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This appears in this morning's Dallas Morning News. Have a very blessed Nativity. *** In this corner, ladies and gentlemen, we have Leonardo DiCaprio, adorable star of "Titanic," "Catch Me If You Can," and now, "The Aviator." In the other, we have - oh, pick a name. Clark Gable, Cary Grant, even Jimmy Stewart, for cryin' out loud. Notice any difference? Such comparisons are prompted by DiCaprio's newest release, "The Aviator," in which he portrays aeronautics engineer, Hollywood mogul, and big-time player Howard Hughes. As Entertainment Weekly's Owen Gleiberman puts it, DiCaprio is "a dynamo of an actor" but "at...

The transition to adulthood used to be one of the main goals of the young. Adulthood was seen to be a status worth achieving and was understood to be a set of responsibilities worth fulfilling. At least, that's the way it used to be. Now, an entire generation seems to be finding itself locked in the grip of eternal youth, unwilling or unable to grow up. Concern about this phenomenon has been building for some time. Baby-boomer parents are perplexed when their adult-age children move back home, fail to find a job, and appear to be in no hurry to...

If you have reached the age of 25, I have a bit of bad news for you, to wit: it is time, if you have not already done so, for you to emerge from your cocoon of post-adolescent dithering and self-absorption and join the rest of us in the world. Past the quarter-century mark, you see, certain actions, attitudes, and behaviors will simply no longer do, and while it might seem unpleasant to feign a maturity and solicitousness towards others that you may not genuinely feel, it is not only appreciated by others but necessary for your continued survival. Grow...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - (KRT) - Signs of the new normal for young adults seem to be piling up like ripe sweat socks in the bedroom of your 20-something son down the hall. We used to dismiss it as a "slacker" thing - an odd fad, we thought, of a generation that appeared content to take its sweet time before leaving the nest, finishing college, getting married and making commitments their parents began considering at 18. Researchers now prefer the term "adultescence," and they're not kidding. The life stage between the late teens and late 20s is undergoing what many...

On Criticizing A 12-year-old Girl Dennis Prager No column I have written has elicited more hate mail than my last one on the 12-year-old girl who spoke at the Democratic National Convention and publicly ridiculed Vice President Dick Cheney. I have written against same-sex marriage; on behalf of the president's international policies, capital punishment and Israel; argued for the superiority of the Judeo-Christian value system; and even defended divorce. Yet no column has elicited so much anger, use of expletives and foolish thinking. It is clear I hit a deep nerve among many liberals and Democrats. I wrote that this...

<p>Once upon a time, a fellow was considered a mature man at 20 — a guy with a steady job, wife and baby, a little house somewhere.</p> <p>Time and attitude march on, however. Today's twenty-somethings have become reluctant to surrender to the traditional grown-up world, according to a University of Pennsylvania study released Tuesday.</p>

AP) Sunshine filters through the window into her bedroom - a cozy upstairs hideaway with light yellow walls and a blue floral comforter covering a twin bed. It is quiet, even peaceful - maybe too much so for the young woman who resides here. "It's a pretty, little room. But you kind of lose your identity in it. It's not really mine," Amy Powell says, surveying the few belongings that are hers - a laptop, a few framed photos and a weathered notebook filled with the names and addresses of the many employers she's contacted for a job. To say...

When J. M. Barrie wrote PETER PAN, the story of a boy who refused to grow up and lived in a place called "Neverland," he was writing fiction to amuse children. And so, Barrie might be surprised to learn that an increasing number of young "adults" have decided to model themselves after Peter Pan. Only, they're not bothering with the "first star to the left and straight on till morning" part; they're turning cities like New York and London into their own Neverlands. A recent article in the NEW YORK TIMES chronicled the emergence of a new cultural trend. Known...

Survey: Most Say Adulthood Begins at 26 Fri May 9, 3:03 AM ET By MARTHA IRVINE, AP National Writer CHICAGO - The law may imply that you're a grown-up when you're old enough to vote, serve in the military or drink legally. But most Americans really think adulthood begins at age 26, according to a new study from the University of Chicago. The study said most people don't consider a person grown up until they finish school, get a full-time job and start raising a family. Tom W. Smith, who authored the study, said Thursday the results are a sign...