Protesters at Thai Parliament for ‘final showdown’

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) — Thousands of anti-government protesters surrounded Thailand’s Parliament on Monday, forcing legislators to postpone a joint session, and more demonstrators rallied at other government offices in an action billed as their final bid to oust the administration.

Riot police barricaded Parliament with metal barriers and stood guard inside the compound as the protesters, who call themselves the People’s Alliance for Democracy, marched on the building, blocked its gates from the outside and cut electrical wires to create a blackout.

Nearby, dozens of riot police retreated inside the compound of Bangkok’s police headquarters as several hundred protesters pushed past a metal barricade and proceeded to block the street off with razor wire. Rallies were also staged at the Finance Ministry and the office of the Chart Thai party, a member of the ruling six-party coalition.

Twilight’s box office bite: $70.55-million

LOS ANGELES — Twilight, the vampire romance that has spurred feverish anticipation among female moviegoers, took a bigger-than-expected $70.55-million bite out of the weekend box office in North America, according to studio estimates issued on Sunday.

The teen smash crushed the competition, including Bolt, a Walt Disney Co canine cartoon that made its debut at No. 3 with a disappointing $27-million.

Twilight’s showing was the best opening weekend for a movie since The Dark Knight launched with a record $158-million in July.

Last weekend’s champion, the James Bond outing Quantum of Solace, slipped to No. 2 with $27.4 million.