Paris, France (AHN) - Thousands of Parisians gathered for a smooch on Thursday to try to break the world kissing record, but they weren't able to do so. On a day devoted to worldwide record breaking, just 1,188 kissers showed up in Paris in an attempt to break the Budapest's 2005 world record for 11,570 people kissing in one spot at one moment, according to the Guinness World Records officials.

The event took place at La Defense, a modernist business park on the west edge of Paris.

Other weird and wacky events were staged in countries spanning from America to Asia including, South Africa's largest ever aqua aerobic class, the largest tea party in Japan and American Jackie Bibby trying to hold nine live rattlesnakes in his mouth at the same time.

A sale of Impressionist and 20th century art in New York has made more than $491m (£255m), breaking the record for an art auction.

A 1912 portrait, Adele Bloch-Bauer II, by the Austrian artist Gustav Klimt fetched almost $88m (£45m).

The painting was one of five Klimt works looted by the Nazis and returned to their owners earlier this year.

A Picasso, due to be sold by Andrew Lloyd Webber, was withdrawn at the last minute after disputes over ownership.

Christopher Burge, chief auctioneer at Christie's, underlined the scale of the sale's success.

"I've never seen anything like it," he said. "It was the most extraordinary auction I've been involved in."

SACHA Baron Cohen's controversial new comedy film may be banned in Russia after a government agency said it would refuse to grant permission for screening.

The Federal Agency for Culture and Cinematography said Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan could offend some viewers and contained material that "might seem disparaging in relation to certain ethnic groups and religions", according to Vadim Ivanov, theatrical sales director at the distributor, 20th Century Fox.

Mr Ivanov said he hoped the agency would relent and that the film, a big hit in Britain and the United States, will premiere in Russia as scheduled on 30 November.

The agency informed the distributor in a letter that it would not grant the permission required to show the film, but later said the decision was not official, Mr Ivanov noted. "This story is not over," he added.

Mr Ivanov said he was unaware of Russian authorities having ever banned a non-pornographic film.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) -- A new volcanic island has risen from the South Pacific near Tonga, according to reports from two vessels that passed the area.

The crew of the Maiken, a yacht that left the northern Tongan islands group of Vava'u in August, reported on their Web log on August 12 that they saw streaks of light, porous pumice stone floating in the water -- then "sailed into a vast, many-miles-wide belt of densely packed pumice."

They posted photos of huge "pumice rafts" that they encountered after passing Tonga's Late island while sailing toward Fiji.

"We were so fascinated and busy taking pictures that we plowed a couple of hundred meters into this surreal floating stone field before we realized that we had to turn back," wrote a crewman identified only as Haken.

The next day they spotted an active volcanic island, Haken wrote.

He said they could see the volcanic island clearly. "One mile in diameter and with four peaks and a central crater smoking with steam and once in a while an outburst high in the sky with lava and ashes. I think we're the first ones out here," he reported.

There was no official confirmation of a new island, either from Tonga's Ministry of Lands or the Tonga Defense Service.

Separately, fishing boat captain Siaosi Fenukitau reported seeing the volcanic island, the Matangitonga news Web site reported.