NEW DELHI — Angry fans burned a U.S. flag in protest yesterday and a Cabinet minister suggested searching visiting Americans after Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan said he was detained Friday for questioning at a U.S. airport.

Though U.S. immigration officials denied he was formally held, fellow Indian film stars and political leaders condemned what they called "humiliating" treatment given to Khan, a Muslim who is well-loved in a largely Hindu country. One Cabinet minister suggested a "tit-for-tat" policy toward Americans traveling to India.

Khan said he was detained by U.S. immigration officials at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey because his name came up on a computer alert list.

ALLSTATE SPOKESMAN REIMERS DIES AT 96

NEW YORK — Ed Reimers, the actor who told television viewers "you're in good hands with Allstate" for decades, died yesterday in upstate New York, a relative said. He was 96.

Reimers, who also served as an announcer for several TV shows in the 1950s and '60s, died at his daughter's home in Saratoga Springs, said Dean Lindoerfer, his nephew by marriage.

Reimers was Allstate Corp.'s TV spokesman for 22 years, starting in 1957, according to the Northbrook, Ill.-based insurance company's Web site.

'DISTRICT 9' TOPS WEEKEND BOX OFFICE

LOS ANGELES — The first-time director and cast of unknowns of the acclaimed sci-fi thriller "District 9" have given Hollywood a late-summer box-office boost.

The Sony release produced by "Lord of the Rings" director Peter Jackson led the weekend with a $37 million debut, according to studio estimates yesterday.

"District 9" is the debut feature from commercial and music-video director Neill Blomkamp, who co-wrote the tale about extraterrestrials forced by humans to live in squalor in a ghetto in South Africa.

The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, Paramount's "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," slipped to second place with $22.5 million, raising its 10-day total to $98.8 million.

'BIG BROTHER' PRODUCERS EVICT SIMONE

LOS ANGELES — Chima Simone is no longer in the "Big Brother" house. CBS said in a statement Saturday that producers removed the 33-year-old freelance journalist from the reality series for breaking the show's rules. The network also said Simone will not be part of the jury that selects the $500,000 grand prize winner.