The FINANCIAL -- According to RIA Novosti, a communist group in St. Petersburg has published an open letter to Madonna asking her to act modestly and sing revolutionary songs during her concert on St. Petersburg's central square.

The FINANCIAL -- Jennifer Lopez received a star-studded surprise birthday party for hitting the big 4-0 on July 25 evening in New York City.

The FINANCIAL -- According to RIA Novosti, Vladimir Nabokov's final unfinished novel will be published in Russia after it hits the shelves in the United States and Britain in November, a Russian publisher said on July 27.

The FINANCIAL -- In the opinion of Taras Chubai, leader of the Plach Yeremii group, Vadym Krasnookyi, leader of the Mad Heads XL band, and Dmytro Shurov, member of the Esthetic Education band, the SvirZ music international festival in the village of Svirzh, Lviv region, will facilitate popularization of Ukraine and the Ukrainian culture in the world.

The FINANCIAL -- Linkin Park closed this year's Rock'n Coke festival in İstanbul July 19 night, wrapping up two days of reveling under the sun and the stars at the vast greenery of the İstanbul Park Formula 1 race track area.

The FINANCIAL -- NEW YORK, The sixth Harry Potter movie has grossed $58.4 million from U.S. theaters on the first opening day, Variety said on July 16.

The FINANCIAL -- Ten years ago this Friday Nickelodeon aired the first episode of "SpongeBob SquarePants," which at the time just seemed an odd little show about a sponge and his undersea friends. Few would guess this program would turn into a worldwide phenomenon -- it's translated into 25 different languages and airs in 170 countries -- beloved by children and some adults, Pittsburgh Post Gazette reported.