Thomas Cook

The two top executives of Thomas Cook Travel U.S. have purchased a 50% interest in the company from the estate of the late Robert Maxwell, the company said. The acquisition gives David and Linda Paresky, chairman and vice chairman respectively, 100% ownership of the American branch of Thomas Cook, the company said. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The Pareskys had operating control of the Thomas Cook U.S. interests since 1989, when Maxwell acquired half the company.

Summer might be drawing to a close, but don't worry - there's still plenty of time to squeeze in a few more chills provided by new mysteries and thrillers from Karin Fossum, Tana French and Thomas H. Cook . * Other Scandinavian crime writers may be better known, sell more copies or have more movies made from their work, but no one can thoroughly chill the blood the way Karin Fossum can. It's not that Fossum is unknown. The London Sunday Times named her one of the 50 greatest crime writers of all time (Henning Mankell and the pioneering team of Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö were the only other Scandinavians on the list)

American Express Co. said Monday it is buying the U.S. offices and the international business travel unit of London-based Thomas Cook Group Ltd. for $375 million. American Express said it is seeking to strengthen its corporate travel business worldwide, and the two Thomas Cook businesses, with annual sales of more than $3 billion, will expand its travel management services business by a third. The Thomas Cook Partnership is the third-largest travel agency in the United States.

I appreciated "Not on Board" by Catharine Hamm [On the Spot, Nov. 6] about smartcard credit cards. I am one of those European Union travelers who wrote letters to credit card companies. At best, not having a smartcard is awkward for travelers from the U.S. At worst, it is dangerous being caught in a foreign country with no cash. I travel to the EU a few times a year for extended stays. The situation is getting worse. More and more, places are shaking their fingers at my American Express, and ATMs are accepting European Union cards.

The British travel firm Thomas Cook said on Monday that it is selling its stake in Thomas Cook Rennies Travel Ltd., a South African associate firm. A company statement identified the buyer as Safmarine and Rennies Holdings Ltd., a locally owned shipping and leisure group. It did not disclose terms of the sale. Thomas Cook, a subsidiary of Midland Bank PLC, said that it intended to withdraw from South Africa.

Thomas Cook, a global travel and financial group that sold its U.S. travel agencies two years ago to American Express, hopes to return to the market by teaming with the American Automobile Assn. to form one of the world's largest leisure travel alliances. The deal announced Monday would combine operations at Thomas Cook's 1,800 worldwide offices with AAA's 1,000 travel agencies as of Jan. 1. The combined customer base is estimated at more than 54 million leisure travelers.

The foreign exchange rates in your Travel Statistics are based on purchase in the U.S. from Thomas Cook for a hefty fee. It makes more sense to do this at your destination with traveler's checks (banks usually offer a slightly higher exchange rate). In Paris, seek Arab-owned banks. (In my experience), they have the highest exchange rates. In Madrid, Banco Central and regional banks specializing in business banking have the best rates. P.S. Exchange enough before your trip for cab fare and food for day 1. GEORGE ARDEN Los Angeles

The Federal Reserve Board said today it has approved Midland Bank PLC's acquisition of Deak International Ltd., of New York, to engage in the travelers-check business. The acquisition by Midland, which is headquartered in London and the 43rd largest banking organization in the world, will be made through its subsidiary, Thomas Cook Inc., of Princeton, N.J. Midland's consolidated assets are estimated at $100.6 billion.

A Lancaster man who photographed himself molesting a 2-year-old girl was sentenced Tuesday to 10 years in state prison. Thomas Cook, 33, who was arrested after authorities identified him through the photographs, pleaded guilty last month to two counts of conducting a lewd act on a child involving the 2-year-old and another young victim, Deputy Dist. Atty. Pamela Rhodes said. "What you have is a memorializing of the crime" on film, Rhodes said.

The Internet revolution has gotten some new recruits in the travel industry, with several major institutions debuting online offerings. Among them: * London-based Thomas Cook Foreign Exchange, the world's largest network of retail foreign-exchange bureaus, this month began selling currencies and traveler's checks online.

Villages in the Bavarian Alps go to sleep early on summer nights. Silence rolls down from the mountaintops along with an eiderdown blanket of fog. A cowbell chimes. A few lights flicker, then go out. But not this summer in Oberammergau, about 50 miles southwest of Munich, where the lights are on five nights a week and 2,000 villagers stay up late to fulfill a vow their staunchly Roman Catholic ancestors made almost 400 years ago when the village was threatened by the plague.

The Internet revolution has gotten some new recruits in the travel industry, with several major institutions debuting online offerings. Among them: * London-based Thomas Cook Foreign Exchange, the world's largest network of retail foreign-exchange bureaus, this month began selling currencies and traveler's checks online.

Thomas H. Cook's last book, "The Chatham School Affair," won the 1997 Edgar Award for best novel, and his haunting new one, "Instruments of Night," could be a contender. The aptly named hero, Paul Graves, is the author of a bleak mystery series set in 19th century New York. A modern-day New Yorker, Graves sets his books in the past because it's the only place where he "felt truly safe."

Thomas Cook, a global travel and financial group that sold its U.S. travel agencies two years ago to American Express, hopes to return to the market by teaming with the American Automobile Assn. to form one of the world's largest leisure travel alliances. The deal announced Monday would combine operations at Thomas Cook's 1,800 worldwide offices with AAA's 1,000 travel agencies as of Jan. 1. The combined customer base is estimated at more than 54 million leisure travelers.

American Express Co. said Monday it is buying the U.S. offices and the international business travel unit of London-based Thomas Cook Group Ltd. for $375 million. American Express said it is seeking to strengthen its corporate travel business worldwide, and the two Thomas Cook businesses, with annual sales of more than $3 billion, will expand its travel management services business by a third. The Thomas Cook Partnership is the third-largest travel agency in the United States.

The two top executives of Thomas Cook Travel U.S. have purchased a 50% interest in the company from the estate of the late Robert Maxwell, the company said. The acquisition gives David and Linda Paresky, chairman and vice chairman respectively, 100% ownership of the American branch of Thomas Cook, the company said. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The Pareskys had operating control of the Thomas Cook U.S. interests since 1989, when Maxwell acquired half the company.

Watching a band of Britons chugging Budweisers at Disney World, sipping pina coladas on the beaches of Puerto Rico or slugging down Mekong Whiskeys and cola in Bangkok, it's hard to believe that the man who made it all possible did so to promote teetotaling.

I appreciated "Not on Board" by Catharine Hamm [On the Spot, Nov. 6] about smartcard credit cards. I am one of those European Union travelers who wrote letters to credit card companies. At best, not having a smartcard is awkward for travelers from the U.S. At worst, it is dangerous being caught in a foreign country with no cash. I travel to the EU a few times a year for extended stays. The situation is getting worse. More and more, places are shaking their fingers at my American Express, and ATMs are accepting European Union cards.