People in the News

From The Associated Press

Just in time for Christmas, authorities in the former Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan planed to name a snowy peak “Mount Santa Claus.” Three climbers will to scale the designated peak and bury a capsule containing the flag of Kyrgyzstan at the summit on Christmas Eve. Why is a predominantly Muslim and former Soviet land honoring the jolly old elf? “We want to develop tourism, and Santa Claus is an ideal brand to help us do this,” said Nurhon Tadzhibayeva, an official with Kyrgyz tourist authorities.

Plans are afoot to hold an international Santa Claus congress in Kyrgyzstan in the summer, Tadzhibayeva said. The country also intends to hold annual games in which Santas from all over the world will test their chimney-climbing, sled-racing and tree-decorating skills.

Other Kyrgyzstan peaks bear the names of Soviet founder Vladimir Lenin and former Russian President Boris Yeltsin.

After seven years of separation, Eddie Van Halen, 52, and Valerie Bertinelli, 47, have completed an amicable divorce. The Los Angeles Superior Court judgment didn’t provide details about a custody arrangement for their 16-year-old son, Wolfgang. The bass player is with his father on a Van Halen band reunion tour. Bertinelli starred in the TV series “One Day at a Time” and “Touched by An Angel.”

Former child star Danielle Fishel, a teen heartthrob on ABC’s “Boy Meets World,” was arrested this week on a drunken driving warrant from Los Angeles County, police said.