We hotel guests were luckier, forced only to navigate the paneled hallway and, with the rushing sounds of the river as background, head to a snug lair at the top of the stairs.

FORBES: Weekend in the Country

Pelley is everything Couric was not: an internal hire, relatively cheap (probably), cast from the traditional anchor mold (read: a white guy with a nice head of hair), with a background primarily in hard news.

FORBES: CBS Plays It Safe with New 'Evening News' Anchor Scott Pelley

In the background, a horse's head peers ominously out of the gloom.

WSJ: Review: Weirdly Wonderful | 'The Angel of the Odd: Dark Romanticism from Goya to Max Ernst' at the Mus��e d'Orsay

From a humble background in Argentina, Jorge Mario Bergoglio has risen to the head of the Roman Catholic Church as Pope Francis.

BBC: Francis celebrates Sistine Chapel Mass with cardinals

Despite all the collective hand-wringing in the background of their financial decisions lately, American car buyers have maintained a pretty level head throughout the last several months of gasoline-price hikes.

FORBES: Recall $5-a-Gallon-Gas Scare? That Was Soooo First-Quarter

In the background the European Commission, the President of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy, the head of the eurozone countries, Jean-Claude Juncker, and the European Central Bank have been preparing proposals for the summit.

BBC: Eurozone crisis: The European divide