Mansour J. Arbabsiar, suspected in an alleged Iranian plot to kill a Saudi diplomat in Washington, seems to have been more a stumbling opportunist than a calculating killer.

Unlikely Turn for a Suspect in a Terror Plot

Herman Cain’s 9-9-9 plan for taxes is getting intensive new scrutiny as Republicans continue to flirt with their candidates.

With Just Three 9s, Cain Refigured Math for Taxes

On the floors above the cramped cubicles housing nine men, the Bowery House offers rooms to the young and stylish seeking a reminder of the area’s gritty past.

On Bowery, Cultures Clash as the Shabby Meet the Shabby Chic

For one family, being mixed-race is not a defining issue, but outside the home, strangers gawk and make racist comments, in what has become part of life for many families like theirs.

In Strangers’ Glances at Family, Tensions Linger

More than 12 states have passed laws allowing companies to emphasize social benefits more than profit, bridging the gap between businesses and nonprofits.

A Quest for Hybrid Companies That Profit, but Can Tap Charity

Elaine May conducts “an in-depth interview” with Ethan Coen and Woody Allen.

Allen, Coen and May: 3 Wits, One Show

With the release of “Mylo Xyloto” this month, Coldplay has had to prove itself a worthy inheritor to the biggest-band-in-the-world title and savior of the commercial viability of rock.

Chris Martin of Coldplay Asks: What Would Bruce Do?

A growing number of entrepreneurs in China, unable to make payments to illegal lenders, have gone into hiding to avoid physical harm or family dishonor.

In Cooling China, Loan Sharks Come Knocking

For the second time this year, Dominique Strauss-Kahn escaped criminal charges of attempted rape, despite what prosecutors in France said was evidence of sexual assault.

Strauss-Kahn Is Not Charged in French Case

Vernon Boulevard in Long Island City has resisted change. But now, it is an urban developer’s dream slowly coming true.

Where Grit’s Days Are Numbered

President Obama will push for what he calls the “toughest sanctions” to punish Iranian officials whom he accused of complicity in a suspected plot to kill the Saudi ambassador to the United States.

Obama Says Facts Support Accusation of Iranian Plot

Suzanne Farrell, one of the foremost interpreters of Balanchine’s work, is back in New York with her own ballet company.

A Muse Rekindles That Old Magic

MoMA’s annual festival of film preservation, “To Save and Project,” will show off a variety of works, from the kitschy “Movie Orgy” to Méliès’s pioneering “Trip to the Moon.”

Saved From Extinction: Classics and Curiosities

A Congress that wants to have it both ways is creating a muddle of the regulations under the Dodd-Frank Act.

Bank Rules That Serve Two Masters

Megan McKinney’s “Magnificent Medills” and Amanda Smith’s “Newspaper Titan” chronicle the escapades of Joseph Medill and the power and zaniness of his prominent press family.

Dynasts of the Daily Press

Under the hood, automakers are applying technology to meet stiff future mileage standards, but they’re staying mindful of Americans’ love of size and power in their vehicles.

What Compromise?

Unlike a similar move three years ago, a plan to buy bank shares does little to stimulate the market.

Investors’ Trust in China’s Government Falters

In “We Live Here,” by Zoe Kazan, a past tragedy haunts a wedding and a family when the bride’s sister brings a date.

A Wedding and an Unwelcome Guest

Corrections appearing in print on October 13, 2011.

Corrections: October 13

Banks are likely to oppose steps, including larger write-downs, that are designed to help deal with the sovereign debt crisis.

European Banks Face Deadline to Raise Capital Levels

In what it’s calling its largest marketing campaign ever, Toyota Motor Sales USA will try to give attitude to a reliable model by telling drivers: “It’s ready. Are you?”

For ‘Reinvented’ Toyota Camry, Readiness Is All

In Bedford-Stuyvesant, casaBAN has set out to offer fresh, distinctive antiques in an area filled with historic, heavily ornamented brownstones.

A Taste for Modern in Antiques

Valery Gergiev and Daniil Trifonov joined with the Mariinsky Orchestra at Carnegie Hall.

Sounds for a Samovar: Carnegie Hall Russian Night

Google’s core business, search advertising, seems so far to have weathered the economic doldrums that have hurt other sites and publications relying on ads.

Google Posts Strong Earnings and Exceeds Expectations

Barred by trade restrictions from exporting meat, some American ranchers have been sending bulls and heifers to Russia to turn their grass into protein.

Hurting at Home, U.S. Ranchers Find Markets in Russia for Their Beef, on the Hoof

Barbara Kent was a Canadian film actress, prominent from the silent film era to the early talkies of the 1920s and 1930s. In 1925, Barbara Kent won the Miss Hollywood Beauty Pageant.

October 13, 2011

Headlines from October 13, 2011

Unlikely Turn for a Suspect in a Terror Plot

With Just Three 9s, Cain Refigured Math for Taxes

On Bowery, Cultures Clash as the Shabby Meet the Shabby Chic

In Strangers’ Glances at Family, Tensions Linger

A Quest for Hybrid Companies That Profit, but Can Tap Charity

Billboard 200

Cole World: The Sideline Story

Neighborhoods

21

Duets II

The Whole Love

Notable Deaths

Historical Context for October 13, 2011