“The Five,” a panel of five co-hosts who argue about the day’s top stories, seemed to be a quick fix for Fox News after Glenn Beck’s departure last June, but the show has found its footing.

In Beck’s Shadow, Rise of ‘The Five’

European regulators have ordered banks to raise capital and shrink their balance sheets, leading to the sale of assets to American businesses and financial firms.

U.S. Firms See Opportunities in Europe’s Woes

Cee Lo Green, an entertainer devoted to the Liberace and Elton John school of showmanship, will earn about $20 million this year, and only a fraction of that is from his music.

Cee Lo Strikes Gold, Without a Gold Album

With the United States facing the reality that its broad security partnership with Pakistan is over, officials are seeking to salvage a more limited counterterrorism alliance.

U.S. Prepares for a Curtailed Relationship With Pakistan

Self-cast crime fighters are on the march, but whether they are making the world safer or just weirder remains an open question.

Crusaders Take Page, and Outfits, From Comics

The white supremacists, survivalists and anti-Zionists who have rallied behind Ron Paul’s candidacy have not exactly been warmly welcomed. But he does not disavow their support.

Paul Disowns Extremists’ Views but Doesn’t Disavow the Support

For Jack Robison and Kirsten Lindsmith, both of whom fall on the autism spectrum, being in a relationship together has created a unique set of comforts and challenges.

Navigating Love and Autism

Crystal Bridges, a museum of American art built by a Walmart heir, has opened in Arkansas.

Crystal Bridges, the Art Museum Walmart Money Built, Opens

The Obama administration has decided in principle to allow President Ali Abdullah Saleh to enter the United States for medical treatment, subject to assurances, officials said.

Path Is Cleared for Yemeni Leader to Get Care in U.S.

In this and other cities, parks now flourish, and neighborhoods with them, in place of aboveground highways.

In Madrid’s Heart, Park Blooms Where a Freeway Once Blighted

When a federal panel asked two journals last week to withhold details on bird flu experiments, it was only the latest example of an ages-old conflict often rooted in issues of war and advanced weaponry.

Science and Censorship: A Duel Lasting Centuries

Around 5 or 6, children experience an endocrinological event that propels them toward the ability to control impulses, to reason, to focus, to plan for the future.

The Hormone Surge of Middle Childhood

How does an automaton that helped to inspire the one in the Martin Scorsese film “Hugo” really work?

Graceful Moves, for a Boy Made of Metal

P. D. James’s latest mystery revisits the world of “Pride and Prejudice,” as a murder intrudes on the proper, manored lives of Elizabeth and Darcy.

A Look Back, and Ahead, at Pemberley

Channel 10’s defenders see the agenda of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at work, but those around him deny any motive of revenge for negative coverage.

Israel TV Station’s Troubles Reflect a Larger Political Battleground

Nickelodeon is betting on “How to Rock” and Cymphonique Miller, playing a girl with miraculous musical talent, to help stem its tumbling ratings.

The Name Is Distinctive, But the Role Is Generic

TLC is offering two television spinoffs this week: “Extreme Couponing: All-Stars,” a series beginning on Tuesday, and “Extreme Cheapskates,” a special on Wednesday.

Penny-Wise and No Fools in Stores

The Atlanta Falcons have benefited from a new approach to fitness using some old-fashioned equipment that stresses flexibility.

Falcons Have Had a Winning Strategy for Fitness

Mead Johnson Nutrition said it tested the same batch of powdered baby formula as public health authorities, confirming the safety results.

Baby Formula Is Called Safe

Corrections appearing in print on December 26, 2011.

Corrections: December 26

In a bid to streamline its money-losing television business, the Japanese technology giant is turning over production capacity to its South Korean partner, Samsung.

Sony to Cease Its Flat-Screen Partnership With Samsung

Celery Root-Potato Purée

Celebrating with a classic menu that’s festive but easily accomplished in a small kitchen.

For New Year’s, a Bit Fancy, but All Relaxed

“A Great Aridness,” by William deBuys, and “Bird on Fire,” by Andrew Ross, focus on the killing droughts that have lately gripped the region — and are likely to recur.

Portraits of the Southwest in the Shadow of Drought

Many seeds have an impermeable outer layer that protects them, but others require a trip through the digestive tract before they can germinate.

The Toughest Seed

Houston J. "Twine" Antwine was an American football defensive tackle who played in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons.

Houston Antwine, American football player (born 1939)

Houston_Antwine

Pedro Armendáriz Bohr, better known by his stage name Pedro Armendáriz Jr., was a Mexican actor.

Pedro Armendáriz, Jr., Mexican-American actor and producer (born 1940)

Pedro_Armendáriz_Jr.

Sarekoppa Bangarappa was an Indian politician who was the 6th Chief Minister of Karnataka from 1990 to 1992.

Sarekoppa Bangarappa, Indian politician, 15th Chief Minister of Karnataka (born 1932)

Sarekoppa_Bangarappa

Joe Bodolai was an American film and television producer and writer.

Joe Bodolai, American screenwriter and producer (born 1948)

Joe_Bodolai

James Rizzi was an American pop artist who was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York.

December 26, 2011

Headlines from December 26, 2011

In Beck’s Shadow, Rise of ‘The Five’

U.S. Firms See Opportunities in Europe’s Woes

Cee Lo Strikes Gold, Without a Gold Album

U.S. Prepares for a Curtailed Relationship With Pakistan

Crusaders Take Page, and Outfits, From Comics

Billboard 200

Christmas

El Camino

21

Under The Mistletoe

Lioness: Hidden Treasures

Notable Deaths

Historical Context for December 26, 2011