Ex-Beatle Paul McCartney (right) received the French Legion of Honour award yesterday at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris, the President’s office said.
President Francois Hollande (left) bestowed the medal on the British musician in the presence of his family but not the press, the office said in a statement, adding that the award was granted for his entire body of work.
The 70-year-old rock legend chronicled the ceremony on his Twitter account by posting several photos from the palace, including one with the caption “Guess where I am?”
Born in Liverpool, McCartney was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1996, earning him the title “Sir”. (AFP)
Parents sue gold medallist
The parents of US Olympic gold medallist Tianna Madison have sued her, saying she spread stories they had been selfish and bullying and cheated her financially.
Robert and Jo Ann Madison filed the libel, slander and defamation lawsuit in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court in Cleveland, Ohio.
They say they have been loving, supportive and generous parents.
Tianna Madison was on the winning 4x100 metre relay track team at the Summer Olympics in London.
She won the gold for the US with Allyson Felix, Bianca Knight and Carmelita Jeter in world record time. The lawsuit also names her husband, John Bartoletta.
The parents’ lawsuit seeks more than $25,000 each in compensatory and punitive damages. (PA)
Eastwood explains chair
Clint Eastwood has admitted he winged it at the Republican National Convention, deciding only at the last minute to ad lib a conversation with an empty chair, in remarks published Friday.
In his first public comment on the furor triggered by his eye-brow-raising routine, the Hollywood icon said he made it clear to Mitt Romney’s aides that they could not dictate what he would do.
“I had three points I wanted to make: that not everybody in Hollywood is on the left, that Obama has broken a lot of the promises he made when he took office, and that the people should feel free to get rid of any politician who’s not doing a good job.
“But I didn’t make up my mind exactly what I was going to say until I said it,” he said.
The empty chair routine – in which he chatted with an invisible President Barack Obama – only occurred to him when he was backstage, shortly before he was due to go on. (AFP)