AP - In a bad economy, fun is often the first casualty.

AP - A Marine combat engineer charged with killing his wife has made his first court appearance, along with a fellow Marine charged with helping him commit the crime.

AP - A mudslide near an area scarred by fire poured into this small town near the southern end of the Sequoia National Forest, shortly after officials urged people to evacuate low-lying areas.

AP - Police ordered angry customers lined up outside an IndyMac Bank branch to remain calm or face arrest Tuesday as they tried to pull their money on the second day of the failed institution's federal takeover.

AP - Seated behind the wheel of a fire engine, Dave Breglia follows a map dotted with expensive homes threatened by wildfires. His job: protect high-end real estate and save an insurance company millions of dollars.

AP - General Motors Corp. said Tuesday it will lay off salaried workers, cut truck production, suspend its dividend and borrow $2 billion to $3 billion to weather a severe downturn in the U.S. market.

AP - The economy showed the depth of its twin problems on Tuesday, slow growth and rising inflation, as the nation wrestled with a teetering financial system, a slumping dollar and rising prices for food and fuel.

AP - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress Tuesday the fragile economy is facing "numerous difficulties" despite the Fed's aggressive interest rate reductions and other fortifying steps.

AP - Officials say the recent California wildfires have burned more area than a devastating series of blazes in October 2003.

AP - Democratic and Republican governors' groups are raising record amounts of campaign cash for their candidates, and say a strong turnout for supporters at the state level can only help their parties' presidential candidates.