there, it's making pastries, then sitting down to a tea to sample the creations.

During a recent visit to Paris I made my first pilgrimage to a Disney theme park outside the United States.  For years I have been reading about the majestic beauty of the Magic Kingdom-style park at Disneyland Paris, the dysfunctional violation of all things Disney that is Walt Disney Studios next door and the promise of what the future holds for both parks. TOP 10: Disneyland Paris | Walt Disney Studios So let's step back for a moment and take a long, hard look at what's right, wrong and next at the two theme parks serving as Disney's European outpost in France.

At least there's no toilet. Ikea this week is staging a bathroom-as-billboard outside a Paris train station with human actors doing their best to portray the good life and all its flat-packed design splendor. The Telegraph reports that the actors put on a dazzling show of teeth brushing and hair drying for one hour in the morning and one hour in the evening. The slogan appearing above all this domestic bliss essentially says: "At last a bathroom that rises above. " In other company news, Ikea made national headlines this month when it announced that it would be selling solar panels in Britain.

Doubt - and a reportedly royal severed head - haunts the world of scientific research these days, as European researchers squabble over an unearthed packet of mummified remains thought to have belonged to King Henri IV of France. The mystery has produced a frightful case of regret among a pair of French researchers who were part of the first team to investigate the purportedly royal noggin. This week, the two wrote to the British Medical Journal and urged the retraction of the 2010 study that first identified the disembodied head as belonging to Henri IV. At the heart of the grisly drama is an embalmed head with several vertebrae still attached.

From the looks of it, things were going pretty well for the Orange County singer known as Robb "TaLLLLL" University. His band, Lights Over Paris, was touring the country. Its album "Turn Off the Lights" appeared on the Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart. The rapper Game recorded a verse of one of the group's songs and appeared in the music video. But earlier this year, the illusion began to crack. In January, Robert Mawhinney (the singer's real name) was charged in Los Angeles federal court with making false statements to obtain millions in loans in order to bankroll his musical career and a lavish lifestyle.

Vincente Minnelli shot the bulk of his 1951 movie "An American in Paris" on soundstages in Culver City. For the long-gestating stage-musical version of the classic film, producers have chosen Paris itself for the big premiere. "An American in Paris" is scheduled to debut at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris in December 2014, organizers have announced. The English-language production -- which will be directed by ballet veteran Christopher Wheeldon -- is aiming for a Broadway run in the spring of 2015.

PARIS - After 16 years at the helm of Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs showed his last collection for the French fashion house early this month. Charged during his tenure with designing accessories in addition to clothes, he helped create the phenomenon of It bags with his luscious designs that layered lace, sequins, feathers and contemporary artists' work onto those iconic LVs, twisting and recontextualizing their meaning as a status symbol. At the same time, he transformed a fusty leathergoods brand into a global force.

Paris to the Past Traveling Through French History by Train Ina Caro W. W. Norton: 384 pp., $27.95

'From Paris With Love' MPAA rating: R for strong, bloody violence throughout, drug content, pervasive language and brief sexuality Running time: 1 hour, 32 minutes Playing: In general release

PARIS - Step-dancing hijinks, jungles of flowers and enough art world inspiration to fill a Chanel-branded gallery. The spring 2014 collections shown at Paris Fashion Week this fall were entertaining, to say the least. And between philosophical discussions about how best to reinvent old brands for the 21st century, whether what's on the runway should be transporting or merely commercial, and what is going to happen to Louis Vuitton now that artistic director Marc Jacobs has left (Nicolas Ghesquière, late of Balenciaga, is poised to take the helm, rumors say)