There's nothing funny about Tyler Perry's latest work: a revealing account of the horrific abuse he suffered as a child. "I always thought I would die before I grew up," the comedian writes in an uncharacteristically somber letter to fans on his Web site. After watching a screening of the lauded movie "Precious," about a 16-year-old girl who is physically and emotionally abused, the New Orleans native, 40, best known for his comic Madea character, reveals a flood of memories ...

Rapper and actor Clifford Smith, better known to fans as Method Man, was arrested Monday and faces charges of failing to pay taxes, the district attorney in Richmond County, New York, said. Smith, 38, owes the state nearly $33,000 for New York State income tax returns that he did not file between 2004 and 2007, district attorney Daniel Donovan Jr. said in a statement. The Grammy-winning rapper, an original member of the Wu-Tang Clan, was arrested at his home on ...

Another strong earthquake rocked Indonesia early Thursday as the Southeast Asian nation was reeling from an earlier jolt that killed more than 400 people and caused widespread destruction. The 6.8 magnitude quake Thursday hit South Sumatra at 8:52 a.m. local time (9:52 p.m. Wednesday ET), about 89 miles (143 kilometers) from Bengkulu, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said. The earlier quake Wednesday was 7.6 magnitude. At least 464 people were dead and more than 500 were injured, said Tugiyo Bisri, ...

There is more water on the moon in more locations than originally thought, a discovery that may bolster NASA's long-held goal of setting up an outpost there, a researcher said Thursday. One ton of the moon's surface -- in which the water's ingredients are held -- could yield as much as 32 ounces, or one quart, of water, according to three reports from research teams who studied data from three spacecrafts. Although that amount isn't large, said geological sciences professor ...

A few days after Meagan Bilodeau dropped a bottled message into the Atlantic Ocean during a cruise near Bermuda, the girl was home in Massachusetts. A month after that, the bottle nearly came home, too. The 8-year-old recently learned the message she dropped from a cruise ship roughly 600 miles off North Carolina's coast on June 18 was found in late July by a girl whose family was boating in Massachusetts' Vineyard Sound, Meagan's family says. The ...

A strong earthquake struck off the coast of Indonesia's Java island late Monday, less than a week after a major temblor shook the island, killing at least 65 people.

China -- showing its displeasure with the Dalai Lama's visit to Taiwan this week -- has canceled upcoming trips to the island by top state officials, state-run media reported. Beijing has accused the exiled Tibetan leader of making his visit for political reasons. China's response appeared to be measured, because not all cross-strait events have been canceled. Several new direct flights between the mainland and Taiwan started this week. The Dalai Lama has maintained that he is in Taiwan only ...

If you're in a mess, say yes. That may be what Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou was thinking when he gave his official nod to the controversial visit of the Dalai Lama, Tibet's leader-in-exile, to Taiwan next week. Ma has been facing his lowest approval ratings — around 20% — since he took office more than a year ago. The public has been angry with his lack of strong leadership and with the slow pace of relief efforts since Typhoon ...

You don't want to monkey around on a blind date -- especially if your friends are also taking an interest in the same dark handsome stranger. So when three female gorillas at London Zoo heard that they would soon be visited by a brooding French hunk -- well, they went a bit bananas The latest development in Anglo-French relations sees Yeboah, a 20-stone 12-year-old leave his current home at La Boissiere Du Dore Zoo, Pays de la Loire, northwest France ...

Thousands of refugees from Myanmar poured across the border into southern China at the end of the week to escape fighting there, a provincial official told CNN Friday. An operation to retrieve the recorder has begun, said a statement from investigator Ali Abdou Mohamed. The Airbus 310 crashed into the Indian Ocean, carrying 142 passengers and 11 crew members. It originated in Yemen's capital, Sanaa, and went down just miles from Moroni, the capital of the Comoros Islands. One person, ...