Cantat released from jail after four years
TOULOUSE, France, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- French rocker Bertrand Cantat has been released from jail after serving half of an eight-year sentence for the beating death of his girlfriend.
Cantat, the 43-year-old lead singer of Noir Desir, was jailed for manslaughter after he beat actress Marie Trintignant in a Lithuanian hotel four years ago. Trintignant, the daughter of French movie star Jean-Louis Trintignant, died from swelling of the brain five days after the incident.
Cantat admitted to the beating but said killing Trintignant was an accident.
After serving four years for causing her death, Cantat left the Muret prison near Toulouse in a car driven by Denis Barthe, his band's drummer, the BBC reported.
The victim's mother, Nadine Trintignant, is against Cantat's early release, arguing it is a setback for those fighting to end violence against women.
According to the singer's probation terms, Cantat must report regularly to a judge and undergo psychological treatment for a year, the BBC said. He is also forbidden from speaking publicly about the case and banned from publishing any songs or audiovisual works inspired by the crime.
Bacon painting fetches $16.5M at auction
LONDON, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- "Study from the Human Body, Man Turning on the Light," a painting by renowned 20th-century artist Francis Bacon, has been sold in London for $16.5 million.
Created in 1973 and 1974, the artwork was given to the Royal College of Art in London in exchange for rent and auctioned during the weekend at Christie's. The painting had been expected to fetch up to $18.3 million, the BBC said.
Pieces by Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat failed to sell at the auction, while several works by Damien Hirst were bought for less than pre-sale estimates.
This month's London auctions are being watched for signs that the thriving art market may be cooling.
Earlier this year, Bacon's "Study from Innocent X" fetched $52.6 million at Sotheby's in New York -- marking a record price paid for a Bacon piece, the BBC said.
Bacon, who had no formal training as an artist, died of a heart attack in Madrid in 1992.
Spice Girls team up with Victoria's Secret
COLUMBUS, Ohio, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- U.S. lingerie giant Victoria's Secret will be the exclusive retailer of a Spice Girls greatest hits CD this holiday season, The Wall Street Journal said.
The British girl group's U.S. label, Capitol Records, has arranged for Victoria's Secret to accept 500,000 to 600,000 copies of the CD that it has ordered on a "one-way" basis, which means unsold merchandise won't get returned, greatly reducing the label's financial risk, the newspaper said.
The disc is expected to be priced at $10 to $12 when it goes on sale next month.
The album also will be available for download from Apple Inc.'s iTunes Store and other online music outlets.
Selling the album at Victoria's Secret stores means consumers "don't have to go proactively to a record store," Jason Flom, chairman of EMI Group Limited's Capitol Records, told the Journal. "It's an impulse buy."
Phil Sandhaus, the music-marketing consultant who brokered the deal between Capitol and Victoria's Secret, said selling music in places other than record stores is critical these days. "
"I don't care if it's superstar artists or developing baby bands," Sandhaus said. "It should always be part of the mix."
Affleck's film 'Gone' to Boston
BOSTON, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- Rabid Boston Red Sox fans Ben Affleck and Matt Damon said they planned to split their time Monday celebrating Affleck's new film and watching the Sox game.
Affleck's movie, "Gone Baby Gone," premiered Monday night in Boston.
"I'm watching both," Affleck told the Boston Herald.
But, Damon, Affleck's long-time friend, told the newspaper he planned to leave the event as soon as the Red Sox-Indians game started.
"This is the biggest night of Ben's career but we have our priorities straight," Damon said with a laugh. "We'll be sneaking out back as soon as the film starts. Are you kidding? We're watching the game live."
Ben Affleck's wife, actress Jennifer Garner, said she intended to skip it.
"It's killing me," she told the Herald, "but I'm going to watch the movie."
Casey Affleck, who stars in the film, said he is proud of the way it turned out, noting, "I think it really captures Boston."
Asked what it was like to have his brother direct him, he said. "It was a nightmare, it was excruciating and it doesn't pay well.
"I'm really proud of him, I think he did a great job," he added.
The Afflecks and Damon all hail from the Boston area.
They should have stayed for the movie. The Red Sox lost to the Cleveland Indians 4-2 and trails 2-1 in the best-of-seven American League Championship Series.
