Johnny Depp has made a surprise appearance at the London Film Festival to give a career honor to horror icon Christopher Lee.

Depp called Lee "a national treasure" and "a genuine artist" as he presented the 91-year-old actor with a British Film Institute Fellowship on Saturday.

Governments that try to force citizens to decide between a free press and national security create a "false choice" that weakens democracy, and journalists must fight increasing government overreach that has had a chilling effect on efforts to hold government accountable, the president and CEO of The Associated Press said Saturday.

Gary Pruitt told the 69th General Assembly of the Inter American Press Association that the U.S. Justice Department's secret seizure of records of thousands of telephone calls to and from AP reporters in 2012 is one of the most blatant violations of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution the 167-year-old news cooperative has ever encountered. The First Amendment guarantees basic rights such as freedom of speech and the press.

NASA says a big asteroid that whizzed by Earth last month unnoticed is probably nothing to worry about when it returns much closer in 19 years.

NASA Near-Earth Object program manager Donald Yeomans said there is a 1 in 48,000 chance that the 1,300-foot (400-meter) asteroid will hit Earth when it returns on Aug. 26, 2032.

A cat has been busted for smuggling pot into a prison in Moldova.

Guards became suspicious about the feline, which routinely entered and left the prison through a hole in a fence, when they noticed its odd collar. On closer inspection, they found two packets of marijuana attached to it.

A dog that became an Internet sensation after crashing a half marathon in the U.S. has died just a week after receiving a medal for completing the race.

The 100-pound (45-kilogram) chocolate Labrador retriever named Boogie ran most of the 13.1 miles (21.08 kilometers) in the Oct. 5 event in Midwestern Indiana state after escaping his leash the night before. Owner Jerry Butts made an appointment for the dog to be neutered after the race to curb his wandering ways.

"The Lion King" has more reason to roar — it's on pace to end the week as the first Broadway show to earn $1 billion.

According to The Broadway League, the show ended last week with a 16-year gross of $999,267,836, and it regularly pulls in between $1 million and $2 million a week over eight performances at the Minskoff Theatre.

Barcelona has recovered forward Lionel Messi from a minor leg injury and captain Carles Puyol after a seven-month absence in time for its upcoming games against AC Milan and Real Madrid.

Barcelona team doctors cleared Messi and Javier Mascherano on Friday after muscle injuries in their right legs.

Gareth Bale is fit and ready to play for Real Madrid as the club looks to improve on its recent lackluster showings for an eight-day stretch coach Carlo Ancelotti calls "very important," with games against Malaga, Juventus and fierce rival Barcelona.

Ancelotti said on Friday that "Bale is available" for Saturday's Spanish league game against Malaga with critical games against Juventus in the Champions League and the season's first clasico at Barcelona coming next weekend.

Germany coach Joachim Loew thinks his team will play a major role at next year's World Cup, although it would be "disrespectful" to single it out as the favorite without mentioning others such as Spain and Brazil.

Loew spoke on Friday after extending his contract past the World Cup by another two years. The German Football Federation (DFB) said the new contract runs through the 2016 European Championship in France.

Top-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga overcame an awful second set to beat Daniel Brands of Germany 7-5, 1-6, 6-3 and reach the quarterfinals of the Erste Bank Open on Thursday.

No. 2 Tommy Haas and No. 3 Fabio Fognini also advanced from the second round, but No. 4 Philipp Kohlschreiber was upset 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (0) by Ruben Bemelmans of Belgium.