Businessman Hopes for Slice of Imported Bread Sales

--A businessman with a lot of dough and a craving for Russian pumpernickel has struck a deal with the Soviet Union to fly 2,000 loaves a week to New York consumers. “I thought it was an interesting metaphor--breaking bread with the Russians; I call it peace bread,” said Fred Kayden, of Harrison, N.Y., who describes himself as a “retired multimillionaire.” Kayden developed a taste for Russian bread during his business travels, and always brought home a few loaves. “It’s like old-fashioned bread, with no preservatives,” he said. Valery Saikin, chairman of the Moscow city council, arranged the venture with help from Aeroflot and the U.S.-U.S.S.R. Trade and Economic Council. The bread will be served at the Waldorf-Astoria and New York Hilton hotels, as well as at 15 New York area stores at a price of $4 to $5 for a two-pound loaf.

--Former First Lady Nancy Reagan, who according to a spokesman hasn’t had “10 minutes to catch her breath” since moving to Los Angeles in January, has been suffering from “walking pneumonia” but is now on the mend. Mark Weinberg, director of communications for former President Ronald Reagan, said Mrs. Reagan, who has been recovering at home, is “feeling better.” He said that since leaving the White House, Mrs. Reagan has had to unpack and move into their new Bel-Air home and travel to New York to work on her book with biographer William Novak.

--Queen Elizabeth II distributed purses of specially minted “Maundy” money at St. Philip’s Cathedral in Birmingham as part of a centuries-old Easter tradition. The purses, each containing 63 pence ($1.08), were handed out to 63 men and 63 women--one for each year of her life. Each year a different cathedral is chosen for the ceremony, which is always held the Thursday before Easter and dates back to the 12th Century. Originally, the monarch also washed the feet of those who received Maundy money to commemorate Jesus’ washing his disciples’ feet, but this tradition was halted in 1730.

--Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, the first woman to lead a modern Muslim nation, will deliver the commencement address at her alma mater, Harvard University. Bhutto will speak at the university’s 338th commencement on June 8. Bhutto, 35, was graduated from Radcliffe in 1973, formerly the women’s undergraduate college at Harvard which merged with the men’s undergraduate college in 1975. She was only 16 when she was accepted.